OSIRIS
OSIRIS stands for Onboard Soil In-situ Robot-assisted Intelligent System. It is an integrated robotic platform for autonomous soil sampling, designed to automate vehicle positioning, soil coring, core exchange, onboard storage, and sample indexing, with coring control that adapts to changing soil conditions.
The problem it addresses
Soil properties vary across a field, and fertilizer management, irrigation planning, and soil health work depend on dense, repeatable measurements. Conventional sampling is labor intensive. An operator travels to each point, extracts soil with a probe or auger, bags and labels it, and carries it out. The process introduces variability in depth, insertion angle, extracted volume, location accuracy, labeling, and handling, and because it is slow, large fields are sampled sparsely.
Robotic samplers improve repeatability, but complete autonomy remains difficult. Sample transfer, storage, labeling, and recovery often still need a person. A field ready system has to coordinate navigation, coring, core exchange, storage, indexing, and data association, and it has to keep every sample linked to its location, depth, time, and storage position without contamination, loss, or operator intervention.
How a run works
The mission workflow described in the 2026 ASABE paper.
- Navigate to the sampling point
- Core at the target depth
- Exchange the core
- Store and index onboard
- Record the sample data
- Move to the next point
Core at a set depth
The vehicle positions the sampler at a planned point and the coring unit drives a tube to the target depth.
Store each core onboard
A manipulator transfers the core to an indexed carousel, allowing the vehicle to continue through many points without operator intervention.
Record every sample
Each core is linked to its location, depth, time, and storage position for the laboratory.
Two subsystems
The platform is organized around two functions, automated core handling and adaptive soil coring.
Automated Core Function System
Stores, retrieves, transfers, and replaces soil cores on the vehicle. The bench prototype uses a ten core carousel, a gripper based manipulator, a vertical actuator, and a rotating transfer base, sequenced with safety interlocks.
In laboratory testing it averaged a core handling cycle of 2 minutes 9 seconds, with positional errors below the 0.5 millimeter requirement.
Automated Soil-coring and Monitoring System
Addresses coring under variable soil conditions, where the force and torque needed to reach depth change from point to point.
In simulation across randomized soil profiles, a baseline controller stalled in 74 percent of trials. Adaptive coring control is under development and remains in simulation.
Results so far
Measurements and design values published in the 2026 ASABE paper.
| Core handling cycle time, bench average | 2 minutes 9 seconds |
|---|---|
| Positional error, bench | Below the 0.5 millimeter requirement |
| Onboard capacity, bench prototype | 10 cores |
| Design target capacity, full scale system | Up to 30 samples per run |
| Electrical architecture | 24 volt |
| Baseline coring control, simulation | Stalled in 74 percent of randomized soil profiles |
| Field system | Not yet built |
Where it stands
- DoneCore handling subsystemBench prototype built and tested, with results published in 2026.
- In progressCoring controlIn simulation. Adaptive control is under development against a baseline that stalls in variable soil.
- PlannedVehicle integrationNot yet built. The subsystems have not been integrated on a ground vehicle.
- PlannedField trialsPlanned for 2027, subject to funding.
Who it is for
Research stations, laboratories, and sampling programs that need many georeferenced cores with consistent depth and reliable sample identity, collected with limited operator involvement.
Can we buy or rent OSIRIS?
When are field trials?
What does each sample record?
How many samples per run?
How can we be involved?
Inquiries
Write to info@excelsiorapplied.com with your organization, the material you sample, the sampling depth, and the record each sample requires. Replies are sent within two business days.