Romania

Romania
Teacher: AdrianaKentsch
Teacher Adriana
Teacher:
Teacher Kentsch adriana@kentsch.com
adriana@kentsch.com
“TiberiuPopoviciu”
“Tiberiu Popoviciu”Computer
ComputerScience
ScienceHigh
HighSchool,
School,
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca

ProjectManager:
Project Manager: AdrianaKentsch
Manager Adriana
Manager Kentsch
Team:
Team
Team:
Team
CameliaCocu
Camelia Cocu
LaurentiuMateut
Laurentiu Mateut
SamuelSuia
Samuel Suia
TraianTurcu
Traian Turcu
Changing global warming into
GlobalGreen

In a world of global warming, where climatic features change from

day to day, we, at GlobalGreen, provide the prevention of damage,
the security for tomorrow.
Using a continuous monitoring of all meteorological conditions,
we adapt agriculture to all changes, thus transforming damage
into productivity
and global warming into GlobalGreen.
References
Web sites:
Before taking an interview and doing more laborious research through
books we started with a lot of internet research that gave us the general idea about
what our diagram will comprise. We found a lot of information about most of the
needs of our business:

General information about the business requirements and what agricultural

meteorology involves:
http://www.answers.com/topic/agricultural-meteorology?cat=technology

Detailed information on the meteorological data that is relevant to our business and
the form in which the weather stations store and provide their data to different users:
http://www.accuweather.com/

More detailed information about the UV index which clarifies the concept:
http://www.epa.gov/sunwise/uvindex.html

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 2

References
Information on the different soil types, structure, and other characteristics:
http://web.ukonline.co.uk/fred.moor/soil/formed/f0108.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soil_structure

Information on plant pests:

http://eap.mcgill.ca/Publications/eap59.htm

Information on plant diseases:

http://www.extension.umn.edu/yardandgarden/diagnostics/

A practical application of agricultural meteorology on a lower scale in India which

helped us realize what could be done in a practical way on a global scale:
http://imdagrimet.org/

Abbreviations:
http://www.caa.ro/ro/common/abbrs_NZ.htm

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 3

References

Answers to the most common questions about the weather: clouds, thunderstorms,
tornadoes, hail, hurricanes, global warming, fronts, air pressure, and much more:
http://www.weatherquestions.com/
Meteorological instruments:
http://www.fischer-barometer.de/english/index.htm
Overview, climate change and issues:
http://geography.about.com/

Books: Ph.D. Ileana Fulvia Sandoiu, Agrometeorology

Ph.D. Horia Radu Criveanu, Agrometeorology - classical and modern

The books on Agrometeorology deal with all the meteorological issues we needed
to take into consideration in our project.The books present not only the meteorological
factors that influence agriculture, but also the methods and instruments used in the gathering
of agrometeorological data.They also helped us clarify our prior ideas about the
meteorological part of the project.They were also very useful in choosing the attributes for
our weather entities and establishing the relations with region, plant and production entities.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 4

The interviews
Interviews: Dr. Adriana Bica – biologist researcher on cellular biology at the
Faculty of Biology and Geology,
Babes-Bolyai University,Cluj-Napoca, Romania

During the interview with Dr. Adriana Bica she confirmed most of the ideas
we initially had or found out later from books or the internet about the business needs
and requirements. She gave us more precise information about the environmental
part of the diagram, pointing out the importance of:
the field orientation
soil types
nutrients in the life of the plants
diseases
different plant categories
plants, etc.
After the interview we added new attributes to many entities and we also
took out the nutrients into new entities. Dr. Bica confirmed most of the previous
information that we had gathered, was thrilled about our ideas and gave us the
impulse to go further and try to make this project as relevant as possible to the
current global agricultural situation.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 5

Business Concept

The company we work for is called GlobalGreen and operates in the field of
agriculture; it is an international company with world wide coverage, having got
numerous centers on all continents.

GlobalGreen both produces and trades its products on a global scale. We

represent a team of the IT department of GlobalGreen. We serve our company, trying
to optimize our business by reducing costs and maximizing our production.

Our team’s job is to develop and administrate a relational database

containing data about plants, weather and our company’s fields (environment).

Our team is only responsible for modeling data about plants, weather and
fields by applying knowledge from the domain of agrometeorology. The part of the
business concerning finances, costs and studies of the market demand are modeled
by another team of the IT department.

Our program does not take decisions, but offers decisional support and
guidance throughout the production process.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 6

Business Needs

Because of global warming traditional agriculture can no longer cope with

the climatic changes and their negative effects on the crops common to certain areas.
That is why we feel necessary to develop an application which will offer us the
possibility to better administrate our resources and minimize the risks our company
exposes itself to. Agriculture is a domain where meteorology has great importance as
it influences the quantity and the quality of the items produced.

Our company needs to know how available environmental and

meteorological conditions influence production.

Starting from data such as meteorological and environmental conditions

and the plants’ needs, our program must be able to offer the best planting solutions
for each field (maximum production and quality with minimum costs)

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 7

How Does Our Company Use Meteorological Data?
Our company needs meteorological data in order to take correct decisions
when it comes to cultivating plants and taking care of them and to create statistics which
will be useful in the future to optimize the company’s activity in view of maximizing
production and minimizing costs.

The meteorological data is gathered from meteorological institutes and by our

own specialized department. Our department gathers both meteorological information
from all the regions in which our company has got fields, but also valuable information
such as the chemical composition of the soil.

Our daily prognosis and measurements refer to either a place or a city where
our crops are found and it’s further used for comparison with the plants’ requests .

The result of this comparison is used by our specialists to derive a conclusion

and establish what actions are to be taken in order to get the natural meteorological
conditions closer to the requests, using sprinkling and other available solutions.

The data is gathered daily or hourly, depending on the supplier’s capability;

our daily weather may be formed by several hourly weather measurements, plus some
additional data, which has only daily relevance: UV index, amount and hours of rain,
snow and daylight.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 8

How Does Our Company Use Meteorological Data?
Our programmers use the data stored in the database in the form of daily
weather measurements to obtain statistics ( for example – minimum temperature and
maximum temperature are the basis for obtaining the mean temperature) and
prognosis; they are further used by specialists in providing sprinkling solutions for
existing crops or other solutions (like seeding solutions) for future crops.

What Meteorological Data Do We Gather?

We gather meteorological data such as:

temperature (minimum, maximum and real feel) thunderstorm probability

wind speed, direction, gusts clouds nebulosity
UV index air humidity
amount and type of precipitations presence of hailstone
hours of daylight sun radiation
hours of cloudiness

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 9

How Do We Gather Meteorological Data ?

Our company is collaborating with numerous meteorological centers situated all

over the world which provide us with all the necessary data.
Meteorological data is also gathered by our centers which can be found in each
city where our company operates. Each center is responsible with tracking the history and
constantly monitoring the particular conditions found on each field.

How Do We Store Meteorological Data?

We store all data in a relational database with restricted access (only users
with valid accounts can access data).

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 10

Data Flow Diagram

METEOROLOGY PLANTS DEMAND

(not detailed)
data about weather provided by data about plants and
national institutes of meteorology their necessities for market demands for a
and gathered by our department optimal development certain plant
of statistics

STIPULATED CONDITIONS OPTIONS

USER
stipulated weather and environmental plants which are best suited decides the
conditions existent on each field for a for the stipulated conditions best
period of time on a given field with production
minimum costs strategy

ENVIRONMENT
PRODUCTION
data about fields and
existing environmental
conditions
Initial ERD

The preliminary ERD contains the most important entities that our initial analysis
discovered in the business requirements. By continuing our research (internet, interviews,
books) we have afterwards discovered many other entities that were very important to our
business. We also found many other hidden attributes, some of them also generating new
entities and relationships. Normalizing the diagram and solving the many to many
relationships also helped us see and solve the errors that we made in the diagram, leading us
to the final ERD.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 12

 Final ERD

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 13

ERD Explanations

WEATHER_DAILY
It represents the daily meteorological measurements which are provided to us by
the national institutes of meteorology and by our departments of statistics. It must
be provided either for a LAND or for a CITY. It contains the
WEATHER_HOURLY information for certain hours that we consider relevant to
our needs and additional data that can be collected only daily, depending on the
capabilities of the meteorological stations. If certain meteorological information is
given both daily and hourly, the daily information comprises the hourly ones. The
same attributes can be observed both in WEATHER_DAILY and
WEATHER_HOURLY because the calculation of the daily information is made by
the meteorological station with specific algorithms and sent to us in its final form

The temperature, winds and rain are the essential factors in a PLANT’s
development and growth. The temperature and the winds will affect the plant
perspiration and the water evaporation from the soil. This, combined with the
amount_of_rain, SOIL_TYPE humidity and SOIL_TYPE max_water_retention
and compared with the optimal daily_amount_of_water of the PLANT_STAGE,
will give the irrigation solution.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 14

ERD Explanations

The real_feel_temperature is an index which indicates not the actual temperature but
the effect that several factors (including wind, humidity, temperature etc.) have on the
PLANT

The sun_radiation and UV_index influence the secretion of certain substances in the
PLANT. Depending on these amounts of substances we offer different
SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs that will help the growth of the PLANT

The clouds_nebulosity indicates the percentage of sun_radiation that passes the

cloud layers. The combination between clouds_nebulosity, hours_of_daylight,
hours_of_cloudiness and sun_radiation will give the actual radiation that reaches the
PLANT

The thunderstorm_probability will help us take the appropriate measures in order to

minimize the damage a thunderstorm may cause

The database will also keep track of the amount of snow (found in DAILY_PRECIP
entity), which is essential for the life of the PLANTs whose production_cycle passes
through the winter. Its influence may be seen in the soil temperature and humidity
during this period.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 15

ERD Explanations
WEATHER_HOURLY
The WEATHER_HOURLY keeps a more precise evidence of meteorological
measurements allowing us to offer more suitable solutions in optimal time
Air_humidity indicates the likelihood of precipitation, dew or fog. They affect the plant
through the real_feel_temperature

PRECIP_TYPE
It contains all the possible precipitation types, including acid rain, hailstone and other
precipitations which require special measures; each one has it’s own unit of
measurement

HOURLY_PRECIP
Hourly precipitation is the intersection entity that resolves the many to many relationship
between PRECIP_TYPE and WEATHER_HOURLY. It can also contain the amount of
the precipitation during that certain hour

DAILY_PRECIP
Daily precipitation is the intersection entity that resolves the many to many relationship
between PRECIP_TYPE and WEATHER_DAILY. It can also contain the duration and
amount of the precipitation during that certain day

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 16

ERD Explanations

REGION
A region represents a large geographic area (North America, Asia-Pacific,
Europe, etc.) used to organize production at this level

COUNTRY
We used it in our diagram in order to organize production by country, including
any legal restrictions that may appear

LAND
LANDs are large areas within a COUNTRY (like states in the USA)
The population of each LAND is also stored

CITY
A CITY includes urban and rural areas within a LAND
The population of each CITY is also stored

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 17

ERD Explanations

FIELD
A FIELD represents a compact area with the same characteristics. If we have a
bigger surface of land with different characteristics represented throughout the
FIELD it will be divided into two or more smaller FIELDs so that it will be easier to
organize our areas and obtain maximum productivity

The fact that we can improve production by planting a PLANT that is less
resistant to winds in a better oriented FIELD makes the orientation of the FIELD
very important

The glass_house is usually used for the first PLANT_STAGE that requires
special conditions that are not available outside. After that the PLANT will be
planted outside (on the same FIELD or not). In case of extreme meteorological
conditions or if a special PLANT_REQUEST appears, we can use the
glass_house for full production as well

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 18

ERD Explanations

SOIL_TYPE
The SOIL_TYPE contains the most important characteristics of the soil of a
certain FIELD. It is very important to keep track of the soil structure because by
increasing it through management practices we obtain multiple benefits: reduced
erosion, improved root penetration, improved emergence of seedlings and grater
infiltration
The high soil acidification_level, which is harmful for the plants, can be reduced
by adding NUTRIENTs which are base cations such as calcium, sodium,
potassium etc.
The high soil salinisation_level, which is also harmful, can be reduced by
drainage.

NUTRIENT
A NUTRIENT is a substance found in the soil that is important to the growth and
development of the PLANTs (sodium, calcium, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus,
potassium, etc.)

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 19

ERD Explanations

SOIL_TYPE_NUTRIENT
SOIL_TYPE_NUTRIENT is the entity that resolves the many to many relationship
between SOIL_TYPE and NUTRIENT; it offers information about which NUTRIENTs
the SOIL_TYPE includes. The quantity represents the concentration of the certain
NUTRIENT in the soil.
PLANT_REQUIRED_NUTRIENT
PLANT_REQUIRED_NUTRIENT is the entity that resolves the many to many
relationship between PLANT and NUTRIENT; it offers information about which
NUTRIENT are required by a PLANT.
PLANT_CATEGORY
The PLANT_CATEGORY shows the affiliation of each plant to its type.
PLANT_REQUEST
A PLANT_REQUEST can be registered either in a LAND or in a CITY
The amount that is needed and the deadline are essential because we need to know
what FIELD area is needed to satisfy the PLANT_REQUEST and in what FIELDs we
can finish the PRODUCTION of the PLANT before the deadline; this is done only if the
weather and environmental condition on the FIELD are appropriate for that certain
PLANT

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 20

ERD Explanations

PLANT
The PLANT is one of the most important entities, being the connection point of
most of the parts of the diagram
The name of the PLANT contains the scientific Latin name
The rotation_period represents the number of production_cycles a PLANT can
be planted on the same filed without interruptions
The production_cycle is the period in witch a PLANT develops from the initial
faze to maturity
The production_volume is the quantity of crop that is expected to be obtained on
a unit of land in OPTIMAL_CONDITIONs

PLANT_PRICE_HIST
The PLANT_PRICE_HIST is used to track the fluctuations over time of the cost
of the seeds for each PLANT.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 21

ERD Explanations

PLANT_ROTATION_RESTRICTION
The PLANT_ROTATION_RESTRICTION shows what PLANTs cannot be planted
one after the other. Because the restriction is made between two different
PLANTs we needed to use two relationships

PLANT_STAGE
Each PLANT has multiple stages of development

The duration of each PLANT_STAGE is very important because we need to

know exactly when we will obtain the crops in order to respect the deadline of the
PLANT_REQUEST

Each PLANT_STAGE has its own OPTIMAL_CONDITION and may have

OTHER_INFORMATION that are specific for it.

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 22

ERD Explanations
OPTIMAL_CONDITION
The OPTIMAL_CONDITIONs are intervals of temperature, humidity, wind_speed,
luminosity and water in which a PLANT develops optimally in a certain
PLANT_STAGE
Some PLANTs cannot grow in the early PLANT_STAGEs in the outside weather,
so they will need to be planted initially in glass_houses and afterwards moved
outside
The daily_amount_of_water shows the optimal water necessities of the PLANT.
Depending on the weather conditions, the effective amount of water may be lower
and irrigations must be considered
Each PLANT_STAGE also has an optimal SOIL_TYPE in which it develops best.
In case the SOIL_TYPE_NUTRIENTs don’t correspond to the
PLANT_REQUIRED_NUTRIENTs we can add NUTRIENTs through fertilizers

TREATMENT
The TREATMENT can contain one or more SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs or
medicines against PESTs or DISEASEs or only for preventive use
The period refers to the duration of the TREATMENT

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 23

ERD Explanations
PLANT_TREATMENT
The PLANT_TREATMENT is the entity that resolves the many to many
relationship between PLANT and TREATMENT; it says what TREATMENTs are
suitable for certain PLANTs

SPRINKLING_SOLUTION
SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs are substances that are sprinkled on the PLANTs
with the purpose of protecting the PLANTs from future (preventing) or existing
DISEASEs and PESTs and helping them to grow better and healthier

TREATMENT_SPRINKLING_SOLUTION
The TREATMENT_SPRINKLING_SOLUTION is the entity that resolves the
many to many relationship between SPRINKLING_SOLUTION and
TREATMENT; it says what SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs are suitable for certain
TREATMENTs
PEST
PESTs are insects who destroy the PLANTs or hinder their growth
It is important to keep track of the different stages of development the PESTs go
through because they might require different TREATMENTs in different stages

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 24

ERD Explanations

TREATMENT_PEST
The TREATMENT_PEST is the entity that resolves the many to many
relationship between PEST and TREATMENT; it says what TREATMENTs
against certain PESTs

DISEASE
The INCIDENCE of the DISEASE is the frequency in which a DISEASE occurs.
For the most frequent DISEASEs SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs will be applied to
prevent them from appearing
The host represents the PLANT_CATEGORY that the DISEASE attacks
The infection_point is the part of the PLANT on which the DISEASE manifests
(on the leaves, flowers, fruits etc.)
The months_of_infection represents the period in the PLANTs production_cycle
in which the DISEASE appears
The method_of_dispersal will contain a text explaining how the disease spreads
(through air, carried by insects, rain etc.)

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 25

ERD Explanations

TREATMENT_DISEASE
The TREATMENT_DISEASE is the entity that resolves the many to many
relationship between DISEASE and TREATMENT; it says what TREATMENTs
can cure certain DISEASEs

PRODUCTION
The PRODUCTION represents what is produced depending on the
PLANT_REQUEST
The end_date should be before the PLANT_REQUEST deadline

PROD_LOG
The PROD_LOG keeps track of the actions that are taken during the
PRODUCTION of a PLANT (adding NUTRIENTs, using TREATMENTs)

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 26

Constraints
WEATHER_HOURLY LAND and CITY
hour between 0 and 23 population > 0
low_temperature <= high_temperature DAILY_PRECIP
real_feel_low_temperature <= hours between 0 and 24
real_feel_high_temperature PRODUCTION and PROD_LOG
UV_index >= 0 start_date < end_date
air_humidity between 0 and 100 OPTIMAL_CONDITION
thunderstorm_probability between 0 and 100 glass_house: true or false
WEATHER_DAILY
hour between 0 and 23
low_temperature <= high_temperature
real_feel_low_temperature <= real_feel_high_temperature
UV_index >= 0
air_humidity between 0 and 100
hours_of_cloudiness between 0 and 24
thunderstorm_probability between 0 and 100
hours_of_cloudiness between 0 and 24

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 27

Constraints
Units of measurement
WEATHER.temperatures: degrees Celsius
WEATHER.dewpoint: degrees Celsius
WEATHER.wind_speed/gusts: km/h
WEATHER.air_humidity: percent
WEATHER.thunderstorm_probability: percent
PRODUCTION.amount: tons
PLANT_REQUEST.amount: tons
PLANT.production_volume: tons/ha
PLANT.production_cycle: days
OPTIMAL_CONDITION.temperatures: degrees Celsius
OPTIMAL_CONDITION.humidity: percent
OPTIMAL_CONDITION.max_wind_speed: km/h
OPTIMAL_CONDITION.daily_amount_of_water: ml
TREATMENT.period: days
Fixed Values for Attributes
WEATHER.wind_direction: N, NE, NW, NNE, NNW, S, SE, SW, SSE, SSW, E,
ENE, ESE, W, WNW, WSW
PRECIP_TYPE.um: cm, mm

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 28

Reports
Statistics regarding weather conditions on a certain period of time (temperatures,
precipitations, winds, etc.)

Statistics regarding the PLANTs health (frequency of a DISEASE) which help us identify
plants with a higher sensibility towards certain DISEASEs or PESTs; these statistics, along
with the complete list of SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs make it possible to determine
appropriate preventive TREATMENTs which will lead to better PRODUCTION and lower
costs

The list of SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs and NUTRIENTs which are more often used is useful
when renewing supplies

The complete list of all DISEASEs, PESTs and SPRINKLING_SOLUTIONs for each PLANT
or PLANT_CATEGORY

The possibility of determining the production costs for one or more PLANTs on one or more
FIELDs. The ERD does not include the costs related to employees or other aspects of the
business because we have modeled only one aspect of our business

The list of PLANTs which can not be cultivated on a FIELD during a certain period of time

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 29

Reports

The possibility of determining PLANTs or PLANT_CATEGORYs which can be cultivated on

a FIELD during a period of time according to weather conditions and the optimal growth
conditions of the PLANT (is determined through an algorithm)
By extending the modeling contained in this project with data regarding the way that the
percentage of favorable weather conditions influence PRODUCTION we could obtain an
estimative PRODUCTION value by taking into consideration favorable and unfavorable
conditions
The temperature, winds and rain are the essential factors in a PLANT’s development and
growth. The temperature and the winds will affect the plant perspiration and the water
evaporation from the soil. This, combined with the amount_of_rain, SOIL_TYPE humidity
and SOIL_TYPE max_water_retention and compared with the optimal
daily_amount_of_water of the PLANT_STAGE, will give the irrigation solution
Based on the population of a CITY or LAND we can estimate the demand for other CITYs or
LANDs with similar characteristics (population and geographic area)
Based on the PLANT_REQUESTs for a LAND or CITY and the actual PRODUCTION for
that request (which may be on a FIELD in a different CITY) the future production can be
optimized by moving it to a near geographic location

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 30

Observations and conclusions

Considering the limited amount of space designated for this project we

have to make the following observations:

The meteorological data can be modeled much more detailed but that implies a
larger number of entities concentrated on this domain

Production costs can be further modeled to include data about employees,

salaries, storehouses, rents, equipment, feasibility studies, etc.

The relationship between PLANT_REQUEST and PRODUCTION can be

extended by modeling an order entry and inventory management systems

This project came as a challenge which we gladly accepted hoping it would bring
us a little closer to “the real thing”. But besides helping us understand the implications of
working on such a project (a lot of hard work, great responsibility, working with a deadline,
working in a team), this project provided us with experience and great moral satisfactions.

The team

“Tiberiu Popoviciu” Computer Science High School, Cluj-Napoca 31