A simple cart was constructed from the design of White and Conley (2013) (https://www.crops.org/publications/cs/pdfs/53/4/1646) in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico for the Climate-Resilient Bean project. The original cart was designed at the USDA-ARS, U.S. Arid-Land Agricultural Research Center in Maricopa, Arizona. The design was modified to include a steering mechanism for the back tires in order to facilitate turning the cart in the field (photos below). The cart was designed to be able to cover two rows of common bean, while the distance between the tires can be adjusted for different row widths and for transport in the back of a standard pick-up truck.

The cart is being used for the collection of canopy temperature, plant height, leaf area, and GPS location data from field plots related to a Feed the Future Bean Innovation Lab for Climate-Resilient Beans (http://www.feedthefuture.gov/article/feed-future-innovation-labs). This research aims at identifying mechanisms associated with abiotic stress tolerance in common bean.

The design of the field data collection cart includes a bar for turning the wheels of two bicycles to facilitate movement through the field. Computer, GPS, sensors, and datalogger equipment are mounted on the cart for the collection of field data (as per White and Conley, 2013).

White, J. W. and Conley M. M. 2013. A flexible, low-cost cart for proximal sensing. Crop Science 53:1646-1649.