IoT-Based Real-Time Farm Management System for Smart Agriculture

There is an increasing global demand for food while the resources available are reducing day by day. Adopting proper management technology for agriculture helps in efficient utilization of human resource and time. Internet of Things (IoT) uses sensors to collect data, communication to transfer, edge devices or cloud to store, computers to analyze, smart devices to monitor, and actuators to implement. IoT has enabled farmers to automate many of the farm activities. Besides that, farmers can access and analyze farm data in real time resulting in advanced prediction of disease, pests, weather, and yield. The inputs like water, fertilizer, pesticides, weedicides, insecticides, fungicides, and seed can be optimized using gathered soil, crop, and environmental data. Thus, applying site-specific management helps in reducing input cost and environmental hazards. Autonomous agricultural vehicles also apply IoT to share data. Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques are often used for finding meaningful insights from collected data. IoT is utilized to maintain optimal soil moisture, lighting conditions, CO2 concentration, humidity, temperature, and pH for maximizing crop growth under greenhouse like advanced agricultural structures. This chapter discusses the concept of smart agriculture, major sensors, and technologies used in IoT-based agricultural practices. Furthermore, data communication, storage and application of IoT and AI in agriculture have been discussed in detail.