Unmanned aerial vehicle and method

Abstract

A method of applying a herbicide to a flooding field (1). The method comprises providing an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) (2) and flying the UAV (2) along a plurality of substantially parallel spray flight paths (31). The method further comprises spraying a herbicide composition from the UAV (2) to a plurality of application areas (11) on the surface of the flood (1), each of the plurality of application areas (11) respectively corresponding to one of the plurality of spray flight paths (31), each application area (11) being separated from an adjacent application area (11) by a diffusion area (12), the herbicide composition sprayed onto the surface of the flooding field (1) can diffuse into the diffusion area. Herbicidal compositions comprise an aqueous emulsion (EW).

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method of applying a herbicide to a flooded area, and an unmanned aerial vehicle for applying the herbicide.

[0002] When growing plants or crops in flooded land, such as when growing rice in paddy fields, it is often necessary to apply herbicides to the flooded land to control unwanted plant growth. Since the specific composition of the herbicide is selected based on the type of plant to which the herbicide is applied, the application of the herbicide to the flooded land must be carefully controlled. In particular, it is important to prevent the herbicide from drifting to unwanted areas where it may have damaging effects on plants for which the herbicide was not intended.

[0003] In order to carefully control the application of herbicides in flooded fields, this task is performed by workers. The workers wear backpacks that contain the herbicide. The workers use handheld applicators to apply the herbicide to the flooded fields. If the workers are properly trained, the likelihood of the herbicide being applied to unwanted areas is very low. However, this work is difficult because the workers must carry the herbicide on their backs and must walk through the flooded fields with their feet submerged in water. This work is also time-consuming, and in a typical rice field, it takes a single worker about three to four hours to spray the herbicide for each hectare. The need for skilled workers and the time spent spraying the herbicide means that the cost of applying the herbicide is high.

[0004] Therefore, it would be beneficial to mitigate some of these disadvantages associated with applying herbicides to flooded lands.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for applying a herbicide to a flooded land, the method comprising:

[0006] Provide unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs);

[0007] flying the UAV along a plurality of substantially parallel spray flight paths;

[0008] A herbicide composition comprising an aqueous emulsion (EW) is sprayed from a UAV onto a plurality of application areas on the surface of a flooded land, each of the plurality of application areas corresponding to a spraying flight path of the plurality of spraying flight paths, each application area being separated from adjacent application areas by diffusion areas, and the herbicide composition sprayed onto the surface of the flooded land can diffuse into these diffusion areas.

[0009] Advantageously, using a UAV to apply a herbicide composition to a flooded field eliminates the need for manual application. This in turn reduces costs and application time. It has been found that the ratio of the time it takes a UAV to apply a herbicide composition to a flooded field of a given size to the time it takes a human operator to manually apply the herbicide composition to a flooded field of the same size is approximately 1:15. For example, a UAV may take approximately 8 minutes to apply a herbicide composition to a flooded field, while a human operator would take approximately 2 hours to apply the herbicide composition to the same flooded field.

[0010] Aqueous emulsions (EWs) have the benefit that they are simple to manufacture, have good chemical stability, can be applied directly or after dilution to the flooded land, and the spontaneous formation of the emulsion containing the active ingredient's oil droplets will cause the droplets to float or rise and spread on the surface of the land without settling. Therefore, after application, the spontaneous formation of the emulsion of the active ingredient in the aqueous emulsion will cause the droplets to float or rise and spread on the surface of the flooded land. In this way, the aqueous emulsion will spread from the application area to the diffusion area. This allows coverage of the flooded land to be achieved by flying the UAV only over alternating rows (i.e., alternating application areas and diffusion areas). In this way, the UAV does not need to fly over the entire flooded land, thereby further reducing the application time.

[0011] The application areas may be predetermined. The location and size of each application area may be predetermined. The location and size of each application area may be predetermined before the herbicide composition is applied to the flooded land.

[0012] The diffusion areas may be predetermined. The location and size of each diffusion area may be predetermined. The location and size of each diffusion area may be predetermined prior to applying the herbicide composition to the flooded land. The size of the diffusion areas may be such that when the herbicide composition is sprayed onto one of the application areas, the herbicide composition spreads to at least half of the width of an adjacent diffusion area. When the composition is sprayed onto an adjacent application area, the herbicide composition may spread across the entire width of each diffusion area.

[0013] The UAV can fly in a first direction along a first spraying flight path in the spraying flight path and fly in a second direction opposite to the first direction along any spraying flight path adjacent to the first spraying flight path in the spraying flight path. The UAV can fly in a round trip mode along the spraying flight path. Advantageously, the UAV does not need to fly over the entire ground, and thus optimizes the application time. Each spraying flight path in the multiple spraying flight paths can be connected to an adjacent spraying flight path in the multiple spraying flight paths by a non-spraying flight path.

[0014] Each of the plurality of predetermined application areas may be about 4m to about 6m wide. Preferably, each of the plurality of predetermined application areas may be about 3m wide. Each predetermined diffusion area may be about 3m to about 5m wide. Preferably, each predetermined diffusion area may be about 4m wide.

[0015] The application area may be spaced apart from the edge of the flooded land or from the edge of the planting area of ​​the flooded land. The application area may be spaced apart from the edge of the flooded land or from the edge of the planting area of ​​the flooded land by a border diffusion area. The herbicide composition may diffuse into the border diffusion area. The border diffusion area may be predetermined. The size of each border diffusion area may be predetermined. The size of each border diffusion area may be predetermined before the herbicide composition is applied to the flooded land. The size of the border diffusion area may be such that when the herbicide composition is sprayed onto the application area, the herbicide composition diffuses through the entire border diffusion area. The size of the border diffusion area may be such that when the herbicide composition is sprayed onto the application area, the herbicide composition diffuses at least to the edge of the planting area of ​​the flooded land.

[0016] The application area may be spaced from about 1 m to about 3 m from the edge of the floodplain or from the edge of the planting area of ​​the floodplain. Preferably, the application area may be spaced from about 2 m from the edge of the floodplain or from the edge of the planting area of ​​the floodplain. Advantageously, providing a boundary diffusion area can further ensure that drift of the herbicide composition does not result in the herbicide composition entering an unwanted area.

[0017] The UAV may have a nozzle, and the herbicide composition may be sprayed through the nozzle. The nozzle may be a low drift nozzle. When spraying through the nozzle, the expected spread and drift of the herbicide composition may be used to select or determine the appropriate width of the application area. A suitable nozzle may be selected for a predetermined application area. A suitable nozzle may be selected for a predetermined application area for a given flight altitude. For example, the nozzle may produce droplets of the herbicide composition, each droplet being within a predetermined droplet size range. The nozzle may be selected so that the droplet size is small enough to provide the spread of the herbicide composition on the application area, but large enough to reduce the risk of the herbicide composition drifting into an undesirable area. Advantageously, the droplet size range may be used to select the appropriate width of the application area. The UAV may have a plurality of nozzles. For example, the UAV may have four nozzles.

[0018] The UAV may spray the herbicide composition continuously while traveling along any one of the plurality of spraying flight paths. The UAV may spray the herbicide composition intermittently while traveling along any one of the plurality of spraying flight paths.

[0019] During the application of the herbicide composition, the UAV may fly about 1.5 m to about 3 m above the surface of the flooded land. For example, during the application of the herbicide composition, the UAV may fly about 2 m above the surface of the flooded land.

[0020] The herbicide composition can be sprayed from the UAV so as to reach the surface of the flooded land with a spraying area. The spraying area can vary with any combination of the UAV configuration, the nozzle configuration, and the flight altitude above the surface of the flooded land. The spraying area can have a width dimension that is substantially the same as the width of the application area. The spraying area can be varied by changing the flight altitude of the UAV.

[0021] According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of applying a herbicide to a plurality of floodplains, the method comprising applying the herbicide to each floodplain using the method described above, and further comprising the step of flying a UAV between floodplains, for example between adjacent floodplains. The UAV may fly between adjacent floodplains along a non-spray routing flight path.

[0022] According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of calculating a flight path of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), for example over a flooded land or over a plurality of flooded lands, to apply a herbicide composition comprising an aqueous emulsion to the flooded land or the flooded lands from the UAV, the method comprising:

[0023] defining a plurality of application areas on the floodplain, each application area being separated from an adjacent application area by a diffusion area;

[0024] associating a spraying flight path with each application area so that when the UAV flies along each spraying flight path and sprays the composition, the composition is sprayed onto the corresponding application area and can spread into the spread area;

[0025] The size of the diffusion area is determined based on the diffusion characteristics of the composition.

[0026] The diffusion characteristics can include the expected diffusion amount when the droplets of the herbicide composition are present on the water surface of the flooded land. The diffusion characteristics can be determined at least in part by the viscosity of the herbicide composition. Aqueous emulsion formulations, particularly concentrated formulations, usually have high viscosities, which are undesirable for direct pouring and are not aesthetically pleasing to the end user, while low viscosity compositions are difficult to achieve sufficient concentrations of the oil phase, and the result is insufficient concentration of the active ingredient. The viscosity of the herbicide composition can be less than 600cps. The viscosity of the herbicide composition can be less than 500cps, 450cps, 400cps or even 350cps.

[0027] Advantageously, the flight path is calculated to provide coverage of the floodplain in as few rows as possible while providing adequate spread of the herbicide composition and reducing the risk of drift into undesired areas.

[0028] The method of calculating a flight path may further include determining a non-spraying flight path to connect an end of each of the plurality of spraying flight paths to an adjacent spraying flight path of the plurality of spraying flight paths.

[0029] The flight path may be fixed before the UAV flies along the flight path. The flight path may be adjusted or updated while the UAV is flying along the flight path.

[0030] The plurality of application areas may be determined based on the UAV spraying a composition comprising one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants onto the plurality of application areas, preferably wherein the viscosity of the composition is less than 600 cps.

[0031] The method may include calculating non-spray routing flight paths along which the UAV may fly between different floodplains, such as between adjacent floodplains. Advantageously, the flight time of the UAV may be minimized by providing the shortest possible non-spray routing flight path between floodplains.

[0032] According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system, the unmanned aerial vehicle system being configured to apply a composition of a herbicide and an aqueous emulsion to a flooded area, the UAV system comprising:

[0033] a UAV having a storage tank for storing a herbicide composition and a nozzle for spraying the herbicide composition;

[0034] a memory for storing computer readable instructions associated with a flight path for applying a herbicide composition to a flooded site;

[0035] a controller for controlling flight and spraying operations of the UAV based on the computer readable instructions;

[0036] Among them, the UAV is configured as:

[0037] flying along a plurality of substantially parallel spray flight paths;

[0038] The composition is sprayed onto a plurality of application areas on the ground, each application area corresponding to a spray flight path of the plurality of spray flight paths, and each application area is separated from adjacent application areas by diffusion areas into which the composition can diffuse.

[0039] The nozzle may be configured so that the composition is sprayed or can be sprayed with a droplet size within a predetermined droplet size range. Advantageously, in use, the composition can reach the flooded land with a known spray area. For example, based on the flight altitude of the UAV, the spray area can be determined to have a size equal to the width of the application area. The UAV may include a plurality of nozzles through which the composition is sprayed or can be sprayed. The UAV may include four nozzles through which the composition is sprayed or can be sprayed.

[0040] The controller may be included in the UAV.

[0041] The flight path can be calculated using the above-mentioned method for calculating the flight path of an unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0042] The UAV may be configured to spray a composition comprising one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants, preferably wherein the composition has a viscosity of less than 600 cps.

[0043] The memory may be included in the UAV.

[0044] The UAV system may further include a computer or processor for calculating a flight path for the UAV.

[0045] The UAV system may further include:

[0046] a transmitter for transmitting a signal representing the calculated flight path to the UAV for use by the controller to control the UAV to fly along the calculated flight path;

[0047] The UAV further includes a receiver for receiving a signal representing the calculated flight path.

[0048] The composition of the above aspects of the present invention may comprise one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants. The viscosity of the composition may be less than 600 cps.

[0049] Oil: Water ratio It may be 1.1:1 or higher, preferably 1.5:1 or higher. Advantageously, these higher ratio compositions allow for the preparation of more concentrated compositions.

[0050] The active ingredient(s) may be present in an amount of 0.1% to 40% by weight.

[0051] The one or more surfactants may be selected from the group consisting of polyalkylene glycols, butyl polyalkylene oxide block copolymers, ethoxylated sorbitan esters, polyoxyethylene tridecyl phosphate, and anionic acrylic acid copolymers.

[0052] The composition may comprise xanthan gum, preferably in an amount of less than 0.2% by weight. Surprisingly and counter-intuitively, it has been found that xanthan gum acts as a diluent in the context of the present invention and is used to reduce viscosity. It may also assist in forming fine droplets after application.

[0053] The composition may contain an adjuvant, preferably an adjuvant of an alkyl methyl ester. Advantageously, the adjuvant improves the efficacy of the composition. It has also been found that the presence of the adjuvant helps to form fine droplets of the composition, such as droplets with a D95 of less than 2.5 microns.

[0054] Having thus described the invention in a general manner, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0055] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a flooded field to which a herbicide composition is applied;

[0056] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of multiple floodplains; and

[0057] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) used to apply herbicides to flooded areas.

[0058] First reference Figure 1 , schematically showing a flooded land 1. In this example, the flooded land 1 can be called a paddy field for growing rice. In other examples, the flooded land 1 can be used to grow any suitable plants or crops. In this example, the shape of the flooded land 1 is rectangular, with a height H and a width W. It should be understood that the height H and the width W of the flooded land 1 can be any values ​​suitable for growing corresponding plants or crops.

[0059] The floodplain 1 has a plurality of application areas 11. The application areas 11 are substantially parallel to each other. The application areas 11 are portions of the floodplain 1 to which the herbicide composition is to be applied by the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 2. In this example, the application areas 11 are predetermined in that each of their positions and sizes is substantially predetermined before the herbicide composition is applied. In this example, each application area 11 is approximately 3 m wide.

[0060] Each application area 11 is separated from other adjacent application areas 11 by a diffusion area 12. In this example, the diffusion area 12 is predetermined because the position and size are substantially predetermined before the herbicide composition is applied to the application area 11. In this example, the diffusion area 12 is about 4 m wide. That is, the distance between adjacent application areas 11 is about 4 m.

[0061] Each application area 11 is spaced apart from an edge 13 of the floodplain 1 or from an edge of a planting area (not shown) of the floodplain 1. This spacing provides a boundary diffusion area 14. In this example, the boundary diffusion area 14 is predetermined because its size is substantially predetermined before the herbicide composition is applied to the application area 11. In this example, the application area 11 is spaced apart from the edge 13 of the floodplain 1 by about 2 m. That is, the boundary diffusion area 14 is about 2 m wide.

[0062] Although Figure 1 Only two application areas 11 are shown in FIG. 1 , but the number of application areas 11 will be determined by the width W of the floodplain W and the boundary diffusion area 14, the diffusion area 12 between adjacent application areas 11, and the width of the application areas 11. Therefore, there may be any number of application areas 11. In addition, it should be understood that the width W of the floodplain 1 and the boundary diffusion area 14, the diffusion area 12 between adjacent application areas 11, and the width of the application areas 11 can be determined based on the type of herbicide composition applied thereto and other conditions (such as environmental conditions and the configuration of the UAV 2).

[0063] To apply the herbicide to the flooded land 1, the UAV flies along a spraying flight path 31. The spraying flight paths 31 are substantially parallel to each other. Each spraying flight path 31 passes over one of the application areas 11. In other words, there is a corresponding spraying flight path 31 for each application area 11. When the UAV 2 flies along the spraying flight path 31, the herbicide composition is sprayed onto the surface of the flooded land 1. The herbicide composition can be sprayed continuously or intermittently, depending on various factors, such as the UAV configuration, battery life, and the amount of water in the flooded land 1.

[0064] In this example, during application of the herbicide composition, the UAV 2 is flown approximately 2 m above the surface of the floodplain 1. However, it should be understood that the flight altitude is determined based on the spread and / or drift of the herbicide composition, and thus any flight altitude is useful.

[0065] The herbicide composition is sprayed from the UAV 2 so as to reach the surface of the floodplain 1 with a spraying area. The size of the spraying area is at least partially defined by the flight altitude of the UAV 2 above the surface of the floodplain 1. In this example, the spraying area has a width dimension that is substantially the same as the width of the application area 11. That is, while the UAV 2 is flying along a given spraying flight path 31, the herbicide composition is sprayed from the UAV 2 so that the resulting spraying area covers the corresponding application area 11.

[0066] The ends of each spraying flight path 31 are connected to each other by a non-spraying flight path 32. In this way, the UAV 2 flies in a round-trip mode, flying along one spraying flight path 31 in a first direction, flying to an adjacent spraying flight path 31 by flying along the associated non-spraying flight path 32, and flying along the adjacent spraying flight path 31 in a second direction opposite to the first direction. The UAV 2 also flies along the non-spraying routing flight path 33 to enter and exit the area above the floodplain 1, respectively starting and ending the spraying process. When the UAV 2 flies along the non-spraying routing flight path 33, the herbicide composition is not sprayed. Moreover, when the UAV 2 flies along each non-spraying flight path 32, the herbicide composition is not sprayed from the UAV 2.

[0067] It will be appreciated that if there are more than two application areas 11, each application area 11 will have a corresponding spraying flight path, and the UAV 2 will fly over these application areas in the round trip pattern described above.

[0068] When the herbicide composition is sprayed onto the surface of the application area 11 of the floodplain 1, the herbicide composition will diffuse from the application area 11 into the diffusion area 12 and the boundary diffusion area 14. Therefore, there is no need to spray the herbicide composition into the diffusion area 12 and the boundary diffusion area 14. In this way, the entire floodplain 1 will receive the herbicide composition in a time-efficient manner while eliminating or reducing the risk of the herbicide composition drifting into unwanted areas.

[0069] Reference now Figure 2 , wherein a plurality of flooded areas 10 are shown. Each flooded area 10 is connected to a reference Figure 1 The floodplains 1 described are identical. In this example, there are 10 floodplains 10, but it will be appreciated that there may be any number of floodplains 10. To apply the herbicide composition to all floodplains 10, one UAV 2 or a plurality of UAVs 2 may be used. Figure 2 The application of a herbicide composition to all ten floodplains 10 using one UAV 2 is shown. The UAV 2 has spray flight paths 310 that pass over each application area of ​​each floodplain 10, as shown in FIG. Figure 1 Similarly, in each floodplain 10, the non-spraying flight path 320 connects the spraying flight path 310, such as Figure 1 A non-spraying routing flight path 330 is provided, along which the UAV 2 enters and leaves each floodplain 10, as shown in FIG. Figure 1The non-spraying routing flight path 330 also connects the spraying flight paths 310 of the adjacent floodplains 10. The non-spraying routing flight paths 330 between the adjacent floodplains 10 are determined to have the shortest possible distance. In this way, the flight time of the UAV 2 is minimized.

[0070] In another example, a first UAV 2 can be used to apply a herbicide composition to the top row of a floodplain 10 (e.g., Figure 2 and a second UAV 2 can be used to apply the herbicide composition to the bottom row of the floodplain 10 (e.g., Figure 2 The top row of non-spray routing flight paths 330 and Figure 2 , and the non-spray routing flight paths of the bottom row are the same as those of the top row.

[0071] It should be understood that while these two examples of flight paths for spraying a plurality of floodplains 10 are described, any flight path may be provided for any number of UAVs 2.

[0072] Calculation as reference Figure 1 or Figure 2 The flight paths of the UAV 2 are depicted, including spraying flight paths 31, 310, non-spraying flight paths 32, 320, and non-spraying routing flight paths 33, 330, in order to spray the herbicide composition into the application area 11 of the floodplain 1, 10 in an efficient manner.

[0073] In order to calculate the flight path, the multiple application areas 11 are first determined, wherein the application areas 11 are separated by diffusion areas 12. The known width W and height H of the flooded land 1, 10 are used to determine the application areas 11. The width W is then divided into the minimum number of application areas 11, wherein when the composition is sprayed onto the flooded land, the composition will be completely diffused into the diffusion areas and boundary diffusion areas 12, 14, as discussed below. The application areas 11 can be determined based on, for example, an aerial image (not shown). The application areas 11 can be mapped to specific areas of the flooded land 1, 10, such as on crop ridges. The calculation of the flight path and application area can also be determined based on other factors that may affect the application of the herbicide composition, such as weather, UAV configuration (e.g., nozzle selection and spraying pattern), and the type of herbicide.

[0074] Then, each spraying flight path 31, 310 is respectively associated with each application area 11, so that when the UAV 2 flies along each spraying flight path 31, 310 and sprays the herbicide composition, the herbicide composition is sprayed on the corresponding application area 11 and can be diffused into the diffusion area 12. The herbicide composition can also be diffused into the boundary diffusion area 14.

[0075] The size of the diffusion areas 12, 14 is determined based on the diffusion characteristics of the herbicide composition. For example, the size of the diffusion area 12 and the boundary diffusion area 14 is determined based on the viscosity of the herbicide composition and any other characteristics that affect its diffusion through the water of the flooded land 1, 10. The size of the diffusion area 12 is such that when the herbicide composition is sprayed on one of the application areas 11, the herbicide composition spreads to at least half of the width of the diffusion area 12. Similarly, when the herbicide composition is sprayed on the other application areas in the application area 11, the herbicide composition spreads to at least half of the width of the diffusion area 12. In this way, the herbicide composition spreads over the entire width of the diffusion area 12. The size of the boundary diffusion area 14 is such that the herbicide composition spreads through the entire boundary diffusion area 14 or at least to the edge of the area where the crop is planted.

[0076] The non-spraying flight paths 32, 320 are also determined to connect the end of one of the spraying flight paths 31, 310 in each floodplain 1, 10 to another of the spraying flight paths 31, 310 in the floodplain 1, 10. The non-spraying routing flight paths 33, 330 are calculated to minimize the flight time of the UAV 2.

[0077] The flight path is calculated to take into account all factors that will affect the application of the herbicide, such as weather conditions, the type of vegetation in the floodplain 1, the type of herbicide composition, and the configuration of the UAV 2 (e.g., nozzle selection and spray pattern).

[0078] In one example, the flight path is calculated before the UAV 2 takes off. The flight path is calculated by a computer or processor, such as by Figure 3 The computer 4 in FIG. 1 is calculated and transmitted to the UAV 2, which computer or processor may be part of the UAV 2 or may be external to the UAV 2. The flight path may be fixed before the UAV 2 begins to fly along the flight path, or may be adjusted while the UAV 2 is flying along the flight path.

[0079] In another example, the flight path is calculated or adjusted while the UAV 2 is flying. The flight path may be calculated or adjusted based on, for example, aerial photography of the flooded areas 1, 10, conditions experienced or measured by the UAV 2, or weather conditions. The flight path is calculated by a computer, such as by Figure 3 The computer 4 in the UAV calculates and is transmitted to the UAV 2, which computer may be part of the UAV 2 or may be external to the UAV.

[0080] In this example, the herbicide composition is an aqueous emulsion of two active ingredients and one or more surfactants. The viscosity of the herbicide composition is preferably less than 600 cps.

[0081] The herbicide composition is an aqueous emulsion (EW). In this example, the oil:water ratio is The ratio of the surfactant to the herbicidal composition is 1.1:1 or higher, preferably 1.5:1 or higher. The one or more surfactants are selected from the group consisting of polyalkylene glycols, butyl polyalkylene oxide block copolymers, ethoxylated sorbitol esters, polyoxyethylene tridecyl phosphate and anionic acrylic acid copolymers. The herbicidal composition comprises xanthan gum, preferably in an amount of less than 0.2% by weight. The herbicidal composition comprises an adjuvant, preferably an adjuvant of an alkyl methyl ester.

[0082] Reference now Figure 3 , showing a schematic diagram of a UAV 2 as part of a UAV system for applying a herbicide composition to Figure 1 1 or applied to flooded areas such as Figure 2 The UAV 2 may also be referred to as an unmanned aerial vehicle. As is known in the art, the UAV 2 has a body 21 and a plurality of propellers 22. Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 1 , the UAV 2 has a plurality of nozzles 23. In this example, there are four nozzles. Each nozzle 23 is preferably a low drift nozzle, such as IDK120-15 nozzle, or The UAV 2 is provided with one of the SJ3 015, TP0001 or TP0015 nozzles. The nozzle type is selected based on the expected droplet size of the herbicide composition when sprayed through the nozzle. That is, the droplet size of each nozzle is predictable so that the droplet size is within a predetermined droplet size range. This allows the spraying of the herbicide composition to be determined for various flight altitudes of the UAV 2 after reaching the flooded land. The UAV 2 has a storage tank 25 for storing the herbicide composition.

[0083] The UAV 2 has a transmitter receiver 24 for receiving signals. The UAV 2 has a control circuit 27, which includes a processor 26 for processing data received at the transmitter receiver 24. The control circuit 27 is also used to control the operation of the UAV 2. The data is preferably in the form of computer-readable instructions, which are processed by the processor 26 and implemented by the control circuit 27. In some examples, the UAV 2 has any number of global positioning systems (GPS) (not shown), compasses (not shown), and cameras (not shown). Any one or all of these are controlled by the control circuit 27.

[0084] The UAV system has a controller for controlling the operation of the UAV 2. The controller controls the UAV 2 to fly along a flight path and to spray the herbicide composition from the UAV 2.

[0085] The UAV system has a memory for storing instructions and / or operating settings. The memory may also store computer-readable instructions related to the flight path so that the controller can control the UAV 2 to fly along the flight path and spray the herbicide composition while flying along the spraying flight path 31.

[0086] In this example, the UAV system controller is a computer 4 that includes a processor and a memory. That is, the processor and the memory are located outside the UAV 2. Computer readable instructions are provided from the computer 4 to the UAV 2. The computer 4 calculates the flight path and transmits a signal representing the flight path to the UAV 2 using an aircraft control transmitter 41 and a second data receiver transmitter antenna 42. In some examples, the second data antenna 42 is used to receive images, such as a live feed, from a camera on the UAV 2. In some examples, the computer 4 has a screen (not shown) to display the live feed and any other operating parameters of the UAV 2. In some examples, the operator can manually control any number of aspects of the operation of the UAV 2 using inputs on the controller.

[0087] Computer 4 may be used to control any number of UAVs 2 simultaneously.

[0088] Examples

[0089] To illustrate the time savings achieved with the herbicide composition application method of the present invention, a comparison was made with the time taken to apply the herbicide to the entire flooded field using a UAV (i.e., spraying over adjacent application areas without separation). This is an application method used, for example, to apply fertilizer to the field. It should be noted that, as in this example, it is not recommended to apply the herbicide to the entire field due to the risk of herbicide drifting into unwanted areas, and this is done only to illustrate the time savings. The herbicide composition was also applied to the flooded field by a human operator for comparison.

[0090] In the example, the herbicide composition was sprayed on a 14m x 8m (112m 2 ) flooded land to remove general weeds. The UAV flew about 2m above the surface of the flooded land, and four IDK 120 / 15 was fitted to the UAV. The spray rate was 30 liters per hectare (L / ha). The wind speed during the test was 0 to 1.9 m / s. The UAV spray test was carried out with two combinations of herbicides. Application was carried out using a DJI MG1-P UAV.

[0091] Workers also used a backpack sprayer to spray the herbicide composition Bispiribak Sodium (100) GA / L on the flooded land. In this case, the spraying amount was 400 L / Ha.

[0092] All tests showed excellent weed control and no phytotoxicity in rice.

[0093] Table 1 shows a comparison of application times for herbicide applications when a worker is used to spray the entire field, when a UAV is used to spray the entire field, and when a UAV is used to spray in alternating rows.

[0094] Table 1

[0095]

[0096] As shown in Table 1, flying the UAV over alternating rows provided a 33% to 35% reduction in application time compared to flying the UAV over the entire field. Application using the UAV showed a significant reduction in application time compared to using a human operator.

Claims

1. A method for applying a herbicide to a flooded area, the method comprising: Providing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs); flying the UAV along a plurality of substantially parallel spray flight paths; A herbicide composition comprising an aqueous emulsion (EW) is sprayed from the UAV onto a plurality of application areas on the surface of the flooded land, each of the plurality of application areas corresponding to a spraying flight path of the plurality of spraying flight paths, each application area being separated from an adjacent application area by a diffusion area, and the herbicide composition sprayed onto the surface of the flooded land can diffuse into the diffusion area.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Each of the plurality of application areas is about 4 m to about 6 m wide.

3. The method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein: Each diffusion zone is about 3m to about 5m wide.

4. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein: Each of the application areas is spaced from an edge of the floodplain or from an edge of a planting area of ​​the floodplain.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein: Each of the application areas is spaced from about 1 m to about 3 m from an edge of the floodplain or from an edge of a planting area of ​​the floodplain.

6. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein: Each of the plurality of spraying flight paths is connected to an adjacent spraying flight path of the plurality of spraying flight paths through a non-spraying flight path.

7. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein: The UAV has a nozzle and the herbicide is sprayed through the nozzle.

8. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein: Spraying the herbicide composition comprises spraying a composition comprising one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants, preferably wherein: The viscosity of the composition is less than 600 cps.

9. A method of calculating a flight path of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) over a flooded land to apply a herbicide composition comprising an aqueous emulsion to the flooded land from the UAV, the method comprising: defining a plurality of application areas on the floodplain, each application area being separated from an adjacent application area by a diffusion area; associating a spraying flight path with each application area so that when the UAV flies along each spraying flight path and sprays the composition, the composition is sprayed onto the corresponding application area and can spread into the spread area; The size of the diffusion area is determined based on the diffusion characteristics of the composition. 10 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising determining a non-spraying flight path to connect an end of each of the plurality of spraying flight paths to an adjacent spraying flight path of the plurality of spraying flight paths.

11. The method according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein: The plurality of application areas are determined based on the UAV spraying a composition comprising one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants onto the plurality of application areas, preferably wherein, The viscosity of the composition is less than 600 cps.

12. An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) system configured to apply a combination of a herbicide and an aqueous emulsion (EW) to a flooded area, the UAV system comprising: a UAV having a storage tank for storing the herbicide composition and a nozzle for spraying the herbicide composition; a memory for storing computer-readable instructions associated with a flight path for applying the herbicide composition to the floodplain; and a controller for controlling flight and spraying operations of the UAV based on the computer-readable instructions; Wherein, the UAV is configured to: flying along a plurality of substantially parallel spray flight paths; The composition is sprayed onto a plurality of application areas of the floodplain, each application area corresponding to one of the plurality of spray flight paths, and each application area is separated from an adjacent application area by a diffusion area into which the composition can diffuse.

13. The UAV system of claim 12, wherein: The nozzle has a configuration such that the composition is sprayed or can be sprayed in droplet sizes within a predetermined droplet size range.

14. A UAV system according to claim 12 or claim 13, wherein: The flight path is calculated using a method according to any one of claims 9 to 11.

15. The UAV system according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein: The UAV is configured to spray a composition comprising one or more active ingredients and one or more surfactants, preferably wherein the viscosity of the composition is less than 600 cps.

16. The UAV system of any one of claims 12 to 15, further comprising a computer or processor for calculating a flight path of the UAV.

17. The UAV system of claim 16, further comprising a transmitter for transmitting a signal representing the calculated flight path to the UAV for controlling the UAV to fly along the calculated flight path; in, The UAV further includes a receiver for receiving the signal representing the calculated flight path.

18. The UAV system of claim 17, wherein: The UAV further comprises a control circuit for processing the signal representing the calculated flight path and for controlling the operation of the UAV.

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