MOISTURE MANAGEMENT ▶▶▶
transfer that no longer goes via the 3G and 4G mobile phone networks. Another price decreasing effect comes from using (small) batteries instead of solar panels and bigger batteries on in-field systems. This is possible because of the fact that LPWAN net- works do not send data continuously but in in- tervals, mostly once every hour. And thus bat- tery life time of these soil moisture sensor systems usually exceeds five years (by far).
Few technology specialists When it comes to (soil) moisture sensor tech- nology, there’s a limited number of specialists that sell and market their solutions through different channels and OEM-suppliers. Dutch Ag Tech company AppsforAgri is using Senso- terra hardware whereas Sensoterra again sources its technology from Semtech. Senso- terra basically sells its technology worldwide through its distributors, but also sells directly to growers who want more than 50 soil moisture sensors at once. There is a certain noticeable trend the major full line suppliers adopt third party (high tech) technology without hiding its origin and brands. AppsforAgri for instance has alliances with CNH Industrial and machine manufactur- er Lemken to provide them with their SoilMate
GeoBas
Technology: Pessl Instruments. Type: Pro. Comm.: 3G/LPWAN. Measuring depth(s) (cm): unlim- ited. Measurement(s): soil mois- ture (%), temperature and tension. Transm. int. (min): 60. Dutch list price (excl. VAT): € 1.200 (LoRa from € 400). Monthly costs: none.
www.vantage-agrometius.nl.
www.pesslinstruments.com
soil moisture sensors, accompanying smart- phone app and application advisory. In two years’ time, AppsforAgri is said to have sold 400 to 500 SoilMate sensors in the Netherlands (at € 189 each). Dutch Beacon Fields has been on the global market since 2018 with LPWAN soil moisture sensors whereas fellow Dutch specialist Dacom has a long history of soil moisture sensor systems. Trimble and Veris distributor Vantage Agrome- tius is marketing Austrian Pessl Instruments technology under its GeoBas brand. John Deere has also shifted from its Field Connect system to Pessl which means the Deere soil moisture sensor now is connected to Pessl’s gateway. RMA supplies Adcon Telemetry tech- nology. About half of the suppliers charges monthly subscription costs for the necessary smartphone app and cloud data storage. Half of the mentioned soil moisture sensors also measure soil temperature (at various depths). The soil moisture content mostly is ex- pressed as a percentage and sometimes in mm as well. Suppliers indicate that most growers also buy an additional rain gauge and that if there’s a need for monitoring diseases and for advise on the correct timing for spraying, growers tend to buy a complete weather
John Deere
Technology: Pessl Instruments. Type: Soil Moisture Probe. Communication: 3G/LPWAN. Measuring depth(s) (cm): 50/ 100/150. Measurement(s): soil moisture (%). Transmitting interval (min): 60. Dutch list price (excl. VAT): € 1.275. Monthly costs: none.
www.deere. nl.
www.pesslinstruments.com
Dacom
Technology: Dacom. Type: TerraSen Pro. Communication: 2G/3G. Measuring depth(s) (cm): 50. Measurement(s): soil moisture (mm) and temperature. Transmitting interval (min): 60. Dutch list price (excl. VAT): € 2.295. Monthly costs: from € 20.83.
www.dacom.nl
station in combination with soil moisture sen- sors. There’s a tendency for growers to use soil scan maps with EC (Electric Conductivity) in- formation to determine the correct positioning of the moisture sensors.
RMA/Adcon
Technology: Adcon Telemetry. Type: RmaSoil 30/60. Communi- cation: LPWAN. Measuring depth(s) (cm): 30/60. Measure- ment(s): soil moisture (%) and temperature. Transmitting inter- val (min): 60. Dutch list price (excl. VAT): € 750/€ 850. Monthly costs: € 20.83. www.rmacompany. nl.
www.adcon.com
34
▶ FUTURE FARMING | 24 May 2019
PHOTO: AGROMETIUS
PHOTO: JOHN DEERE
PHOTO: RMA
PHOTO: DACOM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52
