Mar 5 2011
Vanmunch, a member of the Trossen Robotics’s forum, has designed Prospero, an “Autonomous Micro Planter" that would effectively replace humans with robots for farming.
Prospero, a six legged robot equipped with a wide array of sensors, is capable of traversing a landscape undisturbed. The robot determines the right spot to drill the soil and plant the seed. Following this action, the robot sprays a marker to prevent other robots from planting in the same area. Prospero is also capable of spraying fertilizer and pesticides on the plants.
A Robot, with the help of other robots, will plant at a new site if the given area contains few seeds. If the given area contains numerous seeds, then Prospero is capable of signaling other bots away from that site. The roboticist claims that robots could play a vital role in the future agricultural system.
Vanmunch claims that with the use of Prospero, smaller plots of land can be utilized more efficiently to lower food costs.
Source: http://www.trossenrobotics.com/