Valdemar – Intelligent Agricultural Robotics

Autonomous and semi-autonomous agricultural systems face significant challenges: changing lighting conditions, dust, weather effects, and uneven terrain substantially affect sensor and AI performance. Reliable environmental perception is therefore a key prerequisite for the safe deployment of intelligent agricultural robotics.

Valdemar is a mobile, modular robotic platform that integrates advanced methods from artificial intelligence, robotics, and immersive technologies. It serves as a research and experimentation platform for innovative applications in plant breeding and automated field operations.

Within the AI-Test-Field project, sensor systems are systematically evaluated under real outdoor conditions. The primary focus is to assess the robustness of obstacle detection and environmental perception in dynamic, demanding environments. The resulting insights enable a well-founded evaluation of safety aspects as well as the robustness and reliability of deployed sensor systems.

As part of this exhibit, the integration of key project results into the AI Real-World Laboratory for Agriculture (RLA) is presented for the first time. Particular emphasis is placed on methods for safety assessment and robustness evaluation of sensor systems operating in challenging environments. These developments provide a solid foundation for the safe and practical deployment of intelligent agricultural robotics in the field.