The role of drones in smart agriculture ecosystem

Authors

  • Aleksandar Joksimović University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia
  • Dušan Kostić University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia
  • Miloš Jolović University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia
  • Petar Lukovac University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia
  • Tamara Naumović University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia
  • Stefan Košević University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.71159/bizinfo260015J

Keywords:

precision agriculture, UAVs, smart agriculture, drone swarms, IoT in agriculture

Abstract

Drone integration in precision agriculture enhances efficiency, sustainability, and resource management. Drones provide high-resolution imaging, real-time data collection, and automated solutions for crop monitoring, irrigation, and pesticide application. The use of drone swarms further optimizes agricultural operations by reducing mission time and enabling large-scale data processing. However, challenges such as regulatory constraints, technological limitations, and high costs remain key barriers to widespread adoption. As drone technology continues to evolve, advancements in AI-driven automation and energy-efficient designs are expected to further enhance their effectiveness in agricultural practices. This paper explores the role of drones in smart agriculture, highlighting their applications, benefits, and advancements within IoT-based farming ecosystems.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

  • Miloš Jolović, University of Belgrade, Faculty of Organizational Sciences, Belgrade, Serbia

     Department for e-business, Teaching associate

References

ArthurHidden. (n.d.). White drone hovering in bright blue sky [Photograph]. Freepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/white-drone-hovering-bright-blue-sky_6659450.htm

Compton, M., Barnaghi, P., Bermudez, L., García-Castro, R., Corcho, O., Cox, S., Graybeal, J., Hauswirth, M., Henson, C., Herzog, A., Huang, V., Janowicz, K., Kelsey, W. D., Le Phuoc, D., Lefort, L., Leggieri, M., Neuhaus, H., Nikolov, A., Page, K., … Taylor, K. (2012). The SSN ontology of the W3C Semantic Sensor Network Incubator Group. Journal of Web Semantics, 17, 25–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.websem.2012.05.003

Cox, S. J. D. (2017). Ontology for observations and sampling features, with alignments to existing models. Semantic Web, 8(3), 453–470. https://doi.org/10.3233/SW-160214

Davies, A., Brady, T., & Hobday, M. (2007). Organizing for solutions: Systems seller vs. systems integrator. Industrial Marketing Management, 36(2), 183–193. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2006.04.009

Dutta, G., & Goswami, P. (2020). Application of drone in agriculture: A review. International Journal of Chemical Studies, 8(5), 181–187. https://doi.org/10.22271/chemi.2020.v8.i5d.10529

Fue, K. G., Porter, W. M., Barnes, E. M., & Rains, G. C. (2020). An extensive review of mobile agricultural robotics for field operations: Focus on cotton harvesting. AgriEngineering, 2(1), 150–174. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriengineering2010010

Haller, A., Janowicz, K., Cox, S. J. D., Lefrançois, M., Taylor, K., Le Phuoc, D., Lieberman, J., García-Castro, R., Atkinson, R., & Stadler, C. (2018). The modular SSN ontology: A joint W3C and OGC standard specifying the semantics of sensors, observations, sampling, and actuation. Semantic Web, 10(1), 9–32. https://doi.org/10.3233/SW-180320

Hassanalian, M., & Abdelkefi, A. (2017). Classifications, applications, and design challenges of drones: A review. Progress in Aerospace Sciences, 91, 99–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paerosci.2017.04.003

Janowicz, K., Haller, A., Cox, S. J. D., Le Phuoc, D., & Lefrançois, M. (2019). SOSA: A lightweight ontology for sensors, observations, samples, and actuators. Journal of Web Semantics, 56, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.websem.2018.06.003

Joksimović, A., Lukovac, P., Despotović-Zrakić, M., Durković, M., & Naumović, T. (2024). Applications of drones in smart agriculture. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Marketing and Technologies—ICMarkTech 2024. https://rfos.fon.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2894

Li, A., Yang, X., Kandula, S., & Zhang, M. (2010). CloudCmp: Comparing public cloud providers. In Proceedings of the 10th ACM SIGCOMM Internet Measurement Conference (pp. 1–14). Association for Computing Machinery. https://doi.org/10.1145/1879141.1879143

Luo, D., Maheshwari, A., Danielescu, A., Li, J., Yang, Y., Tao, Y., Sun, L., Patel, D. K., Wang, G., Yang, S., Zhang, T., & Yao, L. (2023). Autonomous self-burying seed carriers for aerial seeding. Nature, 614(7948), 463–470. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05656-3

Mahroof, K., Omar, A., Rana, N. P., Sivarajah, U., & Weerakkody, V. (2021). Drone as a service (DaaS) in promoting cleaner agricultural production and circular economy for ethical sustainable supply chain development. Journal of Cleaner Production, 287, Article 125522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.125522

Ming, R., Jiang, R., Luo, H., Lai, T., Guo, E., & Zhou, Z. (2023). Comparative analysis of different UAV swarm control methods on unmanned farms. Agronomy, 13(10), Article 2499. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy13102499

Mogili, U. R., & Deepak, B. B. V. L. (2018). Review on application of drone systems in precision agriculture. Procedia Computer Science, 133, 502–509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2018.07.063

Nazarov, D., Nazarov, A., & Kulikova, E. (2023). Drones in agriculture: Analysis of different countries. BIO Web of Conferences, 67, Article 02029. https://doi.org/10.1051/bioconf/20236702029

Puppala, H., Peddinti, P. R. T., Tamvada, J. P., Ahuja, J., & Kim, B. (2023). Barriers to the adoption of new technologies in rural areas: The case of unmanned aerial vehicles for precision agriculture in India. Technology in Society, 74, Article 102335. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techsoc.2023.102335

Qu, C., Boubin, J., Gafurov, D., Zhou, J., Aloysius, N., Nguyen, H., & Calyam, P. (2022). UAV swarms in smart agriculture: Experiences and opportunities. In 2022 IEEE 18th International Conference on e-Science (e-Science) (pp. 148–158). IEEE. https://doi.org/10.1109/eScience55777.2022.00029

Saiz-Rubio, V., & Rovira-Más, F. (2020). From smart farming towards Agriculture 5.0: A review on crop data management. Agronomy, 10(2), Article 207. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10020207

Schmidt, R., Schadow, J., Eißfeldt, H., & Pecena, Y. (2022). Insights on remote pilot competences and training needs of civil drone pilots. Transportation Research Procedia, 66, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trpro.2022.12.001

Spaans, R. H., Drumond, B., van Daalen, K. R., Vitor, A. C. R., Derbyshire, A., Da Silva, A., Lana, R. M., Vega, M. S., Carrasco-Escobar, G., Escada, M. I. S., Codeço, C., & Lowe, R. (2024). Ethical considerations related to drone use for environment and health research: A scoping review protocol. PLOS ONE, 19(1), Article e0287270. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0287270

Srivastava, S. K., Srivastava, D., Cengiz, K., & Gaur, P. (2024). Smart agritech: Robotics, AI, and Internet of Things (IoT) in agriculture. Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781394302994

Tahir, A., Böling, J., Haghbayan, M. H., Toivonen, H. T., & Plosila, J. (2019). Swarms of unmanned aerial vehicles: A survey. Journal of Industrial Information Integration, 16, Article 100106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jii.2019.100106

user6702303. (n.d.). Drone spraying fertilizer on vegetable plants [Photograph]. Freepik. https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/drone-spraying-fertilizer-vegetable-green-plants-agriculture-technology-farm-automation_36681035.htm

Vlachopoulou, M., Ziakis, C., Vergidis, K., Madas, M., Canavari, M., Hingley, M., & Vilalta-Perdomo, E. L. (2021). Analyzing AgriFood-Tech e-business models. Sustainability, 13(10), Article 5516. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13105516

Vrochidou, E., Tsakalidou, V. N., Kalathas, I., Gkrimpizis, T., Pachidis, T., & Kaburlasos, V. G. (2022). An overview of end effectors in agricultural robotic harvesting systems. Agriculture, 12(8), Article 1240. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture12081240

Walter, A., Finger, R., Huber, R., & Buchmann, N. (2017). Smart farming is key to developing sustainable agriculture. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 114(24), 6148–6150. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1707462114

Published

2026-07-26

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Joksimović, A., Kostić, D., Jolović, M., Lukovac, P., Naumović, T., & Košević, S. (2026). The role of drones in smart agriculture ecosystem. BizInfo Blace. https://doi.org/10.71159/bizinfo260015J

Similar Articles

1-10 of 13

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.

Most read articles by the same author(s)