Kubota Unveils Unmanned Fuel-Cell Farm Tractor

Osaka, Sept. 22 (Jiji Press)–Kubota Corp. unveiled a concept model of its unmanned agriculture tractor powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, at the World Exposition in Osaka, a city in western Japan, on Monday. It was the first time for a hydrogen-powered farm machine with a self-driving function to be unveiled. The machine will be on display until Thursday. Consuming oxygen from the air and hydrogen as fuel and emitting only water, the machine is aimed at contributing to decarbonization and boosting labor efficiency, which are global challenges in agriculture. With 100 horsepower, the model is 4.4 meters long, 2.2 meters wide and 2.3 meters high. Able to move not only inside of a field but between fields, it can run for half a day on a single charge. It has no driver’s seat but can be controlled remotely from anywhere within network range. The Japanese company plans to test the model in actual fields, said Isamu Kazama, who is in charge of development of the tractor. Kubota plans to test the self-driving function of the machine and its capability to recognize human or obstacles under various circumstances. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]