NASA expresses interest in invention

A 56 year-old inventor and organic farmer in Vilafranca, Damia Bover, has developed a solar powered plough to replace tractors. Environmentally friendly and efficient, Utopus, is in use on the eco-finca Son Duri in the east of Mallorca
Looking a lot like and octopus with a solar panel on its back, Utopus, has attracted worldwide attention and from no lesser organisation than NASA, Their interest is in using the design for their space exploration.
Utopus is the result of ten years of research and development by Bover, a computer scientist and technology enthusiast from an early age. Bover says that “We do organic farming, but we plough with the tractor. It doesn’t go together! Tractors run on diesel fuel. That’s money and pollution. Tractors are energy wasters with more than 30% needed to move the tires alone. And because of their weight, they compact the soil, which affects plant growth and yield.”
Ploughing is still a very necessary part of organic farming and any replacement needed to be able to achieve the same result but without the weight. Bover overcame this with tines that are angled, creating a counter pressure driving the tines downwards.
Nannen a German specialist in artificial intelligence at the Balaeric University, helped him patent the unit but no funding was forthcoming locally so they headed to the USA where NASA expressed an interest. That has led to a number of invitations to present the machine including at the “Earth and Space” conference in Colorado next year. It is hoped funding to produce the machine will follow.
 

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