Digital version of the Zucchetti agricultural robot

At EIMA Show’s second edition, Zucchetti Centro Sistemi has showcased the innovative automatic robot Agrirobot 4.0, for soil management and vineyard treatment Agrirobot was awarded already in 2016 with the Signaling and the Blue Award in the “Technical Innovation” competition at EIMA International 2016, and the 4.0 evolution is the result of the experience gained in the development of other innovative projects, such as the robotic lawnmower “ Ambrogio “, in which Zucchetti has integrated some technologies already implemented making it particularly effective for applications in agriculture.  The goal of Agrirobot 4.0 is to make a constant cut and clean the grass in the vineyard rows. Through the front and rear sensors, the robot is kept at distance from the rows and cuts the grass even in the spaces between the posts. The Tuscan company has implemented on Agrirobot 4.0 a guidance system based on the use of satellite positioning (GPS - Glonass - Galileo) enhanced by an electronic control board and its related software. This technology allows the robot to operate with a movement precision of 2/4 cm, reducing the cost of the electronics by 10 times, compared to what would be obtained using a multifrequency GPS. Thanks to the wheels with excellent traction (supported by powerful battery-powered brushless motors) the robot is able to strongly tackle the most difficult slopes. Agrirobot 4.0 uses powerful Lithium-Ion batteries that last two to three times longer than standard Ni-Cd and Ni-Mh batteries. Because of their smaller and lighter size, these batteries allow six hours work cycles and are able to distribute the energy available for traction and cutting.