Remote Irrigation Control Using Crop Stress Sensing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current irrigation systems lack sophisticated and timely data collection and analysis to accurately determine crop water needs, leading to overwatering and inefficient water use, especially in agriculture, where visual or indirect methods are subjective and costly, and existing remote monitoring technologies are cost-prohibitive and limited in application.
Innovation Solution
A system that captures crop characteristics such as canopy temperature, leaf thickness, and weather data, using sensors to transmit information to a field base station where it is correlated with algorithms incorporating plant parameters and crop coefficients to automatically generate and execute irrigation decisions, allowing for remote and real-time adjustment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If visual or indirect methods are used to analyze plant condition, then the grower can assess crop status, but the data is subjective and not timely enough to accurately decide when to initiate or cease irrigation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces subjective visual assessment with objective electronic sensors that directly measure crop canopy temperature and calculate Crop Water Stress Index (CWSI). This substitution of mechanical/electronic measurement systems for human visual inspection eliminates subjectivity and provides timely, quantifiable data for irrigation decisions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary computer system that collects sensor data, calculates CWSI, and formulates irrigation decisions. This intermediary processing layer transforms raw temperature measurements into actionable irrigation recommendations, providing comprehensive water need assessment that neither visual inspection nor simple sensors could achieve alone.
2Ease of operation
If the grower manually assesses crop condition and controls irrigation, then the system can be simple and low-cost, but the grower must physically visit fields and make subjective determination of whether to water
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary automated actions by having the system continuously monitor crop conditions and pre-calculate irrigation decisions based on CWSI thresholds. The system is ready to automatically execute irrigation commands without waiting for grower intervention, thus achieving automation while maintaining simplicity through pre-programmed decision logic.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables the irrigation system to serve itself by automatically monitoring crop water stress and controlling water application based on calculated CWSI values. The system self-regulates irrigation without requiring continuous manual oversight, achieving automation while keeping the interface simple for the grower.
3Reliability
If sophisticated remote monitoring and irrigation systems are implemented, then real-time data collection and automated irrigation decisions are achieved, but the systems are cost-prohibitive for most growers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the sophisticated monitoring system into simple, low-cost components: basic temperature sensors, a computer for CWSI calculation, and standard irrigation control. This segmentation allows the system to achieve reliable real-time monitoring through coordinated simple parts rather than requiring expensive integrated sophisticated equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs inexpensive sensors and standard computing equipment rather than expensive specialized agricultural instrumentation. By using affordable, readily available components that can be easily replaced or upgraded, the system achieves sophisticated functionality at low cost, making it accessible to most growers.
4Loss of energy
If drip irrigation is used to improve water efficiency, then applied water efficiency reaches 95% to 99%, but there remains a tendency to overwater due to lack of timely data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback loop where crop canopy temperature sensors continuously monitor plant water status, the system calculates CWSI, and this information feeds back to control irrigation timing and duration. This closed-loop feedback prevents overwatering by stopping irrigation when crop water needs are met, maximizing the efficiency of drip irrigation application.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the irrigation system dynamic by continuously adjusting water application based on real-time CWSI calculations rather than using fixed schedules. The system adapts irrigation timing and duration to changing crop water needs, environmental conditions, and crop development stage, preventing both overwatering and underwatering.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables precise and timely irrigation management, reducing water waste, saving resources, and allowing growers to monitor and control crops from a distance, minimizing manual intervention and optimizing water use based on comprehensive data analysis.
Implementation Method 1
a crop sensor, said crop sensor placed in a field and having capability to transmit the captured crop characteristic to a field base station, wherein one of said at least one crop characteristics is canopy temperature
Data Source
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AI summary
A method, system and apparatus for early diagnosis and real time remote intervention of crop condition by correlating collected crop characteristics with known plant parameters, economic variables and algorithms to computer generate an irrigation decision, remotely execute the same and notify the end user.