A Low-cost Robot with Autonomous Recharge and Navigation for Weed Control in Fields with Narrow Row Spacing
A Low-cost Robot with Autonomous Recharge and Navigation for Weed Control in Fields with Narrow Row Spacing
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DOI：
10.1109/iros51168.2021.9636267
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发表时间：
2021-09
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Yayun Du;Bhrugu Mallajosyula;Deming Sun;Jingyi Chen;Zihang Zhao;Mukhlesur Rahman;M. Quadir;M. Jawed
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文献类型：
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作者：
Yayun Du;Bhrugu Mallajosyula;Deming Sun;Jingyi Chen;Zihang Zhao;Mukhlesur Rahman;M. Quadir;M. Jawed
现代除草剂在农业环境中的应用通常依赖于向农作物和杂草喷洒除草剂的大型喷雾器或需要劳动密集型手动操作的便携式喷雾器。前一种方法会导致除草剂的过度使用并导致作物产量下降，而后者在大规模操作中往往难以维持。本文介绍了第一个用于行间作物杂草管理的全自动机器人，能够基于计算机视觉的导航、杂草检测、完整的田地覆盖和自动充电，价格不到 400 美元。目标应用是作物田间的自主行间杂草控制，例如：亚麻和油菜籽，作物行之间的间距只有一英尺。所提出的机器人足够小，可以在植物生长的各个阶段在农田之间穿行，同时检测杂草并喷洒除草剂。充电系统包含新设计的机器人硬件、坡道、机器人充电臂和移动充电站。采用集成视觉算法来有效协助充电器对准。它们相结合，使机器人能够在没有电力的情况下在野外连续工作。此外，基于颜色的轮廓算法与预处理技术相结合，可根据机载单目摄像头的输入实现稳健的导航。将这种紧凑型机器人融入农场可以帮助实现杂草控制自动化，即使是在生长后期，并通过精确瞄准杂草来减少除草剂的使用。该机器人平台在北达科他州的亚麻籽田进行了现场测试。
Modern herbicide application in agricultural set-tings typically relies on either large scale sprayers that dispense herbicide over crops and weeds alike or portable sprayers that require labor intensive manual operation. The former method results in overuse of herbicide and reduction in crop yield while the latter is often untenable in large scale operations. This paper presents the first fully autonomous robot for weed management for row crops capable of computer vision based navigation, weed detection, complete field coverage, and automatic recharge for under $400. The target application is autonomous inter-row weed control in crop fields, e.g. flax and canola, where the spacing between croplines is as small as one foot. The proposed robot is small enough to pass between croplines at all stages of plant growth while detecting weeds and spraying herbicide. A recharging system incorporates newly designed robotic hardware, a ramp, a robotic charging arm, and a mobile charging station. An integrated vision algorithm is employed to assist with charger alignment effectively. Combined, they enable the robot to work continuously in the field without access to electricity. In addition, a color-based contour algorithm combined with preprocessing techniques is applied for robust navigation relying on the input from the onboard monocular camera. Incorporating such compact robots into farms could help automate weed control, even during late stages of growth, and reduce herbicide use by targeting weeds with precision. The robotic platform is field-tested in the flaxseed fields of North Dakota.