CT University students invent moisture sensing ‘Smart Agricultural Robot’

Ludhiana, July 11, 2019: CT University (CTU) under its Incubation centre ‘Research and Innovation Centre for excellence’ (RICE) has invented a Smart Agricultural Robot (SAR). The main function of this robot is that it can sense the moisture in the soil and automatically turns on the water pump according to the requirement. SAR consists of 3D printed parts, Motors and Flexible front wheel suspensions that allow the robot to climb on any uneven surface. The robot is the best example for best out of waste as each tyre and pipe etc are made from waste material. The robot is controlled with an Arduino controller that can be connected to a cell phone through Bluetooth or Wi-Fi. This prototyped robot has a water capacity of 2 litres. The students behind this project are from B.Tech namely Christambar True Man (Robotics) and Kiran Reddy (Artificial Intelligence) from Kerala and Telangana respectively. Reddy, while elaborating about the project, said, “The body of the robot is made from scrap consisted of PVC fitting pipes which are connected to each through 3D printed joints. The joints were designed in Autodesk Fusion 360 and after that they were printed using 3D printer. The alloys of tyres were also 3D printed and the outer rubber part was made from cycle tire tube. The grip of the tyres was also made from waste cycle tyre tube. The water tank of the agricultural robot was made from sunboard due to its light weight and a water pump was fitted inside.” Vice Chancellor, Dr Harsh Sadawarti, said, “The incubation centre provides an environment for developing start-ups and providing various services related to incubate and Education with Research is the need of the hour. This project is combine efforts of students and faculty under RICE and can benefit the upcoming era of Technology based agriculture.” Managing Director Manbir Singh applauded the efforts of the young students and wished them best for their future endeavours.