Robot tractors will be permitted to travel on public roads without anyone aboard in Tokachi under a special-zone decision taken by the Japanese government on Thursday (September 10).
The decision covers 19 municipalities in the region, including the city of Obihiro, in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost prefecture.
They will be designated as national strategic special zones to promote agriculture powered by artificial intelligence (AI).
At present, every self-driving robot tractor must still carry an operator when using a public road, including during journeys from a warehouse to a field.
As a result, farms covering vast areas need one person for each machine when several tractors are deployed, reducing the labour-saving benefits of automation.
AloJapan.com