This is a story about “Snippy” the robotic pruner. Snippy is still in the early stages of development but field demos this year in Lodi and Creston, California have vineyard managers and wineries optimistic about its future assistance to supplement the dwindling labor forces needed for the annual, labor-intensive grapevine pruning process. The creation of San Diego-based Vision Robotics Corp., Snippy is just the whimsical pet name of an ingenious robotic system, currently comprised ...