Atolla Tech is developing a lidar and machine-learning algorithm for identifying and quantifying airborne insects. This technology will automate Integrated Pest Management, an environmentally sensitive, information-based approach to pest control. Atolla initially focuses on tracking insect pollinators due to their importance in the U.S. agriculture industry.
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Sonia Dagan
Sonia Dagan received her doctorate in electrical engineering from the City College of New York. Before her doctorate, Dagan worked at Northrop Grumman, developing detector testing analyses for the Space-Based Infrared System surveillance payloads. Continuing with Northrop while pursuing a Ph.D., she built a neural network for background subtraction of clouds to detect thermal targets in satellite imaging. Dagan subsequently moved projects to design and built an eye-safe two-channel infrared lidar for aerosol and cloud detection.
TECHNOLOGY
Critical Need
Pollinators benefit 78 percent of crops grown worldwide and contribute ~$29B to U.S. agriculture. Many high-demand consumer crops rely on pollinators for high yield and quality production. Unfortunately, many stressors have affected pollinator health, including pests, pathogens, pesticides, and climate change. These effects need to be studied so that mitigation plans can be implemented before irreversible consequences occur. Current methods for monitoring pollinators are labor-intensive and lack important quantifiable details. A better way of quantifying pollinator activity is required to assess population health and pollination efficiency accurately.
Technology Vision
Atolla’s unique technology, combining lidar and machine-learning algorithms, provides real-time pollinator species tracking, offering groundbreaking pollination efficiency solutions. The core of the innovation is the Pollination Visitation Index, allowing growers to gain deeper insights into their pollination strategies for informed decision-making. Atolla's technology starkly contrasts conventional pollination assessment methods, providing real-time data that enable immediate and informed decisions to optimize pollination practices. This innovation is crucial for addressing the challenges of climate change and sustainability in agriculture.
Potential for Impact
The real-time monitoring of insects in agriculture provided by Atolla’s technology offers crucial data for assessing the impact of climate change on insects, thereby aiding farmers and researchers in developing adaptive strategies. Atolla’s technology identifies new pest species or variations in beneficial insect population dynamics, which is crucial to implementing effective integrated pest management practices. Additionally, monitoring helps evaluate the effectiveness of pest control measures in a changing climate. By staying attuned to these shifts, agriculture can become more resilient, sustainable, and better equipped to face the challenges posed by climate change for insect pests, beneficials, and global food security.
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Atolla Tech