is not limited in any way by the databases that it may include.

Various applications 106 in the soil evaluation system 10 may be accessible via interface(s) 130. These interfaces 130 may be provided in the form of APIs or the like, made accessible to external users Un and/or test facilities TFn via one or more gateways and interfaces 132 (e.g., via a web-based application and/or an application (e.g., mobile app 202) running on a user's or test facility's device(s) 400). Access to the system 10 to third-party software and applications may also be provides through the use of APIs including XML-RPC, Modus, SOAP, JSON-RPC, REST, XLS and others

Soil Test Kit

In one exemplary embodiment hereof as shown in FIG. 3, the system 10 includes a soil test kit 300 that is provided to an end user Un to collect appropriate soil samples from the growing area of interest and to provide the samples to an appropriate test facility TFn for testing. The samples also may include other types of growing media such as samples of hydroponic nutrient solutions. The kit 300 may be provided through retail outlets, online ecommerce sites, associations, clubs, and/or through other channels.

In some embodiments, the soil test kit 300 may include the following elements (without limitation):

- 1. Soil collection container 302;
- 2. Ion-exchange resin(s) 304;
- 3. Shipping container 306;
- 4. Instructions and/or other documentation; and
- 5. Other components and/or elements, as necessary.

In some exemplary embodiments, the soil collection container 302 may comprise a jar, bottle, vial, box, bag, envelop, pouch, other type(s) of containers, and any combination thereof. The container 302 may comprise plastic, glass, metal, rubber, other materials, and any combination thereof. In general, the soil collection container 302 is of adequate size to contain an adequate sample size and to provide for the successful transport of the sample to an appropriate test facility TFn.

In some embodiments, the soil test kit 300 also may include an N-P-K meter/nutrient detection meter that provides a nutrient reading or pH reading, color metric strips, litmus paper, LED color variation testing, pH meter, solution-based “do-it-yourself” soil test kits, traditional nutrient soil extractions such as Mehlich-3, Bray, Olsen, Saturated Paste, and other elements.

In some exemplary embodiments, the ion-exchange resin(s) 304 include resins and/or polymers that provide a medium for ion exchange between the soil sample and the resin 304. As is known in the art, ion-exchange resins 304 may generally include an insoluble matrix (or support structure) normally in the form of small (0.25-0.5 mm radius) microbeads fabricated from organic polymer substrates. The beads are typically porous, providing a surface area for the trapping and releasing of ions (thus the term ion-exchange). The resins 304 may comprise crosslinked polystyrene sulfonate and or amine but other types of materials may also be used. It is understood that any type of adequate ion-exchange resins may be used and that the scope of the system 10 is not limited in any way by the type(s) of ion-exchange resins it may utilize. The resins also may be in the form of film, paper, strips and/or in other suitable forms.

As plants grow in natural soil environments, the plants' roots release hydrogen (H+) and hydroxide (OH—) ions in exchange for nutrients that may be available in the surrounding soil. The purpose of the ion-exchange resins 304 is to simulate this process by releasing the same types of ions (e.g., H+ and/or OH—) in exchange for the absorption of the available nutrients in the soil. In this way, the ion-exchange resins 304 may absorb a sample of nutrients from the soil or other growing media that may generally represent the same or similar levels of nutrients that the plants may absorb during daily nutrient acquisition in their natural growing environment.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may be utilized by a partnering user such as a third party brand, reseller, retailer or other type of vendor that may wish to sell or otherwise provide a soil test kit 300 or other services and/or elements of the system 10 to its customers. In this case, the system 10 may customize the soil test kits 300 to meet the users' needs. This may include branding the packaging, instructions, and/or other elements of the test kits 300 using the users' branding or other type(s) of identification. In these embodiments, the user may include an individual, a company, an association, an organization, and/or any other type of entity. For example, the system 10 may include a user's company logo on the packaging of the test kit 300, the user's contact information on the packing list as the provider of the kit 300, a particular color scheme that matches that of the user's brand, and/or other types of branding and/or customization elements in any area of the kits 300. In this way, at least a portion of the kits 300 (if not all) may be customized to appear as though they were created by the user's own brand. Other reasons and/or benefits of providing customized soil test kits 300 also may exist.

The System and Mobile Application—In Use

In some embodiments, it may be preferable that each user Un register with the system 10 to create a user account prior to utilizing the system 10. In this way, the system 10 may correlate the activity of each user Un with the associated user account. Registration and subsequent logins may occur through the mobile app 202, through associated websites, through third party applications or websites, via API transfers or by other suitable methods.

In one exemplary embodiment hereof, the system 10 and the mobile app 202 guide the user Un through the process of utilizing the system 10. In some embodiments, the mobile app 202 provides access to support materials (e.g., instructional videos, graphics, pictures, how-to instructions, FAQs, etc. stored within the user support database(s) 122) that may assist the user Un in collecting and preparing the soil sample(s). For example, the user support application(s) 112 may interface with the user support database(s) 122 to provide the instructional content to the user Un via the mobile app 202. For instance, the user support materials may instruct the user Un in the following ways (without limitation):

- 1. How to accurately measure the volume of the growing area;
- 2. Where to collect the soil samples within the growing area;
- 3. How many soil samples to collect given the size of the growing area;
- 4. The depth from which to retrieve the soil sample depending on the type(s) of plants being grown;
- 5. How to mix the soil sample with the ion-exchange resin 304;
- 6. How to prepare the shipping package 306 for shipping the sample;
- 7. How to register the soil sample with the system 10; and
- 8. Other support subjects, as necessary.

In addition, the user support application 112 may provide live chat, messaging, video conferencing, phone calls and/or other types of interactive applications via the frontend infrastructure 200 (e.g., the mobile app 202) that facilitate interaction between the users Un and the system 10. In some cases, this may involve interfacing with a live human expert that may provide guidance directly to the users Un regarding use of the system 10 and answers to questions regarding agronomy and other related topics. In other cases, this may involve artificial intelligence systems that may provide the information to the users Un.

In one step, the kit 300 may provide the user Un a QR code, a barcode, or other types of identifying elements that the user Un may scan using the mobile app 202 to register his/her specific kit 300 with the system 10. For example, the kit 202 may include a distinct code (barcode, QR code, etc.) that when scanned uniquely identifies the distinct kit 300 and the associated soil sample with the system 10 and the associated user Un. The user Un also may provide other information to the system 10 during registration using the app 202 such as contact information, soil sample identification information, type of crop and/or plants being grown, sample date, and other types of information. The system 10 may utilize the soil test kit registration application 110 and store the registration information into the registered soil test kit database 120. In this way, the unique kit 300 and associated soil samples obtained from a particular user Un may be tied directly to the corresponding test results, test reports, recommendations, suggested products, customized products, guidance, etc.

In a second step, the mobile app 202 may guide the user Un through the process of characterizing the growing area and collecting an appropriate soil sample. This may include determining the dimensions of the growing area. In some embodiments, the app 202 utilizes a camera associated with the mobile device 400 and determines the dimensions of the growing area by applying measurement algorithms to images (e.g., photographs, video, etc.) of the growing area captured by the camera.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may calculate geospatial information of the growing area (e.g., using GPS) and utilize maps (e.g., open sourced, purchased, etc.) to help determine the proper area(s) to collect the samples. For applications where the growing area is large (e.g., more than one-eighth acre), the system 10 may recommend taking a plurality of samples at different locations across the area to form a composite sample set. The system 10 may also underlay soil maps (e.g., open source, purchased, etc.) to better determine the depth at which to collect the samples.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may recommend specialized soil collection tools as needed for specific types of growing areas and conditions.

In some embodiments, the app 202 includes augmented reality application(s) and places computer-generated perceptual information such as images, videos, graphics, etc. onto the image(s) and/or video(s) of the growing area captured by the device's camera. These augmented images may include graphical targets showing the user Un where to collect the soil samples, the depth to dig, and other types of guidance.

Once the soil samples are collected, the app 202 may guide the user Un through the process of mixing the soil samples with the ion-exchanging resins 304 to create a saturated paste or slurry. In some embodiments the soil samples may be field-moist and may be subsequently saturated with water and/or deionized water. However, this may not be required.

As described above, in some embodiments, the ion-exchange resins 304 may be buried within user's growing area for a sufficient amount of time as designed and may be provided to the system 10 without the accompanying soil samples.

Once the samples have been collected and combined with the ion-exchanging resin 304, the collection container 302 may be sealed and placed into the shipping container 306 and transported to the testing facility TFn. In some embodiments, the app 202 may provide tracking information with daily updates regarding the shipping process. The app 202 may also notify the user Un when his/her shipment has arrived and received by the testing facility TFn (e.g., scanned/accepted).

Upon receipt of the soil samples and/or associated resins 304, the system 10 may conduct a wide variety of tests on the soil samples and/or associated ion-exchanging resins 304 to determine the nutrient content, PH levels, and other characteristics of the samples. It is understood that in some embodiments the system 10 may test the soil sample(s) directly using conventional methods, while in other embodiments the system 10 may test samples of ion-exchanging resins 304 that may be associated with one or more samples of soil. In some embodiments, the system 10 tests the samples for levels of nitrogen (N) (for both the nitrate and ammonium forms), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), sulfur(S), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), iron (Fc), manganese (Mn), boron (B), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), aluminum (Al), and other nutrients. The system 10 also may test the soil biology bacteria—Active (AB) and Total (TB), Fungi—Active (AF) and Total (TF), Protozoa (PROTS)—Flagellates (F), Amoebac (A), Ciliates (C), Nematodes (NEM), Nitrogen Cycling Potential (lbs./ac), Mycorrhizal Colonization (MC), ENDO, ECTO and ERICOID, Verticillium, Pythium-Phytophthora-Fusarium, and others.

In some embodiments, the system 10 also may perform other types of chemical and physical soil analysis including percentage sand silt clay, percentage CEC, percentage organic matter, pH, water infiltration, compaction, respiration, CO2 release, and others.

The system 10 may utilize the data processing application 114 to process the data and store it to the processed data database 124. In this way, the influence of soil pH, biology, and mineralogy on nutrient availability may be assessed by measuring the quantity of specific nutrients and/or PH levels in each resin sample, in each sample of growing media (e.g., soil samples, hydroponic solution samples) or other types of test media. As this process is performed, the system 10 may provide alerts, status updates and/or other types of correspondence to the corresponding user Un to keep the user Un informed on one or more portions of the sample and testing progress.

Next, the system 10 may collect the appropriate processed data and generate one or more data reports using the data reporting application 116. The data reports may be provided to the users Un via the mobile app 202, in digital form through email, as hardcopy (e.g., through the mail), or by other means, and stored in the data report database 126 to be retrieved at any time.

In some embodiments, the reports depict the measured levels of each nutrient in the soil sample, the ideal levels of each nutrient given the types of plants or crops that the user Un is growing, and other relevant information. In general, each nutrient level in each soil sample may be shown as too high, too low, or generally adequate for ideal plant growth. This information may improve plant health and quality while increasing sustainability and reducing environmental impacts. Stewardship reports may also be provided.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may be utilized by a partnering user such as a third party brand, reseller, retailer or other type of vendor that may wish to sell or otherwise provide a soil test kit 300 or other services and/or elements of the system 10 to its customers. In these embodiments, the system 10 customizes the reports to meet the users' needs. This may include branding the reports using the users' branding or other type(s) of identification. In these embodiments, the user Un may include an individual, a company, an association, an organization, and/or any other type of entity. For example, the system 10 may include a user's company logo in the header of the report(s), the user's contact information as the provider of the report, a particular color scheme that matches that of the user's brand, references to specific product lines (e.g., to a specific brand of soil amendment products) or lists, and/or other types of branding and/or customization elements in any area of the reports. In this way, at least a portion of the report (if not all) may be customized to appear as though it were created by the user's own brand. Other reasons and/or benefits of providing customized reports also may exist. The customized reports may include digital reports, hardcopy reports, other types of reports, any type(s) of feedback or communications, and any combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the system 10 provides recommendations to the user Un that may be used to improve the quality of the soil within the growing area based on the results of the testing. For example, the system 10 may recommend using a specific type and amount of fertilizer and/or new soil to increase the levels of one or more deficient nutrients in the growing area. In this example, the fertilizer-soil amendment may be organic, synthetic, liquid, granular or a blend of any combination thereof.

In another example, the system 10 may recommend adjusting the pH level of the growing area soil by adding a specific amount of one more specific pH level modifiers. In another example, the system 10 may provide additional soil amendment guidance such as the inclusion of wetting agents based on the nutrient location depth detected by the soil sample tests. In another example, the system 10 may recommend additional chemical, herbicide, fungicide, and/or other types of applications including ROUNDUP® type products based on the soil sample test results or user provided information such as grass/weed type.

Knowing the characteristics of the growing area including its size, location, the depths at which the samples were taken and the results of the soil sample tests, the system 10 may provide the recommended levels and rates at which to add the fertilizers and/or soil amendments (based on product size, density, weight, distribution, coverage, etc.), the process(es) used to apply the products (e.g., the sprayer/spreader, fertigation, nozzle size and its associated settings), the depth at which to apply the products, and other pertinent information. This may include daily, weekly, monthly, yearly and/or other frequency plans based on the specific test results of each soil sample or a comparison of multiple samples over time.

The system 10 may make other types of recommendations for other types of amendments and it is understood that the scope of the system 10 is not limited in any way by the types of tests the system 10 performs and/or the types of recommendations that the system 10 provides.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may provide for the purchase or acquisition of the recommended products (e.g., fertilizers or other soil amendments) by offering the products for sale through the mobile app 202 or via API transfer from lab platform LIMS to 3^rdparty mobile apps, on associated ecommerce websites, directly from the supplier and/or affiliates, affiliate purchase links, or through other channels. In other embodiments, the system 10 may guide the users Un to the proper retail outlet to purchase the products while providing product availability based on store location and local inventory levels and the ability to purchase based on pricing options for similar products. In some embodiments, the system 10 may make available for purchase or acquisition other types of products, such as, without limitation, plant seeds, plant starts, trees, pots, soil, other types of products, and/or any combinations thereof.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may provide notifications and/or alerts for continued maintenance and/or testing practices on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly, or other frequency basis. In some instances, the system 10 may recommend the retesting of the growing area soil at one or more locations and/or depths using a new soil testing kit 300, after which, the new results may be compared to the prior results so that any additional modifications to the soil treatment plan may be made based on the new test and comparison data. Because the system 10 stores all test results in perpetuity (or for at least the term of each respective user's subscription) in the processed data database 124 and/or the data report database 126, comparisons may be made at any frequency such as year-to-year, sample-to-sample, nutrient-to-nutrient and at each location, for each crop, etc. Modifications to the soil treatment plans may be made on a case-by-case basis and may pertain directly to the location(s) and depths of the soil sample sites and/or the types of plants/crops being cultivated. These alerts and updates also may be provided to support each user's goals for the associated time periods.

Note also that the system 10 may be used to test a soil sample collected from a first location (e.g., a front yard) and a soil sample collected from a second location (e.g., a backyard) and to compare the test results between the soils of the first and second locations. In this way, the system 10 may provide the comparison results to the user with recommendations for one or both of the growing locations. This also may be performed over various time intervals as discussed above. In addition, the system 10 may be used to test a soil sample collected from a growing area of a first crop type and a soil sample collected from a growing area of a second crop type, and to compare the test results between the crop types. Other types of comparisons also may be performed in any combination.

In some embodiments, the system 10 provides the mechanisms (e.g., through the app 202) for each user Un to upload images, photographs, videos and/or other types of media to the appropriate database(s) 108 to document his/her cultivation of plants, to track his/her progress, to share his/her progress with other growers and/or for other purposes.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may provide other types of guidance such as tillage and cultivation practices based on nutrient location depth(s) evaluated by each soil test kit data. The system 10 also may help minimize the volatilization, leaching, eutrophication, and/or run-off of recommended nutrients and amendments by analyzing soil data associated with infiltration rates, percolation rates, and soil type (e.g., percent sand, silt, clay and/or organic matter), and by providing recommendations for appropriate irrigation practices. For example, the system 10 may provide guidance and information (e.g., specifications, usage data, APIs, etc.) pertaining to irrigation sensors/systems, soil moisture sensors/probes, and other types of systems in combination with other types of guidance as described in other sections.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may provide and/or recommend soil amendments, fertilizer(s), or other elements preformulated for particular applications for particular users. For example, the system 10 may provide and/or recommend a particular fertilizer preformulated to match the needs of the user Un accompanied by data pertaining to the fertilizer and/or the predicted soil outcomes that a user Un may expect when using the fertilizer. Data may be attained through artificial intelligence (AI) and/or by pre-testing fertilizer and soil amendment products in different soil types to build a database of data or a “center of excellence”. For instance, the system 10 may provide data associated with a specific fertilizer's release characteristics (e.g., data curves representing product release at 2 weeks, 4 weeks, 8 weeks, etc.) over a known period of time. In another example, the provided information may include predicted pH level changes that a user Un may expect when using a particular preformulated pH level modifier. It is understood that other types of data may also be provided.

In some embodiments, the system 10 uses the results of an analysis for a particular user Un to produce, manufacture, blend, package, acquire, or otherwise provide to the particular user Un the soil amendments, fertilizers, and/or other products that may assist the user Un in implementing the suggestions and recommendations provided to the user Un by the system 10. This may include creating one or more customized products (e.g., custom blends of amendments, soils, fertilizers, etc.) for a particular user Un to meet that user's needs, acquiring such products from other sources and providing them to the user Un, and any combinations thereof. This may include the products themselves, as well as the packaging, bags, boxes, jugs, containers, tools, and/or other relevant elements that may accompany the products. The products may be liquid, solid, gaseous, granular, synthetic, organic, soluble, and/or in other forms. The products may be made available to the user Un for sale through the mobile application 202, through ecommerce websites, through wholesale outlets, through retail outlets, through other channels, and any combinations thereof.

It is understood that any of the details described herein pertaining to the system 10 providing recommendations and/or products to a user based at least in part on analyses of test data may apply to instances wherein (i) the system 10 provides the soil test kits 300 and performs the subsequent tests and analyses, (ii) the system 10 provides the soil test kits 300, a third party performs the subsequent tests, provides the test results to the system 10, and the system 10 performs the subsequent analyses, (iii) a third party provides the soil test kits 300, performs the tests and provides the test results to the system 10 which performs the analyses, (iv) a third party provides the soil test kits and the system 10 performs the tests and the analyses, and/or (v) any combination thereof.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may interface with outside systems (e.g., manufacturers of the products) to obtain the data provided to the users Un, or the system 10 may perform tests on the products to determine the data in-house.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may utilize climate modeling techniques (open source, paid, etc.) to consider weather conditions such as rain/irrigation, wind, temperature, humidity, and other conditions to provide effective and sustainable application guidance to each individual user Un.

In some embodiments, the system 10 provides guidance on the types of seeds, varieties, rates, depths, densities, populations, and other aspects based on the results of the soil tests analyses.

In some embodiments, the system 10 is synched with product providers that may provide information on various products that the system 10 may recommend to its users Un. This may include information on new product releases, new data sheets for new products, and/or other information.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may combine the processed data from the soil test kits 300 with conventional soil test data from conventional soil test systems (e.g., that include methods of drying and/or grinding soil or suction of saturated soil solutions) to further increase the comprehensiveness of the guidance it may provide to its users Un.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may interface with other systems (e.g., other soil testing facilities) to share data that may be applicable and/or relevant to the system's users Un (e.g., other soil test data that a user Un may have acquired through other programs). In addition, data from other sources (or from the users themselves) may be manually entered into the system 10 as required.

In some embodiments, the system 10 may be used to test and provide guidance for controlled environment agriculture, including the temperature of the facility, leaf temperature, airflow, humidity, soil temperature, soil moisture, fertigation/irrigation, CEC, organic matter, hydroponic solution content, temperature and flow, and other pertinent aspects.

In some embodiments, the frontend 200 (e.g., the mobile app 202) includes a variety of graphical user interfaces (GUIs), dialogues, interfaces, and other elements that the user Un may interact with while using the system 10. For example, FIG. 4 depicts an example user Un log-in page, FIG. 5 depicts an example user Un registration page, FIG. 6 depicts an example soil sample kit registration page, FIG. 7 depicts an example desktop user Un dashboard, FIG. 8 depicts an example mobile user Un dashboard, and FIG. 9 depicts example soil sample test reports (e.g., mobile app 202 versions). It is understood that these example user dialogs are for demonstration purposes and that the system 10 may include any type(s) of user dialogs and that the scope of the system 10 is not limited in any way by the user dialogs that it may provide.

It is understood that any aspect, element, or component of any embodiment of the system 10 described herein may be combined with any other aspect, element, or component of any other embodiment of the system 10 to form additional embodiments of the system 10 all of which are within the scope of the system 10.

Computing

The services, mechanisms, operations, and acts shown and described above are implemented, at least in part, by software running on one or more computers or computer systems or devices. It should be appreciated that each user device is, or comprises, a computer system.

Programs that implement such methods (as well as other types of data) may be stored and transmitted using a variety of media (e.g., computer readable media) in a number of manners. Hard-wired circuitry or custom hardware may be used in place of, or in combination with, some or all of the software instructions that can implement the processes of various embodiments. Thus, various combinations of hardware and software may be used instead of software only.

One of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate and understand, upon reading this description, that the various processes described herein may be implemented by, e.g., appropriately programmed general purpose computers, special purpose computers and computing devices. One or more such computers or computing devices may be referred to as a computer system.