Drones in agriculture

The main articles are:

• IT in the agro-industrial complex in the world
• Digitalization in the agro-industrial complex of Russia
• UAV
• Robots in agriculture (agricultural robots)

Examples of the use of drones in agriculture

2024

Introduction of a system for automatic recognition of weed plants using drones

The Rusagro Group of Companies has completed the introduction of an automatic weed recognition system using unmanned aerial vehicles. The project worth ₽159 million was implemented jointly with AssistAgro with the support of the Skolkovo Foundation. This became known in November 2024. Read more here

Krasnodar FlySeeAgro has presented an agrodron that creates digital field maps to control crops. VIDEO

On October 10, 2024, the Krasnodar company FlySeeAgro introduced an agrodron capable of creating digital field maps for crop control. In addition, a drone has been announced to protect crops from pests. Read more here

In Russia, the production of S-80 agrodrons began, processing 18 hectares per hour

On October 9, 2024, it became known that the Russian company Transport of the Future organized the production of agricultural drones Hector S-80. The unmanned vehicle allows you to carry out all stages of processing sown areas, and the productivity reaches 18 hectares per hour. Read more here.

Rosagroleasing told how drones help save billions of rubles to agriculture

The use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the agro-industrial complex (agro-industrial complex) is actively developing in Russia, which already allows you to save up to 4% of the crop and significantly reduce the cost of field work. This was announced in August 2024 by the Director General of Rosagroleasing JSC Pavel Kosov at a visiting meeting of the Commission of the State Council of Russia.

Pavel Kosov stressed that unmanned small aircraft is becoming one of the most promising areas for agriculture. Agricultural enterprises are beginning to actively introduce UAVs into their farms, which, according to Kosovo, is still testing, but already allows us to accumulate valuable experience and develop guidelines. The use of drones in agriculture not only simplifies and reduces the cost of field work, but also helps to significantly reduce crop damage, which can be preserved up to 4% thanks to the use of these technologies.

Rosagroleasing reported that drones help save billions in agriculture

UAVs also play an important role in reducing the cost of introducing modern field mapping and monitoring technologies, which contributes to increasing the overall profitability of agricultural enterprises. Rosagroleasing is confident that the prospects for savings from the use of drones are significant, and this direction will actively develop.

Tatyana Antipova, Deputy General Director of Rosagroleasing, spoke about the advantages of introducing UAVs. She noted that drones significantly increase the potential of soils and, in general, increase yields. In 2024, Rosagroleasing, together with the Ministry of Agriculture, included UAVs in the list of equipment and equipment available for purchase under preferential leasing. The first suppliers were accredited, applications were received, and the first transactions have already been agreed, which indicates a high demand for this equipment.^[1]

Sales of agrodron began, which sprays 85 hectare fields per hour

In mid-August 2024, the American company Pyka launched the Pelican Spray agricultural drone. The first customer was Kansas-based firm Heinen Brothers Agra Services, which plans to integrate Pelican Spray into its Southwest operations. The company expects the new technology will help them more effectively meet the growing demand for field processing through massive service automation. Read more here

In Russia, they created and began to use a device for assessing soil from a drone as part of the development of precision agriculture

On July 30, 2024, it became known that a device for assessing the state of the soil using drones was developed and launched into use in Russia. Scientists of the North Caucasus Federal University (SKFU) have created an innovative device that will significantly increase the efficiency of precision farming and the productivity of crops. This was reported in the press service of the university. Read more here

The Ministry of Agriculture buys 300 agricultural drones for training in universities

The Ministry of Agriculture of Russia on June 21, 2024 announced the purchase of 300 agricultural drones for educational institutions. This initiative is aimed at training specialists in the use of unmanned aerial systems (UAVs) in the agro-industrial complex. The purchase is planned from 2024 to 2026.

The Ministry of Agriculture of Russia considers training personnel to work with unmanned aviation systems a priority. In this regard, it is planned to actively introduce agricultural drones into the curricula of universities, which will allow students to gain practical skills in working with advanced technologies.

Ministry of Agriculture acquires 300 agrodrons for use in educational institutions

The statement was made by Roman Nekrasov, Director of the Department of Crop Production, Mechanization, Chemization and Plant Protection of the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia. He stressed that the development of the use of unmanned aircraft systems in agriculture is a priority task of the ministry.

Roman Nekrasov noted that agricultural drones have already shown their effectiveness in processing crops, especially on complex soils and small-seeded crops. For example, in the Krasnodar Territory, the drone fleet increased by 15%, which made it possible to significantly increase the economic efficiency of agricultural production.

We will implement this project together with manufacturers, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and machine testing stations, - said Roman Nekrasov. He also added that training personnel for the use of agrodrons is the number one task. In this regard, the Ministry of Agriculture plans to send most of the purchased drones to educational institutions for teaching students.

According to RBC, the creation of a center for the use of agricultural drones is also part of the strategic tasks of the Ministry of Agriculture for 2024. This center will develop criteria for the effectiveness of the use of unmanned systems in agriculture and the introduction of new technologies.^[2]

Perm Polytech presents PAC UAV to increase crop yield

Perm Polytech introduced PAC UAVs to increase crop yields. The university announced this on June 14, 2024. Read more here.

Sales of a flying ATV for farmers have begun. Video

In June 2024, the American company Ryse Aero Technologies began selling a "flying ATV" for farmers - an electric device called Recon. This aircraft can be used, in particular, for flying fields and monitoring agricultural areas. Read more here.

Agrarians in the Novgorod region will be compensated for up to half the cost of special drones

On May 23, 2024, the government of the Novgorod region announced a new measure of support for agricultural producers in the region. Agrarians can receive a subsidy for reimbursement of expenses for the purchase of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with agricultural work functions.

It is said that the authorities will compensate agro-entrepreneurs for up to half the cost of purchased drones. The corresponding changes were made to the procedures for providing subsidies to agricultural producers of the region for technical and technological modernization. It is emphasized that such a support measure is being introduced for the first time. Drones in agriculture can be used for various purposes. Among them, for example, are called desiccation of potato tops, processing fields from weeds, monitoring supervised self-propelled equipment on the territory of quarries, in the forest and agricultural lands.

The government of the Novgorod region announced a new measure of support for agricultural producers in the region

The Novgorod region is actively helping agricultural producers to introduce new technologies, - said Denis Raev, director of the Center for Support for the Development of the Agro-Industrial Complex of the Novgorod Region.

Earlier it became known that Ministry of Industry and Trade Russia he developed rules for the provision of state subsidies for manufacturers and operators of drones. Various support options are being considered: subsidizing the flight hour, compensation for part of the cost of the purchased drone and preferential leasing. In particular, the possibility of reimbursing up to 50% of the amount spent on the purchase of a Russian drone is being discussed. It is assumed that these measures will help increase the demand for domestic drones and will stimulate the development of the industry UAV in Russia. The strategy for the development of unmanned aircraft, developed on behalf of the president, Vladimir Putin states that by 2030 the volume of the drone market in the Russian Federation will amount to 1 trillion. rubles^[3]

Russian Cognitive Pilot releases technology to control unmanned tractors without GPS and GLONASS

At the end of April 2024, the Russian company Cognitive Pilot announced the creation of a technology for controlling unmanned tractors without GPS and GLONASS. For this development, experts used artificial intelligence algorithms. Read more here.

The Russian agricultural drone "Hector" is presented. It can irrigate 18 hectares of fields in an hour

On April 22, 2024, the Russian company Transport of the Future introduced the Hector agro-industrial drone, with which it is possible to carry out all stages of processing sown areas. In addition, the drone allows you to take photographs of fields for monitoring purposes. Read more here.

A Russian aircraft-type drone with vertical take-off and landing is presented. Video

On April 22, 2024, it became known that an aircraft-type drone with vertical take-off and landing was developed in Russia. This drone has a long range - it is capable of flying up to 300 km. Read more here.

How drones develop in agriculture in Russia: problems, prospects

By the beginning of 2024, the Russian industry of unmanned aircraft systems (ALS) in agriculture faced a number of problems, including a lack of qualified personnel. This is stated in a report published on April 4, 2024.

Drones in agriculture perform the functions of spraying in a robotic mode using plant protection products and organomicrobiological preparations. In addition, ALS is used for fertilizing and seeding.

Drones in agriculture perform the functions of spraying in a robotic mode using plant protection products and organomicrobiological preparations

According to Maxim Chizhov, General Director of the company for the development of drones for agriculture in Russia, Agrimaks.Aero LLC, the main problems of the industry in the Russian Federation are regional restrictions, inconsistencies in regulations and the complication of obtaining an airworthiness certificate for domestic drones. In addition, there is a lack of trained personnel.

We are even faced with the fact that not all federal authorities (federal executive bodies) are able to fulfill what was approved by the government of the Russian Federation. Regulatory deadlines are also not observed, - says Chizhov.

At the same time, the founder and CEO of the company - the developer of the single window system of digital services of the life cycle of unmanned aircraft "Fly Drone" Nikita Danilov believes that these problems can be solved in a working manner within two years (by 2026). At the same time, he stressed that restrictions on drone flights in many regions will remain as long as a special operation continues. Danilov also notes that the shortage of personnel is primarily due to the lack of standard training programs approved by the Federal Educational Institutions, as well as the fact that, in accordance with various regulatory acts, a "bloated" staff of specialists is required to operate ALS.^[4]

2023

The Ministry of Defense banned the use of agricultural drones in the south of Russia

At the end of February 2024, it became known that the Russian Ministry of Defense banned the use of unmanned aerial vehicles for processing farmland in the south of the country. This is due to the established temporary mode of closing the sky.

According to RBC, the issue of the use of agricultural drones was discussed at a meeting in the Ministry of Agriculture with the participation of representatives of the Ministry of Defense, the Federal Air Transport Agency, heads of the agro-industrial complex of Russian regions and operators of aviation equipment. The buried sky zone includes the Krasnodar and Stavropol Territories, Astrakhan, Volgograd, Voronezh, Lipetsk and Tambov Regions. Moreover, almost all of the listed regions (with the exception of the Krasnodar Territory) are participants in the experimental legal regime created to test agricultural drones in the fields.

Russian Defense Ministry bans the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to process farmland in the south of the country

A ban on the use of drones to process farmland in southern Russia could have negative consequences. In particular, the use of agrodrons in sowing rice allows you to reduce seed material by almost half, which makes it possible to reduce the cost of cereals in stores. Without the use of UAVs, the price of the final products on the shelves can begin to rise. In addition, in connection with the ban, those territories that, due to their peculiarities (the presence of power lines, inconvenient location) should be processed using drones are forced to be excluded from the sown areas.

Igor Shivkov, director of certification at Industrial Drones, considers it illogical to ban flights of drones that process fields, since they fly at an altitude of 5-7 m and are outside the combat drone flight zone. The current rules could also hit the business of manufacturers of unmanned vehicles for processing farmland. At the same time, the Ministry of Agriculture does not predict problems with the processing of fields in 2024.^[5]

A robot is presented that provides autonomous harvesting of 98% of the cotton crop from the fields

In mid-February 2024, a smart robotic combine Afara is presented in Turkey, designed to harvest cotton from fields. It is claimed that the machine provides up to 98% efficiency, which almost completely eliminates the need for manual labor. Read more here.

The volume of chemical processing of farmland by drones in Russia decreased by a quarter

The volume of chemical processing of agricultural land from the air in Russia in 2023 decreased by an average of 25-30% compared to 2022. This was reported in the report of the Association of Aviation Workers, published in January 2024.

As Vedomosti writes with reference to this report, the operators of ultralight aircraft in 2023 were unable to perform aviation chemical work (AHR) on 1.5 million hectares of agricultural land. According to the study, at the end of 2023, the operators of ultralight aircraft completed work on 3.63 million hectares of land (confirmed by contracts), of which 2.61 million hectares fell on members of the association. Non-member companies and individual entrepreneurs processed 714,000 hectares.

One of the reasons for the decrease in chemical processing, the association calls the restrictions of the Ministry of Defense on flights in southern Russia, where a large amount of agricultural land is located. Some companies were able to quickly respond to the situation and adjust production processes. The Ministry of Agriculture said that part of the chemical treatments from the air in the border areas was replaced by ground work. For example, in Agroholding "Steppe" they planned in advance all field work using ground equipment, the processing of crops with self-propelled sprayers took place in full and in normal mode. The holding did not lose its harvest and did not suffer financial damage, commented Andrey Neduzhko, General Director of Agroholding.

The Agronomics Telegram channel points to several reasons for the decrease in the area of ​ ​ agricultural land as one of the reasons for the decrease in the area of ​ ​ agricultural land processed from the air, attributed the lack of some chemicals in the Saturn state information system and an increase in the timing of flight approval - from several weeks in 2022 to two or more months in 2023.^[6]

The first robot for picking mushrooms entered the market

In mid-November 2023, the Canadian company 4AG Robotics (formerly TechBrew Robotics) released a specialized robotic system for collecting mushrooms. The machine not only fully automates this time-consuming process, but also significantly increases its efficiency compared to conventional manual harvesting. Read more here.

An experimental legal regime has been introduced in 12 regions of the Russian Federation, allowing the use of agricultural drones

The Government of the Russian Federation signed a decree on the establishment of an experimental legal regime (EPR) in the field of digital innovations in the operation of agricultural pilot aircraft systems. The document was published on the official Internet portal of legal information on September 19, 2023.

According to the document, EPR is established in 12 regions: the Republic of Tatarstan, Altai and Stavropol Territories, Astrakhan, Volgograd, Voronezh, Lipetsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Saratov, Tambov and Ulyanovsk Regions. The validity period of the EPR is three years.

Within the framework of the EPR, conditions will be provided for the implementation of highly automated operations to introduce plant protection products using agricultural unmanned aircraft systems.

In addition, it is planned to: test the means of protection against the illegal use of agricultural unmanned aircraft systems, including cryptographic ones, which have passed the verification procedure in accordance with the Regulation on the development, production, implementation and operation of encryption (cryptographic) information protection means (Regulation PKZ-2005); as well as the use of means of identification (identification) of unmanned aircraft.

The decree established that during the experimental legal regime I will apply:

• Big data technologies for data collection, storage, and processing, including decentralized data;
• technologies in the field of production management;
• robotics and sensors, as well as technologies for processing sensory information, systems for collecting and processing information necessary for the effective functioning of robotic systems, intelligent control systems for robotic systems and control automation systems;
• industry digital technologies aimed at digital transformation of sectors of the economy, including technological transformation of processes involved in the creation of products (services), as well as technologies for interaction with counterparties.

It is assumed that during the experimental legal regime using unmanned aircraft systems, a total of 490 thousand hectares of agricultural land will be processed with the participation of at least 60 drones.^[7]"

Agronomists began using giant robots for $50,000 that control crop growth and spray herbicides

At the end of August 2023, the Brazilian startup Solinftec announced the start of deliveries agricultural of the Solix AG Robotics robotic system, whose tasks include increasing yields, controlling pests and weeds, as well as improving the financial performance of agricultural companies. More. here

Mini-drones have begun to be used to kill pests in greenhouses

In early July 2023, the Dutch company Pats, formed at the Delft Technical University, announced a system of the same name designed to destroy pests in greenhouses. Read more here.

In 12 regions of the Russian Federation, a special legal regime is introduced that allows the flight of agricultural drones

In September 2023, an experimental legal regime (EPR) will be launched in 12 regions of Russia, allowing flights to agricultural drones. Vladimir Voloshin, Director of the Digital Economy Development Department of the Ministry of Economic Development, spoke about this in August 2023.

To perform the work, the participants of the EPR will simply need to submit a flight plan in a declarative manner. According to the ALS Consortium, Agrimax will be engaged in flights as part of the experiment. Aero, "" BVS agro- "and". " Industrial drones A source close to the consortium Businessman"" added that about 25 operators have already submitted applications "including with domestic heavy ALS." He did not specify the names of the companies.

The EPR will act in, Saratov,, Volgograd,, Nizhny Novgorod,, Novosibirsk,, Ulyanovsk,, and Tambovskaya. Astrakhan Voronezh Lipetsk regions Stavropol Altai Territory Tatarstan Other regions may join the project, but not those in the border zone, Voloshin added.

Some of the newspaper's interlocutors doubt that EPRs will be installed in most regions. The source of the publication in the expert community sees two risks of EPR: the inadmissibility of "objectionable" operators to work and not uniform control, which can "cast a shadow over the entire industry at the first emergency."

In early August 2023, the deputy head of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation Igor Chalik said that amateur drones could be used in cities and other settlements in specially created zones for this.

Amateur drones will be able to (fly), there will be special zones allocated in each city and settlement. If the local administrations wish, they will contact the Ministry of Transport - we will establish certain zones in each city where it will be possible to fly drones, RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.

The official also noted that from September 2023 and March 2024, the rules for using amateur drones for agriculture will be simplified.^[8]

Drones released that recognize and destroy harmful insects in agricultural fields

In early July 2023, Dutch researchers from Wageningen University and the Wageningen University and Research Center reported the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to kill harmful insects in agricultural areas. Read more here.

Ministry of Economic Development launches experiment on the use of agricultural drones in 10 regions

The Ministry of Economic Development is launching an experiment on the use of agricultural drones in 10 regions. This became known in early March 2023.

We are talking about the establishment of an experimental legal regime (EPR) in the field of digital innovation and the approval of the EPR program in the operation of agricultural unmanned aircraft systems. It is assumed that agricultural waste will be used for "spraying, sieving of loose and liquid plant protection products" on the territory of the following subjects:

• Krasnodar Territory;
• Altai Territory;
• Stavropol Territory;
• Rostov region;
• Belgorod region;
• Samara region;
• Novosibirsk region;
• Nizhny Novgorod region;
• Voronezh region;
• Tatarstan.

As Kommersant writes in the issue of March 1, 2023, by this date, ground-based equipment is mainly used for processing crops, which, when moving, affects crops and cannot be used on complex reliefs and waterlogged soils. Agricultural aviation is also used, but it cannot provide high accuracy of spraying protective equipment, it strongly depends on the weather and time of day. Drones do not have such drawbacks, the authors of the project believe, but these aircraft have low performance: light models on the market are not focused on large-scale use in agriculture.

It is expected that at all stages of flight, the drone will be remotely controlled by an external pilot. It is assumed that through the graphical interface it marks the territory on the map that is to be processed. Then these data will be transformed into a flight plan that takes into account the characteristics of the drone, the features of the drugs used, the type of crops being processed, and environmental parameters. This plan will be loaded into the autopilot of the aircraft.

A number of requirements are set for agricultural drones. In particular, they must be equipped with systems for emergency termination of flight and avoidance of collision with obstacles.^[9]

2022

The volume of the global agricultural drone market for the year reached $7.9 billion

In 2022, the global agricultural drone market reached $7.9 billion. For comparison, a year earlier, costs in this area were estimated at $7 billion. Thus, growth was recorded at 13%. In the future, the demand for agricultural drones will continue to grow, as stated in a study by Global Market Insights, the results of which TAdviser got acquainted with in mid-August 2024.

It is noted that in the context of an increase in the world population, precision farming technologies are becoming more and more in demand, which include the use of drones. These systems play a critical role in ensuring food security by improving the efficiency of food production. Precision farming relies on technologies to optimize crop management, providing real-time data on soil status, crop health and pest infestation. UAVs are used to collect this data. In addition, drones are used for other agricultural needs, such as spraying crops.

The global agricultural drone market is driven by cost-effectiveness, the report said. The use of UAVs reduces labor costs and optimizes resource use, resulting in higher yields and reduced waste.

The largest companies operating in the agricultural drone industry include 3D Robotics, AeroVironment, AgEagle Aerial Systems, Agribotix, Delair, DJI, DroneDeployment, Parrot, PrecisionHawk, Quantum Systems, senseFly, Sentera, Skeycatch and Yamaha Motor. Global Market Insights analysts predict that the CAGR (compound percentage CAGR) in the global agricultural drone market from 2023 to 2032 will be 20.1%. Thus, by the end of the period under review, the volume of the industry will reach $48.8 billion.^[10]

In Chuvashia, drones involved in the processing of potato fields

At the end of July 2022, it became known about the use of Chuvashiibespilot aircraft (UAVs) in the treatment of potato fields. The public presentation of the development took place at a special conference dedicated to Potato Field Day, which was held in the region.

The drone is able to spread promising varieties of tubers around the area, which will simplify the technology of planting and growing them. In addition, UAVs help process potatoes with pest protection.

In the future, the drone is planned to be used at harvest, in assisting its delivery for storage and processing, the government of the Republic of Chuvashia said. According to potato growers, the use of UAVs is very important, because the landing areas for this culture are growing every year.

{{quote 'Irrigation of fields, construction of complexes for storage and primary processing of potatoes, production of high reproduction seeds, all this is now in service with our potato growers, who are convinced that it is not only possible to engage in potatoes, but also profitable. Proof of this - growing from year to year sown areas for the second bread, this season was also no exception, - commented the head of the regional Ministry of Agriculture Sergei Artamonov in his Telegram channel. }}

This is not the first time drones have been used in potato fields. Earlier in 2022, XAG agricultural UAVs underwent a series of field tests to spray potatoes in Ecuador's fields. Experiments have shown the high potential of fully autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles in reducing labor costs and pesticide efficiency.

According to the test results, flying over plants at an altitude of 2 meters, the XAG agricultural drone could deliver the solution directly to the base of the potato bush, without demolishing the drop and compacting the soil.^[11]

Agroholding "Steppe" launches a drone port

Specialists of the Steppe agricultural holding have begun testing the drone port - an autonomous station for basing agricultural drones that serve farmland. The device allows you to control the flights of quadcopters remotely, from anywhere in the world with Internet access, without pilots leaving for a specific field. This was announced on June 21, 2022 to TAdviser by Aeromax. Read more here.

Drone released that farmers can fly, spray fertilizer and inspect cattle

On May 16, 2022, Ryse Aero Technologies announced the launch of Ryse Recon, its first vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) electric platform. Possible areas of application of the aircraft are land management, search for missing livestock and soil research. Depending on the purpose, the aircraft may have different configurations - perhaps a fixed-wing model will be proposed for faster and more efficient forward flight. Read more here.

In the Samara region began to use drones in the sowing campaign

In the Samara region, drones began to be used in the sowing campaign, which was announced at the end of April 2022 by the press service of the regional government. They stressed that in the region drones are able not only to fly and shoot beautiful views, but also to sow entire fields.

One day of work in the fields on sowing with the help of a drone showed that at least two days are needed to work out the sowing of various small-seeded crops, including to work out the sowing rate and the technology will be worked out, "said Oleg Olenin, Candidate of Agricultural Sciences of Samara State Agrarian University.

The government of the Samara region reported that in the Pestravsky district of the region, a drone with a control system was tasked with seeding several hectares with mustard and donut.

The installation and configuration of UAVs for the first in the field of experiment of this kind was carried out by a whole team of specialists, uniting farmers, teachers and students of Samara State Agrarian University. The weight of the payload was 20 kg with a slightly larger mass of the digital sower itself.

This is not the first project of using drones by farmers in the Samara region. Earlier, scientists from the Samara National Research University named after Academician S.P. Korolev created drones equipped with a hyper-spectrometer that captures an image of the surface under study, and for each point of this image, you can obtain a spectrum of radiation brightness in a given range of electromagnetic radiation. The picture issued by the drone is analyzed by artificial intelligence. The drone will be able to operate on a given route or under control from ground stations, as well as in automatic mode using machine vision.^[12]

2021

Ukraine purchased hundreds of drones to process agricultural fields

In early August 2021, it became known about the supply of agricultural products robots developed by the Chinese company XAG on. Ukraine 245 drones purchased for $5 million. The project was implemented by a system integrator of unmanned solutions. DroneUA More. here

In Russia, began to use drones with a laser for processing crops

At the end of June 2021, it became known about the creation of pilot aircraft in Russia equipped with a laser plant for processing crops. This product was developed by Novbiotech from Veliky Novgorod. Read more here.

2017

Soil analysis, seed planting, etc.

The "robotization" of production is especially relevant for large farms. By flying over fields, drones using a camera and sensors allow farmers to see in real time what each plant looks like, how the process of maturation of agricultural crops occurs and how the^[13] UAV soil^[14] the^[15].

"Agricultural" drones allow you to create electronic field maps in 3D format, calculate the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (normalized growing index) in order to effectively fertilize crops, inventory the work carried out and protect farmland.

Examples of work that can be carried out by agricultural drones:

• Soil condition analysis. Using cameras and sensors specially installed on the UAV, farmers analyze the condition of the soil on various participants and determine on which of them it is most advisable to plant seeds.
• Planting seeds. A number of startups can be found on the market that offer to plant plants using special drones that shoot seed capsules into the soil. An example of such a startup is BioCarbon Engineering, which announced itself loudly in the spring of 2015, when it announced its plans to plant up to 1 billion trees a year in the future.

• Crop health monitoring. It is very important for farmers to detect pests from which farmland is dying in a timely manner in order to quickly take the necessary measures. It has long been known that the first signs of deterioration of plants are manifested in a change in chlorophyll. Therefore, by installing infrared cameras on the UAV, farmers can learn in a timely manner about the beginning of the death of the crop.
• Crop processing. Another potential area for the use of UAVs in agriculture is uniform spraying of crops with pesticides and special fertilizers. With the help of drones, farmers will be able to carry out such work remotely.
• Yield forecast. The data collected during monitoring can be used to generate various analytical reports. In this case, the UAV will be used as a platform for collecting data, while the main work will fall on specialized software that processes the collected information. Many experts even believe that the future of "agricultural" UAVs lies precisely with this development model - the devices themselves will become "unity," while the main value for the market will be represented by specialists who are able to make correct decisions on the further development of farmland based on the results of the software.

Notable is the project of a company from the UK, the purpose of which is to automate all processes of growing agricultural crops. Thus, the Hand Free Hectare farm allowed farmers to watch the growth of agricultural crops on their hands. Autonomous modified tractors and drones themselves grew 4.5 tons of barley on the territory of 2.5 hectares. People have automated all processes - from sowing seeds to harvesting. The machines are controlled by technical personnel from the control room. Drones with built-in multispectral sensors took land surveys. Small agricultural machines took samples of the land, evaluated it, and selected the necessary mineral fertilizers. Cameras alerted in real time to pests or weeds.

The use of drones in Japan to protect agricultural lands from wild animals

Japanese start-up Skyrobot, which develops unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems, has decided to help local farmers protect farmland from wildlife raids. To combat uninvited guests, the company offers to use its software and hardware complex, consisting of a quadcopter, an IR camera and an artificial intelligence system . This was reported in October 2017 by the Japanese edition of Nikkei.^[16] here.

Market estimates

Data from Markets and Markets and PwC

At the beginning of 2017, the market for "agricultural" UAVs is at the initial stage of development. However, experts believe that in the future, agriculture will become one of the largest segments of the market for drones. Markets and Markets in 2016 estimated the market of "agricultural" UAVs at $864, 4 million, predicting until 2022 a steady annual growth of the industry in 30% (up to $4.2 billion). According to experts from Markets and Markets, the gradual improvement in the regulatory framework that is now observed in various countries of the world will contribute to the active growth of the market.

According to estimates by the analytical agency PWC, in a few decades the market for some "agricultural" drones (not including aircraft-type drones) may amount to about $32.4 billion. This growth will be due to an increase in the world population - in order to feed everyone, one cannot do without innovations in the agricultural sector to increase yields.

Among the countries where the active use of "agricultural" drones is now taking place, one can single out, USA,, China, Japan Brazil countries EU , etc.

Among the largest players in the global UAV market who focus on agriculture, there are representatives such as AeroVironment Inc, AgEagle, DJI, Yamaha, etc.

Goldman Sachs and Gartner data

Goldman Sachs predicts the agro-industrial sector will be the second largest in drone use by 2021. According to Gartner researchers, the increase in UAVs compared to 2016 is 30%, in the total amount of 7% falls on agribusiness.

Market Outlook Through the Eyes of DJI

At the end of December 2017, DJI Innovation Technology (DJI), the largest China manufacturer of commercial drones, reported that more than 10 thousand operators UAV use DJI MG series drones designed for use in. agriculture According to the company, sales of such drones in 2020 will reach 45 thousand units.

The Chinese manufacturer intends to continue to increase investments in the development of agricultural drones and training operators for them to help farmers improve the efficiency of treating farmland with pesticides, reports China Daily.

In November 2015, DJI released its first agricultural drone, MG-1, and in 2016 it expanded its range with a modification called MG-1S, equipped with an advanced UAV control system, radar and sensors.

At the end of 2017, DJI introduced an even more advanced agricultural UAV MG-1S Advanced with improved radar, spray and dynamic systems that increase the drone's efficiency and accuracy. According to the company, with this model, operators can treat crops with chemicals every day on an area of ​ ​ about 40 hectares.

DJI sees great prospects for agricultural drones and plans to step up efforts to prepare more operators for them. In an interview with the publication, DJI Vice President Luo Zhenhua said that the demand for agricultural drones is simply enormous.

Its MG series drones account for about 70% of China's agricultural UAV sales, according to DJI.

With the modernization of agriculture in the PRC, the market for advanced devices for farmers is experiencing a significant rise. It is expected that in 2023 the penetration rate of drones in China's agro-industrial complex will exceed 40%, and the sale of such devices in monetary terms will reach 16 billion yuan ($2.4 billion).^[17]

Notes