Smart agriculture is a fairly new agricultural term, and most farmers are not familiar with what it refers to. In this article, we will clarify the concept of smart agriculture and why it is the future of agriculture.

The term smart agriculture refers to the use of technologies such as the Internet of Things, sensors, positioning systems, robotics and artificial intelligence on farms. The ultimate goal is to improve the quality and quantity of crops while optimising the manpower used.

Example technologies used in smart agriculture are:

Precision irrigation and precise plant nutrition

Climate management and control in greenhouses

Sensors – for the soil, water, light, moisture, for temperature management

Software platforms

Location systems – GPS, satellite, etc

Communication systems – based on mobile connection, LoraWan, etc
Robots

Analytics and optimization platforms

The connection between all these technologies is the Internet of Things – this is a mechanism for connectivity between sensors and machines, resulting in a complex system that manages your farm based on data received. Thanks to this system, farmers can monitor the processes on their farms and take strategic decisions remotely – from their tablet, phone or other mobile device – without being on the open fields, in their greenhouse, orchard, vineyard, etc.

What are the processes taking place on a farm using smart agriculture?

Data collection

The sensors installed at all critical places in the farm gather and transmit data about the soil, air, etc

Diagnostics

The data collected is analyzed by the system and conclusions are made regarding the status of the object or process monitored. Potential problems get identified.

Decision making

Based on the problems identified in the previous steps, the software platform and/or a human managing the platform decides on actions that need to be taken.

Actions

The actions identified in the previous step are performed. A new measurement on the soil, air, moisture, etc is performed by the sensors and the whole cycle starts again.

The result from this automated smart farming process is – high precision and 24/7 control, eventually leading to considerable savings in all key resources used – water, energy, fertilizers, time spent by strategic people, time spent by lower-qualification human resources.

Customers using JXCT Smart agriculture solution on their farms can save up to 85% in water consumed and up to 50% in energy consumed. They also report up to 40% increase in crop yield, while reducing the cost of fertilization and chemical treatment, and up to 60% less losses resulting from human error.