LoRa based intelligent soil and weather condition monitoring with internet of things for precision agriculture in smart cities

Abstract

Urbanization is expected to hold about 50% of the world population by 2050 and there will be stress on available resources including food and freshwater. Further, inefficient utilization of irrigation water possesses additional challenges and it is predicted that by 2050, India will face shortage of freshwater resources. Urban agriculture and Precision Agriculture are the possible solutions in smart cities for the predicted challenges providing food security and safety, sustainable life in cities. Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine Learning (ML) are the possible solutions to smart cities' farming. Agricultural activities such as irrigation of plants, rain and drought conditions monitoring supported by IoT and ML succour farmers to righteous decision on agriculture activities. A detailed study is carried out on the role, opportunities, and different aspects of smart cities, urban farming, communication technologies, IoT and ML with respect to agriculture. The article presents the design of intelligent irrigation system based on soil and weather conditions. The soil and weather parameters are selected through various research articles in Agriculture 4.0 and ML. The article also juxtapositions the designed weather station with the various patents developed. The system developed in this article provides a cost-effective and state-of-the-art solution to local weather monitoring.