Robot Sprays Pesticides and AI Diagnoses Pests and Diseases... 'NIAST Outstanding Achievements'

RDA, '2023 Agricultural Science and Technology Achievement Sharing Conference'

Autonomous robots that weed, spray pesticides, and transport harvests on their own, as well as agricultural science and technology that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose pest and disease infections from photos and provide treatment methods, have been selected as excellent achievements by the Rural Development Administration (RDA).

The RDA held the "2023 Agricultural Science and Technology Excellence Achievement Sharing Conference" on the 7th at the aT Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul, to introduce these agricultural research and development achievements.

On the 7th, the Rural Development Administration held the '2023 Agricultural Science and Technology Excellence Sharing Conference' at the aT Center in Seocho-gu, Seoul.

The Excellence Achievement Sharing Conference is an event to share innovative achievements developed through rural development projects, set directions for basic science and convergence practical research, and to award and encourage outstanding individuals.

On this day, based on expert opinions in the agricultural field and public surveys, a total of 15 excellent achievements selected from the categories of ▲industrial basic research ▲future growth basic research ▲field application ▲public sector were announced and awarded.

First, in the industrial basic research category (2 cases), smart mechanization and automation technologies that make agricultural sites safer and more convenient, and Korean beef aging technology that enhances taste and flavor were selected.

The weeding robot developed by the RDA uses a high-precision satellite navigation system (RTK-GNSS) to create a work path in advance and autonomously drives based on this path, physically performing weeding with a weeding blade attached to the robot. When obstacles are present, it recognizes them using video devices or LiDAR sensors and resumes work after the obstacles are removed. The transport robot currently under development uses LiDAR sensors to unmannedly transport harvests, farming tools, snacks, and more to desired locations. Additionally, the RDA has advanced the previously developed pest control robot that autonomously sprays pesticides only on fruit trees by electrifying the autonomous driving device, enabling automatic charging of pesticides and batteries (moving autonomously to the pesticide refill point and returning to the last work location), and coordinating work with the transport robot.

An RDA official said, "Recently, due to the decrease and aging of the agricultural population, a major issue of rural extinction has been raised," adding, "Agricultural robots incorporating robot technology are expected to gradually resolve challenges faced by rural areas such as carbon neutrality and labor replacement, lead the presentation of future agricultural models, and play a leading role in realizing unmanned farming operations."

In the future growth basic research category, four achievements were selected, including strengthening R&D competitiveness through the introduction of supercomputers, development of pig organoids (mini organs) and gene-edited pigs as alternatives to animal testing, shortening the development period of wheat varieties using speed breeding technology, and establishing a fermentation microorganism-based platform to secure biological sovereignty.

In the field application category (4 cases), achievements include a convergence pest and disease diagnosis app, farm-level weather disaster alert service, K-agricultural product exports using CA containers, and technology to mitigate low-temperature damage in Korean melons.

A visitor attending the 2023 Agricultural Science and Technology Excellence Sharing Conference is examining the AI-integrated pest and disease diagnosis app.

The AI convergence pest and disease diagnosis app not only diagnoses pests and diseases but also provides solutions. The AI pest and disease image diagnosis technology was developed to be available as a real-time app service in farming fields. When a photo is taken, AI immediately diagnoses whether pests or diseases are present. The RDA conducted pilot operations at 156 city and county technology centers and demonstrated pest and disease diagnosis, showing an average accuracy of 96.6% for AI image diagnosis. Accuracy was especially high for chili peppers at 99.4% and apples at 98.5%.

Research achievements in the public sector include replacing imported wheat with domestic powdered rice, methane gas reduction rice variety 'Miryang 360', eco-friendly packaging materials using mushroom substrates, livestock product safety diagnostic sensors, and distribution of high-quality domestic rice seeds to alleviate food shortages in Africa, totaling five cases.

The Rural Development Administration is striving to overcome difficulties faced by agriculture and rural areas through agricultural technology based on the vision of "Vibrant Agriculture and Rural Areas Created by Science and Technology for a Better Future." To this end, it has established four strategic goals: ▲industrialization of future agricultural growth ▲sustainable agriculture ▲realization of vibrant rural communities ▲and realization of a happy life for the people, focusing on producing research and development outcomes that the public can feel.

Jo Jae-ho, Administrator of the RDA, said, "As we wrap up 2023, I hope this achievement sharing conference will be an opportunity to strengthen cooperation and communication in agricultural research and development," adding, "The RDA will lead innovation in agricultural science and technology for the industrialization of future agricultural growth, food security, and sustainable agriculture."