The calibration cap is used to maintain a high performance of the scanner. The cap consists of two sides, the white side and the yellow side. Both sides of the cap need to be kept clean. While the white side can be cleaned with a softly wet towel, the yellow side of the cap will be damage by moisture and rough brush. If the calibration cap is not properly maintained, a replacement of the cap might be necessary. Therefore, it is important to keep the scanner clean before it is placed on the calibration cap.
Device Calibration
All technical instruments have a risk to gradually deviate from their standards over time. This process is known as drift. In conventional (wet chemistry) laboratories drift is managed by measuring blank samples (i.e. solutions with a known concentration) in between measurements and repeated adjustments of the calibration lines. The methods have to be adjusted for sensor technology, in order to ensure that we can detect possible drifts between our sensor instruments. At AgroCares we manage drift between sensor instruments using calibration caps. Calibration caps have a known spectral signal and are measured when the Scanner is switched on and in between measurements. If drift is detected, a complex algorithm automatically corrects it. The calibration cap comes with the Scanner and the calibration takes only a few minutes.
