Terahertz-based joint communication and sensing for precision agriculture: a 6G use-case

Usman, M., Ansari, S. , Taha, A. , Zahid, A., Abbasi, Q. H. and Imran, M. A. (2022) Terahertz-based joint communication and sensing for precision agriculture: a 6G use-case. Frontiers in Communications and Networks, 3, 836506. (doi: 10.3389/frcmn.2022.836506)

Abstract

By 2050, experts estimate that the agricultural produce must increase by 60%–70% to meet the needs of the ever increasing population of the world. To this aim, the concept of precision agriculture or smart farming has recently been coined. The idea of precision agriculture is well represented as a smart management system, having the ability to monitor, observe, sense, measure and control the health and water contents in plants at nano-scale and crops at macro-scale. The goal is to maximise the production while preserving the vital resources. The combination of terahertz (THz) based sensing technology to estimate plant health at a cellular level, and wireless sensor networks deployed within crops to monitor different variables while making intelligent decisions is far reaching. The integration and operation of such a macro-nano-sensor system requires a sustainable communication infrastructure that considers the demands of remote and agile agricultural environments. In this paper, an integrated sensing and communication system for plant health monitoring that utilises THz signals, is presented as a 6G use case. The joint architecture is outlined and various challenges including energy harvesting, practical implementation among others, followed by recommendations for future research are presented.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Taha, Dr Ahmad and Ansari, Dr Shuja and Imran, Professor Muhammad and Zahid, Mr Adnan and Usman, Dr Muhammad and Abbasi, Dr Qammer

Creator Roles

Usman, M.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing
Ansari, S.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing
Taha, A.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing
Zahid, A.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing
Abbasi, Q. H.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing, Supervision
Imran, M. A.: Conceptualization, Writing – review and editing, Supervision

• Authors: Usman, M., Ansari, S., Taha, A., Zahid, A., Abbasi, Q. H., and Imran, M. A.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering; College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Autonomous Systems and Connectivity; College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Electronics and Nanoscale Engineering
• Journal Name: Frontiers in Communications and Networks
• Publisher: Frontiers Media
• ISSN: 2673-530X
• ISSN (Online): 2673-530X
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2022 Usman, Ansari, Taha, Zahid, Abbasi and Imran
• First Published: First published in Frontiers in Communications and Networks 3: 836506
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License