Sweet potato yield prediction using machine learning based on multispectral images acquired from a small unmanned aerial vehicle

Authors: SIGNH, KRITI - North Carolina State University; Huang, Yanbo; Young, Wyatt; HARVEY, LORIN - Mississippi State University; HALL, MARK - Mississippi State University; ZHANG, XIN - Mississippi State University; LOBATON, EDGAR - North Carolina State University; Jenkins, Johnie; SHANKLE, MARK - Mississippi State University

Submitted to: Agriculture
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/14/2025
Publication Date: 2/17/2025
Citation: Signh, K., Huang, Y., Young, W., Harvey, L., Hall, M., Zhang, X., Lobaton, E., Jenkins, J.N., Shankle, M. 2025. Sweet potato yield prediction using machine learning based on multispectral images acquired from a small unmanned aerial vehicle. Agriculture. 15(420):1-23. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15040420.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15040420

Interpretive Summary: Accurate prediction of sweet potato yield is crucial for effective crop management. This study developed a multispectral imaging remote sensing method based on a small unmanned aerial vehicle to rapidly predict sweet potato yield throughout the growing season with in-situ measured plant physiological parameters. Machine learning has been used to enhance the yield prediction. The results indicated that important vegetation indices extracted from remotely sensed images could be identified to accurately predict sweet potato yield.

Technical Abstract: Accurate prediction of sweet potato yield is crucial for effective crop management. This study investigates the use of vegetation indices (VIs) extracted from multispectral images acquired by a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) throughout the growing season, along with in-situ measured plant physiological parameters to predict sweet potato yield. The data acquisition process through UAV field imaging is discussed in detail along with the extraction process for the multispectral bands that we use as features. The experiment is designed with a combination of different nitrogen application rates and cover crop treatments. The dependence of VIs and crop physiological parameters, such as leaf chlorophyll content, plant biomass, vine length, and leaf nitrogen content, on yield is evaluated through feature selection methods and model performance. Classical machine learning (ML) approaches and tree-based algorithms like XGBoost and Random Forest, are implemented. Additionally, a soft-voting ML model ensemble approach is employed to improve performance of yield prediction. Individual models are trained and tested for different cover crop and nitrogen treatments to capture the relationships between the treatments and the target yield variable. The performance of the ML algorithms is evaluated using various popular model performance metrics like R2, RMSE, and MAE to determine the optimal treatment and stage for predicting sweet potato yield. Through modelling the data for cover crops and nitrogen treatment rates using individual models, the relationships and effects of different treatments on yield are explored. Important VIs useful for the study are identified through feature selection and model performance evaluation.