Essex robotics team wins national award

Robotics experts from the University of Essex and spin-out Versatile RobotX were recognised at the UKRI AI & Robotics Awards.

The team from the School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering and Versatile RobotX won the Best Demonstration Award after showcasing their work to revolutionise the agriculture sector by applying their expertise in robotics and AI.

Versatile RobotX was established by Professor Klaus McDonald-Maier and Dr Vishuu Mohan. Professor McDonald Maier said: “This award recognises our Versatile Robot demo which showcases a fully autonomous dual-arm mobile robot for soft fruit harvesting and other repetitive farm tasks, such as seedling transplanting and lettuce harvesting.”

Professor McDonald-Maier and Dr Mohan were joined at the awards by Essex-based robotics researchers Roberto Mendívil Castro and Daniel Cedillo Hernández plus Knowledge Exchange Manager Flavia Popescu-Richardson.

Professor McDonald-Maier said: “The demonstration highlights the complexity of seemingly simple human tasks, integrating Al-driven 2D/3D perception, adaptive motion planning, and human-robot collaboration.”

The Essex team has successfully field-tested its tech solutions at Wilkin & Sons Ltd. In Tiptree and JEPCO's hydroponic lettuce farm. Essex researchers are hopeful the technology they are developing can help reduce labour costs, increase productivity, and enhance food security. The Versatile Robotics team is also developing innovative low-cost, 3D-printable robotic components to further lower barriers to adoption.

Professor McDonald Maier added: “Our demo has been widely showcased, from nurseries to policymakers, and exhibited at DEFRA's FruitFocus 2024 and Agri-TechE's REAP 2024, where Versatile RobotX was named a top company shaping the future of farming. The technology is attracting interest from major growers and agritech firms in its scale-up journey.”

The Essex research has also been featured on the BBC, ITV News and in Farmers Weekly. Professor McDonald Maier expressed thanks to everyone who has contributed to the work, including partners Wilkin & Sons Ltd. and JEPCO, the UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems (TAS) Hub and Responsible Ai UK.

Partnership with JEPCO

Partnership with Wilkin & Sons