Utility and Caveats of Sensing and Data Science for Smartification of Crop Production–Remote Sensing, AI, Big Data, and Phenotyping–

Abstract

Present climate and socioeconomic issues threaten global food and environmental security. The weakening situation of domestic agriculture in Japan is also seriously concerned. Smart farming based on advances in sensing, robotics, and information and communication technologies is one of the most promising approaches to support efficient, sustainable, and profitable crop production. This paper reviews the need for smart farming and the state-of-the-art in the related research fields such as satellite- and drone-based remote sensing, machine learning, and phenotyping. The caveats, as well as the potential of these technologies, are discussed in detail towards further advances in the technoscience in crop production and their efficient implementation in smart farming.