Detection of moisture of flowing grain with a novel deep learning structure using 2d spectrogram data

Abstract

In order to preserve the stored grain for a long time without deterioration, the moisture content must be accurately known. In this study, the moisture content of flowing grain was determined using radar spectrogram data and CNN structure. A free-space measurement technique-based experimental environment was established for the purpose of collecting the necessary signals to measure the moisture content. The measurement plant is composed of two horn antennas, a vector network analyzer (VNA), and a flowing grain mechanism. In the experimental environment, the S11 and S21 parameter values are recorded from the VNA. The short-time Fourier transforms (STFT) of the recorded signals were then taken, and 2D spectrogram images were created. The dataset, comprising 22,780 images, was split into 80 % for training and 20 % for testing; then, they were subjected to regression analysis using CNNs. First, the mean absolute error (MAE) values of the 27 pre-trained CNN architectures in a single epoch are calculated. Subsequently, the architecture with the best four regression results is automatically selected. The training and testing steps are performed independently for each selected architecture, and the results are recorded. The MAE, root mean square error (RMSE), mean square error (MSE) and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) metrics are employed to assess the efficacy of the CNN architectures. Among these, ResNet50 is the architecture that yields the most favorable results. Subsequently, a subsequent architecture with fewer parameters and a more expeditious processing time is proposed. The novel deep-learning CNN architecture demonstrated superior performance compared to the pre-trained architectures. The results are as follows: MAE = 0.0411, MSE = 0.0149, RMSE = 0.122, and MAPE = 0.0397. When comparing the time spent on training and testing, the least time-consuming architecture required approximately 72 min, whereas this study was completed in approximately 325 s. The pronounced disparity is readily apparent. The results demonstrate that when the CNN is appropriately modeled and trained, the combination of CNN and appropriate signal processing can effectively determine the moisture content of grains.