EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN

AGRICULTURE

Chapter 1

Introduction of Automation

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

Introduction
• Explain about automation control & its
application in agriculture.
• Students will learn
– Automation control system
• Classification of automation
• Type of automation control system
• Limitation & benefits of automation in agriculture

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

What is Automation
• Automation is the use of machines, control systems
and information technologies to optimize
productivity in the production of goods and delivery
services.
• The correct incentive for applying automation is to
increase productivity, and/or quality beyond that
possible with current human labor levels so as to
realize economies of scale, and/or realize
predictable quality levels.
• The incorrect application of automation, which
occurs most often, is an effort to eliminate or
replace human labor.

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

• In the scope of industrialization, automation is

a step beyond mechanization.
• Whereas mechanization provides human
operators with machinery to assist them with
the muscular requirements of work.
• Automation greatly decreases the need for
human sensory and mental requirements
while increasing load capacity, speed, and
repeatability.
• Automation plays an increasingly important
role in the world economy and in daily
experience.

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE
Classification of automation
• a) Permanent/Fixed
Automation
- This control system is designed to
perform a specific task
- Functions of control circuit is fixed
and permanent.
- It will be complicated if we want to
do other task apart from the
existing task
EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE
• There Are Three (3) Types Of The Control System
Based On Supply :
a) Pneumatic Control System
b) Hydraulic Control System
c) Electrical Control System
 b) Programmable /Flexible
Automation
- Programmable automation or flexible
automation is a complex control system that
can perform several tasks
- Functions of control circuit programmed by
the user and can be modified.
- When the task to be performed by
machines changed, changes only need to be
done
by making modifications to the machine
control program.
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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

Comparison between Pneumatic, hydraulic and

electric control system
Pneumatic Control System Hydraulic Control System Electrical Control System

Easy installation Complex to assemble Simple system

Simple design Use fluid like oil as a supply Use electricity as a supply
source to perform task. source to perform task.

Use compressed air as a Potential leakage will lead to Widely use either for home
supply source to perform pollution. user or in industrial.
task.

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

Limitations to automation
• Current technology is unable to automate all the
desired tasks.
• As a process becomes increasingly automated,
there is less and less labor to be saved or quality
improvement to be gained. This is an example of
both diminishing returns and the logistic
function.
• Similar to the above, as more and more processes
become automated, there are fewer remaining
non-automated processes. This is an example of
exhaustion of opportunities.

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE
Benefits of Automation tools in
Agriculture
• Reduce human dependant (human errors)
• Performing tasks that are beyond human
capabilities of size, weight, speed, endurance,
etc.
• Economy improvement: Automation may
improve in economy of enterprises, society or
most of humanity. Reduces operation time
and work handling time significantly.

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

• So, scientists identified importance of

agriculture, tried to adopt automation in
agriculture system. The benefits of tools of
automation used in agriculture are:
– These tools are trying to make agriculture process
more flexible and faster.
– These tools are helping to increase productivity
with low expenditure and trying to reduce human
efforts.

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

• These tools of automation are changing

mechanism and methods of agriculture like
deep irrigation methods, horticulture methods,
automated agriculture system.
• The system is also monitoring, providing
resources in agriculture field like temperature,
water supplying, oxygen levels.
• The tools are also helpful to save productivity of
agriculture in different systems like different
food storage grindings.

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

• The tools of automation is increasing

marketing areas by establishing better
communication system. Ultimately, the result
is more profits.
• The automation tools for agriculture is trying
to increasing productivity with quality to fulfill
the needs of all human beings in the world.

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

BEFORE AUTOMATION AND

MECHANIZATION

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

Self assessment:
• Describe three application of automation in
agriculture…

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EAB 2604: AUTOMATION IN AGRICULTURE

Summary
• Students have learned
– Definition, limitation and benefit of automation in
agriculture
– Comparison between the three types of control
system

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