Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - June 2023 - 22

EXECUTIVE VIEWPOINTS
Danfoss partners with LeiShen Intelligent System Co. (LSLIDAR)
to incorporate its hybrid solid-state lidar scanners, which feature
a spin prism to achieve the scanner while the laser emitter and
receiver are static, reportedly improving operation under highvibration
conditions.
This compelling market need is the first reason agriCalifornia-based
startup Vinergy developed an autonomous cart that eliminates
the need for workers to push wheelbarrows full of grapes down long rows to a
central collection point.
in vehicle autonomy. But in on-highway, there's really not a need for
these capabilities, aside from perhaps long-haul trucking. Passenger
cars are utility vehicles; they move people from one place to another.
Automating a car does not remove the need for a human to be in it.
And there's not much value in replacing human taxi drivers, which
are currently plentiful.
This contrasts greatly with agriculture, where there is not just a
shortage of workers, but a shortage of experienced workers.
According to the USDA, the number of H-2A temporary farm worker
positions requested and approved increased more than seven times
over the past 17 years, from about 48,000 positions in 2005 to about
371,000 in 2022 - a clear indicator of the scarcity of farm labor.
These laborers don't stay employed at farms year-round; they arrive
for the harvest then move on. The following cycle tends to bring in
new workers, so the experience doesn't remain at farms.
How is it possible to address food waste at the same time as the
labor challenge? The answer lies in improving machine and operator
productivity, a key benefit of autonomy. This is critical for crops that
require hand-picking, which include all 10 of the country's most popular
fruits and seven of the top 10 vegetables. Autonomy enables
workers to focus on the critical task of picking while machines handle
processes such as collection and transportation of the harvest
through the field or orchard.
Such technology has already been commercialized. Vinergy, a
California-based startup, developed an autonomous cart that eliminates
the need for workers to push wheelbarrows full of grapes
down long rows to a central collection point. Instead, crews are
freed to pick the grapes, lightening the load for seasonal employees
while driving up productivity by as much as 30%.
22 June 2023
culture will automate before on-highway. The second
is lower technological complexity. In agriculture, the
speed at which vehicles travel is much slower than in
on-highway, allowing OEMs to leverage existing technologies
for safety. The environment also presents
fewer variables. In a field, there are no crosswalks or
cyclists and far fewer vehicles; the environment is
more defined. It does not mean autonomy is easy, but
it is certainly easier.
The third reason is greater adoption. For motorists,
the value proposition of autonomous functionality
tends to be low. They may also perceive the technology
to be high risk. Self-driving capability is not typically
a requirement for consumers in the market for a
new vehicle, at least not today. Conversely, farmers are
actively seeking out features that make machines
more productive and precise because it drives faster
return on investment. For a machine in operation eight
to 16 hours or more each day, significant payback is
available in a matter of years.
The regulatory environment also comes into play.
With on-highway vehicles, the individual regulations of
cities, states and countries will force the autonomy
gap to widen, whereas some agriculture standards
already exist as the sector moves toward a defined set
of regulations.
How agriculture will automate
Discussions of autonomy in mainstream media tend to
focus on self-driving capabilities. The reality is more nuanced
than that. In agriculture, as in other industries, there
are five defined levels of autonomy (similar to but different
than the recognized SAE levels for on-road vehicles):
Level 1: Driver still controls most functions. Specific
functions, such as steering, can be undertaken by the
machine upon the operator's direction.
TRUCK & OFF-HIGHWAY ENGINEERING
FROM LEFT: DANFOSS; LSLIDAR
Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - June 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - June 2023
