A Double Swath Configuration for Improving Throughput and Accuracy of Trait Estimate from UAV Images

Multispectral observations from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are currently used for precision agriculture and crop phenotyping applications to monitor a series of traits allowing the characterization of the vegetation status. However, the limited autonomy of UAVs makes the completion of flights difficult when sampling large areas. Increasing the throughput of data acquisition while not degrading the ground sample distance (GSD) is, therefore, a critical issue to be solved. We propose here a new image acquisition configuration based on the combination of two focal length (f) optics: an optics with f=4.2 mm is added to the standard f=8 mm (SS: single swath) of the multispectral camera (DS: double swath, double of the standard one). Two flights were completed consecutively in 2018 over a maize field using the AIRPHEN multispectral camera at 52 m altitude. The DS flight plan was designed to get 80% overlap with the 4.2 mm optics, while the SS one was designed to get 80% overlap with the 8 mm optics. As a result, the time required to cover the same area is halved for the DS as compared to the SS. The georeferencing accuracy was improved for the DS configuration, particularly for the Z dimension due to the larger view angles available with the small focal length optics. Application to plant height estimates demonstrates that the DS configuration provides similar results as the SS one. However, for both the DS and SS configurations, degrading the quality level used to generate the 3D point cloud significantly decreases the plant height estimates.

Lensless Multispectral Camera Based on a Coded Aperture Array

Multispectral imaging can be applied to water quality monitoring, medical diagnosis, and other applications, but the principle of multispectral imaging is different from the principle of hyper-spectral imaging. Multispectral imaging is generally achieved through filters, so multiple photos are required to obtain spectral information. Using multiple detectors to take pictures at the same time increases the complexity and cost of the system. This paper proposes a simple multispectral camera based on lensless imaging, which does not require multiple lenses. The core of the system is the multispectral coding aperture. The coding aperture is divided into different regions and each region transmits the light of one wavelength, such that the spectral information of the target can be coded. By solving the inverse problem of sparse constraints, the multispectral information of the target is inverted. Herein, we analyzed the characteristics of this multispectral camera and developed a principle prototype to obtain experimental results.

Development and Testing of a UAV Laser Scanner and Multispectral Camera System for Eco-Geomorphic Applications

While Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV) systems and camera sensors are routinely deployed in conjunction with Structure from Motion (SfM) techniques to derive 3D models of fluvial systems, in the presence of vegetation these techniques are subject to large errors. This is because of the high structural complexity of vegetation and inability of processing techniques to identify bare earth points in vegetated areas. Furthermore, for eco-geomorphic applications where characterization of the vegetation is an important aim when collecting fluvial survey data, the issues are compounded, and an alternative survey method is required. Laser Scanning techniques have been shown to be a suitable technique for discretizing both bare earth and vegetation, owing to the high spatial density of collected data and the ability of some systems to deliver dual (e.g., first and last) returns. Herein we detail the development and testing of a UAV mounted LiDAR and Multispectral camera system and processing workflow, with application to a specific river field location and reference to eco-hydraulic research generally. We show that the system and data processing workflow has the ability to detect bare earth, vegetation structure and NDVI type outputs which are superior to SfM outputs alone, and which are shown to be more accurate and repeatable, with a level of detection of under 0.1 m. These characteristics of the developed sensor package and workflows offer great potential for future eco-geomorphic research.

Optical system design of multispectral video camera for 8-14 microns range

To solve the actual problem of determining the composition of a gas mixture in an uncontrolled leak at industrial sites, it is proposed to use a multispectral camera that allows you to simultaneously form several spectral images on a bolometric matrix. This method will provide visualization of the gas cloud in the far infrared range from 8 to 14 micrometers with selection by chemical composition. The article proposes an optical scheme for simultaneous registration of images in eight narrow spectral ranges of wavelengths, as well as the design of its elements for a bolometric matrix with a resolution of 640x480 pixels: a lens, a raster, and light filters using the ZEMAX application software package. As a result of the design, a low F-number three-lens optical system for a necessary field of view and a raster with a block of light filters are obtained, forming sixteen images in different spectral ranges. Thus, we solved an issue of design an optical system with minimal aberrations for a multispectral camera.

Using a UAV-Mounted Multispectral Camera for the Monitoring of Marine Macrophytes

Marine macrophytes constitute one of the most productive ecosystems on the planet, as well as one of the most threatened by anthropogenic activities and climate change. Their monitoring is therefore essential, which has experienced a fast methodological evolution in recent years, from traditional in situ sampling to the use of satellite remote sensing, and subsequently by sensors mounted on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). This study aims to advance the monitoring of these ecosystems through the use of a UAV equipped with a 10-band multispectral camera, using different algorithms [i.e., maximum likelihood classifier (MLC), minimum distance classifier (MDC), and spectral angle classifier (SAC)], and using the Bay of Cádiz Natural Park (southern Spain) as a case of study. The results obtained with MLC confirm the suitability of this technique for detecting and differentiating seagrass meadows in a range of 0–2 m depth and the efficiency of this tool for studying and monitoring marine macrophytes in coastal areas. We inferred the existence of a cover of 25452 m2 of Cymodocea nodosa, and macroalgae species such as Caulerpa prolifera, covering 22172 m2 of Santibañez (inner Bay of Cádiz).

Estimation of biometric, physiological, and nutritional variables in lettuce seedlings using multispectral images

ABSTRACT The formation of seedlings is one of the most important phases of lettuce cultivation. Therefore, any strategy that aims to obtain high-quality seedlings can increase productivity. One of these strategies is the prediction of morphophysiological attributes based on optical properties. The objective of this study was to quantitatively estimate the biometric variables of lettuce from parametric and non-parametric models based on the response of multispectral camera images. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse in the municipality of Uberaba, Minas Gerais State, Brazil. Twenty days after sowing, multispectral images of the plants were captured using a MAPIR Survey 3 camera. To compose the estimation models, along with the original bands of the camera, the multispectral vegetation indices were calculated using the calibrated original camera bands. Bands B550, B660, and B850 and the near-infrared indices contributed significantly to estimating the physiological variable models, with B850 contributing the most to the biometric and nutritional variables. From the near-infrared band (B850) and derived indices, it was possible to estimate all the agronomic variables from the models generated by the M5 algorithm, with an accuracy of up to 1.6% for the maximum quantum yield. Thus, it is possible to quantify the biometric, physiological, and nutritional variables of lettuce using a multispectral camera. Among the Mapir camera bands, B660 exhibited the greatest variability, showing that the red range was the most sensitive.

RANDOM FOREST-BASED RIVER PLASTIC DETECTION WITH A HANDHELD MULTISPECTRAL CAMERA

Plastic pollution has become one of the main global environmental emergencies. A considerable part of used plastics materials is dispersed or accumulated in the environment with a significant damaging impact on many terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.Artificial Intelligence has proven a fundamental approach in last years for the detection of plastics waste in the aquatic habitats: several groups have recently tried to tackle such problem by developing some machine learning-based methods and multispectral or RGB imagery. This study compares the results obtained by two machine learning classifiers, namely Random Forests and Support Vector Machine, to detect macroplastic in the fluvial habitat through multispectral imagery. The acquisition of images has been made with a hand-held multispectral camera called MAIA-WV2. Despite the obtained results are quite good in terms of accuracy in a random validation dataset, some issues, mostly related to the presence of white rocks and glares on water have still to be properly solved.