ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE USED IN AGRICULTURE

Agriculture is the backbone of our economy.Investments in agriculture are the best weapons against hunger and poverty,and they have made life better for billions of people.The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops,but the cultivation and perfection of humans.The us environmental protection agency(EPA)estimates that agriculture contributes roughly $330billion in annual revenue to the economy.

 

APPLICATIONS OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN AGRICULTURE

1.agricultural robots

             companies were developing and programming autonomous robots to handle agricultural tasks such as harvesting crops faster than the human labourers.

 BLUE RIVER TECHNOLOGY WEED CONTROL

           The ability to control the weeds is a  top priority for farmers where as herbicide resistance is an ongoing challenge becomes more common place .Today, an estimated 250 species of weeds have become resistance to herbicide. In a research conducted by the weed science of America .On the impact of uncontrolled weeds on corn and soybeans , annual losses to farmers are estimated at $43 billion. 

            companies are using automation and robotics to help farmers.

 To protect the crops from weeds. Blue river Technology developed robot called see and spray. It provides computer vision to monitor and precisely spray weeds on cotton plants. precision spraying can help prevent herbicide resistance.                  

                 According to its website, The company claims that it's precision Technology eliminates 80% of the volume of chemicals normally sprayed on crops and can reduce herbicide expenditure by 90%.It has been estimated that over 1 billion pounds of pesticides are used in river annually.

              In September 2017, John Deere is reportedly investing $305 million to complete the transaction. Blue river technology is one of many vendors listed in our robotics.

HARVEST CROO ROBOTICS-crop harvesting

            Automation is used in agriculture to eliminate the labours.The  industry is projected to experience a 6% decline in agricultural workers from 2014 to 2024.harvest CROO robotics develop a robot to help strawberry farmers to pick and pack their crops.lack of labourers has reportedly led to millions of dollars of revenue losses in key farming regions like California and Arizona.

In Hillsborough country, Florida region which has been described as the"Nations winter strawberry capital", between 10000 and 11000 acres of strawberries are typically harvested in a season. Harvest CROO robotics says that it can harvest 8acres in a single day and can replace 30 human labourers. An estimated 40% of annual farm costs are funneled into"wages, salaries and contract labour expenses". For crops such as fruits and vegetables where labour needs tends to be the highest.

               In June 2017, Florida based wish farms announced it's implementation of harvest CROO robotics strawberry harvester in the summer of  2017.The farm claims that the robot spans "over 6 beds of plants"and carries"16 individual picking robots".Till date, harvest CROO robotics has reportedly raise $2.8million from investors and farms representing 20% of all us strawberry production.  

2.CROP AND SOIL MONITORING.                               Companies using computer vision and deep learning algorithms to process data captured by drones or software based Technology to monitor crop and soil health.

PEAT-machine vision for diagnosing pests/soil defects

                  Deforestation and degradation of soil quality remain significant threats  to food security and have a negative impact on to the economy. Domestically, the USDA has estimated that the annual cost of soil erosion is approximately $44 billion dollars. 

           Berlin best agricultural tech startup PEAT, has developed a deep learning application called plantix that reportedly identify potential defects and nutrient deficiencies in soil.The image recognisation app identifies possible defects through images captured by the users smartphone camera. Uses provided with soil Restoration techniques.

.               The company claims that its software can rapidly achieve pattern detection with an estimated accuracy of up to 95%.PEAT recently published that it's international client base had reached over 500,000.

                Without specifies regarding the size of client farms, we are unable to confirm if the plantix app poses any significant limitations for larger farms.competitor crop diagnosis appears to follow a similar model for it's app.

TRACE GENOMICS- machine learning for diagnosing soil defects

               Similar to plantix app california-based trace genomics, provides soil analysis services to farmers.lead investor "lllumia"developed the system which uses machine learning to provide clients with a sense of their soils strength and weakness es.The emphasis is on preventing defective crops and optimizing the potential for healthy crop production.

.          According to the company's website, after submitting soil sample to Trace genomics, users reportedly receive an in depth summary of their soils contents. Services are provided in packages which include a pathogen screening focused on bacteria and fungi as well as a comprehensive microbial evaluation.

           By February 2017, the company has raised $8million in total equity funding from 6 firms including the lllumia accelerator. Product packages begin at $199 for the pathogen screen. Favourable quotes from two farms are featured on the Trace genomics website.

SKY SQUIRREL TECHNOLOGIES inc-drones and computer vision for crop analysis

                      The presence of drones in agriculture reportedly dates back to the 1980s for crop dusting in Japan. The market for drones in agriculture is projected to reach $480million by 2027. Today, companies are leveraging ai and aerial Technology to monitor crop health.sky squirrel Technologies use drone. The company aims users  to improve the crop yield and to reduce costs. They use drones to capture the photos. Once the drone completes its route,users can transfer a USB drive from the drone to a computer and upload the capture data to Cloud drive.

.           Sky squirrel use algorithms to integrate and analyse the captured images and data to provide a detailed report on the health of the vineyard, specifically the grapevine leaves.since grapevine leaves are often tell tales for grapevine diseases like molds and bacteria.The company claims that its Technology can scan a 50 acres and 24 minutes and provides data analysis with 95% accuracy.

3.PREDICTIVE ANALYSIS

          Machine learning models are being developed to track and predict various environmental impacts on crop in such as weather changes.

Where-satellites for weather prediction and crop sustainity.

                  Colorado based company uses machine learning algorithms in connection with satellites to predict weather, analyse crop sustainability and evaluate farms for the presence of diseases and pests. For example, daily weather predictions, are customised based on the needs of each client and range from hyper local to global.

           Types of clients mentioned on the company's website include farmers, crop consultants and researches.The company claims that it provides it's  users with access to over a billion points of agronomic data on a daily basis. Data sources like temperature, precipitation, wind speed, and solar radiation,"along with comparisons to historic values for anywhere on the agricultural earth".

FARMSHOTS-satellites for monitoring crop health and sustainability

             Based in Raleigh, North California, farm shots is another startup focused on analysing agricultural data derived from images captured by satellites and drones. Specifically, the company aims to "detect diseases, pests and poor  plant nutrition on farms".

             For example the company claims that its software can inform users exactly where fertilizer is needed and can reduce the amount of fertilizers used by nearly 40%. In April 2017, farm shots along with its associate partner, planet, announced limited tree asses to its products for John Deere clients through June 2017.