SPOT: Scanning plant IoT facility for high-throughput plant phenotyping
Stephen Lantin,
Kelli McCourt,
Nicholas Butcher,
Varun Puri,
Martha Esposito,
Sasha Sanchez,
Francisco Ramirez-Loza,
Eric McLamore,
Melanie Correll,
Aditya Singh
Affiliations
Stephen Lantin
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; Corresponding author.
Kelli McCourt
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; Department of Environmental Engineering and Earth Science, Clemson University, SC 29634, USA
Nicholas Butcher
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Varun Puri
Department of Computer and Information Sciences and Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Martha Esposito
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Sasha Sanchez
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Francisco Ramirez-Loza
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Eric McLamore
Department of Agricultural Sciences, Clemson University, SC 29634, USA
Melanie Correll
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Aditya Singh
Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Many plant phenotyping platforms have been kept out of the reach of smaller labs and institutions due to high cost and proprietary software. The Scanning Plant IoT (SPOT) Facility, located at the University of Florida, is a mobile, laboratory-based platform that facilitates open-source collection of high-quality, interoperable plant phenotypic data. It consists of three main sensors: a hyperspectral sensor, a thermal camera, and a LiDAR camera. Real-time data from the sensors can be collected in its 10 ft. × 10 ft. scanning region. The mobility of the device allows its use in large growth chambers, environmentally controlled rooms, or greenhouses. Sensors are oriented nadir and positioned via computer numerical control of stepper motors. In a preliminary experiment, data gathered from SPOT was used to autonomously and nondestructively differentiate between cultivars.
