A Discussion on Robotics and Orchard Design

It was great to see such a good turnout at the recent Apple Program in February at the OFVC down in Niagara. These programs take a lot of finessing to get them just right with the right mix of topics and speakers with sufficient input from the audience. As organizers, we do appreciate the support.

I have been to many programs like this over four decades. Some are educational and some are a disaster. I can never figure out why organizers of some of the conferences I have been to over the years would spend thousands of dollars to bring in a speaker, have them talk on stuff that is already well known, cut them off early, and send them home without a question and answer session.

Anyway, I thought I would briefly mention some of the issues that Tom Auvil focused on in the recent OVFC program. Tom Auvil is a Horticulturist with the Washington State Tree fruit Research Commission.

Tom emphasized the fact that labour will be the driving force for successful orchard operations in the future. This is with reference to how the grower/manager will get tasks accomplished and has to do with everything from tying limbs to green fruit thinning and ultimately to harvesting the fruit. It may not be enough choosing the right cultivar. With the cost of everything going up, including packing charges and cost of production, you end up with the “double squeeze”. According to Tom, revenues will also drive business and not cost containment

Tom mentioned that the differences between organic and conventional technology will begin to fade. This is already evident with the introduction of many reduced risk strategies in the orchard now being employed by Ontario producers. This is not the first time I have heard this from knowledgeable speakers.

With reference to the use of platforms, Tom talked about the stop and go system, which is not as efficient when compared to a platform moving down between tree rows in a gentle weave at a rate of travel of 30 feet per minute and with automated steering from a row finder device. Workers on these platforms also prefer to be tethered to a central railing rather than having to reach across a railing to accomplish tasks. Workers want to be able to lean into the row and feel safe. Ultimately one could have an articulating, self-leveling, 4 wheel drive, and 4 wheel steer type of rig. These are already in use in some parts of the Northern Hemisphere.

The limiting factor to this whole concept is the “hand taking the apple off the tree” and the need for consistent fruit position in the canopy. This means that the row thickness should only be a few inches and preferably without branches in the way to slow down a robotic arm and hand.

The problem then becomes one of cost and return. A robotic hand could pick a bin for let’s say $15 - $30 and if the tree is too bushy this could be $60/bin. Ultimately, the governing factor for employing any technology advances like this, is the potential value of the fruit in the bin.

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