Magdalena Julkowska and Julie Bell recently traveled to the Netherlands, where they performed a factory acceptance test on BTI’s new phenotyping facility!
The facility will allow side and top-view RGB imaging, masking on chlorophyll fluorescence, as well as top-view PSII imaging using PhenoVation CropReporter – which enables OJIP (used for plant stress measurement) as well as PAM measurements.
The engineers at We Prove Solutions (WPS) developed a system that will allow us to automatically weigh and water/fertilize big and small pots, a true game-changing factor for water and nutrient stress experiments.
Using simple “pot adapters” from PCV tubes and 3D printed components, we can accommodate a wide range of pot sizes within our setup for imaging plants with complex 3D architecture.
The custom programming of the Experimental Control and Order Control System will allow us to design the phenotyping experiments from scratch and control them at every step. PhenonVation integration will enable us to have live data analysis for RGB cameras.
The live RGB data analysis has another vital feature – based on the plant height – the PSII camera will be moved on the Z-axis to precisely the correct position (50 cm from the top of the plant) to ensure that our photosynthesis will be evaluated at the right height for each plant.
Big thanks to all the engineers, programmers, and other team members at WPS and PhenoVation for their help, energy, and hard work in developing this system and working hard on making this project happen!
