Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors

© 2018 Elsevier B.V. With Apis mellifera (the European Honey Bee) having an average forage radius of less than one kilometre from their hive, selecting the best location for beehives is critical for commercial beekeepers to optimise their honey production. In this study, we have used standard three-...

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Main Authors: Campbell, T., Fearns, Peter
Format: Journal Article
Published: 2018
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/68788
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author Campbell, T.
Fearns, Peter
author_facet Campbell, T.
Fearns, Peter
author_sort Campbell, T.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description © 2018 Elsevier B.V. With Apis mellifera (the European Honey Bee) having an average forage radius of less than one kilometre from their hive, selecting the best location for beehives is critical for commercial beekeepers to optimise their honey production. In this study, we have used standard three-band digital cameras to develop and assess a simple parallelpiped algorithm to detect the flowers of the Corymbia calophylla tree in Western Australia, the largest source of honey in the state. The algorithm has been tested in a number of situations and, within the bounds of the study, works to a better than 90% classification accuracy for Digital Single Lens Reflex camera images of trees within 15 m distance, and often better than 95%. To determine how this approach could be used by Unmanned Aerial Vehicle platforms to detect flowering Corymbia calophylla flowering, image resolution was progressively degraded until flowers could not be detected. It was found that the cluster size of flowers (i.e. whether flowers occur individually or in groups) played an important role in determining the accuracy of flower detection, but overall a minimum resolution of 10 pixels per flower is required for reliable detection of flower pixels. While there is some improvement above this resolution, the effect is minimal. The key to accurate measurement of percentage flower cover is the accuracy of the classification of the background. If the background classification error is known for an image or scene, the percentage flower cover can be calculated with as little as 2% flower cover. Based on this study, UAV platforms with standard RGB cameras appear to be suitable for detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers if surveys are designed within the bounds described. Thus, UAV surveys may prove to be useful for beekeepers to optimise the location of their beehives amongst a choice of different locations.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-687882018-06-29T12:35:37Z Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors Campbell, T. Fearns, Peter © 2018 Elsevier B.V. With Apis mellifera (the European Honey Bee) having an average forage radius of less than one kilometre from their hive, selecting the best location for beehives is critical for commercial beekeepers to optimise their honey production. In this study, we have used standard three-band digital cameras to develop and assess a simple parallelpiped algorithm to detect the flowers of the Corymbia calophylla tree in Western Australia, the largest source of honey in the state. The algorithm has been tested in a number of situations and, within the bounds of the study, works to a better than 90% classification accuracy for Digital Single Lens Reflex camera images of trees within 15 m distance, and often better than 95%. To determine how this approach could be used by Unmanned Aerial Vehicle platforms to detect flowering Corymbia calophylla flowering, image resolution was progressively degraded until flowers could not be detected. It was found that the cluster size of flowers (i.e. whether flowers occur individually or in groups) played an important role in determining the accuracy of flower detection, but overall a minimum resolution of 10 pixels per flower is required for reliable detection of flower pixels. While there is some improvement above this resolution, the effect is minimal. The key to accurate measurement of percentage flower cover is the accuracy of the classification of the background. If the background classification error is known for an image or scene, the percentage flower cover can be calculated with as little as 2% flower cover. Based on this study, UAV platforms with standard RGB cameras appear to be suitable for detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers if surveys are designed within the bounds described. Thus, UAV surveys may prove to be useful for beekeepers to optimise the location of their beehives amongst a choice of different locations. 2018 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/68788 10.1016/j.rsase.2018.04.009 restricted
spellingShingle Campbell, T.
Fearns, Peter
Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title_full Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title_fullStr Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title_full_unstemmed Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title_short Simple remote sensing detection of Corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
title_sort simple remote sensing detection of corymbia calophylla flowers using common 3 –band imaging sensors
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/68788