Farm Researchers Are Using Military Face-Recognition Software to Inspect Grapes

The robot scans the stalks of sorghum, photographs them, looking for disease. It uses laser scanning to estimate their height and volume. And, every now and then, it reaches out a robotic arm, grabs hold of one of the stalks, and stabs it with a probe to measure the thickness of the rind. Welcome to the farm of the future. This little robo-farmer is just one project developed by FarmView, a multidisciplinary, multi-institution effort to put advanced technology to use on the farm.