Drones helping precision pesticide application
A recent article in Schweizer Illustrierte-Gruen focused on how robots and drones can help to reduce pesticide use in Swiss agriculture. WFSC member Prof. Achim Walter provided insight from his research project, Flourish, which studies robotic systems to monitor and manage pesticide use in fields.
A goal of sustainable agriculture is to reduce the use of pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, which can have negative impacts on human and environmental health. A recent article in the magazine Schweizer Illustrierte-Gruen (03 Aug 2018) features how Swiss farmers and researchers are testing the use of robots and drones to achieve this goal.
The article highlights the Horizon 2020 project “Flourish” that focuses on robotic solutions for precision farming, namely monitoring crops and targeting pesticide or fertilizer treatments for only plants or infested areas that need it. Flourish is a research consortium among seven European partners and coordinated by ETH Zurich.
The current testing of a robotic system in sugar beet fields in near Zurich is featured in the article. The robotic system consists of a drone and robot. The drone surveys the fields from the air, differentiates between crops and weeds, and sends this information to robot on the ground. The robot, piloted by the drone, performs a targeted intervention on the ground, either by mechanically destroying the weeds or by applying pesticides.
In the article, Prof. Achim Walter from ETH Zurich comments that the conditions to adopt these new technologies in Swiss agriculture are optimal: Farms are technically ready at a high level, internet coverage is nationwide, and the universities are leaders in drone technology.
Find out more about the project on the external page project page.
