Tea plantations present a fairly structured environment (consistent row spacing, repeated paths), but manual mowing is still labor-intensive and often inconsistent, especially on slopes.
With a local RTK base (Fixed mode), we’re seeing very stable centimeter-level positioning and strong path repeatability in real operation.
Some observations from testing:
Repeatable trajectories
Missions can be re-run on different days with minimal deviation
Good crop protection
The rover stays within defined boundaries and avoids contacting the plants
Works well in sloped terrain
With proper tuning, tracking remains stable even on uneven ground
Suitable for repetitive field tasks
Mowing is just one example — the same setup should apply to spraying or inspection
From our experience, for agricultural use cases, repeatability (relative accuracy) is often more important than absolute global accuracy. A fixed RTK base provides consistent results for this type of workflow.
It is already capable of fully unattended operation. Once the waypoints and work area are configured, the system can autonomously execute the mission and follow the predefined paths.
It also supports a multi-mission queue system. For example, if five missions are scheduled in advance, the ground station will automatically upload and start the next mission after the previous mission is completed, enabling continuous autonomous operation with minimal human intervention.
Impressive, im guessing no expensive shortcuts between the end of the last mission and the start of the new one. The functionality you are describing is not part of the ardupilot ecosystem - congrats on your developments.
Do you have any failsafe conditions set - eg mower stopped for no reason, any object avoidance, any machine issues eg temperature/vibration over limits.
