FLOX Box – Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence

Qubit Systems has a long history of working with Photon Systems Instruments in providing technology for the active measurement of chlorophyll fluorescence on the laboratory scale (see: https://qubitsystems.com/products/plants-algae-soil/chlorophyll-fluorescence/) and in high-throughput phenotyping applications (read MORE). In addition, we now represent JB Hyperspectral of the GDR to provide the novel FLOX system with a dual spectrometer configuration for passive, long-term canopy scale measurements of SIF.

The SIF signal responds instantaneously to changes in environmental conditions such as light quantity and quality and can be monitored to track the effects of longer-term environmental factors that may cause stress, such as water deficits, nutrient deficiency, and disease states. Chlorophyll fluorescence constitutes represents only a small fraction (typically 2-5%) of the total light energy emitted (mostly as reflectance) from the leaf canopy, radiance at the top of the canopy, which is mostly composed of reflected sunlight, so monitoring requires a sophisticated device for high spectral resolution, sensitivity, and data processing.

The FLOX consists of two high-performance spectrometers contained in a temperature-controlled compartment. One fine resolution spectrometer (FLUO) covers the range from 650 nm to 800 nm observing the SIF signal within the O2A and O2B Fraunhofer Absorption lines. The second spectrometer (FULL) covers the range from 400 to 1000 nm. Each spectrometer measures the downwelling irradiance and the upwelling radiance using two optical fibres. A rugged weatherproof case and an autonomous acquisition protocol including data storage allows continuous observation of plant canopies over long periods.

All data are transferred automatically via LAN, WiFi or mobile internet to the secure JB Hyperspectral facility.  Data are also recorded locally to an integrated SD card.

Clients have password-protected access to their remote data and can manipulate data via JB Hyperspectral’s intuitive user interface.

• Solar-Induced Chlorophyll Fluorescence Dynamics.
• Agriculture, forestry and horticulture.
• Effects of drought and temperature stress.
• Effects of nutrient regimes.
• Precision Agriculture.
• Effects of heavy metals and other pollutants.
• Monitoring effects of plant pathogens and herbivores.
• Long-term tracking of effects of climate change.
• Ground-truthing of satellite data.

OPTICAL

• Wavelength range:  optic1 ~ 650–800 nm;  optic2~ 400–950 mn
• Spectral Sampling Interval (SSI):  optic1~ 0.17 nm;  optic2 ~ 0.65 nm
• Spectral resolution (FWHM):  optic1 ~ 0.3 nm;  optic2 ~ 1.5 nm
• Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR):  optic1 ~ 1000;  optic2 ~ 250
• Field Of View (FOV):   Dual FOV (Upwelling radiance ~25° Downwelling radiance 180°)

OPERATIONAL

• Signal Optimization: Automatic adaption to varying light conditions
• Dark current: Accurate dark current determination at each measurement cycle
• Manual acquisition: Interface software for manual measurement and calibration
• Automatic acquisition: Fully autonomous measurement mode for unattended data acquisition
• Quick measurements:  20 seconds under bright sunshine 60 seconds in overcast condition
• Stability:  Reference system stability check and uncertainty estimates
• Simultaneous metadata:  Spectrometer temperature, Outside temperature, GPS position, GPS time
• Data Display:  Live assessment of the systems status
• Data storage:  SD card up to 32 GB (12 months of measurements)
• Case:  Robust and Waterproof housing based on the 1510 Pelicase
• Dimension:  Small form factor (50 × 30 × 20 cm)
• Power supply:  12 Volt. From battery or solar panels
• Power consumption:  Average consumption of 60 Watt. (20/100 Watt, cooling on/off)
• Energy saver:  Day/night switch for energy saving
• Interfaces:  RS232 via cable and wireless

OPTIONAL

• Dust Protection:  Additional dust protection for Cosine Receptors
• Fiber Optics:  Flexible length of fiber optics according to user needs
• Power supply:  Solar panel and battery
• Communication:  Add on for LAN/WLAN/Mobile Network Remote access

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H. Tømmervik et al. (2023) The northernmost hyperspectral FLoX sensor dataset for monitoring of high-Arctic tundra vegetation phenology and Sun-Induced Fluorescence (SIF) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2023.109581

K. R Ahmed et al. (2023) Empirical insights on the use of sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence to estimate short-term changes in crop transpiration under controlled water limitation. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. 2023 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2023.07.016

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