Abstract
AbstractIncreasing global population, climate change, and shortage of labor pose significant challenges for meeting the global food and fiber demand, and agricultural robots offer a promising solution to these challenges. This paper presents a new robotic system architecture and the resulting modular agricultural robotic system (MARS) that is an autonomous, multi‐purpose, and affordable robotic platform for in‐field plant high throughput phenotyping and precision farming. There are five essential hardware modules (wheel module, connection module, robot controller, robot frame, and power module) and three optional hardware modules (actuation module, sensing module, and smart attachment). Various combinations of the hardware modules can create different robot configurations for specific agricultural tasks. The software was designed using the Robot Operating System (ROS) with three modules: control module, navigation module, and vision module. A robot localization method using dual Global Navigation Satellite System antennas was developed. Two line‐following algorithms were implemented as the local planner for the ROS navigation stack. Based on the MARS design concept, two MARS designs were implemented: a low‐cost, lightweight robotic system named MARS mini and a heavy‐duty robot named MARS X. The autonomous navigation of both MARS X and mini was evaluated at different traveling speeds and payload levels, confirming satisfactory performances. The MARS X was further tested for its performance and navigation accuracy in a crop field, achieving a high accuracy over a 537 m long path with only 15% of the path having an error larger than 0.05 m. The MARS mini and MARS X were shown to be useful for plant phenotyping in two field tests. The modular design makes the robots easily adaptable to different agricultural tasks and the low‐cost feature makes it affordable for researchers and growers.
Accepted Version (
Free)
Published Version
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
