Monkeybot: A Climbing and Pruning Robot for Standing Trees in Fast-Growing Forests

Standing tree pruning in fast-growing forests is an essential part of the targeted nurturing of quality fast-growing forests. Because of the high risk and low efficiency of traditional pruning methods, a climbing and pruning robot was developed, its design was optimized, and related experimental research was carried out. This paper describes the design scheme of the Monkeybot mechanical structure and control system and theoretically analyzes the clamping mechanism, walking mechanism, cutting mechanism, and obstacle avoidance mechanism to determine the critical design parameters. On the premise of ensuring a good pruning effect, Ansys Workbench Gui Explicit Dynamics was used for the cutting simulation experiment. The test adopts a three-factor and three-level orthogonal test method to explore the best design parameter combination when reducing the maximum shear stress on branches. A forest work performance evaluation was carried out using prototypes designed with the best variety of parameters. The forest test results show that the Monkeybot could prune trees with a diameter at breast height of 10~20 cm, the average operation time for pruning a tree was less than 30 s, the winter pruning effect was ideal, the maximum climbing height could reach 7.18 m, and the maximum pruning diameter could reach 2.79 cm. The development of the machine can provide equipment support for the research of fast-growing forest standing tree pruning and nurturing technology.