Introduction

Are you a farmer looking to incorporate drones in your operations? You have come to the right place.

Exploring drones for farming is an innovative and commendable move, as their benefits have been seen in several other industries, such as construction, delivery, and security.

However, as drone technology becomes more accessible, numerous options are available, making it challenging to research and decide which drone application is best suited for you.

Today, I will walk you through the various drone technologies available, their applications, what to consider when choosing one, and some implementation tips.

Why Drones in Agriculture?

As mentioned earlier, the benefits of drone technology have been felt in several other industries. Let’s look at why they make sense for agriculture.

Accessing the Inaccessible

Drones can access hard-to-reach areas, such as rugged landscapes or muddy fields, enabling you to utilize every part of your farm. For instance, in a rainy season where it’s too muddy and you can’t reach every part of the farm by foot or tractor, you can launch a drone from a safe area and watch it work on every inch of the farm.

Data-Driven Farming

Drones are flying computers that can collect accurate data, which you can then analyze to derive actionable results. This removes guesswork from farming, enabling you to maximize your land.

Versatility

Drones are known for being versatile. They can be used to collect data about crops and soil, and some can even be used to carry stuff around the farm, and even spray and spread chemicals or plant seedlings. Anything you can think of doing on your farm, there is probably a drone for it.

Types of Drones Used in Agriculture

Drones come in all sizes and shapes and can carry different types of payloads. We will discuss their types, categorized by both configuration and application.

• Configuration – This refers to the shape and design of the drone. It includes types like multirotors, fixed-wings, and Hybrids (VTOLs).
• Application – This categorization is based on how drones are applied in agriculture, primarily based on the payload they carry. It includes drone types like sprayer drones and imaging drones.

Let’s discuss each of these types in detail.

Drone Type By Configuration

This is basically how the drones achieve lift and maintain flight in the air. These types include;

Multirotor

The multirotor is the most versatile, accessible, and affordable drone you will come across. It comprises at least four rotors and can vary in size and weight, ranging from 250 grams to up to 100 kg. Multirotors are common due to their ease of use and automation, as well as their easy reproduction, which makes them prevalent in all agricultural drone applications. However, challenges such as limited flight time and payload capacity limit their effectiveness, but this has not stopped them from becoming the go-to for various applications.

Fixed-Wing

Fixed-wing drones resemble a typical Cessna airplane. They are more complex to use since they need a runway and require a lot of flight planning compared to multirotors. However, Fixed-Wing drones are still applicable when you need to cover large tracts of land., Unlike multirotors, fixed-wing drones can stay longer in the air since they consume less power. This allows them to travel further, covering more ground before needing a battery swap.

Hybrid/VTOL

As the name suggests, the Hybrid combines the benefits of a multirotor and fixed-wing. It takes off vertically, allowing it to take off from anywhere, and once in the air, it glides like a fixed-wing, allowing it to have an extended flight time, suitable for mapping extensive tracts of land. However, the combination of two systems (multi-rotor and fixed-wing) introduces complexities that make hybrid drones challenging for beginners and quite expensive to maintain. Still, they are becoming a popular alternative to the other two types.

Summary

Below is a comprehensive summary and comparison of the different drone types.

Drone Type by Application

Now, let’s look at the various drone types based on how they are applied on a farm.

Sprayer/Spreader Drones

This is the most common type of drone when talking about agricultural drones. They are drones used to spray and spread herbicides on farms. Some have even been used to spread seed balls for planting. The technology of sprayer drones has advanced over the years, and now we have drones like the DJI Agrass T100 or the XAG P100, both with a carrying capacity of 100 kg. Drones with smaller capacities, like 10 kg or 25 kg, are also available for farmers with smaller lands.

These drones also have state-of-the-art navigation systems, allowing you to preprogram the flight and customize parameters like flying height, flow rate, spray and spread width, etc., allowing you to achieve a level of uniformity that would be difficult to achieve by hand. Compared to manual application, sprayer drones are also fast, needing one drone for a region where you would need several people.

Compared to tractors, drones cause less damage to crops and the surrounding ground because they fly over them. Additionally, sprayer drones offer more control over spraying, reducing waste, and are much cheaper to deploy than aerial applications using manned aircraft. However, drones are susceptible to weather, limiting their application in adverse weather conditions like strong winds or precipitation.

Imaging Drones

Imaging drones are also quite common in agriculture, as they essentially refer to any drone equipped with a camera. Let’s say you want to get the lay of the land, establish drainage systems, or establish boundaries for subdivision. You can achieve that with a drone. UAV systems have advanced to carry different sensors for different applications.

You can use drones fitted with high-resolution RGB cameras to fly a pre-programmed flight over your land, then process the images using software like Agisoft or Pix4D. The outputs are an orthomosaic map, DEMs, and DTMs, which can help you visualize the extent of the land and obtain data such as elevation.

Drones can also be fitted with multispectral, thermal cameras, and a wide range of other sensors, which can help collect data on plant stress, livestock methane emissions, and other information that would be difficult to get from an RGB sensor.

By monitoring crops, you can quickly identify which ones are healthy and which aren’t, allowing you to target only the affected areas, thereby improving yields while saving resources. The outputs from mapping drones can also be integrated into sprayer drones for spot spraying.

For farms with extensive assets and infrastructure, imaging drones, both RGB and thermal, can be used for surveillance, preventing intrusions and theft.

Factors to Consider When Choosing an Agricultural Drone

Do you really need a drone for your farm? And if you do, what type of drone is best suited for you? Let’s discuss some of the factors you should consider when answering these questions.

Farm Size

When deciding whether to get a multirotor, fixed-wing, or hybrid drone, consider the size of your farm. For most applications, a multirotor will work for both mapping and spraying. Unless you have the budget and facilities to manage fixed-wing and hybrid drone operations, and a farm size that needs such drones, the multirotor is a suitable pick for most drone applications.

Crop Type

The choice of the type of sprayer or spreader drone and their mechanisms will vary by crop type. Each crop requires different application rates and types. A good drone for such applications should allow you to set these parameters. Some drones, such as DJI drones, come with built-in templates for specific crops like corn, but they also allow you to customize these templates as needed.

You should also be aware that not all crops can be sprayed with drones. Drones fly over the crops, so if you need to spray the sides of the crop, like when spraying avocado trees, it may be difficult to implement drones, and you may have to consider other technologies. You do not want to have an expensive drone collecting dust in the store because you didn’t do enough due diligence.

Budget and ROI

Drones can be quite expensive, especially the larger sprayer drones and advanced mapping drones. Before purchasing one, consider its benefits and how it impacts your bottom line. You should also consider how often you will use it and if it’s better to hire a drone rather than buy one yourself. If your farming scale is not large enough to justify the cost of a drone, it’s probably not a good idea to get one.

Regulatory Landscape

Drones are highly regulated. Before purchasing, take some time to learn about the various regulations available in your country and whether they will be suitable for your drone operations. Some countries have banned drones entirely, while others require licensing and specific certifications for operating an agricultural drone.

Training and Technical Support

Before purchasing a drone, research whether training and technical support are available in your region. This could be from the manufacturer or third-party providers. You should also consider whether it would be more beneficial for you or your employees to undergo the training or hire a drone company with professionals to bring their team and equipment to execute the tasks.

The Future of Drones in Agriculture

Drone use in Agriculture is about to become more prevalent thanks to the following advancements.

AI-Powered Analytics

A combination of drones and AI is about to revolutionize agriculture. AI accelerates the collection and analysis of data, enabling farmers to access real-time insights into their crop performance. AI can also analyze the large amounts of data collected by drones to identify trends and improve decision-making. AI also powers automation in drones, enhancing their ability to determine which crop to spray, how much to spray, and track the application over time to come up with better systems.

Drone Swarms

We have seen drone swarms being approved by regulators, signaling that they could be the future of agricultural drone applications. This is where you can deploy several drones at the same time, reducing the manpower required to operate the drones and increasing the speed and efficiency by covering more ground simultaneously.

Increased Adoption

The increasing adoption of drone technology is driving the development of more accessible drones with features similar to those of advanced drones. As a result, even those with smaller farms can reap the benefits of drone technology. It will no longer be a question of whether you should get a drone; the real question will be which one you should get.

Conclusion

The benefits of drone technology in agriculture are evident, and the future looks even more promising, but there are different types of drones suited for various applications.

A multispectral drone is different from an RGB mapping drone. You get different types of data from each.

You can’t use a sprayer drone to map, and vice versa. Knowing which technology works for you is the first step to implementing drone technology on your farm.

And don’t forget about the regulatory and technical aspects of it when choosing a drone. Drones are key to agriculture’s digital future, and the only way to be part of that is by doing it right.