The continuous and reliable monitoring of soil organic carbon and soil respiration is vital for sustainable agricultural and environmental management. However, current manual methods are labor-intensive and time-consuming. This work focuses on the development of a fully automated robotic platform for in situ measurement of Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) and Soil Respiration (Rs). The system consists of a four-wheeled mobile platform, equipped with a robotic arm, and custom sampling and measurement tools. The platform is designed with a protected central opening that houses an on-board laboratory, enabling automated surface cleaning, soil drilling, sample collection and homogenization, SOC spectroscopy analysis, and chamber-based soil respiration measurement. The platform is equipped with a high-force mechanical insertion mechanism capable of operating a range of tools designed for soil treatment and penetration. These tools include a soil surface scraper, a soil respiration chamber, and a soil drilling unit. The mobile robotic laboratory system enables the sequential deployment of these tools in any desired order, providing flexible and efficient in-field operation.
Spudić et al. (Thu,) studied this question.