ELECTRONIC SOIL NITROGEN METER
Patent Number: PH-2-2019-00794

Patent Title: Electronic Soil Nitrogen Meter

​​Description

The Electronic Soil Nitrogen Meter is designed to measure the nitrogen level in the soil to identify the exact amount of nitrogen in it and efficient or appropriate fertilization of soil can be acquired. This substitutes the current method of obtaining nitrogen level in soil which provides results in a broad range of measurements (low, medium, and high) in which the exact amount of nitrogen required by the crops was not identified.

​Innovative Features and Benefits:

This invention of the utility model links the technical fields of Electronics Engineering to Agricultural interests particularly to nitrogen fertilizer management in the farm fields. This could lead to significant savings in fertilizer purchases as well as in labor and fuel costs associated with the fertilizer application. It could also help reduce pollution from fertilizer runoff.

The Electronic Soil Nitrogen Meter possesses the following innovative features and benefits:
• An easy-to-use tool which will measure the nitrogen level, based from the nitrate concentration of soil with the use of nitrate ion-selective electrode;
• Environment friendly, economically viable, socially and politically accepted S&T-Interventions;
• Handheld LCD displayed device;
• Faster evaluation of soil based on its nitrogen content;
• Developed IEC and training manual of the S&T-intervention; and
• Maximized utilization of the farm.

​Applications:

The Electronic Soil Nitrogen Meter is used to measure the nitrogen level in the soil to identify the exact amount of nitrogen in it and efficient or appropriate fertilization of soil can be acquired. The E-SNA also comprises an ion-selective electrode terminal being used for sensing the nitrate ion that is present in the soil. The ion-selective electrode terminal converts the activity of the nitrate ion into a voltage potential. This electrode provides potential in millivolts concerning ion concentration. It can be detachable to the box.

Business Development Opportunity:

Nitrogen is one of the main fertilizers being applied to agricultural soils because it is part of various enzymatic proteins that catalyze and regulate plant-growth processes.

This technology will transform the traditional way of evaluating the amount of nitrogen present in the soil. The device targets the sectors, and even institutions and the public which desire a more economical way and lesser time as well of determining the nitrogen content of the soil. This will indeed be pivotal to the nitrogen management practices in agriculture, production, laboratories, and the environment.

Among the potential users to be included will be the Department of Agriculture (DA), Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM), Philippine Rice Research Institute (PRRI), Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority (FPA), Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), National Agricultural and Fishery Council (NAFC), Bureau of Postharvest Research and Extension (BPRE), Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). The regional and provincial offices that are engaged in the field of farm assessment and the conduct of research on the development of soil nitrate management practices for agricultural production, as well as for environmental monitoring purposes due to the bad effect of nitrate in waters, will also benefit from this device.

This can be more accessible to potential users with the help of business partners and investors who will extend financial support to the manufacturing and marketing of the product.