IoT now helping make smart wine?
Read Write, April 4, 2016. Image credit: JESHOOTS
The Internet of Things (IoT) is transforming the agricultural industry through facilitating high precision crop control, useful data collection and automated farming, with an emphasis on water management, waste reduction and cost effectiveness. Today farms can leverage IoT to remotely monitor soil moisture, crop growth, smart connected harvesters and irrigation equipment. Then farmers can analyze operational data combined with 3rd party information, such as weather services, to provide new insights and improve decision making.
TracoVino
An interesting area where this is occurring is in the business of winemaking. German company MyOmega has created the solar powered IoT device TracoVino, with incorporates an MYNXG controller and corresponding app to support winemakers to improve the quality of their wines, optimize workflows and to monitor vineyards remotely.
Data is collected via solar powered sensor platforms installed in the vineyard which record the temperature, air and soil humidity levels, sunlight and light intensity. Extra sensors can be installed at any time to measure leaf wetness, soil pH values and nutrient levels. The sensors collected data which they send to the controller. Winemakers are then able to access the data on their smartphones at any time. Winemakers are able to access forecasts for the condition of the vineyard, potential pest infestation or the expected quality and quantity of the wine at any time, and take suitable action. The devices are currently being trialled at a four Bavarian vineyards.
OnFarm
OnFarm is part of a suite of IoT technology platforms aimed at the farming industry. OnFarm’s software integrates nearly any type of data from any provider; from real-time soil moisture data to weather data, to image data. Users gain insight and guidance that enables their farming organization to make better more informed decisions resulting in immediate impact on farm inputs such as water, energy, and labor while increasing profitability. OnFarm allows farmers to have one solution to monitor, plan, and to make decisions reducing the friction of adopting and maximizing technology.