[Tyler]

Robotic farms - Hortiplan mobile gully system
     



I.K.Erripis from the Robots Podcast has sent some
pointers on how robotics in agriculture is revolutionizing the way our
food is produced. Greenhouses are transformed by robot applications and
many companies apply advanced technology in order to improve production
and the product. One of them is shown in a video recently posted by our
friends over at the Singularity
Hub and reposted above. It shows that Belgian company Hortiplan won't just sell you one or
several robots to operate your greenhouse. Instead, Hortiplan will
convert it into one huge robot. Their mobile gully
system (MGS) is an integrated installation that automatically moves
the plants through four stages, a nursery, a centralized planting area,
an automated growing field and finally to the centralized harvest area.
The plants are handled in and out of gullies and they grow through a "Nutrient
Film Technique" (NFT) recirculating water system, where water with
nutrients flows continuously through the plants. There are multiple
benefits of this system: Production is increased, the requirements for
human labor are reduced and the installation saves time and space for a
given yield. The plants, (e.g., lettuce) are also picked up with their
roots attached and by being alive they remain fresh for a longer time.

   

http://robots.net/article/3097.html