GINZA FARM INC.
Initial Report
GINZAFARM INC, started the project at Tokyo Metropolitan Oshima High School on Wednesday, August 24, 2022.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government is promoting technical support and
popularization measures to realize "smart agriculture" that can
respond to rising temperatures and adverse weather conditions, as well
as securing and nurturing farmers to establish next-generation
industries. Under such circumstances, Oshima High School will examine
the possibility of improving efficiency and sophistication in the
agricultural field by utilizing advanced technology.
Specifically,
in this project, we will utilize a pesticide spraying robot and a poultry
house management robot at Oshima High School, and we will examine the physical
load of each work, the effect of reducing the required time and changes
in students' awareness of agriculture through a questionnaire survey.
The project is scheduled to be implemented by the end of January 2023.
Final Report
The project of GINZAFARM was completed in January 2023 at Tokyo Metropolitan Oshima High School.
GINZAFARM INC. has provided teachers and students at Oshima High School with agricultural work using its smart agribot "FARBOT." By providing opportunities to experience smart agricultural technology using communications, we have verified the effects of improving productivity of agricultural work, improving the attractiveness of agriculture, and improving understanding of smart agricultural technology.
In order to verify the effectiveness of the program, teachers and students were asked to measure their working hours when using "FARBOT" and to use a questionnaire on smart farming to evaluate the possibility that not only those interested in farming but also young people who are not interested in farming may be interested in farming as a career option.
First, the productivity improvement effect of agricultural work was verified by comparing working hours in pesticide application and crop management. By comparing the time required for each task between manpower and the use of "FARBOT," the effect of the use of "FARBOT" on the reduction of agricultural work time was verified. The students and teachers who conducted the operation experience commented that "the physical and mental load is greatly reduced" because there is no need to wear protective clothing in the hot sun and no need to tow a hose.
Comparison of pesticide application work hours (Average, N=6)
Comparison of cultivation management work hours (Measured by representative students*)
*There are times when sufficient video transmission cannot be seen due to the network. Measurements were performed on the representative students who operated most smoothly.
In order to improve the willingness to work in the agricultural industry and the understanding of smart agricultural technology, we conducted a survey before and after using "FARBOT."
In the pre-survey, half of the students in agriculture and forestry felt uncertain about the future of agriculture, but in the post-survey, all of the students answered that the future of agriculture is bright due to the use of smart agriculture. In the pre-survey, 90% of the students answered “very much” or “yes” to the attractiveness of agriculture as a career, and even in post-survey, all students answered that the attractiveness of agriculture had increased due to the use of smart agriculture. This confirms the possibility that smart agriculture, such as "FARBOT," will contribute to improving the attractiveness of agriculture.
Pre-survey (N=10)
Post survey (N=7)
In addition, 40% of the students answered "normal" about the attractiveness of smart agriculture in the pre-survey, while all students answered "I would like to use robots" in the post-survey. Before the use of "FARBOT," some students were not attracted to smart agriculture, but after the use, they probably understood the practicality of the technology.
In response to the question, "Please tell us how you feel about smart farming," students responded positively to the use of advanced technology in agriculture, such as "It was fun to operate," "It was easy and easy to do," and "I thought the decline could be avoided a little bit if robots become familiar to farmers. It is especially good for Oshima. I think there is a demand."
Based on the above results, we believe that the "FARBOT" provided by GINZAFARM Inc. is highly useful in verifying the improvement of agricultural productivity, the attractiveness of agriculture, and the understanding of smart agricultural technologies through the use of cutting-edge technologies.
On the other hand, there were some key product improvements, such as the varying speed of robot operation among students and the disruption of video due to network failure in the camera on the robot, and the necessary measures for dissemination were also organized.
*Information on the end date of the Project completion (as of January
2023).
As of September 29, 2023 (the date of HP renewal), the company
was bankrupt.
