Evaluation of Spray Coverage and Other Spraying Characteristics from Ground and Aerial Sprayers (Drones: UAVs) Used in a High-Density Planting Olive Grove in Greece

Athanasios Gertsis () and Leonidas Karampekos
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Athanasios Gertsis: Perrotis College-American Farm School
Leonidas Karampekos: Perrotis College-American Farm School

A chapter in Information and Communication Technologies for Agriculture—Theme IV: Actions, 2021, pp 255-268 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract The use of conventional ground spraying systems (tractor assisted or manual/backpack types) in tree spraying varies among farmers, depending on crop species grown, farm size, soil relief characteristics and machinery or man-labor available. Most farmers use their sprayers without any precise estimation of the coverage percent, uniformity, drifting and other important issues on spraying materials and safety regulations. The recent developments of aerial spraying, using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles–UAVs or Systems UASs (a.k.a. drones) offer unique new application capabilities. However, very limited information exist in spraying systems comparative studies. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the spraying characteristics of the most commonly used ground type sprayers, equipped with conventional and electrostatic nozzles and a spraying drone, for spraying in a high-density olive grove in Greece. Water Sensitive papers (WSP) and two scanning software (DepositScan and SnapCard) were used to quantify spraying coverage percent and other droplet characteristics. Amount of spray solution used and operation time along with spraying configuration, were also recorded for each trial. The results revealed significant differences among the used systems in spraying characteristics and also between the electrostatic and conventional nozzles. The quantities used by the conventional ground systems were up to 45 times more than the drones, while the operation time for ground systems was up to 6 times more than the drones. The findings supported the potential of spraying drones as a tool to increase spraying efficiency and precision of agrochemical applications. The main current limitation in EU for aerial application by drones remains the current legislation in EU which is expected to be updated and clarify the use in agricultural applications.

Keywords: Olive systems; High density; Spraying coverage; Drones; UAV; UAS; Electrostatic nozzles; Spraying systems; WSP; DepositScan; SnapCard (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-84156-0_13

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