Wines & Vines reports on a prototype grapevine pruning robot that could save vinyards time and money. The artist's rendering above shows the robot with a tractor drive unit that would propel it as it prunes the vines using a 3D vision system and multiple hydraulic pruning shears. Multiple images are compiled to produce an internal 3D representation of the vine, to which pruning rules are applied. The robot, developed by Vision Robotics, can work 24 hours a day in any lighting. It is expected to prune at a rate of about four and half hours per acre, costing vinyard owners $125 per acre, compared to the $257 per acre they pay humans for the job. The current cost estimate is $150,000 for the robot, which is expected to have a 10 year life span.
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