Automation and Robotics in Agriculture

Recent progressions in mechanized farming technology have radically transformed the current agricultural industry to fulfill the rising and incessantly changing needs of consumers around the globe. To ensure the sufficient supply and production of quality crop plants, agriculture robots have appeared as a potential solution. Apart from robotic harvesting mechanisms, agricultural robots have enhanced the efficiency of planting, slicing, food preservation, and resource tracking. These robotic developments have proven beneficial for determining farmworker labor scarcities and growing crop yields. Both of these benefits are critical to ensure sustainable food production for consumers around the globe. This book provides a comprehensive review of key advances in the use of robots in agriculture. Although automation and robotics are making rapid inroads into different areas of agricultural farming, there is a great demand for improvement of existing robotic technology and the development of novel techniques. Eight chapters of this book summarise advances in guidance and location systems, machine vision, GPS technologies, actuation, navigation, control technologies, and communication. This book encompasses all of the fundamental aspects of automation and robotic technology used in agriculture. Therefore, this book can be considered as reference material for readers from diverse backgrounds including forestry, agriculture, robotics, and automobiles industry.