SmartCrop® | The Plant is the Sensor™
Smartfield’s “the plant is the sensor” product line and services use the latest in agriculture research to provide real time crop monitoring, crop analysis, and irrigation decision making to instantly communicate crop status changes to the grower. The SmartCrop® technology is unique because the plant itself is used as the sensor for all communicable information. Because the plant is the one place where all variables are integrated: weather, soil, and biology, SmartCrop can provide the user with valuable information, all from the convenience of a cell phone or computer.
The SmartCrop technology is based on the USDA patent known as BIOTIC (Biologically Identified Optimal Temperature Interactive Console). The technology uses an accurate but low cost temperature sensor to measure the temperature of the surface of the leaf, known as canopy temperature. This Field Sensor, placed in the grower’s field, takes this reading once a minute each day.
These temperature readings are then relayed to a centrally located base station along with other environmental data, including relative humidity and ambient temperature. Once the Base Station receives the Field Sensor data, the temperature information is compared to the crop species’ known optimal temperature, coupled with a time threshold, to determine when the crop is experiencing water stress. The Base Station will then communicate with a cellular tower, which uploads all of the information onto the Smartfield servers.
At this point, the grower is able to log-into CropInsight and view the crop information, or receive text messages and e-mails on a smart phone. Essentially, CropInsight can tell the grower when they should, or shouldn’t, irrigate their crop.
A SmartCrop system can be powered by an input from the center pivot, by a separate 110 VAC input, or by a solar panel. In addition, the Base Station is designed with battery backup protection so that data is continually collected and stored in the event that power is lost.
Research from the USDA’s 20+ years of testing and experimentation found that the BIOTIC process is an effective method of providing irrigation control for maximizing yield while minimizing water usage.
