Grass-Twin

Digital twin of an artificial grass field with printed electronics

Project objective
The Grass-Twin project focused on developing a digital twin of grass sports fields (natural, hybrid or artificial) using a system of sensors based on printed electronics distributed across the entire surface, in order to monitor key parameters in real time such as soil moisture and adapt irrigation and care according to the specific needs of each area.

Consortium Capabilities
The initiative involved a multidisciplinary consortium of technology entities specializing in advanced solutions and printed electronics, contributing knowledge in the design, manufacture, and application of flexible functional sensors for real-world environments.

Solution to the challenge
Traditionally, irrigation and maintenance systems for sports fields rely on uniform schedules, without considering local microclimatic conditions. This leads to inefficient use of resources like water and negatively impacts turf quality. Grass-Twin addressed this challenge by implementing a network of low-power printed sensors, creating a digital representation of the field that allows for precise, sustainable, and real-time adjustments to irrigation and maintenance.

Project Scope
The developed system integrates printed electronics techniques to manufacture flexible sensors that capture localized data on field conditions, connecting them to a control platform that optimizes irrigation and turf care decisions in specific areas of the field. This technology represents an advance in the intelligent management of sports surfaces and opens up possibilities for application in other sectors that require distributed monitoring.

Expected result
The Grass-Twin solution is expected to:

• Optimize the consumption of water and other resources.
• Improve the quality and uniformity of the turf for optimal playing conditions.
• Reduce the risk of sports injuries associated with poor maintenance.
• Promote the use of printed electronics as a key technology in sustainable surface monitoring and control solutions.