Agricultural Robotics for Field Operations.

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Science
• Robotics Engineering
• Computer Science

Background:

• Modern agriculture leverages technological advancements like informatics, sensors, and navigation.
• Labor-intensive crop production operations drive the need for automation.
• Agricultural robots offer solutions for complex, repetitive, and sensitive field tasks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a systematic literature review of agricultural robotics in crop field operations.
• To identify research and commercial robotic systems currently in use.
• To analyze the focus areas and identify gaps in agricultural robotics research.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review of research and commercial agricultural robotics.
• Analysis of robotic applications in crop field operations.
• Categorization of robotic systems based on their primary function.

Main Results:

• Robotic systems for harvesting and weeding are the most extensively studied applications.
• Robotic systems for disease detection and seeding are less explored.
• The review identified key areas for improvement in agricultural robotics.

Conclusions:

• Further development of agricultural robotics is crucial for optimizing crop production.
• Advancements in processing algorithms, inter-platform communication, and sensing systems are vital.
• Increased research in disease detection and seeding robotics is recommended.