Purdue uses Aris System for development of sustainable plants
To prevent a global food crisis, the agricultural and horticultural sector must change drastically. That is why plant researchers at Purdue University (USA) are developing new plant species that are more resistant to extreme drought, heat, cold or rain.
Plant phenotyping (measuring and assessing the desired properties of plants) helps the researchers to achieve this important goal. To an increasing extent, this can be done with cameras: digital phenotyping.
Last year we placed such a camera system in the "CEPF" of Purdue University. This system assesses plants up to almost four meters! No problem for the huge maize plants that grow in the state of Indiana - where the university is located.
What makes our vision system unique is the speed of measurement and the size of the plants that can pass through it, 24 hours a day. It is easy to operate and robust. Things that we already find very normal in horticulture ...
The camera system measures, among other things: dimensions, biomass, number of leaves and the angle that the leaf makes with the stem. With that angle you can see how well a plant can withstand drought.
In addition, a hyperspectral camera has been included that can collect even more data and, with it, details the status of the plant down to the smallest detail. The data is used to ensure in the (near!) future that plants can be adapted to climate changes such as drought and warming.
Our partners in these types of projects are: Phenokey, Bosman van Zaal, Flier Systems, Indigo and Agrinomix.
