At first glance, the Kubota X appears to be some type of military robot equipped for battle, but in reality, it’s just a fully autonomous tractor. It uses artificial intelligence to drive itself and then choose the appropriate action — tilling, seeding, etc. — based on weather data and growth rates in real-time. Lithium-ion cells and a solar array power four motors attached to track-like crawlers that can be independently controlled for extreme precision. Read more for a video and additional information.
As you can see, there are no wheels, just four crawlers for optimum traction in various terrains, and since each of these tracks has its own integrated motor, they can independently rotate their treads at different speeds, allowing for a very tight turning radii. Plus, the height of the vehicle’s main body relative to the crawlers is adjustable, which means it can be lowered when extra stability is needed and then raised when traveling over rows of taller plants.
