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We are already in the midst of our activities for 2023, but 2022 was also an eventful year. In our young history as the Digital Agriculture Competence Network, we have already been able to work on many topics and, above all, introduce committed, imaginative people to each other who did not even know about each other at the beginning of the year.
We are helping to shape modern agriculture and we are proud of that.
Vertical farming - everything under one roof
What do growing systems look like that function independently of external environmental conditions in closed material cycles? Be it in a high-rise building, in a hall, in a container or in a cupboard. Take a look into the future with us and discover new approaches and concepts for food production and niche farming. Together with the Hans Eisenmann Forum and the TUM Venture Labs, we invited you to this topic in Weihenstephan, Freising. In addition to expert discussions and practical insights, the ideas of young companies also played an important role. We only say Go Vertical!
Digital, regional and customer-oriented? Exploiting the opportunities of digital agricultural marketing
The demand for regional food is increasing. At the same time, farmers are receiving less and less money for their products through traditional sales channels. Various digital tools such as platforms, online stores or 24-hour sales outlets offer farmers opportunities to simplify processes, attract and retain customers and market their goods directly. At this event, we provided information in the following areas
- Regional marketing strategies
- Digital agricultural marketing and its tools
- and eCommerce strategies
From smart mobility to smart farming: autonomous driving in agriculture
Highly automated harvesting vehicles, self-driving tractors and autonomous field robots: promising systems are already in practical use today. They are intended to contribute to economic and ecological sustainability.
The frequently changing environmental conditions pose challenges for autonomous vehicles in agriculture. This means that not only the automotive industry, but also the agricultural sector, faces a number of questions before autonomous agricultural machinery and vehicles can be used on a broad scale. On the occasion of the third nationwide Digital Day, representatives of the automotive and agricultural industries met to discuss this topic at our event on June 24, 2024 at the BayWa AG premises in Munich. After various impulses, the following topics were discussed in interactive formats
- Opportunities with regard to economic and ecological sustainability
- Regulatory and practical challenges
- Cooperation between industry and start-ups
Bayern Innovativ Podcast - Farmer & Bot: Smarter together - Robotics in agriculture
Autonomous helpers make an important contribution to more sustainable and ecological farming. Robots are increasingly taking over tasks in the field that are still partly done manually. The "Mars rover" in the field promises to make work easier for those working in agriculture and to conserve resources.
Christoph Raithel discusses how they work and how their use will expand in the future with Stefan Kopfinger, Head of the "Agricultural Robotics" research group at the Bavarian State Institute for Agriculture, and Christian Metz from the Bavarian Digital Agriculture Competence Network.
Whitepaper - Digitalization in agriculture - How robots are changing fields and barns
Sustainability, productivity and transparency are major opportunities for digitalization in agriculture. The use of robotics in the field and barn makes a significant contribution to this. At this point, it is particularly important that small and medium-sized farms can also benefit from this automation.
Let the white paper answer the question: "Farmer and robot - the perfect team?"
Browse through the results of studies and surveys and find out more about the challenges and opportunities of digitalization in Bavarian agriculture.
Smart helpers in Bavaria's fields - agricultural robots
Autonomous, safe and sustainable. What can field robots do?
Together with the Bavarian State Institute for Agriculture, we showed everything about the new, smart helpers at the Siemens Technopark Ruhstorf.
What you can expect:
- Demonstrations on the technology of the most popular field robots on the market
- Information on the topic of cybersecurity in agriculture
- Discussions on the socio-economic aspects of field robotics
- Interesting facts about the use of drones and the relevant legal aspects
Smart agriculture, smart region - the digital twin
The digital twin - interface of the future?
The possibilities here are manifold, also for agriculture. The digital representation of processes and the simplified documentation of these should create greater efficiency and transparency. In concrete terms, this means that a digital twin primarily serves as a decision-making and planning aid for farm management.
You can find out what a digital twin of a farm can look like and what else a digital image of reality can be used for here.
- Digital twin in agriculture - Andreas Dörr, Managing Director of Dörr Agrar GbR & Michael Mundt, Senior Business Development, Esri Deutschland GmbH
- "For5G - Digital Twin" - Bernhard Haunschild, Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences, KoDA - Competence Center for Digital Agriculture
- Potential of digital twins for wind turbines - the example of SensoTwin - Dipl. Geogr. Dr. Peter Hofmann, Research Associate, THD - Deggendorf Institute of Technology | DIT - Deggendorf Institute of Technology | IAI - Institute for Applied Informatics Institute of Applied Informatics
- Experiences and potentials in the field of digital twins - Willi Steincke & Christina Harwarth-Nassauer, Project Manager, Bayern Innovativ GmbH, Munich
The event "Smart Agriculture, Smart Region - The Digital Twin" on November 9, 2022 in Nuremberg organized by the Competence Network Digital Agriculture Bavaria (KNeDL) provided a glimpse into the digital mirror image of an agricultural business.
The focus was on the implementation project of the farmer Andreas Dörr and the company ESRI, represented by Mr. Michael Mundt, which was created in the KNeDL.
Taking into account the wishes of the practice, the two created a digital twin of Mr. Dörr's agricultural business, with farm and land.
"Society and politicians expect more and more from us farmers. In my view, digitalization should help farmers to make decisions in an uncomplicated way. Aboveall, digitalization has to be smart; farmers will only be happy to accept it if it makes their work really easy." Andreas Dörr, farmer / Managing Director Dörr Agrar GbR
What motivates people to engage with the digital twin?
The profitable use of digital tools in agriculture for the environment, society and day-to-day work on the farm. The digital representation of processes and the simplified documentation of these should create greater efficiency and transparency. In concrete terms, this means that a digital twin primarily serves as a decision-making and planning aid for farm management.
The core of the event was an intensive discussion about the prototype developed by the two keynote speakers. The correct and efficient use of "well-prepared" data from practical farming and its environment on a platform can support farm management in its planning and documentation for the farm.
What does this support look like and what areas of application does the digital twin have in and outside of agriculture?
Examples of applications for the digital twin include
- Preparation of to-do lists for employees
- Documentation tool for verification obligations
-Support in complying with environmental measures and other requirements
- Transparency in the value chain
- Forecasting and simulation models for farm orientation and cultivation planning Farm orientation and cultivation planning
- Land management: topographical view, planning of tramlines, erosion protection, lease conditions, etc.
- Daily tool with integration of real-time data
The discussion about this practical application in agriculture was supplemented by further impulses.
Weihenstephan University of Applied Sciences in Triesdorf presented a project that is currently being implemented with the district of Forchheim. "For5G - Digital Twin". This deals with the digital twin of cherry trees and serves as a better understanding and decision-making basis for the management of orchards with regard to diseases, harvest time, etc.
The Deggendorf University of Applied Sciences made a contribution from outside the industry with the "SensoTwin" project on the potential of digital twins for wind turbines. It deals with the coupling of a digital twin of individual components with sensor data in order to simulatively record and evaluate real maximum loads and the condition of individual components in the life cycle. This simulation can extend the service life of various components, some of which are oversized.
The whole event was rounded off with an insight into the projects of Bayern Innovativ's Smart Cities and Regions platform. This platform has been working on the digital twin of municipalities for some time now. The "TwinBy" project, which supports the development of digital twins in municipalities, was presented as an example.
The possibilities of the digital twin are diverse, including for agriculture. The integration of administrative processes and planning processes into such a tool will be exciting. When implementing a digital twin, the focus should always be on ease of use and direct added value for the user. This also applies to medium-sized and small family businesses.
By working together with other sectors and areas, countless scenarios can be implemented for an efficient and labor-saving future with regard to joint planning processes and administrative tasks.
And that was by no means all ...
The KNeDL is much more than just events and exchanges. We are very much looking forward to shaping the year 2023 for all our loyal and new partners and to preparing and presenting many interesting topics for you.
You can look forward to "The Digital Agriculture Touring Exhibition", "News on Digitalization in Animal Husbandry" and, as usual, interesting events on all aspects of digitalization in agriculture.
Last but not least...
We look forward to everything to come and hope that you will be right in the middle of it all instead of just being there.
Your KNeDL Team