Redesigning dispenser component to enhance performance crop-dusting agriculture drones

Abstract Agricultural drones are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) applied to farming in order to help increase crop production and improve farm efficiency. Crop-dusting drones are able to spray powdered fertilizer, pesticide, or insecticide on crops from the air, resulting in reduced costs and increased efficiency compared to traditional methods. The objective of this research work was to improve and enhance the performance of the crop-dusting process using agricultural drones. This research paper details the development of an improved storage container design and stabilized release mechanism for crop-dusting. To stabilise the release of payload when the drone is moving or swaying in the air, a gimbal mechanism was added to the release mechanism in which weights were used to produce constant downward force which balances the mechanism. Tests conducted on the prototype system showed that it performs as required. The stabilization tests show an improvement in accuracy of granule spread when using the stabilized release mechanism developed in this research work. As such, the wastage of fertilizers and pesticides can be reduced. The prototype system was also found to much more capable at carrying heavier loads for a longer period of time compared to current designs. Thus, using the prototype system developed for this research work, the size of storage container as well as the weight of fertilizer or pesticide granule payloads can be increased.