Patent ID: 7112806

Claim:
A portable Chlorophyll Fluorescence Imaging Time (CFIT) system for use in determining plant health, comprising: an enclosure for placement around a plant to be imaged in-situ; means for controlling a light source and providing to the plant light of a desired wavelength range, to controllably irradiate the plant within the enclosure; means for capturing chlorophyll fluorescence emitted from the plant both spatially and temporally, the means for capturing comprising an imaging sensor with a plurality of pixels defining an area sensor, to create an area fluorescence emission image of the plant, and means for storing in memory the output of the area sensor pixels over time, to form a data cube comprising the area fluorescence emission images saved over time; means for allowing a user to select a pixel from those pixels for which data has been stored, and in response displaying for the user a graphic plot of the fluorescence intensity for the selected pixel over time and the first integral of said intensity-time; and means for analyzing the plotted fluorescence information to determine at least the chlorophyll yield and the plant's stress, wherein the shape of the fluorescence intensity curve and the value of the first integral indicate whether the plant is in excellent health, with a relatively flat curve and a relatively low first integral value, or the plant is in stress, with a curve having a peak and a greater first integral value.