Optimizing water consumption is a major challenge for more sustainable agriculture with respect for the environment. By combining micro and nanotechnologies with the offered solutions of IoT connection (Sigfox and LoRa), new sensors allow the farmer to be connected to his agricultural production by mastering in real time the right contribution needed in water and fertilizer. The sensor designed in this research allows a double measurement of soil moisture and salinity. In order to minimize the destructuring of the ground to insert the sensor, we have designed a cylindrical sensor, easy to insert, with its electronics inside its body to propose a low power electronic architecture capable of measuring and communicating wireless with a LoRa or Sigfox network or even the farmer’s cell phone. This new smart sensor is then compared to the current leaders in agriculture to validate its performance. Finally, the sensor has better performance than commercials, a better response time, a better precision and it will be cheaper. For the salinity measure, it can detect the level of fertilizer in the soil according to the need of farmers.
References
[1]
Nabayi, A., The, C.B.S., Mohd Hanif, A.H. and Sulaiman, Z. (2018) Plant Growth, Nutrient Content and Water Use of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) Seedlings Grown Using Root Trainers and Different Irrigation Systems. Pertanika Journal of Tropical Agricultural Science, 41, 251-270.
[2]
Pigford, A.-A.E., Hickey, G.M. and Klerkx, L. (2018) Beyond Agricultural Innovation Systems? Exploring an Agricultural Innovation Ecosystems Approach for Niche Design and Development in Sustainability Transitions. Agricultural Systems, 164, 116-121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2018.04.007
[3]
Gao, Z., Zhu, Y., Liu, C., Qian, H., Cao, W. and Ni, J. (2018) Design and Test of a Soil Profile Moisture Sensor Based on Sensitive Soil Layers. Sensors, 18, 1648.
https://doi.org/10.3390/s18051648
[4]
Faybishenko, B. (2000) Tensiometer for Shallow and Deep Measurements of Water Pressure in Vadose Zone and Groundwater. Soil Science, 165, 473-482.
https://doi.org/10.1097/00010694-200006000-00003
[5]
Visacro, S., Alipio, R., Murta Vale, M.H. and Pereira, C. (2011) The Response of Grounding Electrodes to Lightning Currents: The Effect of Frequency-Dependent Soil Resistivity and Permittivity. IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility, 53, 401-406. https://doi.org/10.1109/TEMC.2011.2106790
[6]
Oriol, P., Rapanoelina, M. and Gaudin, R. (1995) Le pilotage de l’irrigation de la canne à sucre par tensiomètres. Agricultural Development, 6, 39-48.
[7]
Moutonnet, P., Brandy-Cherrier, M. and Chambon, J. (1981) Possibilites d’utilisation des tensiometres pour l’automation de l’irrigation. Plant Soil, 59, 335-345.
https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02184205
[8]
Zhou, Q.Y., Shimada, J. and Sato, A. (2001) Three-Dimensional Spatial and Temporal Monitoring of Soil Water Content Using Electrical Resistivity Tomography. Water Resources Research, 37, 273-285. https://doi.org/10.1029/2000WR900284
[9]
Dean, T.J., Bell, J.P. and Baty, A.J.B. (1987) Soil Moisture Measurement by an Improved Capacitance Technique, Part I. Sensor Design and Performance. Journal of Hydrology, 93, 67-78. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(87)90194-6
[10]
da Costa, E., de Oliveira, N., Morais, F., Carvalhaes-Dias, P., Duarte, L., Cabot, A. and Siqueira Dias, J. (2017) A Self-Powered and Autonomous Fringing Field Capacitive Sensor Integrated into a Micro Sprinkler Spinner to Measure Soil Water Content. Sensors, 17, 575. https://doi.org/10.3390/s17030575
[11]
Chakraborty, M., Kalita, A. and Biswas, K. (2018) PMMA-Coated Capacitive Type Soil Moisture Sensor: Design, Fabrication, and Testing. IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, 68, 189-196.
https://doi.org/10.1109/TIM.2018.2838758
[12]
Kalita, H., Palaparthy, V.S., Baghini, M.S. and Aslam, M. (2016) Graphene Quantum Dot Soil Moisture Sensor. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 233, 582-590.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2016.04.131
[13]
Palaparthy, V.S., Kalita, H., Surya, S.G., Baghini, M.S. and Aslam, M. (2018) Graphene Oxide-Based Soil Moisture Microsensor for in Situ Agriculture Applications. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 273, 1660-1669.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.snb.2018.07.077
[14]
Boudaden, J., Steinmal, M., Endres, H.E., Drost, A., Eisele, I., Kutter, C. and Müller- Buschbaum, P. (2018) Polyimide-Based Capacitive Humidity Sensor. Sensors, 18, 1516. https://doi.org/10.3390/s18051516
[15]
Xiao, D., Feng, J., Wang, N., Luo, X. and Hu, Y. (2013) Integrated Soil Moisture and Water Depth Sensor for Paddy Fields. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, 98, 214-221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2013.08.017
[16]
Dias, P.C., Cadavid, D., Ortega, S., Ruiz, A., França, M.B., Morais, F.J.O., Ferreira, E.C. and Cabot, A. (2016) Autonomous Soil Moisture Sensor Based on Nanostructured Thermosensitive Resistors Powered by an Integrated Thermoelectric Generator. Sensors and Actuators A: Physical, 239, 1-7.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sna.2016.01.022
[17]
Pichorim, S., Gomes, N. and Batchelor, J. (2018) Two Solutions of Soil Moisture Sensing with RFID for Landslide Monitoring. Sensors, 18, 452.
https://doi.org/10.3390/s18020452
[18]
Weil, N.C., Brady, R.R. and Weil, R.R. (2016) The Nature and Properties of Soils. Fifteenth Edition, Pearson, Columbus.
