Applying an Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System to Path Loss Prediction in a Ruby Mango Plantation

The application of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) in smart agriculture requires accurate path loss prediction to determine the coverage area and system capacity. However, fast fading from environment changes, such as leaf movement, unsymmetrical tree structures and near-ground effects, makes the path loss prediction inaccurate. Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies can be used to facilitate this task for training the real environments. In this study, we performed path loss measurements in a Ruby mango plantation at a frequency of 433 MHz. Then, an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) was applied to path loss prediction. The ANFIS required two inputs for the path loss prediction: the distance and antenna height corresponding to the tree level (i.e., trunk and bottom, middle, and top canopies). We evaluated the performance of the ANFIS by comparing it with empirical path loss models widely used in the literature. The ANFIS demonstrated a superior prediction accuracy with high sensitivity compared to the empirical models, although the performance was affected by the tree level.