Mobile Crop Treatment Platform for Sensor-Guided Local Application
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current crop monitoring and treatment systems face challenges in accurately identifying localized issues in crops, leading to inefficient use of pesticides and biological control agents, as they often require extensive and prophylactic application across entire crops, and cannot simultaneously use chemical and biological agents due to compatibility issues.
Innovation Solution
A mobile crop monitoring and treatment system equipped with sensors, a storage system for chemical pesticides and biological control agents, and an application system that allows for targeted and simultaneous application of treatments based on real-time sensor data, using a robotic arm and controller to determine dosage and concentration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If prophylactic treatment is applied across the entire crop, then crop protection is ensured, but pesticide usage increases and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies treatments locally only to specific plants or areas that have been identified as having problems, rather than treating the entire crop uniformly. Sensors detect plant-specific issues and the application system delivers treatments precisely to affected locations, ensuring protection where needed while minimizing unnecessary pesticide application to healthy plants.
Solution Approach 2:
The crop is divided into individual monitoring units, with each plant or area assessed separately by the sensor system. This segmentation allows the system to identify and treat only the specific segments that require intervention, rather than applying uniform treatment across the whole crop, thereby reducing overall pesticide usage while maintaining effective protection.
2Reliability
If chemical pesticides are used to control pests, then pest control effectiveness is improved, but environmental contamination increases and biological control agents are harmed
Solution Approach 1:
Chemical pesticides are applied locally only to specific affected plants or areas rather than across the entire crop. This targeted approach concentrates the chemical treatment where pests are actually present, maximizing pest control effectiveness while minimizing the total amount of chemical released into the environment, thereby reducing environmental contamination and protecting non-target organisms.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses sensors as intermediaries to detect pest presence and determine the precise locations requiring treatment. This intermediary detection layer enables selective application of chemical pesticides only where needed, rather than blanket application, thus maintaining effective pest control while reducing overall chemical exposure to the environment and biological control agents.
3Productivity
If chemical pesticides and biological control agents are applied simultaneously, then treatment efficiency is improved, but compatibility issues arise as pesticides can be fatal to biological control agents
Solution Approach 1:
The treatment system is segmented into separate application mechanisms for chemical pesticides and biological control agents. The controller manages these as distinct operational modes, selecting and applying only the appropriate treatment type based on sensor-detected problem characteristics. This segmentation prevents incompatible chemicals and biological agents from being mixed or applied simultaneously to the same location, maintaining agent compatibility while preserving treatment efficiency through timely, problem-specific intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the treatment approach based on real-time sensor data and problem identification. The controller selectively activates either chemical pesticide application or biological control agent deployment depending on the specific pest or disease detected, rather than using a fixed simultaneous application protocol. This dynamic selection ensures compatibility between treatment agents while maintaining high treatment efficiency through appropriate, timely intervention.
4Loss of information
If human scouts are used to identify crop problems, then problem detection is possible, but detection precision is limited and response time is delayed
Solution Approach 1:
The system replaces the mechanical human scouting process with an automated sensor-based detection system. Sensors mounted on a mobile platform continuously monitor crops for signs of pests, diseases, and other problems, providing more precise and consistent detection capabilities than human visual inspection. This substitution enables earlier and more accurate problem identification, leading to timely and precise treatment application.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor-based monitoring system provides continuous surveillance of the crop, rather than relying on periodic human scouting visits. This continuous detection capability ensures that problems are identified as soon as they arise, with higher precision and without the delays inherent in manual inspection schedules, enabling immediate and targeted treatment response.
5Measurement precision
If mobile systems are used for crop monitoring, then detection accuracy is improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile monitoring platform is designed as a multi-functional system that combines sensor detection, data processing, and treatment application capabilities in a single integrated unit. This universal platform can detect various types of crop problems using different sensors and can apply both chemical and biological treatments, reducing the need for separate specialized systems while maintaining high detection accuracy through its mobile, close-proximity sensing capability.
Data Source
AI summary
A mobile crop monitoring and treatment system includes a vehicle with a propulsion system and multiple sensors mounted on the vehicle. Each sensor is configured to capture data pertaining to at least one plant-related parameter when the sensor is positioned proximate to a plant in a crop. The system also includes a storage system configured to house multiple treatment agents, including at least one chemical pesticide and at least one biological control agent, on-board the vehicle. The system further includes an application system configured to apply one or more of the treatment agents to the plant. In addition, the system includes a controller configured to control movement of the vehicle and operation of the sensors and application system. The controller is configured to cause the application system to apply one or more treatment agents to the plant in response to one or more signals from one or more sensors.