UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield
Dry bean, the fourth-largest pulse crop in Canada is increasingly impacted by climate variability, needing efficient methods to support cultivar development. This study investigates the potential of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and multispectral imaging (MS...
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| author | Shubham Subrot Panigrahi Keshav D. Singh Parthiba Balasubramanian Hongquan Wang Manoj Natarajan Prabahar Ravichandran |
| author_facet | Shubham Subrot Panigrahi Keshav D. Singh Parthiba Balasubramanian Hongquan Wang Manoj Natarajan Prabahar Ravichandran |
| author_sort | Shubham Subrot Panigrahi |
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| description | Dry bean, the fourth-largest pulse crop in Canada is increasingly impacted by climate variability, needing efficient methods to support cultivar development. This study investigates the potential of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and multispectral imaging (MSI) for high-throughput phenotyping of dry bean traits. Image data were collected across two dry bean field trials to assess plant height, lodging and seed yield. Multiple LiDAR-derived features accessing canopy height, crop lodging and digital biomass were evaluated against manual height measurements, visually rated lodging scale and seed yield, respectively. At the same time, three MSI-derived data were used to estimate seed yield. Classification- and regression-based machine learning models were used to estimate key agronomic traits using both LiDAR and MSI-based crop features. The canopy height derived from LiDAR showed a good correlation (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.86) with measured plant height at the mid-pod filling (R6) stage. Lodging classification was most effective using Gradient Boosting, Random Forest and Logistic Regression, with R8 (physiological maturity stage) canopy height being the dominant predictor. For seed yield prediction, models integrating LiDAR and MSI outperformed individual datasets, with Gradient Boosting Regression Trees yielding the highest accuracy (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.64, RMSE = 687.2 kg/ha and MAE = 521.6 kg/ha). Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) at the R6 stage was identified as the most informative spectral feature. Overall, this study demonstrates the importance of integrating UAV-based LiDAR and MSI for accurate, non-destructive phenotyping in dry bean breeding programs. |
| format | Article |
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| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj-art-9e1db9585e054c4681dbbd299f46ca442025-08-20T02:22:59ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202025-06-012511353510.3390/s25113535UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed YieldShubham Subrot Panigrahi0Keshav D. Singh1Parthiba Balasubramanian2Hongquan Wang3Manoj Natarajan4Prabahar Ravichandran5Lethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaLethbridge Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), 5403 1st Avenue South, Lethbridge, AB T1J 4B1, CanadaDry bean, the fourth-largest pulse crop in Canada is increasingly impacted by climate variability, needing efficient methods to support cultivar development. This study investigates the potential of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-based Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and multispectral imaging (MSI) for high-throughput phenotyping of dry bean traits. Image data were collected across two dry bean field trials to assess plant height, lodging and seed yield. Multiple LiDAR-derived features accessing canopy height, crop lodging and digital biomass were evaluated against manual height measurements, visually rated lodging scale and seed yield, respectively. At the same time, three MSI-derived data were used to estimate seed yield. Classification- and regression-based machine learning models were used to estimate key agronomic traits using both LiDAR and MSI-based crop features. The canopy height derived from LiDAR showed a good correlation (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.86) with measured plant height at the mid-pod filling (R6) stage. Lodging classification was most effective using Gradient Boosting, Random Forest and Logistic Regression, with R8 (physiological maturity stage) canopy height being the dominant predictor. For seed yield prediction, models integrating LiDAR and MSI outperformed individual datasets, with Gradient Boosting Regression Trees yielding the highest accuracy (R<sup>2</sup> = 0.64, RMSE = 687.2 kg/ha and MAE = 521.6 kg/ha). Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) at the R6 stage was identified as the most informative spectral feature. Overall, this study demonstrates the importance of integrating UAV-based LiDAR and MSI for accurate, non-destructive phenotyping in dry bean breeding programs.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/11/3535dry beanLiDARmultispectralcanopy heightcrop lodgingseed yield |
| spellingShingle | Shubham Subrot Panigrahi Keshav D. Singh Parthiba Balasubramanian Hongquan Wang Manoj Natarajan Prabahar Ravichandran UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield Sensors dry bean LiDAR multispectral canopy height crop lodging seed yield |
| title | UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield |
| title_full | UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield |
| title_fullStr | UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield |
| title_full_unstemmed | UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield |
| title_short | UAV-Based LiDAR and Multispectral Imaging for Estimating Dry Bean Plant Height, Lodging and Seed Yield |
| title_sort | uav based lidar and multispectral imaging for estimating dry bean plant height lodging and seed yield |
| topic | dry bean LiDAR multispectral canopy height crop lodging seed yield |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/25/11/3535 |
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