R+D+i: HUMIFITO® Phytosanitary Programmer
This project consists of the development of a controller whose main feature is the reduction of occupational risks and the farm-worker’s well-being when working inside the greenhouse.
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A controller has been developed that is able to manage a humidity system and a phytosanitary treatment system, in a stand-alone and intelligent manner. This management element mainly seeks the following objectives:
1.- To inhibit the exposure of the operative to phytosanitary products.
2.- To improve environmental conditions inside the greenhouse.
3.- To reduce the emission of phytosanitary products inside the greenhouse as much as possible.
With this we seek to improve the farm worker's occupational conditions and achieve better environmental management in relation with the need to use phytosanitary products.
Impact on Agriculture:
The development of the new controller will give result in the following changes in agriculture:
- Decrease of the toxic gas emissions into the atmosphere due to the automated control of the treatment system.
- Improved occupational safety for the agricultural worker, because the operative will not be present when the phytosanitary treatments are being carried out. With the use of the new controller this operation will be carried out automatically and during night hours, thereby increasing its effectiveness.
- Reduction in the agricultural production costs for two reasons: the operation of phytosanitary treatments does not require manpower, and the cost of the humidity system and the treatment system is considerably diminished, since they become a single system.
Innovations:
The most important functional and technological innovations in the project will be the following:
- Automatic control of the phytosanitary treatments and of the humidity system.
- Control of toxic gas emissions into the atmosphere, to preserve the environment. At the moment, in spite of signifying a much smaller surface area, greenhouse cultivation involves major phytosanitary product emissions into the surroundings due to the greater number of treatments, since in these a favourable microclimate is produced for the development of pests and disease.
- Automatic control of treatment dosages, reducing toxic gas emissions into the atmosphere.
