A survey of image processing techniques for agriculture

Computer technologies have been shown to improve agricultural productivity in a number of ways. One technique which is emerging as a useful tool is image processing. This paper presents a short survey on using image processing techniques to assist researchers and farmers to improve agricultural practices. Image processing has been used to assist with precision agriculture practices, weed and herbicide technologies, monitoring plant growth and plant nutrition management. This paper highlights the future potential for image processing for different agricultural industry contexts

GuavaNet: A deep neural network architecture for automatic sensory evaluation to predict degree of acceptability for Guava by a consumer

This thesis is divided into two parts:Part I: Analysis of Fruits, Vegetables, Cheese and Fish based on Image Processing using Computer Vision and Deep Learning: A Review. It consists of a comprehensive review of image processing, computer vision and deep learning techniques applied to carry out analysis of fruits, vegetables, cheese and fish.This part also serves as a literature review for Part II.Part II: GuavaNet: A deep neural network architecture for automatic sensory evaluation to predict degree of acceptability for Guava by a consumer. This part introduces to an end-to-end deep neural network architecture that can predict the degree of acceptability by the consumer for a guava based on sensory evaluation

A study on non-destructive method for detecting Toxin in pepper using Neural networks

Mycotoxin contamination in certain agricultural systems have been a serious concern for human and animal health. Mycotoxins are toxic substances produced mostly as secondary metabolites by fungi that grow on seeds and feed in the field, or in storage. The food-borne Mycotoxins likely to be of greatest significance for human health in tropical developing countries are Aflatoxins and Fumonisins. Chili pepper is also prone to Aflatoxin contamination during harvesting, production and storage periods.Various methods used for detection of Mycotoxins give accurate results, but they are slow, expensive and destructive. Destructive method is testing a material that degrades the sample under investigation. Whereas, non-destructive testing will, after testing, allow the part to be used for its intended purpose. Ultrasonic methods, Multispectral image processing methods, Terahertz methods, X-ray and Thermography have been very popular in nondestructive testing and characterization of materials and health monitoring. Image processing methods are used to improve the visual quality of the pictures and to extract useful information from them. In this proposed work, the chili pepper samples will be collected, and the X-ray, multispectral images of the samples will be processed using image processing methods. The term "Computational Intelligence" referred as simulation of human intelligence on computers. It is also called as "Artificial Intelligence" (AI) approach. The techniques used in AI approach are Neural network, Fuzzy logic and evolutionary computation. Finally, the computational intelligence method will be used in addition to image processing to provide best, high performance and accurate results for detecting the Mycotoxin level in the samples collected.Comment: 11 pages,1 figure; International Journal of Artificial Intelligence & Applications (IJAIA), Vol.3, No.4, July 201

Review: computer vision applied to the inspection and quality control of fruits and vegetables

This is a review of the current existing literature concerning the inspection of fruits and vegetables with the application of computer vision, where the techniques most used to estimate various properties related to quality are analyzed. The objectives of the typical applications of such systems include the classification, quality estimation according to the internal and external characteristics, supervision of fruit processes during storage or the evaluation of experimental treatments. In general, computer vision systems do not only replace manual inspection, but can also improve their skills. In conclusion, computer vision systems are powerful tools for the automatic inspection of fruits and vegetables. In addition, the development of such systems adapted to the food industry is fundamental to achieve competitive advantages

A comprehensive review of fruit and vegetable classification techniques

Recent advancements in computer vision have enabled wide-ranging applications in every field of life. One such application area is fresh produce classification, but the classification of fruit and vegetable has proven to be a complex problem and needs to be further developed. Fruit and vegetable classification presents significant challenges due to interclass similarities and irregular intraclass characteristics. Selection of appropriate data acquisition sensors and feature representation approach is also crucial due to the huge diversity of the field. Fruit and vegetable classification methods have been developed for quality assessment and robotic harvesting but the current state-of-the-art has been developed for limited classes and small datasets. The problem is of a multi-dimensional nature and offers significantly hyperdimensional features, which is one of the major challenges with current machine learning approaches. Substantial research has been conducted for the design and analysis of classifiers for hyperdimensional features which require significant computational power to optimise with such features. In recent years numerous machine learning techniques for example, Support Vector Machine (SVM), K-Nearest Neighbour (KNN), Decision Trees, Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) have been exploited with many different feature description methods for fruit and vegetable classification in many real-life applications. This paper presents a critical comparison of different state-of-the-art computer vision methods proposed by researchers for classifying fruit and vegetable

Automated Quality Control in Manufacturing Production Lines: A Robust Technique to Perform Product Quality Inspection

Quality control (QC) in manufacturing processes is critical to ensuring consumers receive products with proper functionality and reliability. Faulty products can lead to additional costs for the manufacturer and damage trust in a brand. A growing trend in QC is the use of machine vision (MV) systems because of their noncontact inspection, high repeatability, and efficiency. This thesis presents a robust MV system developed to perform comparative dimensional inspection on diversely shaped samples. Perimeter, area, rectangularity, and circularity are determined in the dimensional inspection algorithm for a base item and test items. A score determined with the four obtained parameter values provides the likeness between the base item and a test item. Additionally, a surface defect inspection is offered capable of identifying scratches, dents, and markings. The dimensional and surface inspections are used in a QC industrial case study. The case study examines the existing QC system for an electric motor manufacturer and proposes the developed QC system to increase product inspection count and efficiency while maintaining accuracy and reliability. Finally, the QC system is integrated in a simulated product inspection line consisting of a robotic arm and conveyor belts. The simulated product inspection line could identify the correct defect in all tested items and demonstrated the system’s automation capabilities

Image Analysis and Machine Learning in Agricultural Research

Agricultural research has been a focus for academia and industry to improve human well-being. Given the challenges in water scarcity, global warming, and increased prices of fertilizer, and fossil fuel, improving the efficiency of agricultural research has become even more critical. Data collection by humans presents several challenges including: 1) the subjectiveness and reproducibility when doing the visual evaluation, 2) safety when dealing with high toxicity chemicals or severe weather events, 3) mistakes cannot be avoided, and 4) low efficiency and speed. Image analysis and machine learning are more versatile and advantageous in evaluating different plant characteristics, and this could help with agricultural data collection. In the first chapter, information related to different types of imaging (e.g., RGB, multi/hyperspectral, and thermal imaging) was explored in detail for its advantages in different agriculture applications. The process of image analysis demonstrated how target features were extracted for analysis including shape, edge, texture, and color. After acquiring features information, machine learning can be used to automatically detect or predict features of interest such as disease severity. In the second chapter, case studies of different agricultural applications were demonstrated including: 1) leaf damage symptoms, 2) stress evaluation, 3) plant growth evaluation, 4) stand/insect counting, and 5) evaluation for produce quality. Case studies showed that the use of image analysis is often more advantageous than visual rating. Advantages of image analysis include increased objectivity, speed, and more reproducibly reliable results. In the third chapter, machine learning was explored using romaine lettuce images from RD4AG to automatically grade for bolting and compactness (two of the important parameters for lettuce quality). Although the accuracy is at 68.4 and 66.6% respectively, a much larger data base and many improvements are needed to increase the model accuracy and reliability. With the advancement in cameras, computers with high computing power, and the development of different algorithms, image analysis and machine learning have the potential to replace part of the labor and improve the current data collection procedure in agricultural research. Advisor: Gary L. Hei

A Review on Advances in Automated Plant Disease Detection

Plant diseases cause major yield and economic losses. To detect plant disease at early stages, selecting appropriate techniques is imperative as it affects the cost, diagnosis time, and accuracy. This research gives a comprehensive review of various plant disease detection methods based on the images used and processing algorithms applied. It systematically analyzes various traditional machine learning and deep learning algorithms used for processing visible and spectral range images, and comparatively evaluates the work done in literature in terms of datasets used, various image processing techniques employed, models utilized, and efficiency achieved. The study discusses the benefits and restrictions of each method along with the challenges to be addressed for rapid and accurate plant disease detection. Results show that for plant disease detection, deep learning outperforms traditional machine learning algorithms while visible range images are more widely used compared to spectral images