Description:TECHNICAL FIELD
The present disclosure relates generally to managing crop protection information and more specifically relates to managing crop protection information using blockchain technology.

BACKGROUND
[0001] In spite of the fact that 60% of the people in India is dependent on agriculture, the agricultural problem, particularly crop failures, is the leading driver of farm suicides there, followed by natural disasters like droughts, storms, and floods. For developing nations like India, Pakistan, and others, crop insurance is crucial because it offers a number of benefits like income stability, low debt levels, and knowledge of new farming techniques like the Internet of Things (IoT) and Blockchain that can shield farmers from agricultural losses. Blockchain technology is now transforming a number of industries, including healthcare, supply chains, insurance, etc.

[0002] However, compared to other businesses, the insurance industry has not adopted new technologies as quickly. thus far. Even though they are still in their infancy, blockchain and distributed ledger solutions are reportedly capable of revolutionizing the present financial system, particularly the post-trade side Farmers must adhere to a number of criteria and restrictions in order to get insurance under the old, centralized systems. Since the majority of farmers lack the education necessary to comprehend the circumstances, they are left uninsured and suffer losses and Sustainability 2021, 13, 8921 in the event of natural disasters.

[0003] Furthermore, a crop failure that results in missed loan payments causes a farmer to lose all of his investments in the cultivation. They only have two options: either commit suicide or Government exemption for loans. Loan exemption is not the sole answer, though. Additionally, it will be devastating. Only crop insurance can be the answer. To protect their investments, farmers buy crop insurance, which the government subsidies. The farmers receive the money they invested through the insurance in the event of crop failures. By safeguarding the farmers' investments in crop production and enhancing their capacity to absorb risk, crop insurance can help marginal and small farmers find financial stability and increase their ability to retain assets through either crop sales or insurance. Reducing debt stress is the second issue that crop insurance may potentially help with.

[0004] Crop insurance can aid in lowering the likelihood of defaulting on institutional borrowing. There is no need to apply for a loan from a high-interest private lender. A farmer won't have to resort to forced sales of his crops and, eventually, his property to pay off personal obligations. Technology use and increased investment are the third big problem. Because he is confident that he will be reimbursed by insurance, a farmer who is insured is more inclined to utilise his resources wisely. He may start doing things like raising profitable crops like potatoes, using new, improved technology, and coming up with ways to boost profitability. The value-added of agriculture will rise as a result, increasing the small households' income. Recent years have seen a lot of interest in emerging technologies like blockchain and smart cities as a means of cutting expenses for city administrators, automating city administration tasks, and providing end users with real-time services.

[0005] There are conventional techniques which disclose storing crop protection details. For example, reference can be made to US8290795B2 which tie financial management and/or financial services to the use of environmental classification in making agricultural production decisions. Further, reference can be made to US20070011075A1 which discloses managing the risks associated with unreliable healthcare costs. However, none of the techniques disclose techniques for storing crop protection information using blockchain technology.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The principal object of the present invention is to provide techniques for managing crop protection information using blockchain technology.

[0002] Another object of the present invention is to provide techniques for broadcasting changes in the crop protection details to all the blocks when the change is made in any block.

[0003] Another object of the present invention is to provide techniques for implementing and analyzing the suggested crop insurance system algorithms on a sound foundation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0004] In one embodiment, an environment for managing crop protection details is disclosed. The environment comprises a plurality of computing devices, a plurality of users operating the plurality of computing devices, a blockchain network and a communication network configured to enable communication between the plurality of computing devices and the blockchain network, wherein the plurality of computing devices is configured to upload crop protection details into the blockchain network, the blockchain network includes a plurality of blocks, and each of the blocks store crop protection details.

[0005] In another embodiment, a method for managing crop protection details is disclosed. The method comprises providing a plurality of computing devices, providing a plurality of users operating the plurality of computing devices, providing a blockchain network, enabling communication, by a communication network, between the plurality of computing devices and the blockchain network, wherein the plurality of computing devices is configured to upload crop protection details into the blockchain network, the blockchain network includes a plurality of blocks, and each of the blocks store crop protection details.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0006] Figure 1 illustrates an environment for managing crop protection information, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
[0007] Figure 2 illustrates a flowchart of a method for managing crop protection information, in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0008] While the present invention is described herein by way of example using embodiments and illustrative drawings, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention is not limited to the embodiments of drawing or drawings described and are not intended to represent the scale of the various components. Further, some components that may form a part of the invention may not be illustrated in certain figures, for ease of illustration, and such omissions do not limit the embodiments outlined in any way. It should be understood that the drawings and the detailed description thereto are not intended to limit the invention to the particular form disclosed, but on the contrary, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claim.
[0009] As used throughout this description, the word "may" is used in a permissive sense (i.e. meaning having the potential to), rather than the mandatory sense, (i.e. meaning must). Further, the words "a" or "an" mean "at least one” and the word “plurality” means “one or more” unless otherwise mentioned. Furthermore, the terminology and phraseology used herein are solely used for descriptive purposes and should not be construed as limiting in scope. Language such as "including," "comprising," "having," "containing," or "involving," and variations thereof, is intended to be broad and encompass the subject matter listed thereafter, equivalents, and additional subject matter not recited, and is not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers, or steps. Likewise, the term "comprising" is considered synonymous with the terms "including" or "containing" for applicable legal purposes. Any discussion of documents, acts, materials, devices, articles, and the like are included in the specification solely for the purpose of providing a context for the present invention. It is not suggested or represented that any or all these matters form part of the prior art base or were common general knowledge in the field relevant to the present invention.
[0010] In this disclosure, whenever a composition or an element or a group of elements is preceded with the transitional phrase “comprising”, it is understood that we also contemplate the same composition, element, or group of elements with transitional phrases “consisting of”, “consisting”, “selected from the group of consisting of, “including”, or “is” preceding the recitation of the composition, element or group of elements and vice versa.
[0011] The present invention is described hereinafter by various embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawing, wherein reference numerals used in the accompanying drawing correspond to the like elements throughout the description. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiment set forth herein. Rather, the embodiment is provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. In the following detailed description, numeric values and ranges are provided for various aspects of the implementations described. These values and ranges are to be treated as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims. In addition, several materials are identified as suitable for various facets of the implementations. These materials are to be treated as exemplary and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.
[0012] Referring to FIG. 1, an environment 100 for managing crop protection information using a digital ledger technology is depicted. The environment 100 comprises a plurality of computing devices 102-1, 102-2…102-n (collectively referred as 102) corresponding to a plurality of users 104-1, 104-2…104-n (collectively referred as 104), a blockchain network 106 and a communication network 108. The communication network 108 may include a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), the internet, or a combination of them. In one embodiment, the communication network 108 enables communication with, within a blockchain network 106. In one embodiment, the crop protection information includes crop insurance details. The crop insurance is an insurance agreement held between farmers and insurers.
[0013] The farmer requests insurance services from the insurers. The farmer should collect his personal information, crop information, and land coordinates so that excellent services are available to him. Farmers who are already covered should ensure that their insurance policies are uploaded for better service.
[0014] The insurers will confirm the weather conditions from the state's weather department at the geographical coordinates where any natural disaster has happened in a specified time. Following verification, they decide the amount that must be paid to the farmer based on numerous parameters such as insurance coverage, crop kind, weather circumstances, and land location.
[0015] Once the verification is done by the insurers, a smart contract is generated between the farmers and the insurers. The smart contract contains important facts which none of the farmers and insurers wants to alter during the tenure of the contract. The crucial facts such as the policy's Unique ID (UID), start date, expiration date, and insured amount are entered when the insurance policy is updated. The extracted facts are validated by the farmers and the insurers.
[0016] The plurality of users 104 acts as a node in the blockchain network 106. Each of the plurality of users 104 participates in the blockchain network 106 using the plurality of computing devices 102. In one embodiment, the plurality of users 104 may include farmers. In one embodiment, the plurality of users 104 may include insurers. Each of the farmers and the insurer can act as nodes and are responsible for making changes in the blockchain network. Each of the user 104 operates a computing device from the plurality of the computing devices 104. In one embodiment, the plurality of computing devices 102 include, for example, but not limited to, a laptop, a computer, a mobile device, a tablet. In one embodiment, the computing devices 102 hosts or runs one or more applications for interacting with the blockchain network 106.
[0017] The blockchain network 106 includes one or more blockchain 110. The blockchain 110 is made up of a chain of blocks, each storing data such as insurance crop protection. The insurance crop protection information (the information in smart contract) should be published on the blockchain and stored in the blocks as a smart contract with an insurance policy document. Once the facts are changed and the smart contract is generated, it will consult an expert to determine whether the insurance policy is genuine, that is, whether it is between the commencement and expiration dates.
[0018] The smart contract including the insurance protection details (such as crop insurance) are uploaded in the blocks. The blocks are connected with each other in the blockchain network 106. The information in one block may be broadcasted to other blocks in the blockchain network 106. Thus, any change in the insurance protection details at one block is broadcasted to other blocks so that every block can know the changes in the insurance protection details. This broadcasting of information can help prevent fraud between the farmers and the insurers. Thus, the insurance protection details which is decided between the farmers and the insurers at an initial stage can remain the same throughout the tenure of the contract.
[0019] Fraud is one of the main problems facing the insurance sector. The Coalition Against Insurance Fraud estimates that each year, insurance fraud costs Americans $80 billion in losses. Insurance firms deal with bogus claims using smart analytics and other approaches, but scammers are always coming up with more complex ways to trick businesses. The inherent ability of blockchain to record time-stamped transactions with full audit trails makes it very challenging for fraudsters to carry out their crimes.
[0020] For instance, data on expensive objects like jewellery may be tracked using a blockchain-based database. In order to prevent duplicate claims, fraudulent replacements, and phone insurance claims, this ledger might take the role of authenticity certifications.
[0021] Customer experience is improved since staying loyal to one one provider is no longer a certainty. Customers like suppliers who provide more affordable premiums. The problems faced by established insurers have been exacerbated by fierce competition from emerging firms using cutting-edge business models, such on-demand insurance coverage.
[0022] Gaining clients' trust while maintaining healthy profit margins has become essential in these circumstances. Using blockchain to enable automated processing with smart contracts is one technique to deal with issue. In this concept, business agreements are included into the blockchain and payments are automatically triggered when specific requirements are met.
[0023] Building trust between various entities is one of the major benefits of adopting blockchain in insurance. Immutability and auditability are made possible by the intrinsic property of consensus algorithms embedded into blockchain technology.
[0024] The insurance sector gains from these algorithms because they make it simpler to construct smart contracts on the blockchain. Additionally, smart contracts make it possible for transactions to be fast, transparent, and reliable because blockchain is an immutable ledger. Fraud can be decreased when the sector adopts a common claims ledger for examination with no per-transaction fee. Auditing is easier since regulators can easily track all insurance factors in real-time on the ledger.
[0025] In the case of catastrophic catastrophes like hurricanes or wildfires, reinsurers provide insurance to insurance firms. The existing reinsurance procedure is incredibly convoluted, time-consuming, and ineffective. As several reinsurers are frequently used by insurers, data communication between diverse parties is necessary to resolve claims.
[0026] Detailed transactions involving premiums and losses may be updated simultaneously on an insurer and reinsurer's computer systems when insurers and reinsurers use a blockchain ledger. This may save both time and money, as reinsurers can automate the handling of settlement and claims.
[0027] Insurance companies thrive on data. Blockchain can collect a wide range of usable data using technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT). Data collected by IoT is stored on the blockchain and then read by AI, helping your company make informed decisions on insurance premiums. IoT devices can also help monitor a vehicle to qualify insureds for safe driver discounts and give your insurance company more data on vehicle performance and driver habits to work with.
[0028] he insurance industry has relied on trusted intermediaries such as underwriting agents and insurance brokers to distribute and arrange contracts of insurance. However, smart contracts eliminate the need for human intervention. Smart Contracts are basically self-executing contracts that are executed automatically via underlying blockchains to ensure that the terms of agreements are met/unmet. In the context of insurance, the terms of agreements between policyholders and insurers are written into the code upon which smart contracts are built.
[0029] As all transactions related to smart contracts are recorded on a blockchain, there is a high level of transparency. This is because each transaction is publicly viewable on the blockchain. Moreover, as there is no human interference, the risks of unauthorized manipulation and errors in contracts are significantly reduced. Also, claims investigation, coverage analysis, and processing are dramatically quicker as the need for manual assessment is removed. This increases the efficiency of the insurance sector and builds consumer trust and confidence in the industry.
[0030] Fraud costs the insurance industry a monstrous amount of money, mostly because it’s impossible to detect fraudulent activities with regular methods. the total cost of insurance fraud (non-health insurance) is estimated to be more than $40 billion per year. With blockchain, insurers can eliminate such common types of insurance fraud. When you move insurance claims onto a blockchain-based ledger, all the executed transactions are time-stamped and permanent. This means no one can modify the data due to the immutability feature of the blockchain. Thus, it can eventually reduce fraud.
[0031] Moreover, blockchain makes coordination easier among insurers. When all the insurance companies access the same shared blockchain ledger, they know if the specific claim has been paid or not. They can easily identify suspicious behavior by using the same historical claims information.
[0032] In one embodiment, one or more tokens are created at the insurers' request, and market fluctuations determine their worth. In one embodiment, the tokens are transferrable. In this case, insurers can sell their tokens to other insurers since they serve as a standard. The exchange of certain tokens and mutual consent are required for the transactions to take place. The values of the tokens may change due to market fluctuations, but not in a way that would be detrimental to insurance companies and other users.
[0033] Referring to FIG. 2 now, a flowchart of a method 200 for managing crop protection details is disclosed. At step 202, the method comprises providing a smart contract comprising crop protection details, wherein the smart contract may be between users (e.g., farmers) and insurers. At step 204, the method comprises uploading the crop protection details into the blockchain. At step 206, the method comprises broadcasting any changes in the crop protection details to all the blocks in the blockchain.
[0034] The various actions, acts, blocks, steps, or the like in the flow diagram may be performed in the order presented, in a different order or simultaneously. Further, in some embodiments, some of the actions, acts, blocks, steps, or the like may be omitted, added, modified, skipped, or the like without departing from the scope of the invention.
[0035] Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.


, Claims:I/We Claim:
1. An environment (100) for managing crop protection details, the environment comprising:
a plurality of computing devices (102);
a plurality of users (104) operating the plurality of computing devices;
a blockchain network (106);
a communication network (108) configured to enable communication between the plurality of computing devices and the blockchain network, wherein:
the plurality of computing devices is configured to upload the crop protection details into the blockchain network,
the blockchain network includes a plurality of blocks,
each of the blocks store crop protection details.

2. The environment as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of users represent a node in the environment (100).

3. The environment as claimed in claim 1, wherein the crop protection details are stored in a smart contract held between farmers and insurer.

4. The environment as claimed in claim 1, further comprising broadcasting details regarding the changes in the crop protection details to each of the plurality of blocks.

5. The environment as claimed in claim 3, further comprising one or more transferrable tokens created by insurers.

6. A method for managing crop protection details, the method comprising:
providing a plurality of computing devices;
providing a plurality of users operating the plurality of computing devices;
providing a blockchain network;
enabling communication, by a communication network, between the plurality of computing devices and the blockchain network, wherein:
the plurality of computing devices is configured to upload crop protection details into the blockchain network (106),
the blockchain network includes a plurality of blocks, and
each of the blocks store crop protection details.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein each of the plurality of users represent a node in the environment (100).

8. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the crop protection details are stored in a smart contract held between farmers and insurer.

9. The method as claimed in claim 6, further comprising broadcasting details regarding the changes in the crop protection details to each of the plurality of blocks.

10. The method as claimed in claim 8, further comprising one or more transferrable tokens created by insurers.