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Growing food indoors without having to manage water and nutrients may sound like science fiction. However, researchers from AƬ×ÊÔ´°É (SFU) led by mechatronics systems engineering professor Woo Soo Kim have developed a smart sensing system that successfully determines when and how much water tomato plants need.

This breakthrough technology optimizes water use by avoiding deficiency or excess, promotes healthy plant growth and ultimately improves crop yields. It maximizes valuable resources like water, enables crops to be grown in greenhouses year-round, and improves the sustainability of farming practices.

The 3D-printed sensor uses the plants’ own electrophysiological (EP) signals—rapid, electronic pulses generated in response to environmental stimuli such as soil moisture, temperature and nutrient availability—and then uses AI models to interpret data and categorize irrigation needs.

The noninvasive, automated sensor is an important advancement in precision agriculture which involves two key steps: first, continuously monitoring plant health and status and second, using technology to optimize growing conditions.

The technology development was led by Kim, an engineer who specializes in advanced 3D printing and 3D sensing robots. His research addresses a wide range of engineering challenges across various applications, including sensing robotics, e-health, agritech and the internet-of-things.

He is currently leading SFU’s Global Institute for Agritech Innovation, which is committed to driving growth research in agricultural technology. He also leads the Additive Manufacturing Laboratory (AML), which focuses on developing advanced 3D printing technologies for 3D structural electronics, like the novel 3D sensors.

Kim’s latest research, , was published last month in Advanced Intelligence Systems, and chosen as cover story for their next print edition.

Coauthors are Yiting Chen, a postdoctoral fellow in AML, and a managing director of the Global Institute for Agritech; and SFU mechatronics systems engineering students Yan Sum Yip, Hieu T. Tran, and Soomin Shin.

We spoke to Professor Kim about his research.

Tell us more about the technology you developed, and why it is so significant.

Can you imagine a water and nutrient management system for indoor farming that works entirely on its own—without a grower overseeing it? That’s what we’re building.

Our team has developed a working prototype of an AI-powered sensing robot that autonomously monitors the water needs of crops. This system uses plant-generated electrical signals, combined with AI, to determine precisely when irrigation is needed—eliminating both guesswork and manual oversight.

This journal article highlights the water management system, which has already been successfully demonstrated. We are now expanding the technology to include precise nutrient delivery, and developing a second sensing robot to manage fertilizer application.

By combining automation, sensors, and AI, this kind of smart and precision agriculture offers a powerful solution to improve efficiency, conserve vital resources like water, and enhance food security, locally and globally.

Have you tested this technology outside the lab setting? Once it is perfected, where will it be deployed?

We are currently collaborating with local indoor farming companies to adapt and test this technology at their facilities. While our current focus is on indoor farming, we envision this technology becoming applicable to open-field farming in the future. Once fully developed, it will be deployed in both controlled indoor environments and, eventually, outdoor agricultural settings around the world.

Can this technology be adapted to other growing needs of plants, for example, heat, light or fertilizer?

That's a great question. We are currently transitioning from non-invasive electrical sensing to invasive sensing techniques that can capture more detailed information about plant biology. This will enable us to precisely detect nutrient deficiencies or excesses, allowing for better management of resources like fertilizer and hydroponic nutrients. In the future, this technology could be adapted to monitor other growing conditions such as heat and light to optimize plant health.

Precision agriculture that conserves resources like water is a promising way to create global food security. What is next in this field?

The next step involves integrating our universal plant health monitoring system with sensing robots and drone-based soil sensing. Leveraging AI to analyze data from these diverse technologies will allow us to predict the next actions for precise cultivation practices, ultimately conserving resources like water or fertilizers. Our upcoming publication will focus on this integrated approach, demonstrating how AI-driven resource management can enhance sustainability and address global food security in the face of climate challenges.

For more: Visit the Additive Manufacturing Laboratory and Global Institute for Agritech web pages and read the SFU News article: SFU launches Global Institute for Agritech to lead agricultural technology innovation