SMART IRRIGATION ESTIMATOR
Nadine Sangster1*, Aneil Ramkhalawan2, Aatma Maharajh3, Jorrel Bisnath4, Edward Cumberbatch5, Ronnie Bickramdass6, David Edwards7 and Prakash Persad8
1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8Design and Manufacturing Systems, The University of Trinidad and Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago
1Email: nadine.sangster@utt.edu.tt *(Corresponding author)
2Email: aneil.ramkhalawan@utt.edu.tt
3Email: aatma.maharajh@utt.edu.tt
4Email: jorrel.bisnath@utt.edu.tt
5Email: edward.cumberbatch@utt.edu.tt
6Email: ronnie.bickramdass@utt.edu.tt
7Email: david.edwards@utt.edu.tt
8Email: prakash.persad@utt.edu.tt
Abstract:
Many of the agricultural plots within Trinidad and Tobago remain in a state of dormancy due to a critical lack of infrastructure needed for their development. This has contributed to the increasing food import bill which was some TT$5.6 billion over the last couple of years. This overall crop irrigation project aims at assisting the farmers in setting up a proper infrastructure that will utilize natural resources. The lack of pipe water will be substituted by rainwater capture, storage and distribution via drip irrigation. The lack of power for water distribution by irrigation will be obtained by the use of solar power for the pumps. The project will be done in phases. This phase involved at creating a smart estimator to determine the water requirement and the planting land area for the 2-acre plot when the number of plants, type of plants, and the month in which the farmer chooses to start planting are chosen. It will estimate the water storage volume required for the various crops chosen based on the rainfall patterns, crop cycle and the crop water requirement. These output estimates will be based on the land area input, estimated water storage size, estimated tool shed size and produce storage area, and the type or types of crops chosen to farm by the farmer for the plot. The input parameters in the estimator can then be varied by the farmer, to help find an estimated or optimum balance of the number and type of crops, the planting land area, and the water captured and stored, based on the rainfall patterns and the unused land area. The outputs required can be similarly obtained through the use of existing models and software packages, but the tools are not ‘Farmer User Friendly and readily available’.
Keywords: solar irrigation estimator, agriculture, innovation, design.
https://doi.org/10.47412/FSNX6661
