Crop quality sensor based on specular reflectance
US9723784B2 · kind B2 · utility
11Cited by
52References
12Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Sep 14, 2015 |
| Grant date | Aug 8, 2017 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 14, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04N23/80
- WIPO fieldMeasurement
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A crop quality sensor, comprising an illumination source, an imaging device, and a processor executing application software. The illumination source is shone onto a crop sample, and an image is taken with the imaging device of the illuminated crop sample. The software executing on the processor is used to analyze the image to identify the outlines of individual kernels and to identify which of those outlines contain a specular highlight, indicative that the kernel is whole and unbroken, while the absence of such a specular highlight is indicative of a broken kernel.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.