Holistic approach to Agriculture 4.0 for new farmers

Abstract

A new research project AGRO4+ is launched offering a holistic approach to an environmentally friendly and highly productive agriculture, combining “precision agriculture” with the Internet of Things (IoT) and data management tools (Agriculture 4.0) for new farmers. The project involves the creation of a research infrastructure with a tangible scientific laboratory infrastructure and digital means to support decision making strategies based on accurate and easily accessible scientific data. It relies on the multidisciplinary approach of the management of agriculture operations through the synergy of various scientific fields. Farmers will have access to both agricultural and location reference data along with data of a legal nature. Autonomous equipment, such as networked sensors, ground/air robotic systems, will provide continuous, online, real-time data in the field and allow immediate actions with minimum human intervention. These data combined with periodic laboratory measurements/analyses create a complete, “intelligent” system of agricultural production based on the management of inputs in a field according to the real needs of cultivation both spatially and temporally. Automated scheduling of required field works, financial monitoring of the production and access to commercial information are used to support the management of the investment.