List of Agriculture Sensors,Advantages of Agriculture Sensors
This page covers agriculture sensors basics. It mentions list of agriculture Sensors with their uses. The advantages or benefits of Agriculture Sensors and disadvantages or drawbacks of Agriculture Sensors are also explained.
What are Agriculture Sensors?
Introduction:
• Sensors used in smart farming are known as agriculture sensors.
• These sensors provide data which assist farmers to monitor and optimize crops by
adapting to changes in the environmental conditions.
• These sensors are installed on weather stations, drones and robots used in the
agriculture industry.
• They can be controlled using mobile apps specifically developed for the purpose.
• Based on wireless connectivity either they can be controlled directly using wifi or through
cellular towers with cellular frequencies with the help of mobile phone app.
Following table mentions list of agriculture Sensors used for different functions in agricultural industry.
| Agriculture Sensors | Functional description |
|---|---|
| Location Sensors | These sensors determine latitude, longitude and altitude of any position within required area. They take help of GPS satellites for this purpose. |
| Optical Sensors | These sensors use light in order to measure properties of the soil. They are installed on satellites, drones or robots to determine clay, organic matter and moisture contents of the soil. |
| Electro-Chemical Sensors | These sensors help in gathering chemical data of the soils by detecting specific ions in the soil. They provide informations in the form of pH and soil nutrient levels. |
| Mechanical Sensors | These sensors are used to measure soil compaction or mechanical resistance. |
| Dielectric Soil Moisture Sensors | These sensors measure moisture levels by measuring dielectric constant of the soil. |
| Air Flow Sensors | These sensors are used to measure air permeability. They are used in fixed position or in mobile mode. |
Uses of Agriculture Sensors
Following are the uses of Agriculture Sensors:
➨They are used in agricultural weather stations. These equipments are equipped with sensors which provide
informations such as soil temperature at various depths, air temperature, rainfall, leaf wetness, chlorophyll,
wind direction, solar radiation, relative humidity, atmospheric pressure etc.
➨They are used in many equipments (e.g. dendrometer) developed by agro based industries for agricultural or farming applications such as
measuring trunk diameter, leaf wetness and so on.
➨They are used in agriculture drones for the purpose of spraying insecticides and pesticides.
➨Solar based pumps which are mobile operated have become very popular due to reduction in
cost to electricity.
➨E-fences have become popular in rural INDIA which helps save crops from animals such as elephants.
Benefits or advantages of Agriculture Sensors
Following are the benefits or advantages of Agriculture Sensors:
➨They are invented to meet increasing demand of food by maximizing yields with minimum resources such as
water, fertilizers and seeds. They fulfill this by conserving resources and mapping fields.
➨They are simple to use and easy to install.
➨They are cheaper.
➨In addition to agricultural use, they can also be used for pollution and global warming.
➨They are equipped with wireless chip so that they can be remotely controlled.
Drawbacks or disadvantages of Agriculture Sensors
Following are the drawbacks or disadvantages of Agriculture Sensors:
➨Smart farming and IoT technology require continuous internet connectivity.
This is not available in developing coutries such as INDIA and other part of the world.
➨There is presumption in the market that consumers are not always ready to adopt latest
IoT devices equipped with agriculture sensors.
➨The basic infrastructure requirements such as smart grids, traffic systems and cellular towers
are not available everywhere. This further hinders the growth of its use.
Advantages and Disadvantages of other Sensor Types
Advantages and Disadvantages of other wireless technologies
Different types of Sensors Related links
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