A number of high-tech products, ranging from unmanned robots cleaning public roads and unmanned boats cleaning lakes to plant protection drones eliminating pests, are being used in the Hefei National High-Tech Industry Development Zone to make the zone a more livable place.

An unmanned cleaning robot parks on the roadside in the Hefei National High-Tech Industry Development Zone. [Photo/WeChat ID: hefeigaoxinfabu]

The unmanned cleaning robot, which utilizes sensors such as a lidar and a camera, has various functions including big data analysis, automatic map loading, automatic sensing, and evading pedestrians. It is equipped with a vacuum cleaner and garbage storage space, which enables it to collect garbage while cleaning. Its daily cleaning area is about 30,000 square meters, and has been put to use in the zone's Wangzui Lake Park.

An unmanned boat cleans a lake in the Hefei National High-Tech Industry Development Zone. [Photo/WeChat ID: hefeigaoxinfabu]

The unmanned boat, which operates on a lake near the zone's Shufengwan Park, has become a good helper for park managers. Users can command it to operate on the vast water surface with a remote-control device, and the boat can open its "arms" and "swallow" the surrounding floating objects into its storage area, as well as clean 200,000 sq m of water every day.

According to an operator, the cleaning boat is less than 2 meters long and weighs about 140 kilograms. "Although it looks small, it can collect about 50 kgs of garbage with one 'swallow'. And in smart mode, the cleaning boat will use its sensors to map the work route to perform automatic cleaning operations, and automatically locate and return to the charging pile to charge after the work is completed. It can work continuously for six hours. It not only helps improve work efficiency but also helps reduce the risks of artificial water surface operations," the operator said.

A plant protection drone sprays chemicals on trees to eliminate pests in the Hefei National High-Tech Industry Development Zone. [Photo/WeChat ID: hefeigaoxinfabu]

Near Xiyou Road in the zone, a plant protection drone sprays pesticides evenly on each tree according to the surveying and mapping route at night. The original workload of two hours can now be completed in 30 minutes.

Plant protection drones, which are considered special disinfecting equipment, have the advantages of being highly efficient, covering a wide area, and reducing chemical residues.