<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>The chaff quality or, more specifically, the distribution of stalk length after straw shredding during wheat harvest with a combined harvester is of significant interest for ploughless tillage practices. The currently applied characterization methods (manual length measurement or the cascade sieve analysis) are time-consuming and labour-intensive. Image analysis-based size characterization has the potential to solve these problems. In this study, two techniques of digital image processing, the well-known method of image moments (rectangular model) and a sub-pixel skeletonization approach (flow lines-tracing), were applied comparatively for stalk length measurement. Upon applying the rectangular model, the analyzed stalks were found to be longer than when the flow lines-tracing algorithm was applied. This was attributed to the unbiased decision criteria of the measuring method. A greater length of the stalk is to be expected in the main stalk than when the length of a twisted or branched stalk is measured from the edge length of a rectangular box that encloses it.</p></abstract>

The chaff quality or, more specifically, the distribution of stalk length after straw shredding during wheat harvest with a combined harvester is of significant interest for ploughless tillage practices. The currently applied characterization methods (manual length measurement or the cascade sieve analysis) are time-consuming and labour-intensive. Image analysis-based size characterization has the potential to solve these problems. In this study, two techniques of digital image processing, the well-known method of image moments (rectangular model) and a sub-pixel skeletonization approach (flow lines-tracing), were applied comparatively for stalk length measurement. Upon applying the rectangular model, the analyzed stalks were found to be longer than when the flow lines-tracing algorithm was applied. This was attributed to the unbiased decision criteria of the measuring method. A greater length of the stalk is to be expected in the main stalk than when the length of a twisted or branched stalk is measured from the edge length of a rectangular box that encloses it.

Comparison of Two Techniques of Pattern Recognition in the Image Analysis-Based Wheat Stalk Length Characterization

Cognitive Systems Laboratory, Department of Informatics, MIN Faculty

Rhine-Waal University of Applied Sciences

Agricultural Engineering

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

The chaff quality or, more specifically, the distribution of stalk length after straw shredding during wheat harvest with a combined harvester is of...

Comparison of Two Techniques of Pattern Recognition in the Image Analysis-Based Wheat Stalk Length Characterization

Published Online: Jun 30, 2020

Page range: 1 - 8

Received: May 01, 2020

Accepted: Jun 01, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/agriceng-2020-0011

Keywords
wheat straw, ploughless tillage, stalk length determination, image analysis, flow lines-tracing

© 2020 Jan Thore Benthien et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Comparison of Two Techniques of Pattern Recognition in the Image Analysis-Based Wheat Stalk Length Characterization

Published Online: Jun 30, 2020

Page range: 1 - 8

Received: May 01, 2020

Accepted: Jun 01, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/agriceng-2020-0011

Keywordswheat straw, ploughless tillage, stalk length determination, image analysis, flow lines-tracing

© 2020 Jan Thore Benthien et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
wheat straw, ploughless tillage, stalk length determination, image analysis, flow lines-tracing