JP4913386B2 - Automatic food quality inspection apparatus and inspection method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a food quality control technique, and more particularly, to a bacteria-contaminated food detection technique.

  The occurrence of bacterial contamination is the most serious situation in food production. Food companies strictly control the quality of food so that it is not contaminated with bacteria. However, it is difficult to eliminate the generation of bacteria. Accordingly, it is necessary to thoroughly inspect foods and completely stop defective products (rotated products) from flowing into the market.

  Conventionally, the contents of products are inspected by human senses (flavor) and culture methods. Originally, in order to completely stop the outflow of defective products, it is most effective to inspect all contents that are subject to detection of corruption (deterioration).

However, processed foods (products) are generally packed (packaged) in containers (molded containers, bags, etc.), and the containers (products) may be packaged in cardboard. Conventionally, in order to inspect these foods, it is necessary to destroy or open the container, and 100% inspection has been impractical. Therefore,
(1) Inspect the sample of the product and estimate the quality of the whole lot from the inspection result.
Or
(2) Remove all products (in containers) from the cardboard, inspect all products visually, and then pack the cardboard again.
The method was taken.

  Patent Document 1 below relates to a technique for discriminating the state of cavities in Saitama. Specifically, a nuclear magnetic resonance is caused in protons contained in water molecules in Saitama, and a nuclear magnetic resonance signal obtained from Saitama is processed to discriminate the cavity status in Saitama.

JP-A-8-327571

  As described above, conventionally, (1) sampling sample inspection or (2) total inspection by visual inspection is performed to inspect spoiled foods. However, the inspection results of the sampling samples do not guarantee the quality of all products. Therefore, there is a concern that defective products will flow out to the market. Moreover, even if it is called inspection of a sampling sample, it is necessary to open or destroy a product container and take out the contents after taking out the contents. For this reason, it took a lot of time and labor for the inspection and was an inefficient work. Further, the total inspection by visual inspection has a difficulty in inspection accuracy and at the same time has poor workability. In addition, visual inspection has limitations on inspection items. Furthermore, if the container is not transparent, visual inspection cannot be performed.

  Moreover, the said patent document 1 determines the presence or absence of a cavity by obtaining the distribution information of the water activity inside the west by processing the nuclear magnetic resonance signal. This technique is originally intended to discriminate the quality of fresh foods whose quality is not constant. In the case of Saijo, the quality is various, such as those containing a lot of water, those containing little water, those containing many species, those containing few species, and the nuclear magnetic resonance signals measured are various signals. Therefore, when the signal characteristic of that portion is prominent and different from other parts, such as the west cavity, it can be detected, but it is not suitable for detecting subtle changes in quality.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a food quality inspection technique that is efficient and has high inspection accuracy.

The invention according to claim 1 is an apparatus for automatically inspecting the quality of processed foods having a uniform composition , an NMR measuring means for performing NMR measurement on the processed food to be inspected, and NMR measurement data from the NMR measuring means. A relaxation time measuring means for measuring the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected, and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is greater than a reference relaxation time measured in advance for good products of the same processed food, and A quality determination means for determining that the processed food to be inspected is a defective product that has deteriorated when a deviation between the reference relaxation time and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is greater than a threshold value. It is characterized by.

The invention according to claim 2 is an apparatus for automatically inspecting the quality of processed food having a uniform composition , comprising: a conveying means for conveying the processed food; and an inspection means installed on a conveyance path by the conveying means. The inspection means includes an NMR measuring means for performing NMR measurement on the processed food conveyed by the conveying means, and obtains NMR measurement data from the NMR measuring means, and the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food A relaxation time measuring means for measuring the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food is larger than a standard relaxation time measured in advance for a non-defective product of the same processed food, and the relaxation time of the reference relaxed time and the conveyed processed food is And a quality determination unit that determines that the processed food transported is a defective product that has deteriorated when the deviation from the time is greater than a threshold value.

The invention according to claim 3 is the automatic food quality inspection apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the processed food to be inspected is packed in a container, without opening or destroying the container. The quality of the processed food to be inspected is inspected .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the automatic food quality inspection apparatus according to the third aspect , the container is packed in a box, and the quality of the processed food to be inspected is inspected without unpacking. It is characterized by that.

The invention according to claim 5 is the food quality automatic inspection device according to claim 4 , wherein the box is packed with a plurality of the containers, and the NMR is measured once by the NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) measurement. It is characterized by inspecting the quality of a plurality of processed foods to be inspected packed in a box .

The invention according to claim 6 is the automatic food quality inspection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein it is further determined that the quality of the processed food to be inspected does not satisfy the standard. Includes a means for sounding an alarm .

The invention according to claim 7 is the automatic food quality inspection apparatus according to claim 2 , and further, when it is determined that the quality of the processed food to be inspected does not satisfy a standard, Means for discharging processed food to the outside of the conveying path of the conveying means .

The invention according to claim 8 is the food quality automatic inspection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising means for storing inspection result data as history information .

The invention of claim 9, wherein, in the automatic test equipment for food quality according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further characterized in that it comprises display and / or means for printing, the inspection result data .

The invention according to claim 10 is a method for automatically inspecting the quality of processed food having a uniform composition , the first step of performing NMR measurement on the processed food to be inspected and acquiring NMR measurement data, Using the NMR measurement data acquired in the first step, the second step of measuring the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected, and the standard of measuring the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected in advance for good products of the same processed food If the deviation between the reference relaxation time and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is greater than a threshold, and the defective product is a defective product in which the defective food has been damaged. And a third step of determining.

The invention according to claim 11 is a method for automatically inspecting the quality of processed food having a uniform composition , a conveying step of conveying processed food to an inspection means, an inspection step of inspecting processed food in the inspection means, The inspection step is performed by using the NMR measurement data acquired in the first step and the first step of performing NMR measurement on the transferred processed food and acquiring the NMR measurement data. A second step of measuring the relaxation time of the processed food, and the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food is greater than the reference relaxation time measured in advance for a non-defective product of the same processed food, and the reference relaxation time and the inspection target And a third step of determining that the conveyed processed food is a defective product that has deteriorated when the deviation from the relaxation time of the processed food is greater than a threshold value.

According to the inventions of claims 1 and 10, the NMR measurement is performed on the processed food, and the quality of the processed food to be inspected is determined by comparing with the NMR measurement data acquired from the processed food. It is possible to automate quality inspection of processed foods without human intervention.

According to the inventions of claims 2 and 11 , NMR measurement is performed on the processed food conveyed by the conveying means, and compared with the NMR measurement data acquired from the non-defective processed food, the processed food to be inspected is analyzed. Since quality is determined, quality inspection of processed food can be automated without human intervention. In addition, the quality of processed food can be in-line (during the manufacturing process), and the inspection efficiency can be improved.

According to the invention of claim 3 , since the quality of the processed food is inspected without opening or destroying the container, it is possible to greatly reduce the inspection process time and labor.

According to the invention of claim 4 , since the quality of the processed food is inspected without unpacking, it is possible to greatly reduce the inspection process time and labor.

According to the invention of claim 5 , since the quality of a plurality of containers is inspected by one NMR measurement, the inspection efficiency can be greatly improved.

According to the invention of claim 6 , when it is determined that the quality of the processed food does not satisfy the standard, a means for sounding an alarm is provided, so that the worker immediately detects that the deteriorated processed food is detected. Etc. can be notified.

According to the invention of claim 7 , when it is determined that the quality of the processed food does not satisfy the standard, the process food is provided outside the transport path of the transport means. It is possible to automate the discharge.

According to the invention of claim 8 , since the inspection result data is stored as history information, the inspection result can be subjected to analysis by various statistical methods.

According to invention of Claim 9 , since the means for displaying and / or printing an inspection result is provided, an automated inspection result can be confirmed.

{Device configuration and process flow}
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is an example of a plan view showing a food quality inspection apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The inspection apparatus 10 performs various types of information processing based on a transport unit 11 that transports processed food, an NMR measurement unit 12 installed on a transport path by the transport unit 11, and measurement data output from the NMR measurement unit 12. And a management device 13 to be executed. The inspection device 10 includes an alarm device 14, a display device 15, and a printing device 16. These devices 14, 15, and 16 are connected to the management device 13.

  In this Embodiment, the conveyance part 11 is comprised with the belt conveyor and the other components and apparatus. The transport unit 11 transports the cardboard box FC packed with a plurality of processed foods in the direction of the arrow D1 in the figure by a belt conveyor.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the contents of the cardboard box FC packed with processed foods to be inspected. As shown in the drawing, the cardboard box FC is packed with a plurality of food containers FP. Each food container FP is filled with the contents CT. For example, the food container FP is a container of a PET bottle, and the content CT that is a liquid food is packed in the container. Alternatively, the food container FP is a bag made of polyethylene or polypropylene, and the content CT that is a fluid food is packed in the bag.

  The food containers FP are stored in such a state that a plurality of the food containers FP are packed in the cardboard box FC in this way, and are delivered to distribution centers and sales shops in various places. The inspection apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment is used in a corrugated cardboard box in a transport process after manufacturing processed food, in a transport process after storage, or in a transport process after being delivered to a distribution center in various places. This is to inspect the quality of processed foods packed in FC.

  In FIG. 1, a cutting cylinder 111 is provided on the upstream side of the transport unit 11, and the flow of the cardboard box FC transported by the cutting cylinder 111 is controlled. The cut-out cylinders 111 are installed on both the left and right sides of the transport unit 11, and when the cardboard box FC is stopped, the cardboard boxes FC are sandwiched from both sides. Then, in a state where the cardboard box FC can be transported, the pressure by the cylinder is released, and the cardboard box FC is sent to the NMR measuring unit 12 side. In addition, a positioning stopper 112 is provided at a position where the cardboard box FC is stopped by the cutting cylinder 111 so that the cardboard box FC can stand by at a predetermined position by the positioning stopper 112.

  The cardboard box FC which has been released from the restriction by the cutting cylinder 111 and is transported by the transport unit 11 is sent to the NMR measurement unit 12. The transport unit 11 is provided with alignment guides 113 on both the left and right sides of the transport path, and guides the cardboard box FC to be transported straight to the NMR measurement unit 12.

  Then, the cardboard box FC is stopped at a predetermined inspection position by the positioning stopper 114. Then, NMR measurement is performed in the NMR measurement unit 12. That is, the food container FP is transported to the NMR measurement unit 12 in a state packed in the cardboard box FC, and NMR measurement is performed while being packed in the cardboard box FC.

  After the NMR measurement is completed, the cardboard box FC is further conveyed downstream. A discharge cylinder 115 is provided on the downstream side of the transport unit 11. By performing the NMR measurement, it is determined whether or not a defective product, for example, a processed food contaminated with bacteria, is mixed in the food container FP packed in the cardboard box FC. When it is determined that a defective product is mixed, the discharge cylinder 115 operates to push the cardboard box FC flowing through the transport unit 111 out of the transport path. As a result, the deteriorated product is pushed out in the direction of the arrow D2 in the figure by the discharge cylinder 115, and is accommodated in a recovery case for the deteriorated product (not shown). On the other hand, in a normal state, that is, when a failed product is not included in the cardboard box FC, the cardboard box FC is conveyed as it is in the direction of the arrow D3 in the figure. As a result, only excellent processed food is transported.

  Here, as described above, after the processed food is manufactured, the processed food is put on a transport line at each base such as a manufacturing factory or a distribution center. And the inspection apparatus 10 of this Embodiment is integrated in a part of conveyance line of the processed food. In other words, the transport unit 11 is not an independent line provided for inspection of processed foods, but is incorporated in a part of a generally performed processed food transport line. As described above, the food inspection apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment performs the inspection process in-line with the food container FP being packed in the cardboard box FC.

  Next, the configuration of the NMR measurement unit 12 will be described. The NMR measurement unit 12 includes a magnetic circuit 121, a G coil 122, and an RF coil 123. The magnetic circuit 121 generates a magnetic field in the NMR measurement unit 12. The RF coil 123 is used to irradiate processed food with high-frequency electromagnetic waves (radio waves), and also causes nuclear magnetic resonance and is used to detect electron waves emitted from the processed food. The magnetic circuit 121, the G coil 122, and the RF coil 123 are shielded by a magnetic shield 124. The electromagnetic wave emitted from the processed food and detected by the RF coil 123 is sent to the management device 13 as an NMR signal AD.

Here, the principle of inspecting the quality of processed food by NMR measurement will be described. When bacteria grow in processed foods,
(A) Protein degradation or aggregation / coagulation,
(B) Reduction due to consumption of carbohydrates,
(C) pH reduction due to acid generation,
Etc. happen.

  In general, the motility of free water is suppressed by the interaction of proteins and sugars with water present in processed foods. And when deterioration occurs, protein and carbohydrate will reduce or aggregate, the inhibitory effect will weaken, and the mobility of free water will increase. That is, water activity increases. In the present embodiment, the water activity (degree of mobility of free water) is measured by causing nuclear magnetic resonance to occur in the hydrogen nuclei of the processed food that is the measurement object and measuring the relaxation time of the hydrogen nuclei. As a result, a failed product is detected. Here, the process in which the atomic nucleus absorbs the energy of the electromagnetic wave and is excited and then releases the electromagnetic wave and returns to the steady state is called relaxation, and the time constant of the relaxation process is called relaxation time. As described above, the management device 13 receives the NMR signal AD from the NMR measurement unit 12 and can measure the relaxation time from the observation time of the NMR signal AD.

  In the present invention, the processed food means food that has been subjected to artificial or mechanical processing such as sterilization treatment, and means food that has a certain quality. In other words, it indicates foods excluding fresh foods such as vegetables and fruits whose quality varies depending on the object.

  Specific examples of processed foods in the present invention include soft drinks, milk, ingredient-adjusted milk, processed milk, milk drinks, soy milk, lactic acid bacteria drinks, yogurt, liquid foods, liquid nutritional foods, jelly, pudding, cream, butter, margarine And cheese. As an embodiment of the present invention, a soft drink, liquid food, liquid nutritional food, jelly, pudding, and other foods having a uniform composition and containing a large amount of carbohydrates (high sugar mass) are preferable. The water activity of processed foods is affected by the concentration of components such as protein content and sugar mass. Sugar is a component that is easily assimilated by bacteria (microorganisms), and a change in sugar mass (sugar concentration) in processed foods is an indicator of corruption (deterioration). At this time, if the processed food has a large amount of sugar, the difference (change) between the non-defective product and the defective product (deteriorated product) becomes large, and it becomes easy to judge the quality of the product.

  The control unit 131 analyzes the NMR signal AD for the processed food conveyed to the NMR measurement unit 12 and measures the relaxation time of hydrogen nuclei. On the other hand, the storage unit 132 stores relaxation time data measured for non-defective products of the same processed food as reference data CD. The control unit 131 compares the reference data CD with the measured relaxation time data to determine quality. At this time, a threshold value is determined, and quality may be determined based on whether or not the difference between the reference data AD and the measurement data exceeds the threshold value. The threshold may be set freely by the user.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the processed food to be inspected has a certain quality, so unlike the fresh food in which the quality varies depending on the object, the reliable reference data CD is used. It is possible to obtain. The processed food in the present invention has been described as having a constant quality, but more specifically, the processed food in the present invention has a water activity measured for a non-defective product within a certain range, that is, a non-defective product moisture. Foods whose activity measurement data falls within a reliable range as the reference data CD (this range is determined by experiment, experience, etc.).

  When the control unit 131 determines that the processed food being conveyed is a defective product, the control unit 131 executes the following process. First, a signal to discharge defective products is sent to the discharge cylinder 115. In accordance with this, the discharge cylinder 115 performs an extension operation, and pushes the cardboard box FC being conveyed to the outside of the conveyance unit 11. Thereby, defective products are automatically detected and defective products are automatically discharged.

  In addition, when the control unit 131 determines that the processed food is defective, it sends an alarm instruction signal to the alarm device 14. Thereby, the alarm device 14 sounds an alarm. Thereby, a worker, a supervisor, etc. can immediately know that a defective product has been detected. Then, by quickly investigating the defective product pushed out by the discharge cylinder 115, it can be used for early elucidation of the cause.

  Thus, according to this Embodiment, the quality inspection of processed food can be performed without opening or destroying a food container. Furthermore, it is possible to inspect the quality of processed food from the outside without opening a cardboard box packed with a plurality of food containers. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the processed food content CT is packed in a food container FP, and further, a plurality of food containers FP are packed in a cardboard box FC. These food containers FP and cardboard boxes Since the inspection is performed without opening or destroying the FC, the inspection process is performed very efficiently.

  Examples of the container and box in the present invention include paper, plastic, and glass. As an embodiment of the present invention, a container or box that does not contain metal is preferable, in addition to a metal such as steel or aluminum, the appearance is made of paper, but the inside or a part thereof is made of aluminum foil or the like Is not preferred. However, even if a metal is included, no substantial problem occurs in the inspection as long as it is deposited on the surface of the container or box.

  Further, the time required for one NMR measurement is as short as about 2 seconds. Therefore, it is possible to perform quality inspection on all processed foods conveyed by the conveyance unit 11. As a result, all products can be inspected, and very effective inspection can be performed in terms of quality control. At this time, the magnetic field intensity of the NMR apparatus in the present invention may be 0.12 T (Tesla) or more in consideration of its properties, preferably 0.14 T or more, more preferably 0.16 T or more, and still more preferably 0. .18T or more. In order to improve inspection sensitivity, it is effective to enhance the magnetic field strength. On the other hand, with respect to the magnet of the NMR apparatus, the superconducting magnet requires troublesome management, and thus a permanent magnet is preferable. However, since permanent magnets have technical limitations, there is a limit to strengthening the magnetic field strength.

  Further, in the above processing, the NMR measurement unit 12 can inspect the processed food in the plurality of containers FP packed in the cardboard box FC at one time by one NMR measurement. This is because the NMR signal AD sent from the NMR measuring unit 12 is a signal corresponding to the processed food in the plurality of containers FP packed in the cardboard box FC, and the corrugated cardboard is analyzed by analyzing the NMR signal AD. This is because it can be detected if even one processed food that has deteriorated is contained in the box FC.

  As described above, the control unit 131 receives the NMR signal AD sequentially sent from the NMR measurement unit 12, analyzes this signal, and detects the processed food that has been degraded. Further, the control unit 131 not only detects the deteriorated processed food, but also sequentially stores the inspection result data RD in the storage unit 132 after executing the inspection. Thereby, the quality inspection of the processed food is automated and the inspection result is accumulated as history information. Using this data, it is possible to analyze quality control using various statistical methods. In addition, the inspection result data RD can be sequentially displayed on the display device 15. Alternatively, the inspection result data RD may be sequentially output from the printing device 16. Thereby, the worker or the like can grasp the state of the inspection by referring to the inspection result data RD displayed on the display device 15 or referring to the inspection result data RD output from the printing device 16. Is possible.

  In addition, the control unit 131 performs information processing based on the inspection result data RD stored in the storage unit 132 and creates various statistical data. Then, the statistical data is displayed on the display device 15. Alternatively, the statistical data may be output from the printing device 16. The worker can know the quality control state of the processed food by referring to the statistical data displayed on the display device 15. In the past, when quality inspections were performed manually or by the five senses, the inspection results naturally required human input. However, the use of the apparatus of the present embodiment not only automates the detection of defective products, but also automates the input, accumulation, and processing of inspection result data and analysis data. As a result, it is possible to feed back the inspection result and to further improve the quality control.

  As described above, according to the inspection apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the food inspection is performed using the NMR signal, so that the product can be inspected for deterioration without being affected by the shape or material of the container. In addition, by installing it on the transfer line, it is possible to inspect for in-line deterioration. In addition, since it is a non-destructive inspection, all products can be inspected. Furthermore, it is possible to inspect for deterioration in units of cardboard boxes that package products.

  Then, by using the inspection apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, it is possible to discriminate all numbers on an industrial scale in a hygienic and continuous manner in-line. As a result, it is possible to automatically eliminate a failed product, and it is possible to suppress labor and time by manpower and loss of the final product.

  Although the inspection apparatus 10 of the present invention has been described as measuring quality of processed food, the present invention can also be applied to foods before processing (before sterilization) such as raw fruit juice and raw milk. However, from the viewpoint of ensuring the quality of the food and the safety of the consumer by the manufacturer, it is preferable to use it at the final stage immediately before shipping the processed food.

  Hereinafter, although an example is given and explained about the present invention, the present invention is not limited by this.

{Experimental result 1}
An experimental result of food quality inspection using the above apparatus will be described. Here, as shown in Table 1, an experiment was conducted on two products of nutrient liquid food A and milk B. Table 1 compares the components per 100 ml of nutrient liquid food A and milk B.

  About two products of nutrient liquid food A and milk B, when the quality goods and the inferior goods were packed in the cardboard box, and the experiment was done, the difference was seen in the inspection result. The examination of the sample was performed at room temperature (about 25 to 27 ° C.) for nutrient liquid food A and at a refrigeration temperature (about 3 to 5 ° C.) for milk B. At this time, the defective product was adjusted by opening the product and then mixing various bacteria (unidentifiable bacteria) and leaving it at room temperature for about 13 days. First, regarding the nutrient liquid food A, there was a difference in relaxation time between the non-defective product and the defective product. Therefore, regarding the nutrient liquid food A, it was possible to detect defective products. FIG. 3 shows a two-dimensional MRI (magnetic resonance image) (processing time: about 40 seconds), and FIG. 4 shows a one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (processing time: about 2 seconds, magnetic field strength: 0.2 T). On the other hand, for milk B, there was no significant difference in relaxation time. For this reason, about milk B, the detection accuracy was bad compared with nutrient liquid food A.

  As a cause of different results in the NMR measurement of the nutritional liquid food A and the milk B, a difference in carbohydrate content can be considered. Since saccharides combine with free water to form bound water, the amount of free water decreases as the amount of sugar increases. For this reason, water activity (degree of mobility of free water) decreases, and as a result, the relaxation time is shortened.

  The water activity of milk is considered to be about 0.98 to 0.99 (pure water is 1.00). The defective product (deteriorated product) used in this experiment should have increased mobility of free water due to consumption of proteins and carbohydrates due to bacterial growth (enrichment). Nevertheless, the difference (change) in relaxation time could not be detected (extracted) because milk B originally had extremely high water activity, and the change in water activity between non-defective and defective products was very small. Therefore, it can be inferred that the detection limit of the device used was exceeded.

  On the other hand, it can be presumed that the non-defective product and the defective product were discriminated with the nutrient liquid food A because the sugar content was higher than the milk B. As shown in Table 1, the nutrient liquid food A has a higher sugar content than milk B. That is, when the water activity of the original (non-defective product) is relatively low or the amount of sugar that can be consumed is large, the amount of change in the water activity between the non-defective product and the defective product becomes large, which is considered to be advantageous for discrimination.

  In order to increase the detection sensitivity of the apparatus, it is necessary to increase the magnetic field strength. Superconducting magnets must be used for this, but the amount of change in the original water activity is minute, there is a concern about the adverse effects on the human body due to the leakage of strong magnetic fields, and equipment costs become enormous. Therefore, it is not practical to make the detection sensitivity of the apparatus so high.

  From this point of view, it is considered that the apparatus of the present invention is highly effective when processed foods having a relatively low water activity and a relatively high sugar content are tested for non-defective products. However, if the detection sensitivity of the NMR measuring device is assumed to be high, the inspection method of the present invention is also applied to processed foods that originally have a high water activity value, such as milk B used in this experiment. It is possible to detect defective products using.

{Experimental result 2}
Furthermore, the experimental result of the food quality inspection using the said apparatus is demonstrated. Here, an experiment was conducted on the product of the nutritional liquid food A shown in Table 1. Sample inspection was performed at room temperature (approximately 25-27 ° C.). As shown in Table 2, when four types of bacteria were added to the nutritional liquid food A, and a good product and a defective product were packed in a cardboard box, respectively, an experiment was conducted. There was a difference (difference in relaxation time). Therefore, it was possible to detect defective products for the representative bacteria used in this experiment. At this time, defective products were prepared by mixing each test strain after opening the product and leaving it at 30 ° C. for about 5 days. 5, 7, 9, and 11 are two-dimensional MRI (magnetic resonance images) (processing time: about 40 seconds) with the test strains being B-280, B-245, B-238, and B-521, respectively. 6, 8, 10, and 12 show one-dimensional NMR signal waveforms (processing time: about 2 seconds, magnetic field strength: 0) with B-280, B-245, B-238, and B-521 as test strains, respectively. .2T).

  Regarding the nutrient liquid food A to which each test strain was added, when changes were visually observed, in B-521, the expansion of the container and the separation of the product (content liquid) occurred, but in the bacterial species other than B-521, There was no change. Even when the change could not be observed with the naked eye and the good product and the defective product could not be discriminated, the NMR inspection apparatus could judge whether the product was good or bad. At this time, each pH was 6.53 for B-280, 6.44 for B-245, 5.80 for B-238, and 4.51 for B-521.

  In this experimental result, there was no correlation between the number of bacteria in the defective product (deteriorated product) (the number of enrichment) and the NMR measurement result. This is considered to be because there is a difference in the metabolic amount (consumption) of carbohydrates in the enrichment process of each microorganism, and there is no correlation between the number of bacteria and the consumption (decrease amount) of carbohydrates. Therefore, in the quality inspection using the inspection apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, bacteria (bacterial species) having a higher carbohydrate metabolism are easier to detect.

1 is an overall view of an inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which packed the several food container in the cardboard box. It is a figure of two-dimensional MRI (bacteria species: miscellaneous bacteria) regarding the quality goods and defective goods of nutrient fluid food A. It is a figure of the one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (bacteria species: miscellaneous bacteria) regarding the quality goods and defective goods of nutrient liquid food A. It is a figure of two-dimensional MRI (bacterial species: Gram-positive gonococci) regarding good and defective products of nutrient liquid food A. It is a figure of the one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (bacteria species: Gram positive bacillus) regarding the quality goods and defective goods of nutrient fluid food A. It is a figure of two-dimensional MRI (bacterial species: Gram positive cocci) regarding the quality goods and the inferior goods of the nutrient liquid food A. It is a figure of the one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (bacteria species: Gram positive cocci) regarding the quality goods and defective goods of nutrient fluid food A. It is a figure of two-dimensional MRI (bacterial species: spore-forming aerobic bacterium) regarding good and defective products of nutrient liquid food A. It is a figure of the one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (bacterial species: spore-forming aerobic bacteria) regarding the good and defective products of nutrient fluid food A. It is a figure of two-dimensional MRI (bacterial species: lactic acid cocci) regarding the quality goods and the inferior goods of the nutrient liquid food A. It is a figure of the one-dimensional NMR signal waveform (bacteria species: Lactococcus) regarding the good product and defective product of nutrient fluid food A.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Inspection apparatus 11 Conveyance part 12 NMR measurement part 13 Management apparatus 14 Alarm apparatus 15 Display apparatus 16 Printing apparatus FC Corrugated cardboard box FP (packed with food containers) Food container CT (food) contents

Claims (11)

An apparatus for automatically inspecting the quality of processed foods with a uniform composition ,
NMR measurement means for performing NMR measurement on the processed food to be inspected,
Reducing time measurement means for obtaining NMR measurement data from the NMR measuring means and measuring the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected;
The relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is larger than the standard relaxation time measured in advance for non-defective products of the same processed food, and the difference between the standard relaxation time and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is larger than a threshold value. A quality determination means for determining that the processed food to be inspected is a defective product that has been degraded;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: An apparatus for automatically inspecting the quality of processed foods with a uniform composition ,
Conveying means for conveying processed food;
Inspection means installed on a transport path by the transport means;
With
The inspection means includes
NMR measuring means for performing NMR measurement on the processed food conveyed by the conveying means;
Reducing time measurement means for obtaining NMR measurement data from the NMR measuring means and measuring the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food,
The relaxation time of the conveyed processed food is larger than the reference relaxation time measured in advance for a non-defective product of the same processed food, and the difference between the reference relaxation time and the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food is larger than a threshold value. A quality judging means for judging that the conveyed processed food is a defective product that has been degraded;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: In the food quality automatic inspection device according to claim 1 or 2,
An automatic food quality inspection apparatus, wherein the processed food to be inspected is packed in a container, and the quality of the processed food to be inspected is inspected without opening or destroying the container. In the food quality automatic inspection device according to claim 3,
An automatic food quality inspection apparatus, wherein the container is packed by a box and inspects the quality of the processed food to be inspected without unpacking. In the food quality automatic inspection device according to claim 4,
A plurality of the containers are packed in the box, and the quality of the processed foods to be inspected packed in the box is inspected by one NMR measurement. Inspection device. In the food quality automatic inspection device according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
Means for sounding an alarm if it is determined that the quality of the processed food to be inspected does not satisfy the standard;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: The food quality automatic inspection device according to claim 2, further comprising:
When it is determined that the quality of the processed food to be inspected does not satisfy the standard, the means for discharging the processed food to be inspected outside the transport path of the transport means;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: In the food quality automatic inspection device according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
Means for storing inspection result data as history information;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: In the food quality automatic inspection device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
Means for displaying and / or printing test result data;
A food quality automatic inspection device characterized by comprising: A method for automatically inspecting the quality of processed foods having a uniform composition ,
A first step of performing NMR measurement on the processed food to be inspected and obtaining NMR measurement data;
Using the NMR measurement data acquired in the first step, a second step of measuring the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected,
The relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is larger than the standard relaxation time measured in advance for non-defective products of the same processed food, and the difference between the standard relaxation time and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is larger than a threshold value. A third step of determining that the processed food to be inspected is a defective product in which the defective product has deteriorated ;
A method for automatically inspecting food quality, comprising: A method for automatically inspecting the quality of processed foods having a uniform composition ,
A transporting process for transporting processed food to the inspection means;
An inspection step of inspecting the processed food in the inspection means;
With
The inspection process includes
A first step of performing NMR measurement on the conveyed processed food and obtaining NMR measurement data;
Using the NMR measurement data acquired in the first step, a second step of measuring the relaxation time of the conveyed processed food,
The relaxation time of the conveyed processed food is larger than the standard relaxation time measured for a non-defective product of the same processed food in advance, and the difference between the standard relaxation time and the relaxation time of the processed food to be inspected is larger than a threshold value. A third step of determining that the conveyed processed food is a failed defective product,
A method for automatically inspecting food quality, comprising: