Coimbatore: The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) has come up with innovative research to aid farmers in monitoring fields and spraying pesticides.
Coimbatore: The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) has come up with innovative research to aid farmers in monitoring fields and spraying pesticides.
"Research efforts of TNAU on Drone Technology for spraying will help Tamil Nadu farmers in timely and effective input management under labour shortages," says Dr. N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor of TNAU during the demonstration of 'Drone Spraying' in the paddy fields of the University's farm.
The Department of Remote Sensing and GIS under the Directorate of Natural Resource Management is supporting the TN State Government by providing spatial information on crops, soil and disasters, using satellites and drones. TNAU has precisely assessed the damage caused by the GAJA cyclone to coconut plantations last year using these technological innovations.
In general, drones are of the fixed-wing or copter types. TNAU's fixed-wing or plane type drone can fly up to a range of 16 km and a height of one km, whereas the quadcopter is used for monitoring research fields and assessing damages by pest and diseases, and nutrient deficiencies. The hexacopter and octa-copter with the potential to carry a payload of 5 to 50 kg are used for spraying purposes. Drone spraying can be used for spraying pesticides, herbicides and nutrient solutions, with options for effective spraying over crops and plantations.
The technology is labour-saving with quick coverage of one hectare in five minutes using lesser quantities of water, providing scope to be utilized in drylands and also rice fallow conditions. The current focus of the TNAU research is on standardizing spray volume per hectare, the concentration of spray fluid, droplet size, spread and efficacy of drone spraying. The TNAU scientists will also work on optimizing drone speed, the height of flying and delivery mechanism in collaboration with the Centre for Aerospace Research, MIT campus, Chennai.
The demonstration was inaugurated by TNAU's Vice-Chancellor, Dr. N Kumar. The Director of Research, Dr. K S Subramaniam explained the highlights and focus of research on drone spraying. Director, Dr. R Santhi reiterated that the Directorate of Natural Resource Management will concentrate on nutrient spraying in the micronutrient deficit areas of Tamil Nadu. The scientific team from TNAU Remote Sensing and MIT, Chennai led by Dr. S. Pazhanivelan, Professor and Head, Department of Remote Sensing and GIS demonstrated the drone spraying using hexacopter with a payload of 10 litres. Scientists and TNAU students participated in the demonstration held.
"Research efforts of TNAU on Drone Technology for spraying will help Tamil Nadu farmers in timely and effective input management under labour shortages," says Dr. N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor of TNAU during the demonstration of 'Drone Spraying' in the paddy fields of the University's farm.
The Department of Remote Sensing and GIS under the Directorate of Natural Resource Management is supporting the TN State Government by providing spatial information on crops, soil and disasters, using satellites and drones. TNAU has precisely assessed the damage caused by the GAJA cyclone to coconut plantations last year using these technological innovations.
In general, drones are of the fixed-wing or copter types. TNAU's fixed-wing or plane type drone can fly up to a range of 16 km and a height of one km, whereas the quadcopter is used for monitoring research fields and assessing damages by pest and diseases, and nutrient deficiencies. The hexacopter and octa-copter with the potential to carry a payload of 5 to 50 kg are used for spraying purposes. Drone spraying can be used for spraying pesticides, herbicides and nutrient solutions, with options for effective spraying over crops and plantations.
The technology is labour-saving with quick coverage of one hectare in five minutes using lesser quantities of water, providing scope to be utilized in drylands and also rice fallow conditions. The current focus of the TNAU research is on standardizing spray volume per hectare, the concentration of spray fluid, droplet size, spread and efficacy of drone spraying. The TNAU scientists will also work on optimizing drone speed, the height of flying and delivery mechanism in collaboration with the Centre for Aerospace Research, MIT campus, Chennai.
The demonstration was inaugurated by TNAU's Vice-Chancellor, Dr. N Kumar. The Director of Research, Dr. K S Subramaniam explained the highlights and focus of research on drone spraying. Director, Dr. R Santhi reiterated that the Directorate of Natural Resource Management will concentrate on nutrient spraying in the micronutrient deficit areas of Tamil Nadu. The scientific team from TNAU Remote Sensing and MIT, Chennai led by Dr. S. Pazhanivelan, Professor and Head, Department of Remote Sensing and GIS demonstrated the drone spraying using hexacopter with a payload of 10 litres. Scientists and TNAU students participated in the demonstration held.