Agriculture

Tech disruption? More like révolution! Tests currently underway using mildew-battling agents seek legal changes allowing drones to spray wine-producing grapes in France’s cherished vineyards.

A leading Kenyan non-governmental organization has teamed up with a group that uses drone and robotics for public benefit in a reforestation effort to turn back one region’s steady environmental decline. Their goal: prepare and plant indigenous trees that have vanished across 2,250 acres of decimated countryside.

A Swiss research group has developed a drone-carried sensor that can detect the water content of terrain below, and are offering it as a cheaper and more accurate measurement supplement to existing technology like satellite imagery. Its creators say the device can optimize a variety of terrain management decisions in a world where drought and fires are becoming a major, recurring problem.

Drones are increasingly flying faster, farther, and for longer periods of time while performing a broader array of tasks. Now they are poised to take on a tiny problem that often leads to enormous damage: plant-destroying inspects.

Tech innovator and startup founder Patrick Maletz thinks he has found a way to dramatically extend drone flights. Rather than trying to withstand winds with that craft often battle, his drones use the power of those gusts to stay aloft.

Everyone loves animals – especially the younger critters. But a Belgian nonprofit association may be taking the term “drones for good” to a new level by flying missions to prevent deer fawns from being hacked into bits.

Drones have earned richly deserved plaudits for accomplishing a wide variety of difficult, even crucial human tasks using their onboard tech. Now they’re winning praise for rendering the champion of utter drudgery obsolete: ridding land of weeds.

A modified drone design is about to make the hard, dangerous work of harvesting coconuts a whole lot easier. At least for those who actually pick the delicious one-seeded drupes for a living.

It may look harmless, or even peaceful, at first. But Sosnowsky’s hogweed is a demon in disguise. So now, drones are being called on to solve one of the most complex detection problems faced by agriculturists in Russia.

Canada-based agritech startup Precision AI has raised seed funding of $20 million to help the agriculture industry reduce its chemical footprint. Its solution? Deploying swarms of artificially intelligent drones to bring down the use of herbicides in agriculture dramatically.

A very newcomer in the world of agriculture drones, Guardian Agriculture has launched with $10.5 million in funding from some of the world’s largest agribusiness leaders. The company officially announced its launch yesterday and plans to bring digital farming to the United States with US-built drones.

The NAAA (National Agricultural Aviation Association) asks that all drone pilots be extra mindful of low-flying agricultural aircraft as the industry continues to struggle on the back of the pandemic, making any delay a much bigger issue than it would have been pre-pandemic.

Agriculture spraying drones in the UK are currently being held back by outdated rules and regulations. As a result of this, investment into the sector is also severely limited, holding back advancements and major benefits.

Israeli-based company Tevel Technologies uses AI-driven drones to pick fruit from trees as the pandemic is shutting down farms worldwide and leaving the fruit to rot. The drones are allowing farmers to speed up the picking process and ensure all ripe fruit is picked.

Delta Drone International has announced it will be moving into Zambia with Syngenta to provide agriculture data via drones. The company’s subsidiary Rocketfarm will work closely with Syngenta to battle the unique weather systems and challenges in the area.

Agrowing has collaborated with VetorGEO to allow drones to detect citrus trees infected with HLB or citrus greening disease. The drones can detect symptoms of the disease from above by using a multispectral sensor.

Australian farmers located across New South Wales (NSW) will now access a one-day drone training course taken from their farms. The drone training course looks to familiarize farmers with the new high-tech helpers in hopes that they will begin using drones for more tasks.

Agriculture drone and robot manufacturer XAG has announced its latest drone, the V40 2021, with a brand-new modular design. The drone replaces the usual quadcopter design with two rotors that keep the drone stable and force the payload to be applied to the fields below.

Drones and artificial intelligence (AI) are now being used to measure soybeans’ maturity in less time while doing so accurately. Current methods require people to spend hours in the sun every day to check the soybeans. The drones have cut the time down to just two days without the need for anyone on the ground.

Agriculture students attending Hutchinson Community College (HCC) in Kansas, are now learning to fly drones and receive their FAA drone licenses to get prepared for a future of drones in the industry. Students have already been enjoying the class so much that they plan on implementing drones on their families’ farms.

XAG drones will be helping Aussie farmers to reduce chemical and water usage after a tough three farming seasons hit by bushfires, droughts, and COVID. The drones will be used to map hard to reach locations and drop seeds to restore empty fields.