In response to labor shortages and the aging population in agriculture, as well as to enhance working efficiency, production techniques, and industry competitiveness, we have researched and developed various labor-saving cultivation machinery, agricultural product processing machinery, also water and energy-saving equipment. Furthermore, to promote these applications to farmers.

Labor-saving cultivation machines

1. Electric Fertilizer Spreaders
   
   The electric fertilizer spreader uses centrifugal air-blowing to distribute fertilizer. It prevents bridging with a rotating agitator in the hopper. The discharge system has three switches for precise downward, left, and right distribution, with flow rate adjustment. Efficiency increases fourfold, using 440 Wh/hr. Compared to similar fossil fuel engines, it reduces carbon emissions by 71%. The front-wheel design with an electric motor allows easy movement, and the rear wheels come in single or double configurations. It suits row vegetable gardens and orchards, reducing labor, increasing efficiency, saving energy and reducing carbon emissions.
    
2. Gravel and medium separation processing machine for orchid
   
   The machine comprised an adjustable-speed drum with perforations and related components. People put plants into the rotating drum where the agitation detaches the gravel that will be sifted out through the drum's perforations. Meanwhile, the tilted design and spiral arrangement of cylindrical iron rods inside the drum propel the plants backward. There are two types: one is hand-push type which has four supporting wheels and is driven by an AC motor. It concentrates the sifted gravel into a conical hopper, then is transferred via an inclined conveyor belt. The other is mounted on a farm-land carrying car and driven by the car’s engine through a gearbox to make the drum rotate. Then, the separated gravel is conveyed laterally via a conveyor. With machine assisting, the efficiency is three times faster than manual operation.
    
3. Attached two-row taro seedling transplanter
   
   The attached two-row taro seedling transplanter which has two pairs of transplanting parts and seedling stand adopts a team of 3 workers, one drives the tractor, the other two workers supply the taro seedlings. The seedling stand can carry 2,000 taro seedlings. The transplanter starts to break soil, trenching, clamping up seedling down to the trench, and covering soil twice, then two workers sit behind the transplanter give seedlings to the clamp within 3 seconds. It can not only enhance the seedling planting efficiency up to 23.1% compared with one person but also avoid the injuries by bending over while planting. The planting distance in row can be adjusted to the range of 60-80 cm, and the space can be adjusted by changing different gears and clamp numbers with 12 combinations as well. In addition, there were not significant differences on horticultural traits, yield and harvest quality of taro between mechanical and manual transplanting. The output increased by 3.3% compared with manual production.
    
4. Tomato seedling grafting auxiliary machine
   
   Grafting is a highly technical skill that requires professional training. During peak seasons, there was a risk of labor shortages of causing operational bottleneck. And manual grafting is labor-intensive, straining, and time-consuming. The key grafting techniques involve the scions and rootstocks slant-cutting, the graft union securing. The machine consists of mechanisms for scions and rootstocks slant-cutting, grafting clip union, also electrical control components. In comparison to manual grafting, people don’t need to take blade for cutting or handling grafting clips for fixing union. It ensures a stable slant-cut angle, then automatically supply and apply grafting clips so that unskilled operators can be trained in a short time. Compared to manual operation, it has similar success and completion rates.
    
5. Tomato seedling grafting auxiliary machine with Conveyor
   
   To extend the research of tomato seedling grafting auxiliary machine, a conveyor belt and sub-station workbench are added to construct the workflow which is standardization, scaling, and standardization. The grafting machine requires 4 people, and its success rate is 97%, the survival rate is 92%, and the average grafting is 3.4 plants/sec. It takes 5 minutes 53seconds to complete 1 tray grafted seedlings.
    
6. Electric self-propelled lifting carrier
   
   The lifting carrier driving by one DC motor for moving and one hydraulic device for lifting that powered by 2 batteries. Its lifting height is about 80c m, loading capacity is more than 200 kg. The working efficiency is 3 times faster than that of the manual. Full charged batteries can be used for 2-4 days. It is good for high-stem crop cultivation and harvesting in greenhouse. Till 2016, extension result was cumulated total about 220 units that got output value about NT$20 million.
    
7. Ride type fertilizing machine for orchard
   
   This fertilizing machine was 4 wheel driving and four-wheel steering, power by a single cylinder diesel engine. The sand-like fertilizer was auger-pushed to the centrifugal turntable, and drop on ground under the canopy. The spread volume, direction and angle can be adjusted. The working efficiency is 5 times faster than that of the manual that was 80% labor-saving.
    
8. Push type fertilizing machine
   
   The simple fertilizing device can spread organic fertilizer with granular or powdered form in labor-saving, none machine power and none exhaust gas pollution. The position and height of operation handle can be adjusted for pull or push mode. The fertilizer hopper volume was 30-35 kg, has 3 spreading volumes can be chosen. The working efficiency is 3 times faster than that of the manual.
    
9. Tri-wheel Electric Self-propelled Sprayer
   
   The tri-wheel electric self-propelled sprayer used DC24V batteries power to drive the rear axis. Moving speed is about 0.5-6.0 km/h, one 150 litter water tank can be sprayed about 0.1 ha in 40 minutes and 10 flat type nozzles’ spraying volume is about 3.7 l/min. It is spraying volume saving in good pest control and the operation efficiency is 3 times faster than manual.

Agro-processing machines

1. Flat-box folding machine for orchid
   
   Manual box-folding involves repetitive actions, causing potential musculoskeletal injuries to workers' shoulders, necks, fingers, and wrists. The machine is designed to aid the packaging process, including four box-folding actions using mechanical components, including folding short sides and long sides of box, inserting short and long box flaps. This is achieved with pneumatic cylinders, suction cups, a programmable controller, sheet metal, and a frame to facilitate box folding through pneumatic components.
   
   Folding boxes takes people 6-10 seconds per box and completes about 360-600 boxes per hour which is tedious and monotonous. Conversely, it takes 9-10 seconds per box with machine assistance and people only have to place the cardboard. This significantly reduces manual effort by over 80% and is estimated to decrease upper body strain by approximately 60%. Next, we aim to develop a fully automated folding process that optimizes personnel management and reduces labor costs.
    
2. Buckwheat centrifugal sheller
   
   This centrifugal buckwheat hulling machine is compact in size with full function is suitable for domestic farmers to hull buckwheat seeds, and designed to reduce the broken kernels problem while doing mechanical hulling. There are two new patents awarded, one is “grain shelling and sieving machine structure”, the other is “centrifugation disc structural improvement of shell removing machine”. The broken kernel rate is reduced by 18.62% compared with the existing machine, and the shelling rate is increased by 13.43%. The machine can also separate kernels, flour and shells, also improve processing efficiency and product value.
    
3. Multi-layer vibratory sorter for grain
   
   Grain sorting range depending on the grain size. The more grades of sorting, the better quality for product. This sorter has 4 screen layers can get 5 grading products. The screen layer can be changed for various of grains such as soybean, buckwheat, red quinoa, etc.

Water and energy saving machines

1. Timely irrigation trigger device
   
   The micro-climate in greenhouse was irregular changed due to seasonal wind, cloud or rain. Timing control is not applicable in Taiwanese greenhouse for energy, water and nutrient saving. The timely irrigation trigger device can run the irrigation pump which proportion with the solar radiation, that shown adequate irrigation amount of water in sunny day and automatically reduce 50-80% irrigation amount of water in cloudy or rainy day. This technology transfer was carried out in 2016 and 2017.
    
2. The solar power system
   
   Built the elevated 48 kWh solar power system, solar panels always face to the solar. The hoop frame plastics house was under the solar panel frames as the protected soil cultivation. This system generated 60,000 KWH power per year. It is combine agriculture cultivate with optoelectronic technology to make value addition.

▲ Electric Fertilizer Spreaders
▲ Attached two-row taro seedling transplanter	▲ Tomato seedling grafting machine with Conveyor
▲ Tomato seedling grafting machine	▲ Buckwheat centrifugal sheller
▲ Electric self-propelled lifting carrier	▲ Ride type fertilizing machine for orchard
▲ Push type fertilizing machine	▲ Tri-wheel Electric Self-propelled Sprayer
▲ Multi-layer vibratory sorter for grain	▲ Timely irrigation trigger device
▲ The solar power system