Autonomous Planting Robot Helps Re-Forest the Amazon

An autonomous, seed-planting robot is helping re-forest the Amazon, in a pilot project that hopes to combat ongoing deforestation in the region.

The pilot project, established by ABB Robotics and the non-profit organization Junglekeepers, uses a solar-powered YuMi robot to accelerate the seed planting process. Designed to work alongside humans, the collaborative robot (cobot) features a robotic arm with two “hands” that shift soil and handle seeds.

Using YuMi, the team said they are helping replant an area the equivalent size of two soccer fields every day. 

YuMi is situated in a lab in the Peruvian Amazon, while a team in Sweden monitors and optimizes its work via ABB’s RobotStudio Cloud technology. By simulating and refining the programming required for YuMi’s tasks in the jungle remotely, the team said it has created “the world’s most remote robot.”

The Junglekeepers has a mission to preserve 55,000 acres of Amazon rainforest. As retaining staff in the remote area can prove challenging, YuMi is seen as a vital part of this mission. 

“ABB’s collaboration with Junglekeepers demonstrates how robotics and Cloud technology can play a central role in fighting deforestation as one of the major contributors to climate change”, said Sami Atiya, ABB Robotics’ president. “Our pilot program with the world’s most remote robot is helping automate highly repetitive tasks, freeing up rangers to undertake more important work out in the rainforest and helping them to conserve the land they live on.”

“As of right now, we have lost 20% of the total area of Amazon rainforest; without using technology today, conservation will be at a standstill,” said Moshin Kazmi, Junglekeepers’ co-founder. “Having YuMi at our base is a great way to expose our rangers to new ways of doing things. It accelerates and expands our operations and advances our mission.”