"We've started a plant robot." Taking on the challenge at the Yokohama Flower Expo
"Are you the owner of this robot?": The beginning of the plant robot project
A question born from a chance encounter with temi
At one site, temi was patrolling autonomously as usual.
Temi, a robot provided by iPresence, quietly moves along a pre-set route, making voice announcements and providing light guidance. Fujinaga from iPresence arrived at the site to collect Temi after it had completed its tasks for the day.
At that moment, a person called out to me.
"Are you the owner of this robot?"
Fujinaga smiled and nodded at the humorous phrase. The person who called out to him was,Green Display Co., Ltd.The person in charge was Mr. Otsuka.
The words he spoke next were abrupt, yet somehow poetic.
"This may seem sudden and confusing, but I'd like to be able to move the plants exactly how they want to. Is this possible?"
For a moment, it felt like time had stopped.
It wasn't a practical suggestion like "I want to put a plant on a robot and make it move." The words conveyed the concept of what plants "want." It was as if the plant was quietly sensing something, wanting something. The question was based on that premise.
Fujinaga immediately understood the essence of this illogical sensibility, and replied, narrowing his eyes slightly.
"...I see. If you have the technology to extract the 'will of plants' as data in some form, it is possible to move a robot according to that information. The amount of development time will vary greatly depending on how you define it and how you embody it, but I can say that it is possible."
At that moment, Mr. Otsuka's eyes lit up.
"Please let me meet with you sometime."
Starting from this one word,Plant Robotprojectbegan to move quietly.
iPresence is a company that continues to design new relationships between people and space using robotics and remote control technology. Green Display is a spatial design professional that treats plants not just as decorations, but as "living things that coexist in space." The dialogue between these two people from different fields accelerated the possibility of realizing a society where plants roam around as a matter of course.
Visualizing the "will of plants": From the perspective of green displays and iPresence
The relationship between living things, space, and technology shared by both companies
This co-creation began the moment two organizations with different specialties came together with the same goal in mind.
What do plants feel? And how can we express that in space?
Green Display has brought "greenery" to many spaces up to now. In commercial facilities, offices, public spaces, and sometimes as stage art, plants have been placed there as "quiet presences". However, what they have pursued is not the beauty of the plants, but the "sensation" and "presence" that the plants bring to the space. They have designed where and how to place which plants in order to bring out an inexpressible sense of security, peace of mind, and subtle changes in emotions when people enter the space.
That is why Otsuka's statement, "I want to make the plants move the way they want to," contained a will that went beyond "staging." He was trying to release the plants' "subjectivity as a presence" into the space, rather than the "decorative value" of the plants.
Meanwhile, iPresence has been working on "augmenting humans" through telepresence technology. By remotely accessing a space using a robot, you regain the sense of "being there." Throwing your presence into a space, transcending physical distance and limitations - that is the idea behind iPresence.
In other words, we have been working on a structure that uses technology to visualize human intentions in space. Then the proposition of visualizing the intentions of plants came up.
This encounter was a major turning point for both companies. The green display, which reexamines the meaning of existence in space, and the iPresence, which transfers will into space. Although they take completely different approaches, both companies were looking at the "relationship between living things, space, and technology." Do plants really want to move? If they do, when? Where? Next to whom? Both companies began to seriously consider this hypothesis.
Realizing mobile greenery with the plant robot "temi"
From "moving" to "wanting to move": The importance of direction
The first step in this co-creation project was to combine existing technologies.
By combining the telepresence robot "temi" developed by iPresence and the plants carefully selected by Green Display to enhance the space, a completely new entity called "moving plants" was born.
In fact, Green Display once demonstrated a robot with a plant mounted on it. Initially, it was envisioned that the robot would move automatically according to a pre-determined program, but the robotics technology at the time was not stable enough for autonomous movement in an event venue with a lot of people coming and going, making it impractical. As a result, the robot was exhibited in a way that it was operated by a person, like a radio-controlled car.
The plants were indeed moving, but the impression was that they were being moved by someone.The plants themselves did not behave in a way that suggested they wanted to move.This is the difference between "being on the move" and "wanting to move."
Therefore, in this project,The design is intended to eliminate the impression that the plants are being operated by humans, and to make them feel as if they are moving autonomously.became an important theme.
By utilizing temi's autonomous driving function and spatial mapping technology, it is now possible to move plants according to pre-set routes and reaction conditions.Behavior" A movement called " has begun to appear in the space.
For example, when a plant on temi slowly approached a person, people were surprised and smiled when they saw it.
"It's almost like a living thing."
"It's soothing"
"I've never seen a plant that moves before."
No one is controlling the plants. The plants look as if they are coming towards you of their own volition. Just by doing that, a "relationship" is born in the minds of those who see them.Moving plantsThe key points were the strong psychological impact that "manipulation" has on the space, and the importance of the technique and staging to "not give the appearance of manipulation."
from here,Plant RobotThe idea of evolving into a truly "expressive entity" is moving to the next stage.
"Plants that communicate" at the Yokohama Flora Expo: An interface that connects people and the environment
Plant robots as part of IoT
Travelling on temiPlant RobotIt touched people's hearts more than I expected.
Not only did it attract attention, but it also evoked emotions such as "I want to talk to them" and "I want to care about them." People began to treat the plants as if "something" lived in them. This phenomenon went beyond mere dramatic effect.
That is why our next goal was to discover how plants can "do something."A presence that conveysThe idea was to become "the
Unlike animals, plants do not have voices or facial expressions. However, plants certainly "react to their environment." They wilt if there is not enough water, grow branches and leaves in search of light, and react sensitively to air quality. What if this "reactivity" could be captured by sensors, visualized as data, and expressed through movement and light?
Plants are not just objects of appreciation, but also a link between people and the environment.Interface" I thought it could become ".
For example, when the air starts to dryPlant RobotIf the temperature gets too high, they will "escape" to another room. If the temperature gets too high, they will "escape" to an air-conditioned area. Or, they may show "behavior" that makes them prefer to be near a specific person.
There is no clear language. However, the feeling that "Ah, they are trying to communicate something" reaches deep into people's hearts. This is not a revolution in information transmission.Redesigning “sensory transmission”You can say.
IoTIt also assumes the role ofPlant RobotThe sensors built into the device detect the components in the air, temperature and humidity, and even human movement, and store the data in the cloud. Based on that data, the plant determines where it wants to be and what it is feeling, and expresses this through movement, changes in light, etc. It could be called an "environmental translation device for plants."
Achieving this future will require development across many disciplines, including sensor technology, AI emotion modeling, movement control, and UI/UX design. However, early experiments with temi and plants have demonstrated that:People react to that expression more strongly than you might imagine.That was the fact.
"Plants that communicate."
It is a completely new form of existence that gently reconnects people and space.
Sensitivity in Plant Robots: At the Boundary between Technology and Sensibility
Fluctuation and ambiguity to make it feel alive
If you turn on the sound in the video, it's as if you are having a conversation with the plants.
Even if we say that plants can communicate, this is not something that can be achieved through technology alone. No matter how advanced the sensors we use to detect the environment, analyze it with AI, and convert it into actions,A sense of communication"Without it, it's just a gimmick.
The essential question is, "What do people see in plants?" Or, "What state do people feel that plants are trying to communicate?" This project is not confronted with the limits of technology, but rather withSensibilityとCognitive Design
When a plant robot reacts to something and moves, will people who see it find it "cute," "creepy," or just "indifferent"? The turning point is not just the technology itself, but alsoShowとThe subtlety of designIt depends on.
For example, consider the speed of movement.
A plant robot that approaches at a slow pace, almost like walking along with a person, feels as if it can read your mind. On the other hand, if it suddenly starts moving quickly in a straight line, the impression of being mechanical comes to the forefront, and the "plant-likeness" disappears.
In other words, to make something feel alive, it is necessary to have some fluctuation and ambiguity in the details. This is completely different from the design of industrial products.The realm of sensibility
And iPresence and the green display areBoundary Design" I see potential in logic and poetry. Control and freedom. Direction and spontaneity.
"Even though he's a robot, he's kind"
"Even though they're plants, I feel like they have a will of their own."
It is this coexistence of contradictions that quietly stirs people's sensibilities in a space. It is like "another resident" that does not say a word, yet certainly conveys something.
Rather than imitating life with technology,
Using technology, we bring out the ambiguity that life conveys.
This attempt is at the heart of this plant robot project.
Plant robot takes a step towards Yokohama Flower Expo 2027
"Moving plants" on display at the Yokohama Flora Expo: Combining technology and knowledge to make it a reality
Plant RobotThe project is now steadily beginning to take shape.
temiAn initial model based on this is already in operation in the actual space of Green Display's headquarters. Here, moving plants are no longer just decorative, but have begun to take on a life of their own as part of the space's behavior.
Starting from this, our goal is for plants to exist in space, both indoors and outdoors, as an autonomous expression of the environment and relationships with people. Plants move slowly in an open space where the wind blows, head towards a place where they can get some morning sun, or move closer to people as if to communicate something. We envision a future in which such behaviors will begin to function as part of public spaces and urban infrastructure.
A new relationship between cities and plant robots begins at the Yokohama Flower Expo
As the first milestone, we are planning to hold the "Yokohama Flower Expo" is set as one of the goals of this project. It is a stage where flowers, greenery and plants can take center stage. In this space, we will have "moving plants", "talking plants" and "behaving plants" appear before actual visitors. This is the mid-term goal of this project, and will be the first public opportunity to show the integration of our ideas and technology.
To achieve this, we are currently working on building a system that senses the environmental responsiveness of plants, processes it on the cloud, and connects it to appropriate robotics control. Moisture, temperature, light, CO2, and human movement and presence. We are currently working on information design that will acquire these data in a multi-layered manner and abstract questions such as "what state is this plant in right now?" and "where does it want to be?"
As professionals in plants and spaces, Green Display provides knowledge of the places, presentations, and conditions that make plants "want to be there." iPresence translates this knowledge into behavior and is responsible for the technology to implement it in real space.
This is not just an art exhibition. It is not just a gadget show. It is a place to reexamine the relationship between people, nature, and technology, and to demonstrate the future.
2027, Get movingPlant RobotWhat questions do we ask society? Towards that goal, the steps of co-creation are moving forward quietly but surely.
Conclusion: "It may be plants that want to move"
Plants don't move. Perhaps it was us humans who were under the impression that this was the case.
Plants that take root and remain in place have long been seen as a symbol of something quiet, certain, and unchanging. However, plants change and react to their environment, and are constantly moving internally. What would happen if this movement were visualized in space? If it were expressed as "behavior," what kind of relationship could we build with plants?
Plant RobotThe idea is not to imitate life with technology. Rather, it is to elevate the natural senses and responsiveness of plants to a level that humans can sense.MediationThis is similar to the idea of using robots as a
This is not to "control nature", but to create a new bond between nature and humans.信 頼We believe that nature is an act of building something like this. In our pursuit of convenience and efficiency, we have turned nature into a "background." However, through this project, plants that were once in the background will once again come to the foreground. And not just as beautiful ornaments, but as beings that communicate something to people and exist alongside them.
The goal of Green Display and iPresence is not to "use robots to move plants." We believe that "plants want to move," and we act on their behalf.Give it shapeThat's it.
The next thing we might learn from plants is,
"I want to be by your side"
"It's a bit tough here."
"Today I want to be in the light."
──Such a humble and honest thing.Shape of emotions"It may be.
Perhaps the plants were pretending not to move, when in fact they had been wanting to move all this time.
Green Display Co., Ltd.:https://www.green-display.co.jp/
iPresence Inc.:https://ipresence.jp/
2027 International Horticultural Exposition:https://expo2027yokohama.or.jp/
