The robot is best suited for growers that have the ambition to automate crop labour. Because the robot can operate next to the human workforce and can take care of part of the crop labour tasks, it is possible to introduce crop labour automation gradually.
1st generation
The first generation Priva Kompano robots fully focusses on deleafing of tomatoes. Each robot can maintain 0.75 to 1 hectares, depending on stem density. In larger areas, growers have a choice to either work with multiple robots, or to combine automated and manual crop labour.
Availability
The way the deleafing robot is added to the daily operations, is in fact quite similar to that of the human workforce. Automated deleafing is offered as a service, enabling growers to profit from the advantages of the product instantly, without a long payback period.
The Priva Kompano Deleaf-Line for tomatoes was introduced at the GreenTech 2016. As of June 14, 2016, interested parties can pre-order the robot online. The members of the consortium have invested much time into the development and optimisation of the robot. Therefore, they are given the first opportunity to start working with the robot. Depending on the number of robots that are ordered by the consortium, it will become available for a broader audience. As of today, growers can sign-up and ensure that they are among the first to be provided with a robot in their organisation. The robot is expected to be available for growers outside the consortium from June 2017.
Future
Deleafing tomatoes is just the beginning. This first generation of automated crop labour will lead to more automated solutions, such as different crops and tasks, for example harvesting cucumbers.
Interested?
As of June 14, 2016, you can pre-order the robot online.