ABSTRACT
The complexity of the palm oil industry, from planting, grO\vth, harvest to the mill processing, has contributed significantly to its meager productivity. Weather, terrain, manual labor, palm oil species, age, pest and soil are some of the variables that large plantation companies have to endure, resulting in productivity fluctuations of about 22%. This paper reported the human factors considerations underlying the design and development of precision agriculture (P A) device for use in palm oil industry. The device is aimed to improve efficiency of triggering system at the pollination stage, whereby wireless sensor device and its decision support system can help to identify the most productive time for the pollination process. A fully pollinated flowcr will produce more fruits and a higher grade breed will fetch higher quality oil. A holistic user-centered design approach is employed in the design of the sensor, wireless transmission system as well as the data management system. The system is also designed so that they are operable indoor as well as outdoor and easily interpreted by professional agronomist and farmer. While the productivity improvement is not yet realized, the Human Factors approach of userccntric design guided by Ergonomics Quality in Design (EQUID) process has
enabled a comprehensive design methodology to create a device and system for palm oil industry that is effective in application, efficient and easily operated.
