Autonomous and Automated Agricultural Machinery: Safety Issues, Focused Applications, and Regulatory Aspects

Dear Colleagues,

Research on autonomous vehicles and machinery in agriculture is rapidly evolving, and various legislative and technical approaches are being taken. However, the definition of autonomous or automated vehicles is yet to be established worldwide, as the current standards and regulations do not provide for it. Within this heterogeneous framework, the forthcoming update of the ISO 18497/2018 standard adds to the uncertainty in the field.

Among the factors distinguishing between autonomous and automated vehicles is the way artificial intelligence is deployed, which has a non-uniform definition across the globe. For instance, the EU Artificial Intelligence Act and OCSE working groups have varying definitions; countries have varying approaches and regulatory assessments for autonomous vehicles.

This Special Issue aims to present innovative scientific articles, reviews, communications, brief reports, case reports, short notes, and technical notes to share the scientific, planning, engineering, regulatory, and legislative trends that are uncertain globally. The developed solutions mainly focus on mechanical weeding and spraying along the crops’ rows. Therefore, cutting-edge research is necessary on further autonomous and automated agricultural machinery applications, technical aspects, and regulatory and safety concerns.

This Special Issue aims to serve as an environment to encourage the exchange of ideas and facilitate discussions on experimental and regulatory research involving various countries worldwide. We welcome contributions from all stakeholders to engage in this scientific and constructive dialogue. We give specific attention to regulatory and safety issues related to the operation of autonomous and automated vehicles and the technical approaches taken to expand the use of autonomous and automated machinery.

Dr. Massimo Brambilla
Dr. Maurizio Cutini
Guest Editors

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• occupational safety
• regulatory issues
• governmental policies
• sensors
• artificial intelligence
• farming automation
• precision agriculture
• precision livestock production and management