Optimisation of crop growth in Agrikubic containers based on economic and resource efficiency considerations (Optikubic)

In the current context of the need for food and the energy crisis, the control of intensive crop growth in controlled environments must take into account economic criteria that optimise their profit, understood as the income obtained from the sale of their production minus the costs of energy resources (electricity, heat and cold) and materials such as water and fertilisers. The Automatics, Robotics and Mechatronics Group (ARM- TEP197) has developed a technology that implements this approach to greenhouse crop control with a success rate that achieves an 18% increase in producer profits, as well as reducing energy consumption, making the system more sustainable. On the other hand, the company Agrikubic Systems, S.L. has developed the Agrikubic container for intensive agriculture, fully automated, which is modular, flexible and transportable. The main objective of this proposal is to transfer the technology developed by the ARM-TEP197 Group for optimising the growth of crops under glass to other models of intensive agriculture such as Agrikubic. This system will be incorporated as an element of the iVeg platform also developed by the research group, with intellectual property registration number 04/2022/956, thus increasing the integration and interconnectivity properties of Agrikubik. With the incorporation of this technology, the aim is to improve the performance of this cultivation system and to achieve a new version of it. In addition, it will be able to offer a better service to its customers with automatic advice on climate management, estimated production and the required energy and water costs.