Classification of Autonomous Growing Methods

Vacancy for  Master Students

There is a growing interest in horticulture for automated growing in greenhouse and indoor farming. The main reasons being:

• Feeding an increasing world population in a sustainably; grow more with less
• The number of skilled growers is decreasing

Increasing computer power, internet of things and artificial intelligence show great potential for autonomous growing systems, and all kinds of initiatives and claims emerge. Due to this increasing wealth of knowledge, an objective assessment of the level of automation and autonomy is difficult.

The aim of this project is to create an independent classification system that identifies the different stages of autonomous growing. We are setting up a multi-disciplinary team of master students with a technical background. The project will run from August to December 2021, starting with an introductory on automated growing and a road trip to a number of greenhouse facilities in the Netherlands.