摘要
The spraying of plant protection product(PPP)in orchards is a very hazardous working procedure,owing to the spray drift caused by the uneven operation of conventional axial boom sprayers.This research describes an intelligent automated system for precise(PPP)distribution in real-time.It is based on an intelligent decision-making model using ultrasonic measurements of leaf area density under laboratory conditions,which serve to trigger electromagnetic valves(EMV)on the axial boom sprayer.A fuzzy logic algorithm was an integrated part of the intelligent system for controlling the PPP by generating the pulse width modulation signal and applying it through the EMV of the prototype boom sprayer.The results showed that by using an intelligent decision-making model,the same efficiency as with conventional methods could be achieved,but with reduced usage of plant protection products.Thus,the intelligent automated system used 4.8 times less spray mixture than the conventional one.
基金
This article was partly created as a result of the applied EUREKA project(No.3211-10-000040).
作者简介
Corresponding author:Peter Berk,PhD,Senior Lecturer,research interests:precision agriculture,measurement systems for tree canopy reconstruction,intelligent control systems for spray mixture flow rate control in orchards.Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences,University of Maribor,Slovenia.Tel:+38623209055,Fax:+38626161158,Email:peter.berk@um.si;A.Belšak,PhD,Assistant Professor,research interests:mechanical engineering,mechanical construction and design,Email:ales.belsak@um.si;D.Stajnko,PhD,Full Professor,research interests:prediction of apple crops,irrigation systems,Email:denis.stajnko@um.si;M.Lakota,PhD,Associate Professor,research interests:precision agriculture,Email:miran.lakota@um.si;N.Muškinja,PhD,Assistant Professor,research interests:automation,control and intelligent systems,Email:nenad.muskinja@um.si;M.Hočevar,PhD,Full Professor,research interests:intelligent sensing and manipulation,energy machines and devices,Email:marko.hocevar@fs.uni-lj.si;J.Rakun,PhD,Assistant Professor,research interests:computer science and informatics,precision agriculture,Email:jurij.rakun@um.si。
