Figure 2. Schematic representation of electric weed control technology using the continuous electrode–plant contact method; produced by Guanhao Cheng and adapted from Vigneault and Benoit (2001) and Bauer et al. (2020). The process starts when the electrode initially contacts the plant (ti). Electricity is then transferred through the plant's foliage and into the roots and soil before returning to the machine via a ground-contact device, forming a complete electrical circuit. Each object through which the current passes is depicted as having individual resistance, such as the target vegetation (Rv), soil and machinery (Rs), or parallel objects (Rp). The circuit continues over time until the final point of electrode–plant contact (tf). The efficacy of weed control depends on contact time (tc), which is the duration of the electrode's contact with the plant. Contact time is determined by the electrode's effective contact surface, the distance traveled while the electrode is in contact with the plant (Se), which will always be greater than the electrode's actual contact surface (Sa).