Inter-Plant Weeder SA-AI vs Vitirover
Two weeding machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
Tractor-mounted, chemical-free in-row weeder from SPAPPERI N.T. S.R.L. (Città di Castello, Italy; est. 1964). A hydraulic PTO-driven frame (1-4 rows) carries per-row "BOX AI" units — a 3D camera plus AI vision developed with Czech partner Ullmanna — that detect each plant's root and drive independent vertical rotary tillers or fixed knives to weed within the row. Spapperi's own brochure calls it both "SA-IA" and "SA-AI"; the product is marketed via that brochure and lead-gen listings rather than a dedicated page on Spapperi's main site as of this check.
Best for: Commercial vegetable and root-crop growers (Spapperi's own examples include lettuce, cabbage, pumpkin and sugar beet) who already run an appropriately-sized tractor with rear hydraulics and want mechanical in-row weed control without GPS guidance or chemical herbicides.French solar-powered micro-mower for vineyards, orchards and agrivoltaic sites — a 23–27 kg swarm robot that grazes vegetation at ~500 m/h, up to 16 h per day on sun and Li-ion. One 'shepherd' operator manages up to 50 robots from the Viticloud dashboard; born at Château Canon La Gaffelière in Saint-Émilion and sold outright or as Robot-as-a-Service.
Best for: Vignerons and orchardists wanting chemical-free under-vine and inter-row vegetation control with near-zero energy cost, especially as a managed fleet across parcels or solar farms.| Inter-Plant Weeder SA-AI Verified 2026-07-19 | Vitirover Verified 2026-07-17 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Weeding | Weeding |
| Autonomy | AI-assisted | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Italy | France |
| Availability | Available now | Available now |
| EU market | Pending | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-19 | 2026-07-17 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Tractor PTO-driven hydraulics — dedicated independent hydraulic circuit per weeding element, shared oil tank | Solar + Li-ion · integrated panel gives 5–6 h/day; optional dock charges 8 h for 16 h work |
| Required tractor power | Not disclosed — Spapperi specifies PTO-driven hydraulic transmission but publishes no minimum tractor horsepower figure for the SA-AI | Not required (self-propelled) |
| Dimensions | Not disclosed — modular frame (1-4 rows, single or double planting-row spacing); overall width/length vary by configuration | 75 × 40 × 30 cm |
| Weight | Not disclosed | 23–27 kg |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed — no hectare threshold published; the multi-row tractor-mounted design targets commercial vegetable/root-crop operations | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | 4,500-8,500 plants/hour per row, depending on in-plant spacing | ~500 m/h; ~1 ha per robot per ~10 days; fleets scale to 50 robots per operator |
| Max speed | Not disclosed | <1 km/h |
| Sensors | 3D camera plus integrated lighting per weeding element ("BOX AI", AI vision by Ullmanna) for day/night plant-root detection; anti-collision sensors on each element arm; central "Power Box" CPU with GPS and internet connectivity | Multi-constellation GNSS (GPS/GLONASS/BeiDou/Galileo) with Trimble MB-Two RTK/PPP · inertial sensors · dual RGB cameras |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | Not disclosed | ~€10,000 |
| Native price | Not disclosed | ~€10,000 incl. charging station |
| Business model | Buy — tractor-mounted implement sold direct from Spapperi NT S.r.l. (Città di Castello, Italy); AI vision developed with Czech partner Ullmanna, integrated as Spapperi's "BOX AI - Ullmanna System" | Buy, or VAAS annual service subscription with fleet shepherding |
| Ongoing cost | Interchangeable rotary-tiller/knife wear parts; hydraulic oil and PTO-pump upkeep; AI crop models update automatically over the internet (Spapperi states a new crop can be added in about 6 hours) | VAAS: €2,100–€3,100 per robot per year; blades and wear parts if owned |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | In-row weeding labour Vendor testimonial states each row unit replaces about 10 manual workers · vendor | Herbicide use for under-vine vegetation control Continuous chemical-free robotic grazing at 5–10 cm cut height · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | Not disclosed — no CE-marking statement found for the SA-AI on Spapperi's site, its brochure, or the dealer-contact page | CE status not published; French manufacturer selling commercially in the EU |
| Machinery Regulation | Not disclosed — would fall under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 as a mounted implement with AI-driven functions if placed on the EU market; no explicit compliance statement found | Placed on the EU market by Vitirover SAS; Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions apply |
| CAP subsidy | Not disclosed — mechanical/AI in-row weeding removes herbicide use, which is relevant to CAP eco-schemes rewarding reduced chemical inputs, but Spapperi does not tie the SA-AI to CAP explicitly | Herbicide-free mechanical vegetation control supports CAP eco-scheme and herbicide-reduction measures |
"—" means the manufacturer has not disclosed the figure; we never estimate silently. Model either machine's payback with your own numbers on its ROI calculator page.