Artificial intelligence enters the green plant world, and the smart courtyard market begins to take shape

Text/Stephen Wunker

It has been two decades since the use of smart homes in the consumer market to provide protection for home maintenance and home security through a combination of temperature, water and motion sensors. Although smart yards are an emerging concept, startup ePlant believes they understand where this trend is headed.

According to ePlant CEO Graham Hine, “Not only do people love trees, yards have a staggering impact on property values. According to a report from the National Association of Realtors , it can be said that landscape design has an impact of up to 30% on the sale price of a house. Improving the health of landscape trees has both emotional and financial impacts.

Previously, proper tree maintenance programs were complicated to operate and the results were unsatisfactory. Learning about bad tree behavior is time-consuming and error-prone, but homeowners can work hard and learn. Because symptoms of tree diseases are limited, entering tree photos into a computer system can result in numerous false indicators being generated. Not for the faint of heart, as detailed measurements require the use of a patchwork of sensors, batteries, solar panels, radios and antenna wiring.

new plan

ePlant is confident that it has found a more elegant solution, thanks to the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence. The system Hayne mentioned is set up to install a 3.2mm diameter screw in the tree and connect it to the sensor. The sensor can detect micron-scale changes in tree trunk diameter. As trees transpire water as their primary metabolic process, the trunk's diameter changes throughout the day within a range approximately equal to the width of a human hair. Like the human pulse, this tells us a lot. When combined with weather and irrigation data, we can study how trees respond to these events. ”

TreeTag engages in conversations with homeowners about the health of their yard through an app. Image source: EPLANT

The data is transmitted over a long-range wireless network to an Internet-connected gateway, and ePlant’s artificial intelligence system can then correlate the tree’s readings with atmospheric data, the reactions of other trees, and more to create a complex model of stimuli and responses. Predicting the behavior of healthy and damaged trees is how models are optimized through machine learning, which is exactly how artificial intelligence algorithms work.

is also generative AI

Not only that, ePlant combines the output of this algorithmic AI with a generative AI conversation engine to present the results in the form of interesting text, allowing "trees" to have conversations with their owners about their conditions and needs. The tree can be discussed with respect to its response to moisture, risk of insect damage, etc., when asked.

Why do this? "People tend to use an app once and forget about it," Hayne said. "We believe turning the process into a fun, gamified experience is key to ensuring it becomes a successful consumer product."

New application areas

While other companies in the industry focus on other aspects of smart yards, such as lighting and sprinkler systems, Hain focuses on other applications such as agricultural uses. For example, he says a vineyard doesn't want to overwater so that the grapes die, but you do want to get the right amount of sweetness. You also don’t want to underwater, as this will reduce fruit production. So getting the balance right is part of precision farming. ”

ePlant is researching the use of sensors to assess aspects such as carbon sequestration, forest health and disease spread. Although satellite data is currently the primary way to track these factors, sensor-level information provides a broad set of variables that can be evaluated.

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