Using Robots to Care For Tomatoes
By Vanessa Richins
Students in robotics at MIT are getting additional lessons in horticulture.
At the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, robots are watching over tomato plants.
Through new technologies, they are able to watch for the plants’ needs and act accordingly.
As the Christian Science Monitor reports, Nikolaus Correll, creator of the experiment was experimenting with the capabilities of swarm robotics.
“Each robot is outfitted with a robotic arm and a watering pump, while the plants themselves are equipped with local soil sensing, networking, and computation.
“This affords them the ability to communicate: Plants can request water or nutrients and keep track of their conditions, including fruit produced; robots are able to minister to their charges, locate and pick a specific tomato, and even pollinate the plants.”
The robots use highly sophisticated object recognition software to help them carefully navigate around the plants without damage.
The way that the robots are able to target the needs of individual plants is an improvement on the current system of tending crops. It also means less backaches for people harvesting.
Many greenhouses already use some kind of automation in their operation. This could be a very useful addition - though I don’t think this is the end of people working and helping in the garden.
You can see a video of the robots in action and learn more about the project at the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab’s website.
Would you buy a robot to help with your garden?
