Ekobot weeding robot with variable ground clearance
Ekobot is working on a new version of their WEAI weeding robot. While it remains intended for onions, it will feature its own chassis and increased ground clearance.
Just before it was announced that Homburg had acquired not only the distributorship of Ekobot but also the ownership rights, Markus Sollenberg introduced the updated Ekobot WEAI weeding robot. The key changes include a unique chassis and variable ground clearance.
More ground clearance
It was revealed that the Swedish startup Ekobot would move away from using the undercarriage of the Norwegian robot manufacturer Saga Robotics. At the last edition, importer Homburg, along with Markus Sollenberg from Ekobot, demonstrated what this new undercarriage looks like. Sollenberg indicates that the weed detection system and the weeding elements are now electrically adjustable by 50 centimeters in height. What remains are the 9 cameras that detect weeds in an onion crop. The width of the vehicle is suited for a bed width of 225 centimeters, aimed at a row distance of 22.5 centimeters.
Battery swapping
The electric vehicle operates on energy from two batteries with a total capacity of 7 kWh. Depending on conditions and weed pressure, the Ekobot WEAI can operate for about ten hours on these batteries. Additionally, the robot travels at about 500 meters per hour (15 centimeters per second). Each of the finger weeders can remove up to five weeds per second from between the onions. When the batteries are depleted, they need to be swapped out.
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