# The Architecture of an Agricultural Data Aggregation and Conversion Model for Smart Farming
## 3 Data Aggregation and Conversion Model  
The developed data aggregation and conversion platform combines positioning, mapping, multi-class classification, and identification technologies. The model's architecture ensures that data streams are integrated into machines and other mobile or stationary communication devices and also from cloud-based data streams that integrate information from other farms and related data sources. The platform engages the analysis of collected data, supports updating the information, and uses external data sources to extend the platform's capabilities and functionality for farmers. The platform allows farmers to analyse uploaded data by area and time. The initial stages of the development of the data aggregation and conversion model included the specification of smart technology file and data formats, their properties and structure parameters, the identification of the optimal unified data structure, and the corresponding data storage format. This was accomplished in the following stages:  
1. Samples of work files were collected from the six farms participating in the study, using agricultural machinery from different manufacturers, and used for the different format scanning tasks;
2. The properties of the different files and formats collected and the structure of the recorded information (the model uses both overlapping and differently structured information in the data files) were examined;
3. Several possible common data structures were developed from which the optimal structure was selected after an initial test of the platform's operation was conducted and the platform's requirements were considered;
4. Methods were developed for converting data from the files used into a unified structure;
5. An automated system that identifies the uploaded file and converts it into a unified data format was designed. The XML-format-based data files were initially converted into _json_ format using _Python_ for further data processing. This format is characterised because it is easy for most programming languages to read. The Support-Vector algorithm in _Python_ was used for data classification following the file-format unification. This algorithm is based on data grouping (clustering) for the measurable characteristics (features) of an input variable (an uploaded file). The study found that most agricultural machinery allows data to be exported and stored in at least two different ways and formats, so a methodology for evaluating data aggregation was devised to assess the efficiency of the different data storage tools and methods, as well as the usefulness and informativeness of the data structures they generate. The data aggregation interfaces and formats were evaluated based on the following:  
* Their complexity of use;
* The need for additional tools and instruments;
* Their stability of operation;
* The clarity of the structure of the exported data;
* The informativeness of exported files;
* Other technological parameters. Based on the study results, a data aggregation model for smart agricultural machinery manufacturers was developed according to the data exchange scheme (Figure 1). Files from the tractor and other machinery are first uploaded through the aggregator interface to the systems used by farmers and provided by the manufacturers, from which data export is possible. Other data from external sources can be uploaded directly due to unnecessary aggregation. Farmers create the desired data on the platform using a common _web_ user interface that assigns the uploaded data to the uploading farmer and provides data management capabilities. The _web user interface_ was specifically designed to manage and display geographic data. It was built using the open-source PHP (_Hypertext Preprocessor_) _and JavaScript_ programming language libraries. The data uploaded to the default _web user interface_ are converted into unified files and hosted in the database. The conversion of uploaded files is based on the specifications of the formats developed by different manufacturers.