A Swiss company has developed a hyperspectral imaging system that can transport, analyze and sort grains, seeds or beans at over 50 per second according to their biochemical composition and/or external traits such as color.
QualySense's (Dübendorf, Switzerland) QSorter Explorer system is based on high-resolution near infrared spectroscopy sensors from Headwall Photonics (Fitchburg, MA, USA), which operate in the spectral range of 550-1650nm, enabling the biochemical traits of the products to be made non-destructively and non-invasively. The physical traits of the products are measured by an FPGA-based camera.
"Food producers need a way of determining protein and oil content, color, size and other characteristics. Hyperspectral sensing represents a technical leap forward because it gives our customers a new view on quality," says Dr. Francesco Dell'Endice, the CEO of QualySense.
The QSorter Explorer was developed by QualySense along with leading US and Swiss research institutes such as the USA Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Swiss Federal Institute for Material Research (EMPA), and the Swiss breeding station AGROSCOPE.
Recent articles on hyperspectral imaging from Vision Systems Design.
1. Hyperspectral imaging system detects defects on apples
A researcher at the University of Maryland (College Park, MD, USA) has shown that a hyperspectral image processing system can identify accurately 95 percent of the defects on the surface of Red Delicious apples.
2. Hyperspectral imaging checks cod for quality
A PhD student from the University of Tromsø in Norway has developed a hyperspectral imaging system that can automatically inspect cod fillets.
3. Spectral imaging sorts 'sugar-end' defects
A hyperspectral imaging system can inspect the quality of potatoes, specifically determining whether or not they have been afflicted by what are known as "sugar-end defects."
-- Dave Wilson, Senior Editor, Vision Systems Design
