Development of a suction mechanism with a suitable end-effector for roboticcotton picking

Abstract

In a robotic cotton picker, the picking arm requires a suitable end-effector to pick cotton bolls from the plant. Additionally, a suction mechanism is required to transport the picked bolls into the storage tank. In this study, a suction-based system was developed where the end-effector removed the cotton bolls from the plant, and the vacuum unit carried it through the hose into the storage tank. Field tests were carried out on non-defoliated cotton plants using three end-effectors roller-type, chain-type and tubular anthracite at suction pressures of 25, 50, and 75 mmHg. The results showed that the roller-type end-effector achieved minimum time for suck a cotton boll (1.65 s/boll^-1), less cotton left in the boll (0.02 g/boll), and the highest picking efficiency (99.36%). A developed suction mechanism efficiently picked cotton bolls from the plant when equipped with end-effector roller-type at a 75 mmHg of suction pressure.