FUZZY-LOGIC SEARCH ENGINE FOR SOYBEAN SHA PE DATA

A fuzzy-logic based search engine for a soybean shape database was dev eloped on the WWW. It used to be difficult to evaluate crop shape char acteristics quantitatively. Image analyzing technologies, however, can now bring us several numerical parameters to describe crop shape and we can develop database systems of such numerical shape characteristic s combining some image data. To make a search on shape information in such a database, one would rather prefer using naturally linguistic ke ywords such as ''very fat and round'' than numerical keywords because it is usually difficult to imagine appropriate values for what one wan ts in terms of shape. Therefore, a search system based on fuzzy logic with naturally linguistic and comparative keywords for shape informati on was developed in this study. In the fuzzy-logic based search system , a wide range of human subjectivity to the search results, caused mai nly by the subjective recognition of each fuzzy keyword, can be distin ct. Therefore, in order to adjust the system to such subjectivity, we prepared several search options that is, two types of membership funct ions, flexible fuzzy range and three types of definitions on fuzzy mem bership logical products. One can try the system at http : //zoussooku .narc. affrc.go.jp/similar to snino/soyshape/search2.html.