New Trends in Distributed and Autonomous Intelligent Systems for Crop Production

About this Research Topic

Background

Recently, the capabilities of intelligent systems designed for crop protection and production have been empowered by the remarkable and extensive development of large language models (LLMs), such as the intelligent Internet of Things (IIoTs) and drones. The superior performance of LLMs in content generating has provided these systems with novel opportunities for fine-grained, autonomous and seamless operation. For example, drones equipped with LLMs can cooperate with each other and adaptively generate plans for pest investigation over a wide range of cropland, which can significantly raise the efficiency for crop protection by saving human labor. Additionally, the distributed irrigation system can gather and process multi-modal sensing data from IIoTs to create highly precise watering schedules. Upon the emergence of such distributed and autonomous functionalities, there is a trend in exploring novel designs and solutions for intelligent systems that will renew and facilitate crop protection and production across all stages, including sowing, irrigation, fertilizing, and harvesting. In essence, these advanced intelligent systems aim to offer a thorough and detailed understanding of crop status in a distributed and autonomous manner.

Meanwhile, the procedure of crop protection and production is expecting advanced and tailored AI technologies beyond current solutions. The requirements cover multiple components like pest investigation where images of crops should be accurately analyzed and aligned to create the overall situation for destruction. In this case, the advanced AI models for image detection towards dense and small objects, and intelligent and adaptive coordinating models for information aggregation are both pivotal. The distributed intelligent systems should also benefit crop production with timely awareness of changing conditions in soil and environment, such as the trend of decreasing humidity and temperature. This enables autonomous irrigation, greenhouse or fertilizing systems can react quickly and accurately through intelligent and fine-grained control proactively. Moreover, LLM is supposed to be added into all these components to provide seamless interactions and self-governing operations. Considering these opportunities and challenges, novel techniques in AI methods should be jointly considered and extensively investigated for the intelligent systems for crop protection and production.

This Research Topic collects new developments in various techniques tied with intelligent systems in crop protection and production, including pre-training models, IoTs, wireless communications, secure data sharing, LLMs on the edge and so on. These studies will contribute to the continuous development of intelligent systems that can adopt LLMs seamlessly for crop production. We also hope this research topic will form a forum that inspires researchers and scholars to share their innovative ideas in realizing the full potential of AI for Agriculture.

We welcome (but are not limited to) original research and reviews related to the distributed and autonomous intelligent systems for crop protection and production:
• Intelligent Internet of Things for crop monitoring
• LLM and Pre-trained models on edges for autonomous crop production
• Lightweighted AI models for quick pest investigation
• Multimedia data processing models for enhanced situation awareness in crop protection
• Distributed decision-making methods for efficient crop management
• Data sharing and communication among distributed devices for crop protection and production
• Reliable, accountable and secure data sharing for safe production through intelligent systems
• Innovative AI methods to enhance sustainability in crop production

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Data Report
• Editorial
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Data Report
• Editorial
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: artificial intelligence, intelligent systems, Internet of Things, communication, Crop protection and production

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.

Frequently asked questions

• What is a Research Topic?

  Frontiers' Research Topics are collaborative hubs built around an emerging theme.Defined, managed, and led by renowned researchers, they bring communities together around a shared area of interest to stimulate collaboration and innovation.

  Unlike section journals, which serve established specialty communities, Research Topics are pioneer hubs, responding to the evolving scientific landscape and catering to new communities.

• Why does Frontiers publish Research Topics? 

  The goal of Frontiers' publishing program is to empower research communities to actively steer the course of scientific publishing. Our program was implemented as a three-part unit with fixed field journals, flexible specialty sections, and dynamically emerging Research Topics, connecting communities of different sizes and maturity.

  Research Topics originate from the scientific community. Many of our Research Topics are suggested by existing editorial board members who have identified critical challenges or areas of interest in their field.

• Why are Research Topics important for journals?

  As an editor, Research Topics will help you build your journal, as well as your community, around emerging, cutting-edge research. As research trailblazers, Research Topics attract high-quality submissions from leading experts all over the world.

  A thriving Research Topic can potentially evolve into a new specialty section if there is sustained interest and a growing community around it.

• How do we ensure the quality of articles within Research Topics?

  Each Research Topic must be approved by the specialty chief editor, and it falls under the editorial oversight of our editorial boards, supported by our in-house research integrity team. The same standards and rigorous peer review processes apply to articles published as part of a Research Topic as for any other article we publish.

  In 2023, 80% of the Research Topics we published were edited or co-edited by our editorial board members, who are already familiar with their journal's scope, ethos, and publishing model. All other topics are guest edited by leaders in their field, each vetted and formally approved by the specialty chief editor.

• What are the benefits of publishing my article in a Research Topic?

  Publishing your article within a Research Topic with other related articles increases its discoverability and visibility, which can lead to more views, downloads, and citations. Research Topics grow dynamically as more published articles are added, causing frequent revisiting, and further visibility.

  As Research Topics are multidisciplinary, they are cross-listed in several fields and section journals – increasing your reach even more and giving you the chance to expand your network and collaborate with researchers in different fields, all focusing on expanding knowledge around the same important topic.

  Our larger Research Topics are also converted into ebooks and receive social media promotion from our digital marketing team.

   
• What types of articles can be published in a Research Topic?

  Frontiers offers multiple article types, but it will depend on the field and section journals in which the Research Topic will be featured. The available article types for a Research Topic will appear in the drop-down menu during the submission process.

  Check available article types here 

• Can I suggest a new Research Topic? 

  Yes, we would love to hear your ideas for a topic. Most of our Research Topics are community-led and suggested by researchers in the field. Our in-house editorial team will contact you to talk about your idea and whether you’d like to edit the topic. If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. 

  Suggest your topic here 

• Who leads a Research Topic? 

  A team of guest editors (called topic editors) lead their Research Topic. This editorial team oversees the entire process, from the initial topic proposal to calls for participation, the peer review, and final publications.

  The team may also include topic coordinators, who help the topic editors send calls for participation, liaise with topic editors on abstracts, and support contributing authors. In some cases, they can also be assigned as reviewers.

• What is the role of a topic editor?

  As a topic editor (TE), you will take the lead on all editorial decisions for the Research Topic, starting with defining its scope. This allows you to curate research around a topic that interests you, bring together different perspectives from leading researchers across different fields and shape the future of your field. 

   

  You will choose your team of co-editors, curate a list of potential authors, send calls for participation and oversee the peer review process, accepting or recommending rejection for each manuscript submitted.

• What support will I receive when editing a new Research Topic? 

  As a topic editor, you're supported at every stage by our in-house team. You will be assigned a single point of contact to help you on both editorial and technical matters. Your topic is managed through our user-friendly online platform, and the peer review process is supported by our industry-first AI review assistant (AIRA).

• As a junior researcher, can I be involved in editing a Research Topic? 

  If you’re an early-stage researcher, we will offer you the opportunity to coordinate your topic, with the support of a senior researcher as the topic editor. This provides you with valuable editorial experience, improving your ability to critically evaluate research articles and enhancing your understanding of the quality standards and requirements for scientific publishing, as well as the opportunity to discover new research in your field, and expand your professional network.

• Can I get a certificate for editing a Research Topic?

  Yes, certificates can be issued on request. We are happy to provide a certificate for your contribution to editing a successful Research Topic.

• Who will I collaborate with?

  Research Topics thrive on collaboration and their multi-disciplinary approach around emerging, cutting-edge themes, attract leading researchers from all over the world.

• How long does it take to publish a Research Topic?

  As a topic editor, you can set the timeline for your Research Topic, and we will work with you at your pace. Typically, Research Topics are online and open for submissions within a few weeks and remain open for participation for 6 – 12 months. Individual articles within a Research Topic are published as soon as they are ready.

  Find out more about our Research Topics

• What fee support is available to authors publishing in a Research Topic?

  Our fee support program ensures that all articles that pass peer review, including those published in Research Topics, can benefit from open access – regardless of the author's field or funding situation.

  Authors and institutions with insufficient funding can apply for a discount on their publishing fees. A fee support application form is available on our website.

• Will there be a printed version of my Research Topic?

  In line with our mission to promote healthy lives on a healthy planet, we do not provide printed materials. All our articles and ebooks are available under a CC-BY license, so you can share and print copies.