SprayBot Project: Precision Spraying Robot for Steep Slope Viticulture

The project SprayBot aims to answer a need identified by three associations of European Steep Slope Viticulturalists/wine makers (CERVIM, ADVID, and ValNaturePro). These associations are asking for automated solutions that: reduce the losses, and consequently the amount of phytopharmaceutical used during the spraying (pesticides mitigation challenge); reduce the exposition of the human worker to pesticides during spraying; increase the spraying system availability to 24 h/365 days; reduce cost, reduce water usage; and, reduce human direct intervention in the extreme conditions of steep slope viticulture (Harsh terrain conditions, Safety issues, Very difficult access etc.). SprayBot addresses this challenge by integrating the latest advanced algorithms for localization, mapping, path-planning and image processing into existing solutions to produce a modular and reliable precision spraying robot, which will be composed by three independent products that combined forms the final solution able to work on steep slope vineyards. The Technologies Readiness Level is on level 5 and will move towards level 8, which will allow to reach the steep slope Agricultural Machinery market that is unexplored by robotics that worth's nearly 900 million Euros; and compete in the global Agricultural Machinery market which reached a value of $61.7 billion (where tractors under 50 brake horsepower remain dominant, accounting for 61.5% of the sales). SprayBot derives requirements from Steep Slope Viticulturalists and implements three usage case validations in real world operational environments: Portugal (a pilot during 9 months), Italy, and Switzerland.