By Blake Jackson
According to Krishna Ramanujan of Cornell Chronicle, researchers at Cornell AgriTech have developed HyperBird, an advanced imaging platform capable of detecting grape diseases days before visible symptoms appear.
The technology could help grape breeders, researchers, and growers identify problems earlier, accelerate the development of disease-resistant varieties, and improve crop-management decisions.
Diseases such as powdery mildew and downy mildew cause significant losses in vineyards worldwide. HyperBird addresses this challenge by combining hyperspectral imaging with high-throughput analysis.
Unlike traditional cameras that capture only red, green, and blue wavelengths, hyperspectral imaging records hundreds of narrow light bands, allowing researchers to detect subtle biological changes within plant tissues before symptoms become visible.
“It’s harnessing the power of hyperspectral and high-throughput analysis in a much more accessible way for the scientist,” said Katie Gold, Assistant Professor of Grape Pathology and Susan Eckert Lynch Faculty Fellow at Cornell AgriTech.
“We now have a physical system that allows us to translate complex questions and answer them with powerful tools in a way that’s so much more accessible than ever before,” Gold added.
The technology builds on Blackbird, an earlier robotic imaging system developed to improve disease screening in grape breeding programs. HyperBird offers far greater spectral detail, enabling researchers to examine plant health at microscopic levels while processing hundreds of samples in a short period of time.
“Hyperspectral information – beyond the visible range – can provide insights and deepen our understanding about many biological processes between leaf tissues and pathogens,” said Yu Jiang, Assistant Professor and Systems Engineer at Cornell AgriTech.
Researchers found that HyperBird can identify disease development several days earlier than previous methods while also detecting fungicide residues and evaluating treatment effectiveness.
The system can distinguish subtle differences among grapevine breeding lines, helping scientists identify traits associated with disease resistance.
“Now, we can get the equivalent accuracy at day three that we used to get at day six or day nine,” Gold said. “We’ve just increased the throughput by two to three times.”
The research team is currently working with Moblanc Robotics to manufacture HyperBird and explore applications beyond grapes. Scientists believe the technology could eventually be adapted for other crops and industries, expanding its role in precision agriculture and plant disease management.
Photo Credit: istock-jimfeng
Categories: New York, Education