An agri-tech firm which builds cutting-edge autonomous farm robotics has been awarded nearly £1 million to spearhead its new FLEXBOT project.
Fox Robotics Lts along with three farms – MA & MP Stockwell Barnsmuir Farm in Scotland, Lutton Farm in Peterborough, and Secretts Farm in Surrey – have been awarded the grant.
The FLEXBOT project involves Fox Robotics' autonomous all-terrain robot 'Hugo RT', designed with horticulture farms in mind.
The robot has autonomous navigation, which the firm says will provide support to farmers in their day-to-day operations.
Fruit growers are increasingly interested in tech innovations that can address some of the issues they currently face, such as seasonal labour shortages.
Picking robots are still some way from being commercially ready, but robotic platforms that can move fruit and crates around a site will allow pickers to keep picking and not spend time bringing fruit to a central weighing location.
Hugo RT‘s versatility spans various tasks, according to Fox Robotics, from off-season work like mowing grass, transporting soil, and handling delicate seedlings to the demanding in-season tasks of transporting harvested produce.
The unique feature of Hugo RT lies in its ability to perform these tasks without the need for human intervention, thus optimising efficiency and productivity in agriculture.
The core objective of the FLEXBOT project is to enhance the robustness of the Hugo RT's navigation system, ensuring that the robot can operate autonomously in farm environments.
Fox Robotics explains that this improvement will make Hugo RT the solution for a wide range of applications, "transcending the boundaries of traditional farm settings".
Fox’s chairman, Christian Gordon-Pullar said: "The aim of this collaboration is to enhance technology that aims to simplify the adoption of robotics in agriculture by mitigating the complexities associated with advanced technology manipulation.
"It will empower farmers to harness the benefits of robotics without the need for extensive technical expertise.”
Henry Acevedo, founder and CTO of Fox Robotics, added that the FLEXBOT project represented a significant step forward in the evolution of agriculture.
He explained: "The navigation system, based on Bird’s Eye View (BEV) maps, enables the robots to autonomously navigate outdoor environments, including fruit farms, with precision and efficiency.
"This capability will prove invaluable in logistics transportation tasks within agricultural operations.”
