Picking fruit by hand, and working long hours in the milking shed could become a thing of the past for Kiwi farm workers.
Auckland University and RoboticsPlus are developing an ‘Autonomous Multipurpose Mobile Platform’ (AMMP) modular robot to operate autonomously in orchards.
Whether it is precision spraying kiwifruit or picking apples, modules such as vision sensors, arms and grippers will be designed to be added or removed from the unit depending on the application.
The use of advanced robots and automation is now reshaping how food and fibre are grown and harvested. Research released recently by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) predicts that advanced robotics will boost productivity by up to 30% in many industries by 2025.
Robotic milking systems are growing in popularity, easing staff workloads and lifting milk production. Robots are increasingly being used for tasks like weed management, fertilising and seeding. The use of multiple cooperative highly-autonomous farm vehicles could lead to the next step in agricultural automation.
Unmanned tractors are now been trialled in Australia. The tractor is guided by GPS signals and trials by Rice Research Australia, and their Japanese partners, have been successful in keeping the tractor to within 3cm accuracy. The specialised satellite system also provides useful data like engine temperature and fuel usage to the operator.
Rice Research Australia and Auckland University will be presenting at the upcoming MobileTECH 2015 event series. This series will profile advances in robotics, automation and the increasing use of UAVs or remotely piloted aircraft.
MobileTECH 2015 is running for this regions primary industries on 29-30 April in Auckland, New Zealand.
Registrations are now open and further information on this event can be found at mobiletech.events
