The sustainability of the new FarmDroid FD20
The setting of the EIMA in Bologna offers the perfect opportunity for ARVAtec, a company from Rescaldina in the province of Milan, to present its restyledc FarmDroid FD20, an electric-traction agricultural robot powered by solar energy that sows and weeds autonomously. The vehicle has already been on the market for several years, but is now being offered with two important new features: the Dual Front Wheel (DFW) and the Spot Application System (SAS). The DFW update to the FarmDroid FD20 robot introduces a second front wheel to the original solitary wheel design of the previous model, and in addition to the two rear ones present in both versions. The tires are installed in line with the rear ones, in order to reduce the contact points on agricultural soil (up to 33% less, according to the manufacturer). This solution helps improve weight balance, thus limiting soil compaction. With this configuration, the technicians of the Milanese company have been able to gain an additional row for sowing. The other main innovation introduced by ARVAtec on the FarmDroid FD20 is the SAS system that makes it possible to apply liquid fertilizer (or herbicide or insecticide) directly on the plants during weeding. The system is composed of two 60-liter tanks for product storage, a pump, and a series of pipes and nozzles for dispensing, while a group of solenoid valves controlled by the robot's CPU regulate the way the product is dispensed. According to the surveys conducted by FarmDroid, combining mechanical and conventional weed control, SAS technology has created a 94% decrease in the use of chemical inputs, offering great advantages both from an environmental and operating cost perspective.
