(VOVWORLD) - A group of students at the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City have launched a project to help farmers apply technology in agriculture. Called "Solution for Green Agriculture" or ECO-HOUSE, the project won first prize at the 5th student contest for startup ideas organized by the Ministry of Education and Training.
 An illustration of the ECO HOUSE project. (Photo credit: Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City)
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ECO-HOUSE was begun by three students - Ho Thanh Huy, Le Hoang Minh Chau, and Tran Thi Tram - under the guidance of lecturer Thai Duy Tung of the Finance and Banking Faculty.
The project designed a small IoT-based device that is installed in a garden to record the cultivation process.
It is integrated with remote control software on smartphones to monitor and control important indicators such as temperature, humidity, water flow and nutrient content in soil, N-P-K content, and pH.
The technology recognizes abnormal conditions and proactively warns the farmer. This minimizes risks, improves productivity, and conserves water and power.
The system also proposes solutions that matches the financial condition of the farmer.
Ho Thanh Huy, a student at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering Technology and the project’s team leader, said the device is easy to operate.
"We were born and raised in the Mekong Delta. Although we have never done farm work, we understand the difficulties and hardships of farmers and know how they work. Our project is meant to help the farmers in our hometowns,” said Huy.
 Members of the ECO HOUSE project test the system at a farm. (Photo credit: Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City)
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The project is being piloted in several durian, apple, and pomelo orchards in Tien Giang and Ben Tre province, and at an orchid farm in Vung Tau, said M.A, Thai Duy Tung, the project’s guide lecturer.
According to Tung, the group is working with several farms and he believes “in the future, the project will become more familiar.”
The students intend to provide design consultancy and solutions that will improve Vietnamese farm produce and traceability.
Dr. Nguyen Quoc Cuong, Vice Dean of the Commerce and Tourism Faculty of the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City, said the model helps farm productivity and protects the environment.
“The Faculty will provide advice to the students on turning this project into a spin-off business that exploits and commercializes current university research, and benefits the community, especially the high-tech agricultural community,” said Cuong.
With ECO-HOUSE, farmers can switch from conventional farming to smart farming by connecting with agronomists and using new technology.