Events

This project involved iterative design and manufacturing improvements to the V1 Dendrometer currently being produced and tested by the Openly Published Environmental Sensing Lab at Oregon State University (OPEnS Lab), run by Dr. Chet Udell and Dr. John Selker. A dendrometer is a plant-based instrument that measures minuscule fluctuations of a plant stem diameter over a period of time. Changes in stem diameter correlate to the amount of stress a plant is under and how hard it is working to draw in water. The diameter will increase the more stress the plant is under as it is working harder to draw in moisture. The OPEnS Lab is currently working on creating an improved application of a stem dendrometer, using a linear magnetic sensor design and springs to eliminate friction. It has previously been tested on grapevines and blueberry bushes but it could be used for other woody perennials. By knowing when certain grapevines are experiencing stress, vineyards can better plan their irrigation systems and better manage their water. This Capstone project focused on improving the mechanical components and design of the OPEnS Lab’s dendrometer to create a product that will allow farmers to maximize their irrigation efforts. The primary goals were to increase the robustness and reliability of the dendrometer device to ensure accurate data collection as well as improved ease of manufacturing and assembly of each unit. Currently, the OPEnS Lab’s dendrometers are just used in research applications but the end goal is to have them purchased and used in commercial settings.

The results of this project were a V2 final working dendrometer prototype made out of carbon fiber as well as 3D printed protective cases that significantly elevate the robustness and accuracy of the dendrometer. All design changes were through multiple rounds of prototyping and testing to verify and validate that the changes implemented improved the functionality of the dendrometer.

Attachment	Size
MIME.104.poster	2.91 MB
Final Report	18.03 MB