Mealybug and other plant viruses on crops can have devastating effects on the quality and quantity of agricultural produce, but agricultural technology company Aerobotics offers solutions for virus management and crop protection using drones and AI technology. One way in which it does so, is by dropping beneficial insects that target harmful insects, through its SkyBugs product.

This is one of the latest innovative products launched by Aerobotics, which offers farmers an effective method of spreading beneficial insects over large areas, says Aerobotics mapping operations head Matt Davis.

The drones used by SkyBugs – unlike the traditional, laborious process of hanging insect release tubes in certain areas of the orchards – are more innovative, efficient and effective, as they can ensure a more even spread of insects across up to 250 ha of land in a more timeous manner.

How It Works

Firstly, a drone flight plan is created, outlining the specific area that must be covered and indicating where insects should be dropped.

Insects are then loaded into a “cassette” that is placed into an insect release device, known as the payload, which is attached to the drone, says Davis, adding that “after the payload is secured, the automated flight plan is transmitted to the drone”.

The drone takes off to its first waypoint, having received the flight instructions, after which the drone pilot triggers the release of insects over the demarcated locations using the designated app.

“The drone continues to follow the predefined flight path autonomously, ensuring even distribution of the beneficial insects over the selected area.”

He adds that all the insects are released in their pupa stages, when they are close to hatching, as this allows for their emerging promptly to target the mealybugs.

Aerobotics and Accolades

As testament to Aerobotics’s end-goal of protecting and maintaining farmers’ crops using digital innovations, the company has been lauded for its solutions – having implemented its integrated pest management programme, along with Fieldbugs, at the Vergelegen Wine Estate in Somerset West, in the Western Cape.

The estate required a solution that protected grapes from the leafroll virus and improved its sustainability by reducing pesticide use at its vineyards, making SkyBugs “the ideal offering”.

“Over the past five years, Vergelegen’s . . . programme has successfully reduced mealybug infestations to below 1%. SkyBugs drone releases now help maintain this low infestation level and prevent the spread of leafroll virus by ensuring [the] timely and even distribution of beneficial insects before female mealybugs appear in the vines,” Davis explains.

Aerobotics works with a large number of growers across 18 countries, providing operational solutions – such as drone scanning, insurance, yield-related solutions and SkyBugs products – that improve farming processes.

The company has also launched its TrueFruit product, which incorporates smart phone imagery and machine learning to accurately measure the size, grade, colour and quality of a fruit, to enable better forecasting and estimation for growers.

“TrueFruit by Aerobotics serves as the ultimate hub for gathering and analysing precise fruit data, empowering both growers and marketers to make the clearest decisions possible,” he avers.

While Aerobotics is solely focused on agriculture, there are exciting use cases for mining, such as prospecting using magnetic sensors, monitoring operations, and measuring stockpiles.

He underscores the success of the integrated pest management programme and SkyBugs, noting that the latter has grown by 250% over the past year, and that Aerobotics hopes to expand on this growth by increasing its client base and developing innovative product offerings for the pest control of various crops.

“The future looks incredibly promising, driven by advancements in AI, automation and sensor technology. I think we have only grazed the surface of what drones can do. With AI, improved battery life and enhanced regulatory frameworks, drones will become even more autonomous and widely adopted,” Davis enthuses.