---
title: "Modeling"
output: rmarkdown::html_vignette
vignette: >
%\VignetteIndexEntry{Modeling}
%\VignetteEngine{knitr::rmarkdown}
%\VignetteEncoding{UTF-8}
---
```{r, include = FALSE}
knitr::opts_chunk$set(
collapse = TRUE,
comment = "#>"
)
```
## Modeling plant emergence and canopy growth using UAV data
This vignette demonstrates piecewise regression using canopy data derived from
UAV imagery to estimate two key parameters:
* t1: days to plant emergence.
* t2: days to reach maximum canopy.
The data are from the University of Wisconsin-Madison potato breeding program,
specifically for a partially replicated experiment. The UAV images were
collected in 2020 and processed in 2024.
## Loading libraries
```{r, warning=FALSE, message=FALSE }
library(flexFitR)
library(dplyr)
library(kableExtra)
library(ggpubr)
library(purrr)
```
## 1. Exploring data
We begin with the explorer function, which provides basic statistical summaries
and descriptive statistics, as well as visualizations to help understand the
temporal evolution of each plot.
```{r}
data(dt_potato)
explorer <- explorer(dt_potato, x = DAP, y = Canopy, id = Plot)
```
```{r}
names(explorer)
```
```{r, fig.width= 8, fig.height=4, fig.alt="plot corr"}
p1 <- plot(explorer, type = "evolution", return_gg = TRUE, add_avg = TRUE)
p2 <- plot(explorer, type = "x_by_var", return_gg = TRUE)
ggarrange(p1, p2)
```
To see more about the type of plots visit `plot.explorer()`.
```{r, echo=FALSE}
kable(mutate_if(explorer$summ_vars, is.numeric, round, 2))
```
## 2. Regression Function
Once the data have been explored, we define the expectation function. In this
case, it is a piece-wise regression function with three parameters: t1, t2, and
k. The function can be expressed mathematically as follows:
`fn_linear_sat()`
\begin{equation}
f(t; t_1, t_2, k) =
\begin{cases}
0 & \text{if } t < t_1 \\
\dfrac{k}{t_2 - t_1} \cdot (t - t_1) & \text{if } t_1 \leq t \leq t_2 \\
k & \text{if } t > t_2
\end{cases}
\end{equation}
```{r, echo = FALSE, fig.width= 8, fig.alt="plot fn"}
plot_fn(
fn = "fn_linear_sat",
params = c(t1 = 40, t2 = 61.8, k = 100),
interval = c(0, 108),
color = "black",
base_size = 15
)
```
## 3. Fitting Models
To fit the model, we use the modeler function. Here:
* x specifies the days after planting (DAP),
* y is the canopy variable to be modeled,
* grp allows us to perform group analysis, e.g., on multiple plots.
In this example, we have 196 plots but will only fit the model for plots 166
and 40 as a subset. We define the piecewise function `fn_linear_sat` and set
initial values for the parameters.
```{r, warning=FALSE, message=FALSE }
mod_1 <- dt_potato |>
modeler(
x = DAP,
y = Canopy,
grp = Plot,
fn = "fn_linear_sat",
parameters = c(t1 = 45, t2 = 80, k = 0.9),
subset = c(166, 40)
)
mod_1
```
After fitting, we can inspect the model summary and visualize the fit using the plot function:
```{r, fig.width= 8, fig.height=4, fig.alt="plot fit"}
plot(mod_1, id = c(166, 40))
kable(mod_1$param)
```
## 3.1. Extracting model coefficients and uncertainty measures
Once the model is fitted, we can extract key statistical information, such as
coefficients, standard errors, confidence intervals, and the variance-covariance
matrix for each group (plot). These metrics allow us to draw conclusions about
the parameter estimates and assess the uncertainty around them.
The functions `coef`, `confint`, and `vcov` are used as follows:
* **coef**: Extracts the estimated coefficients for each group.
* **confint**: Provides the confidence intervals for the parameter estimates.
* **vcov**: Returns the variance-covariance matrix, which can be used to understand
the relationships between the estimates and their variability.
```{r}
coef(mod_1)
```
```{r}
confint(mod_1)
```
```{r}
vcov(mod_1)
```
## 4. Providing different initial values
The initial fit may not always be optimal, so we can adjust the initial parameter
values for each plot and even fix certain parameters to improve the model.
```{r}
initials <- data.frame(
uid = c(166, 40),
t1 = c(70, 60),
t2 = c(40, 80),
k = c(100, 100)
)
```
```{r}
kable(initials)
```
```{r}
mod_2 <- dt_potato |>
modeler(
x = DAP,
y = Canopy,
grp = Plot,
fn = "fn_linear_sat",
parameters = initials,
subset = c(166, 40)
)
```
```{r, fig.width= 8, fig.height=4, fig.alt="plot fit 2"}
plot(mod_2, id = c(166, 40))
kable(mod_2$param)
```
It's important to note that providing poor initial guesses for the parameters can
lead to inaccurate or unreliable model fits. For example, if we mistakenly assign
t1 (the day of plant emergence) a value greater than t2 (the day of maximum canopy),
the model fit can fail or produce nonsensical results.
## 5. Fixing some parameters of the model
In certain cases, we may want to fix specific parameters either because they are
known or because we prefer the model to leave these parameters unchanged.
For example, we can fix the parameter `k`, which represents the maximum canopy value, as follows:
```{r}
fixed_params <- list(k = "max(y)")
```
```{r}
mod_3 <- dt_potato |>
modeler(
x = DAP,
y = Canopy,
grp = Plot,
fn = "fn_linear_sat",
parameters = c(t1 = 45, t2 = 80, k = 0.9),
fixed_params = fixed_params,
subset = c(166, 40)
)
```
```{r, fig.width= 8, fig.height=4, fig.alt="plot fit 3"}
plot(mod_3, id = c(166, 40))
kable(mod_3$param)
```
By fixing k to 100, we are telling the model that the maximum canopy for these plots
is fixed at 100%. This allows the model to focus on estimating the other parameters,
t1 and t2, potentially improving the accuracy of their estimates by reducing the
complexity of the model.
## 6. Comparing estimations
```{r}
rbind.data.frame(
mutate(mod_1$param, model = "1", .before = uid),
mutate(mod_2$param, model = "2", .before = uid),
mutate(mod_3$param, model = "3", .before = uid)
) |>
filter(uid %in% 166) |>
kable()
```
After fitting multiple models with different initial values, fixed parameters,
and canopy adjustments, we can compare the resulting coefficients and sum of
square errors (`sse`) to evaluate the impact of these changes.
```{r}
rbind.data.frame(
mutate(AIC(mod_1), model = "1", .before = uid),
mutate(AIC(mod_2), model = "2", .before = uid),
mutate(AIC(mod_3), model = "3", .before = uid)
) |>
filter(uid %in% 166) |>
kable()
```
## 7. Making predictions
Once the model is fitted and validated as the best representation of our data,
we can proceed to make predictions. The `predict.modeler()` function provides a
range of flexible prediction options, allowing users to perform point
predictions, calculate the area under the curve (AUC), compute first or second
derivatives, and even evaluate custom functions of the parameters. Below are
some examples demonstrating these capabilities:
```{r}
# Point Prediction
predict(mod_1, x = 45, type = "point", id = 166) |> kable()
# AUC Prediction
predict(mod_1, x = c(0, 108), type = "auc", id = 166) |> kable()
# Function of the parameters
predict(mod_1, formula = ~ t2 - t1, id = 166) |> kable()
```
In each example, the `predict.modeler()` function tailors the predictions to the
user’s needs, whether it's estimating a single value, integrating across a
range, or calculating a parameter-based expression.
## 8. Modelling all plots using parallel processing
Finally, we can apply this method to all 196 plots, leveraging parallel
processing to speed up the computation. To do this, we specify `parallel = TRUE`
in the options argument, and set the number of cores using the function
`parallel::detectCores()`, which automatically detects the available cores.
```{r, eval= FALSE}
mod <- dt_potato |>
modeler(
x = DAP,
y = Canopy,
grp = Plot,
fn = "fn_linear_sat",
parameters = c(t1 = 45, t2 = 80, k = 0.9),
fixed_params = list(k = "max(y)"),
options = list(progress = TRUE, parallel = TRUE, workers = 5)
)
```