Precision agriculture has been increasingly recognized for its potential ability to improve agricultural productivity, reduce production cost, and minimize damage to the environment. In this work, the current stage of our research in developing a mobile platform equipped with different sensors for orchard monitoring and sensing is presented. In particular, the mobile platform is conceived to monitor and assess both the geometric and volumetric conditions as well as the health state of the canopy. To do so, different sensors have been integrated and effective data-processing algorithms implemented for a reliable crop monitoring. Experimental tests have been performed allowing to obtain both a precise volume reconstruction of several plants and an NDVI mapping suitable for vegetation state evaluations.

The performance of a 118-kW tractor fuelled by pure biodiesel was monitored during a long-term field experiment with\ud approximately 800 h of engine function. The objective was to demonstrate that B100, a pure biodiesel fuel, is a viable alternative to\ud traditional diesel oil in terms of long-term mechanical reliability. A bench test on the new engine, performed by attaching a test stand to\ud the power take-off of the tractor, showed an expected reduction in power (–9%) and torque (–7%) and an increase in specific consumption\ud (+13%) when biodiesel was used as a complete substitute to diesel oil. Furthermore, with the same setup, the exhaust gas had a Bosch\ud smoke index equal to 50% of the value for the same engine fuelled with diesel oil. After these initial tests, the tractor was set up for\ud normal field operations, in which both the engine curves and lubricant quality were periodically monitored. These surveys indicated\ud no significant reduction in engine performance; however, the lubricant was consequently diluted and contaminated by biodiesel, which\ud caused the lubricant properties to considerably worsen. However, on the basis of the chemical–physical analysis, reducing the oil\ud change interval from 200 h (manufacturer’s indications for the engine when operating with diesel oil) to 100 h would compensate for\ud this progressive quality decline. At the end of the trials, the engine was disassembled to check the condition of its components; wear\ud and lacquer-like coating phenomena were observed, and their levels were acceptable. The obtained results demonstrated that B100\ud can effectively substitute for diesel oil in a standard compression-ignition engine: the power change is not perceptible during normal\ud operation of a tractor, and no particular problem will arise in the engine during its life if the lubricant is changed every 100 h