I-Corps: Wis-Irr: Smart Irrigation via Wireless Underground Sensors

该项目将利用新颖的地下通信技术，利用无线地下土壤传感器，将智能灌溉管理解决方案商业化，发展客户群，并验证商业假设。该团队基于经验和理论地下通信模型开发了一个地下通信系统。该系统减轻了土壤对无线通信的不利影响。采用新颖的地下天线设计和软件工具，在不同土壤湿度条件下保持较高的通信成功率。由此产生的技术可容纳从地下传感器到中心枢轴灌溉系统长达85米的通信范围。2009-2011年夏季，内布拉斯加大学林肯分校中南农业实验室在玉米田进行了实地评估。该系统为中心支点灌溉系统提供实时土壤信息。通过无线地下传感器提供的实时土壤信息，该项目有可能促进更有效的灌溉管理技术。因此，农民可以在不需要阻碍田间作业的工具的情况下做出更明智的灌溉应用（时机）决定，从而显著降低成本。该团队针对三个主要客户群：内布拉斯加州的农民将是早期采用和改造的初始目标客户群。此外，四家主要中心支点灌溉公司中有三家位于内布拉斯加州，占据了75%的市场份额。在项目结束时，将展示一个可操作的无线地下传感器辅助中心枢纽灌溉系统和一个可行的商业模式。因此，在农业中利用实时土壤信息可以提高作物生产中的用水效率。

This project will exploit novel underground communication techniques to utilize wireless underground soil sensors, commercialize smart irrigation management solutions, develop a customer base, and validate business hypotheses. The team has developed an underground communication system based on empirical and theoretical underground communication models. This system mitigates the adverse effects of soil on wireless communication. A novel underground antenna design and software tools are employed to maintain a high communication success under varying soil moisture conditions. The resulting technology accommodates communication ranges of up to 85m from an underground sensor to a center pivot irrigation system. During the summers of 2009-2011, field evaluations were conducted in corn fields at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln South Central Agriculture Lab. The developed system provided real-time soil information to center pivot irrigation systems. The project has the potential to facilitate more efficient irrigation management technologies through real-time soil information provided by wireless underground sensors. Accordingly, farmers can make better informed irrigation application (timing) decisions without the need for tools that obstruct field operations, thereby significantly reducing costs. The team targets three main customer bases: Nebraska farmers will be the initial target customer base for early adoptions and retro-fit. In addition, three of the four major center pivot irrigation companies are based in Nebraska and hold the 75% of the market. At the end of the project, an operational, wireless underground sensor-aided center pivot irrigation system and a viable business model will be demonstrated. Accordingly, water efficiency in crop production can be improved by utilizing real-time soil information in agriculture.