IoT in Agriculture

IoT technology has realized smart wearables, connected devices, automated machines, and driverless cars. However, in agriculture, the IoT has brought the greatest impact. Amongst the challenges like extreme weather conditions, climatic changes, and environmental impact.

Sensors were intended for agriculture operations. For a very long But the problem with the traditional approach of utilizing sensor technology was that we were not able to get the live data from the sensors, Sensors are now connected to the cloud cellular/satellite network and tell the real-time data from the sensors, making decision making effective.

The sensors were used to log the data into their attached memory and later on we were able to use it. The applications of IoT in the agriculture industry have helped farmers to monitor the water tank levels in real time which makes the irrigation process more efficient. The advancement of IoT technology in agriculture operations has brought the use of sensors in every step of the farming process like how much time and resources a seed takes to become a fully-grown vegetable.

Applicability of IoT in Agriculture

Smart Farming is an effective system of doing agriculture and growing food in a feasible way It is an application of implementing connected devices and innovative technologies together into agriculture, Smart Farming depends on IoT thus eliminating the need for physical work of farmers and growers and thus increasing the productivity in a possible manner.

The Internet of Things has brought huge benefits like an efficient use of water, optimization of inputs, and many more. With the help of sensors and interconnectivity, the Internet of Things in Agriculture has not only saved the time of the farmers but has also reduced the excessive use of resources such as Water and Electricity. It keeps various factors like humidity, temperature, soil, etc. under check and gives a crystal clear real-time observation.

Benefits of IoT in Agriculture

Climate Conditions

For farming, the climate is a very important factor. But due to 1. improper knowledge about climate heavily deteriorates the quantity and quality of the crop production. But IoT gives real-time weather conditions. Sensors are placed inside and outside of the agriculture fields. They collect data from the environment which is used to choose the right crops which can grow and sustain in particular climatic conditions.

The whole IoT ecosystem is made up of sensors that can detect real-time weather conditions like humidity, rainfall, temperature, and more very accurately. There are different sensors available to monitor the condition of the crops and the weather surrounding them, If any disturbing weather conditions are found, then an alert is sent. Some examples of such agriculture IoT devices are allMETEO, Smart Elements, and Pycno.

Precision Farming

Precision Farming is the essential application of IoT in Agriculture. Smart farming applications such as livestock monitoring, and vehicle tracking. field observation, and inventory monitoring. The goal of precision farming is to analyze the data, generated via sensors, to react accordingly. Precision Farming helps farmers to generate data with the help of sensors and analyze that information to take intelligent and quick decisions. There are different precision farming techniques like irrigation management, livestock management, vehicle tracking, and many more which play a vital role in increasing efficiency and effectiveness.

Precision farming analyzes soil conditions and other related parameters to increase operational efficiency. from this precision farming, the real working condition of connected devices detects water and nutrient levels. For example, CropX builds IoT soil sensors that measure soil moisture, temperature, and electric conductivity enabling farmers to approach each crop’s unique needs individually. Combined with geospatial data, this technology helps create actual soil maps for each field.

Smart Greenhouse

For making greenhouses smart, IoT has enabled weather stations to automatically adjust the climate conditions according to a particular set of instructions, IoT in Greenhouses has eliminated human intervention, thus making the entire process cost-effective and increasing accuracy at the same time.

For example, using solar-powered IoT sensors builds modern and inexpensive greenhouses. These sensors collect and transmit real-time data which helps in monitoring the greenhouse state very precisely in real-time. With the help of the sensors, the water consumption and greenhouse state can be monitored via emails or SMS alerts.

Automatic and smart irrigation is carried out with the help of IoT. These sensors help to provide information on pressure, humidity, temperature, and light levels. Farm app and Growlink are also IoT agriculture products offering such capabilities among others. GreeniQ is also an interesting product that uses smart agriculture sensors. It is a smart sprinklers controller that allows the managing of irrigation and lighting systems remotely.

Data Analytics

Cloud-based data storage and an end-to-end IoT Platform are used to store the data in the smart agriculture system. These systems are estimated to play an important role such that better activities can be performed. In the IoT, sensors are an important source of collecting data on a large scale. The data is analyzed and transformed into meaningful information using analytics tools.

Data analytics helps in the analysis of weather conditions, livestock conditions, and crop conditions. We can know the real-time status of the crops by capturing the data from sensors, using IoT devices. The trend analysis helps the farmers to know upcoming weather conditions and harvesting of crops: IoT in the Agriculture Industry has helped the farmers to maintain the quality of crops and fertility of the land, thus enhancing the product volume and quality.

Agricultural Drones

Ground and Aerial drones are used for assessment. health, and crop monitoring. planting, crop spraying, and field analysis. With D strategy and planning based on real-time data, drone technology has given a high stock and makeover to the agriculture industry. Drones with thermal or multispectral sensors identify the areas that require changes in irrigation. Once the crops start growing sensors indicate their health and calculate their vegetation index.

Cattle Monitoring and Management

To, manage and monitor the health of cattle, there are IoT agriculture sensors that can be attached to the animals on a Livestock tracking and monitoring help collect data on stock health, well-being, and physical location. For example, such sensors can identify sick animals so that farms can separate them from the herd and avoid contamination.

Using drones for real-time cattle tracking also helps farmers reduce staffing expenses. This works similarly to IoT devices for pet care. For example, SCR by Allflex and Cowlar uses smart agriculture sensors (collar tags) to deliver temperature, health, activity, and nutrition insights on each individual cow as well as collect information about the herd.

Read other IoT tutorials

• IoT for Industry
• IoT in Healthcare