Detection of Ecballium elaterium in hedgerow olive orchards using a low-cost uncrewed aerial vehicle and open-source algorithms

BACKGROUND

Ecballium elaterium (common name: squirting cucumber) is an emerging weed problem in hedgerow or superintensive olive groves under no tillage. It colonizes the inter-row area infesting the natural or sown cover crops, and is considered a hard-to-control weed. Research in other woody crops has shown E. elaterium has a patchy distribution, which makes this weed susceptible to design a site-specific control strategy only addressed to E. elaterium patches. Therefore, the aim of this work was to develop a methodology based on the analysis of imagery acquired with an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) to detect and map E. elaterium infestations in hedgerow olive orchards.

RESULTS

The study was conducted in two superintensive olive orchards, and the images were taken using a UAV equipped with an RGB sensor. Flights were conducted on two dates: in May, when there were various weeds infesting the orchard, and in September, when E. elaterium was the only infesting weed. UAV-orthomosaics in the first scenario were classified using random forest models, and the orthomosaics from September with E. elaterium as the only weed, were analyzed using an unsupervised algorithm. In both cases, the overall accuracies were over 0.85, and the producer's accuracies for E. elaterium ranged between 0.74 and 1.00.

CONCLUSION

These results allow the design of a site-specific and efficient herbicide control protocol which would represent a step forward in sustainable weed management. The development of these algorithms in free and open-source software fosters their application in small and medium farms. © 2022 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.     

Challenges and opportunities of unmanned aerial vehicles as a new tool for crop pest control

The application of pesticides is not simply delivering chemicals to the target area. It also involves considering the negative aspects and developing strategies to deal with them during the application process, to ensure the maximization of pesticides use efficiency and the maintenance of the ecosystem. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sprayers demonstrate unique advantages compared to traditional ground sprayers, particularly in terms of maneuverability and labor intensity reduction, showed great potential for chemical application in pest control. It is undeniable that there exist challenges in the practice of UAV spraying, such as higher potential risks of pesticide drift or pathogen transmission, uncertainty canopy deposition for different crops, and unexpected leaf breakage induced by downwash flow. Maximizing the utilization of downwash flow while avoiding lateral air movement outside the intended target crop area is a major issue for chemical application with UAV sprayers, particularly in light of the increasingly apparent consensus on the need for enhanced environmental protection during the chemical application process. It must be considered that the operation strategy in different scenarios and for different crop targets is not the same, unique requirements should be given on nozzle atomization, flight parameters, adjuvants and aircraft types in specific working situations. In future, the implementation of spray drift prediction, technical procedures development, and other solutions aimed at reducing pesticide drift and improving deposition quality, is expected to promote the adoption of UAV sprayers by more farmers. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.     

基于土地利用/覆盖的甘肃省景观生态风险时空变化特征

甘肃省景观类型丰富多样,在中国西部地区的生态安全中起关键性作用,也为当地发展提供着重要的物质基础和生态服务。由于气候变化和人类不合理活动的影响,甘肃省部分地区生态环境的安全与稳定遭到严峻挑战。本研究基于欧洲航空局全球土地利用/覆盖数据（CCI-LC）,利用动态度、转移矩阵方法分析了2005-2019年甘肃省土地利用/覆盖变化特征;通过构建景观生态风险指数并运用空间自相关分析法分析了景观生态风险的空间分布特征。结果显示：1)2005-2019年间,裸地面积减少最多,变化率1.88%,耕地次之,变化率2.31%;草地面积增加最多,变化率1.83%,建设用地次之,变化率191.08%。2）所有土地利用/覆盖类型中,建设用地的动态度最高且在整个研究时期内变化速率都保持在较高水平,综合动态度最大的时期为2010-2019年。3）土地利用/覆盖转移矩阵主要表现为耕地、林地、草地、裸地之间的转入与转出以及其他土地类型向建设用地的转入。4)2019年整体的生态风险值较2005年明显上升。其中低风险区和较低风险区面积最多,转化最频繁;中等风险区、较高风险区和高风险区面积虽然较少,但都存在不同程度的增长。...     

Research on the Realization of Remote Controlling for Multi-output Power Supply of Communication Equipment Based on Ethernet

According to the requirements of communication power supply, such as high reliability, wide application and high availability, the authors raise a new remote control design for a multi-output power supply for communication equipment based on TCPIP protocol and embedded technology. Then the hardware design is given for the system is discussed based on Ethernet professional chip PRTL8019AS and related circuits. The firmware software design for the salve-computer based TCPIP technology, and the soft design of communieation and control for the master-computer are proposed based on Winsoek and MFC technology in detail A test machine is built to do the testing, the test results prove that the test machine works stably and well, satisfies the design rules and also provides a feasible method for the remote supervise in communication power supplier whose requirement includes remote supervise, no-people on duty and so on.     

Engineering Calculation Mode Based on Reformative B/S Architecture

Engineering designed mode has entered a new stage because of the development of network. New calculating system based on network appeared. By analyzing the common B/S architecture, this paper brings forward an reformative architecture based on Web services and ASP. NET in order to build the new mode of engineering calculation. It can fully implement the sharing of the resources and provide the engineering designers a wonderful calculating environment, and the working eifficiency of designers can be enhanced.     

坝上生态农业工程生态效益监测与评价研究

利用遥感技术、地理信息系统和全球定位系统对河北坝上实施生态农业工程建设后的生态效益进行了监测与评价。定量描述了坝上生态环境的动态变化趋势，并对坝上生态农业工程的气候效益、土壤改良效益、农业水文生态效益进行了分析与评价。研究结果表明，通过工程治理，使农业生态系统的功能增强，结构合理，取得了显著的生态效益。     

喷雾机器人远程控制系统的设计与试验研究

结合喷雾机器人作业环境的要求,开发出基于客户端/服务器模式的远程控制平台.该平台实现了通过无线网络实时传输各类数据和控制命令,客户端再现了机器人的工作环境和状态.在此基础上进行了系统性能测试和轨迹测试.试验结果表明:为了保证良好的操控性,机器人所处区域信号强度必须大于30%,操作者根据反馈信息判断机器人是否偏离预定路径,并在偏离时给予有效的纠正,为解决喷雾机器人重喷、漏喷的问题提供了一种方法.     

Monitoring forage production for farmers’ decision making

Objective management of grazing livestock production systems needs monitoring of forage production at the managerial unit level. Our objectives were to develop a system that routinely estimates forage above-ground net primary production (ANPP) at the spatial and temporal resolution required by farmers in the Pampas of Argentina, and to facilitate adoption of the system by end users as a managerial support tool. Our approach was based on the radiation use efficiency (RUE) logic, which proposes that ANPP is determined by the amount of photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by the canopy (APAR), and the efficiency with which that energy is transformed in above-ground dry matter (radiation use efficiency, RUE). APAR is the product of incoming photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) and the fraction absorbed by the canopy (fPAR). We estimated fPAR as a non-linear function of MODIS normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI). RUE was empirically estimated for the two principal forage resources of the region, yielding the following relations: ANPP = 0.6 × APAR + 12, (R² = 0.86; p < 0.001; n = 18) for the upland sown pastures, and ANPP = 0.27 × APAR + 26, (R² = 0.74; p < 0.001; n = 18) for the lowland naturalized pastures, with ANPP in g/m²/60 days and APAR in MJ/m²/60 days. The models were able to predict independent ANPP values with acceptable accuracy. Computational procedures were automated and run in a Relational Data Base Manager System that stored and managed all the information. The system is currently monitoring 212,794 ha in 83 farms and provides monthly ANPP values for the previous month and a history of the last 6 years. The data so generated show ANPP differences between the two major forage resources, considerable variability of a given month’s ANPP among years and paddocks, and contrasting among-farm differences in the efficiency of conversion of ANPP and forage supplements into beef production. The system was well accepted by end users who utilize it mainly for making near real time decisions according to last month ANPP, and explaining results of previous production cycles by incorporating ANPP as an explicative variable. However, there were differences among farmers in the degree of utilization, apparently related to the advisor’s attitude toward this new technology. Our results indicate that (1) forage production of large extensions can be monthly monitored at the paddock level by a small laboratory with capabilities in geographic information systems, and (2) advisors and farmers apply this information to their managerial decisions.     

基于物联网Android平台的远程智能节水灌溉系统

针对农业灌溉中的水资源浪费问题和灌溉远程控制问题,对物联网相关技术进行研究,设计了基于物联网Android平台的农业远程智能节水灌溉系统,实现了对多传感器节点(空气温湿度、光照、土壤湿度、电磁阀、变频器等)远程采集和控制,以及对多个控制器节点的远程监测与控制。系统不受时间地域限制,用户可以通过Android移动终端实现对智能节水灌溉系统的监测和控制。系统采用CC2 5 3 0作为无线传感器芯片、OK6 4 1 0作为控制器节点芯片。实测结果验证了该设计的可行性和有效性,可为远程智能节水灌溉提供平台支持,能够满足农业节水灌溉的需要。     

Remote sensing of biotic and abiotic stress for irrigation management of cotton

The applicability of commercially available remote sensing instrumentation was evaluated for site-specific management of abiotic and biotic stress on cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) grown under a center pivot low energy precision application (LEPA) irrigation system. This study was conducted in a field where three irrigation regimes (100%, 75%, and 50% ET_c) were imposed on areas of Phymatotrichum (root rot) with the specific objectives to (1) examine commercial remote sensing instrumentation for locating areas showing biotic and abiotic stress symptomology in a cotton field, (2) compare data obtained from commercial aerial infrared photography to that collected by infrared transducers (IRTs) mounted on a center pivot, (3) evaluate canopy temperature changes between irrigation regimes and their relationship to lint yield with IRTs and/or IR photography, and (4) explore the use of deficit irrigation and the use of crop coefficients for irrigation scheduling. Pivot-mounted IRTs and an IR camera were able to differentiate water stress among irrigation regimes. The IR camera distinguished between biotic (root rot) and abiotic (drought) stress with the assistance of groundtruthing. The 50% ET_c regime had significantly higher canopy temperatures than the other two regimes, which was reflected in significantly lower lint yields when compared to the 75% and 100% ET_c regimes. Deficit irrigation down to 75% ET_c had no impact on lint yield, indicating that water savings were possible without reducing yield.