Digital Agriculture

Current Projects

Completed Projects

Sensor based irrigation control in potatoes

Some 25 percent of the German potato production is located in northeast Lower Saxony and uses intensive field irrigation. Can a new sensor system allow more efficient water use?

Multiple Sensor System concerning Soil Conservation

General assessments for the compaction sensitivity of soils are existing. The machine driver needs information about the actual compaction sensitivity of his fields for a soil conservativetrafficking, which by means of modern sensors has to be considered.

site adapted soil tillage

Intensive soil tillage systems provide a low topsoil protection and lead to a strong soil loosening. This increases the danger of silting, soil erosion and soil compaction. The loosening depth effects the degree of soil cover, the infiltration through aeration and load bearing capacity of the soil.

optimized climate farm

Regarding climate change, agriculture is both causer and aggrieved party. Heavy rainfall and extended dry periods make the calculation of plant available nutrients more difficult. Nitrogen, not used by plants, accelerates the climate change.

Contactless measurement methods for crop production

How can crop growth and crop stress be measured on the field? Will the future farmer be able to monitor the growth and state of his crop online from at home? We are working for a digital farming future. We are developing contactless measurement methods for crops on the field.

Phaenokopter

Remote sensing assessment of drought and heat tolerance of wheat genotypes at selection sites with accompanying studies on rooting depth, root morphology and water balance

Farmers as Water Managers in a Changing Climate

In the past decades the goal of research and industry was to distribute water as evenly as possible with irrigation technology. With the current knowledge regarding soil heterogeneity and increasing field sizes in East Germany to around 50 ha irrigated with one machine, the need for partial area specific water distribution become evident.

Soil protection in highly mechanized timber harvest

In modern highly mechanized timber harvesting, vehicle mass has been steadily increasing for decades. Heavy vehicles increase the performance of logging and make it possible to meet the growing demand for wood. Due to the increasing days of use, however, unfavorable soil conditions can impair soil functions. How does this affect, and what are the solution strategies for a soil-conserving timber harvest?

Assistence Systems for Intelligent Cattle Husbandary - "CattleHub"

Digitalisation and automation are of increasing importance in modern cattle farming. The “CattleHub” experimental field is intended to support the interdisciplinary development and establishment of assistance systems for all cattle farming. For this reason, digital technologies and sensors are examined and evaluated in six experimental areas. The results will be used to improve decision-making and animal welfare when using digital assistance systems.

Automated data recording at livestock farming

Automated data recording at livestock farming enabels continuous online assessment of animal-related data, climate / environment data and construction data. To get an overview of the different systems on the market, a database is created, with which the systems are recorded and characterized in their functionality.

Networking and Transfer Project for Digitalization in Agriculture

The large number of research activities in the field of digitalization in agriculture initiated by the Federal Government within the last few years are evaluated in this project, involved researcher are networked with each other and the results are prepared, evaluated and published.

Automated Pig Localization in Pigsties

The current localization of pigs in pigsties can be done manually by animal observations, in a limited scope by RFID transponders or by video analysis, whereby the recognition of individual animals are problematic.

DigiSchwein

Cross innovation and digitisation in animal-friendly pig farming, taking into account the protection of resources - "DigiSchwein" advise, qualify and promote

Indikators for animal welfare - Fattening pigs

Since February 2014, livestock farmers in Germany have a legal obligation to carry out an internal company audit. Legislation requires the collection and assessment of "suitable animal-related characteristics" (animal welfare indicators)" in this context in § 11 (8) of the animal welfare act. (TierSchG, 2006), without giving details of their content, size and frequency of collection.