SitS NSF-UKRI: Wireless In-Situ Soil Sensing Network for Future Sustainable Agriculture

SitS NSF-UKRI：面向未来可持续农业的无线原位土壤传感网络

• 批准号: 1935632
• 负责人: Darrin Young
• 金额: $ 80万
• 依托单位: University of Utah
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2020
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2020-01-01 至 2024-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1935632&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SitS; NSF; UKRI; Wireless; Situ

This project was awarded through the "Signals in the Soil (SitS)" opportunity, a collaborative solicitation that involves the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA) and the following United Kingdom Research and Innovation (UKRI) research councils: 1) The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), 2) the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), 3) the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). This project is a collaboration between researchers at the University of Utah in the U.S. and researchers at the Imperial College London and the University of Aberdeen in the UK. With the world's population expected to surpass 9 billion by 2050, increasing food production threatens soil security, presenting one of the grand challenges of the 21st century. Sustaining high levels of food production depends on irrigated agriculture, which consumes over 70% of freshwater reserves in many regions of the world. Due to the diminishing freshwater sources, alternative water sources have been considered and used for agriculture. However, their impact on soil health and related contaminant effects on the soil ecosystem and productivity remain largely unknown. This research focuses on developing low-cost wireless soil sensing network that can effectively indicate the health condition of soils being irrigated by using different alternative water sources. The research outcomes will not only be critical for developing better soil maintenance, protection, and management practice, but also for enabling a wide range of research on soil health and associated links to sustainable agriculture.The goal of this research program is to develop a low-power and low-cost underground wireless sensing network by employing commercially available sensing probes, but designing low-power electronics and integrating them with the proposed wireless powering and data telemetry system, followed by packaging and validating the sensing network in the field. The prototype system will be further demonstrated in a pilot study to investigate the effect of irrigation on soil condition with different water sources. The proposed system can substantially reduce the cost of the buried sensors as there would be no large power source such as a solar panel or a battery. Much of the expensive electronics would be moved to the external powering system implemented on an autonomous vehicle (ground or aerial). The lower-cost and lower-power configuration can potentially enable a much higher sensor density for large farmland or intense research plot monitoring. The wireless interface for the soil sensing network implemented on autonomous vehicles can greatly reduce the current lab-intensive human interface. The proposed network will be developed in collaboration with stakeholders in the agricultural industry from the outset of the project. With this vision in mind, this US-UK SitS research team plans to achieve the proposed objectives through the following tasks. (1) Develop low-power, low-cost, underground, in-situ soil sensor modules and achieve a reduction in power and cost by one to two orders of magnitude compared to commercial products. Low-power electronics in both discrete and ASIC forms will be designed and fitted to existing sensor probe technology. (2) Develop wireless power transfer and data telemetry systems that can transfer power from a source above the ground to an underground sensor module, charging a rechargeable battery or enabling a battery-less underground sensing operation. This approach can greatly simplify the system installation and maintenance. (3) Demonstrate the proposed system operation from a controlled laboratory environment and open field testing. Sensor modules' calibration and stability will be investigated to ensure long-term reliable operation. (4) Deploy the wireless sensor technology to investigate irrigation effect on soil health by using alternative water sources. Soil moisture, temperature, and salinity will be measured in-situ and collected wirelessly. Soil pH, ammonia, organic carbon and nitrogen will be measured from collected soil samples. These parameters can indicate soil intrinsic conditions due to different irrigation practices. The proposed sensing network and study could enable far more efficient use of fresh water sources in irrigated agriculture. The proposed sensing paradigm could be applied to a wide range of soil health studies with direct societal impact by helping improve soil conditions and agricultural productivity. Furthermore, the research team will broaden the impact of this research through establishing an interdisciplinary education and training program, and engaging with agricultural producers and stakeholders to disseminate research results.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该项目是通过“土壤信号（SitS）”机会获得的，该机会是一项合作招标，涉及美国农业部国家食品和农业研究所（USDA NIFA）和英国研究与创新（UKRI）的以下研究理事会：1) 自然环境研究理事会 (NERC)、2) 生物技术和生物科学研究理事会 (BBSRC)、3) 工程和物理科学研究理事会 (EPSRC) 以及科学技术设施理事会（STFC）。该项目是美国犹他大学的研究人员与伦敦帝国理工学院和英国阿伯丁大学的研究人员合作进行的。到 2050 年，世界人口预计将超过 90 亿，粮食产量的增加威胁着土壤安全，是 21 世纪面临的重大挑战之一。维持高水平的粮食生产依赖于灌溉农业，在世界许多地区，灌溉农业消耗了 70% 以上的淡水储备。由于淡水资源不断减少，替代水源已被考虑用于农业。然而，它们对土壤健康的影响以及相关污染物对土壤生态系统和生产力的影响仍然很大程度上未知。本研究的重点是开发低成本无线土壤传感网络，可以有效地指示使用不同替代水源灌溉的土壤的健康状况。研究成果不仅对于开发更好的土壤维护、保护和管理实践至关重要，而且对于土壤健康和可持续农业相关联系的广泛研究也至关重要。该研究计划的目标是开发一种低土壤维护、保护和管理实践。 -通过采用商用传感探头，设计低功耗电子设备并将其与拟议的无线供电和数据遥测系统集成，然后在现场封装和验证传感网络，从而构建高功率和低成本的地下无线传感网络。该原型系统将在一项试点研究中得到进一步验证，以调查不同水源灌溉对土壤状况的影响。所提出的系统可以大大降低埋地传感器的成本，因为不需要太阳能电池板或电池等大型电源。许多昂贵的电子设备将被转移到自动驾驶车辆（地面或空中）上实施的外部供电系统。低成本和低功耗的配置可以为大片农田或密集的研究地块监测提供更高的传感器密度。自动驾驶车辆上实现的土壤传感网络的无线接口可以大大减少当前实验室密集型的人机界面。拟议的网络将从项目一开始就与农业行业的利益相关者合作开发。考虑到这一愿景，美英 SitS 研究团队计划通过以下任务来实现拟议目标。 （1）开发低功耗、低成本的地下原位土壤传感器模块，实现比商业产品功耗和成本降低一到两个数量级。分立式和 ASIC 形式的低功耗电子器件将被设计并安装到现有的传感器探头技术中。 (2) 开发无线电力传输和数据遥测系统，可以将电力从地面上方的电源传输到地下传感器模块，为可充电电池充电或实现无电池地下传感操作。这种方式可以大大简化系统的安装和维护。 (3) 在受控实验室环境和露天测试中演示所提出的系统操作。将研究传感器模块的校准和稳定性，以确保长期可靠运行。 (4)部署无线传感器技术，研究替代水源灌溉对土壤健康的影响。土壤湿度、温度和盐度将被现场测量并无线收集。将从收集的土壤样本中测量土壤 pH 值、氨、有机碳和氮。这些参数可以指示由于不同灌溉方法而导致的土壤内在条件。拟议的传感网络和研究可以使灌溉农业更有效地利用淡水资源。所提出的传感范式可以应用于广泛的土壤健康研究，通过帮助改善土壤条件和农业生产力，产生直接的社会影响。此外，研究团队将通过建立跨学科教育和培训计划，并与农业生产者和利益相关者合作传播研究成果，扩大这项研究的影响。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准。

项目成果

Integration of a High Frequency Inductive Power Transfer System to Energize Agricultural Sensors Through Soil

集成高频感应电力传输系统，通过土壤为农业传感器供电

• DOI: 10.1109/wpw54272.2022.9853990
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: IEEE Wireless Power Transfer Conference
• 作者: Sanchez, John;Arteaga, Juan M.;Zeisiger, Cody;Young, Darrin J.;Goel, Ramesh;Mitcheson, Paul D.;Yeatman, Eric M.;Roundy, Shad
• 通讯作者: Roundy, Shad

Design and Characterization of a Low-Power Moisture Sensor from Commercially Available Electronics

采用市售电子产品的低功耗湿度传感器的设计和表征

• DOI: 10.1109/sensors47087.2021.9639573
• 发表时间: 2021
• 期刊: IEEE Sensors Conference
• 作者: Sanchez, John;Dahal, Archana;Zesiger, Cody;Goel, Ramesh;Young, Darrin;Roundy, Shad
• 通讯作者: Roundy, Shad

High-Frequency Inductive Power Transfer Through Soil for Agricultural Applications

农业应用中通过土壤的高频感应电力传输

• DOI: 10.1109/tpel.2023.3305642
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics
• 影响因子: 6.7
• 作者: Arteaga, Juan M.;Sanchez, John;Elsakloul, Faraj;Marin, Maria;Zesiger, Cody;Pucci, Nunzio;Norton, Gareth J.;Young, Darrin J.;Boyle, David E.;Yeatman, Eric M.
• 通讯作者: Yeatman, Eric M.

Wireless Power Transfer Through Soil for Energizing an Underground Soil Moisture Sensor

通过土壤无线功率传输为地下土壤湿度传感器供电

• DOI: 10.1109/sensors52175.2022.9967363
• 发表时间: 2022
• 期刊: IEEE Sensors Conference
• 作者: Ding, Sheng;Sanchez, John;Jackson, Aidan;Roundy, Shad;Goel, Ramesh;Zesiger, Cody;Young, Darrin J.
• 通讯作者: Young, Darrin J.

Wireless Battery-Free Sub-mW Underground Soil Moisture Sensing System

无线无电池亚毫瓦地下土壤湿度传感系统

• DOI: 10.1109/sensors56945.2023.10325256
• 发表时间: 2023
• 期刊: IEEE
• 作者: Ding, Sheng;Roundy, Shad;Goel, Ramesh;Zesiger, Cody;Young, Darrin J.
• 通讯作者: Young, Darrin J.