Application and Development of New Drones in Agriculture

Abstract

With the advancement of technology and advances in technology, the research on drones has become more and more in-depth, and the practical application fields have become more extensive. Its unparalleled advantages also play an important role. At present, drone technology has also gradually Mature. Drones are creating a new agricultural revolution. It is estimated that the size of drones in the agricultural market will reach billions of dollars in the next few years. As editor of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Telecommunication Union’s research report on “UAVs and agriculture”, information expert Gerard Sylvester said that as farmers work to adapt to climate change and meet other challenges, drones are expected to help the entire Agricultural enterprises improve efficiency.

Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) in Agriculture: A Pursuit of Sustainability

“…There is a possibility that crop withering and destroying pathogens evade detection due to the lack of careful inspection. Here comes the role of drones as they can easily distinguish the yellowing plants from the green ones [77]. In a study where drone was used to monitor the canola crop, the mapped region was reported to exhibit reductions in NDVI and leaf area index (LAI) hinting towards its inspection for nutrient deficiency, so that the subsequent pest and disease can be detected beforehand [17].…”

“…To effectively assess the topography of the land, farmers can benefit from the laser scanning technology or software capable of stitching hundreds of high-quality aerial imageries into 3D maps. These 3D maps thus generated indicate the water flow direction at the bottom of each tree in the orchard along with the identification of other features [77].…”

“…To overcome these, three types of spectral values (i.e., weeds, crop and bare soil) are extracted from pre-defined sampling areas [25]. Similarly, herbicides resistant weeds can also be identified using data obtained by the mercy of agricultural RPAs [77]. This can effectively pave the way to precision agriculture.…”

“…RPAs are highly efficient for insurance companies in aiding them to rank the percentage of field damage i.e., 70% or 90%, after a natural disaster [27]. They also serve in saving a lot of material resources, manpower and thus considerably reducing claim time limits [77]. The use of drones for survey purposes aimed for state governments and insurance companies is also reported [24].…”

“…Recently, a pollen dump drone pollinating fruits (i.e., apples, cherries and almonds) was developed by a New York based startup that is optimistic about its future sales. Similarly, a few fruit growers are also hopeful of the possible application of RPAs in their orchards [77].…”