Sensors for successful British wine

Need for efficiency in English wine

English wine is taking off, with more and more people recognising its award winning quality and production growing by the year. A generation ago it was wise to stay clear of ‘British wine’, blends of cheap wine from generally unnamed sources. But since then, a warming climate and improvements in viniculture has seen a whole new industry blossom. Commercial vines are now grown throughout the UK, predominantly in the south of England about also in Wales and even Scotland. Vini culturalists all over the world know that without treatment, large portions of any vine crop will routinely be lost to fungi, bacteria, and – the blight of the industry – mildew. The English growers also realise that like all developing industries, as production grows so the need for efficiency increases.

Efficient aerial spraying

Oxfordshire’s Heli-Lift Services has been pioneering the use of helicopters for spray treating grapevines, using technologies developed by neighbours Sensor Technology. Starting in the historical vineyards of Douro Valley, Portugal, where with little room for tractors, Heli-Lift soon realised that aerial spraying was very much more efficient and cost effective than traditional manual methods. It is now promoting its capabilities to English vine growers, who are all keen to innovate and advance their industry further onto the world stage. Heli-Lift Services’ spraying rig is designed so that its nozzles release perfectly weighted droplets evenly and swiftly over the crop. The company has also developed a hydraulically stabilised Heli-Deck for easy refilling on rough or sloping ground. To ensure even spray coverage, the pilots use a sophisticated GPS mapping device called HeliNav LoadMaster coupled with an intelligent LoadSense weight sensor that monitors spray usage to plot and record progress in precision detail.

Wireless torque sensor

Both HeliNav and LoadSense were developed by Sensor Technology Ltd. LoadSense is based on the company’s wireless torque sensor which the industrial world is very fond of. Helicopter operators took to it because, being wireless, there is no need to drill cable holes through the aircrafts’ body panels – which would mean getting recertified for airworthiness. The pilots asked if Sensor Technology could link the load information with accurate GPS positioning, to automated flight planning for optimised spray patterns, and HeliNav LoadMaster was born!