Robotic Following Cart to Replace Light Duty Tractor Tasks?

[candersen10]

One more video:

 

[daugen]

with the apple harvest going on, I wonder if you found some possible test clients.

Also means you yourselves are busy with the harvest.

btw, new video is great. Need a larger model so it doesn't look like a toy, so it looks rugged.

 

[daugen]

And now would be a good time to see it brimming with apples, or grapes from the harvest.
You have to show it can haul some real weight, and the cornucopia style heaping mounds of grapes would
look very cool. Your version of a dog, baby and apple pie...:thumbsup:

 

[candersen10]

Updated chassis now to address some of the issues mentioned in the thread about mud/ruts etc.

Here is what the table grape fields look like - we've been assuming we can get by in these fields with 2WD because they don't pick when it is pouring rain etc., and the cart will only need to carry up to about 300 pounds of berries at the max.

 

[aczlan]

View attachment 529740

Updated chassis now to address some of the issues mentioned in the thread about mud/ruts etc.

Here is what the table grape fields look like - we've been assuming we can get by in these fields with 2WD because they don't pick when it is pouring rain etc., and the cart will only need to carry up to about 300 pounds of berries at the max.

View attachment 529741

If its like apples, they dont pick them when its pouring, but they want to get right back out as soon as it stops raining. There is a reason most farmers are going to 4wd for their orchard tractors.

Aaron Z

 

[candersen10]

If its like apples, they dont pick them when its pouring, but they want to get right back out as soon as it stops raining. There is a reason most farmers are going to 4wd for their orchard tractors.

Aaron Z

Here's a link that shows a bunch of video of hand picking in the types of fields we are aiming to run pilots in this spring: http://agrbt.com/images/Video/in field operations.mp4

Agree that a 4WD unit should be something we add eventually. Just not certain per the uses shown there that we absolutely have to have it today in our first prototypes?

We'll aim to test in the mud some this week and share video to see what people here think.

 

[daugen]

Here's a link that shows a bunch of video of hand picking in the types of fields we are aiming to run pilots in this spring: http://agrbt.com/images/Video/in field operations.mp4

Agree that a 4WD unit should be something we add eventually. Just not certain per the uses shown there that we absolutely have to have it today in our first prototypes?

We'll aim to test in the mud some this week and share video to see what people here think.

if you've got heavier lug grippy tires, you might do fine with 2wd. You are trying to prove the concept first. Of course 2wd is only one wheel driven, while 4wd is only two in basic rendition, so with electric motors, it only means one more motor. ?

Boy those grapes look nice. Bet it smells nice in there.

 

[candersen10]

if you've got heavier lug grippy tires, you might do fine with 2wd. You are trying to prove the concept first. Of course 2wd is only one wheel driven, while 4wd is only two in basic rendition, so with electric motors, it only means one more motor. ?

Boy those grapes look nice. Bet it smells nice in there.

In our case, 2WD is 2 motors, 2 wheels, each driven. There is no differential (open or otherwise).

4WD for us is 4 wheels, 4 motors, all driven, no differential (open or otherwise).

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

I can't help thinking that if you're really serious about using this in an ag application, you simply must stop diddling around with that front caster. No one is going to take that thing serious (at even close to your price point) until you have 4 proper tires on it. Not necessarily "4wd", but a tire at each corner no matter what, even if the front 2 are just steering casters. At least then you would have a tire at each corner for stability over terrain. That 3 wheel thing just says "I'm stuck" even while sitting still. And I would lean towards 4wd as being your only "ag" option, unless it's upgrading to full tracks.

Now for an INDOOR application, warehouse, etc, with concrete floors and smooth solid rubber tires, sure, go ahead and offer a 3 wheeled "caster" variant. Make it a wholly separate "indoor model" if you want. Call it the "Lil' Burro" if you want. Light duty frame, small capacity, and that caster, may not be bad cruising down a warehouse isle, or down a large office corridor. Still don't know about that 5 hr run time. Should be able to run 8 hrs. Most settings have employees that run at least an 8 hr shift, so more "efficient" to have someone stop to plug it in at the end of their "day".

I would also, for an "ag" application, raise the weight capacity to at least 500 lbs, offer it with a powered dump bed option, and maybe a few modular bed designs that can be interchanged on the same basic chassis. Also, just start out with the bigger battery capacity, 10 hrs min run time, 12 would be better.

Then maybe add a "Burro Grande" with 1000 lbs capacity, tracks, 12 hr run time, trailer hitch for a small garden trailer, also powered dump bed.

But honestly, 3 wheels (one of them a small center caster), a 250 lb capacity, and a 5 hr run time? For 5k? In an outdoor ag environment? I just don't see this going anywhere.

 

[candersen10]

I can't help thinking that if you're really serious about using this in an ag application, you simply must stop diddling around with that front caster. No one is going to take that thing serious (at even close to your price point) until you have 4 proper tires on it. Not necessarily "4wd", but a tire at each corner no matter what, even if the front 2 are just steering casters. At least then you would have a tire at each corner for stability over terrain. That 3 wheel thing just says "I'm stuck" even while sitting still. And I would lean towards 4wd as being your only "ag" option, unless it's upgrading to full tracks.

Now for an INDOOR application, warehouse, etc, with concrete floors and smooth solid rubber tires, sure, go ahead and offer a 3 wheeled "caster" variant. Make it a wholly separate "indoor model" if you want. Call it the "Lil' Burro" if you want. Light duty frame, small capacity, and that caster, may not be bad cruising down a warehouse isle, or down a large office corridor. Still don't know about that 5 hr run time. Should be able to run 8 hrs. Most settings have employees that run at least an 8 hr shift, so more "efficient" to have someone stop to plug it in at the end of their "day".

I would also, for an "ag" application, raise the weight capacity to at least 500 lbs, offer it with a powered dump bed option, and maybe a few modular bed designs that can be interchanged on the same basic chassis. Also, just start out with the bigger battery capacity, 10 hrs min run time, 12 would be better.

Then maybe add a "Burro Grande" with 1000 lbs capacity, tracks, 12 hr run time, trailer hitch for a small garden trailer, also powered dump bed.

But honestly, 3 wheels (one of them a small center caster), a 250 lb capacity, and a 5 hr run time? For 5k? In an outdoor ag environment? I just don't see this going anywhere.

Those pictures show where we are trying to go with it for version 1.0. Do you think we need 4WD in those types of settings from the images? We are looking at 300 pounds of capacity, 2WD drive with a rear caster, 15 miles of range, autonomous without any beacons/infrastructure etc., and around an $8K price through a dealer. On paper this would be about a 2 year payback in many berry operations (and much shorter if labor goes towards 15-20 bucks an hour which we hear guys are actually paying today to keep people harvesting).

In a crop like blueberries, a single picker can pick 20 pounds / hour. 300 pounds of capacity is thus 15 man hours of picking. If we go much larger the product becomes much more expensive and needs to run enough to support perhaps 20-30 guys picking. This is why we have settled towards the 300 pound weight capacity for version 1.0. Does that make the rationale sound more logical?

Thanks for the feedback.