The global market for growth monitoring and forecasting of harvests in horticulture is estimated at 45 billion euros. This pertains to the costs of scouting crops, but especially the costs of damage to crops or an incorrect harvest forecast. These are reasons that growers need effective systems to monitor their crops, making every change in their crop visible. Corvus Drones was founded in 2019 and has won many international innovation awards, including the Greentech Amsterdam Innovation Award and the TU Delft International Micro Air Vehicle. The first application was monitoring seed germination at breeders and young plant growers. The number of applications has since expanded considerably, including growth, flowering, inventory management, and irrigation inspection. The Corvus Drones team consists of 10 people, and the drones operate in more than 15 countries worldwide.
At Greentech Amsterdam, the E13 drone version is introduced. This drone has a lower weight of only 300 grams and the flight time is 50% longer. This means that the drone can scan a larger area in a shorter time, making the application more cost-effective. The drone takes off from the charging station, and after landing, the plant dataset is automatically sent to the Corvus Cloud. In near real-time (within 30-60 minutes), the user automatically receives the report with crop information by email or in the online dashboard.
The development of applications takes place in collaboration with growers, suppliers, or computer vision partners. A good example is the applications for lettuce (hydroponic), which are used by many growers in various countries. A supplier approached Corvus Drones with the request to detect the so-called 'misaligned gutters.' In addition to this application, the drone monitors the growth of seeds to sale.
In potted plant cultivation, detection of Fusarium and thrips has been developed through collaboration with leading orchid producers. The next step is monitoring growth, finding crop abnormalities, or providing insight into the stage of maturity. This provides insight into the saleable stock of plants in the greenhouse. Incidentally, this is an application for which there is broad interest within the sector.
Corvus Drones focuses on drone data collection in greenhouse horticulture. The drone images are analyzed by various computer vision partners. Reporting to growers is done via the Corvus Cloud to deliver an end-to-end solution. Track32, Agri Data Innovations (ADI), Pheno-Inspect, and Grower Adviser are renowned partners of Corvus Drones.
Corvus Drones will be exhibiting at Greentech Amsterdam and will provide live drone demonstrations at stand 05.523.
For more information:
Corvus Drones
www.corvusdrones.eu