Análise de imagens na avaliação de danos mecânicos e causados por percevejos em semente de feijão

Image analysis is a very promising technique to determine damage in seeds. This precise method examines seeds individually using enlarged images in which damaged areas as well as their exact location and extension can be found and examined in detail. The objective of the present investigation was to evaluate the efficiency of the image analysis technique (X-ray) to identify mechanical and chinch bug damages in common bean seeds and its relation with their physiological quality. The treatments consisted of seeds of different lots of the Perola cultivar. Each lot was submitted to the action of the "BC Impact Simulator, Model 2000" to cause different types and intensity of mechanical damage. The samples were submitted to the X-ray test and to the germination test (first count), to determine the possible relationship between damage and seed germination. Simultaneously, the X-ray test was compared with the tetrazolium test. For the interpretation of the X-ray test, the severity and location of mechanical and chinch-bug damages were considered. The X-ray test is efficient to detect these damages in common bean seeds and that it could relate the damages with eventual problems in seed germination.