Project Report of

Sustainable Agricultural Pest Early

Eradication and Detection System
(SAPEEDS)

Submission for the Ideathon IoT competition as part of Innovamind event by SLTC and
IEEE branch

by
Purusothman Murasolimaran

from
Agrarian Revolyutsionery
Problem addressed in project

Agriculture is one of the main sources of income for over 30% of local population while paddy being the most
widely cultivated crop in Sri Lanka occupying over 34% of total cultivated area with over 1.8 million families
engaged in paddy cultivation and over 6.5 million people in other crop productions in agriculture. Rice is also
a major staple food not only in Sri Lanka but in most of South Asian region providing 45% of total calorie
intake and 40% of protein requirement of an average Sri Lankan. Agriculture is an estimated 6 billion USD
industry yet in Sri Lanka and in South Asian region the usage of technology in the industry is very gradual
and slow moving due to the lack of proper training, low-income status of most farming households, insufficient
education and knowledge on handling technology, and various other reasons.[1][2]

Major problems in farming include but not limited to climate change, soil erosion, global economic factors,
lack of irrigation and mismanagement in dry zones, receding soil quality due to extended usage of
agrochemicals and pesticides, yield loss due to various factors, decrease in quality of crops, pests, invasive
species and animals, diseases etc

Among these challenges faced by farmers it was noticeable that multiple sources claim that globally from
34%-40% of agricultural yield is damaged by pests and diseases which is currently threatening global food
security and this is still a widely dealt issue in Sri Lanka as well. Major groups of organisms of greatest
importance as pests in agriculture are insects, mites, nematodes and gastropod molluscs. Among these
insects are the largest contributor to crop damage in 2 ways either by directly feeding on plants and
reducing the quality of crops or killing them or they cause damage indirectly by transmitting or allowing the
infections of viral, fungal, bacterial diseases crippling the crops. Although some insects are polyphagous
most insects target one specific type of crop or group of crops and notably most insects are short lived
compared to the larvae which emerge from the eggs the adults lay which feed on the plant from bottom up
thus the larvae of insectoid pests are more dangerous than the adults. Most if not all insects except for
mites are airborne and they typically infest farmlands in large groups during specific seasons and almost all
insects are nocturnal especially the moth families with an exception for grasshopper families[3] [4]

Following some research, it was possible to collect a list of common insectoid pests that significantly affect
paddy cultivation in Sri Lanka and South Asia,[5]

1. Rice stem borers

• Yellow stem borer (Scirpophaga incertulas (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae))
• White stem borer (Scirpophaga innotata (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae))
• Pink stem borer (Sesamia inferens (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae))
• Dark headed stem borer (Chilo polychrysus (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae))
• Striped stem borer (Chilo suppresallis (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae))
2. Rice Gall midge (Malena Bug) (Orseolia oryzae (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae))
3. Rice leaf folder/ Rice leaf Roller (Cnaphalocrocis medinalis (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)
1. Rice Armyworm/Rice Swarming Caterpillar (Spodoptera Mauritia (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae))
4. Rice Caseworm ( Nymphula depunctatis Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) )
5. Brown Planthopper (BPH)
6. Whitebacked Planthopper (WBPH) (Sogatella furcifera (Hemiptera: Delphacidae))
7. Zig-zagged Leafhopper (Recilia dorsalis (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae))

During rippening season

8. Rice Bugs (i.e Leptocorisa acuta (Hemiptera: Alydidae) )

9. Slender rice bug, paddy ears (Cletus trigonus (Hemiptera: Coreidae))
10. Rice Whorl Maggots (not in sri lanka but in philipines)

During Storage

11. Angoumois Grain Moth (Sitotroga cerealella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae))

12. Rice Moth (Corcyra cephalonica (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae))
2
Rice stem borers in common are considered to be the most serious rice pest as various species attack
crops from seedling stage to maturity regardless of geographical area, type of crop culture or eco system. It
is also worth noting that most if not all pests listed above are phototrophic; attracted to light.

Solution

Currently the most widely used pest control methods in not just paddy cultivation but all of crop agriculture
is using chemical pesticides, insect repellents, growth regulators and pheromones. Currently in Sri Lanka
the only viable solution farmers actively seek for the pesticide problem is to spray agrochemical-based
pesticides which have been associated with short term and long-term negative health effects related to
dermatological, gastrointestinal, neurological, carcinogenic, respiratory, reproductive, and endocrine issues.
Excessive usage of chemical pesticides is also infamous for damaging the environment through soil
surface water and ground water contamination, decline in soil fertility and destruction of beneficial
microorganisms and miniature eco systems, adverse effects on non-targeted organisms etc and the usage
of pheromone traps is not a one-size-fit-all solution as different insects require different pheromones and
this can be labor intensive and expensive. Thus, it is required to seek alternate methods that are eco-
friendly, affordable, sustainable and flexible too as well as being easy to maintain and preferably semi-
autonomous with little maintenance.

Light (in combination with flame) has been used as an organic method of pest control since ancient times
as our ancestors’ used torches and large oil lamps to attract most adult insectoids who are also as said
earlier phototrophic and nocturnal. This is a surefire way to ensure that the growth cycle of these pests is
interrupted too as their life cycle goes from flying insectoid adults who lay eggs in the fields where larvae
hatch and in turn damage and annihilate crops from bottom up to gain enough nutritional value to become
an adult after hibernating. Breaking this cycle on adult phase ensures that future generations won’t be
recurring and it wouldn’t be too late to manage the infestation without the use of agro-chemicals. This
traditional of light trap was dropped off due to lack of scalability, labor intensiveness, lack of safety and cost
of maintenance. But it is irrevocably the most effective and environmentally friendly way of controlling
insectoid pests in agriculture thus a modern-day system fitted with power sources, sensors, actuators and
micro controllers has been made into a solution creating a sustainable and farmer friendly system as a
long-term investment.

It is proven by research that insects especially nocturnal ones are attracted to UV light spectrum more than
white light or incandescent light. This is due to the fact that insects have compound eyes and ocelli and
their photoreceptors expand into the UV region which is invisible to human visible spectrum. It is possible
that insects perceive UV light as a unique color and can be attracted from over 30feet of the light source. It
is also proven by experiment that reflective yellow surface can attract diurnal pests which can be hard to
capture at night using artificial light source. [6] It is also proven by research that although insects are
attracted to UV light spectrum the most among all the other wavelengths 395nm wavelength attracts the
most of insects.

Armed with this knowledge there was an attempt made to create a prototype version of this concept using
COTS components and a few simple yet impactful innovative ideas such as implementing automation in the
re arming of the trap and introducing a camera module and object identification using deep learning
concepts to create a remote early warning system of pest infestations. My solution is envisioned to be a
easily producible yet disruptive technology that can save farmers their time, money, health and labor as
well as facilitate the transition into smart farming and technologically innovative agriculture.

3
How SAPEEDS Work

From what has been explained before the UV LED Light bulb is used to attract the phototrophic insects
towards the traps rather than towards the crops which they usually are attracted towards and as these
clueless adult insectoids swarm the light trap, they will eventually start falling into the water below in the
basin. The basin is also to be made in yellow color to encourage insects to sit on them as it is proven that
they are attracted towards reflective yellow-colored materials. As a consequence of getting wet by the
water or the neem oil which has a slightly higher density than water and tends to float on the surface
essentially burying the low-density chitin made wings of the insectoids disabling them and killing them. If
this naturally fails to happen the Grove Atomizer Module then starts spraying atomized neem oil
sporadically right below the light bulb wetting any insectoids caught in the cross fire and disabling them.
Since light pollution in rural areas of Sri Lanka is not yet an issue and farmlands are often not illuminated by
artificial light just one device placed in the middle of a farmland is enough to attract whole generations of
insectoids towards the UV light source which reaches farther away and can be perceived by these pests.

The device should only be operated from 5pm to around 9-10pm as this is the time herbivores pests come
to feed. After 10pm omnivorous or predatory insects come out to hunt the herbivores insects. Because of
this they are considered part of the beneficial eco system and should not be targeted as they help keep the
pest population in control. Thus, making the total operable time of the UV system to not more than 5 hours.

During the day time while the sun is out the solar panels charge the batteries storing power to run the MCU
on board and then the UV light in the night. Some binaural insects could still come and get trapped in the
system even in day light as the basin is in yellow color. This water and oil-based system is way easier to
clean and rearm than pheromone traps and sticky traps. It is also sustainable and easily acquirable and
cheap. Utilizing the rain catcher system sometimes farmers don’t even need to bother with refilling the
water and the neem oil bottle can last for a while as the atomizer sprays at a rate of 380ml/hour.

The onboard camera can also be used as a visual motion sensor to detect pest movement and alert the
farmer and spray atomized oil and it can also be used to capture images on frequent intervals store them
on the SD card and then send them to a backend server for ML and DL applications to help identify species
of insects. SAPEEDS is basically a self-powered, sustainable, smart agricultural insectoid pest terminator
that can re arm itself and need minimum human input and can be operated over the internet as an IoT
device as part of smart farming practices. It is an improved upon innovation on an already existing and
proven to be working solution for a very real 10,000 year old problem ever since agriculture began.

4
Hardware Selection

Since this project is still at the initial prototyping stage and due to time constraints, a hardware choice of
mostly COTS (Commercially Off The Shelf) available components have been used with the popular
prototyping platform of choice Arduino (Atmega328) used as the MCU and main processing system due to
its low power needs, flexibility and community support.

SMD5050 LED light strips were chosen for the 395nm UV light spectral light as compared to other models
such as SMD2385, 5050 is brighter, has 3 ports for R,G and B providing more flexibility with light
adjustment for different insectoid species.

SIM800L GSM/GPRS module was chosen as primary communication module considering the possible
remote application of the device and lack of access to ethernet or wifi or even 4G technologies.
GSM/GPRS is low in band with but suited for the intended usage and also low power consuming and
although slow can still establish connection to the internet.

Following the initial block diagram and logic flow other components were chosen based on ease of use,
power needs and bare minimum practicality as my main goal for this project was to make an impact with a
simple enough solution.

1. Arduino UNO R3
2. SIM800L GSM/GPRS Module
3. L298N Motor Driver
4. Nema 17 Stepper Motor
5. Grove Ultrasonic Atomizer Module
6. Sparkfun Water Level Sensor
7. 12V Submersible DC Pump
8. Led Light Made of SMD5050 12V LED RGB Strips (395-405nm)
9. 10W 21V Solar Panel
10. CN3791 Custom Designed Battery Charging Circuit
11. 18650 Rechargeable L i-ion Battery
12. 5V to 12V Step-up DC-DC Boost Converter
13. TTL VGA JPEG Camera/OV7670 Camera Module
14. Adafruit SD Card Module

5
Innovation
While same concept of solar powered light traps already exists in Indian and Chinese markets the solution
presented here differ from those existing products and have introduced innovation in two main ways.
They are
1. Automation of the trap.
2. Machine Learning Application and Pest detection system.

The existing products with similar concepts all have various issues from being manually operated leading
farmers to re arm the trap everyday by emptying the captured insects and refill and also having to manually
visit the farm field and switch on the attractive light. This can be labor intensive and time consuming and
counterproductive especially when dealing with large farmlands and also with current emerging challenges
such as ongoing pandemic and travel restrictions it is clear that this manual operation has to be replaced
with automation of the system.

Automation

This is the place where the concept of IoT has been introduced into this humble piece of technology to
make it a truly industrially automated workhouse by making use of IoT and automating certain events such
as emptying the trap and re arming it as well as switching on the UV LED light remotely or on a specific
routine inputted by the user. This creates a totally self-dependent system that can be controlled and
monitored remotely at the comfort of a farmers’ house leading to increased work productivity and positive
tendency for more farmers to move towards agricultural related technology starting from low impact
solutions such as this and slowly familiarize themselves.

The system is automated by utilizing core concepts of IoT technology. There are various actuators in the
device i.e a stepper motor, a submersible pump etc and various sensors such as the water level sensor a
camera module. Through the network of GSM technology an end user namely a farmer with the companion
app installed with the unique device ID can in turn control the system using the app. Routines can be set
through the app to be carried out at set times and the whole device can be switched off or switched on
through the application.

A bi-directional stepper motor is used to tilt the basin holding the water and captured insects to empty the
basic while the basin will be attached to the frame with a free moving bolt holding it firm. Once the basin
has been emptied then the 12V submersible DC pump will turn on pumping water from the water container
which is connected to the rain collector that is placed along the slope of the solar panel and into the basin
to refill and rearm the trap. Once this has been carried out now the trap is ready to be activated for the next
day. Dead insects are organic waste and food for birds and other helpful organisms in the micro biosystem.
On set time the UV LED Light can be turned on at a set time sending a command to the database which
will sync with the device built in clock and carry out the routine.

This process eliminates the need for human interaction with the device at least until the oil buttle empties
out or the water runs out without rain for extended periods of time. This can still be fixed by using a
solenoid valve to a water outlet to fill the water container with just the press of a button.

Application Layer

The companion app allows end users to connect to their owned devices through the backend server letting
them control their device every single actuator and sensor. The most beneficial part of the application
would be through the successful implementation of insectoid identification users will be able to visualize
data regarding pest infestations, the specific areas and the pattern of infestation effectively serving as an
early warning system through data analysis of regional and time line data. The app can also be integrated
with a weather API to let users know of the best time to go with spraying pesticides and also a common wiki
repository and a forum maybe to learn about modern pest management techniques and how to deal with
identified species of insectoids. The application layer will also serve as the remote to set routines as
mentioned earlier.

6
Machine Learning Applications

What sets this system different from already available solar light traps in the market is the presence of
automation and most importantly utilizing of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) concepts
as well as deep learning (DL) techniques to capture images of trapped insects using a CMOS camera
module and send them back to a back end server where the insects can be identified and plotted in a
grouping to detect infestations of various different species of insectoid pests especially in paddy cultivation.
This concept has already been researched upon but it is yet to be implemented and even then, the
proposed systems involve pheromone or sticky traps which need to be re armed manually every day and
can be expensive and time consuming to maintain.

The concept could be realized using fast RCNN (Region based Convolutional Neural Networks) and
ResNet (Residual Neural Network) unified object detection framework. By creating an insect image
database from either training the neural network with datasets and insect images by manually acquiring
them or through existing sources such as PestNet a DL based framework developed by University of
Sheffield [src] and using object detection algorithms such as SSD (Single Shot Detector) and YOLO (You
Only Look Once) and train the framework to count the number of insects or the system could be actively
trained by data fed from beta users of the product provided it is ever commercialized and using concepts
such as k mean color clustering and blob counting algorithm to count insects in the trap basin and fed back
to a remote server over the cloud or run on cloud on real time environment itself and trained by human ML
engineers to refine the framework and refine the CNN DL framework. An own image database could be
created from network of users and the system could be refined along the way by feeding more and more
data to increase accuracy. Such a refined system could totally eliminate the need for manual inspection
and surveillance of most insectoid pests allowing farmers to spread resources and time evenly across other
ventures while being more accurate, reliable and a continuous development battling the declining labor
volume in the agricultural industry and also leading to smarter and more effective decisions.

However, this ML DL based framework of detecting insectoids using a camera module is not devoid of its
own set of problems and challenges. Datasets and accuracy being the biggest challenges, there are also
other factors such as dynamic environment, object clustering, and extracting features from very small
objects such as insects using a low-resolution camera, and loss of features as the raw data goes through
multiple layers of feature extractor being the biggest concerns. Due to this dilemma, it is inevitable to have
a refined optimal feature extractor and detection algorithm. Deep learning algorithms especially RCNN and
ResNet could be trained keeping in check for overfitting and other issues in the training data which can lead
to lack of matches in real environment. There are also other outlining challenges in the form of bandwith
and bitrate of data transmission for this specific product as due to the remote nature of usage for this
system a standalone GSM/GPRS based communication module had to be used. GSM is merely in Mhz
range whereas there are faster technologies such as 4G but due to the budget limitations and to keep
things simple as well as power consumption low GSM module has been used but this issue can be easily
overcome by updating to 4G modules and larger power supply.

In conclusion with the combination of object detection, deep learning filtering algorithms and RCNN type
machine learning frameworks with an actively maintained database full of data sets and constant training
an ideal system can be achieved where insect species can be distinctively identified and used for decision
making purposes on the user end such as when to spray a specific pesticide or start preparing for pest
infestations or spread resources in a targeted manner etc. A simple CMOS camera like the OV7670
camera module in combination with a MCU like Raspberry Pi or Arduino is an excellent combination. This
sets this project uniquely different from existing products and being one of the major innovative steps in this
specific problem in the field of agriculture. The very nature of scalability of this idea to all agricultural
sectors with insectoid pest problem and on regional scales could help transition local agricultural industry
into smart agricultural age.

7
Power Budget

There are both 12V and 5V components in this project. The biggest consumer of power belongs to the UV
led light a main component of the trap that has to be switched on for roughly 4 hours straight.

Solar panel power production calculation

Solar panel watts x average hours of sunlight x solar panel efficiency = watt-hours production
Average hours of sunlight hours in Sri Lanka = 11 hrs

10𝑊 × 11ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠 × 75% = 0.0825 𝑘𝑊ℎ

SMD5050 power watts is 0.24w/Piece or 11.54W/meter burning at 12-15 lumens (12V DC)

50cm of SMD5050 = 5.77W

5.77𝑊
Current pulled by SMD5050 strip = = 0.4808 Amps Maximum no of usage hours =5 hours
12𝑣
Power consumption by SMD5050 = 5.77𝑊 × 5 = 28.85 𝑊ℎ = 0.02885𝑘𝑊ℎ
Power consumption in Amp hours = 28.85Wh/12V = 2.4042-amp hours

18650 Li-ion battery Amp hours = 2.6 Ah, thus at least 2 x 18650 3.7v 2550mAh cells are needed to power
the system.

Scalability

Currently the product is at prototyping stage thus it’s design and cost of production are yet to be optimized
but comparatively to consistent purchasing and usage of agro chemicals this product can last a lot longer
thus being an economically viable and widely implementable solution.

There is a strong market demand for agro-IoT devices like these directly to even small-scale farmers and
going for mass production with an in house designed PCB with better framework and cheaper components
will make this a profitable venture

Along with this the system can be used in pair with other existing agro-tech solutions such as autonomous
pesticide spraying drones, NDVI analysis using IR cameras, integration of weather API and statistical
analysis to determine best time to spray pesticides are just a few of scalable ideas

protocols used now are POP3 and SMTP to send pictures but with more expensive broadband boards
HTTPS or even MQTT protocols could be used

8
Budget Estimate

Component Name Qty Price (LKR) Link

1. Arduino UNO R3 1 1850 https://www.duino.lk/UNO-R3-MEGA328P-
ATMEGA16U2?search=arduino&category_id=0

2. SIM800L GSM/GPRS 1 1950 https://alphatronic.lk/product/sim800l-gsm-gprs-

Module module-v2/

3. L298N Motor Driver 1 360 https://alphatronic.lk/product/l298n-motor-

driver-module/
4. Nema 17 Stepper Motor 1 1590 https://www.duino.lk/Nema17-Stepper0Motor-
17HS8401
5. Grove Ultrasonic 1 1100 https://tronic.lk/product/ultrasonic-mist-maker-
Atomizer Module fogger-atomizer-humidifier-113khz

6. Sparkfun Water Level 2 110 https://microchip.lk/product/water-level-sensor-

Sensor T1592 module-t1592/

7. 12V Submersible DC 1 1200 http://www.senith.lk/shop/item/8933/mini-dc12v-

Pump brushless-motor-submersible-water-pump

8. Led Light Made of 888 https://www.amazon.com/395nm-405nm-

SMD5050 12V LED Blacklight-Fluorescent-Computer-
RGB Strips (395- Waterproof/dp/B08HYTPTSF?th=1
405nm)

9. 10W 21V Solar Panel 1 3232 https://sg.cytron.io/p-solar-panel-18v-555ma-

10w
10. CN3791 Custom 1 ~1616
Designed Battery
Charging Circuit

11. 18650 Rechargeable L 2 600 https://thingerbits.lk/product/li-ion-18650-

i-ion Battery rechargeable-battery/

12. 5V to 12V Step-up DC- 1 300

DC Boost Converter

13. TTL VGA JPEG 1 780 https://tronic.lk/product/ov7670-vga-640x480-0-

Camera/OV7670 3mega-cmos-camera-module-for-ardui
Camera Module

14. Adafruit SD Card 1 150 https://tronic.lk/product/sd-card-module-for-

Module arduino
15. Frame of the product, est ~1500
3D printed casings and
other fitting materials

Total: 17,226

This budget estimate might vary as most components can be found cheaper online than in local market and
also this is merely a prototype version as proof of concept. A proper production quality final product’s cos
of production can be brought down significantly using more commercial components and ordered in bulk or
circuits made in house and printed in bulk.

9
Conclusion

As a school student I truly appreciate the opportunity to try to innovate something and learn a lot along the
way. Due to A levels and time constraints, I couldn’t achieve what I set out for but I have had a spark that
has now ignited an urge to continue with this simple yet practical idea and make a prototype along the way
and even learn ML and DL to contribute to the PestNet database and agriculture field in General.
This idea may not be the most disruptive or a breakthrough technology but I satisfied myself having worked
on a very specific problem that has a solution that is actually not complex enough that it can be realized at
least in prototype level. This project will be worked upon in the future providing a viable and realistic
solution for a very real problem for farmers up to this day by creating and providing a self-reliant,
sustainable, eco friendly and affordable solution to the farming community to decrease crop yield loss,
increase crop quality, crop productivity, better pest management all leading to major factors such as
ensuring food security, eradicating poverty and malnourishment and empowering society from the bottom
up, starting from the small things and expanding to horizons, from low impactful solutions to high impact
policy making solutions in the near future entering industry 4.0 with Agriculture in the forefront. With enough
funding, improvement on the design, transition into in house produced components from off the shelf
prototyping components I sincerely hope that this small project could be a viable product for the local
farming community.

10