Autonomous Robotic Platform for Proximal Data Collection Amongst Foliage Utilizing an Anisotropically Flexible Manipulator

The decline in agricultural productivity due to climate change, diseases, and pests has raised concerns for farmers globally. To address these challenges, innovative approaches integrating mobile robotics into agriculture have emerged to assist human labor. This study presents a novel solution utilizing a delta robot with anisotropically flexible structure for nondestructive data collection from plants. Three data gathering methods are introduced utilizing the platform. Experimental results demonstrate the advantages of the proposed approach in capturing intricate plant details and inspecting concealed regions, particularly beneficial for detecting pathogens and pests. This proposed solution has the potential to offer greater detail than aerial vehicles, while also introducing a new way of monitoring plant health under foliage. This research contributes to enhancing plant health monitoring in agriculture through agile robotic systems.