An On-the-Go Soil Sampler for Accurate Fertility Assessment in Precision Agriculture

The bulk of technological advances in precision agriculture have occurred with nutrient and herbicide application equipment while soil sampling methods have not kept pace. Economic research of site specific soil sampling has suggested that with current sampling methods and costs, the net value of information is maximized at 1.2 acre sampling intensity. Yet, agronomic researchers suggest that greatest map accuracy is obtained with soil sampling every 0.25 acres, while still others indicate that maximum yield results if sampling is done on 50 ft. intervals. These high intensities of sampling are not profitable with current sampling equipment, methods, and costs. Therefore, new and innovative soil samplers and methods must make soil sampling faster and more efficient. These advancements will make more intensive soil sampling in site specific agriculture cost effective. Geophyta's phase I research will involve the design, construction, and preliminary testing of a uniquely different, on-the-go, soil sampler that can uniformly collect from the surface down to a designated depth, usually 0 - 8 inches. This device, while moving through the field, will collect multiple samples that can be composited, pulverized, and mixed. In phase II work, this mechanism will be capable of presenting soil samples for on-vehicle analysis or packaging.