Robotic Pollination of Apples in Commercial Orchards

This research presents a novel, robotic pollination system designed for targeted pollination of apple flowers in modern fruiting wall orchards. Developed in response to the challenges of global colony collapse disorder, climate change, and the need for sustainable alternatives to traditional pollinators, the system utilizes a commercial manipulator, a vision system, and a spray nozzle for pollen application. Initial tests in April 2022 pollinated 56 6.5 s. Significant improvements were made in 2023, with the system accurately detecting 91 reduced cycle time of 4.8 s. This system showed potential for precision artificial pollination that can also minimize the need for labor-intensive field operations such as flower and fruitlet thinning.