Yamaha announced their plans to release their new agricultural multi-rotor drone model, YMR-01, in 2018. The company shared this information at the Next Generation Agricultural Expo Tokyo and left the audience both shocked and impressed by Yamaha’s first multicopter.
Since 1989, Yamaha has been developing unmanned vehicles for use in the field of agriculture; their efforts led to them helping the Japanese rice industry, as their technology is responsible for over 40% of paddy cultivation. Yamaha’s drones are used across the world, including New Zealand, Australia, Korea, Thailand, and the United States.
Yamaha continued to improve upon their technology so that their drones could remain competitive, and this proved beneficial for them since drones have become more important in the last decade. The YMR-01 is a gorgeous piece of technology that will undoubtedly help manage crops across the world, as it is easy to use and is efficient, and can spray chemicals on crops quickly and efficiently.
The most innovative feature of the YMR-01 is that two of its axles are vertical coaxial rotors, which creates downward air currents. The drone’s spray nozzles are positioned so that the air currents ensure that the spray is distributed uniformly in a continuous stream, allowing chemicals to reach the ground and permeate the soil deep enough to reach the roots of plants. The drone is so efficient that it can spray chemicals at the rate of a hectare per flight, making it a blessing to farmers who use it.
The drone’s body is made of a light yet hardy monocoque shell, and the drone is also equipped with a double air intake design to keep the interior from overheating. The landing gear has also been improved so as to lessen the impact on the drone itself.
The YMR-01 is expected to be extremely beneficial to agriculture, and Yamaha is expecting a warm reception from customers. Drones have become more important in the agricultural industry, particularly amongst farmers who own smaller properties that do not need helicopters to spray agrochemicals on their crops. The use of unmanned technology allows for a decrease in manual labour, all while maintaining, or improving, crop quality and yields.
