Precision viticulture and precision agriculture require the acquisition and processing of data from large scale and heterogeneous sensor networks. Sensor integration is complex due to the number of incompatible network specifications and platforms. The adoption of a common, standard communication interface would allow the engineer to abstract the relation between the sensor and the network. This would contribute to the adoption of plug-and-play technology in precision viticulture/agriculture sensor networks. This paper explores this need and introduces a framework for smart data acquisition that relies on the IEEE 1451 family of standards, which addresses transducer-to-network interoperability issues. The framework includes a ZigBee end device (sMPWiNodeZ), as an IEEE 1451 WTIM (Wireless Transducer Interface Module), and an IEEE 1451 NCAP (Network Capable Application Processor) that acts as gateway to an information service provider and coordinator of the wireless sensor network. The paper discusses the proposed IEEE 1451 system architecture and its advantages and closes with results/lessons learned from in-field trials towards smarter wireless sensor networks.

Despite the benefits of precision agriculture and precision viticulture production systems, its rate of adoption in the Portuguese Douro Demarcated Region remains low. We believe that one way to raise it is to address challenging real-world problems whose solution offers a clear benefit to the viticulturist. For example, one of the most demanding tasks in wine making is harvesting. Even for humans, the environment makes grape detection difficult, especially when the grapes and leaves have a similar color, which is generally the case for white grapes. In this paper, we propose a system for the detection and location, in the natural environment, of bunches of grapes in color images. This system is able to distinguish between white and red grapes, and at the same time, it calculates the location of the bunch stem. The system achieved 97 and 91 percent correct classifications for red and white grapes, respectively.

This paper describes the hardware, communication capabilities and software architecture of an intelligent autonomous gateway, designed to provide the necessary middleware between locally deployed sensor networks and a remote location within the whole-farm concept. This solar-powered infrastructure, denoted by iPAGAT (Intelligent Precision Agriculture Gateway), runs an aggregation engine that fills a local database with environmental data gathered by a locally deployed ZigBee wireless sensor network. Aggregated data are then retrieved by external queries over the built-in data integration system. In addition, embedded communication capabilities, including Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11 and GPRS, allow local and remote users to access both gateway and remote data, as well as the Internet, and run site-specific management tools using authenticated smartphones. Field experiments provide convincing evidence that iPAGAT represents an important step forward in the development of distributed service-oriented information systems for precision viticulture applications.

The system described in this paper is based on tags that are placed in the field and which can be decoded by mobile devices such as mobile phones or PDAs. The tags are used to automatically associate a field location to the relevant database tables or records and also to access contextual information or services. By pointing a mobile device to a tag, the viticulturalist is able to download data such as climatic data or upload information such as disease and pest incidence, without having to provide coordinates or any other references, and without having to return to a central office. The possibility of exchanging contextualized information and accessing contextualized services in the field, using well-known devices such as cell phones, may contribute to increase the rate of adoption of information technology in viticulture, and contribute to more efficient and closer-to-the-crops practices.

This paper analyses solar radiation, wind and water flow as energy sources that can be explored to meet the energy needs of a wireless sensor network router within the context of precision agriculture. It also describes a multi-powered platform solution for wireless devices. The prototype can manage simultaneously the three energy sources and is capable of permanent operation. The energy scavenging techniques double up as sensors, yielding data on the amount of solar radiation, water flow and wind speed, avoiding the need for specific sensors.

This paper is part of a long-term effort to introduce precision viticulture in the Douro region. It presents the architecture, hardware and software of a platform designed for that purpose. Its power-management subsystem is able to recharge batteries with energy harvested from the surrounding environment from up to three sources. It allows the system to sustain operation as a general-purpose wireless acquisition device for remote sensing in large coverage areas, where the power to run the devices is always a concern. The system node, as a ZigBeeTM network element, provides a mesh-type array of acquisition devices ready for deployment in vineyards. In addition to describing the overall architecture, hardware and software of the monitoring system, the paper also reports on the performance of the module in the field, emphasising the energy issues, crucial to obtain self-sustained operation, as well as testing. The platform is currently being used as a simple and compact yet powerful building block for generic remote sensing applications and is well suited to precision viticulture in the Douro region. It is planned to be used as a network of wireless sensors on the canopy of vines, to assist in the development of grapevine powdery mildew prediction models.