Information technologies for field-based high-throughput phenotyping

Field-based, high-throughput phenotyping seeks to implement information technologies, including sensing and computing tools, to rapidly characterize the growth responses of genetically diverse plant populations in the field and relate these responses to individual genes. Field-based, high-throughput phenotyping includes a proximal sensing system, including a sensor platform and instrumentation, that can rapidly quantify phenotypic variation in the field. The instrument package includes four active radiometers for measuring canopy spectral reflectance in three wavebands, eight infrared thermometers for measuring canopy temperature, four sonar sensors that measure canopy height, and an RTK GPS receiver for horizontal and vertical positioning. Field-based, high-throughput phenotyping using only manual labor is prohibitive because thousands of distinct genetic lines must be characterized. 1.