Development of Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USV) to Monitor the Quality of Water for Agriculture

Water is one of the key resources in agriculture. It is typically supplied from nearby water sources such as lakes, streams, rivers, and reservoirs. Since crop development and yield are greatly influenced by water quality, it is crucial to regularly monitor surface water quality to spot and manage any possible contamination issues promptly as they manifest. An unmanned surface vehicle (USV) has been developed to continuously check water quality to solve this problem. A catamaran boat hull is used in the design of the USV to increase stability. The USV has a water quality monitoring system that measures and shows real-time parameters including pH, EC, and TDS. Two levels of testing were carried out on the USV's functionality. To imitate the USV's actual application environment, tests were first conducted at a swimming pool and then in a lake. It is demonstrated that the developed USV exhibits a positive outcome, and the prototype can be utilized as a platform for independently monitoring water quality.