Precision agriculture

Precision agriculturePTermPrecision agriculturePrecision agriculture uses IoT sensors, GPS and data to optimize irrigation, fertilization and harvesting by zone, increasing yield and efficiency.View profile means irrigating, fertilising and treating by zone using what the field measures, not the average of the plot. It takes three pieces: sensors that survive outdoors, a network that reaches them, and a platform where the reading turns into an irrigation command or an alert.

What gets measured

• Soil: moisture and temperature at several depths, plus electrical conductivity. This is the reading that decides irrigation.
• Local weather: rain, temperature, relative humidity, wind and radiation. The station on the farm beats the regional forecast.
• Plant: leaf wetness and leaf temperature, which feed disease risk models.
• Water: flow, pressure and reservoir or tank level. Flow that does not match the schedule is usually a leak.
• Equipment: pump, valve and filter status, with accumulated running hours.

How the data gets out of the field

In the field the real choice is between LoRaWANProtocolLoRaWANOpen long-range, low-power LPWANView profile and cellular. With LoRaWAN you install your own gateway and cover kilometres with no per-sensor bill, in exchange for maintaining the network. With NB-IoT you deploy nothing, but you depend on the operator's coverage at the exact spot where the sensor goes, which in rural areas is worth measuring before you buy. Where there is mains power and you need data more often, 4G is the simple answer.

From reading to irrigation

The automation that works is boring: a moisture threshold per zone, a time window, a cut-off on rain or wind, and an alert when flow leaves the expected range. On top of that the platform opens and closes valves, records what was irrigated and keeps the history so seasons can be compared.

The water savings quoted in the sector, 20 to 40% in extensive crops, are industry estimates. The number for your own farm comes from comparing your history before and after, not from a brochure.

What to check before scaling up

• Coverage measured at the sensor, not in the nearest town.
• Power: solar panel and battery sized for December, not for August.
• Soil sensor calibration for your soil type. Without it, the threshold means nothing.
• Maintenance: tractors, animals and vandalism take out more sensors than electronics failures do.
• Data ownership: who can export it, in what format, and what happens if you change vendor.

The background guide is What smart agriculture is. The product version, with dashboards and alarms already built, is in Smart Agriculture.