Thanks to AI on its tractor, the Perla del Garda winery wins the European safety award

A digital system installed on tractors allows operators to start and use the vehicle automatically and robotically within the rows: trained with AI, the tractor acts as an on-demand robot and collaborates with the operator, making work in the vineyard safer. It is thanks to this innovation that Perla del Garda (a winery in Lonato del Garda) won the award for the agricultural sector at the European “Good Practices” competition, as part of the 2023-2025 European campaign “Health and safety at work in the digital age”.
The winery headed by Giovanna Prandini, which has 48 hectares of vineyards, has introduced the “Automatic Tractor,” an innovative digital solution developed in collaboration with the company Cobo, that allows tractors to operate autonomously within the rows, thanks to the use of artificial intelligence and a sophisticated artificial vision system. This technology enables the vehicle to drive automatically, eliminating the need for direct operator intervention on the steering wheel and transforming the tractor into a true on-demand robot. “Receiving this prestigious award rewards our company’s ongoing commitment to sustainability, not only in terms of the environment and the wine production chain, but also in social terms”, says Giovanna Prandini, head of the Perla del Garda winery. “The health and safety of our workers is an absolute priority for us, and this innovative digitization system, installed on tractors, certifies how much we protect and respect our human capital. In fact, this innovation allows us to make the work of operators in the vineyard much safer and more efficient”.
The technology has been installed on tractors already in use by the company, and through careful mapping of the vineyard, critical parameters are defined beyond which the system is able to generate automatic alerts to prevent potential risk situations. In addition, thanks to integrated smart sensors that constantly monitor the status of the equipment, the system is able to accurately indicate when scheduled maintenance is required, thus extending the life cycle of the tools and reducing wear and tear. “It is a system based on artificial vision that allows autonomous driving in the rows of a vineyard”, explains Gino Mainardi, Innovation and Advanced Engineering Cobo, who adds, “the digital system installed on tractors allows the operator to start and use the vehicle automatically and robotically within the rows, where technology replaces the operator's hands in steering the vehicle. Trained with AI, the tractor itself acts as an on-demand robot and collaborates with the operator to make the work less dangerous”. The reliability of the vehicle, which runs smoothly even when operating autonomously, has significantly increased the sense of safety felt by operators in the vineyard. Workers feel protected and supported by technology that not only reduces physical and mental stress but has also demonstrated concrete results: no accidents have been recorded since the system was implemented, and the “Good Practices” Award is official confirmation of this.
The Italian partner in the European campaign was AiFos, whose managing director Maria Frassine comments: “The project is particularly innovative because it highlights how AI-based digital technologies can support the work of operators by focusing on prevention. Among the factors contributing to the project’s success, the constant improvement of technology and the involvement of workers have led to improved health and safety conditions, better work organization, and economic savings due to the enhancement of digitized equipment”.