In traditional greenhouse facilities, the picking of fruits at high altitudes has always been a challenge. Workers often have to work from high stools or climbing vehicles, which not only reduces efficiency but also poses safety risks. 
Nowadays, with the emergence of intelligent lifting harvesting vehicles, this problem has been easily solved. These advanced devices are quietly transforming the operation mode in greenhouses, making high-altitude harvesting safe and efficient. 
01 Industry Challenges
Greenhouse agriculture has always faced numerous challenges. The picking of fruits from high places is a labor-intensive operation. 
Traditional manual harvesting is inefficient, and as labor costs continue to rise, the pressure on greenhouse operations has multiplied. 
In polytunnels, crops are usually cultivated in a long-season mode. Operations such as pruning and topping when the plants grow too tall, fruit harvesting, pesticide application, pruning, and pollination all need to be carried out at a height. 
Manual climbing operations not only involve high labor intensity but also have a high risk factor. 
Furthermore, in large glass greenhouses, due to their large size and similar geometric structures, the positioning accuracy requirements are very high, which further increases the operational difficulty. 
02 Intelligent Solutions
In response to these challenges, various types of harvesting vehicles have emerged. They provide tailored solutions based on the different requirements and structural characteristics of greenhouses. 
The track-type intelligent lifting harvesting vehicle is an ideal choice for covered greenhouses. It is designed based on the specific ground structure of the greenhouse and combines an electric chassis with a hydraulic scissor-type lifting platform mechanism. 
Matching the intelligent computer control unit, this harvesting vehicle features functions such as self-detection upon startup and balance alarm. Moreover, the equipment is small in size and has low noise. 
Another type of battery-powered trackless harvesting vehicle has solved the problem of high track costs. It is mainly composed of a walking transfer chassis, a hydraulic lifting mechanism, a working platform and a control system, etc. 
This design enables it to operate within the narrow working passages of greenhouses, conducting trackless picking operations, achieving zero emissions and no pollution. 
For large greenhouses with complex ground conditions, crawler-type harvesting vehicles demonstrate strong adaptability. For instance, the crawler-type harvesting vehicle produced by Weifang JUDACHIN International Trade Co., Ltd. features a ship-shaped track with a ground contact length of 830 millimeters. 
This design enables it to perform well in orchards and greenhouse sheds, and even allows for a 360-degree in-place turn. 
03 Efficiency Revolution
The most significant change brought about by the intelligent harvesting vehicle is a substantial increase in operational efficiency. 
Take the track-type intelligent lifting harvesting vehicle as an example. Compared with manual operations, the working efficiency can be increased by more than 10 times. 
The battery-powered electric harvesting vehicle also performed exceptionally well. The actual production tests showed that it could increase the working efficiency by 6 to 7 times. 
These devices are not only used for fruit picking, but can also be applied to various agricultural operations such as pruning crops and artificial pollination, achieving the function of multiple uses in one machine. 
The green pepper AGV developed by the Dutch company Berg Hortimotive has achieved full automation. It can automatically enter and exit the processing area and even can autonomously determine the driving path at intersections. 
04 Technology Empowerment
Intelligence has become the development trend of the new generation of picking vehicles. 
The road-track dual-purpose spraying robot developed by the Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences adopts a universal chassis for both road and track use and a navigation and positioning technology based on multi-sensor fusion. 
The problems of large area, similar geometric structure and two types of road surfaces in the super-large glass greenhouse have been solved. The spray robot has achieved autonomous track-changing continuous operation in the large-span connected greenhouse, and the success rate of moving between tracks is over 99%. 
What is even more cutting-edge is the application of digital twin technology in greenhouse harvesting. Researchers have constructed a highly accurate digital twin greenhouse and used multi-view scanning and 3D modeling techniques to precisely simulate the greenhouse environment. 
The experiment shows that this system has reduced the average picking time by 34.95%, the movement distance of the robotic arm by 20.93%, and the collision occurrence rate by 45.16%. 
05 Practical Application Cases
In practical applications, the intelligent harvesting vehicle has demonstrated significant benefits. 
The strawberry-picking robot independently developed by the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Bureau of Haidian District, Beijing and the Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, has solved the problems of low-loss picking and precise perception under varying light intensities. 
This robot is equipped with a hybrid mechanical arm named "Lingzhan 1", which can perform two actions: "splitting legs" and "bending over". It can also flexibly avoid various obstacles in the agricultural environment. 
It is expected to save over 80% of the labor force, and the cost per mu will be reduced by 6,000 yuan. 
The multi-span greenhouse labor-saving picking and transportation vehicle enables a seamless transition between the track and the ground, thereby increasing the single-time picking and transportation volume and reducing the number of times for product loading and unloading.