Smart agriculturing using UAVs
Smart agriculture is a management concept focused on providing the agricultural industry with the infrastructure to leverage advanced technology ?for tracking, monitoring, automating and analyzing operations. Smart farming is software-managed and sensor-monitored system. With the expanding global po
2025-06-28 16:35:04 - Adil Khan
Smart agriculturing using UAVs
Project Area of Specialization Electrical/Electronic EngineeringProject SummarySmart agriculture is a management concept focused on providing the agricultural industry with the infrastructure to leverage advanced technology –for tracking, monitoring, automating and analyzing operations. Smart farming is software-managed and sensor-monitored system. With the expanding global population this approach is useful to ensure sustainability of agriculture. For maintaining and improving crop production, protection procedures like spraying pesticide solution and fertilizers is crucially important. Smart agriculture approach promotes time, effort, and cost effective way of spraying fertilizers and pesticides by using wireless technologies like drones. Our project comprises of a hexcopter that enables us to spray fertilizers and pesticides along with some additional features. It has a greater advantage as it avoids the serious health problems that can be caused by human manually spraying. Moreover, it is very convenient to operate, and can easily access remote areas where labors find it difficult to reach out and operate manually. Precision agriculture has paved a way to implement an environmental friendly method posing a decline in health risks and is a step towards ensuring sustainability of agricultural sector.
Project ObjectivesThe deployment of UAVs in precision agriculture is a time saving as well as cost-effective era that cannot only assist for improving crop yields, but also enhances productivity and profitability in farming structures. UAVs facilitate agricultural management, weed monitoring, and pesticide damage, thereby they help to mitigate the harmful causes and meet those challenges quickly Our project comprises of a hexcopter that serves the purpose of spraying pesticides and fertilizers.
Primary Objectives that have been achieved so far are as follow:
- Spraying of pesticides and fertilizers
- Spraying of locust killing spray
- Semi automation of hexcopter
- Video Streaming using raspberry pi
- Water level sensors and monitoring on ground staion via pi cam
Furthermore, we have been thriving to achieve a few additional objectives that includes crop maturity mapping, Object detection and avoidance, implementation of swarming technology and coordinated control flight, 3D mapping and live streaming of the field, frame modelling and fabrication. In addition to this, Internet of Things would enable us to provide with a smart system software containing all field related data for assistance.
With the development in technology within the past few decade, autonomously operating Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), regularly known as airborne drones, have turn out to be an emerging mass-marketplace generation. The use of unmanned aerial motors (UAVs) is increasing swiftly with time across the globe due to their high mobility, ease of deployment and low maintenance cost . It has many uses that comprises actual-time tracking, offering wi-fi coverage, precision agriculture, remote sensing, surveillance and safety, and infrastructure inspection. Smart UAVs are proving itself to be the subsequent large revolution in UAV generation making sure to offer greater possibilities in specific applications of smart agriculture.
Project Implementation Methodwe divided the project into two phase.In our first phase we worked on the prototype model. we learn about all the basics of the drone and its control on that prototype.The second Phase started when we received the our order from china of the frame and other parts then we started working on that new hexcopter. initially what we did is we took all the dimensions of that frame.Then we design the model in solidworks,so that we could design our own frame.this could potentially safe the cost of project in future if we want to make more drones.After designing we Assembled the titling mechanism of the drone and the we assembled all the drone.Install all the electronics.calibrated the electronics and sensor.We then did the PID tuning of our drone and finally we performed manual flight test. all the progress was compared with the milestone time and progress is noted.Now we are on final stages of doing autonomous flight test and Spray system of our Hexcopter.after completing these objectives we will be working on our future objectives.
Benefits of the ProjectOur FYP will help to increase the production of the crops as more area will be covered in less time with uniform spraying and less labor will be employed. The multi-copters have a greater advantage as it avoids the serious health problems that can be caused by human manually spraying. Moreover, they are very convenient to operate, and can easily access remote areas where labors find it difficult to reach out and operate manually Moreover, the data about crops will be gathered which could be used later for monitoring the health of crops.
Furthermore this project has alot of other commerical aspects
- Crop monitoring and increased production in agricultural industry
- Terrace farming
- Forestry
- Firefighting system.
- Surveillance of any area
- Can be employed in police or army
- Can used at the fog removal
- Can deploy it at industry for inspection of parts
- Can be used in traffic management system
- Can be used in hazardous situation (flood etc.)
- Film making industry
- Weather forecast management
The final deliverable of this FYP is hardware model of hexcopter with a spraying system installed at the bottom and nozzel.The thrust provided by each motor will be 3 kg at 50 percent of throttle.The final model will be capable of 15 kg payload.A small gimbal will be attached for Hd aerial data of the field and a pie cam attached with raspberry pie. both will be controlled from the ground station. The live level of the tank will be monitored on the ground station via raspberry pie.The speed ,position, distance and other important information will also be displayed on the ground station and whole hex copter will be controlled from the ground station. A parachute will also be installed for save the hexcopter in case of any failure during the flight.
Final Deliverable of the Project HW/SW integrated systemCore Industry AgricultureOther Industries Food Core Technology RoboticsOther Technologies OthersSustainable Development Goals Good Health and Well-Being for People, Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry, Innovation and InfrastructureRequired Resources| Item Name | Type | No. of Units | Per Unit Cost (in Rs) | Total (in Rs) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total in (Rs) | 69828 | |||
| Mt4114 emax motor 340kv | Equipment | 6 | 3488 | 20928 |
| Hex frame 880mm | Equipment | 1 | 12000 | 12000 |
| Esc 40amp emax | Equipment | 6 | 1000 | 6000 |
| Controller | Equipment | 1 | 4000 | 4000 |
| pump system | Equipment | 1 | 500 | 500 |
| propellers | Equipment | 6 | 400 | 2400 |
| Pie cam and Resberry pie | Equipment | 1 | 5000 | 5000 |
| radio and transmiter | Equipment | 1 | 4000 | 4000 |
| GPS and telemetry | Equipment | 1 | 2000 | 2000 |
| battery | Equipment | 2 | 5000 | 10000 |
| transportation | Miscellaneous | 1 | 3000 | 3000 |