JPS63218844A - Apparatus for evaluating quality of rice - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily and accurately evaluate the quality of rice within a short time, by measuring the light absorbancy of sample rice using near infrared rays and operating the quality evaluation value of the rice on the basis of the measured value to display the same. CONSTITUTION:The sample rice charged in a supply hopper 10 is polished by a rice polishing apparatus 11 and ground by a sample grinder to be received in a sample container 13 and moved to the position directly under a near infrared analyzer 3. The light emitted from a light source 17 passes through a narrow-band pass filter 19 consisting of a plurality of filters 19a-19f having a wavelength region of 1,900-2,500nm to become near infrared monochromatic light having a specific wavelength to irradiate the sample rice in the analyzer 3. The diffused reflected light from the sample rice 24 is incident to detectors 21a, 21b to measure the intensity thereof. The measured values detected by the detectors 21a, 21b are sent to a control apparatus 4 to be stored in a memory apparatus 4b. The operation apparatus 4c of the apparatus 4 calculates the quality evaluation value of the rice on the basis of the measured values stored in the apparatus 4b and the calculation result is visually displayed or printed by a printer 8.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention relates to a quality evaluation device for evaluating the quality of rice.

[Conventional technology and its problems] The quality of rice, especially its taste, is determined at the production stage such as variety selection, production area, cultivation method, and harvesting method, as well as post-harvest processing such as drying, storage, and rice polishing. There are a wide variety of factors, including those determined at the processing stage and those affected during the cooking process, but the taste of rice is most influenced at the production stage, followed by the processing stage.

Traditionally, quality evaluation of rice, especially evaluation of taste, has been carried out by multiple expert examiners who have compared various items such as the appearance, aroma, taste, stickiness, and hardness of the rice to be evaluated. This was done through a so-called sensory test, in which tests were repeated to determine how superior or inferior it was to those of rice, and the average value was taken. However, since this sensory test is conducted based on taste, which varies from person to person, even if the results of multiple evaluations by multiple examiners are averaged, the evaluation value may vary depending on time and place. However, it cannot be said to be an unchanging objective and absolute value. In addition, we scientifically measure and analyze the composition and scientific properties of rice, examine the correlation with the taste evaluation values obtained in the aforementioned sensory test, and finally obtain the scientifically obtained measured values. As a result of research that attempts to evaluate the quality of rice, it has been found that among the components that make up rice, those that are particularly important in evaluating the quality of rice are amylose and amylopectin, which make up the starch of rice. It is becoming clear that the ratio, protein content and water content.

Next, the quality of rice is determined by the content of each component that makes up rice.
In particular, explain how it affects its taste.

In general, Koshihikari and Sasanishiki are popular brands of rice with good taste in Japan.

- As an example, the following Table 1 compares the protein content and amylose content of starch in several brands of white rice, including Koshihikari and Sasanishiki, with standard milling levels. becomes. Please note that the content of each component of the same brand is not always the same as shown in the table, and may vary depending on the geological conditions (soil quality, water quality) of the region where it was grown, and the meteorological conditions (temperature, sunlight hours per day). , rainfall, etc.)
Needless to say, the content of each component changes slightly depending on the amount of water.

From Table 1 above, the main factors that give Koshihikari and Sasanishiki good taste are that they have a lower protein content and a lower amylose content compared to other general brands of rice. I can understand that.

As mentioned above, apart from the fact that the protein content and the amylose content ratio in starch have a great influence on the taste of rice, and therefore on the quality of rice, the moisture content of white rice also affects the quality, especially the quality of rice during cooking. viscosity.

Hardness has a large effect on taste. If the moisture content of white rice is around 15%, even if it is soaked in water during cooking, the rice will not crack and will be cooked into perfect rice grains, but if the moisture content of white rice is less than 14%, it will not be possible to soak it in water. The water absorption rate is so fast that cracks appear in the rice grains instantaneously, and penetrating cracks soon occur within the rice grains.Water is absorbed into the cracks, and glue comes out of the cracks.The broken rice also absorbs water all at once, making it sticky. However, since the rice is cooked to pieces, and the rice has crumbled, the resulting rice is of low quality and lacks chewiness and stickiness. The main reason why the moisture content of polished rice is less than 14% is due to excessive drying during the post-harvest processing stage, especially during the drying process, and the generation of broken rice and heat generation during the subsequent milling process. This can be said to be the progress of drying. Therefore, in order to prevent the moisture content from dropping below 14% and resulting in poor quality polished rice, it is necessary to operate the dryer mechanically to avoid excessive drying during the drying process, and to remove parts during the rice polishing process. It is necessary to manage and adjust the rice milling machine so as not to cause broken rice due to abrasion or excessive drying due to frictional heat generation.

In addition to the above-mentioned components of rice that greatly affect the quality of rice, namely protein, starch, and water content, the lower the content of fat and fatty acids, the better the taste of the rice. As stated above, it affects the taste of rice and therefore the quality of rice, but it can be said that the degree of influence is not as great as the content of the three components mentioned above.

Normally, it is difficult for rice milling factories to secure a large quantity of only a single brand of high quality rice, so they process several types or brands of rice with different quality, such as rice with a high quality rating and rice with a low quality rating. By mixing and polishing the rice and adjusting the mixing ratio appropriately, we aim to distribute polished rice with stable quality.However, the selection of several brands of rice to be mixed and the determination of the mixing ratio were determined based on past research. The reality is that processing is done based on intuition based on quality data, and because there is no scientific backing, there are many cases where the quality of polished rice is not as consistent as the target, leading to complaints from consumers. It was often brought up.

On the other hand, it has been empirically known that when a small amount of glutinous rice is added to non-glutinous rice (general white rice) and cooked, the viscosity of the rice increases and the flavor improves. Explaining this in terms of the relationship, the following can be said. Starch is composed of amylose and amylopectin, and as the content ratio of amylose in starch increases, the taste of rice tends to deteriorate, as explained in connection with Table 1 above. Therefore, if you add a small amount of sticky rice, which has an amylopectin content of almost 100%, to regular non-glutinous rice, which has a starch content of about 78%, and cook the rice, the amylopectin content will be high. The taste is improved to be almost the same as that of rice with a low amylose content. However, if the amylopectin content exceeds a certain level, the viscosity becomes too strong and the taste of cooked rice deteriorates.

As described above, it is possible to objectively evaluate the quality of rice by scientifically measuring and analyzing the chemical components that make up rice, and to evaluate the quality of rice objectively by scientifically measuring and analyzing the chemical components that make up rice. The theme is to find high-quality rice from common brands of rice, and to improve the quality or taste of rice by mixing multiple types of rice with different brands or ingredient contents. to be born.

In view of the above, the present invention measures the absorbance using near-infrared rays at a wavelength where the difference in absorbance of some of the ingredients that make up rice, which is a factor that causes differences in rice quality, is noticeable as a difference in absorbance, and the measured value and quality evaluation. A technical problem is to provide a rice quality evaluation device that can calculate and display a rice quality evaluation value based on a quality evaluation coefficient value.

Means for Solving Problem C) In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a light source and a near-infrared ray for sample rice of different quality in the wavelength range of 1900 nm to 2500 nm of the light emitted by the light source. A near-infrared sensor equipped with a narrow-band transmission filter that transmits only wavelengths at which differences in rice quality become noticeable as differences in absorbance when irradiated with light, and a detector that detects the amount of light from the sample rice placed in the measurement section. an external spectroscopic analyzer; a storage device for storing a quality evaluation coefficient value for calculating a quality evaluation value calculated and set based on the known quality evaluation by a sensory test of rice and the absorbance; Based on the quality evaluation coefficient value and the detection signal from the detector,
a control device equipped with a calculation device that calculates the quality evaluation value of the sample rice; a display device connected to the control device that visually or print-displays the quality evaluation value of the sample rice calculated by the calculation device; It is formed by a sample container filled with the sample rice and placed in the measurement section of the near-infrared spectrometer.

(Function) When different rice samples are irradiated with near-infrared light, the quality differences between multiple rices of different quality appear conspicuously as differences in absorbance. Wavelengths can be seen.

The present invention utilizes this absorbance characteristic and calculates the absorbance using the detection signal from the detector that detects the absorbance and the absorbance of the same rice as the quality evaluation value of a large number of rice obtained in advance through a sensory test in order to calculate the quality evaluation value. Based on the determined quality evaluation coefficient value, the quality evaluation value of the sample rice is calculated and displayed.

[Embodiments of the invention]

Hereinafter, the apparatus and working method used in the present invention will be explained according to the examples shown in FIGS. 1 to 7.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a rice quality evaluation apparatus 1 according to the present invention viewed from the front. Inside the cabinet 2, a near-infrared spectrometer 3 and a control device 4, the detailed configuration of which will be explained with reference to FIG. 2 below, are disposed. The front panel of the cabinet 2 includes a sample container mounting box 5 for mounting a sample container containing a sample to be measured, a display device 6 in the form of a light emitting diode or CRT for visually displaying the operating procedures and calculation results of the device, and an operation panel. A pushbutton 7 and a printer 8 capable of making a hard copy of the calculation results are provided. The control device 4 includes an input/output signal processing device 4a that is connected to the light source and detector of the near-infrared spectrometer 3, a display device 6, an operation button 7, a printer 8, etc., and processes various signals. , the quality evaluation coefficient value set for calculating the quality evaluation value, the component conversion coefficient value for calculating the content rate of each component, and the reduction of each brand input via the input device @ (keyboard) 9. A storage device 4b for storing rice prices for each station, various correction values, various control procedures, etc., and the quality of rice are determined based on the absorbance measurement value obtained by the near-infrared spectrometer 3 and the quality evaluation coefficient value. It consists of a calculation device 4c for calculating evaluation values and the like. In addition, the quality evaluation coefficient value, component conversion count value, and necessary correction value that are individually set for each main component of rice are stored in a read-only memory (
The function required of the quality evaluation device 1 is simply to obtain the quality evaluation value of rice, and to obtain the content rate of each component and the optimal mixing ratio based on various setting conditions. In cases where the functionality is not required,
The keyboard 9 as an input device is not necessarily required. Further, the printer 8 is not limited to a built-in type, and may be an externally connected type.

A supply hopper 10 into which sample rice is input is mounted on the upper part of the cabinet 2, and a rice polishing device 11 connected to the lower end of the supply hopper 10 for polishing the sample rice is disposed. A sample crusher 12 for crushing the sample rice into fine grains is provided below the rice milling device 11, and further below the sample crusher 12, a sample container 13 is placed directly below the measurement section of the near-infrared spectrometer 3. A sample supply device including a sample supply device 14 and the like is provided to move the sample to the position.

Reference numeral 15 indicates a receiving box for receiving unnecessary sample rice after the sample container 13 is filled with the required amount of sample rice crushed by the sample crushing device, and the sample discharged after the measurement is completed; It can be put in and taken out from the front panel of cabinet 2.

Further, reference numeral 16 denotes an external supply section for supplying sample rice to the measurement section independently from the outside.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a main part of an embodiment of the near-infrared spectrometer 3 disposed inside the cabinet 2. As shown in FIG. The illustrated near-infrared spectrometer 3 is of a reflective type, and has a light source 17, a reflecting mirror 18, a narrow band transmission filter 19, an integrating sphere 20, and a detector 218.21b as main components. The near-infrared light emitted from the light source 17 passes through an appropriate optical system (not shown) and becomes parallel light, and after passing through the narrow-band transmission filter 19, it becomes near-infrared monochromatic light with a specific wavelength. By means of a reflecting mirror 18 whose inclination angle can be freely changed, the direction of the integrating sphere 20 is changed toward a lighting window 22 provided through the upper part of the integrating sphere 20. In this way, the near-infrared monochromatic light that has entered the interior of the integrating sphere 20 is transmitted to the measuring section 23 provided by opening the bottom of the integrating sphere 20.
The sample rice 24 in the sample container 3 is irradiated from directly above.

The diffusely reflected light from the sample rice 24 is reflected on the inner wall of the integrating sphere 20, and finally reaches a pair of detectors 21a and 21b arranged at symmetrical positions with the measuring section 23 at the center. This measures the intensity of the reflected light. Note that although two detectors are provided in this embodiment, the number of detectors is 2.
The number is not limited to 1, or may be 1 or 3 or more.

Here, the configuration of the narrow band transmission filter 19, which is provided between the light source 17 and the reflecting mirror 18, and through which the light emitted from the light source 17 becomes near-infrared monochromatic light of a specific wavelength, and the requirements therefor. Explain the physical characteristics etc. The narrowband transmission filter 19 consists of any plurality of filters, each having a different dominant wavelength transmission characteristic, for example, six filters 19a to 19f, and is mounted on a rotating disk and rotated by an appropriate angle. , a desired filter 19 is arranged in a line connecting the light source 17 and the reflecting mirror 18.
The configuration allows selection and replacement in sequence so that a to 19f are located. Note that in the transmission characteristics of a filter, the dominant wavelength refers to the maximum transmission wavelength of near-infrared rays transmitted when the incident optical axis is perpendicular to the surface of the filter. As another specific example of the narrow band transmission filter 19, the light source 1
7 and a reflecting mirror 18 are located inside, and a plurality of filters 19a to 1 (H) are configured in a prismatic shape, and this is connected to the electric motor 25.
There is also a configuration that allows rotation around the center point P by means such as (see FIG. 3). In addition, if the inclination angle of the rotating surface of the narrow band 1Ii1 transmission filter 19 with respect to the incident optical axis can be finely and continuously adjusted by means such as an electric motor, it is possible to adjust the angle from the main wavelength of the transmission characteristic of each filter. It can continuously produce shifted near-infrared monochromatic light of different wavelengths.

Next, the physical characteristics required of the narrowband transmission filter 19 will be explained based on FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a graph (absorbance curve) showing the relationship between irradiation wavelength and absorbance when different rice samples are irradiated with near-infrared light whose wavelength changes continuously. The absorbance logio/I is the reflected light f from the sample rice with respect to the reference irradiation light amount (total irradiation light m>ro)
It is the common logarithm of the reciprocal of the ratio of f1l. Curve A shown as a solid line
In Table 1 above, Curve B shows the absorbance curve for Nipponbare, Curve B shown by a dashed line shows the absorbance curve for Koshihikari, and Curve C shown by a dotted line shows the absorbance curve for Ishikari. From the same figure, near-infrared 1900
The short wavelength region of 1,900 nm or less is a low absorbance region, and there is a slight difference in absorbance depending on the content of each component that makes up rice, such as amylose, protein, and water.
It can be easily understood that the absorbance becomes a high absorbance region with m as the boundary, and that the difference in the content of each of the above-mentioned components is noticeable as a difference in absorbance. The present invention elucidates this phenomenon and uses it to measure the quality difference between rice of different quality. Therefore, the wavelength of the near-infrared monochromatic light irradiated onto the rice for measurement is within the wavelength range. Among 1900 to 2500 nm, specific peaks can be seen on the absorbance curve for each component, for example 1
940m, 2100mm, 2180rv, 22
30mm, 2280mm.

A wavelength such as 2310nll1 is suitable. Therefore, each of the filters 19a to 1 included in the narrowband transmission filter 19
9f is required to have each of the above-mentioned wavelengths as a main wavelength in order to produce near-infrared monochromatic light of each of the above-mentioned wavelengths suitable for measuring differences in rice quality between different qualities, that is, each component constituting rice.

Next, referring to FIGS. 3 and 5 to 7, the rice polishing device 11
．． The details of the sample supply device including the sample crushing device 12, sample supply device 14, etc. will be explained.

First, the configuration of the rice polishing device 11 will be explained. The lower opening 26 of the supply hopper 10 is equipped with a manual or electromagnetic solenoid (
A shutter 27 is provided which is actuated by a shutter (not shown). The upper end of the funnel stand 28 is connected to the lower opening 26, and the lower end of the funnel stand 28 is connected to two supply parts of the rice milling device 11. A screw roll 31 is provided below the supply section 29 and is connected to a rotating shaft 30, and a stirring roll 32 is connected to the rotating shaft 30 and is connected to the screw roll 31. A bran removing and polishing cylinder 33 having a porous wall and containing the screw roll 31 and stirring roll 32 is formed into a cylindrical or polygonal cylinder and is installed horizontally. A whitening room 34 having a main part is formed. The periphery of the rice bran polishing cylinder 33 is a rice bran collection chamber 35, and the lower part of the rice bran collection room 35 is formed into a rice bran collection hopper 36, and the lower end of the rice bran collection hopper is connected to a rice bran duct 37.
The terminal end of 7 is connected to a cyclone collector or the like (not shown). Reference numeral 84 is an electric motor that rotates the rotating shaft 3o.

A resistance plate 39 is provided at the outlet 38 at the opposite end of the supply section 29.
are provided so as to be movable from and near the discharge port 38. That is, one end of the lever 40 is connected to the resistance plate 39, and the other end of the lever 40 is screwed onto a screw shaft 42 directly connected to the shaft of a forward-reverse rotating electric motor 41, and the lever 40 is rotated about the fulcrum by the rotation of the forward-reverse rotating electric motor 41. By rotating, the resistance plate 39 is moved toward and away from the discharge port 38. A rice grain whitening detector 43 is installed on the resistance plate 39.
is installed, which allows the sample rice to be polished to a constant level of polishing. The degree of polishing referred to here includes white discoloration, increase in white skin (degree of white discoloration relative to brown rice), yield, etc., and in this example, white discoloration will be explained. In other words, white discoloration is when the irradiation light is 1
The time of 00% absorption is defined as 0 degrees, the time of 100% reflection is defined as 100 degrees, and the distance between them is expressed as a numerical value divided into 100 equal parts. Continuing, to explain in detail based on FIG. 5, the resistance plate 3
9 is partially opened, a transparent plate 45 is buried in this opening 44, and a light emitter 46 and a light receiving element 47 facing the transparent plate 45 are provided. This light emitter 46. The light receiving element 47 and the forward/reverse rotary motor 41 are connected via the control device 4,
A reference white skin suitable for absorbance measurement is preset in the storage device 4b of the control device 4. Note that the rice grain whitening detector 43 is attached to the resistance plate 39 in this embodiment, but
Any other location may be used as long as it is near the discharge port 38.

A discharge gutter 48 leading to the outside of the machine is connected to the discharge port 38, and a communication gutter 49 is formed that branches from the discharge gutter 48 and faces above the supply section of the crushing device 12, and the discharge fil! l 48
A switching valve 50 operated by an electromagnetic solenoid or the like (not shown) is provided at a branch point between the communication terminal 149 and the communication terminal 149. This switching valve 50 normally closes the communication gutter 49 side, and operates the solenoid to close the communication gutter 49 only when the rice grain whitening detector 43 detects the reference whiteness level set in the control section 4.
formed so as to communicate with each other.

Next, the sample crushing device 12 will be described in detail.

A rotary shaft 54 is rotatably hung over a casing 53 which has a supply section 51 at the top and a discharge section 52 at the bottom, and the rotary shaft 54 has crushing blades 55 and stirring blades 56 each having a blade at the tip. is planted. In addition, the supply section 51 and the discharge section 5
2 is provided with a supply opening/closing M57 and a discharge section opening/closing M58, and each opening/closing lid 57.58 is provided with a tension coil spring 59.60 that biases each opening/closing lid 57.58 in the direction of closing, An electromagnetic solenoid 61. which opens each opening/closing M57.58 against a coil spring 59.60.
62 is provided. Reference numeral 63 denotes a variable speed electric motor directly connected to the rotating shaft 54, and the variable speed electric motor 63 is installed on a load cell scale 64, thereby measuring the total weight of the crushing device. Then, the rice grain whitening detector 43 detects the reference white skin, and the switching valve 50 is activated, and at the same time, the electromagnetic solenoid 61 is energized to release the supply opening/closing M57, and a sample light of a certain weight is injected into the casing 53. When the switching valve 50 is switched, the supply section closing lid 57 is closed, and the variable speed electric Ia6
3 rotates at high speed to finely crush the sample light inside the casing 53, and then the electromagnetic solenoid 62 opens and closes the discharge section M5.
8 to open and close the sample light to discharge the sample light into the hopper 65;
This series of operations is carried out in the storage device 4b (R
A drive circuit (not shown) for operating each of the electromagnetic solenoids and the electric motor is connected to the control device 4. In addition, when measuring the sample light without pulverizing it, turn on the [Non-pulverizing j button] of the operation button 7.
As a result, the variable speed electric motor 63 rotates at a low speed, so that even if the sample light is a plurality of different types of rice grains, a sufficient stirring action is performed.

Next, referring also to FIG. 7, the crushing device 12
The sample light that has been finely ground (in some cases, it is only stirred without being ground) is filled into the sample container 13 in a state where the absorbance can be measured. The sample crushing device 14 that is moved to a position directly below the sample crushing device 23 will be explained.

The sample container go 3 can be freely inserted into and removed from a guide groove 68 provided in a container holder 67 fixed to a sample container movement guide 66. A support shaft 69 having a round cross section is inserted into the hollow shaft of the sample container movement guide 66, and one side of the support shaft 69 is attached to a rotating handle 70, and the other side is attached to a bearing stand 7.
1 is pivoted. A rack 72 is fixedly installed in the length direction of the outer circumference of the sample container moving guide 66.
A binion gear 75 of an electric motor 1174 attached to a motor 73 that is loosely fitted to the sample container moving guide 66 meshes with the sample container movement guide 66 . One motor 73 is connected to a fulcrum 78 by an electromagnet 77 with a telescoping rod 76 . This fulcrum 78 is connected to a pedestal 79 fixed to the bottom wall of the cabinet 2.
is fixed to. Reference numeral 80 denotes a rotating roller for compressing and filling the pulverized sample (or non-pulverized sample) on the sample container 13 and removing excess sample to make the surface flat;
Reference numeral 81 denotes an injection nozzle for removing the sample after measurement from inside the sample container 13 with a jet of air and cleaning it;
Reference numeral 82 denotes a cleaning device that comes into contact with the transparent glass plate 83 to clean it when the sample container 13 is moved. Note that the transparent glass plate 83 is stretched over the measuring section 23 so that the pulverized sample light and the like do not enter into the integrating sphere 20.

Next, specific operations in the above embodiment will be explained. First, the light source 17 is turned on by operating the operating button 7, and based on the light emitted from the light source 17, near-infrared monochromatic light of a specific wavelength reaching the measuring section 23 is stabilized. Preheat the entire analyzer 3.

While preheating the near-infrared spectrometer 3, sample light (brown rice or white rice) is put into the supply hopper 10, and the electric motor 74 is rotated by operating the operating button 7, and the sample container 13 is transferred to the sample crushing device. 12 to a predetermined position directly below the hopper 65 provided below. When the movement of the sample container 13 to the predetermined position is completed and the operation of the electric Ia 74 is stopped, the shutter 27 is opened manually or by an electromagnetic solenoid (not shown), and the sample light in the supply hopper 10 is directed through the lower opening 26. released through.

When the shutter 27 is opened, the electric motor 84 is activated by a suitable limit switch (not shown) or the like operated by the shutter 27, and the rice polishing bag @11 is driven.

The sample light that flows down the funnel stand 28 from the lower opening 26 of the supply hopper 10 and reaches the supply part 29 is transferred to the polishing plate 34 side by the rotating screw roll 31, and is then compressed and stirred by the stirring roll 32. While being flowed to the discharge port 38 side, the grains are rubbed by the FJ and the particles and bran are removed from the polishing cylinder 33.
The surface layer of the rice grain is peeled off by the friction between the grains and the rice is polished. The peeled surface layer of the rice grains leaks from the porous wall of the rice bran removal cylinder 33 into the rice bran collector 35 and is discharged to the outside of the machine via the rice bran collector 36. At this time, the pressure in the milling space 34 is maintained at a moderately high pressure by the resistor plate 39, and the rice milling progresses efficiently. A supervising rice grain white melon detector 43 is installed, so that when the sample rice has a polishing level other than the standard polishing level set in advance in the storage device 4b of the control device 4, the sample rice is discharged from the discharge gutter 48 to the cabinet 2. It is discharged outside.

That is, the light from the light emitting body 46 in the rice grain melon detector 43 is irradiated onto the sample rice through the transparent plate 45, the light receiving element 47 receives the reflected light from the sample rice, and converts the amount of received light into an electrical signal. , is compared with a reference white skin in the control device 4. It is assumed that the amount of light received from the sample rice, which is taken into the control device 4, is smoothed and compared with the reference white bark. When the detected value of the rice grain white melon detector 43 is smaller than the reference white peel, the forward/reverse rotating electric motor 41 is rotated in a predetermined direction via a drive circuit (not shown) in response to a command from the control device 4, and the lever is rotated in a predetermined direction. 40 to gradually bring the resistance plate 39 closer to the discharge port 38 side. When the resistance plate 39 moves in the direction of closing the discharge port 38, the internal resistance of the whitening chamber 34 increases, the surface layer to be peeled off becomes deeper, and whitening becomes higher.

In this way, when the whitening gradually increases and reaches the standard whitening, the forward/reverse rotating electric motor 41 is stopped and the switching valve 50 is switched by an electromagnetic solenoid (not shown), and the discharge port 38 is switched.
The polished rice discharged from the connecting gutter 49 is guided to the connecting gutter 49 side. Switching valve 50
At the same time as switching, the electromagnetic solenoid 61 is energized to open the supply opening/closing lid 57, whereby the polished rice (sample rice) flowing down the connecting gutter 49 is thrown into the casing 53. When a certain amount of sample rice accumulates in the casing 53 and the load cell scale 64 senses a predetermined weight, the switching valve 50 operates to close the communication gutter 49, and the electromagnetic solenoid 61 demagnetizes to close the supply section opening/closing M57. to be accomplished.

As the supply opening/closing lid 57 closes, the variable speed electric motor 63 rotates at high speed, and the sample rice in the casing 53 is crushed by the crushing blades 55.
finely ground by

When the sample rice particles are crushed to about 50 microns required for absorbance measurement, a timer or the like (not shown) stops the variable speed motor 63, and at the same time, the electromagnetic solenoid 62 opens the discharge section opening/closing lid 58. Powdered sample rice is discharged into the hopper 65. At this time, the sample rice that spills outside the hopper 65 and the sample rice that spills when rice grains are introduced into the casing 53 from the connecting gutter 49 fall into the receiving box 15 installed below. In this embodiment, the case where the sample rice is crushed has been described, but in the case of no crushing, the variable speed electric motor 63 is rotated at a low speed and the sample rice is passed through the stirring blade 56.
After stirring, the mixture is discharged into the hopper 65. As a result, when a plurality of rices are mixed and measured simultaneously, the sample rice is sufficiently stirred and measurement errors are reduced.

The fine powder sample rice produced in this way is received in the sample container 13 located directly below the hopper 65, and the sample rice that exceeds the receiving space and rises up on the container 13, resulting in an excessive amount, is placed in the receiving container. Falling at 15.

Next, by operating the operating button 7 or automatically restarting the electric motor 74, the sample container 13 containing the sample rice is moved to a predetermined position directly below the measurement section 23 of the near-infrared spectrometer 3. Move on to the operation of conveying the material up to the point. In this conveyance process, the sample rice in the sample container 1 in a heaped state is compressed and filled by the rotating roller 80, and the sample rice is
The sample is removed into the receiving box 15, and the surface of the sample rice is shaped into a flat surface. Once the sample container 13 is in place, the electric motor 74 automatically stops its operation. In this way, preparation for measurement is completed.

In this embodiment, the sample rice put in from the supply hopper 10 is filled into the sample container 13, and the sample rice is further placed in the measuring section 23.
Although we have described the case where the sample rice transport device 14 is provided to transport the sample rice up to Of course, it is also possible to supply the sample rice by inserting the sample container mounting box into the cabinet 2 after placing the sample container filled with the sample container.

Once the metric work is completed, then the first 1940
A filter 198 having a main wavelength of nm is selected so as to be arranged in a line connecting the light source 17 and the reflecting mirror 18 (see Fig. 2), and near-infrared monochromatic light with a wavelength of 1940 nm is applied to the sample rice 24.
We will begin measuring the reflected absorbance when irradiating the target.

The work of measuring the reflected absorbance consists of measuring the total irradiation amount of the sample rice 24, that is, the standard irradiation amount, and measuring the amount of the sample rice 24 when the sample rice 24 is irradiated with the standard irradiation amount.
It consists of two measurements: 4. Measurement of the amount of reflected light actually reflected. Although it does not matter which of these two measurements is performed first for one filter, the description will be made assuming that the measurement of the reference irradiation light amount is performed first. The reference irradiation light amount is measured using a reflecting mirror 18 whose inclination angle is variable.
The inclination angle of the integrating sphere 20 is changed by a rotating means (not shown) using an electric motor or the like so that the reflected light directly hits the inner wall of the integrating sphere 20. By doing this, the reflecting mirror 18 directly applied to the inner wall of the integrating sphere 20
The light is diffusely reflected on the inner wall in multiple directions and finally reaches the detector 218.21b, where it is detected as the reference irradiation light amount. On the other hand, the amount of reflected light from the sample rice 24 is measured according to the above-described principle after the inclination angle of the reflector [18] is returned to the original position shown in FIG. In addition, each execution from the initial filter selection to the measurement of the reference irradiation light amount and the reflected light amount measurement after completion of measurement preparation is performed by storing a procedure program in the ROM in the storage device 4b of the storage device 4 of the control device 4. Needless to say, it can be done automatically according to the program. Furthermore, it is also useful to measure the reference irradiation light amount and reflected light amount for one filter a plurality of times, and to take the average of the measurements as the measured value. Each measurement value based on the reference irradiation light amount and the reflected light amount from the sample rice 24 detected by the detectors 21a and 21b is communicated to the control device 4 as actual measurement data, and is stored in a writable memory (hereinafter referred to as RAM) in the storage device 4b. ) is once memorized.

When the measurement of the absorbance at the irradiation wavelength of 1940 nm is completed, the process moves to the measurement of the absorbance at the next irradiation wavelength, that is, 2100 nm in this example. Here too, the measurement of the reference illumination light m is carried out in the same manner and procedure as at 1940 nm previously described. As in the previous case, each measurement value is communicated to the control device 4 as actual measurement data for calculating the content of each component, and is temporarily stored in the RAM in the storage device 4b. Similarly, each absorbance measurement at each of the remaining irradiation wavelengths, i.e., wavelengths 2180 nm, 2230 nm, 2280 nm, 2
Absorbance measurements at 310 nm were performed sequentially, and each measurement value was
This is communicated to the control device 4 as actual measurement data and stored in the RAM.

Note that after the absorbance measurement at a specific wavelength is completed, the replacement and selection operations of each of the filters 19a to 19f of the narrowband transmission filter 19, which occur when the absorbance measurement is completed at the next specific wavelength, are normally performed in the memory of the control device 4. This is automatically carried out according to the procedure program written in advance in the ROM in the device 4b, but even in the case of this example, it is not necessarily necessary to perform absorbance measurement for all of the six wavelengths mentioned above, and the absorbance measurement is subject to measurement. The wavelength can be arbitrarily selected in consideration of the accuracy required for the desired quality evaluation value, the time required for measurement, etc., and the selection can be made by pressing the operating button 7.
This can be done using the measurement wavelength selection button within.

The absorbance measurement described so far is performed simply by using the six filters 19a to 19 set in the narrowband transmission filter 19.
By sequentially replacing f, each filter 19a to 1
9 [ was a method of measuring spot absorbance at each dominant wavelength, but when the angle of incidence of the incident light on the filter surface was changed from the standard 90°, the maximum transmission wavelength was several + nm away from the dominant wavelength. Utilizing the phenomenon of shift in the range, wavelength range 1 where differences in rice quality are noticeable in absorbance differences
Continuous absorbance measurements between 900 and 2500 nm are also possible. In the case of the first embodiment (see FIG. 2), the angle of the optical axis of incidence on the narrow band transmission filter 19 configured in the shape of a disk is controlled by an appropriate adjusting means (such as an electric motor) based on a command signal from the controller 4. This is possible by making gradual and continuous changes (not shown).

Next, the arithmetic unit 4C of the control device 4 uses the RA of the storage device 4.
A large amount of actual measurement data obtained by absorbance measurement is stored in M, that is, measured values of the reference irradiation light amount and reflected light amount at each measurement wavelength, and the quality for quality evaluation calculations is stored in advance in the ROM of the storage device 4. A quality evaluation value of rice is calculated based on the evaluation coefficient value.

Note that this quality evaluation coefficient value, which is written in advance in the ROM of the storage device 4, is obtained by signal processing the absorbance measurement value from the detector based on the taste value obtained by the sensory test method for a large number of rice samples, and multiplexing the value. This is a constant determined by regression analysis.

Here, an example of multiple regression analysis is shown. For example, 6 filters F + = 1940 nm, F 2 = 2tOO
nm.

F3=2180nm, F4-2230nm,
F s =2280 nm.

It is assumed that the following linear relationship holds when 1''9=231Onllll is used.

Ta = F[l + FI building X+a + F
2 φ X 2 a +F3 -X3a +F
4 ・X4a +Fs 11Xsa +Fs
-X6a +CHa is the taste value measured by the sensory test method for sample a.

FO to F6 are coefficient values obtained by this multiple regression analysis.

X1a-Xea corresponds to the filter numbers F1 to F8, respectively, and is the absorbance (IoaIo/I) of sample a measured with a near-infrared spectrometer.

C is an error term, and here C=O.

In the case of trial aa (assuming the solid line in Figure 4), X+a =
0.61, Xza = 0.60, X3a =
0.56, X4a = 0.53, Xsa =
0.65 Xs = 0.67, and the multiple regression equation is
0.56 F3 + 0.53 F4 + 0.6
5 F s + 0.67F6. Similarly,
By substituting the absorbance into a multiple regression equation for up to n samples, the following quality evaluation coefficient values can be obtained.

T= 144.7+ 234.6X + +6371
X 2-1122X 3 + 303.7X 4
-536.4X 5-4969X e・”(1)
Using the same method as the quality evaluation coefficient value, the content of amylose, protein, water, fat, etc., which are the main components of rice, can also be determined as necessary.

For example, the component conversion coefficient value of amylose is based on the content measured using a chemical quantitative analysis method, such as the iodine colorimetric method or the iodine amperometric titration method, on a large number of samples. The value obtained by signal processing is calculated using multiple regression analysis method.

Here is an example. For example, 5 filters F +
=2100nm, F2 =2180nm, F
3 = 2230 nm, F 4 = 2280 nm, F
It is assumed that the following linear relationship holds when 5=2310 nm is used.

In addition, when measuring amylose, the wavelength of 1940 nm, where a change in water content is noticeable as a difference in absorbance, is excluded.

Aa =FO+FI ・X+a +F2 Conflict X2a +
F3 ・X: +a +F4 ・X4a +Fs ・Xs
a+C Aa is the percentage content of amylose measured by chemical quantitative analysis of sample a.

FD-F5 is the coefficient value obtained by this multiple regression analysis.

X+a-Xsa corresponds to the filter numbers F+ to Fs, respectively, and is the absorbance (logIo/I) of sample a measured with a near-infrared spectrometer.

C is an error term, and here C=O.

In the case of sample a (assuming the solid line in Figure 9), X+a =
0.60, X2a = 0.56, X3a =
0.53, X4a = 0.65, Xsa =
0.67 T: Yes, the multiple regression equation is Aa = Fo + 0.60 F! +0.56
F2 +0.53 F3 10.65 F4 + 0.
It becomes 67 F5.

Similarly, by substituting the absorbance into the multiple regression equation for up to n samples, the component conversion coefficient value for obtaining the amylose content shown below can be obtained.

A = 33.3 + 2380X + -2300X 2
-640X 3 +1405X 4-880X 5 ・
-"-(2) In the above calculation formula (1), F+"F6 is stored in advance in the ROM of the storage device 4b, or is input to the control device 4 via the input device 9 when measuring the sample. Equation (1) above is suitable for the average Japanese person to evaluate the quality of rice produced in Japan, which is the quality evaluation coefficient value for calculating the quality evaluation value.
Standard preferences may differ depending on the region or country where the rice is eaten, so different values may be more appropriate.

The quality evaluation value calculated according to the above formulas (1) and (2) and the content of each component such as amylose, protein, and water, which are the main components of rice, are calculated after completion of calculation by the calculation device 4C. At the same time, the calculated values are visually displayed on the display device 6, and a hard copy of each calculated value is fed out from the printer 8 automatically or based on a command to the operating button 7.

Regarding the amylose content, the content ratio with amylopectin, which together constitutes starch, is more important than the amylose content itself, so it is preferable to display the content ratio rather than the content ratio.

When all the absorbance measurements of the sample rice are completed, the electric motor 74 is started and the sample container 13 is moved to a predetermined position below the hopper 65 in order to discharge the sample rice for which the measurement has been completed.

At this time, the cleaner 82 comes into contact with the transparent glass plate 83 and removes the deposits by making an M8 motion on the surface. Next, by activating the electromagnet 77, the sample container moving guide 66
is rotated 90°, and the sample rice in the sample container 13 is discharged toward the box 15 located below. At the same time, the injection nozzle 81 is operated, and the high pressure air released from the injection nozzle cleans the inside of the sample container 13 in preparation for the next measurement. Further, the rice polishing device 11 and the crushing device 12 may also be provided with injection nozzles as necessary. In addition, it is electric! The case where the sample container 13 is automatically reciprocated by the operation of the sample container 174 has been described above, but the movement can also be performed manually by pushing and pulling the rotation handle 70. The sample rice can be discharged by appropriately rotating the rotating handle 70. In addition, in order to place a sample prepared externally in the measurement section 23 of the near-infrared spectrometer 3 without using the sample supply H position, the sample container 13 can be placed in the measurement section by pressing the rotation handle 7o. 23, the sample container 13 is pulled out from the external supply section 16, filled with sample rice, and then inserted into the guide groove 68 of the container holder 70.

The above-mentioned quality evaluation device uses reflection-type near-infrared spectroscopy, which measures the absorbance when the sample rice is irradiated with near-infrared monochromatic light of a specific wavelength and measures the intensity of the reflected light from the sample rice. As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom surface of the sample container 13 was formed with a transparent glass plate 13a, and
It is also possible to use a transmission-type near-infrared spectrometer that measures the intensity of transmitted light that has passed through the sample rice by disposing a detector 21c below the measuring section 23. More precise measurement of absorbance based on both light and transmitted light! A near-infrared spectrometer can also be used.

The above explanation was based on the analysis of amylose among amylose and amylopectin that constitute starch, but instead of amylose, the content ratio of amylopectin was measured,
The component conversion coefficient value of amylopectin can also be set in equation (2).

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described in detail above, the rice quality evaluation apparatus according to the present invention allows anyone to evaluate the quality of rice without using sensory tests based on individual taste differences or chemical quantitative analysis, which is time-consuming and requires skill. Accurate rice quality evaluation values can be obtained easily and in a short period of time, and the accuracy of the quality evaluation can be ensured when comparing the quality of various types of rice.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a front view showing an embodiment of the apparatus and working method used in the present invention, Fig. 2 is a schematic sectional view of the main part of the near-infrared spectrometer shown in Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is the main part of the same. Figure 4 is a graph (absorbance curve) showing the relationship between near-infrared irradiation wavelength and absorbance for different brands of rice, Figure 5 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the rice milling equipment in Figure 1, and Figure 6 is A side view of the crushing device, and FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a main part of the sample conveying device. In the figure, 1...Rice quality evaluation device, 2...Cabinet,...Near infrared spectroscopy analyzer, 4...Control device, 4
a...I/O signal processing device, 4b...Storage device (R
OM, RAM), 4c...Arithmetic unit, 5...Sample container mounting box, 6...Display device, 7...Operation button, 8...Printer, 9...Input device ,
10... Supply hopper, 11... Rice milling device, 12.
... Sample crushing device, 13... Sample container, 14... Sample crushing device, 15... Receiving box, 16... External supply unit,
17... Light source, 18... Reflecting mirror, 19... Narrow band transmission filter, 20-... Integrating sphere, 21a, '21b
, 21C...detector, 22...lighting window, 23...
Measuring unit, 24... Sample rice, 25... Electric motor, 26.
... Lower opening, 27 ... Shutter, 28 ... Funnel stand, 29 ... Supply section, 30 ... Rotating shaft, 31 ...
・Screw roll, 32... Stirring roll, 33... Bran removal polishing cylinder, 34... Refining room, 35... Bran collecting palm, 36.
・・Branch collection potsupah, 37・・Branch duct, 38 discharge port,
3... Resistance plate, 40... Lever, 41... Forward/reverse rotating electric motor, 42... Screw shaft, 43... Rice grain white discoloration detector, 44... Opening, 45...・Transparent plate, 46...
Light emitter, 47... Light receiving element, 48... Discharge gutter, 49
...Connection gutter, 50...Switching valve, 51...Supply section,
52... Discharge part, 53... Casing, 54...
Rotating shaft, 55... Grinding blade, 56... Stirring N, 57.
... Supply opening/closing lid, 58... Discharge section opening/closing lid, 59.6
0... Tension coil spring, 61. 62... Electromagnetic solenoid, 63... Variable speed electric motor, 64... Load cell scale, 65... Hopper, 66... Sample container movement guide, 67...・Container holder, 68...Guide groove, 6
9... Support shaft, 70... Rotating handle, 71...
・Bearing stand, 72...Rack, 73...One motor,
74...Electric motor, 75...Binion gear, 76...
・Telescopic Rondo, 77... Electromagnet, 78... Fulcrum stand,
79... pedestal, 80... rotating roller, 81...
Spray nozzle, 82... Cleaner, 83... Transparent glass plate, 84... Electric motor.

Claims (8)

[Claims] (1) A light source and 1900 nm of the light emitted by the light source
In the wavelength range of ~2500 nm, when sample rice of different quality is irradiated with near-infrared light, a narrow band transmission filter that transmits only the wavelength at which the difference in rice quality becomes noticeable as a difference in absorbance is placed in the measurement section. A near-infrared spectrometer equipped with a detector that detects the amount of light from sample rice, and a quality evaluation for calculating the quality evaluation value calculated and set based on the absorbance and quality evaluation based on known rice sensory tests. Based on a storage device that stores coefficient values, the quality evaluation coefficient value stored in this storage device, and the detection signal from the detector,
a control device equipped with a calculation device that calculates the quality evaluation value of the sample rice; a display device connected to the control device that visually or print-displays the quality evaluation value of the sample rice calculated by the calculation device; A rice quality evaluation device comprising: a sample container filled with the sample rice and placed in the measurement section of the near-infrared spectrometer. (2) Set a component conversion coefficient value for calculating the content of the component to be measured, which is calculated and set based on the known rice component content and absorbance, corresponding to the main components constituting rice, in the storage device. The rice quality evaluation according to claim (1), wherein the content of the component to be measured in the sample rice is calculated and displayed based on the stored component conversion coefficient value and the detection signal from the detector. Device. (3) The rice quality evaluation device according to claim (1) or (2), wherein the amount of light detected by the detector is the amount of light reflected from the rice sample. (4) The rice quality evaluation device according to claim (1) or (2), wherein the amount of light detected by the detector is transmitted light from the sample rice. (5) The amount of light detected by the detector is a combination of the amount of reflected light and the amount of transmitted light from the sample rice (
The rice quality evaluation device according to item 1) or item (2). (6) Any one of claims (1) to (5), further comprising a sample supply device for moving and placing the sample container in the measurement section of the near-infrared spectrometer. The rice quality evaluation device described in . (7) Claims (1) to 12 are provided below the rice milling device, including a crushing device for crushing the sample rice into fine particles.
The rice quality evaluation device according to any of paragraph (6). (8) Claim No.
The rice quality evaluation device according to any one of items 1) to (7).