What was the most interesting robotic technology at CES 2021? Not the cute, fuzzy MOFLIN or Qoobo companions or the Moorebot Scout and Robosen K1 educational toys. The need to feed ever-growing populations while efficiently managing soil, water, fertilizers, and pesticides has led to growing interest in precision agriculture. It is one of the most promising areas for drones, robots, and autonomous vehicles, as well as the communications and data analysis to tie them together.
As self-driving vehicles make their way to farms, John Deere has been combining computer vision, AI, and machine-to-machine communication in its X Series combines. The self-monitoring combines, which were introduced last year, can now drive themselves along curved trajectories and make turns, freeing humans for supervisory duties.
The X Series combines also include ActiveVision camera technology, enabling farmers to see inside the grain tank and “monitor the condition of harvested grain, right down to individual kernels,” said John Deere. The X Series is available now, unlike many of the systems above, and it won a “Best of Innovation” award at CES 2021.
From geometry preparation to AI-assisted analysis, integrated CFD workflows…
Software-based GripperAI manages mixed picking through basic geometry
Safety, communication and motion control components enable smooth operation
North America’s largest robotics and automation event winds down
