Geoinformatics is the science and technology of developing information infrastructure to address challenges in geography, geosciences, and cartography. It involves collecting, organizing, analyzing, and visualizing spatial data using tools like remote sensing, GPS, GIS, cartography, and photogrammetry. These tools are used with techniques like computer science, geodesy, and others. Geoinformatics has many applications, including precision agriculture where it is used to gather field information, detect issues like pests or soil anomalies, determine crop health and yields, and conduct agricultural surveys.

1. Geo-informatics- definition, concepts, tools
and techniques and their use in Precision
Agriculture.
Dr. H.A. Archana
Assistant Professor

2. Definition:
• Geoinformatics is the technology and science of developing
information infrastructure to address the challenges that face
geography, geosciences, and cartography, among other related
branches of science and engineering.
• It deals primarily with the character and structure of spatial
information, and its classification, qualification, storage,
processing, and dissemination.
• Geoinformatics is one of the powerful technologies to support
basic scientific inquiry as well as address the complex social
and environmental challenges through data analysis.

3. Concepts:
• It collects and organize the data and then analyse it
through computation and geo-visualization.
• The realm of Geoinformatics is very broad because it
comprises of subjects like Remote sensing, GPS, GIS,
cartography, hydrology, climatology, Aerial photography,
photogrammetry etc.

4. Tools and Techniques
i. Computer science
ii. Geodesy
iii. Cartography
iv. Photogrammetry
v. Remote Sensing
vi. Global positioning system
vii.Geographical Information System

5. Computer science
• Informatics, as discipline, comprises of both the computer
technologies, i.e. hardware and software
• Necessity to manage more and more numerous data in
every field including agriculture
• The knowledge of computer science is a pre- requisite to
represent and process applicable information through the
development of hardware and software
• Computer science- contributing in improvement of our
activities and research

6. Geodesy
• Geodesy is the discipline deals with measurement and
representation of the earth
• It is defined as the science concerned with the study of
shape, dimension, gravity and area of the earth
• Branches- Gravimetry and positioning astronomy

7. Cartography
• It is the art and science of designing, constructing and
producing maps
• It includes almost every operation from original field
work to final printing and marketing of maps

8. Photogrammetry
• Photogrammetry is the technology developed for
determining the geometric properties of objects from
photographic images
• It is concerned with making measurements about position
and shape of the objects with the help of the photographs.
• It is helpful in various fields including topographic
mapping, architecture, engineering, manufacturing, quality
control, police investigation, and geology

9. Remote sensing
• Remote sensing is the collection of data about an object from
a distance
• It is used to measure and monitor the Earths lithosphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere.
• Humans and many other types of animals accomplish this
task with aid of eye or by the sense of smell or hearing.
• Remote sensing is usually done with the help of mechanical
device known as remote sensor.
• This device as greatly improved ability to receive and record
information about an object without having any physical
contact with them by using electromagnetic energy radiation

10. Global positioning system
• GPS enables positional accuracy in the location of terrain
features
• It receives signals and positioning information from a
series of satellites in space
• GPS gives the accurate location of soil sample points
within a field.
• It also required to establish the accurate location of yield
data collected.
• Real world application – Location, Navigation, Tracking,
Mapping, etc.,

11. Geographic information system
• GIS – It is a system for capturing, storing, checking,
manipulating, analyzing, and displaying data, which are
spatially referenced to the earth.
• GIS as been used for emergency panning, logistics and
transportation related analysis, crime analysis, business
and service planning, government and public services,
analysis of genome sequences on DNA.
• Components of GIS- Hardware, spatial database,
software, procedure, Expertise

13. Applications of Geoinformatics
1. It is used for urban planning and land use management.
2. It is used for car navigation.
3. It is used for creating virtual globes.
4. It is used for environmental modelling and analysis.
5. It is used in agriculture, meteorology and to study the climate
change.
6. It is used for oceanography and atmosphere modelling.
7. It is used in telecommunications, criminology and crime
simulation.
8. It is used in aviation, biodiversity conservation and maritime
transport.
9. It is used in disaster risk management.

14. Use of Geoinformatics in precision agriculture
• Precision Farming, basically, is characterized by reduced cost of
cultivation (through optimization of inputs), improved control and
increased resource use efficiency, through appropriate
applications of Management Information System (MIS).
• While the reduced cost of cultivation is achieved through
optimization of agricultural inputs taking into account economic
push and environmental pull related factors, the control
mechanisms are introduced by the help of Geo Informatics

15. Application of Geoinformatics in precision Agriculture
• Gathering of information on agricultural activities, including land
use, soil condition, weather condition, etc., that are essential for
site characterization and consequent site selection for farming.
• Capability of recording date in visible as well as invisible
(including UV, IR, MW) parts of the spectrum, it enables us to see
beyond the capability of the human eye eg. Disease and pest attack
• It is useful in the determination of the spatial distribution of plant
status and expected yield by measuring the greenness of the field.

16. • Detection, identification, measurement and monitoring of
agricultural phenomena are predicted on the assumption that
agricultural landscape features (such as crops, livestock, crop
infestation, and soil anomalies) have consistently identifiable
signatures on the type of remote sensing data.
• These identifiable signatures are a reflection of crop type, state of
maturity, crop density, crop geometry, crop vigour, crop moisture,
crop temperature, and soil moisture as well as soil temperature
• Agricultural survey- Crop Survey, Range survey, Livestock survey