An automatic rice transplanter has been demonstrated in a paddy field in western Japan.

City officials and a local agricultural cooperative in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, organized the event. About 30 farmers and others watched the robotic rice transplanter go through its paces on Tuesday.

The self-driving machine is equipped with a global positioning system, or GPS, and sensors to detect obstacles. It transplants rice seedlings automatically following input of information about the size and shape of the paddy field. When it senses an obstacle, it stops.

Even when a field is not perfectly square, the machine can adjust the number of seedlings to beautifully transplant the entire field. The maker of the machine says it is more accurate than a manned rice transplanter.

A local farmer said the machine is very accurate and it will likely help save labor and reduce the number of workers by at least one. He said rice-planting usually requires two or three workers.

A city official said he wants to tell young people that "smart agriculture" can boost efficiency in farming so more people will enter the industry.