The document summarizes a team's final presentation on their autonomous vehicle project called Autonomow. It introduces the 9 team members and their backgrounds. It then describes the team's initial business plan to develop and sell autonomous vehicles for mowing and weeding applications to reduce labor costs. The team conducted extensive customer interviews and research, culminating in the development of a prototype weed-eliminating robot called "Carrotbot" over the course of a week. The presentation outlines the technical challenges and opportunities in weed identification and elimination, and validates a market need among farmers struggling with manual weeding labor. It proposes a business growth path focusing initially on providing an autonomous weeding service to organic vegetable growers.

1. FINAL PRESENTATIONTeam AutonomowENGR-245For further information contact Heraud_Jorge@gsb.stanford.eduConfidential

2. 9 Masters degrees 1 PHD and lots of passionJorge Heraud (MS Management, 2011)Business Unit Director, Agriculture, Trimble NavigationDirector of Engineering, Trimble NavigationMS&E (Stanford), MSEE (Stanford), BSEE (PUCP, Peru) Lee Redden (MSME Robotics, Jun 2011)Research in haptic devices, autonomous systems and surgical robotsBSME (U Nebraska at Lincoln) Family Farms in NebraskaJoe Bingold (MBA, Jun 2011)Head of Product Development for Naval Nuclear Propulsion Plant Control Systems, US NavyMSME (Naval PGS), BSEE (MIT), P.E. in Control SystemsFred Ford (MSME, Mar 2011)Senior Eng for Mechanical Systems on Military SatellitesBS Aerospace Eng (U of Michigan)Uwe Vogt (MBA, Jun 2011)Technical Director & Co-Owner, Sideo Germany (Sub. Vogt Holding)PhD Mechanical Engineering (FAU, Germany)MS Engineering (ETH Zurich, Switzerland)Additionally, we got great help fromMorgan Quigley (PhD in computer vision)Awesome mentorsCarrotbot1.0Confidential

3. Our initial planConfidential

4. Business Plan Autonomous Vehicles for Mowing & WeedingDealers sell, installs and supports customerCo. trains dealers, supports dealers- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer trainingMowing- Owners of public or commercially used green spaces (e.g. golf courses)- Landscaping service providerWeeding- Farmers with manual weeding operationsWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction- Better utilization of assets (eg mow or weed at nights)- Improved performance (less rework, food safety)- Dealers (Mowing and Ag)- Vehicle OEMs (John Deere, Toro, Jacobsen, etc)- Research labs- Mowing Dealers- Ag DealersEngineers on Autonomous vehicles, GPS, path-planningDealer discount COGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Asset saleOur revenue stream derives from selling the equipmentConfidential

5. 20 interviews, 6 site visits…We got OUR Boots dirtyWeedingVisited two farms in Salinas Valley to better understand problemInterviewed:Bolthouse Farms, Large Agri-Industry in Bakersfield

6. White Farms, Large Peanut farmer in Georgia

7. REFCO Farms, large grower in Salinas Valley

8. Rincon Farms, large grower in Salinas Valley

9. Small Organic Corn/Soy grower in Nebraska

10. Heirloom Organics, small owner/operator, Santa Cruz Mts

11. Two small organic farmers at farmers market

12. Ag Services of Salinas, Fertilizer applicatorMowingInterviewed:Golf: Stanford Golf course

13. Parks: Stanford Grounds Supervisor, head of maintenance and lead operator (has crew of 6)

14. Toro dealer (large mower manufacturer)

15. User of back-yard mowing system

16. Maintenance Services for City of Los Altos

17. Colony Landscaping (Mowing service for stadiums)Confidential

18. Hand weed control is a NightmareCrews of 100s neededLabor getting harder to get Back-breaking task2-3 weedings per cropFood contamination risk$250-1,000 per acreConfidential

19. Autonomous vehicles aren’t neededConfidential

20. Autonomous vehiclesWEEDINGDealers sell, installs and supports customerCo. trains dealers, supports dealers- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer training- Low density vegetable growers- High density vegetable growers- Thinning operations- Conventional vegetablesWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction (100 to 1)- Reduced risk of contamination- Mitigate labor availability concerns- Ag Dealers- Ag Service providers- Research labs- Ag Dealers- Ag Service providersEngineers on Machine VisionTwo problems:- Identification- EliminationDealer discount COGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Asset saleOur revenue stream derives from selling the equipmentConfidential

21. Got Lucky – World AG Expo in Tulare, CAJust long Enough to build A Carrotbot! InterviewsGonzales Machine and Forge, Inc., California

22. Integrated Crop Pest Management, California

23. Coastal Tractor, California

24. Ag West Supply, Oregon

25. Martin Kleinschmit, Organic Farmer in Nebraska

26. Burks Tractor, Idaho

27. FISCHER Landtechnik, Germany

28. GARTNER, Land, Forst-und Kommunaltechnik, Germany

29. Fisher Equipment Supply (John Deere Dealer), McMinville, OR

30. Cascade Farm Machinery, Silverton, ORTrip to Tulare, CA for World Ag Expo Built the Data Collection Prototype – “Carrotbot”200 hrs of work

31. Recruited Computer Vision Engineer (Morgan)

32. Interviewed Ken Giles from UC Davis

33. Interviewed David Slaughter from UC DavisVisit Bolthouse farms in Avenal, CAConfidential

34. 1 Week – 1 CarrotBotConfidential

35. Wednesday Thursday Friday SaturdaySunday Monday TuesdayConfidential

36. CarrotBot meets the Carrot FieldWednesdayConfidential

37. Future technical developmentRecognition is on cutting edge but doable

38. Use Hyper-Spectral Imaging

39. Weed elimination needs more work

40. Partner with Ken Giles of UC DavisConfidential

41. World Ag Expo interviews:the need is real and wide spread10+ interviews at showEveryone confirmed the needRobocrop, UK based, crude competitor sells for $171 KRevenue StreamMid to small growers prefer a serviceLarge growers prefer to buy, but OK with service until technology is provenCharging for labor cost saved is OK, as we provide other benefits (food safety, labor availability)Confidential

42. Autonomous weeding - FinalDirect- Provide high quality service at competitive price- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer training- Low density vegetable growers- High density vegetable growers- Thinning operations- Conventional vegetablesWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction (100 to 1)- Reduced risk of contamination- Mitigate labor availability concerns- Ag Service providers- Research Institutes (eg UC Davis, Laser Zentrum Hannover)- 3-4 key farmsDirect - Alliance with service providers- Eventually sell through dealersEngineers on Machine VisionTwo problems:- Identification- EliminationCosts for service provisionCOGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Service provision- Charge by the acre with modifier according to weed density - Eventually move to asset saleConfidential

43. Organics are growing fastDoubled in 4 years but still less than 5% of total

44. Consumers care about fair labor practicesConfidential

45. Veggies Lose against WeedsConfidential

46. But hand weeding is unsustainableConfidential

47. Robotic elimination is 10x cheaper100:1 labor advantageFarmers struggle with labor availabilityHand weeding risks food contaminationConfidential

48. Growth Path For Autonomow

49. We Are starting the company Sep 2011FundingJun 2011GraduationSep2012First unitMar 2011Technology TrackAdvisory board member & minimize riskProof of conceptFirst unitSystem designMarket TrackSelect 1st target cropAdvisory board member & minimize riskGet first customer orderFinance TrackSeries AScreening strategic seed investment by domain expertsConfidential

50. Q&AFor further information contact Heraud_Jorge@GSB.stanford.edu(408) 718 7457Q&A:Confidential

51. Laser solution seems promisingLaser Zentrum HannoverGerman laser research labCurrently studying using lasers for weed controlFindings:Effective and efficientMaximal dose of 5 J mm2CO2 laser better than diodeSource: “Laser Light Beams for Weed Control in Horticulture” C. Woltjen, et. al., LZH

52. UC davisOver 10 years of weed recognition and elimination researchHyper-spectral imagingPrecision spray of hot organic oilDr. David Slaughter, UC DavisSource: “Autonomous robotic weed control systems”, D.C. Slaughter, et. al. Computers & Electronics in Agriculture, 2008

54. Product OfferingDaily rental: All Inclusive Weeding Kit EquipmentTrainer/OperatorLogisticsMaintenance“I like it, because I need to pay for the equipment only when needed. Plus, you guys make sure the technology works“.“I like it, but once the technology is robust, I want to buy.”“I like it, because it allows us to test a new service in different small-acreage environments. Eventually, I want to buy.“Competition does asset sale with mixed success: one of the “Vincents” bought a Robocrop, but cannot operate it.competitor

55. Growth for Organic FarmsTechnology Matures

56. Week 2 – Business CanvasDealers sell, installs and supports customerCo. trains dealers, supports dealers- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer trainingMowing- Owners of public or commercially used green spaces (e.g. golf courses)- Landscaping service providerWeeding- Farmers with manual weeding operationsWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction- Better utilization of assets (eg mow or weed at nights)- Improved performance (less rework, food safety)- Dealers (Mowing and Ag)- Vehicle OEMs (John Deere, Toro, Jacobsen, etc)- Research labs- Mowing Dealers- Ag DealersEngineers on Autonomous vehicles, GPS, path-planningDealer discount COGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Asset saleOur revenue stream derives from selling the equipmentConfidential

57. Autonomous vehiclesWEEDINGDealers sell, installs and supports customerCo. trains dealers, supports dealers- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer training- Low density vegetable growers- High density vegetable growers- Thinning operations- Conventional vegetablesWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction (100 to 1)- Reduced risk of contamination- Mitigate labor availability concerns- Ag Dealers- Ag Service providers- Research labs- Ag Dealers- Ag Service providersEngineers on Machine VisionTwo problems:- Identification- EliminationDealer discount COGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Asset saleOur revenue stream derives from selling the equipmentConfidential

58. The Business Plan Canvas UpdatedTechnology Design

59. Marketing

60. Demo and customer feedback

61. Farming conventions.

62. Demo, demo, and demo!!

63. Proximity is paramount

64. Organic Farmers

65. Weeding Service Providers

66. Conventional Farmers

67. Cost Reduction

68. Remove labor force pains

69. Eliminate bio-waste hazards

70. Research Labs

71. Equipment Manufacturers

72. Distribution Network

73. Service Providers

74. IP – Patents

75. Video Classifier Files

76. Robust Technology

77. Dealers

78. Direct Service

79. Indirect Service

80. … then Dealers

81. Asset Sale

82. Direct Service with equipment rental

83. … then Asset SaleValue-Driven

84. The Business Plan Canvas UpdatedTechnology Design

85. Marketing

86. Demo and customer feedback

87. Farming conventions.

88. Demo, demo, and demo!!

89. Proximity is paramount

90. Mid/Large Organic Farmers

91. Agricultural corporations

92. Weeding Service Providers

93. Mid/Large Conventional Farmers

94. Cost Reduction

95. Remove labor force pains

96. Eliminate bio-waste hazards

97. Research Labs

98. Equipment Manufacturers

99. Distribution Network

100. Service Providers

101. IP – Patents

102. Video Classifier Files

103. Robust Technology

104. Direct Service

105. Indirect Service

106. … then Dealers

107. Direct Service with equipment rental

108. ($1,500/d; 120d/yr )

109. Low density: $1,500/d

110. High density: $6,000/dValue-Driven

111. The Business Plan Canvas UpdatedTechnology Design

112. Marketing

113. Demo and customer feedback

114. Farming conventions.

115. Demo, demo, and demo!!

116. Proximity is paramount

117. Mid/Large Organic Farmers

118. Agricultural corporations

119. Weeding Service Providers

120. Mid/Large Conventional Farmers

121. Research Labs

122. Equipment Manufacturer

123. Distribution Network

124. Service Providers

125. 2 or 3 Key Farms

126. Cost Reduction

127. Remove labor force pains

128. Eliminate bio-waste hazards

129. IP – Patents

130. Video Classifier Files

131. Robust Technology

132. Direct Service

133. Indirect Service

134. … then Dealers

135. Direct Service with equipment rental

136. Low density: $1,500/d

137. High density: $6,000/dValue-Driven R&D

138. Bill of Materials

139. Training & Service

140. SalesAutonomous weeding - FinalDirect- Provide high quality service at competitive price- Innovation- Customer Education- Dealer training- Low density vegetable growers- High density vegetable growers- Thinning operations- Conventional vegetablesWe reduce operating cost- Labor reduction (100 to 1)- Reduced risk of contamination- Mitigate labor availability concerns- Ag Service providers- Research Institutes (eg UC Davis, Laser Zentrum Hannover)- 3-4 key farmsDirect - Alliance with service providers- Eventually sell through dealersEngineers on Machine VisionTwo problems:- Identification- EliminationCosts for service provisionCOGS seek a 50-60% Gross MarginHeavy R&D investment Service provision- Charge by the acre with modifier according to weed density - Eventually move to asset saleConfidential