Method to assess plant stress using two narrow red spectral bands

DETAILED DESCRIPTION It is an object of this invention to provide a method for assessing plant stress in agricultural crops.
It is another object of this invention to provide a method to predict crop yields from non-invasive measurements.
According to the system of the invention, a plurality of digital cameras are employed for taking images of a stand of vegetation at different wavelengths.
One of the cameras takes images at wavelengths associated with the absorption spectrum of chlorophyll, and another takes images at wavelengths associated with biomass reflectance.
The system also includes a means to correlate the images taken by the cameras and to compute an Algorithm Image for the stand of vegatation, as well as a means to display the calculated Algorithm Image.
The invention provides a method for predicting plant stress.
This is accomplished by gathering a plurality of digital images using a photographic system comprised of multiple digital cameras equipped with narrow bandpass filters set to detect wavelengths of light corresponding to specific pigment and biomass response regions for vegetation, correcting the digital data from the images, and transforming the data to an Algorithm Image which represents the chlorophyll content for the stand of vegetation.
The Algorithm Image is then interpreted to predict crop yields.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the digital cameras are connected to a fixed wing aircraft, and the images are gathered via aerial photography.
In a preferred embodiment of the instant invention, the images are gathered while maintaining a high sun angle and bi-directional effects are limited by using, for example, a north to south flight line.
The transformation of the digital data into an Algorithm Image is accomplished by calculating a ratio which results in a Red/Far Red Data Product, and combining the digital image of the chlorophyll absorption wavelength with the Red/Far Red Data Product.
The Algorithm Image is created by mapping the first digital image and the Red/Far Red Data Product to different color guns