Agricultura digital 4.0 em compost barn: monitoramento ambiental e soluções de manejo baseadas em microcontroladores

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate structural and environmental aspects, as well as to propose technological solutions based on microcontrollers for compost barn systems on dairy farms located in the state of Ceará, Brazil. Initially, the main concepts, limitations, and advancements of the topic are presented. In Chapter 1, the environmental dynamics of dairy cow housing were evaluated using geostatistics in six farms during the dry season. Microclimatic characteristics, construction aspects, bedding management, animals’ physiological responses, and the degree of producer satisfaction were investigated. It was observed that the animals remained under severe heat stress, especially in the afternoon. The influence of stocking density and barn typology on thermal comfort and bedding uniformity was also confirmed. Regarding the degree of producer satisfaction, interviewees identified the implementation costs as a limiting factor but expressed a high level of satisfaction with the system. The results highlight the challenges of adopting this system for dairy cattle housing in semi-arid regions. In Chapter 2, a portable device based on the Internet of Things (IoT) was developed for compost barn systems. Initially, the necessary electronic components for assembling the prototype were selected and acquired. The development occurred gradually, with three successive versions: the first based on Arduino UNO R3, and the following versions with ESP32, additional sensors, and improvements in power supply and display. Performance tests of the prototype were carried out on commercial dairy farms and in a laboratory at the Federal University of Ceará. In the field phase, bedding temperature results obtained with conventional devices were compared to those from the proposed prototype, with statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) in some layers. These findings indicate the need for further studies, especially regarding the stabilization time of the DS18B20 sensor. As for data storage, no losses were recorded, even with oscillations or connection failures, as all information was successfully saved to a memory card. The device demonstrated satisfactory performance in measuring environmental and bedding thermal variables, with potential application in the intelligent management of compost barn facilities in semi-arid climates.