Method for real time detection of defects in a food product
AssigneeFrito-Lay North America, Inc.
InventorsWilfred Marcellien Bourg, Jr., Enrique Michel
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Abstract
The present invention is a method to detect defects in a process producing a food product by utilizing multivariate image analysis. In one aspect, an image is captured of the food product in the visible spectrum by on-line vision equipment, multivariate image analysis is performed on the image via an algorithm programmed onto a field programmable gate array to determine if a defect exists, a signal is sent to downstream sorting equipment, and the sorting equipment then rejects those food products that contain defects.
Claims13
A method for detecting defects in a process producing food products having a processing unit, said method comprising the steps of:
- capturing an image of said food products in a visible spectrum;
- performing multivariate image analysis on said image to reveal a data set;
- determining whether a defect exists based on said data set;
- wherein said defect occurs when said food products comprise a moisture content of more than about 2.0% by weight;
- wherein said defect exists when said data set reveals at least about 10% of an imaged area of said imaged food products comprises a soft center;
- rejecting said food products that comprise said defects;
- and
- wherein said multivariate image analysis occurs by an algorithm programmed into a field programmable gate array.
A method for detecting defects in a process producing food products having a processing unit, said method comprising the steps of:
- capturing an image of said food products in a visible spectrum;
- performing multivariate image analysis on said image to reveal a data set;
- rejecting food products that contain defects, wherein said defects comprise food products with a pre-determined moisture content;
- measuring said food products rejected for non-defective food product;
- tuning said dataset based upon non-defective food products measured in said rejected food products;
- and
- wherein said multivariate image analysis occurs by an algorithm programmed into a field programmable gate array.
An apparatus for monitoring a process producing food products for defects comprising:
- a processing unit;
- an image capturing device;
- a computing device configured to store an algorithm, wherein said algorithm
- transforms a color image of said food products into a t1-t2 score space via multivariate image analysis;
- determines if a defect exists based on a resulting data set, wherein said defect exists when said data set reveals at least about 10% of an imaged area of said imaged food products comprises a soft center;
- rejects said food products that comprise said defects;
- and
- wherein said multivariate image analysis occurs by said algorithm being programmed into a field programmable gate array.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.