The Rise of Small UAVs in Precision Agriculture

Abstract

Abstract. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) were originally designed for dull, dirty, and often dangerous work in military operations. However, like other military technologies, such as GPS, UAVs will soon find more use in civilian applications. In fact, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is congressionally mandated to open U.S. air space for the commercial use of UAVs by 2015. A conservative estimate by an aviation economist projected a $13.6 billion impact of this technology in the first three years of approved commercial use (2015-2018), and among all potential markets for UAVs, precision agriculture is considered to be the largest. This will have significant implications for precision agriculture. By linking wireless sensor networks and robotic and automation systems, UAVs can change the way we collect field data, monitor field equipment, and even operate agricultural machinery.