The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is examining how the autonomous sprayer – the first of its kind to be used in Western Australia – can benefit growers across the country.
The initiative is part of the five year Narrow Orchard Systems for Future Climates Hort Innovation Frontiers project with other states, universities and industry, including Pomewest and local ag-tech businesses Tobias Industries.
DPIRD research scientist Asad Ullah said the compact spray unit could help create labour efficiencies, reduce wastage and improve on-farm safety.
“The diesel autonomous spray unit is guided by digital GPS maps, which create a travel path for the machine to run from the shed to the orchard and then up and down the orchard rows without the need for a driver or even a remote control,” Dr Ullah said.
“Fungicide and pesticide precision dosage control from the 1000 litre tank can be tailored to orchard requirements, preventing spray drift and overuse.
“Importantly, the machine is only 1.73 metres wide so it can fit between the 2.5 metre row spacings, aiding the adoption of narrow orchard systems.”
The technology can also be converted to pull conventional farm machinery, like a mower, as well as monitoring equipment, such as light detection and ranging (LiDAR) technology or cameras, to do several jobs at the same time.
The autonomous sprayer will be used to treat the trees planted for the project at DPIRD’s Manjimup Horticulture Research Institute over the next five years, as well as others at the site that are part of the Australian National Apple Breeding Program.
Plant material from trees that produce Bravo branded apples and two advanced breeding selections were grafted onto two dwarfing and one semi-dwarfing vigour rootstocks and planted in Sep 2024 across 0.3 hectares of 2D multi-leader rows.
The research findings will feed into the national project to be extended to apple, pear, cherry, apricot, plum and nectarine orchards across Australia to improve efficiencies and build climate resilience.
Dr Ullah said the work would help growers to understand how this new technology performs and how it could benefit their business.
“Modern production systems, like multi-leader 2D narrow row orchards, alongside new technologies and more robust crop varieties will help growers adapt to increasingly warmer climatic conditions,” Dr Ullah said.
“Robotic equipment, like the autonomous spray unit, can help orchard management by reducing labour costs, improving work health and safety, refining treatments and minimising wastage.”
The first two years of the project will see a focus on orchard establishment, before yield, quality and climate resilience is evaluated from the third year.
The Narrow Orchard Systems for Future Climates field day, featuring the autonomous sprayer robot, will be held on Tuesday, 20 May 2025 at DPIRD’s Manjimup Horticulture Research Institute.
Register for catering purposes to asad.ullah@dpird.wa.gov.au.
For more information about the national project visit the Horticulture Industry Networks webpage.
