PHOTO: MATT MCINTOSH
Steve Laevens of Veritas Farm Management (right) reviews corn population counts with a client during a field visit in Southwestern Ontario.
Machine learning critical Machine learning and AI are critical to identify- ing stand count, says Steve Laevens, UAV oper- ator and sampling coordinator with Veritas. “We fly the drone and tell it ‘that’s a corn plant.’ It keeps going, sees something else green, and asks ‘is this a corn plant?’ We say no. It keeps going and asks [again] and we say yes. Do that enough times and it learns”, says Laevens. “That becomes machine learning as the data grows.” The same principal applies to other ag- ronomic measurements as well, from identify- ing manganese deficiency and weed pressure to finding rocks, trash, or other obstructions that could damage equipment. Lamothe expresses a similar sentiment, saying intelligent machines that can make the deci- sions on their own, regardless of what the deci- sion is about, is the next step for actionable drone technology. He adds the objectivity of drone data is highly valuable to agronomic re- search. “Drone data doesn’t lie” according to Lamothe. “It’s because you have a pretty strong layer of static data that you can review. It’s a snapshot in history. That’s where the high reso- lution and frequency of collection matters.”
Important tool, not exclusive Wilson says drone technology, like any system,
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needs to be feasible for the farmer to pur- chase. At around $ 2.00 to $ 3.00 (Cdn, = US$ 1.50 to 2.25 or € 1.35 to 2.05) per acre for the flight service and another $ 2.00 to $ 3.00 for basic analysis, both Wilson and Laevens say drone services are competitively priced. As machine learning capabilities increase, too, the price for more complex analysis should contin- ue to drop. “Soil sampling for variable rate ap- plication can be very cost prohibitive when trying to get to a lower scale, when trying to get really minute info”, Wilson compares. Still, he reiterates drone tech, as the technology currently stands, is just one of many strategic tools. “I’m a firm believer in soil sampling. Is
still very valuable right now. I think it would be nice to do everything from the air, but I still think a collaborative approach holds value. That includes soil sampling and getting in the field with an agronomist.” Lamothe adds the use of drone technology is still comparatively new to many farmers, and that widespread adoption of new technologies takes a while to pick up. “That adoption curve for a product that everyone uses now is an ex- ample of where every new technology in the marketplace wants to be,” says Lamothe. “It’s got to be so simple to use and cost effective that everyone wants to use it every year. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
Veritas uses small drones to make min- ute in-field calcula- tions about crop populations and other agronomic factors.
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