HortiBot: A System Design of a Robotic Tool Carrier for High-tech Plant Nursing

Abstract

Danish organic outdoor gardeners today use 50-300 hours per hectare for manual weeding. Through automatic controlling of an existing commercial machine this often heavy and costconsuming weeding will be eliminated. At the same time, a fully-automatic registration of field activities will contribute to the efficient implementation of EU directive 178/2002 concerning traceability in the primary production and thereby enhance the food-safety in the production chain. A radio controlled slope mower is equipped with a new robotic accessory kit. This transforms it into a tool carrier (HortiBot) for high-tech plant nursing for e.g. organic grown vegetables. The HortiBot is capable of passing over several parcels with visible rows autonomously based on a new commercial row detection system from Eco-Dan a/s, Denmark. This paper presents the solutions chosen for the HortiBot with regard to hardware, mechanicalelectrical interfaces and software. Further, the principles from a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) analysis was used to carry out the solicitation, evaluation and selection of most qualified design parameters and specifications attained to a horticultural robotic tool carrier. The QFD analysis provided a specific measure to evaluate each selected parameter in terms of satisfying user requirements and operational performance aspects. Based on a combination of importance rating and competitive priority ratings important user requirements include easy adaptation to field conditions in terms of row distance and parcel size, profitability, minimum crop damage during operation, and reliability. Lesser importance was attributed to affection value, attractive look, the possibility of out of season usage, and the use of renewable energy.