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The Agricultural Machinery Unit (UMA) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) participated in the CULTISENSOR project to design, manufacture and validate a sensing subsoiler prototype for soil decompaction. This instrument allows mapping and interpretation of the physical conditions of soil when fieldwork activities are being carried out.
The prototype has a platform to capture data so that the information collected in the field can be centralised and operations traced.
The goal was to digitalise a subsoiler, an agricultural tool capable of breaking and aerating the subsoil without overturning the topsoil layer. A subsoiler is valuable for working in areas where the soil is more compacted due to the constant passage of heavy machinery or because of natural processes. Digitalisation provides electronic control and enables mapping of the soil resistance, which is expected to be related to its compaction. Installing a pressure sensor allows variations in the oil pressure of the subsoiler's hydraulic pistons to be collected. These variations can be monitored by taking geolocated records second by second, which indirectly provides a map of the soil's resistance to advancement.
Consortium, budget and financing
The project was led by the FEMAC Cluster, with the collaboration of the INNOVI Cluster. It involved companies from the FEMAC cluster, WAATIC Company SL, JYMPA FUTURAGRO SL and AKIS INTERNATIONAL SL as developers of the technological solution, and the EUDALD MASSANA winery as an end user.
The project started in May 2023 and finished in April 2024. It was financed with funds from the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan (Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism), within Support for Innovative Business Associations Grants, aimed at increasing the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises. The budget was 19,361 euros.
Related Projects
- A team from the e-PLASCOM and eb-POLICOM research groups, alongside the Barcelona Research Center in Multiscale Science and Engineering (CCEM) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), is involved in the EcoPolyRub project in partnership with the Centre Català del Plàstic (CCP). The initiative aims to create innovative elastomeric materials based on recycled tyre rubber, enhanced recycled plastics, and natural rubber for high-performance mechanical and thermal applications.
- Un equip de recerca de la UPC, integrat pel CommSensLab-UPC i el Remote Sensing Lab (RSLAB) de la Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), juntament amb l’Institut d’Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (IEEC), ha participat en el projecte AI4EO, amb l’objectiu d’impulsar solucions i posar en pràctica eines d’intel·ligència artificial aplicades a dades d’observació de la Terra en diversos casos d’ús sobre el territori català.
- The e-PLASCOM research group at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) is developing a solution based on biodegradable sodium alginate and gelatin aerogels for the purification of non-potable water and desalination using solar energy.
- A research team from the Group of Environmental Engineering and Microbiology (GEMMA), and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), has collaborated with Raimat on the development of an innovative water treatment system based on natural processes, requiring minimal, almost zero, energy consumption and generating no waste. The project has enabled the Lleida winery to take another step in its sustainability strategy and improve its environmental efficiency through the creation of wetlands in the middle of its vineyards, purifying 80,000 litres of water per day while also enhancing the biodiversity of the surrounding area.
