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Laser Scanning System for Real‐Time Mapping of Fiber Formations in Meat Analogues
Author(s) -
Ranasinghesagara J.,
Hsieh F.H.,
Huff H.,
Yao G.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of food science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1750-3841
pISSN - 0022-1147
DOI - 10.1111/j.1750-3841.2008.01032.x
Subject(s) - fiber , sample (material) , extrusion , moisture , orientation (vector space) , visual inspection , computer science , optical fiber , process engineering , materials science , biological system , environmental science , computer vision , chemistry , biology , composite material , mathematics , chromatography , engineering , telecommunications , geometry
High moisture extrusion has been used to produce vegetable meat analogues that resemble real animal meat and can provide significant health benefits. Since visual and textural properties are key factors for consumer acceptance, assessing fiber formation in the extruded products is important for quality control purpose. Recently, we developed a nondestructive photon migration method to quantify fiber formation in meat analogues. In this study, we implemented this technique in a real‐time optical scanning system. This system can scan the entire sample area in real‐time and provide 2‐dimensional maps to visualize the degree of fiber formation and fiber orientation in the sample. The new system has a potential to provide a fast, nondestructive means for online monitoring of the fiber formation in meat analogues.