Disease Severity Modeling from Leaf Wetness and Temperature

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing disease simulation methods are computationally intensive and require extensive research to model various diseases in crops, making it difficult to predict and target disease treatments effectively, especially when considering multiple crop types.

Innovation Solution

A disease severity model that uses leaf wetness duration and air temperature as inputs to predict disease severity levels, incorporating parameters like precipitation, dew, and evaporation, allowing for efficient prediction across different plant and animal species with minimal adjustments.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If traditional diagnostic methods (visual inspection, palpation, basic imaging) are used, then the ease of operation is maintained, but the measurement precision of disease severity assessment deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedisease severity assessment accuracyVSAvoiddiagnostic system complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The diagnostic system is segmented into multiple independent modules: image acquisition module, preprocessing module (denoising, normalization), feature extraction module (texture, shape, intensity features), disease severity assessment module, and treatment response monitoring module. Each module performs a specific function, allowing the complex diagnostic task to be divided into manageable components that can be processed sequentially, thereby improving measurement precision without overwhelming system complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Computer-aided diagnosis systems and image processing algorithms serve as intermediaries between traditional diagnostic methods and final disease severity assessment. These intermediaries automatically extract quantitative features from medical images and provide objective measurements, bridging the gap between simple imaging and precise disease characterization, thus improving assessment accuracy while maintaining operational simplicity for clinicians.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Measurement precision

If comprehensive imaging and diagnostic tools are deployed, then the measurement precision of disease severity is improved, but the loss of time in diagnosis and treatment monitoring increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedisease severity assessment accuracyVSAvoiddiagnosis and monitoring time
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary processing of medical images including denoising, normalization, and pre-extraction of key features (texture, shape, intensity) before formal diagnosis. By preparing and pre-processing imaging data in advance, the system reduces the time required for actual disease severity assessment and treatment response monitoring, as the heavy computational lifting is already completed and results are ready for rapid interpretation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

Manual diagnostic procedures are replaced with automated computer-aided diagnosis systems that use algorithms to extract features and assess disease severity from medical images. This substitution of mechanical/manual diagnostic processes with automated computational systems maintains high measurement precision while significantly reducing the time required for diagnosis and treatment monitoring.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Reliability

If manual assessment methods are used, then the device complexity is minimized, but the reliability of disease severity assessment deteriorates due to subjectivity

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedisease severity assessment consistencyVSAvoiddiagnostic system complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The diagnostic system performs self-assessment by automatically extracting features and evaluating disease severity from medical images without requiring subjective human interpretation. The system uses predefined algorithms to consistently measure texture, shape, and intensity features, and to assess treatment response, eliminating inter-observer variability and improving reliability while keeping the system architecture relatively simple and self-contained.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

Subjective manual assessment processes are replaced with objective computer-aided diagnosis systems that use standardized algorithms to evaluate disease severity. This substitution eliminates human subjectivity and variability, providing consistent and reliable assessments across different clinicians and time points, while the automated nature of the system actually reduces operational complexity compared to coordinating multiple manual assessments.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Data Source

PatentEP4075939B1Systems and methods for modeling disease severity
Publication Date: 2026.05.06 BASF CORPORATON
  • EP4075939B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4075939B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4075939B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Example embodiments provide systems and methods for simulating a disease outbreak based on a limited number of input parameters. In one embodiment, a disease severity level is computed based on a relationship between leaf wetness duration and average temperature during a wetness period. The resulting model can be a physical, deterministic model that accepts hourly weather data as input and outputs the most significant severity event of disease infection during a specified period.