Development of IoT-based Drip Irrigation System for Tobacco Crops Using Fuzzy Logic: A Case Study in Indonesian Agriculture

Tobacco is one of the leading agricultural commodities in Indonesia, making a significant contribution to the local economy, particularly in tobaccoproducing regions. However, tobacco cultivation, which generally takes place during the dry season, faces challenges such as limited water availability and the high labor intensity required for irrigation. The research aims to develop an Internet of Things (IoT)-based drip irrigation system to enhance water-use efficiency and simplify the irrigation process for tobacco farmers. The system integrates a DHT11 temperature sensor, a soil moisture sensor, and a soil pH sensor. An Arduino Uno and an ESP8266 microcontroller are used to process sensor data and transmit it in real-time to Firebase. Moreover, Mamdani fuzzy logic method is applied to determine irrigation duration based on temperature and soil moisture readings. Experimental results indicate that the system can reduce water usage by up to 36.67% compared to conventional manual watering methods, with an average water consumption of 297.32 mL per automated irrigation cycle. Moreover, the system demonstrates high accuracy, with an average deviation of only 0.33 between fuzzy logic results generated by the Arduino Uno and MATLAB simulations. The novelty of the research lies in the integration of an IoT-based drip irrigation system utilizing Mamdani fuzzy logic, specifically designed for tobacco cultivation, which enables real-time monitoring by farmers. This system is expected to offer an innovative solution to support precision agriculture and promote efficient water resource management.