Autovimation supports the project "Rowesys" – Robotic Weeding System – of the ETH Zurich as a sponsor. The aim of the project is to develop a sustainable alternative for herbicide use in agriculture on the basis of mechanical weeding.

The focus project impressively demonstrates how damage to people and the environment can be reduced with the help of digitalisation and smart technology. To this end, ten ETH students, supported by eight experts and sponsors, have been working on the development of the agricultural robot since last September. The functional prototype was designed for sugar beet fields because these require a relatively high use of herbicides. The agricultural robot pulls small ploughs through the soil, which pull the roots of the weeds from the ground to the surface and thus dry them out.

Navigation by camera

The autonomous system uses an Intel RealSense camera to detect lanes and the end of the field, where it independently switches to the next unprocessed row. To protect the sensitive camera system, Autovimation contributed a suitable protective housing and a pan and tilt mounting device. Rowesys has clearly demonstrated in practical tests that the use of mechanical systems can massively reduce the amount of herbicides applied and thus the pollution of ground water, air and the goods produced.