Determination of in-row seed distribution uniformity using image processing

The objective of this study was to determine the seed distribution uniformity of seeding machines using a low sensitivity (maximum 300 frames per second (fps)) high-speed camera and image processing method for corn, cotton, and wheat seeds under laboratory conditions. For this purpose, a high-speed camera with 100, 200, and 300 fps was used to measure the seed drop from the seeding tube onto the sticky belt. Video images then were transferred to the image processing algorithm, from which seed distribution can be calculated. The calculated measurements were compared statistically with the measurements obtained from sticky belt tests. According to the results for determining corn and cotton seed spacing by high-speed camera, the camera was successful only for corn seeds. For cotton seeds, camera readings were significantly different from the readings from the sticky belt due to the fact that capturing the cotton seed trajectory was not sufficient compared to the corn seed trajectory. Measuring the wheat seed spacing by high-speed camera was impossible with lower speeds of the camera. Wheat kernels could not be captured successfully by the camera at speeds of 100 and 200 fps. Therefore, only 300 fps speed was used to measure the seed spacing of wheat.