Posted on 09/30/2013 12:53:07 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
A robot that picks ripe strawberries while farmers sleep has been unveiled with claims it could cut workloads by two-thirds.
The device, unveiled Wednesday, can pick a piece of fruit every eight seconds by using three cameras to determine which strawberries are ready to pick. A mechanized arm then darts out to snip each one free and place it into its basket.
The 2-meter robot moves on rails between rows of strawberries, which in Japan are usually grown in elevated greenhouse planters.
It “calculates the degree of ripeness from the color of the strawberry, which it observes with two digital cameras,” said Mitsutaka Kurita, an official at Shibuya Seiki, the developer of the machine.
“It also uses the images from the two cameras to calculate the distance from the target, then approaches the strawberry it is aiming at,” he said.
A third camera takes a detailed photo of the fruit, which it uses for the final calculation before moving in to snip it.
(Excerpt) Read more at japantimes.co.jp ...
Hope the robot doesn’t pick the other side and play Penny Lane.
It would probably pay for itself within a year or so. Keep in mind that, with a flashlight or two installed, the one robot can work 24/7. Doesn't need breaks. Doesn't show up drunk, or fail to show up at all.
And as with most computerized gizmos, the price will drop as they get into mass production.
From the article: "The 2-meter robot moves on rails between rows of strawberries, which in Japan are usually grown in elevated greenhouse planters".
It will first be deployed in Japan, to pick in orderly greenhouses. After the bugs are worked out, and it's designed a little more robustly, regular outside fields are next.
Nice dissertation and I’m sorry I missed it until now. Cheney’s a rat. Please keep pointing that out.
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