Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID MI_2025_Das2

Development and Testing of IOT-based Low-Cost Soil Moisture Sensors for Farm Automation and Satellite-based Remote Sensing Calibration and Validation

Institute: Michigan
Year Established: 2025 Start Date: 2026-01-01 End Date: 2026-12-31
Total Federal Funds: $10,000 Total Non-Federal Funds: $10,000

Principal Investigators: Narendra Das

Project Summary: Sensor technologies with the Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) offers substantial potential to enhance various agricultural practices, including irrigation, fertilization, planting, plowing, and remote sensing product validation. However, several challenges hinder widespread adoption: i) Infrastructure Limitations- Connectivity issues of wireless sensor networks essential for real-time data transmission; ii) Cost Constraints- High initial investments in sensor technologies can be prohibitive, limiting widespread adoption, and; iii) Energy Efficiency- Ensuring sensors operate efficiently over extended periods, particularly in remote locations. Addressing these challenges is crucial for the successful integration of IoT and AI in agriculture, paving the way for more efficient and sustainable farming practices, and remote sensing product validation, Thus we plan to innovate a low-cost network of sensing device to monitor surface and rootzone soil moisture. The plan is also to use the IoT-based low cost network for the NASA NISAR high-resolution (100 m) soil moisture product calibration and validation.