The Changbai Mountains, stretching 1,300 kilometers, span across latitudes 40°N to 43°N. The ginseng nurtured here is revered as the "King of All Herbs." In April, as the snow begins to melt, tender buds break through the soil; in May, stems sprout and leaves unfold, with umbel inflorescences lighting up the forest floor; in July, green fruits gradually turn scarlet, hanging down like agate; in September, deep roots fill with vitality, ushering in the harvest season.

To truly understand the value of ginseng, accurate identification of its authenticity and quality is indispensable. From wild ginseng to cultivated ginseng, and from fresh ginseng to processed products, morphological identification serves as a crucial gateway for evaluating its value.

(Wild-simulated ginseng freshly harvested)

Challenges in Ginseng Morphological Identification and Specimen Management

Rare Specimens Are Prone to Damage and Difficult to Preserve

Rare specimens such as wild ginseng and wild-simulated ginseng (Lin-Xia-Shen) cannot be re-collected, making physical specimens difficult to preserve over the long term. Ginseng roots are rich in starch and sugar; dry specimens are susceptible to insect infestation and mold, with fragile rootlets prone to breakage. Liquid-preserved specimens face discoloration and deformation. Every time a physical specimen is retrieved, an irreplaceable resource is depleted.

2D Images Offer Incomplete Views and Fail to Capture 3D Features

Wild ginseng identification emphasizes "five key features": the reed head (Lu), adventitious root (Ting), main root body (Ti), striations (Wen), and fibrous roots (Xu). The density and arrangement of reed bowls, the depth and direction of circular striations, the attachment angle of adventitious roots, and the spatial branching of fibrous roots—all these key features possess 3D spatial properties. Traditional 2D photographs provide only fixed perspectives, failing to present full morphological details and compromising identification accuracy.

• Reed Head (Lu-Tou): The short top portion of the ginseng root, marked with transverse wrinkles.

• Reed Bowl (Lu-Wan): Sparse, cup-shaped stem scars on the reed head, also known as bowl-shaped stem scars.

• Iron Wire Striations (Tie-Xian-Wen): Tightly packed, deep, dark circular rings on the upper main root—a signature characteristic of wild ginseng.

• Pearl Dots (Zhen-Zhu-Dian): Millet-like warty bumps sprouting along the fibrous roots.

Identification Relies Heavily on Personal Experience; Standards Are Hard to Transfer

Behind the ability to "identify ginseng at a glance" lies decades of accumulated experience. Counting reed bowls, assessing ring density, or evaluating root symmetry are highly dependent on individual expertise and difficult to convey systematically. The scarcity of expert resources and long training cycles for personnel have become major bottlenecks constraining industry development.

Reference Specimens Are Fragmented; Cross-Regional Sharing Is Difficult

High-quality reference specimens of wild, wild-simulated, and cultivated ginseng—alongside common adulterants—are scattered across different testing institutions, specimen halls, and drug inspection institutes. Enterprises and regulators struggle to access authoritative comparison samples, hindering the cross-regional sharing of identification expertise.

Solution: JLM-Lifetech 3DDS System's 3D Digital Approach

To address these challenges, JLM-Lifetech independently developed the 3DDS 3D Digital Specimen Fast Construction System, offering a practical 3D digital solution for ginseng morphological identification and specimen digitizing.

Integrating a high-precision optical imaging array with intelligent 3D reconstruction algorithms, the system streamlines professional-grade 3D modeling into a three-step process: Place Sample——One-Click Start——View Model. It generates 720° high-fidelity, full-color 3D models in as fast as 15 minutes.

Permanent Preservation: Achieving "Digital Immortality" for Rare Specimens

Utilizing non-destructive optical scanning, the system completes data collection without touching the sample, preventing secondary damage. The generated 3D digital models can be permanently stored, infinitely duplicated, and accessed on demand—eliminating issues with pests, mold, and fading. Every rare specimen gains an everlasting digital twin.

Complete Representation: 3D Features Revealed at a Glance

The 720° high-fidelity 3D model allows full rotation, zooming, and panning from any angle. The arrangement of reed bowls, the depth of striations, the attachment angle of adventitious roots, and the spatial spread of fibrous roots—3D features that traditional 2D images fail to capture—are clearly visible. Evaluators can inspect and cross-examine samples from every angle as if holding the physical object, significantly boosting accuracy and efficiency.

(3D digital model of ginseng generated by the JLM-Lifetech 3DDS 3D Digital Specimen Fast Construction System)

Knowledge Aggregation: Replicating Expert Wisdom

By scanning expert-verified standard ginseng specimens and annotating key features (e.g., reed bowl counts, striation patterns, body types), a "Digital Reference Ginseng Database" is created. Evaluators can learn through online comparisons to quickly master the core principles of five-feature identification, shortening training cycles and preserving expert knowledge beyond personal memory.

Resource Sharing: Reference Specimens Within Reach

The system integrates a digital specimen museum management module, combining text descriptions, 2D color images, 3D models, and inspection reports to build dedicated digital archives for ginseng. Inspection agencies and industry personnel nationwide can access and compare samples online, alleviating the uneven distribution of quality reference specimens.

From Snow Lotus and Cordyceps sinensis on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, to Ginseng in the Changbai Mountains, to customs-intercepted giant African snails and vector organism identification—the JLM-Lifetech 3DDS 3D Digital Specimen Fast Construction System delivers "non-destructive, efficient, and high-fidelity" capabilities across biodiversity protection.

Whether for long-term preservation of rare germplasm resources, quarantine identification of invasive species, digital upgrades for bio-specimen museums, or 3D archiving of museum artifacts, this system builds everlasting digital twins—providing a robust data foundation for research identification, resource protection, and public education.

If you are looking for an efficient solution for preserving unique germplasm resources, biodiversity assets, or regional biological samples, contact JLM-Lifetech to learn more about the 3DDS system!