Smart drone for rent to harvest apples

The Tevel Aerobotics Technologies company has developed a drone to harvest apples thanks to an extension that allows it to hold, pluck, and put the apples it harvests in a basket.

Robotic arms that scan trees for ripe fruit have been around for a while, but they're pretty limited. They can't get very far and are usually not very delicate when it comes to picking the fruit. The drone is slower, but many drones manage to remove a lot of apples at the same time, and they don't have to move very far to get the job done. They are even tethered with a cable for unlimited power, connected to a central source that powers multiple units.

Each drone has sensors and cameras that help tell if the fruit is ripe, and has QR codes to point to the destination and drop it off in the right container. All drones can be remotely monitored using GPS and mobile apps. They can also operate 24 hours a day, as long as their central source has power.

Tevel wants to rent these machines to farmers who need them at harvest time, claiming that they will cost less than hiring temporary labor for the job.

Tevel will start a pilot test in Spain, Italy, and the US, on farms of more than 100 hectares.