[Interview] Park Sang-beom, head of Jaeun Smart Green Onion Farming Cooperative Corporation, the first customer to purchase Daedong’s AI tractor

[Korea Agricultural Technology News=Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] Park Sang-beom (41), head of Jaeun Smart Green Onion Farming Cooperative Corporation, who cultivates 10,000 pyeong of green onions and 2,000 pyeong of onions in Jaeun-myeon, Sinan-gun, is the first customer in the country to purchase Daedong’s AI tractor. Representative Park, a young farmer who has been farming for 10 years this year, previously used a tractor-mounted autonomous driving kit for green onion transplanting work. As such, he is also an expert who knows better than anyone the convenience of autonomous driving technology and the effects of its introduction in the field. The following is a Q&A with Park Sang-beom, the first customer of Daedong’s AI tractor.

[Korea Agricultural Technology News=Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] Park Sang-beom (41), head of Jaeun Smart Green Onion Farming Cooperative Corporation, who cultivates 10,000 pyeong of green onions and 2,000 pyeong of onions in Jaeun-myeon, Sinan-gun, South Jeolla Province, is the first customer in the country to purchase Daedong’s AI tractor. Representative Park, a young farmer who has been farming for 10 years this year, previously used a tractor-mounted autonomous driving kit for green onion transplanting work. As such, he is also an expert who knows better than anyone the convenience of autonomous driving technology and the effects of its introduction in the field. The following is a Q&A with Park Sang-beom, the first customer of Daedong’s AI tractor.

-What is the biggest difference between the autonomous driving kit you used before and this Daedong AI tractor?
"The existing autonomous driving kit was convenient because it mainly focused on straight-line driving, but there was always a slight risk. Since it only moved straight ahead, if the operator was doing something else or looked away for a moment, there could be a frightening situation where the machine failed to stop on its own at the edge of the field and led to an accident. On the other hand, Daedong’s AI tractor is trustworthy in terms of safety. Even if the operator dozes off or fails to pay attention, it safely stops by itself when it reaches the end of the plot, so I can entrust the work to it with peace of mind."

-What effects have you felt in mechanized field-crop work such as green onions or onions?
"Because I plant green onions in a single-row form, it is really important to align the rows neatly. When a person operates it directly, the spacing often becomes narrow or the rows become crooked, and even when working on a riding transplanter, I had to constantly adjust the steering wheel to keep it going straight, which caused tremendous fatigue. But the AI tractor plants them straight and precisely as if cut with a knife, without me having to make that effort. Since the spacing is consistent, unnecessary overlapping at the final edge or in the middle disappears, improving space efficiency, and as a result, I can plant more green onions."
 

-How about in terms of work efficiency or labor fatigue?
"Work efficiency has visibly improved by at least 10%. Previously, a person could plant 4,000 pyeong a day, but now the speed and efficiency are enough to comfortably plant 5,000 to 6,000 pyeong a day. Above all, fatigue has been greatly reduced. If I used to be able to rotary-till 1,000 pyeong a day, now even after doing 2,000 pyeong I feel less tired, enough to move straight on to the next task. Since the tractor drives in a straight line on its own, I can do other work from the driver’s seat or rest comfortably, which doubles work efficiency."

-Is there anything you hope for from the AI tractor in the future or any function you expect?
"I bought it with great expectations after hearing that agricultural machinery would become fully unmanned. It is still in the early stage, so I am using it in a limited way and continuing to learn about its functions, but if AI can learn the field on its own, I think its usability will be limitless. For example, it would be great if the tractor could determine by itself whether rotary tilling was done properly, and if there were any insufficient parts, return to that spot and work again on its own. I am looking forward to perfect unmanned work in which the machine solves even the parts that people unknowingly pass over. In addition, I hope this AI technology will be quickly applied not only to the current large tractors but also to smaller tractors frequently used in the field."