We are creating technologies that will enable people in another part of the world to remotely monitor and control a garden or small farm.  We call this “tele-farming.”  For example, a family in the US can hire an expert farmer in rural India to tend their backyard vegetable garden.

Remote monitoring of plants requires a variety of sensors to monitor the leaves as well as monitor light level, pH and nutrient concentration.  We are also developing actuators to remotely control the lighting, pumps, and filters.  Our system is built around an Android platform, using an Android smart phone as the main computer, webcam, and communication link.

Parts of the this project is in collaboration with the MIT Media Lab CityFarm initiative.

Students: Matthew Mellor, Mike McGraw, Anying Li