The Free Press, Mankato, MN

Local News

January 28, 2012

Grain bin robot born of tragedy

By Tim Krohn Free Press Staff Writer

MANKATO — When a close friend of Jerome Mack died in a grain bin accident in 1998, Mack did more than grieve. He formed the Leola, S.D.-based Mack Robotics to develop robotic equipment to work in bins so that people didn’t.

 The company will be displaying its “Bin Bot” at the annual Minnesota Grain and Feed Association convention and trade show, Wednesday and Thursday at the Verizon Wireless Center in Mankato (www.mgfa.org).

In 2010, 51 workers were engulfed by grain stored in bins and 26 died — the highest number on record. The accidents occur when people are pulled down into the grain as an auger on the floor of the bin pulls out grain, or when a wall of crusted grain breaks lose and covers a worker. People are also killed when cleaning out the floor of the bin and get caught in an auger that sweeps in circles around the bin floor.

Mack, who already ran a company that makes robotic tools for hog barns, built a remote-controlled electric skid loader that can shovel grain on the floor of the bin. The 6-foot-by-2-foot, 800-pound Bin Bot is small enough to fit through a grain bin door, yet powerful enough to lift heavy buckets of grain. A video camera and lights can be fitted on the bot and a worker can operate it from a monitor outside.

The bot isn’t useful for bins that are more full of grain.

Kristin Outtrim, marketing manager for Mack Robotics, said the first units were produced and sold last year. The bots start at $15,000  and up to $17,500 with video and other attachments.

“Right now we’re kind of geared toward (commercial) elevators, but also toward bigger commercial farmers,” Outtrim said.

The bots, she said, are  especially useful at commercial operations where OSHA requirements mean more manpower and time whenever anyone enters a grain bin.

“OSHA has lots of regulation before anyone can go in a bin. Everything has to be shut down and there has to be two people at the door while a third goes in,” Outtrim said.

“With this you just have one guy operating it from the door or from the video camera.”

Videos of the Bin Bot are available on YouTube.

On the web: mackrobotics.com.

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