© 1987 by ICES/CIEM International Council for the Exploration of the Sea/Conseil International pour l'Exploration de la Mer
The identification, counting, and measurement of phytoplankton by an image-processing system
Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo Nakano, Tokyo 164, Japan
Faculty of Fisheries, Mie University Tsu, Mie514, Japan
Research Laboratory of Fisheries Resources, Tokyo University of Fisheries Minato-ku, Tokyo 108, Japan
Faculty of Fisheries, Nagasaki University Nagasaki 852, Japan
A new image-processing system has been developed, to identify and make direct counts of microscope images of plankton and micro-organisms, using pattern analysis.
Principal-component analysis has been applied in a novel way to process each of the three primary colour components of the biological pattern recorded by a colour television camera. The added dimension of colour is unique, we believe, in this context.
Attempts were made to measure the three horns (apical, right, and left horn length) and width of Ceratium furca, using three techniques. From the comparison of the values measured by the electronic system with those measured by two traditional techniques for 17 samples, we conclude that the former system can identify Ceratium furca, based upon measurement ofthree horn lengths, with ±10% accuracy. Thus it appears that this computerized technique has practical application to the identification of certain species of phytoplankton.