B & L Naval Stores, Inc. — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase I: 8.1

Description

We propose an innovative robotic technology to tap slash pine trees and collect their oleoresinfor processing using an unmanned fully autonomous long-range robotic forest rover as part ofthe strategy to revive the dormant turpentine industry in the Southeastern United States. Thisintegrated system will replace the labor-intensive work of collecting slash pine oleoresin.The objectives of this Phase 1 project are to design and demonstrate the technical feasibility ofthe robotic forest rover. They include (1) demonstrating the robot's capability to perform all tasksrequired for tapping slash pine trees for resin collection. Such tasks include calculatingpositioning and drilling boreholes; recording the position and orientation of three boreholesusing a force/torque sensor on the robot arm; inserting a spray nozzle for argic-chemical liquidtreatment; tapping a PVC tube with a preattached collection vessel into one borehole; pluggingthe 2 remaining boreholes; automatically changing tools for the proper tasks. 2) Use a visionsystem to demonstrate its capability for image analysis to recognize slash pine tree trunks basedon previously taught images and measure the trunk using a digital camera and laser surfacescanner. (3) Demonstrate the rover's capability for autonomous navigation under fuel cell power.Autonomous technology to collect oleoresin for processing by the pine chemical industry givesslash pine timber producers in the Southeastern USA another income source beyond pine strawand pulpwood. B & L Naval Stores anticipate licensing the technology for production and directsales to the forestry industry or use in custom contracts.