The Victorian Government has released details of the IoT technologies that will be available to farmers participating in Victoria’s on-farm IoT trials. However it has yet to select suppliers of either these technologies or of the networking technology that will support the trials.
The Victorian Government called for expressions of interest for its planned on-farm trials of IoT earlier this month.
The first round is a pilot round during which the department will seek to enrol 100 farms (25 farms from each trial region). In subsequent rounds, the trial will be expanded to include up to a further 500 farms.
Trials will take place in Maffra, Birchip, Serpentine and Tatura to cover up to two-thirds of the cost of on-farm IoT technology. Partipants will be required to trial at least one IoT application for a minimum of two years, and to share data generated with the government.
The government has issued a summary catalogue of the types of technology available to support the trial, under the broad title of informed agronomy.
Information systems to support decision-making
Compile data into key reports, analysis, alerting and/or decision support.
Weather monitoring
Monitor weather conditions including air temperature, relative humidity, barometric pressure, wind speed, wind direction, rainfall and solar radiation or photosynthetically active radiation.
Soil moisture monitoring
Monitor soil moisture and other soil factors for crop/pasture management. May include soil temperature and macronutrient sensing at a range of depths.
Microclimate monitoring
Sensors for specific applications such as leaf wetness, frost, rain gauge, wind speed, wind direction and light sensing.
Plant growth monitoring
Measure plant and fruit growth status. Includes stem and fruit diameter using dendrometers. May allow for comparative assessment of block and variety progression and inform harvest timing.
Plant stress tracking
Track plant water use and moisture stress for informed management of productivity and fruit quality.
On 1 August 2018 the Government issued RFPs for the provision of connectivity and for applications and devices for the trials.
These contracts have yet to be awarded. An Agriculture Victoria spokesperson told IoTAustralia earlier this week: “Agriculture Victoria has openly approached the market seeking proposals from Internet of Thing technology suppliers to be involved in our trial. The successful technology suppliers will be announced once this evaluation is complete in coming weeks.”
The connectivity RFP covered
- Network infrastructure that enables affordable IoT connectivity and services;
- Sustainable business models during and beyond the trial period;
- Provision of network services that are supported by service agreements;
- Network co‐contributions.
The devices RFP covered
- Ag‐IoT applications and devices that demonstrate clear benefits to farms;
- Sustainable business models during and beyond the trial period;
- Provision of application and devices that are secure, supported by service agreements and provide access to relevant trial data.
It may be no indication of a chosen supplier, but the applicant guidelines for the trial carry a photograph of a solar powered WiFi device from Italian company WiNet, which claims to have developed many wireless sensor networks for agriculture. The company does not appear to have any presence in Australia.
