Field Automation Using Robot Tractor

The objective of the study was to develop a field robot in agricultural operation environment. The navigation sensor consisted of an RTK-GPS and an inertial measurement unit (IMU). The sensor fusion algorithm was capable of identifying FOG bias and compensating location error in real-time for providing sufficient navigation information in support of accurate robot guidance in the field. The field tests of a field robot have been conducted in Sapporo, Japan. Tillage, planting, cultivating and splaying on soybean field has been conducted. In addition, the robot itself could transfer between a shed and a field to be operated. The accuracy of the vehicle was better than skilled farmer’s operation. The adopted speed of the vehicle was conventional human operation speeds. The r.m.s. lateral error of the guided vehicle was less than 5 cm. Even crop row was slightly curved, the autonomous vehicle could travel without running over the crops.