Engineers at Greenvision (Wageningen, The Netherlands) have developed a vision system that can grade different types of potted plants, ranging from seedlings to mature plants.

Plants, flowers, seedlings and cuttings are controlled and graded according to certain quality standards during their growth. Traditionally, the task has been performed manually, but the Greenvision image analysis system can automate the grading process.

The grading system consists of one or more color cameras, a lighting unit and a personal computer. After the system has been taught to identify certain characteristics of a plant, it can then automatically measure its properties, such as volume, diameter, shape, decorative value, height, number of flowers, ripeness and flower color.

According to its developers, the system can grade between 2,000 and 16,000 plants per hour.

The vision system can also be linked to a system which can subsequently sort the plants into different bins depending on their quality.

-- by Dave Wilson, Senior Editor, Vision Systems Design