The thesis provides a comprehensive overview of contemporary agriculture and the technologies involved in the main transition processes towards more sustainable agricultural methods. Through a series of semi-structured interviews conducted with agronomists, university professors, and professionals involved in researching, developing, and applying solutions in digital agriculture and robotics, it identified various problems and possible areas of opportunity for design intervention. Within this primary and secondary research work, urban agriculture has taken on a fundamental role in project development as part of a new perspective of the ideal city, which is increasingly moving towards a circular economy, the valorization of the local, and moving away from the anthropized vision of the city. The thesis led to the design of an initial version of a monitoring station for urban vegetable gardens that translates the benefits brought by precision agriculture to the micro-farming level and seeks to facilitate the transition towards agricultural models increasingly independent of external inputs, capable of managing and making the most of the ecosystem services provided by the biodiversity in which crops are immersed. At the same time, Open Farmer Kit becomes an opportunity for municipalities to create a network for monitoring the health of urban ecosystems spread throughout the urban fabric. The station can monitor the level of particulate air pollution, key soil parameters, and the number and species of pollinating insects present. The design of Open Farmer Kit conceived the structure to be open-source and manufacturable through the technologies present in FabLabs, mainly CNC cutting and digital fabrication.
La tesi compie una overview completa sull’agricoltura contemporanea e sulle tecnologie coinvolte nei principali processi di transizione verso metodi agricoli più sostenibili. Attraverso una serie di interviste semi-strutturate condotte con agronomi, professori universitari e professionisti coinvolti nella ricerca, sviluppo, e application of solution nell’ambito dell’agricoltura digitale e nella robotica, la tesi individua diverse problematiche e possibili aree di opportunità per interventi progettuali. All’interno di questo lavoro di ricerca primaria e secondaria ha assunto un ruolo fondamentale per lo sviluppo progettuale l’agricoltura urbana, inserita in una nuova prospettiva di città ideale che si muove sempre più verso l’economia circolare, la valorizzazione del locale, allontanandosi dalla visione antropizzata della città, che diventa invece un luogo di coesistenza armonica tra le diverse specie che la abitano. La tesi ha portato alla progettazione di una prima versione di una stazione di monitoraggio per orti urbani che trasla sul piano del micro-farming i benefici portati dall’agricoltura di precisione, e che cerca di facilitare la transizione verso modelli agricoli sempre più indipendente dagli input esterni, capaci di gestire e sfruttare al meglio i servizi ecosistemici provenienti dalla biodiversità in cui sono immerse le colture. Allo stesso tempo Open Farmer Kit diventa una possibilità per le municipalità per creare una rete di monitoraggio della salute degli ecosistemi urbani diffusa all’interno del tessuto urbano. La stazione riesce a monitorare il livello di inquinamento da particolato dell’aria, i principali parametri del suolo, e il numero e le specie di insetti impollinatori presenti. Il design di Open Farmer Kit ha pensato la struttura come open-source e realizzabile tramite le tecnologie presenti nei FabLab, principalmente CNC cutting e fabbricazione digitale.
Open Farmer Kit. Designing an open-source and modular monitoring station for urban and social farming.
Stella, Valentino
2021/2022
Abstract
The thesis provides a comprehensive overview of contemporary agriculture and the technologies involved in the main transition processes towards more sustainable agricultural methods. Through a series of semi-structured interviews conducted with agronomists, university professors, and professionals involved in researching, developing, and applying solutions in digital agriculture and robotics, it identified various problems and possible areas of opportunity for design intervention. Within this primary and secondary research work, urban agriculture has taken on a fundamental role in project development as part of a new perspective of the ideal city, which is increasingly moving towards a circular economy, the valorization of the local, and moving away from the anthropized vision of the city. The thesis led to the design of an initial version of a monitoring station for urban vegetable gardens that translates the benefits brought by precision agriculture to the micro-farming level and seeks to facilitate the transition towards agricultural models increasingly independent of external inputs, capable of managing and making the most of the ecosystem services provided by the biodiversity in which crops are immersed. At the same time, Open Farmer Kit becomes an opportunity for municipalities to create a network for monitoring the health of urban ecosystems spread throughout the urban fabric. The station can monitor the level of particulate air pollution, key soil parameters, and the number and species of pollinating insects present. The design of Open Farmer Kit conceived the structure to be open-source and manufacturable through the technologies present in FabLabs, mainly CNC cutting and digital fabrication.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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2023_05_Stella.pdf
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https://hdl.handle.net/10589/202835