Story of Odd.Bot
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The Weed Whacker
Sustainable alternative against weeds
Martijn Lukaart of Odd.Bot did not have to think long about where to develop his innovative Weed Whacker. After all, the bottom of the former Zuiderzee offers plenty of opportunities for this entrepreneur. 'Flevoland is the hotspot for organic farming. There is still plenty of manual weeding in this sector.'
Robot - tackles weeds
Clean and less labour-intensive
Weeds. Farmers usually deal with these with chemical pesticides such as herbicides or remove them by hand (organic farmers). The Weed Whacker is a sustainable alternative against weeds. 'This robot uses cameras to image and remove each individual plant in the rows itself. Technology has now advanced to the point where the robot can tell the difference between weeds and crops. That is one of the differences from the robotic hoeing machines that are already there,' Martijn explains.
Testing and development
Martijn developed the first prototype of the Weed Whacker together with six students from TU Delft, all from different fields of study. This was followed by funding from the POC fund by the regional development company Horizon Flevoland. 'This season, we are going to further test and develop the robot.'
Agricultural centre of the Netherlands
Flevoland is ideally suited for this, says Martijn. 'Not only do we have all the space on our trial fields at the Farm of the Future, our customers are also in this region. They can't wait until the robot is on the market. It is becoming increasingly difficult to find staff willing to remove weeds. I like that the farmers think along with us, are critical and especially the Flevoland mentality really appeals to me. People here are very "down to earth"'.
Flevoland - room for innovation
Large network
This is what makes his heart beat faster: coming up with new solutions. Having an idea, developing it further and then bringing it to market. 'I love that pioneering phase.' That naturally suits Flevoland: man-made land built by tough men. 'It is pleasant doing business in Flevoland. We still benefit most from our network. Thanks to Horizon and the Farm of the Future, we come into contact with many arable farmers and other entrepreneurs. And don't forget the Smart Innovation Hub in Almere. There we can spar wonderfully with other entrepreneurs and that produces a nice cross-pollination.'
