December 3 news, according to foreign media FastCompany reported, an indoor cultivation company called Iron Ox ready to fully equipped with robot workers for their own greenhouse. In a warehouse in the middle of San Francisco's southern suburbs of San Carlos, hundreds of lettuce and herbs grow alongside a mobile robot. In a nearby laboratory, engineers are taming robots that can handle the entire planting process, from seeding seeds to packing mature lettuces to grocery stores. By early 2018, the startup company behind the farm, Iron Ox, plans to open a production farm of more than 700 square meters nearby. According to the company's vision, the farm will be fully automated and at the same cost as traditional agriculture in the farmland. When the two co-founders decided to start the startup, one of the X innovation labs at Google’s Alphabet company participated in the development of delivery drones, while the other was building room service robots for the hotel. They like the work they do, but they also want to do more with the available technology. "Robots have made great progress in the past few years - sensors have become cheaper and software has become more powerful." Brandon Alexander, co-founder and CEO of Iron Ox, said, "We Think you have the ability to do something more influential.†They saw opportunities in the food production field. At present, traditional agriculture faces multiple challenges. For example, most of the lettuce grows in California and Arizona, and the two states are now facing increasing risks of water shortages and the high temperature pressure from climate change. Lettuce may be sprayed with nine different pesticides before harvest, and hundreds of thousands or even thousands of miles must be shipped to reach consumers throughout the United States. As the population engaged in agriculture decreases, producers are also trapped in the problem of labor shortage. Indoor planting requires much less water and space than traditional planting, and it does not require pesticides. There are no geographical restrictions. But after investigating the market, Alexander and another co-founder, Jon Binney, recognized that cost is a big challenge. “We really like the idea of ​​greenhouse planting,†Alexander said. “But our problem is that if this is much better, then why are most agricultural products grown outdoors? We found that the biggest problem is that of indoor planting. The cost of lettuce is much higher than outdoor planting - at least twice as much as the latter. Another Silicon Valley agricultural startup, Plenty, recently received $200 million in financing, which seeks to maximize small-scale harvests by increasing space utilization. Iron Ox's approach is to focus on eliminating another cost: labor. For some growers, labor can account for half of the entire production cost. At present, the cost of lettuce grown in some greenhouses may reach $3.99, while the same cost of lettuce from farmland costs only $1.99. "After all, if your product cost is always higher than others, then it can only be a niche product." Alexander said, "In order to achieve the kind of influence we are seeking, we have to do the most important thing The first is that we need to make this type of agricultural product available. It's not just about affordable prices - it's just a fraction of the price - but it means it's affordable and it can be purchased. It's for everyone It is an ideal situation." In the company's system, the robotic arm will be on a compact tray. There, the seeds will sprout in nutrient-filled water. As the plant grows, the robotic arm transfers it to a larger tray and transfers it again after a few weeks. Transferring those plants maximizes the number of plants that can grow in a narrow space. The robotic arm also uses the camera to scan each plant and find any problems. "We can actually observe whether the plant is normal in size, the color is normal, there are no pests, mildew or anything else on it," Alexander said. Plants with molds that are prone to spread can be removed automatically. Those robots can use machine learning techniques and gradually learn to optimize plant growth. Iron Ox's new production farm is not the first lettuce farm to use an automated system; in Japan, a new factory uses robots to produce millions of lettuce every year. However, the external conditions required for the new system in Silicon Valley are more flexible and have a higher level of automation. "That Japanese farm is very suitable for a fixed operating process: 'We will grow this kind of lettuce in this way, we will do that kind of planting in the next 20 years.'" Alexander said, "We are trying to use as little as possible In the end, all we really need is concrete floor. All our modules, these hydroponic trays, are very light. We have mobile robots.†If the company wants to use a more efficient layout in the future, or change its Operation, it can accomplish those changes through software. With the expansion of the first production farm in San Carlos, the start-up company will sell crops to local chefs who are optimistic about their sustainability. When the output is high enough, it will also be sold to grocery stores. . Ultimately, the company envisions opening farms near consumers across the United States, so grocery stores in Atlanta and elsewhere will no longer need to purchase green crops from California that have been produced for a week. Iron Ox also plans to expand to other farming items. (Lebang)