Abstract: An on-the-go sensor for determining the sugar content of an agricultural product, such as a sugar beet, during harvesting or at other times. The sensor is coupled to a harvester/defoliator and uses a knife to slice a cross-section from the crown of the sugar beet during harvesting. An illumination chamber radiates the exposed crown, and a sensor head receives the reflected radiation. A spectrometer converts the reflected radiation to a spectral signal. A computer digitizes and processes the spectral signal to produce data points relating to the sugar content of the sugar beet. The processing of the data points includes normalization, linearization, and other techniques. One of the techniques eliminates the conventional need to use the spectral signature of a separate physical standard as a reference.

Abstract: An optical sensor for use in measuring constituents of an agricultural product. An optical sensing window passes a stream of the agricultural product, and a radiation source irradiates the stream as it passes through the optical sensing window. A receiver receives radiation transmitted through the stream and converts it into a corresponding electrical signal using a spectrometer. The electrical signal is digitized to produce a series of data points corresponding to particular wavelengths. A processor normalizes the data points using a reference value in order to generate processed data points that can be used to predict a constituent content of the agricultural product.

Abstract: An on-the-go sensor for determining the sugar content of an agricultural product, such as a sugar beet, during harvesting or at other times. The sensor is coupled to a harvester/defoliator and uses a knife to slice a cross-section from the crown of the sugar beet during harvesting. An illumination chamber radiates the exposed crown, and a sensor head receives the reflected radiation. A spectrometer converts the reflected radiation to a spectral signal. A computer digitizes and processes the spectral signal to produce data points relating to the sugar content of the sugar beet. The processing of the data points includes normalization, linearization, and other techniques. One of the techniques eliminates the conventional need to use the spectral signature of a separate physical standard as a reference.

Abstract: An on-the-go sensor for determining the sugar content of an agricultural product, such as a sugar beet, during harvesting or at other times. The sensor is coupled to a harvester/defoliator and uses a knife to slice a cross-section from the crown of the sugar beet during harvesting. An illumination chamber radiates the exposed crown, and a sensor head receives the reflected radiation. A spectrometer converts the reflected radiation to a spectral signal. A computer digitizes and processes the spectral signal to produce data points relating to the sugar content of the sugar beet. The processing of the data points includes normalization, linearization, and other techniques. One of the techniques eliminates the conventional need to use the spectral signature of a separate physical standard as a reference.

Abstract: An on-the-go sensor for determining the sugar content of an agricultural product, such as a sugar beet, during harvesting or at other times. The sensor is coupled to a harvester/defoliator and uses a knife to slice a cross-section from the crown of the sugar beet during harvesting. An illumination chamber radiates the exposed crown, and a sensor head receives the reflected radiation. A spectrometer converts the reflected radiation to a spectral signal. A computer digitizes and processes the spectral signal to produce data points relating to the sugar content of the sugar beet. The processing of the data points includes normalization, linearization, and other techniques. One of the techniques eliminates the conventional need to use the spectral signature of a separate physical standard as a reference.