Enhancing Precision Agriculture through Human-In-The-Loop Planning and Control

Shankar Deka; Sujet Phodapol; Andreu Matoses Gimenez; Victor Nan Fernandez-Ayala; Rufus C. Y. Wong; Pian Yu; Xiao Tan; Dimos V. Dimarogonas

Linear Temporal Logic (LTL) Planner for Agricultural Robotics

Shankar Deka¹ Sujet Phodapol² Andreu Matoses Gimenez³ Victor Nan Fernandez-Ayala² Rufus Cheuk Yin Wong² Pian Yu⁴ Xiao Tan⁵ Dimos V. Dimarogonas²

¹Aalto University ²KTH Royal Institute of Technology ³Delft University of Technology ⁴University of Oxford ⁵California Institute of Technology

Paper ERC website Code

Robots in the vineyard in Rome

Work published in 2024 IEEE 20th International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE) as Enhancing Precision Agriculture through Human-In-The-Loop Planning and Control, see publications.

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce a ROS based framework designed for the planning and control of robotic systems within the context of precision agriculture, with an emphasis on human-in-the-loop capabilities. Utilizing Linear Temporal Logic to articulate complex task specifications, our algorithm creates high-level robotic plans that are not only correct by design but also adaptable in real time by human operators. This dual-focus approach ensures that while humans have the flexibility to modify the high-level plan on-the-fly or even take over low-level control of the robots, the system inherently safeguards against any human actions that could potentially breach the predefined task specifications. We demonstrate our algorithm within the dynamic and challenging environment of a real vineyard, where the collaboration between human workers and robots is critical for tasks such as harvesting and pruning, and show the practical applicability and robustness of our software. This work marks a pioneering application of formal methods to complex, real-world agricultural environments.

Citation

@inproceedings{deka2024canopies,
  title     = {Enhancing Precision Agriculture through Human-In-The-Loop Planning and Control},
  author    = {Deka, Shankar and Phodapol, Sujet and Matoses Gimenez, Andreu and Fernandez-Ayala, Victor Nan and Wong, Rufus C. Y. and Yu, Pian and Tan, Xiao and Dimarogonas, Dimos V.},
  booktitle = {IEEE 20th International Conference on Automation Science and Engineering (CASE)},
  year      = {2024},
  month     = aug,
  url       = {https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/10711319}
}