Smart irrigation technology saves water and cuts costs
Every day, across millions of private gardens, golf courses and municipal parks, lawns are being irrigated. This adds up to a massive amount of water consumption, which is placing huge economic and environmental pressure on the planet. “Maintaining green areas has been shown to have a positive effect on the environment and on our well-being,” notes RAINOLVE(opens in new window) project coordinator Anna Stiatti from Rain(opens in new window) in Italy. “At the same time though, these green areas need to be continually watered in order to survive.” The key here is to provide just the right amount of water, to maximise growth while preserving as much as possible this precious natural resource. This however can be a challenge. “Different kinds of parameters and variables need to be taken into consideration,” explains Stiatti. “These include orientation, humidity, weather forecasts and the kind of soil and vegetation on the ground. Combining all this data to arrive at the minimum amount of water you need can be very complex.”
Smart irrigation technology
The RAINOLVE project sought to address this challenge through the application of smart technology. “Our project began with a simple question: how can we better control lawn irrigation in, say, a private garden?” says Stiatti. “We felt that existing irrigation programmes didn’t fully take into account the needs of vegetation.” So, the project team set about developing an intelligent system to enable the right amount of water to be fed to grass and plants, at the right time. A prototype irrigation controller comprising multiple ground sensors was built. These sensors are linked to an intelligent cloud-based platform with a vast botanical and agronomical(opens in new window) database. This is used to automatically calculate and verify the exact water, fertiliser and light needs for each area of the garden. In effect, the system is able to build up a physiological profile of any given green space. Sensors can also alert users about adverse weather conditions, and warn about the possibility of contracting fungus when plants are exposed to specific moisture, temperature and light. “We also developed the system to be energetically self-sufficient; that is to say, it can be powered by the sun, or even by hydropower,” she adds. “This is more environmentally friendly, and important if we consider that electricity might not always be available on-site.”
Tapping market potential
Stiatti believes the new irrigation technology has huge market potential. “From an environmental point of view, we calculate that installing the RAINOLVE system can lead to a water saving of 250 litres per year per square metre of grass,” she says. “This would represent more than a 30 % water saving.” On the technical side, the team is currently working to make the system easier to use and to install, ahead of market launch. Work is also ongoing on the communication side. “Landscape irrigation is a very traditional market,” explains Stiatti. “It is not always easy to change people’s habits.” Nonetheless, the company is confident that their innovation will break into the irrigation market, which to date has been dominated by American firms. “This would be good for us, good for Europe and good for the planet,” concludes Stiatti.
