Agriculture
Agriculture
Yield optimization for both horticulture and livestock is paramount to farmers’ success — and feeding the world for the foreseeable future. MultiTech is proud to help.
IoT Agriculture Devices
It is only natural that some of the globe’s best places to grow crops and raise livestock are also the least likely to have complete cellular coverage. Still, IoT agriculture devices hold a great deal of promise, whether they’re used for irrigation, soil management or ripeness. Yield optimization for both horticulture and livestock is paramount to the farmers’ success — and feeding the world for the foreseeable future.
From local growers to heavy equipment manufacturers to irrigation systems suppliers, MultiTech’s supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) IoT water management system devices can be found on farms around the world. SCADA is a control system that processes incoming data to make decisions in real time, providing high-level process supervisory management. On a farm, this means instantly analyzing inputs from deployed sensors to make decisions based on predefined parameters. The versatility of a SCADA system means that farmers can customize their network to meet their exact needs.
Connected agricultural devices increase both yield and efficiency by monitoring:
Precision irrigation and nutrient content
Precision farming requires a strategic IoT agriculture network to track soil moisture and nutrient content at all times. Monitoring this type of data provides farmers with a means to:
- Calculate optimal water usage
- Identify the most effective type of fertilizer
- Improving yields
- Decreasing greenhouse gas emissions (from fuel used for pumping water and truck trips to manually check the fields)
- Choose the best time for harvesting or planting crops
Soil monitoring presents an ideal use case for LoRa technology, because these networks have the long range and low power requirements it takes to communicate over large fields for extended time periods. LoRa devices don’t need battery replacements as often as more power-hungry devices, reducing the number of times farmers need to complete maintenance in the field.
Animal activity and location
IoT technology has changed the way farmers and ranchers approach livestock monitoring. With a network of sensors in place, it is now possible to keep track of an animal’s location and wellbeing instantly and with accuracy. Not only does this save time, it reduces costs because farmers with IoT connectivity can instantly identify when an animal is sick and prevent the spread of infectious diseases.
Building temperature, air quality and humidity monitoring systems
It’s not just the field that farmers need to worry about — the status of interior spaces can be equally important. IoT devices can monitor many interior environmental conditions that affect livestock and humans alike. These measurements can ensure that all is well in a building or alert a farmer when something is awry. With a network of IoT devices in place, farmers get the peace of mind it takes to focus on what matters most elsewhere on the farm.
Feed monitoring systems
Deploying IoT solutions in farming is much like having an entire team of people at your disposal to monitor every facet of your farm. When it comes to monitoring livestock feed, IoT devices can do so with more accuracy and speed than any human. With a few clicks, you can have a complete overview of your farm’s feed supply. What’s more, IoT networks can monitor when it’s time to restock feed, providing alerts when supplies are getting low.
IoT water management
There is no substance quite as important as water on a farm, and with IoT solutions at their disposal, farmers can better understand how they are using their water. Whether for watering crops or providing drinking water for animals, water monitoring devices help farmers optimize their water usage. It’s one less thing to need to keep an eye on, freeing up a farmer’s time for other responsibilities.
Use Cases of IoT in Agriculture Applications
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