Drone Technology in Agritech: Current & The Future

Drones have evolved spectacularly in since its inception two years ago. Drones were historically used for military applications mainly for surveillance and later evolved into carrying out offensive manoeuvres on dangerous terrain. The evolution of drone technology was evolving so fast in the current time period that it expanded to find its applications in the non- military side as well, such as recreational photography, geographical exploration and lately e-commerce companies are experimenting with their use in parcel delivery. It has even found its application in an unlikely place, the agricultural sector.

Agriculture and Technology

Agriculture is predominantly for human sustenance, such that it is one of the oldest professions humankind has ever known. In the past few decades, radical developments were witnessed in agricultural technology which improved the quality and yield of a lot of crops, if not for logistical issues it can be said there is more than enough food to feed every stomach on the planet, but the overlooked issue is population is never stagnant, it keeps on increasing by substantial amounts every year, and meeting the demand is getting harder and harder, with rising real estate costs and urbanization taking over fertile lands, it’s harder in the traditional sense to grow more crops, and each crop for optimal growth has its own physical conditions, and the challenges are endless. But now with recent trends in agricultural technology or as it is technically named agritech, have made tremendous strides in repurposing a lot of technologies into agriculture, and one of them is the drone.

How it assists in the Faming Procedure

Drones with every passing day are becoming a commonplace occurrence, we see new peripherals designed for them all the time. Drones are programmed to survey and analyze the condition of the plants, manually checking each plant’s health is a tedious process and is susceptible to negligence by human inspection. The Spread of contagious diseases among plants is an easy thing, drones are the apt choice for this operation, their maneuverability and free movement allows them to have a bird’s eye view of the field and scan for every parameter possible and giving information for timely neutralization of threats. Pesticide application is also a simple process, sprinkler-equipped drones are seen doing these activities most of the time, and their programmable nature allows them to sprinkle them at required intervals, a good drone is capable of doing the work of a lot of human hands.

Soil analysis is the most tedious process of all, especially by visual inspection, soil inspection has its own share of levels of tasks. Soil experts must be employed, and they must send the soil samples to the appropriate laboratories, given the range of testing that might be required, the output may arrive really late, leading to loss of valuable farming time. Real time data is impossible by those methods, drones are also equipped for soil analysis in real time providing valuable information to the user. Drone tech is again, with aerial surveillance and proper equipment can transmit data real time, eliminating various levels of testing and give real time output.

The Future

Drones have limitless potential in horticulture, experts are collaborating with farmers and tech specialists to develop new technologies, artificial pollination of plants by drones are in testing, given the rapid decline of bee population, the success of this research will be a godsend. Canadian scientists have developed a drone which can shoot seeds into the ground via an air pressure cannon to aid in afforestation efforts, given the rate at which we are losing forests is literally groundbreaking, this technology is soon to be operational and can plant 100,000 trees a day. This is the best time for investors to pitch in and pour capital and get lucrative returns while simultaneously aiding in technological development

End notes

Technology has advanced at such a rapid pace, it is a common sight for totally unrelated sectors to come together and develop. Drones and agriculture at face value can be easily dismissed as unrelated parties, but drones have evolved as a valuable tool to the farmlands. Development is a must, stagnation is tantamount to risk. These developments no matter how miniscule will aid in increasing the production of food aiding in the continuation of humanity.