Apple Orchards in Tres

In Tres the project focuses on monitoring soil moisture in apple orchards.

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Description

For this purpose, LoRaWAN tensiometers are devices for measuring the soil moisture. A tensiometer consists of a vacuum gauge connected by a tube to a porous ceramic tip. The tube is filled with water. The ceramic tip is permeable, and the water in the tube saturates it. The tip is placed in contact with the soil in the root zone. Because the soil is normally not saturated, water is drawn from the tip into the soil. As water moves from the tube into the soil, a partial vacuum is created and measured by the gauge. This measurement is not a direct measurement of soil water content. Rather, it is a measurement of soil water tension (also called soil moisture tension). The level of pressure (tension) in the vacuum is an indication of the amount of energy needed by a plant to counter the strength with which the soil holds moisture and extract water from the soil. We installed in different fields for every measure point two tensiometers with different depths (30 cm and 60 cm). In this way we are able to measure the effect of water/soil moisture at different depths in the soil. Through the LoRa network we receive the soil moisture data from the sensors distributed in the field. Moreover, with the LoRAWAN valve, we are able to control water irrigation based on soil moisture data from tensiometers processed by AI algorithms. With this data and their elaboration, we are able to save water and make the irrigation process more efficient.

What could be offered through this facility?

- LoRAWAN gateway
- LORAWAN tensiometers
- LORAWAN capacitive probe
- LoRAWAN flow meters
- LoRaWAN valve
Type of facility
Sector
Clusters being served