PRESENT-DAY PATENT- A PREVIEW

Soil fertility has a crucial role in increasing the crop yields and the associated agricultural economy. However, the traditional methods assess the soil fertility in a periodic and time-consuming manner, considering only small patches of land within a massive area with varying nutrient concentrations. So, real-time monitoring of soil nutrients becomes necessary for various reasons: (i) To prevent plant nutrient deficiency or associated diseases before any visible symptoms occur, (ii) To encourage proper and cost-efficient use of fertilizers and (iii) To allow proper spread of required nutrients across the entire crop field.  A recent invention from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir (SKUAST-K), Shalimar, Srinagar has aimed to achieve these high crop-yield goals with an unmanned ground vehicle-based real-time soil fertility management system. The invention actually had a frame provided with a rail guide, upon which thermal, nutrient, moisture and ultrasonic sensors are integrated. The movement of the frame over the soil is controlled by a user interface-linked computing unit that is operationally-coupled with a processor. To know the soil nutrient data, a user can access the computing unit and give directions to the frame to locate the area for soil-nutrient monitoring. Once the area is located, the processor enables a motor to facilitate the rail guide to penetrate into the soil and to allow the rail guide-connected sensors to make soil-related measurements. Eventually, the computing unit displays the soil characteristics and the associated recommendations via the user interface. An added feature of the invention is that it encompasses solar cells to harness solar power, storing the excessive power in batteries to enable the system functioning without lack of power. Moreover, the ultrasonic sensor in the rail guide avoids the invention from tumbling or crashing at obstacle presence. Though the invention promoted fast, accurate and safer soil-nutrient monitoring, high procuring cost, maintenance, reliability and operational difficulty at various terrains or environmental constraints requires further study. In fact, as precision agriculture with Internet of Things (IoT) is attracting farmers and agronomists in recent times, similar inventions have a great thrive in the near future.

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