LASER TECHNOLOGY IN AUTOMATIC CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS. A HORTICULTURAL INDUSTRY APPLICATION.

Abstract

Automatic classification systems represent a significant advance in the handling of products, likely to avoid many of the difficulties, troublesomes and costs of current industrial procedures. Horticultural industry requires automatic systems to guarantee an exhaustive all-units product classification, due to an increasingly-higher consumer-demanded quality level, which exceeds usual sampling control achievements.Computer vision, ultrasonic techniques and visible and near infrared spectroscopy are becoming the most widespread among non-destructive techniques used for quality control in the food industry. Laser illumination as a source with its characteristics of bright, coherent, directional and monochromatic, overcomes many conventional spectroscopy disadvantages, allowing new measurement configurations. Correlations between detected radiation that has passed through the sample and its internal and external properties result in new procedures which allow prediction without damage.This article summarizes the followed steps which resulted in a pilot line execution for automatic handling of fruits and vegetables at industrial level, where laser illumination and mathematical models arising from research were combined allowing individual piece classification, at usual conveyor rates, according to their internal and external properties. Prototype results on tomatoes allow technology transference.