(The Gist of Science Reporter) AI based model for disease detection in potato crops using photos of leaves

(GIST OF SCIENCE REPORTER) AI based model for disease detection in potato crops using photos of leaves

Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Mandi have developed an AI solution that can detect diseases of the tuber crop simply by examining photographs of potato leaves.

The blight is a common disease of the potato plant, that starts as uneven light green lesions near the tip and the margins of the leaf and then spreads into large brown to purplish-black necrotic patches that eventually leads to rotting of the plant.
If left undetected and unchecked, blight could destroy the entire crop within a week under conducive conditions.
The computational tool developed by scientists, on the other hand, can detect blight in potato leaf images.
The model is built using an AI tool called mask region-based convolutional neural network architecture and can accurately highlight the diseased portions of the leaf amid a complex background of plant and soil matter.

The advanced HD cameras, better computing power and communication avenues offered by smartphones offer a promising platform for automated disease detection in crops.