Robots to pick apples in the Goulburn Valley

Robots will take to orchards in the Goulburn Valley next year in what is believed to be the first commercial trial of robotic apple picking in Victoria.

Ripe Robotics’ prototype robot Clive at work picking oranges in Victoria.

HER name is Eve, she has two arms and a heart of steel.

But instead of blood pulsing through her veins, she has electrical currents directing her to reach and suction apples and oranges off trellised trees.

Eve and future iterations of this Australian-made robot could be the future face of fruit picking following her first commercial trial due to kick off in the Goulburn Valley next year.

Three Victorian apple farmers are set to hire the robot to complement their picking staff for the coming harvest. And the timing couldn’t be more opportune given the dire labour shortage looming across Australia in coming months.

The robot is the latest generation to be built by Ripe Robotics, a newcomer to Australia’s robotics scene that decided to focus on fruit harvesting after realising there was little activity in the space.

Ripe Robotics co-founder Hunter Jay said the robot could almost work at the speed of an average human picker. “Speed is something we’ll be working on more. By the end of last (apple) season, we have 95 per cent of Pink Ladies picked well, without bruising and with their stems and we’re hoping it will be even better this season,” he said.

Turnbull Brothers Orchards are among those first in line to trial Eve for their 2021 harvest. Alex Turnbull said he and brother Chris were not relying on the robot to pick their entire 10,000 bin apple crop, but the trial would help them position the orchard for further technological take-up the following year.

“We will have them here for the entire season from late January to May doing Gala, Granny Smith, Modi and Pink,” Mr Turnbull said. “If the guys are interested to give it a go on pears, we hope to do a trial on Williams pears and wouldn’t mind trying canning peach.”

He said the rate they were paying for the robot, which is billed per bin picked, was similar to the cost of human labour.

“For it to be viable we really need it to be more productive. This one they are planning to use has got one arm picking at the moment. In future it might have many more and it can work during the night.”

Ripe Robotics is this week relocating from Sydney to Shepparton to focus on the region. The start-up is in the middle of a fundraising drive and is in talks with venture capitalists and interested investors to raise $850,000 to up-scale production over the next 18 months.

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