Sensors 2015, 15(2), 3334-3350; https://doi.org/10.3390/s150203334
Mini-UAV Based Sensory System for Measuring Environmental Variables in Greenhouses
Juan Jesús Roldán 1
, Guillaume Joossen 2, David Sanz 1, Jaime del Cerro 1 and Antonio Barrientos 1,*
, Guillaume Joossen 2, David Sanz 1, Jaime del Cerro 1 and Antonio Barrientos 1,*
1
Centre for Automation and Robotics (UPM-CSIC), José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain
2
ENSTA ParisTech, Boulevard des Maréchaux, 828, 91120 Palaiseau, France
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Received: 26 September 2014 / Revised: 19 January 2015 / Accepted: 26 January 2015 / Published: 2 February 2015
(This article belongs to the Special Issue UAV Sensors for Environmental Monitoring)
Abstract
This paper describes the design, construction and validation of a mobile sensory platform for greenhouse monitoring. The complete system consists of a sensory system on board a small quadrotor (i.e., a four rotor mini-UAV). The goals of this system include taking measures of temperature, humidity, luminosity and CO2 concentration and plotting maps of these variables. These features could potentially allow for climate control, crop monitoring or failure detection (e.g., a break in a plastic cover). The sensors have been selected by considering the climate and plant growth models and the requirements for their integration onboard the quadrotor. The sensors layout and placement have been determined through a study of quadrotor aerodynamics and the influence of the airflows from its rotors. All components of the system have been developed, integrated and tested through a set of field experiments in a real greenhouse. The primary contributions of this paper are the validation of the quadrotor as a platform for measuring environmental variables and the determination of the optimal location of sensors on a quadrotor. View Full-TextKeywords:
greenhouse; UAVs; sensory system; environmental monitoring; agriculture; robotics
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MDPI and ACS Style
Roldán, J.J.; Joossen, G.; Sanz, D.; del Cerro, J.; Barrientos, A. Mini-UAV Based Sensory System for Measuring Environmental Variables in Greenhouses. Sensors 2015, 15, 3334-3350.