Deploying camera drones and sprayers outfitted with the latest application technology onboard in a systems approach could end up being a key management strategy in helping farmers eradicate weeds.
That’s exactly what Sentera is hoping to achieve with its SmartScripts Weeds program (formerly Aerial WeedScout), which is heading into year two of commercial trials. The tech-enabled crop protection workflow combines drone scouting flights, AI-based image processing, and selective spraying technologies to help farmers “get to the answers faster” in their spray programs.
Here’s how it works: A farmer or agronomist requests early-season drone scans. A certified drone pilot then flies the fields using a drone equipped with Sentera’s specialized payload, featuring a 130MP camera array and high-precision geolocation tools. This imaging system, combined with AI-powered analysis in Sentera’s FieldAgent platform, bypasses the slow, traditional workflows of image stitching and data processing— Sentera says it delivers insights faster and more efficiently.
The product that comes out is a georeferenced, digital weed map and prescription that identifies which weeds are present in your fields (today the system can ID 5 weed species and grasses at ¼ of an inch in size), how tall those weeds are, and GPS coordinates for where the weed pressure is greatest. The system delivers a targeted spray prescription (usually within 24 hours of the flight) based on the weed types present.
The digital weed map is then uploaded into a sprayer’s in-cab computer as a shape file. Now the sprayer knows where it needs to start spraying for weeds and putting on higher rates. The system recommends different application rates based on weed height.
“It’s a ‘know-before-you-go’ approach to weed management,” says Joe Walsh, chief growth officer, Sentera. “Now the farmer can know exactly which fields to go to first and prioritize for spraying, and the retailer will know how much herbicide the farmer’s going to need and where to send it.”
Last summer, Sentera ran field trials on 13,000 soybean acres throughout the Midwest. Overall, it saw an average of 70% in savings on post emergence weed management programs. But 13,000 acres is not a significant sample size, so this summer the company is working with farmers to use the system across more production acres, including in corn fields.
While many in ag have criticized drone technology for lacking a practical application within row crop farming, Sentera founder and CTO Eric Taipale says this new workflow is potentially the technologies’ perfect fit.
“A drone is a great way to know more, to know faster and to know completely what is going on in a field, it’s a great immediate data tool,” he says.
While it’s still too early to know what the final, commercialized version will look like, Taipale did share a few details from his perspective:
- The drones Sentera will use for the program will feature Sentera’s 130-megapixel, multispectral sensing payload.
- The workflow is showing promise in combination with ground-rig selective spraying technologies like John Deere’s See & Spray and CNH’s recently announced IntelliSense platform, although the sprayer doesn’t require those technologies to use the workflow. It does need to have section or nozzle control.
- Pricing is still being worked out, but it looks like the program will charge a per-acre fee that will land somewhere in the ballpark of $6 to $9 per acre. Taipale says this TBD pricing proposal came about as the result of direct farmer feedback from last year’s trials.
“The days of just spraying glyphosate across an entire field and it takes care of all the weeds are unfortunately over,” Taipale says. “We’re really excited about SmartScripts and using drones and AI to help farmers get to the answer faster. Nobody likes weeds and we certainly don’t either.”
Adds Walsh: “Farmers are who we must provide value to, so the primary market for this will be the Corn Belt. When we look at the market overall, 400 million acres across the U.S. had herbicide applied over them last year. That’s a lot of room for opportunity and to help farmers save some money on their crop protection program.”
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