Robot Living

Earlier this year we told you about a neat project called Prosperso by David Dorhout.  Prospero is the first phase of a robotic swarm project to grow and harvest food.  Prospero is controlled using a Parallax Propeller chip and 2 Ping sensors to help it avoid objects.

Well, the project has progressed and in the video below it explains how man is the limiting factor in food production.  It is very costly to have humans grow food and someday the planet’s population will outpace our ability to grow enough food.

More about the overall concept is also explained, including the 4 steps involved.  The first three steps are 1. Planter, 2. Tender, 3. Harvester. Step four is the other three steps combined into one intelligent robot.

David’s website explains the concept:

Prospero is the working prototype of an Autonomous Micro Planter (AMP) that uses a combination of swarm and game theory and is the first of four steps. It is meant to be deployed as a group or “swarm”. The other three steps involve autonomous robots that tend the crops, harvest them, and finally one robot that can plant, tend, and harvest–autonomously transitioning from one phase to another.

I’m not sure if I like the idea of robots involved in our food supply chain, but this is a really neat project.

Link via (Make) (more…)

Tags: david dorhout, farming, Parallax, prospeero, swarm

Summer, the time of being lazy, reading books outside and having to mow your lawn.  Well, you could buy a robotic lawnmower such as the Automower 260 ACX from Husqvarna, but that would set you back around $5,000.  Much better and cheaper to make your own like the team from Case Western did.

The CWRU Cut (pronounced crew cut) team from Case Western Reserve University has won the Ion Robotic Lawnmower Competition for the third year in a row. This is no easy feat when you have to avoid obstacles such as a stuffed dog mounted on a remote control car.

For the first time in the competition’s eight-year history, CWRU Cutter, the team’s robot lawn mower, earned the “Best Quality of Cut Award” for mowing 80 percent of the competition’s cutting field area while creating an aesthetically pleasing look to the resulting field. Teams from 15 universities competed, including Auburn and Wright State, which placed second and third respectively.

Last year we profiled another entry in the competition called Titan Chopper from California State University.

Click through for a video from last year of Cutter in action.

Link via (Case)

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Tags: Case Western, CWRU Cutter, ion robotic lawnmower competition

Arduino forum user MX270a, otherwise known as Lance has posted up an amazing project.  He has automated a Case International Harvester 2588 with an Arduino and a Windows 7 computer.  The very large harvesting machine has 250 horsepower and weighs about 30,000 pounds.  He is using the machine to harvest soybeans and it travels at about 5 miles per hour when harvesting.

The computer is used to process GPS data and calculate steering angles.  The Arduino is used to control a hydraulic valve, which steers this giant beast.

Lance states he has what they call a cross track error, or basically going off path, of about 1.5 inches.  So the machine stays within 1.5 inches of it’s target path.

The system also has several failsafes built in.  If the machine goes over 6 MPH , loses communication with the Arduino or anyone touches the steering wheel it basically stops dead.  There is also a kill switch in the cab.

According to the forum, you can by a similar pre made system from John Deere for about $40,000.  Nice way to save a lot of dough.

Awesome job Lance!

Click through for a video.

Link via Arduino
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Tags: arduino, DIY

The New Zealand wine industry is set to save over $20 million a year thanks to a vine pruning robot developed at the University of Canterbury.   A team led by Dr Richard Green will spend the next four years developing the technology.

Using 3D imaging and night vision, the robot will be able to prune around the clock while moving at walking speed.  A robot with night vision and sharp pruning shears is actually kind of scary.

“Such a fast vision-based pruning system is only possible using recently developed camera technology with efficient cutting edge computer vision-based tracking and AI algorithms,” said Dr Green. “We are leading the world with fast accurate colour 3D depth maps of vines, light robot cutting arms and the AI to coordinate this moving at walking speed. Not only can a higher quality be maintained by pruning consistently and accurately while recognising disease and age of vines, but the industry will be able to guarantee pruning within the very brief seasonal window each year.”

We always new Edward Scissorhands was a robot.

Link via (3News)

Tags: New Zealand

Creepier than a human like robot in an uncanny valley is the robot that is being trained to harvest cauliflower.

Scientists at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) have developed an infravision system which should allow them to see through all the leaves and greenery and harvest cauliflower with a robot easily.

NPL is working with KMS Projects and Vegetable Harvesting Systems (VHS) to develop this project.  The project came about after a study of farmers indicated that up to 60% of certain crops are wasted each year, causing farmers to lose money.  Part of this is due to a loss of migrant workers.

Link via (The Register)

Tags: harvest, robot, uk