Project description
3D-vision robotic arms pick the perfect tomato
Tomatoes are very popular for production in greenhouses. However, the process is complicated and requires attention every day. Harvesting is also labour-intensive. In this context, the EU-funded GRoW project will develop a robotic solution that will be able to handle the tomatoes without causing physical damage (bruises, cuts and abrasions). An advanced 3D-vision system will be able to identify ripe fruits among leaves and stems. Multiple extensible robotic arms will increase harvest speeds, and touch-sensitive terminals will prevent damage and loss of fruits. This will allow for the profitable harvesting of tomatoes all year round without the risk of labour shortage. As such, harvesting will be accelerated without increased labour costs.
Objective
The objective of the project is to demonstrate technological and business viability of the robotic harvesting applied in greenhouse farming of tomatoes.
To date no commercial product for automated operations on tomatoes is available because of complex R&D that a producer has to face for developing a device capable to handle this extremely damageable fruit.
Metomotion has found solutions to all the challenging technical steps, thereby allowing profitable harvesting of tomatoes and making it possible to growers to harvest the fruits throughout the year and not being exposed to labor shortage.
By doing so, the harvest speed is doubled and the labor costs are halved.
Moreover, our GRoW (Greenhouse Robotic Worker) will alleviate agricultural employees from back breaking work, permitting them to switch to more elevated tasks.
In the context of the Precision Farming approach, automation in the agricultural sector is particularly solicited and MetoMotion is offering a product capable to satisfy the most compelling needs of the growers.
The core innovations brought by MetoMotion consist of:
- Advanced 3D vision system to clearly identify ripe fruits among leaves and stems
- Extensible multiple robotic arms to increase harvest speed
- Touch sensitive terminals to avoid damage and loos of fruits
- Fully autonomous vehicle hosting embedding a box for the automated packing of collected fruits
First interactions with users have shown great interest toward GRoW product.
Within Phase 1 project, we will further explore the customer base to provide a comprehensive estimation of commercial potential relevant to GRoW.
To date, on extremely precautionary basis, we forecast MetoMotion’s production capacity of about 200 robots/year, generating revenues of about € 30 mln in 3 years of operation. This figure may be substantially reviewed in the course of the Phase 1 project.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- engineering and technology mechanical engineering vehicle engineering automotive engineering autonomous vehicles
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture horticulture fruit growing
- natural sciences computer and information sciences artificial intelligence computer vision
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture horticulture vegetable growing
- engineering and technology electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering electronic engineering robotics
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Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.2.3. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.3. - PRIORITY 'Societal challenges
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H2020-EU.2.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
2161401 KARMIEL
Israel
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.