Vineland is looking for a marketing partner to help bring their vegetable harvesting robot to market.
The newly developed robot has a proof-of-concept (pilot) solution for autonomous robotic harvesting of greenhouse vegetables, with a focus on identifying and gently harvesting fruits from the plant. The distinction of the vegetable harvesting robot is based on the interaction between original computer vision algorithms, an elegant decision support system and a personalized end effector. The end effector (also known as the gripper) has a motorized joint that uses sensing to maintain proper contact (grabs the fruit) when the fruit is cut from the main stem (or vine) of the plant. Initially developed for harvesting long English cucumbers, it is adaptable to harvesting other crops and other activities such as pruning. The vegetable harvest robot has already demonstrated robust and consistent performance in the Vineland greenhouse environment and is being prepared for further testing in a commercial greenhouse.
Moreover, the vegetable harvesting robot consists of three main core technologies which have been developed and integrated on a proof-of-concept test platform using off-the-shelf technology wherever possible. These core technologies are:
- computer vision software
- decision support system
- Custom Effector
Vineland is looking for market its Automated Vegetable Harvesting Robot through one or more third parties who have the interest, capacity and ability to manufacture, market and sell the Vegetable Harvesting Robot to the domestic and/or international horticultural industry. Vineland’s processes for moving forward with finding suitable parties is a two-step process:
If interested, businesses can respond to the expression of interest by including information on the following:
- Reason for Commercialization Interest in Vineland’s Automated Vegetable Harvesting Robot
- Your company’s current and/or planned manufacturing, marketing and sales capabilities and capabilities
- Experience in the horticulture sector with a description of your company’s business interests in Canada
- Proposed Terms of Access to Intellectual Property Rights in Vineland Technology, Including Licensing or Acquisition of Intellectual Property Rights
- Potential interest in ongoing R&D collaboration with Vineland
The following schedule is in place:
- Launch of the EOI process: February 3, 2022
- Question period: February 4 to March 4, 2022
- Closing of the EOI process: March 21, 2022
- Call for proposals issued to selected companies: April 19, 2022
- Closing of the call for tenders: May 31, 2022
- Companies selected and agreements signed: July 2022
