Purpose

This paper aims to investigate if a Cartesian robot system for kiwifruit harvesting works more effectively and efficiently than an articulated robot system. The robot is a key component in agricultural automation. For instance, multiple robot arm system has been developed for kiwifruit harvesting recently because of the significant labor shortage issue. The industrial robots for factory automation usually have articulated configuration which is suitable for the tasks in the manufacturing and production environment. However, this articulated configuration may not fit for agricultural application due to the large outdoor environment.

Design/methodology/approach

The kiwifruit harvesting tasks are completed step by step so that the robot workspace covers the canopy completely. A two-arm, Cartesian kiwifruit harvesting robot system and several field experiments are developed for the investigation. The harvest cycle time of the Cartesian robot system is compared to that of an articulated robot system. The difference is analyzed based on the workspace geometries of these two robot configurations.

Findings

It is found that the kiwifruit harvesting productivity is increased by using a multiple robot system with Cartesian configuration owing to its regular workspace geometry.

Originality/value

An articulated robot is a common configuration for manufacturing because of its simple structure and the relatively static factory environment. Most of the agricultural robotics research studies use single articulated robot for their implementation. This paper pinpoints how the workspace of a multiple robot system affects the harvest cycle time for kiwifruit harvesting in a pergola style kiwifruit orchard.

中文翻译：

---

直角猕猴桃收获的笛卡尔机器人系统的工作区分析

目的

本文旨在研究用于连接猕猴桃的笛卡尔机器人系统是否比铰接式机器人系统更有效地工作。机器人是农业自动化中的关键组件。例如，由于严重的劳动力短缺问题，最近已经开发了用于奇异果收获的多机械臂系统。用于工厂自动化的工业机器人通常具有铰接式配置，适合于制造和生产环境中的任务。但是，由于户外环境较大，这种铰接式配置可能不适合农业应用。

设计/方法/方法

猕猴桃的收获任务是逐步完成的，因此机器人工作区完全覆盖了树冠。开发了一个两臂直角奇异果采摘机器人系统，并进行了一些现场试验。将笛卡尔机器人系统的收获周期时间与多关节机器人系统的收获周期时间进行比较。根据这两种机器人配置的工作空间几何形状分析差异。

发现

发现通过使用具有直角坐标配置的多机器人系统，由于其规则的工作空间几何形状，奇异果的收获生产率得以提高。

创意/价值

铰接式机器人由于其简单的结构和相对静态的工厂环境而成为制造的常见配置。大多数农业机器人技术研究都使用单个多关节机器人来实现。本文指出了在凉棚式奇异果园中多机器人系统的工作空间如何影响奇异果收获的收获周期时间。