Changes to the climate that result in more extreme weather events, such as drought and hail, along with increased temperatures across the globe, all contribute to the challenges farmers now face in growing crops.
According to a report from Cornell University posted on Phys.org, though, researchers from the university have developed a new tool that can offer not only early insights into plant health, but also highly accurate ones, which will aid in increasing crop yields for farmers, ensuring food security. They recently published their findings in the journal Science Robotics.
The tool is a robotic device that grips plant leaves gently and injects sensors into them. The sensors are then able to help the plant in detecting and communicating with the environment around it. Additionally, this soft robot device can inject genetic material that scientists can utilize to bioengineer plants later down the line.
This tool can also be used repeatedly to inject genetic material and sensors while maintaining the plant’s safety, a vital step in data-driven agriculture.
Robert F. Shepherd, the senior author of the paper, explained: “Plants, like people, have different responses to the environment, and precision agriculture is an effort to move closer and closer to single-plant-level intervention […].”
To demonstrate their findings, the research team used the robotic device to inject two types of probes into a plant. One probe is known as RUBY and is a gene-encoded biological reporter; when genetic changes in the plant occur, this probe causes red pigmentation to appear where the changes happen. The second probe is AquaDust, which lets researchers keep track of the hydration levels of a plant.
Mehmet Mert Ilman, first author of the study, said: “It was fascinating to be able to robotically transform the local genetics of the plant leaf and then see it change back.”
The team tested the robot device on cotton and sunflower leaves, as these plants are known to have structural resistance to infiltration. The result was a 91% success rate in delivery, with much less damage caused than the typically used syringe-based methods.
Long-term, researchers could ideally tweak this device to deliver other materials, such as sensors for nitrogen uptake or even to retrieve materials, which could further advance the agricultural industry toward the goal of smart agriculture.
The research team is looking into integrating this robot gripper into robotic arms, which the agricultural industry could then use in automated greenhouses, with the long-term goal of adapting the device for the field.
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