Can AI help feed the world? The future of food is here
A Q&A with Professor Dan Zhang, Research Chair in Advanced Robotics and Mechatronics at Lassonde
We’ve all heard it before: Artificial Intelligence is coming and robots will soon take over. However, machine learning advances continue to improve our lives, improving efficiency in many industries: health, automotive, agriculture and others.
If robots are indeed taking over, they are doing so while helping us solve some major problems, and hopefully some big ones in the future such as climate change, population growth, and food security concerns. In recent years the agriculture industry has been seeking more innovative approaches to protecting and improving crop yield. As a result, AI is steadily emerging as part of the industry’s technological evolution, regardless of the many implications and uncertainty.
Professor Dan Zhang is a Professor at the Lassonde School of Engineering, a Research Chair in Advanced Robotics and Mechatronics, and he has recently published a book, Robotics and Mechatronics for Agriculture.
In this interview, Dr. Zhang agreed to sit down with us to answer some questions about AI, robot-building for agriculture and the future of growing food.
Q: Over the last 20 years, how has the evolution of high-tech changed agriculture?
A: Intelligent mechanical automation technologies, such as the UAV and drone fertilization and the grafting robot, have significantly improved the efficiency of agricultural production and saved the cost of human resources. In recent decades, the development of robotics has made a significant contribution to the increase in agricultural income.
Q: What societal issues do you see AI primarily solving?
A: AI is playing an essential role in every field of society and is solving many social problems. For example, in the manufacturing field, AI combined with robots to engage in high-risk, high-intensity tasks. Besides, the factory with AI, known as an original factory, improves the production efficiency of industrial products and reduces the cost of production. In the medical field, it can help parse medical images, assist surgical operation, build an artificial neural network to aid doctors in clinical diagnosis and decision-making, all of which improve the cure rate of the disease and prolonging the lifespan of a human.
Q: Can you give us an overview of your current work in this area?
A: As a researcher in Robotics and Automation, I am developing a robust technology for designing and managing a robotic manufacturing system to improve the system’s overall performance.
My work will develop a general design methodology for optimizing the performance of robotic systems. The outcomes of the research will lead to improved manufacturing capabilities, resulting in higher efficiencies and cost savings for manufacturing industries. Advanced methodologies and processes for better control and performance of robots are essential for realizing the full potential of this technology.
My research work on performance improvement of manufacturing robotic systems will be implemented with consideration of the performance measures of accuracy, load capacity, task adaptability, and robotic system reliability. My robotic systems are flexible, resilient and precise.
The research I am conducting will be beneficial to manufacturing industries, helping with increased quality, performance and flexibility, as well as via lower costs and lead time. These advancements have the potential to positively impact industries such as automotive and aerospace manufacturing.
Q: You recently published the book Robotics and Mechatronics for Agriculture (CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, 2018). Why is this subject important?
A: We want to make people aware of the importance of agricultural mechanization and automation to solve the problems of modern agriculture. Robots in agriculture will help the economy, regular people and farmers. This is a huge impact.
Q: Why should the farming industry embrace AI?
A: The research and application of AI in the field of agriculture include intelligent robots that help with farming, sowing and picking.There are intelligent identification systems such as intelligent soil detection, disease detection, pest detection, and climate disaster warning.
These applications are helping farmers to increase output, improve efficiency, and reduce the use of pesticides and fertilizers. They will change the future of farming and the future of food.
