JapanFamous cherry trees are getting old, but a new AI device that assesses photographs of delicate pink and white flowers can help preserve them for future generations.
The “Sakura” season is equally estimated by local people and visitors, marked the beginning of spring with stunning flowers.
But many trees are 70 to 80 years old, well beyond their major blooming age.
This means that the cost is increasing to move towards trees and maintain the locations of popular flowers.
To help officials identify sick samples, giant giant Kirin Developed a device called Sakura AI Camera.
It tells users the status and age of trees based on photographs taken with their smartphones and upload them on a website.
A five-point scale-cavalry is available in Japanese for now-from “very healthy” to “worrisome”.
A tree with healthy flowers, which blooms in all ways to the suggestions of branches, get top digits.
Artificial Intelligence Tools have been trained using 5,000 images of cherry trees with the help of experts.
The photo is then mapped on the Sakura AI camera website such as the condition and location of the tree.
“We have heard that the protection of Sakura requires manpower and money and this information is difficult to collect,” Risa shoda Told Kirin to AFP.
“I think we can contribute by making it easy to plan for protection,” he said.
About 20,000 photos have been collected since the launch last month, with free online data available for local authorities.
– A million value –
According to the Meguro ward of Tokyo, famous for a rowarbank with cherry trees, the cost of a new is about a million yen ($ 6,800).
Heroyuki wada of Japan tree doctors associationWhich inspects cherry trees in major places in Tokyo helped monitor the AI tool.
He said that he hopes that this will help experts to study environmental reasons behind the erosion of some trees they see.
In the part, he blames climate change.
“I am very worried. Changes in the environment are usually gradual, but now it is visible,” he told AFP.
“The heat has effects, and of course there is a lack of rainfall,” he said.
“The age of trees naturally makes the situation more serious,” he said.
The Japanese Meteorological Agency said in January that last year was the hottest since the records started like other countries.
Kirin began to donate some of his profits for conservation of cherry trees last year, as a way to “pay back” to communities.
Alcohol, especially beer, is one of the drinks that have been enjoyed in the “Hanmi” flower-looking parties under the trees, Shioda said.
Cherry flowers symbolize the fragility of life in Japanese culture as the petals bloom for a week before falling from trees.
The season is also considered to be one of the changes because it marks the beginning of the new business year, many university graduates began to transfer their first full -time jobs and old colleagues to new positions.
