With the assistance of semiconductor, IoT systems and cloud connectivity service provider Semtech, Malaysian company Sustainable Hrvest, an innovator in smart farming, has installed LoRa-enabled sensors and LoRaWAN-based gateways across its durian fruit fields in Malaysia.
Although durian trees are difficult to grow and harvest, durians are one of the most popular fruits in the nation. Because of their sensitivity to moisture and weather, these plants require regular maintenance if they are to produce a high yield.
Pre-harvest, harvest and post-harvest data on the condition of Malaysian farmers' farms are now available in real time thanks to LoRa-enabled sensors. According to Semtech, this real-time visibility has made life easier for farmers while also contributing to their financial success.
Semtech's LoRa chipsets connect sensors to the cloud and enable real-time data and analytics transmission using LoRa as an IoT wireless platform. This instantaneous management improves both the efficiency and productivity of sustainable IoT use .
In Malaysia, there are currently 30 LoRa-powered farms, and further plantations are expected to go live in the coming 12 months. The IoT nodes leveraging LoRaWAN were created by Sustainable Harvest and use the low-power, long-range sensors of LoRa. They last in the field for more than four years before needing to be replaced.
This specifically designed chip-to-cloud sensor platform keeps track of irrigation system flow rate and pressure to maintain soil moisture levels. It keeps tabs on the nutrients in the soil as well. Malaysian farmers can remotely tend to their crops due to the data-driven farming method.
More than 300 million LoRa end nodes have been installed worldwide. They are used in a variety of customer applications, including industrial, transportation, agriculture and healthcare.