BENGALURU: Usually, a crop field is ‘carpet-bombed’ with pesticides. What if drones could help target disease-ridden plants? College students presented one such machine at the second edition of ‘Bengaluru Mini Maker Faire’.
The fair, held at the Rangoli Metro Art Center, saw many inventions. The one-day event, organised by Work Bench Projects in association with BMRCL, was greatly appreciated by the visitors.
Many interesting products, of carpentry and robotics, were on display. The drone, called ‘Agro Squad’ and made by three engineering students, drew the largest crowd.
The students’s drone-like device will fly over farm lands and photograph crops continuously.
The sensors attached to the device will filter images and identify crops that have suffered a pest attack by recognising change in colour. Once a diseased patch is located, the pesticide bottle attached to the device will spray the solution over the specific location. The device costs
`20,000 (approximately) and the students will soon ready it for commercial distribution.
Birdwatchers in the city can track their favourite feathers and their lives through their phones. Prasanna Deshmukh, an astrologer from The Indian Institute of Astrology, has developed a new solar-battery-powered camera. It can be fixed at any location to capture photos of the birds. The images can then be sent to any mobile using the WiFi device attached to the camera.
The students of Sri Sairam College of Engineering displayed an e-bike. While there are many such bikes, which run on electrical energy, the students claim their bike is unique for its speed of 60 km per hour. A single charge, they say, also keeps the battery going for 100 kilometers. This bike was made as their college project.
Pavan Kumar, the organizer of the event, said, “We are providing a platform to showcase new innovations, inventions and individual skills.”