Tree Seedling Inventory System

ChangeBridge: Patent Grants - Business Methods (G06Q)

Published March 31st, 2026

Detected March 31st, 2026

Summary

USPTO granted patent US12591848B2 to Auburn University for a tree seedling inventory system that uses mobile imaging platforms and recurrent neural networks to count seedlings and assess quality metrics like shoot height and root collar diameter. The patent names inventors Yin Bao, James L. Johnson, Bobby Bradford, and Rafael Bidese Puhl, with 19 claims allowed.

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What changed

The USPTO issued Patent No. US12591848B2 on March 31, 2026, granting Auburn University exclusive rights to a tree seedling inventory system combining mobile imaging technology with artificial intelligence. The system uses a recurrent neural network to process seedling images and accurately count plants as the mobile platform traverses seedling beds, also capturing quality data including shoot height, root collar diameter, and needle coloration.

Patent grants do not impose compliance obligations on third parties. For entities in agricultural technology or nursery management, this grant signals increasing AI/ML applications in inventory tracking. No immediate action is required; however, companies developing similar inventory systems should review for potential patent infringement concerns before commercial deployment.

Source document (simplified)

← USPTO Patent Grants

Tree seedling inventory system

Grant US12591848B2 Kind: B2 Mar 31, 2026

Assignee

Auburn University

Inventors

Yin Bao, James L. Johnson, Bobby Bradford, Rafael Bidese Puhl

Abstract

The present tree seedling inventory system includes both a mobile platform used to obtain images of seedlings and a tree seedling inventory system to count the seedlings. A recurrent neural network can receive processed imaging data and utilize a model to accurately count the seedlings as the mobile platform passes along a seedling bed. The system may also provide additional accurate seedling quality data about the seedlings, such as shoot height, root collar diameter, and needle coloration.

CPC Classifications

G06Q 10/087 G06Q 50/02 G06T 7/10 G06T 2207/20084 G06T 2207/20132 G06T 2207/30188 G06T 2207/30242 G06T 7/215 G06V 10/82 G06V 2201/06 G06V 10/147 G06V 10/62 G06V 10/80 G06V 20/60 G06V 20/10 G06V 20/188