A wheat smut infection detection device based on an array gas sensor
By using an array-type gas sensor and a hot-swappable module design, the problems of low detection efficiency and limited adaptability of wheat bunt disease have been solved, achieving rapid, non-destructive, and accurate detection results while reducing costs and operational complexity.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- NANJING AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY
- Filing Date
- 2025-05-19
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-05
AI Technical Summary
Existing methods for detecting wheat bunt are inefficient, complex to operate, and have limited adaptability, making it difficult to achieve rapid, non-destructive, and high-throughput detection.
An array-type gas sensor design is adopted, including a hot-swappable sensor module and a core processing unit STM32F103RCT6 chip. Combined with a data acquisition card and a metal oxide sensor, it enables the analysis of volatile gases in wheat smut grains.
It enables rapid, non-destructive, and accurate detection of wheat bunt, shortening detection time, reducing operational complexity, improving detection accuracy and adaptability, and reducing costs.
Smart Images
Figure CN224328085U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This utility model relates to a wheat smut infection detection device based on an array-type gas sensor, belonging to the field of agricultural product quality testing technology. Background Technology
[0002] Wheat smut is a fungal disease caused by *Ustilago maydis*, characterized by a distinctive fishy odor, similar to rotting fish. Infected ears of wheat are covered with a grayish-brown film, while the inside develops a black, powdery substance. This not only severely affects the appearance and quality of the grains but also leads to yield losses, sometimes reaching 50%. The pathogen can cause cross-contamination during storage and processing, impacting the quality and safety of flour and related food products. Therefore, establishing efficient and accurate detection methods during wheat procurement, storage, and processing is crucial for rapid screening, quality grading, market supervision, and food security in wheat infected with smut.
[0003] Traditional detection methods relying on experienced experts to identify the type and severity of wheat diseases are inefficient, prone to misclassification of mildly infected grains as healthy grains, and unsuitable for accurate disease diagnosis. Furthermore, the trimethylamine released from grains infected with wheat smut can cause acute poisoning if inhaled. Therefore, modern research focuses on using molecular biology techniques, such as PCR and ELISA, to detect wheat smut in grains. However, these methods are primarily limited to laboratory-level research analysis due to their complex procedures, making on-site testing difficult. Moreover, these methods require expensive instruments and equipment, limiting the ability to process large volumes of data. Current methods for detecting wheat smut infection have limitations; therefore, a rapid, non-destructive, high-throughput detection device for wheat smut infection is needed to achieve rapid and accurate grading of the degree of infection in a batch of wheat grains.
[0004] With the continuous development of sensor technology, array-type gas sensors have shown significant advantages in large-scale food quality testing due to their lower cost and simplified operation. However, in existing research on food safety or quality testing technologies, rapid detection instruments for wheat smut remain a gap. A search revealed that patent application CN202411179933.1 discloses a grain mold detector based on a gas-sensitive sensor array. This device uses a sensor array to detect volatile gases released from grains, enabling the identification and screening of grain mold. However, this device uses a fixed sensor array layout, lacking modular expansion capabilities and making it difficult to adjust the structure according to changes in the detected object, thus limiting the instrument's adaptability. The innovation of this patent lies in its design of a hot-swappable sensor module, addressing the differences in volatile gas concentrations at different infection stages of wheat smut and to meet the need for expanded detection of other diseases. This design allows for flexible adjustment of the sensor configuration, improving adaptability and identification accuracy for different diseases. Summary of the Invention
[0005] The purpose of this invention is to solve the technical problems in the current field of wheat bunt detection, such as long detection cycle, complex operation and limited adaptability, and to provide a wheat bunt infection degree detection device based on an array gas sensor.
[0006] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by this utility model is: a wheat smut infection degree detection device based on an array gas sensor, which includes a box, a sample collection mechanism installed on the top of the box, and a sensor mechanism, a control mechanism, a drive mechanism and a power supply mechanism arranged inside the box.
[0007] The sample collection mechanism includes a sample heating table and a sample collection chamber;
[0008] The sensor mechanism includes a vacuum pump, a data acquisition card, a data acquisition card holder, a sensor gas chamber, an activated carbon filter, and a gas flow controller. The data acquisition card is installed in the sensor gas chamber and connected to the data acquisition card holder via hot-swapping. The data acquisition card integrates an analog-to-digital converter module (ADS1256) and is equipped with eight metal oxide sensors to form a high-precision array gas sensor for collecting volatile gases from wheat smut grains at different infection levels. An activated carbon filter and a gas flow controller are installed on one side of the sensor gas chamber and connected to the vacuum pump via an inserted gas tube. The other side of the sensor gas chamber has a gas tube insertion hole, which allows gas flow between the sample collection chamber and the array gas sensor by inserting a gas tube.
[0009] The control mechanism includes a core processing unit, which is connected to the data acquisition card socket via a GPIO interface. The drive mechanism is installed inside the control mechanism, which includes a motor drive and is used to control the working state of the vacuum pump.
[0010] The power supply mechanism is used to supply electrical energy to the entire device.
[0011] Furthermore, the sample heating stage adopts a temperature-controlled adjustable heating plate with an external insulating material of silicone rubber coated fiberglass cloth and an internal heating element of nickel-chromium alloy. It is equipped with an external OLED digital display to transmit temperature information and obtains power through a relay connected to the control mechanism.
[0012] Furthermore, the rear of the box is provided with a half-open door to facilitate the configuration of the internal hardware and layout. An air tube insertion hole is provided on the side of the box, which is connected to the tube hole above the sample collection chamber by inserting a PU air tube.
[0013] Furthermore, the bottom of the box is equipped with four-legged supports.
[0014] Furthermore, the air pump's inlet and outlet ports are connected to the activated carbon filter via an air pipe, and a three-way valve is installed on the air pipe to switch the gas flow direction between different operating modes.
[0015] Furthermore, the control mechanism is equipped with a main power switch, a data acquisition card power switch, and a drive mechanism power switch for flexible control of power supply to each module. Simultaneously, the control mechanism uses an STM32F103RCT6 chip as its core processing unit and is equipped with an ESP-01S network communication device, an HC-05 Bluetooth communication device, and an OLED display device. The network communication device and Bluetooth communication device are used to send data collected by the sensors to the host computer unit for data communication in different situations. When a prediction result or instruction is received from the host computer, the information is displayed to the operator through the OLED display device.
[0016] Furthermore, the drive mechanism adopts an L298N motor drive module, whose power line is connected to the vacuum pump via DC12V, and is connected to the control mechanism via a relay to obtain electrical energy.
[0017] Furthermore, the power supply mechanism uses a 12V battery, and its power line is connected to the control mechanism through an XT30 interface to supply power to the entire device.
[0018] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of this utility model are as follows:
[0019] 1. Short Detection Time: This device aims to solve the problem of long detection cycles for traditional wheat bunt disease severity testing. Utilizing an array-type gas sensor design, it can complete the collection and analysis of volatile organic compounds within minutes, significantly shortening the time required by traditional detection methods. Furthermore, the rapid response characteristics of the array-type gas sensor enable on-site detection, making it suitable for rapid screening and real-time monitoring.
[0020] 2. No complex pretreatment required: Traditional sample pretreatment steps such as grinding and filtration are omitted in this device. Since the array gas sensor directly analyzes volatile organic compounds, simply placing wheat grains in the sensor's gas chamber is sufficient to begin detection, without any chemical reagents or complex physical treatments. This not only speeds up the entire detection process but also reduces the potential risk of contamination.
[0021] 3. Enhanced Adaptability: This device employs array-type gas sensor technology and features a pluggable data acquisition card. Recognizing the differences in volatile gas components at different infection stages of bunt smut, the hot-swappable design allows for flexible replacement of gas sensors of different types or sensitivities to adapt to the gas characteristics of each disease development stage, thus improving detection accuracy. Through in-depth data analysis, the device can identify trace amounts of diseased grains, reducing misidentification between healthy and diseased grains.
[0022] 4. Cost-effectiveness and practicality: The design of this device takes cost-effectiveness and practicality into consideration. All components are inexpensive and readily available conventional products, ensuring the economic efficiency of procurement. At the same time, the portable design makes the device easy to apply in different scenarios, reducing the complexity and cost of transportation and installation. The simplified operation process reduces the technical requirements for operators and reduces training costs. Attached Figure Description
[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the main components of this utility model;
[0024] Figure 2 This is one of the three-dimensional structural schematic diagrams of this utility model;
[0025] Figure 3 This is the second three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the present invention;
[0026] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the hot-swappable data acquisition card of this utility model.
[0027] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the hot-swappable data acquisition card of this utility model;
[0028] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the PCB of the hot-swappable data acquisition card of this utility model;
[0029] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the system working principle of this utility model;
[0030] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the system operation of this utility model.
[0031] The markings in the diagram are as follows: 1-Tracheal tube insertion hole, 2-Sensor air chamber, 3-OLED display device, 4-Main power switch, 5-Data acquisition card power switch, 6-Drive mechanism power switch, 7-Motor drive, 8-Battery, 9-Gas flow controller, 10-Activated carbon filter, 11-Three-way valve, 12-Support leg, 13-Vacuum pump, 14-Air inlet, 15-Air outlet, 16-Data acquisition card holder, 17-Data acquisition card, 18-Sample collection chamber, 19-Sample heating stage, 20-Box body, 21-Half-open door. Detailed Implementation
[0032] The technical solutions of the present utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present utility model. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present utility model, and not all embodiments.
[0033] like Figure 1-4 As shown, a wheat bunt disease severity detection device based on an array-type gas sensor includes a housing, a sample collection chamber above the housing, a semi-open door device at the rear of the housing, and a control mechanism, a drive mechanism, a power supply mechanism, and a sensor mechanism inside the housing, wherein:
[0034] (1) Control mechanism
[0035] The control mechanism is located on the left side inside the enclosure. Using an STM32F103RCT6 chip as its core processing unit, it integrates data acquisition, wireless communication, and display modules to achieve intelligent control and efficient human-machine interaction of the testing process. It connects to the data acquisition card slot 16 via a GPIO interface, and the sensor's operating state is flexibly switched using the data acquisition card's power switch 5. Acquired data is uploaded in real-time to the host computer for analysis via the network communication device ESP-01S. Simultaneously, remote device control is supported via the Bluetooth communication device HC-05, ensuring adaptability to both laboratory and field scenarios. The OLED display device 3 can intuitively present the cloud-based analysis results, while the design of the main power switch 4 and the drive mechanism power switch 6 allows operators to quickly adjust the system power supply, optimizing energy management efficiency while ensuring safety.
[0036] (2) Box
[0037] The enclosure 20 adopts a trapezoidal structure design, balancing internal space expansion and ease of operation. The rear semi-open door device 21 supports quick opening and closing, facilitating user installation, debugging, and routine maintenance of the internal hardware, significantly improving equipment operability. The trapezoidal base, together with the four-legged support 12 at the bottom, enhances the equipment's vibration resistance in complex environments, avoiding errors caused by external interference during testing, and ensuring the stability and repeatability of experimental data.
[0038] (3) Power supply mechanism
[0039] The power supply mechanism is located inside the enclosure and uses a 12V battery to provide power to the equipment in different scenarios. This structural design allows charging without removing the battery, effectively protecting the safety of the internal wiring. Battery 8 connects to the control mechanism via an XT30 interface, ensuring a stable power supply and rapid response. Furthermore, the interface design also considers user safety, preventing the risk of incorrect insertion / removal and short circuits. For convenient battery charging, battery 8 is equipped with a DC 12V power input, allowing users to directly charge the battery using the provided DC female connector. This charging method increases charging convenience and improves the equipment's applicability and flexibility in different environments.
[0040] (4) Drive mechanism
[0041] To address the issues of low gas circulation efficiency and flow rate fluctuations affecting detection accuracy, a drive mechanism is installed inside the control unit. This mechanism utilizes an L298N motor drive module (motor drive 7), with its power supply connected to the vacuum pump 13 via a DC 12V line for controlling its operation. The drive mechanism's power supply is obtained from the control unit via a relay, ensuring the stability and safety of the power supply.
[0042] (5) Sensor mechanism
[0043] The sensor mechanism includes a vacuum pump 13, a sensor chamber 2, an activated carbon filter 10, a gas flow controller 9, a data acquisition card holder 16, and a data acquisition card 17. The top of the vacuum pump 13 is provided with an air inlet 14 and an air outlet 15, wherein the air inlet is used to introduce external gas into the sensor chamber 2, and the air outlet is used to discharge volatile gases from the sensor chamber 2 to the external environment after detection. To address the issues of high cross-sensitivity and limited adaptability of single sensors, data acquisition card 16 connects to data acquisition card socket 15 via an XH2.54 interface, enabling a hot-swappable design. This allows for flexible replacement or expansion of sensors during system operation. In this implementation, eight metal oxide sensors (MQ-135, MQ-3, MQ-131, MQ-2, MQ-141, MQ-138, MQ-140, MQ-136) form an array gas sensor for collecting volatile gases from wheat grains. A 5mm spacing between adjacent sensors ensures uniform distribution within the array, improving sampling efficiency and response speed. In terms of hardware, each sensor signal is input to the analog channel via a voltage divider circuit. After capacitor filtering, the signal is transmitted to the ADS1256 analog-to-digital converter module for ADC sampling and processing. The module uses standardized pin header outputs (A0–A7) for easy integration with the main control board, exhibiting good scalability and modularity. On the right side of the sensor chamber, a gas flow controller 9 is installed to adjust the sampling or cleaning speed of the vacuum pump 13. The sensor self-cleaning time is set to 100 seconds, the zeroing time to 10 seconds, the sample preparation time to 10 seconds, and the injection flow rate to 300 mL / min. Additionally, an activated carbon filter 10 is installed outside the gas flow controller 9, and a three-way valve 11 connects the activated carbon filter 10, the vacuum pump inlet 14, and the outlet 15. This design allows the system to switch between cleaning and gas detection modes of the sensor chamber 2 by changing the flow direction of the three-way valve: when the three-way valve is directed towards the outlet 15, the activated carbon filter 10 introduces clean gas into the chamber for pre-measurement cleaning; when the three-way valve is directed towards the inlet 14, the system introduces the gas to be measured into the sensor chamber 2 after filtration by the activated carbon filter 10, thus providing stable, low-background-interference gas input conditions for the data acquisition process.
[0044] (6) Sample collection organization
[0045] The sample collection mechanism includes a sample collection chamber 18 and a sample heating stage 19. The top of the sample collection chamber 18 can be connected to the gas tube insertion hole 1 on the side of the chamber via a PU gas tube, thus connecting the sample to be tested with the sensor gas chamber 2, ensuring the sealing of the sample gas and avoiding environmental interference. To overcome the problems of slow release of volatile substances from pathogens and susceptibility to environmental interference, the heating surface of the sample heating stage 18 is an ultra-thin planar heating element with a typical thickness of 1.5mm to 2mm. The external insulation material is silicone rubber coated fiberglass cloth, and the internal heating element is nickel-chromium alloy. It is equipped with an OLED digital display device to achieve temperature-controlled adjustable heating function. Its heating area is 36 square centimeters, and the heating power does not exceed 15W. The power cord is connected to the control mechanism through a relay to obtain basic power.
[0046] To facilitate understanding, the following will combine... Figure 7 The system operation diagram shown below illustrates the specific detection process, using the detection of wheat smut infection levels in a set of wheat samples as an example:
[0047] Preparation Phase: First, the operator needs to place the device stably on the workbench to ensure stability and avoid errors during operation. Next, connect the vacuum pump outlet 15 to the activated carbon filter 10 by adjusting the three-way valve. Then, turn on the main power switch 4 to check the battery level and ensure the device has sufficient power for testing. Next, turn on the drive mechanism power switch 6 to power on the vacuum pump 13 and start it for preliminary gas purging, lasting 100 seconds per cycle, to remove residual gas from the sensor chamber 2 and ensure sensor sensitivity. After purging is complete, wait 10 seconds for zeroing, then turn off the drive mechanism power switch 6. At this point, the OLED display reading should stabilize. Check all connections for security before proceeding to the next step.
[0048] Equipment Operation: After the preparation stage, weigh 50g of wheat sample per set and add it to the sample collection chamber 18 located at the top of the chamber 20. Turn on the sample heating stage 19 and set the temperature control to 40 degrees Celsius. Simultaneously, use a PU tubing to connect the sample collection chamber to the tubing insertion hole 1 on the outside of the chamber, ensuring that the gas between the samples can be smoothly transferred to the sensor chamber 2. At this time, open the door device 21 on the rear panel of the chamber and the sensor chamber 2, insert the data acquisition card 16, and turn on the power switch 5 of the data acquisition card. By adjusting the three-way valve, connect the air inlet 14 of the vacuum pump to the activated carbon filter 10, and turn on the drive mechanism switch 6 to control the vacuum pump to draw in air for 20 seconds per set, allowing the sensor to fully contact and absorb the volatile gases in the sample. After aspiration is completed, the power supply to the sample heating stage 19 is disconnected. The device sends the data to the host computer unit for analysis through the connected network communication device and Bluetooth communication device. During the analysis, the OLED display device will display the test results returned by the host computer unit in real time, so that the operator can directly read the analysis data.
[0049] Shutting down the equipment: Once the testing is complete and the data analysis results are displayed, the operator needs to shut down the equipment in the following order: First, turn off the power switch 5 of the data acquisition card, then turn off the power switch 6 of the drive mechanism, and finally turn off the main power switch 4 to ensure the equipment is completely powered off. Then, the operator can safely open the sample collection 18 on the top of the enclosure, remove the tested sample, and proceed with further processing or analysis.
[0050] This series of detailed and rigorous operating procedures ensures the accuracy and repeatability of each test, enabling efficient and precise diagnosis of the severity of wheat bunt disease.
[0051] The foregoing has shown and described the basic principles, main features, and advantages of this utility model. Those skilled in the art should understand that the above embodiments do not limit the scope of protection of this utility model in any way, and all technical solutions obtained by equivalent substitution or other means fall within the scope of protection of this utility model. Parts not covered by this utility model are the same as or can be implemented using existing technology.
Claims
1. A detection device for wheat bunt infection based on an array-type gas sensor, characterized in that, The device includes a housing, on the top of which a sample collection mechanism is installed, and inside the housing are a sensor mechanism, a control mechanism, a drive mechanism, and a power supply mechanism. The sample collection mechanism includes a sample heating table and a sample collection chamber; The sensor mechanism includes a vacuum pump, a data acquisition card, a data acquisition card holder, a sensor gas chamber, an activated carbon filter, and a gas flow controller. The data acquisition card is installed in the sensor gas chamber and connected to the data acquisition card holder via hot-swapping. The data acquisition card integrates an analog-to-digital converter module (ADS1256) and is equipped with eight metal oxide sensors to form a high-precision array gas sensor for collecting volatile gases from wheat smut grains at different infection levels. An activated carbon filter and a gas flow controller are installed on one side of the sensor gas chamber and connected to the vacuum pump via an inserted gas tube. The other side of the sensor gas chamber has a gas tube insertion hole, which allows gas flow between the sample collection chamber and the array gas sensor by inserting a gas tube. The control mechanism includes a core processing unit, which is connected to the data acquisition card socket via a GPIO interface. The drive mechanism is installed inside the control mechanism, which includes a motor drive and is used to control the working state of the vacuum pump. The power supply mechanism is used to supply electrical energy to the entire device.
2. The wheat bunt infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The sample heating stage uses a temperature-controlled adjustable heating plate with an external insulating material of silicone rubber coated fiberglass cloth and an internal heating element of nickel-chromium alloy. It is equipped with an external OLED digital display to transmit temperature information and obtains power through a relay connected to the control mechanism.
3. The wheat smut infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The rear side of the box is provided with a half-open door to facilitate the configuration of the internal hardware and layout. There is a tracheal insertion hole on the side of the box, which is connected to the tube hole above the sample collection chamber by inserting a PU tracheal tube.
4. The wheat bunt infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom of the box is equipped with four legs.
5. The wheat smut infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The vacuum pump's inlet and outlet ports are connected to the activated carbon filter via an air pipe, and a three-way valve is installed on the air pipe to switch the gas flow direction between different operating modes.
6. The wheat bunt infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The control mechanism is equipped with a main power switch, a data acquisition card power switch, and a drive mechanism power switch, which are used to flexibly control the power supply of each module. The control mechanism uses an STM32F103RCT6 chip as the core processing unit and is equipped with a network communication device ESP-01S, a Bluetooth communication device HC-05, and an OLED display device. The network communication device and the Bluetooth communication device are used to send the data collected by the sensor to the host computer unit for data communication in different situations. When the prediction result or instruction is received from the host computer, the information is displayed to the operator through the OLED display device.
7. The wheat bunt infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The drive mechanism uses an L298N motor drive module, whose power line is connected to the vacuum pump via DC12V, and is connected to the control mechanism via a relay to obtain electrical energy.
8. The wheat smut infection detection device based on an array gas sensor according to claim 1, characterized in that, The power supply mechanism uses a 12V battery, and its power line is connected to the control mechanism through an XT30 interface to supply power to the entire device.