Project Grant 2226612

This $250,000 project grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Information and Intelligent Systems, under the Computer and Information Science and Engineering program (CFDA 47.070), will fund the development of a multi-modal integrated sensor system and through-the-soil wireless power transmission technique for continuous, real-time monitoring of soil variables over time and space. A collaboration between Tennessee Technological University, the University of Tennessee Knoxville, and SUNY Buffalo, the research aims to produce new knowledge and engineering techniques to enhance farmers' ability to make better crop management decisions. Specifically, the grant will support: 1) Developing a sensor probe network integrating chemically specific, sensitive sensors to detect soil gas analytes with conventional sensors for moisture, temperature and pH; and 2) Powering the sensor system using through-the-soil wireless energy transmission capable of supplying stable, uninterrupted power to sensors over wide areas without maintenance. Analysis of data collected from the wireless sensor network will build predictive algorithms to characterize soil health and inform critical growing decisions. The grant period is from October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2025.