Reimagined microphone-free acoustic volumetry: An open, DIY platform for global phenotyping

Abstract

• A DIY acoustic volumeter is developed using a dynamic cartridge as transducer. • Resonance peak shifts are used directly to estimate sample volume. • The device removes the need for a traditional microphone and closed-loop setup. • Custom software streamlines measurement, analysis, and visualization steps. • The platform supports rapid phenotyping with minimal hardware and setup. We present a novel Do-It-Yourself (DIY) acoustic volumetry platform with strong relevance to applications in crop phenotyping and seed science, where rapid and precise volume measurements are often critical. This system reimagines volume measurement by eliminating the need for conventional microphones, instead leveraging the inherent acoustic–electrical properties of a dynamic microphone cartridge mounted on a sealed chamber—constituting the theoretically simplest form of an acoustic volumeter. By tracking resonance peak shifts, and using a circuit composed entirely of off-the-shelf audio connectors to split a sound card’s output between excitation and response, the system enables rapid and accurate volumetric measurements using only a few frequency points. Calibration using both linear and logarithmic models revealed a strong correlation between resonance peak shifts and sample volume, yielding root mean square errors (RMSE) of 1.980 µL and 1.662 µL, respectively. In a practical demonstration involving a ten-grain wheat assay, the method achieved an average error of <0.2 µL per grain, confirming high precision across a wide range of biological sample volumes. A dedicated Python-based freeware application supports intuitive calibration and measurement through a user-friendly interface. By removing the conventional microphone and exploiting the simplest form of acoustic volumetry—a dynamic cartridge on a sealed chamber—this DIY platform delivers a novel blend of hardware minimalism and measurement precision. Its modular, low‑cost design, rapid operation, and sub‑microliter accuracy make it particularly powerful for high‑throughput phenotypic screening and seed‑science studies. The accompanying Acoustic Volumeter v.1.0 freeware expands access to precise volumetric analysis in plant phenotyping.

Plant phenotyping relevance

植物試料の体積を音響的に推定する装置、校正、精度検証、Pythonソフトウェアを中心に扱う植物フェノタイピング手法開発研究である。

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