Portable multispectral fluorescence imaging system for food safety applications

Alan M. Lefcourt; Moon S. Kim; Yud-Ren Chen

doi:10.1117/12.516103

30 March 2004 Portable multispectral fluorescence imaging system for food safety applications

Alan M. Lefcourt, Moon S. Kim, Yud-Ren Chen

Proceedings Volume 5271, Monitoring Food Safety, Agriculture, and Plant Health; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.516103
Event: Optical Technologies for Industrial, Environmental, and Biological Sensing, 2003, Providence, RI, United States

Abstract

Fluorescence can be a sensitive method for detecting food contaminants. Of particular interest is detection of fecal contamination as feces is the source of many pathogenic organisms. Feces generally contain chlorophyll a and related compounds due to ingestion of plant materials, and these compounds can readily be detected using fluorescence techniques. Described is a fluorescence-imaging system consisting primarily of a UV light source, an intensified camera with a six-position filter wheel, and software for controlling the system and automatically analyzing the resulting images. To validate the system, orchard apples artificially contaminated with dairy feces were used in a "hands-on" public demonstration. The contamination sites were easily identified using automated edge detection and threshold detection algorithms. In addition, by applying feces to apples and then washing sets of apples at hourly intervals, it was determined that five h was the minimum contact time that allowed identification of the contamination site after the apples were washed. There are many potential uses for this system, including studying the efficacy of apple washing systems.

Citation Download Citation

Alan M. Lefcourt, Moon S. Kim, and Yud-Ren Chen "Portable multispectral fluorescence imaging system for food safety applications", Proc. SPIE 5271, Monitoring Food Safety, Agriculture, and Plant Health, (30 March 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.516103

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available