How IoT beehives are helping secure the world's food supply

CARY, N.C., Aug. 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- National Honeybee Day 2020, COVID-19 has shone a spotlight on the food supply chain that helps nourish people in all corners of the world. But an even older "pandemic" - the plight of honeybees - also threatens the world's food supply. In both cases, SAS analytics makes it easier to understand data signals as they're happening so effective interventions can take place. In this instance, SAS technologies are at work to save honeybees, the world's No. 1 food crop pollinator.

"SAS' passion for innovation and sustainability helped us find technology solutions to better understand the health of beehives," said Sarah Myers, AgTech Marketing Manager at SAS. "I'm an avid beekeeper, and it's exciting to work with a group of data scientists who want find new ways to support this critical global effort."

Four ways data science tracks hive health
SAS Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled beehives use streaming analytics to interpret hive data flowing from embedded sensors to help beekeepers better understand which units need help. Hive data is sent to the cloud to allow for the continuous measurement of:

    --  Weight. A connected scale sensor tells beekeepers if the hive is
        producing honey and gaining weight - a sign of a healthy bee activity.
        If the scale indicates weight loss in one hive compared to its neighbor,
        beekeepers can intervene.
    --  Temperature and humidity. An ideal climate inside the hive creates baby
        bees and keeps the queen warm enough to survive the winter. Honeybees
        regulate hive temperature and humidity by moving, flapping and
        clustering. Internal sensors collect temperature and humidity data then
        analyze it to alert beekeepers about concerning fluctuations.
    --  Acoustics. The hum of honeybees buzzing indicates health, stress,
        swarming, and the condition of the queen. SAS hives monitor audio data
        continuously and use machine learning models to listen for anomalies.
        These audio clips help illustrate the difference between a healthy hive
        and an endangered hive.
    --  Flight activity. Bees flying in and out of a hive indicates foraging
        activity, a sign the hive is healthy. Applying computer vision
        technology to the bees' flight patterns helps beekeepers understand when
        the hive is happy or in trouble.

Read more details about using IoT technologies to protect honeybees in this paper from SAS Global Forum 2020, Noninvasive Beehive Monitoring through Acoustic Data Using SAS(®) Event Stream Processing and SAS(®) Viya(®).

About SAS
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SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. ® indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright © 2020 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.

Editorial Contact:
Laura Fleek Brumley
Laura.Brumley@sas.com
214-803-6692
sas.com/news

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SOURCE SAS