For larger farms such as Erdbeerhof Glantz, ensuring a reliable harvest under these conditions is particularly challenging.
"About 60 percent of the work in our crops is done by hand, and our costs are getting out of control. That naturally causes us a lot of concern for the future. If we could get a technical solution here, that would be a great help."
As part of the RoLand project, the Robotics Innovation Center of DFKI, together with the Research and Transfer Center Smart Systems at HAW Hamburg, Othmerding Maschinenbau GmbH & Co. KG, and the associated partner Erdbeerhof Glantz, developed the mobile harvesting robot SHIVAA. It was specifically designed for use in open fields – an environment that has so far been particularly challenging for machines.
Here’s how the robot works: Using a 3D stereo camera, SHIVAA autonomously follows a row of strawberries. Additional cameras, including multispectral sensors, capture the position, shape, and size of each berry. A detector trained with machine learning then reliably identifies which strawberries are ripe for harvest. SHIVAA picks these fruits directly from the plant using a specially designed robotic arm. The arm approaches the fruit at high speed, attaches it with a specially developed gripping mechanism, and gently encloses it before placing it in the harvesting crate carried on the robot.
A major advantage of this technology is its ability to operate around the clock: Equipped with a lighting system, SHIVAA can harvest at night or in the early morning when temperatures are low. This protects the delicate fruits, reduces losses, and ensures consistently high quality.
The robot is designed to specifically relieve human workers. It can compensate for short-term labor shortages and work directly alongside people in the field. In the future, systems like SHIVAA could be integrated into farms of all sizes – from small family-run operations to large-scale plantations.
“What we are doing in this project is developing a robot that can be used in open fields, exactly in the crops as they are. At the same time, it should be small and cost-effective enough that even small farms can afford it once it becomes commercially available.”
The technology also stands out for its scalability: deploying multiple robots simultaneously makes the investment particularly cost-effective. Additional benefits could come from potential upgrades, such as modules for UV light-based fungus prevention or mechanical weed control. In this way, the robot could also help reduce the use of crop protection chemicals.
Technologies like SHIVAA offer the opportunity to secure strawberry production in Germany over the long term. Reduced dependence on labor and more flexible scheduling allow harvest quantities to be planned more reliably. This translates into shorter transport distances, consistently fresh and locally grown strawberries for consumers, and a lower CO₂ footprint. At the same time, farms can increase efficiency and strengthen their competitiveness.
