A group of researchers and engineers from the Universidad Privada del Norte (UPN) developed a robotic device - shaped like a ladybug - equipped with sensors and cameras to study up to nine parameters of the land in which food is planted and harvested, stated Deivid Yabar Gamarra, one of the inventors of the device.
The Boli robot can measure moisture, pH, and salinity levels, among other parameters. It is also able to collect data on the number of heavy metals present at the planting site. All this information is translated into a dynamic map, which farmers can access via their mobile phones and can read without the need for specialists to translate the data.
Boli was initially designed to be used in avocado crops, specifically of the Hass variety but it can be used for any type of plantation. One of the objectives of the project is to offer the information collected in a simple way to farmers so that their products can reach the best quality standards to be exported to various markets.
"Producers need to map their plantations if they want them to be healthy, but they don-t have the means to do so," stated Kelly Ivanna Curasi Anchayhua, a graduate student of the UPN. “In the past, 600 to 700 liters of water per kilo of avocado were needed. Now, with the drip system, only 300 to 400 liters are required per kg of avocado. Despite this, there are places that are watered too much, the pH of the soil drops and becomes very acidic... The robot also allows producers to know which areas need more fertilizers so they don't squander them where they're not needed, thus generating savings."
The robot uses cameras and sensors, and moves by land autonomously, without the need for an operator. It must only be programmed to know how often to stop to take soil samples (by meters).
KIWIE Technology Fair 2022
This invention was awarded a gold medal at the KIWIE 2022 fair, which took place from August 25 to 27, 2022. A patent application for the device has already been filed with Indecopi.
Source: andina.pe