In-Flight Droplet Size Monitoring and Control to Improve Aerial Application Accuracy and Efficiency

The product being commercialized is a system for optimizing spray system performance on agrochemical application aircraft, commonly known as "crop dusters". Current technology allows applicators to precisely control their location and flight path (GPS guidance), to deal with changing temperature, humidity and wind conditions (Aircraft Integrated Meteorological Measurement System modules), and to control important properties of their chemical mixes. However, it does not allow them to monitor and control a key application parameter, spray droplet size. If the droplets are too small, they drift to unintended locations; if they are too large, plant coverage is poor.The EPA estimates that chemical drift losses exceed $200M annually. Drift litigation claims are also a multi-million-dollar annual cost. Crop loss, environmental damage, and human health costs are other significant impacts of poor droplet size control.This program will provide the missing link: real-time, in-flight, droplet size feedback. It will enable applicators to adjust system pressure and airspeed, in flight, to achieve the desired droplet spectrum. It will allow them to verify the effectiveness of between flight changes such as nozzle settings and chemical mixes. They can now "close the loop" on the key droplet size parameter. Automation of the control process may be possible in future product versions.The savings achieved in chemicals, time, litigation avoidance, and flexibility in optimizing chemical mixes will afford a payback time of less than one year. The product will be sold as an add-on to new systems or as a retrofit to existing systems. It will not impact the design, usage, or cost of other spray system and aircraft components.It will open a $25M market, in the U.S. alone, for our product distributor, Transland LLC. It will provide an opportunity for Innovative Scientific Solutions, Inc. (ISSI) to double our current annual commercial sales, with a projected gross annual revenue of $1.3M. Because of the maturity of the fundamental measurement system, we are structuring the program to begin commercial sales immediately after Phase II.The program involves collaboration with the USDA Aerial Application Technology Research Unit (USDA AAT); Transland LLC, the leading US supplier of agrochemical dispersal equipment; Dynanav Systems Inc., a provider of Ag aircraft guidance systems; and evaluators such as Andy Deterding Ag Aviation.