Machine automation means that the machine performs work tasks independently without the constant supervision of a human operator. Naturally, current forestry machines already have machine automation, for example, felled trunks in logging machines can be cut into timber types automatically.
When talking about future machine automation in logging, tasks performed by machine automation include, for example, the movement of a forest machine on a construction site, the identification of trees and their defects, the selection of trees to be removed and left, the transport of the harvesting equipment to the base of the tree to be felled, and the loading of chopped timber into a forwarder and unloading into a storage pile.
However, a lot of machine development still needs to be done so that the tasks described above can be performed by the forest machine itself. One essential thing is to provide the machine's automation system with situational awareness of the forest terrain and trees. This must be done with camera- and laser scanner-based sensors. Knowing that Finnish forests are very diverse working environments – for example, there is subsoil, rocks, summer and winter conditions, and tree failures – making sensor technology reliable and cost-effective in different harvesting conditions and integrating it into the forest machine's control systems is a big task and requires a lot of R&D investment.
I therefore predict that full machine automation in year-round production use in timber harvesting, with frost and rain from day to day and from one forest to another, will have to wait for decades, but partial automation and operator assistance will be introduced to machines at a good pace in the coming years; at the same time, this will support future full machine automation efforts well.
There are high expectations, even hype, for machine automation in timber harvesting. Machine automation aims to improve productivity and quality of work. Studies have also shown that automation can reduce the workload of the machine operator at work. With full automation and especially remote control, where the machine is controlled from outside the machine, the ergonomics of the machine operator can also be improved, as the driver does not have to be in the machine cabin to absorb the machine's vibrations.
The list of benefits of machine automation is long. So why hasn't machine automation progressed more rapidly in logging in Finland, or globally? The reason is the costs, which are lower for a human operator than for a sensored, self-driving forest machine.
So there are still drivers for forestry machinery, although there have been reports from the field that the machinery cannot be maintained in two shifts because there are not enough good drivers for the machinery.
Metsäteho's recent Savotta 2030 calculations on the future workforce needs for logging indicate that 250–400 new forest machine operators would be needed annually for logging operations in Finland.
I strongly believe that operator assistance systems will enable us to get the most out of our forestry machinery and thus ensure that there will be sufficient human operator resources in logging operations in Finland in the coming years.
Kalle Kärhä
Professor of Forest Technology, specializing in the digitalization of forestry operations and logistics. University of Eastern Finland
