INESC TEC robots already roam the Douro terraces

“A geological poem. Absolute beauty”. This is how Miguel Torga described the Douro, far from imagining that this would also be the scenario for the most advanced robotic solutions. The “Synergy Day: Robotics and IoT for Vineyards”, promoted by INESC TEC with InovTechAgro, Sogrape and ADVID, demonstrated IoT solutions for vineyard monitoring tasks on Douro terraces, using three robots that promise to revolutionise the wine sector.

The day began with the presentation of different projects related to the sector, providing a broader perspective of the latest developments in robotics and IoT applied to hillside vineyards, and projecting a future where these technologies will become (even more) standardised.

During the afternoon, at Quinta do Seixo, the participants were able to witness the demonstration of the robots developed by INESC TEC: WETA, Modular-E with MowIT and fertilizer, and Modular-E with sprayer.

Filipe Neves dos Santos, researcher at INESC TEC, mentioned that these solutions will improve the levels of intelligence, profitability, precision, and automation in the context of agriculture and forestry. “Our robots, which operate in permanent crops, will make life easier for producers, is tasks like precision spraying, monitoring, plant cover maintenance, soil fertilisation, selective pruning and harvesting, and logistics”.

The WETA robot, developed within the scope of the SCORPION project, is able to perform precision spraying in mountain vineyards or terraces, and apply UV-C treatments, avoiding the application of fungicides.

“WETA’s levels of precision and autonomy make it possible to reduce waste of phytopharmaceutical products, reducing costs for winegrowers and environmental impact. Equipped with an advanced sprayer developed by TEYME, this robot can work in offset mode and perform tail recovery, while reducing human and animal exposure to pesticides, water use and labour costs”, explained Filipe Neves do Santos.

One of the most versatile solutions is the Modular-E robot, due to its ability to carry several tools capable of performing different tasks, individually or simultaneously.

The NOVATERRA project focused on developing a tool to support vegetation control activities, reducing costs and environmental impact. The MowIT tools, together with the fertilizer developed in partnership with Herculano (Vine&Wine project), transform Modular-E into a sustainable solution to the control of vegetation and more precise and efficient fertilisation.

The Modular-E with sprayer, developed during the PRySM project – in partnership with Pulverizadores Rocha -, also allows precision spraying in hillside vineyards. It’s a way to reduce operating costs, execute timely crop practices, and increase the flexibility of operations. “The main difference in relation to the WETA solution is the significantly lower production costs, which will benefit small and medium-sized winegrowers in the short term”, concluded Filipe Neves dos Santos.

The event welcomed close to 80 participants, and national and international experts in this sector.