Research on the Construction and Visualization of a Three-Dimensional Model of Rice Root Growth

Highlights This article proposes a three-dimensional rice root growth model based on the differential L-system. We tested the accuracy of the model output, and the measured values and the simulated values were compared. A three-dimensional visualization of the growth simulation system was implemented, and the dynamic growth process of rice roots was visually reproduced. Abstract . Three-dimensional visualization studies on the morphological characteristics of rice root systems are important for improving farmland management and for the selective breeding and genetic improvement of rice. To clarify the rules governing the structure and distribution of rice roots, the three-dimensional (3D) coordinates and morphological parameters of rice roots were measured in hydroponic experiments at different growing periods, and the rice root structure was measured with a high degree of accuracy. The initial position, growth direction, and rate were then determined via statistical analysis of the data. In this article, a 3D rice root growth model based on the differential L-system is proposed; in this system, the biological characteristics based on the topological structure and the actual growth laws of rice roots are quantified. We adopted the growing degree day (GDD) as the driving factor that describes the growth law of rice roots and tested the accuracy of the model output. In this model, a 3D visualization of the growth simulation system of rice roots is implemented via Visual C++ and the OpenGL standard library on the basis of algorithms for the constructed 3D rice root growth model. The model output realistically recreates the dynamic growth process of rice roots under different conditions. A large amount of experimental data and comparative analysis show that the average accuracies achieved by the proposed system concerning total root length, root surface area and root volume are 96.95%, 95.97%, and 93.98%, respectively. These results verify the high reliability of the constructed model and the effective simulation of the morphological characteristics and growth laws of rice roots at different growth periods, laying the foundation for future research on the laws of changes in morphological structure and the physiological and ecological factors of rice roots at different growth stages. Keywords: Differential L-system, Rice roots, Simulation, Three-dimensional growth model, Visualization.