About this Research Topic

Background

As a highly intelligent and efficient auto spraying machine, aerial application of plant protection UAV has been developing exponentially in recent years. However, new technologies used in plant protection UAV need comprehensive assessment. Most of the UAV application research is statistical but not analytical, and the mechanism of chemical generation and movement outside/inside crop canopy was still unclear.

This topic is organised to hold in-depth research on new technologies for the plant protection UAV application, including remote sensing, chemical spraying, application planning, pest management and accurate spray control. The mainly focused study could help to explore new theories, develop advanced technologies and optimize the UAV application in crop pest, disease and weed control.


Advanced technologies of UAV application aim to control crop pests, diseases and weeds through the use of new models, methods, and equipment.
(1) To improve the application quality and efficiency of the plant protection UAV.
(2) To minimise or eliminate the use of chemicals through physical and biological control.
(3) To make clear the chemical characteristic, formation, and moving dynamics in UAV application.

This theme focuses mainly on (among others): target detection, application planning, spray control method, pest and plant management, and new sensing technologies used in UAV applications.


We welcome submissions on the following subthemes but are not limited to:

• Advanced technology and equipment used in plant protection UAV for precision agriculture, such as targeted spray technology, target detection and classification, smart application planning and navigation, etc.
• New technology of experiment for chemical and adjuvant characteristics, droplet formation, and droplet moving dynamics outside/inside crop canopy.
• Experimental and numerical model for UAV spraying drift and relevant drift control method, and model-driven UAV design optimization.
• UAV remote sensing technologies including hyper-spectrum, multi-spectrum, near-infrared spectrum, visible light and relevant data processing methods.
• Pest management research based on UAV, including insect recognition, plant management, and environmental toxicity of pesticides.
• Other new sensing technologies related to UAV applications such as LiDAR, ultrasonic sensors, electronic deposition sampling sensors, fluorescence detection methods, etc.

Keywords: plant protection UAV, chemical spraying, spraying drift control, UAV remote sensing, precision agriculture, pest management

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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