Deep inside a cutting-edge Planet Farms manufacturing facility surroundings, nestled not on sprawling fields however towering upwards in layers, produce is being farmed in tightly managed situations. That is the place conventional agriculture is being revolutionized, inside a extremely automated, data-driven, vertical farming mannequin.
“If we wish to set new requirements in vertical farming, we should begin with a radical change of perspective,” says Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms. “We wish to change the best way the world thinks about agriculture.”
The change is to shift from supply-led farming to demand-led. The Planet Farms mannequin isn’t restricted by seasonal rising cycles, geography, or entry to water. For Planet Farms, the work isn’t performed by tractors, however by robots transferring on the plant and automatic guided automobiles (AGVs). That is important to sustaining the extremely environment friendly processes Planet Farms has developed to develop contemporary, nutritious, flavorful meals. Robots transport the whole lot from seedlings to harvested produce, guaranteeing minimal human contact and most velocity. No soil, no pesticides, and minimal water.
“The client is the primary to open the bag and contact the product,” Mistretta factors out. “All the things else is totally automated, from seeding to major and secondary packaging. The product doesn’t should be washed; it arrives able to eat.”
Nevertheless, preserving the whole lot seamlessly linked posed a problem. For important, latency-sensitive communications required by AGVs, a dropped connection or perhaps a pause throughout handoff may disrupt operations, probably resulting in delays or errors.
Enter Cisco Extremely-Dependable Wi-fi Backhaul (URWB). Planet Farms found that URWB was designed exactly for connecting transferring belongings, offering a degree of efficiency that commonplace Wi-Fi couldn’t assure for its important operations. URWB presents ultra-reliable, low-latency wi-fi connectivity with seamless handoffs and nil packet loss, important for uninterrupted motion of their robots and AGVs.
“Cisco URWB permits our AGVs and 3D cameras to gather information in actual time with out interruption. This information is significant for superior agentic AI fashions to make knowledgeable selections.” – Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms
Not like Wi-Fi, URWB employs a “make earlier than break” roaming mechanism, establishing the connection to the subsequent entry level earlier than dropping the connection to the present one. Its Multipath Operations (MPO) expertise permits visitors, particularly important information, to be despatched to a number of entry factors concurrently. Which means even with obstacles and interference frequent in advanced industrial environments, corresponding to a multi-level vertical farm, if one connection is interrupted, the visitors nonetheless will get by way of through one other path.
Deploying URWB felt surprisingly acquainted to Planet Farms’ current IT staff. The answer is constructed on 802.11 requirements and deploys similar to Wi-Fi, making it fast for groups to get linked. Planet Farms now has a wi-fi community that may lastly maintain tempo with its bold automation. The community is then centrally monitored and maintained utilizing instruments corresponding to Cisco Industrial Wi-fi Monitor, offering real-time information and alerts.
“We wish to present that vertical farming isn’t solely possible however may be worthwhile.” – Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms
For Planet Farms, Cisco URWB permits the excessive degree of automation essential to run its vertical farms effectively, lowering downtime, complexity, and guide intervention. It helps the exact, sub-millisecond latency wanted for AGVs to navigate tightly managed paths. This technological leap isn’t nearly connectivity; it permits Planet Farms’ mission of manufacturing scrumptious, wholesome, and sustainable greens with out pesticides, minimizing its environmental influence.
By going vertical and embracing applied sciences like Cisco URWB, Planet Farms is actually shaping the way forward for agriculture.
