Ekobot and Telia have begun a collaboration to create a powerful solution for efficient precision agriculture. The solution is based on connection to Telia's 5G network and gives Ekobot new great opportunities for handling incoming and outgoing data from its robot systems. The research institute of Sweden, RISE also participates in the collaboration with cutting-edge expertise in agricultural technology as well as Axis Communications, which contributes with its camera technology. The collaboration between Ekobot, Telia, RISE and Axis Communications aims to explore how the communication between the robot and the mobile network works and what requirements it places on the technical solution.

The pilot of connecting the robot to the 5G network was carried out during the early summer at Brunnby Gård in Västerås. The robot is autonomous and handles weed cleaning automatically. The future lies in the data collection that the robot carries out, which will form the basis for qualified decision support in agriculture (so-called precision agriculture). Powerful sensors placed on the robot, such as multispectral cameras and ground analysis probes, generate very large amounts of data that are analyzed in cloud services and fed back to the robot and farmers.

The robot can also be controlled remotely, which requires real-time video transmission. All in all, it places high demands on a powerful, robust and secure communication solution. 5G with its unique technical features such as low response time and high bandwidth can meet these needs.