Current developments of high-tech robotic and mechatronic systems in horticulture and challenges for the future

This session reviews the current developments of high-tech robotic and mechatronic systems in horticulture and challenges for the future. Current driving forces for mechanization are identified. Dutch greenhouse crop production is used as an example. In Greenhouse Horticulture the production steps and control that needs to be done in the growing area of the high value crops and flowers are still often done manually. Growers are investing a lot of labour in processes as crop sensing, crop maintenance and harvesting the products. To harvest these high value products, a lot of human intelligence is required, such as precise eye-hand coordination in a complex environment, quality assessment and careful handling and buffering of variably shaped vulnerable products. Within the next years, the first generation of machines will be introduced in greenhouse horticulture based on the principles of mechatronics and robotics, combining smart mechanical design with sensors and ‘artificial intelligence’ needed to complete these difficult tasks. Examples are the current commercial robot developments for cutting roses, harvesting strawberries and cucumber. But jumping from fully manual production-site to fully robotised production area is complex and probably not always the way go. Therefore an alternative might be to support human labour with technology to harvest more precise, targeting on specific quality, detecting crop health, buffering the high value products carefully and automatically. Labour will more and more be done in an environment with ambient intelligence. New ICT developments in gaming can stimulate labour in greenhouse horticulture aiming at improving the work performance whilst maintaining pleasure and fun through challenging workers to reach new skills, features and levels as is common in a gaming environment. Finally, progresses in the field of greenhouse robotic and mechatronic systems do not only rely on innovations in the field of robot and mechatronic systems but also on necessary innovations in the field of growing systems and plant breeding to reduce variability and thus to simplify the task for men and machinery.