Agricultural technology company Goanna Ag have announced the roll-out of a publicly available network that will allow smarter irrigation solutions for Australian cotton growers.
Based on a LoRaWAN network, the Goanna product is supported by the National Narrowband Network Co (NNNCo), and designed for use by the “Internet of Things” (IoT) network, and allows a connection of technology, such as moisture and weather sensors, without a WiFi or mobile signal.
On release, Goanna said the new network was an extension of NNNCo’s existing coverage, which covered over 3 million hectares of cotton growing areas including the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area as well as the Murrumbidgee, Lachlan, Gwydir MacIntyre, Namoi and Macquarie valleys.
Goanna Ag, CEO, Alicia Garden said recent funding, secured from prominent investors including Westpac and Graincorp Operations, would allow the company to continue to bring its low-cost connected sensors and data analytics to growers.
“Every day that a cotton crop is under stress can cost a grower over $100 per hectare,” she said.
“We help growers schedule and apply just the right amount of water to use on crops at just the right time so they can optimise their performance and profit.”
Ms Garden said connectivity challenges and the relatively high cost of connection in regional and rural areas was a driver for developing the LoRaWAN network.
“LoRaWAN networks have proved ideal for agriculture here and overseas because of the low cost of sending small amounts of essential data using very low power,” she said.
Ms Garden said 100 gateways were being deployed this cotton season, along with over 2,000 sensors across cotton farms.
She said the sensors included moisture probes, rain gauges, weather stations, and water and fuel tank monitors.
“LoRaWAN is a global open standard technology and there’s a huge growing market of sensors for agriculture”, Ms Garden said.
“The idea is not to lock growers in but to help the industry adopt the technology quickly and easily for the benefit of everyone”
Ms Garden said along with Goanna supplied sensors and analytics, any compliant LoRaWAN sensor will be able to connect to the network.
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