Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

farms

Taylor Farms acquires agricultural robots startup FarmWise

by

Taylor Farms, an American producer of ready-to-eat salads and healthy fresh foods, is acquiring FarmWise, an agricultural technology robotics company specializing in precision weeding and thinning solutions.

This important strategic move reinforces Taylor Farms’ commitment to advancing agricultural technology and sustainable farming practices while continuing to deliver high-quality fresh foods to its customer partners.

FarmWise has been at the forefront of ag-tech innovation, recognized for its advanced automation and robotics systems that address critical farming challenges such as precision weeding and thinning. [Read more…] about Taylor Farms acquires agricultural robots startup FarmWise

Fieldwork Robotics partners with specialist manufacturer Burro

by

Fieldwork Robotics, a developer of selective, adaptive and modular harvesting robots, has signed a collaboration agreement with Burro, a manufacturer of autonomous and collaborative mobile robot platforms.

Raspberry growers are particularly impacted by the significant and growing labour crisis affecting the agricultural sector.

As cost of labour grows driven by minimum wage increases and availability of labour remains pressured, growers are looking towards innovation to mitigate against labour cost headwinds and against the inevitable greater challenge of seasonal worker availability in the future. [Read more…] about Fieldwork Robotics partners with specialist manufacturer Burro

Sabanto unveils ‘revolutionary’ autonomous farm vehicle at industry event

by

Sabanto, a provider of autonomous agriculture technology, has showcased its “cutting-edge” Sabanto Steward autonomous farm vehicle at FIRA USA 2024, the premier event for autonomous farming and agricultural robotics solutions, which took place recently in Woodland, California.

Sabanto Steward is an innovative retrofit kit designed to add autonomous functionality to existing tractors without compromising their manual operation. Farmers can seamlessly transition between autonomy mode and standard operator mode with a simple switch.

This advanced yet user-friendly technology is engineered to save time, reduce costs, and increase precision in the field, offering a significant leap forward in farm management. [Read more…] about Sabanto unveils ‘revolutionary’ autonomous farm vehicle at industry event

Stäubli invests in company developing robot for solar industry

by

Stäubli, one of the world’s largest industrial robot suppliers, says it has become involved in innovative Computer Vision, AI, and robotics solutions development with the California-based OnSight Technology.

Active since the early beginning of the Photovoltaic industry, Stäubli is a pioneer for durable and robust PV DC connectors. The Original MC4 PV connector has set the industry benchmark and is currently the most installed worldwide, connecting more than 50 percent of the global PV capacity.

Based on Stäubli’s longstanding expertise, the company says it is committed to sharing its knowledge and investing in future technology to increase safety in the solar industry. [Read more…] about Stäubli invests in company developing robot for solar industry

Vertical farm robot startup Seasony secures innovation grant

by

Seasony, a developer of mobile robotics for vertical farming, has been awarded a grant from the Danish Innovation Foundation.

Launching in Fall 2023, this project aims to create image recognition algorithms that alert vertical farm growers to potential issues in two separate tracks.

The first track focuses on identifying poor seed germination to conserve water, energy, and nutrients from producing faulty crop. [Read more…] about Vertical farm robot startup Seasony secures innovation grant

Sarcos and Blattner develop autonomous robotic solar construction system

by

Sarcos Technology and Robotics Corporation, a specialist in the design, development, and manufacture of advanced robotic systems, and Blattner Company, a provider and installer of renewable energy, have entered into a collaboration agreement.

The agreement focuses on the development and refinement of Sarcos’ autonomous mobile robotic system designed to optimize employee safety and enhance the efficiency of the installation of photovoltaic (PV) modules for utility-scale solar projects.

Laura Peterson, interim president and CEO, Sarcos, says: “Like many industries, the solar construction industry is experiencing significant worker shortages post-Covid and has not yet recovered. [Read more…] about Sarcos and Blattner develop autonomous robotic solar construction system

Comau unveils robotic system for constructing solar farms

by

Comau has launched its patented Hyperflex mobile factory, which it describes as “a new paradigm in solar blade deployment that facilitates faster photovoltaic plant construction for a time to market savings of up to 25 per cent on new installations”.

Designed in-house and featuring proprietary Comau robotics, lifting equipment and other technology enablers, Hyperflex automatically assembles the entire solar blade, which can measure up to 48 sq m, directly in the photovoltaic field.

In doing so, the robotized temporary mobile factory lowers overall operating costs while granting better operator well-being, process quality and overall productivity when expanding an existing plant or installing a new one. [Read more…] about Comau unveils robotic system for constructing solar farms

Rising costs, climate change and lack of automation putting pressure on farmers’ profits

by

Dramatic increases in labor costs and other input, along with climate change, have put significant pressure on farmers’ profits, according to analysis from McKinsey & Company.

Farmers have reported that the cost of fertilizer and crop protection has risen by 80 to 250 percent over the past few years.

Meanwhile, a warmer climate is resulting in increased weather variability, more frequent acute weather events, longer droughts, and new invasive crops and pests, all of which reduce yields. [Read more…] about Rising costs, climate change and lack of automation putting pressure on farmers’ profits

Future of Agriculture: What Does Automated Vertical Farming Look Like?

by

Today, automation is revolutionizing productivity and bringing other benefits across almost all industries. Agriculture is also shifting from manual labor towards a highly automated model where almost no workers are required on site.

Challenges faced by conventional agriculture such as limited water resources and farmland have facilitated the development of high-tech greenhouses and indoor vertical farms.

They, in turn, spurred smart technologies for professional cultivation in controlled environments.

Automated indoor farming makes use of modern technologies such as sensors, big data, vertical farming robotics and AI-powered software to increase yield, reduce costs and minimize environmental impact. [Read more…] about Future of Agriculture: What Does Automated Vertical Farming Look Like?

Flexiv partners with Tick-Tek to create the farms of the future

by

Flexiv, the world’s leading general-purpose robotics company, is proud to announce that it has formed a strategic channel partnership with Singapore-based agritech and factory automation company Tick-Tek.

Focused on designing and manufacturing indoor farming machinery and complete production lines for large and small farms, Tick-Tek provides its clients with revolutionary agricultural technology that enables a complete indoor farming solution to be created.

Part of this revolutionary technology is Flexiv’s Rizon series of adaptive robots. Equipped with seven degrees of freedom, IP65 protection, artificial intelligence, and industry-leading force control, the Rizon 4, 4s, and 10 enable indoor farms to improve their processes and boost productivity. [Read more…] about Flexiv partners with Tick-Tek to create the farms of the future