#	Pagina
attuale pagina	/open-h2020/projects/216117/results.html

Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - AFarCloud (Aggregate Farming in the Cloud)

Teaser

Summary

\"On sensor systems
Collecting and aggregating sensor data can be considered to be an important part of a connected society, and the \"\"internet of everything\"\". Using sensor technology to support daily operations and decision making in agriculture,
is essential today for the success of a farmer in a time where labor cost and the need for rationalisation is on the rise while regulatory constraints set by the authorities increases complexity as well as the resources required to comply.
Outside of the 3G/4G/5G cell coverage area, the ability to gather and process richer datasets has been hampered as long-range networks are either profiled for point-to-point operations (radio links), very low bandwidth (LoRa, Sigfox) or very costly (Iridium, satellite). Running a sensor over long periods of time, over a large area using only a single cell battery, is now a viable possibility for any user once data has been collected and an AI model is trained on the dataset and instantiated for use in livestock production or for the cropping farmer. Demonstrators include the use of technologies for positioning (GPS, LoRa Time of Flight) and movement (accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer).

Within the aFarCloud project, platforms consisting of small footprint devices with on-board computational capabilities are being developed. Once finalised it will add another option for the farmer, by combining edge computing with standard long-range, low bandwidth networking by not sending raw sensor data over the network, but rather the result of the analysis of a time series of data. This allows inexpensive infrastructure to become the vehicle for realtime and near realtime dataflows, whereas the traditional means of e.g. advanced positioning and route calculation required physical access to devices, or continuous access to 3G/4G networking which isn\'t always the case.

For the agricultural industry, and society as a whole, being able to be connected has many advantages. Getting correct and relevant data in real time, alongside complimentary information from other sources, makes a big difference in the daily life of a diary or crop farmer. Being able to sow, reap and sustain crops with use of less water, fertiliser and pesticides will both make farming both more economically and environmentally sustainable and also the ability to create more yield from less working hours when spent doing the right thing at the right time.\"

Work performed

* WP1: Project Management: this WP has focused on organizing periodic meetings (KoM, TcMs and GA), supervising the quality and schedule of deliverables (continuous reporting), establishing the risk and quality management plan for the project lifecycle, establishing the project guidelines, monitoring risks in the project, and taking care of all the financials among other activities.

* WP2: System Requirements, Architecture & Specification, and Implementation: Definition and characterization of the user and system requirements of the AFarCloud platform. Specification of the first version of the AFarCloud global architecture. Design and implementation of networking architectures able to integrate heterogeneous technologies (short-range and long-range). Definition of a common data model for AFarCloud. Design and development of the AFarCloud Semantic Middleware components needed for Y1 demos

* WP3: First version of the MMT and integration with hierarchical planning, first set of DSS components & System configuration module. MMT & first set of Middleware components integration. Different Mobile MMT solutions. Creation of the Hierarchical planning framework (High & Low level planning algorithms). First version of the DSS framework.

* WP4: Environment characterization platform: First versions of algorithms/codes for data pre-processing, data fusion, and environment characterization. First versions of prototype of cloud monitoring and environment impact calculations. Analysis, selection and preliminary use of data analysis techniques and knowledge extraction tools for livestock health and crop quality assessments.

* WP5 Sensors and Actuators development: Selection of sensors, actuators and communications (LAN or wireless) to be developed in the project according to the 11 specific scenarios. Building sensors systems: sensors/actuators, detection electronics, interface electronics, communication units, signal pre-processing, packaging for field applications. Adaptation of devices to Afarcloud data format and pre-processing. Integration of devices into UAVs/ UGVs (WP6). Installations of sensors & actuators in ALL scenarios.

* WP6: Autonomous System Development and Legacy System Integration: First version of a framework for self and environmental perception. A specification for a generic UAV for agriculture and a first version of a positioning and mapping system design. Development of methodologies for efficient design of systems and operations regarding livestock management and cropping operations.

* WP7: Demonstrators definition, integration, verification and validation: Definition of the project\'s general strategy and methodology for demonstration, integration and evaluation of the AFarCloud platform. Definition of high-level functionalities to be demonstrated during the lifecycle of the project. Integration of AFarCloud components into the platform. Coordination of integration and deployment activities in the 11 application scenarios.

* WP8: Innovation Management, Dissemination, Exploitation and Standardization: Website and Social Media channels. Internal guideline for partners were distributed to maximize the impact of AFarCloud. Open Access policy was implemented, utilizing ZENODO and OpenAIRE repositories. Exploitation, communication and standardization related activities were planned and executed.