BEER-SHEVA, ISRAEL, February 17, 2011– Robotics researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have received a $1.3 million grant (977,840 €) to develop intelligent sensing and manipulation algorithms for robots that can sense and pick high value crops.
The project is part of the European Union Seventh Framework Program (FP7) "cRops" (Clever Robots for Crops). cRops will develop the scientific know-how and several prototype systems to harvest high value crops, including greenhouse peppers, orchard fruits and premium wine grapes.
The cRops robotic platform will be capable of site-specific spraying (targeted spraying only on foliage and selected targets) and selective harvesting of fruit. The robots will be able to detect the fruit, sense its ripeness, then move to grasp and softly detach only the ripe fruit.
BGU's role in the project will be to lead the development of intelligent sensing and manipulation algorithms. "An agricultural robot must be equipped with intelligence so as to be able to robustly operate in the unstructured, dynamic and hostile agricultural environment," explains BGU Prof. Yael Edan, of the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management who is the BGU project leader. "We are developing an autonomous robotic platform that will reliably and accurately judge which produce is ready for harvest, and skip the ones that aren't."
The concept requires a strong multidisciplinary approach. The group of BGU researchers includes:
- Dr. Ohad Ben Shahar, Department of Computer Science
- Dr. Amir Shapiro, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Dr. Sigal Berman, Department of Industrial Engineering and Management
- Prof. Helman Stern, Department of Industrial Engineering and Management
The cRops Consortium budget is for development of a highly configurable, modular and clever platform, comprising a carrier plus modular parallel manipulators and "intelligent tools" (sensors, algorithms, sprayers, grippers) that can be easily installed onto the carrier and are capable of adapting to new tasks and conditions.
The cRops research grant consortium is being coordinated by Wageningen University & Research Centre. The other members include University of Leuven, University of Ljubljana, UMEA University, Università degli Studi di Milano, CSIC, Institute de Automatica Industrial, Technical University Munich, Case New Holland NV, INIA PROGAP, Force-A, Festo AG & Co, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Jentjens Machinetechniek. http://www.crops-robots.eu/.
About American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) plays a vital role in sustaining David Ben-Gurion's vision, creating a world-class institution of education and research in the Israeli desert, nurturing the Negev community and sharing the University's expertise locally and around the globe. With some 20,000 students on campuses in Beer-Sheva, Sede Boqer and Eilat in Israel's southern desert, BGU is a university with a conscience, where the highest academic standards are integrated with community involvement, committed to sustainable development of the Negev. For more information, please visit www.aabgu.org.