AGRobot Platform | Hogeschool Saxion

The growing world population combined with climate change creates a need for a sustainable food supply (KIA mission Agriculture, food & water). A significant reduction in crop protection agents is an important objective in this respect. As a technology engine of precision agriculture, robotics enables plant-specific precision control. The project consortium therefore also wants to investigate the opportunities that a semi-autonomous collaborative ground-air robot platform offers for precision agriculture.

Research question

Which can provide practical solutions within the foreseeable future offer a collaborative aerial robot system for precision farming?

Project goal

The objective of the AGRobot Platform project is to research the possibilities of a semi-autonomous collaboration ground-to-air robot platform for precision farming. The main objective is answered within this project by the deliverables from the following sub-objectives:

Case study research into the potential benefits of the ground-to-air robot platform;
Research into the necessary technologies for a ground-to-air robot platform;
Develop a first (possibly case-specific) demonstrator;
Develop (new) forms of cooperation.

Project approach

Riwo Engineering is an industrial automation company active in animal husbandry with its soil robots and control control systems. DRONEXpert uses hyperspectral cameras under drones for measuring crops. Saxion mechatronica uses the research line unmanned robotic systems to investigate how the latest robotics technologies make systems possible for unstructured environments. The partners jointly own a huge network (TValley, Space53, euRobotics) and customers to identify and realize the opportunities through the case studies.

Research outcome

Nowhere in the world is a collaborative ground-air robot platform active in precision agriculture. For the Eastern Netherlands, with in addition to a lot of robotics knowledge, also a lot of Agro-knowledge, the project will literally be the KIEM for new projects from which the valorisation opportunities go to all of Europe.