Yin Bao is a PhD student in Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department. He received his B.E. degree in Vehicle Engineering from China Agricultural University in 2012. He is currently working on an automated high-throughput field phenotyping robot for biomass sorghum under Dr. Lie Tang’s guidance. This project has the potential to take plant breeding programs to a whole new level. Thousands of plant architectures can be imaged in the field automatically within several hours. 3D model of each plant will be reconstructed using stereo vision. The final goal is to extract phenotypic trait data such as plant height, stalk diameter, leaf number, and leaf angle, etc. The availability of these data on a frequent basis (e.g., weekly) can help breeding researchers develop more accurate models to predict yield and stack good traits among a large number of varieties through observing plant growth throughout the entire season.
To read Bao’s original profile, click here.