How Robotic Hives and AI Are Lowering the Risk of Bee Colony Collapse (phys.org) 14
alternative_right shares a report from Phys.Org: The unit -- dubbed a BeeHome -- is an industrial upgrade from the standard wooden beehives, all clad in white metal and solar panels. Inside sits a high-tech scanner and robotic arm powered by artificial intelligence. Roughly 300,000 of these units are in use across the U.S., scattered across fields of almond, canola, pistachios and other crops that require pollination to grow. [...] AI and robotics are able to replace "90% of what a beekeeper would do in the field," said Beewise Chief Executive Officer and co-founder Saar Safra. The question is whether beekeepers are willing to switch out what's been tried and true equipment. [...]
While a new hive design alone isn't enough to save bees, Beewise's robotic hives help cut down on losses by providing a near-constant stream of information on colony health in real time -- and give beekeepers the ability to respond to issues. Equipped with a camera and a robotic arm, they're able to regularly snap images of the frames inside the BeeHome, which Safra likened to an MRI. The amount of data they capture is staggering. Each frame contains up to 6,000 cells where bees can, among other things, gestate larvae or store honey and pollen. A hive contains up to 15 frames and a BeeHome can hold up to 10 hives, providing thousands of data points for Beewise's AI to analyze.
While a trained beekeeper can quickly look at a frame and assess its health, AI can do it even faster, as well as take in information on individual bees in the photos. Should AI spot a warning sign, such as a dearth of new larvae or the presence of mites, beekeepers will get an update on an app that a colony requires attention. The company's technology earned it a BloombergNEF Pioneers award earlier this year. "There's other technologies that we've tried that can give us some of those metrics as well, but it's really a look in the rearview mirror," [said Zac Ellis, the senior director of agronomy at OFI, a global food and ingredient seller]. "What really attracted us to Beewise is their ability to not only understand what's happening in that hive, but to actually act on those different metrics."
While a new hive design alone isn't enough to save bees, Beewise's robotic hives help cut down on losses by providing a near-constant stream of information on colony health in real time -- and give beekeepers the ability to respond to issues. Equipped with a camera and a robotic arm, they're able to regularly snap images of the frames inside the BeeHome, which Safra likened to an MRI. The amount of data they capture is staggering. Each frame contains up to 6,000 cells where bees can, among other things, gestate larvae or store honey and pollen. A hive contains up to 15 frames and a BeeHome can hold up to 10 hives, providing thousands of data points for Beewise's AI to analyze.
While a trained beekeeper can quickly look at a frame and assess its health, AI can do it even faster, as well as take in information on individual bees in the photos. Should AI spot a warning sign, such as a dearth of new larvae or the presence of mites, beekeepers will get an update on an app that a colony requires attention. The company's technology earned it a BloombergNEF Pioneers award earlier this year. "There's other technologies that we've tried that can give us some of those metrics as well, but it's really a look in the rearview mirror," [said Zac Ellis, the senior director of agronomy at OFI, a global food and ingredient seller]. "What really attracted us to Beewise is their ability to not only understand what's happening in that hive, but to actually act on those different metrics."
Are these things RoundUp Ready (c)(tm)(r) ? (Score:1)
Because that is where the real problem arises from....
Re: (Score:2)
The best correlation between the presence and absence of CCD is varroa. CCD is probably not single cause, but if you had to pick only one, varroa is that one.
And glyphosate is probably WAY down on the list. At least pick an insecticide as your culprit.
Solution looking for the wrong problem (Score:2)
... providing a near-constant stream of information on colony health in real time
What use is this information if we already know that pollution is the problem and that the pollution problem won't be solved?
This only yields an uninteresting sequel to the Spy Hard films: Spy Hard with a Sting
Re:Solution looking for the wrong problem (Score:4, Interesting)
There is little correlation between "presence or absence of pollution" (what a general term to begin with...) and CCD. There is a strong correlation with the presence / absence of varroa. And this system treats varroa.
I've been thinking about getting into beekeeping (I first need to increase the accessibility of my ravine where they'd be), and had been thinking about a sort of high tech solution, with electric blankets, heat-exchanging baffles, a flow hive, and maybe some mass and/or noise sensors for monitoring colony health. But this is WAY more high-tech than I envisioned, and honestly I'm scared to even look up the price ;)
Re: (Score:2)
ED: Looks like it's 24(!) hives per beehome, and they charge $2k delivery ($83/hive) plus $400/mo ($400/hive/yr) for maintenance.
Clearly not something of use to amateurs, and I'm not sure whether you can make that economics work out for professionals, either. I guess it depends on how truly independent it is, vs. your local labour costs.
Re: (Score:3)
Socio Economic Collapse Is Coming (Score:2)
AI and robotics are able to replace "90% of what a beekeeper would do in the field"
AKA - Keep Calm and Carry on Polluting.
#KnowThis
There is only a 5% chance we are going to switch trajectory from complete collapse to buying ourselves a couple more decades.
These types of #Greenwash projects which seek to continue business as usual - that which we know is killing us. A lifeless planet is just that.
I am constantly bemused by the idiocy of humans who fawn over mythincal shiny new technologies having blind faith
Re: (Score:2)
You are DEFINITELY fucked.
Re: (Score:3)
With your lack of hope, you're not exactly part of any solution either.
I also think you're wrong. I think you're overestimating the speed and inevitability of total destruction and you're also not cognizant enough of how the human psyche works.
TLDR: (Score:2)
they don't.
Re: (Score:2)
they don't.
Plus, executing an action based on the results of a scan isn't AI. I used to work in defect and yield management for silicon chip creation. Once our system detected the chips had a set number of defects, we'd send an alert to have the equipment re-calibrated. That isn't AI, just pattern recognition. It's not like this beehive "AI" can come up with its own unique solution to a problem.
Human Cities (Score:1)
A mess just waiting to happen (Score:3)
I am a beekeeper and let me tell you bees know how to stick things together. Burr comb? Stuck frames. Propolis? Stuck frames. Entire hives get encased in these sticky substances as the bees adjust their home to their liking, not my liking. How will these robotic parts keep up with random glue virtually welding frames of comb in place, or better yet, sticking the robotic arms together? I would really like to see if they even addressed this problem because it takes quite a bit of force to remove stuck frames and this robot does not look up to the task!