Rice Cultivation Support System Equipped with Water-level Sensor System

Farmers are aging in Japan. They must pass along their wisdom to the future generations to protect the safety of own food. Currently, research on the cultivation management of using a field server has been made widely conducted. Traditions that leverage the data obtained from a field server is considered to be an effective technology. As system that utilizes a field server is proposed (Fujitsu 2015, Vegetalia 2015, Norio 2011). Fujitsu’s Akisai (Fujitsu 2015) and e-kakashi (Norio 2011) do not equip water-level sensor that used in rice field management because these are multipurpose agricultural management system. Paddy Watch (Vegetalia 2015) equips water-level sensor, but it cannot take a photos of the rice field and transmit them. The growing management of rice is required to the leaf color and the height of rice plant such as image analysis, but it is difficult to manage only by the sensor. In addition, water-level is a vital part of any rice field management, thus, it must be adjusted carefully. Furthermore, those systems request an access fee to networks because those systems use a 3G network. Therefore, we made a rice cultivation support system utilizing the field server operated by a mobile battery, equipped with a camera, and uses free local networks. Moreover, we made a water-level sensor system which works directly with a field server. We created a movable field server because a big one becomes a hindrance to the farm work. The data which is acquired from a field server and a water-level sensor system is uploaded to the web server automatically. Therefore, we have created a web page which can see the data and create a diary. The field server has been field tested outdoor. Results, confirm the operation of the rice cultivation support system.