Enhancing rural business efficiency and growth by minimising harvester induced damage to root crops through development of a vision-based smart system to detect damage in real-time and adjust machine parameters - CropVision

英国蔬菜生产商（如土豆、甜菜根、瑞典菜、胡萝卜、卷心菜和洋葱）受到收获期间受损产品质量差和储存寿命短的阻碍，导致依赖从欧洲大陆进口以确保满足国内需求，例如：土豆（2016年进口额为5160万英镑）；洋葱(£191);胡萝卜(£46.6 m)。随着英国不断增长的人口面临越来越大的粮食安全挑战，以及英国脱欧后进口关税和新冠疫情带来的持续不确定性，英国农业和农村经济必须进行创新，以确保更高的效率、自给自足和绿色增长。块根作物的收获是一个积极的过程，最大限度地减少损害取决于收割机操作员的观察和技能。我们应对这一挑战的方法是开发和演示一种创新的基于视觉的技术，CropVision，以便实时检测收割机中根茎类蔬菜打顶后的损伤。这个第一阶段的技术可行性研究和后续的第二阶段原型开发和测试项目将通过减少收获和储存期间的食物损害（由于受损作物导致未受损作物在储存期间腐烂）来提高农业和食品生产业务和行业的效率，并“更好地重建”，从而对生产力和盈利能力产生积极影响。我们预计该系统将允许用户收获更高质量（更少损坏）的产品，具有更长的储存寿命潜力，减少我们的进口，最大限度地减少食物浪费，以及相关的环境影响。它还将使种植者通过延长供应季节，并允许他们根据质量区分产品，从而获得更大的收入。

UK Vegetable producers (such as potatoes, beetroots, swedes, carrots, cabbages and onions are hindered by poor quality and short storage life of produce damaged during harvest, resulting in a reliance on imports from the continent to ensure that domestic demand is met, such as: potatoes (import value of £51.6M, 2016); onions (£191M); carrots (£46.6M). With the increasing challenges of food security for a growing UK population and the continuing uncertainties surrounding Post-Brexit import tariffs and Covid related disruption, it is crucial that the UK agricultural industry and rural economy innovates in order to ensure greater efficiency, self-sufficiency and green growth. Harvesting of root crops is an aggressive process and the minimising of damage is reliant on the observations and skill of a harvester operator. Our approach to this challenge is the development and demonstration of an innovative vision-based technology, CropVision, in order to detect damage post-topping of root vegetables in the harvester, in real-time. This phase 1 technical feasibility study and follow-on phase 2 prototype development and testing project will improve agricultural and food production business and industry efficiency and "building back better" by reducing food damage during harvest and storage (brought about by damaged crop causing rotting of undamaged crop during storage) and therefore positively impacting on productivity and profitability. We anticipate this system will allow users to harvest higher quality (less damaged) produce with longer storage life potential, reducing our imports, minimising food waste, and the associated environmental effects. It will also enable growers to generate greater revenues through extending the supply season and allowing them to differentiate produce based on quality.