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Photo: ATB

How are photonics used in agriculture?

We invite you to take a virtual video tour to the various applications of optical technologies in ATB research. 

Optical technologies let us 'watch' how plants grow and how plant diseases spread. They enable us to non-destructively determine the quality and freshness of fruit and vegetables in the post-harvest period. And they can be used to inactivate micro-organisms on the surface of fresh produce, thus improving the food safety.

We take you on a virtual tour through various applications of optical technologies in our research at ATB: from drone imaging of wheat fields and LiDar sensor technology for assessing growth parameters in apple trees in the Fieldlab for Digital Agriculture at the ATB site in Marquardt - to applications such as laser scanners and plasma jets in ATB's laboratories. 

Video on Youtube

The video was produced on the occasion of the Berlin-Brandenburg Photonics Days, held online from 5 to 8 October 2020. The video gives an insight into the research of the German-Israeli network 'Agriphotonics', in which about 30 partners from science and industry work together on the development of optical technologies in agriculture and horticulture. 

The ZIM network 'AgriPhotonics - Knowledge-based, site-specific and sustainable plant production using optical methods' was launched in January 2020. It aims to develop a technology platform that enables individual applications with smart solutions in a timely and cost-efficient manner through intelligent system integration and sensor fusion. Network management is in the hands of Optec-Berlin-Brandenburg (OpTecBB) e.V..

Contact ATB: Dr. Manuela Zude-Sasse