Steep slope vineyards account for 10% - 12% of European viticulture land area and produce some of the highest value wines. Row sizes are quite narrow, typically 90 – 150cm. Currently, where possible, treatments are applied from a small tractor-based system that considers an air-blast based system. Losses are high and ground compaction is a problem. Inspired by this problem, this project develops a modular and precision terrestrial sprayer robot – the Precision Robotic Sprayer (PRySM) - capable of operating autonomously on rugged terrain with steep slopes and under the most diverse ground conditions. A robotic platform will be adapted to work on hard terrain conditions and whose dimensions and locomotion mechanism allow tight manoeuvring in the context of mountain vineyards with very narrow rows. To this robot will be added advanced algorithms for self-localization and navigating using LiDAR and GNSS receiver data to support precision spraying tasks. The project will develop and integrate a novel precision autonomous spray tool into the developed robotic platform. The PRYSM robot will be tested and validated in a steep slope vineyard and perform an autonomous precision spraying operation during the first demonstration.
