Viabilidade operacional e econômica da utilização de VANTs e ferramentas digitais para a demarcação de taipas em lavoura de arroz irrigado

Abstract

In the process of preparing the area for implantation, the cultivation of flood-irrigated rice needs surveys of the contour lines of the topography of its area for later construction of rammed earth, which will be fundamental pieces for having effective irrigation inside the crop, affecting directly on grain yield. This process is still done mostly conventionally, with the use of laser leveling equipment coupled to a tractor, which is controlled according to the quotas of the area and the signal reproduced according to them by the topography of the land. A more effective way to carry out this survey is by using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), which can be contracted only once to carry out the topographic survey of the area, and subsequent data archiving for permanent use. In this context, the present work presents an economic viability analysis comparing two methodologies for the process in question. The study’s main objective was to verify whether the use of the service of surveying contour lines for demarcating rammed earth in irrigated rice fields, carried out via Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, presents itself as an operational and financial alternative when it defeated the traditional method, performed with own machines and equipment. As a main result, it is obtained that carrying out the process via the service contracted by the UAV presented a cost reduction of more than 95% in all dimensions of the areas studied, compared to the conventional method, considering the result of the data obtained for 5 harvests in three different farming areas. Therefore, the economic and operational viability of using UAVs and digital tools for demarcating rammed earth in irrigated rice fields is confirmed, in the condition in which the study was carried out.