//A Smart Plant//
Gardens, forests, parks and many other land spaces are filled with greenery that is full of life. For garden enthusiasts, monitoring the health of your plants is a sizeable task depending on the volume of greenery that is growing. As science and technology progresses, society moves towards a world of connected sensing and automation, tied to advanced detection systems. Bioengineering opens a new gateway that detects plant damage through nanotube sensing technology. It’s an eye opening development that shows just how close we are to developing smart analytical suites capable of bio monitoring and this could extend beyond just plants.
//Connected Bio Sensing//
Sensing technology is always evolving and collection of characteristic data can feed an extensive network for software based analysis. Going one step further could introduce a neural network and deep learning to automate early detection and perhaps even suggest the most optimal course of action. Early detection systems have always been proven to save money, time and prevent further damage through advance intervention. It also shows that scientists understand plant based organisms to a greater level of foundation. Leveraging years of research, MIT engineers were able to leverage the stress response of injured plants and latch onto the release of hydrogen peroxide. This chemical is used as a call for help and the waves emitted have also been identified to vary in structure dependent on type of induced stress. I compare this to decoding of the plant codec as the sensors and recorded information can reveal a great deal about plants in general, a potential game changer for farming and other agricultural industries.
//Saving The Future//
I have followed a number of in-situ solutions in the world of engineering and bioengineering of embedded sensors is a fascinating revelation. Fusion of embedded sensors and live plants may give birth to a new age of smart plants that communicate with systems about their needed and stresses, this is all possible due to a method named “lipid exchange envelope penetration (LEEP)”. This process does not involve expensive equipment to implement and connect to a network of IoT devices. This will undoubtedly shift the way that large bodies of plants are treated and cared for in the future as a strategic approach can be taken to assess damage, investigate root causes and implement the best course of action. Perhaps it’s only a matter before we see a new wave of smart gardens roll out in the distant future.
Sources
https://www.lifescience.net/news/3133/nanosensor-can-alert-a-smartphone-when-plants-are-/