At CES Las Vegas, Iridesense has unveiled the first 3D multispectral light detection and ranging (lidar) sensor capable of analyzing plant health and soil humidity levels remotely in real time. This new applicationaims to improve crop yields and resource management by optimizing irrigation, water and pesticides consumption. Other applications include industrial quality control, non-destructive monitoring of infrastructures, and forest management.

Being the first such device in the world according to the company, it is the first sensor to potentially enable such remote measurement, allowing outdoor usage in all types of weather or lighting conditions. Its 3D imagery also allows to monitor plant growth.
 
This will allow the company to offer farmers a robust perception solution for optimizing water and pesticides supply, monitoring tree growth and health in orchards and other agricultural operations. In the long-term, it will potentially save millions of liters of water and pesticides annually in the US alone, by improving water allocation between different actors, all while providing farmers with the means to monitor and steer their operations in an objective manner.
 
In collaboration with GeoCue, a leading US-based actor in 3D lidar mapping, Iridesense will soon deploy this technology in Brazil, where the sensors will be used to monitor plantations health. The device will identify dead or weak plants, enabling farmers to replace them as quickly as possible. According to Frank Darmayan, CEO of GeoCue, Iridesense’s ability to add multispectral information to the point cloud allows users to get an entire new range of intelligence out of their 3D maps.
 
“Our lidar sensor provides a groundbreaking solution for controlling and managing the management of natural resources, helping plants and other materials alike ‘communicate’ with those working on them. Our sensors could be fit as standard on agricultural machinery in the future, to understand and react to the needs of plants in real time,” explains Iridesense CEO Nadine Buard.

Prior to this sensor, no technology could measure plants health, or soil moisture levels in outdoor conditions without resorting to sampling. Alternative technologies can only detect these factors at a distance of 1.5 meters, and fail to work outdoors or in environments where lighting cannot be controlled.