Animal Acceptance of an Autonomous Pasture Sanitation Robot.

This work presents the collection and analysis of animal-robot interaction in a pasture setting necessary to support the development of an autonomous platform for maintenance of occupied pastures. Cows (B. taurus) and horses (E. caballus) were introduced to a teleoperated robot platform under differing modes of operation. Animal proximity to the robot, the number of animals that came into contact with the robot, and the frequency of contact with the teleoperated robot platform were recorded. The animal behavior data suggests that cows tend to flee at a regular distance when approached, while horses flee inconsistent distances. Horses showed a higher rate of interaction with the robot. Both species tended to interact with a stationary robot compared to a moving one. Outside of these trends, animal behavior was highly variable and suggests a need to design autonomous robot behaviors/algorithms in which robots should treat pasture inhabitants as unpredictable, but suggests that an autonomous pasture maintenance robot can operate in an occupied pasture.