Advanced field robotics in simulation and field – International student teams to compete– New compulsory elements: Freestyle field tasks and, on w w w. dlg-connect. com, simulations: online spectators attend for free – daily, commentated demonstrations in English and German at DLG Feldtage in Kirschgartshausen, Mannheim, Germany, 14-16 June 2022
(DLG). With robots from 13 competing international student teams performing tasks like weed recognition among real crops, the 19th International Field Robot Event (FRE) will take place at the DLG-Feldtage trade fair at the Kirschgartshausen farm, Mannheim, Germany, 14-16 June 2022, this time adding live online simulation as a judging criterion.
Navigating curved maize rows with headland turns, weed and rubbish recognition with mapping and removal, as well as mastering a self-selected specialism, are the tasks autonomous robots must solve at the DLG Feldtage venue, and again online in simulation on www.dlg-connect. Organized by the University of Hohenheim and Wageningen University with the focus on presenting pioneering robotics, FRE is hosted for the fifth time at DLG Feldtage.
“Long before being turned into hardware, an autonomous robot goes through numerous simulations with much fine tuning of the algorithms along the way to make it work as intended in the field, ” says Prof. Hans W. Griepentrog, Director, Department of Technology in crop production, University of Hohenheim, Germany.
“Last year’s contest was held exclusively in a simulated environment that we created for contestants. We concluded that this important simulation work can successfully be presented to both the jury and spectators online and hence are including it into the contest, which now consists of alternate demonstrations in the field and online,” comments Prof. Griepentrog.
Offering real-life farming situations like the presence of obstacles and weeds, the simulation environment produces high-quality lighting, shadows and textures, making it both realistic and entertaining to watch. The 3D robotic simulator “ROS / Gazebo” – also used in the NASA space robotics challenge – offers the simulated environment in which the field robots and their algorithms can compete.
Sensors, algorithms and actuators for precision tasks
A spectator highlight, the freestyle task, which was previously optional, presents visionary concepts for field applications such as harvesting or targeted spraying, offering benefits like soil protection.
Uniquely equipped with sensors such as cameras and lidar sensors as well as algorithms and actuators, each robot has been designed by the teams to meet the challenge of making intelligent sense of the data on the day, resulting in optimal decisions. Determining in real time what is weed or where the headland ends is complex, while removing weeds requires accurate software control of the actuators that operate the tool.
With many months of prior development work, the field robots will perform in public and an academic and technical jury will be judging against criteria like complexity, performance and agricultural usefulness.
Held in English and German with competing university teams from engineering, industrial design, and agricultural departments located in Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania and Slovenia, the Field Robot Event 2022 will be held in a large demonstration area at the Kirschgartshausen experimental farm with the simulation task held on www.dlg-connect.com in a free-to-attend format.
Program
Tuesday, 14 June
09:40 – 09:50 a.m. Welcome
Task: Navigation
10:00 – 12:00 Simulation Contest
14:00 – 16:00 Field Contest
16:30 – 17:00 Award ceremony
Wednesday, 15 June
Task: Sensing & Mapping
10:00 – 12:00 Simulation Contest
14:00 – 16:00 Field Contest
16:30 – 17:00 Award ceremony
Thursday, 16 June
Task: Freestyle
10:00 – 11:00 Simulation Contest
12:00 – 13:00 Field Contest
13:30 – 14:30 Award ceremony
Contestants and robot name
Technische Universität Braunschweig, „Helios Evo“Heilbronn University of Applied Science, „FloriBot 4.0“
Wageningen University & Research „Bullseye“
University of Hohenheim „ATH Rover”
Kamaro Engineering (KIT) “Beteigeuze”
University + University of Applied Sciences Osnabrück “Acorn”
University of Maribor “FarmBeast”
Münster University of Applied Sciences “Ceres II”
Camper Robotics “RON”
Technische Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe “THe-OWL“
SFZ Südwürttemberg „Carbonite“
University Politehnica of Timisoara „Ampor”
Politecnico di Milano “grasslammer”
Launched in 2003 by Wageningen University in the Netherlands, the contest demonstrates pioneering robotics and precision farming technologies under real-world conditions while offering young scientists the opportunity to exchange and develop their ideas alongside their peers.
Visitors to DLG Feldtage are invited to watch the field robots in action and engage in discussions with experts. The DLG Feldtage trade is organized by DLG (German Agricultural Society) and partners.
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