Food and beverage quality sensor

• US 20050153052A1
• Filed: 01/13/2004
• Published: 07/14/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/13/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Charles Stark Draper Laboratory Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Charles Stark Draper Laboratory Incorporated
• Inventors: Owens, Megan M., Myers, Kathleen E., Prince, J. Ryan, Williams, John R.
• Application Number:
  US10/756,724
• Publication Number:
  US 20050153052A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 426/634
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/04 Determining presence or kind of microorganism; Use of selective media for testing antibiotics or bacteriocides; Compositions containing a chemical indicator therefor C12Q1/6897 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 31/229 for investigating time/temperature history
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/04 Dairy products
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/12 Meat; fish
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/54366 Apparatus specially adapted for solid-phase testing

Abstract

A method and device for sensing food quality includes a detection material having an inherent sensitivity to a contaminant and changing a property in response thereto. The detection material is subjected to a modulating agent to alter the sensitivity of the detection material, so that exposure of the detection material to the contaminant causes the property to change in response to a level corresponding to the altered detection sensitivity.

Claims

1. A sensor comprising:

a detection material having a property that changes in response to exposure to a contaminant, the detection material having an inherent sensitivity to the contaminant governing changes in the property in response thereto; and

a modulating agent in an amount sufficient to cause the detection material to exhibit an altered sensitivity different from the inherent sensitivity.

2. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the altered sensitivity is greater than the inherent sensitivity.

3. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the altered sensitivity is less than the inherent sensitivity.

4. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the contaminant comprises an amine.

5. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the detection material comprises beet or cabbage extract.

6. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the modulating agent comprises a base.

7. The sensor of claim 6 wherein the base comprises at least one of the group consisting of hydroxide, bicarbonate, lysine, arginine, and histidine.

8. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the property comprises color.

9. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the property comprises an electrical property.

10. The sensor of claim 9 wherein the electrical property comprises an amperometric, coulombic, resistive or potentiometric property.

11. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the detection material is disposed within a matrix.

12. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the altered sensitivity corresponds to a detection threshold that is dependent on type of food being screened.

13. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the altered sensitivity corresponds to a user selectable detection threshold.

14. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the amount of the modulating agent used is dependent on the contaminant being detected.

15. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to freshness of the food.

16. The sensor of claim 1 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a level of contamination in food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of the food.

17. A method of sensing a contaminant, the method comprising:

providing a detection material disposed in a medium, the detection material having an inherent sensitivity to a contaminant and a property that changes in response thereto in accordance with the inherent sensitivity;

subjecting the detection material to a modulating agent to alter the sensitivity of the detection material; and

exposing the detection material to the contaminant such that the property changes in response to exposure to the contaminant in accordance with the altered detection sensitivity.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the property comprises color.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the property comprises an electrical property.

20. The method of claim 19 wherein the electrical property comprises an amperometric, coulombic, resistive or potentiometric property.

21. The method of claim 17 wherein the modulating agent enhances the sensitivity of the detection material by causing the detection material to approach a point of onset of an exposure-induced property change.

22. The method of claim 17 wherein the modulating agent reduces the sensitivity of the detection material.

23. The method of claim 17, wherein the contaminant comprises an amine.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein the detection material comprises beet or cabbage extract.

25. The method of claim 17, wherein the modulating agent comprises a base.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the base comprises at least one of the group consisting of hydroxide, bicarbonate, lysine, arginine, and histidine.

27. The method of claim 17 wherein the altered sensitivity corresponds to a detection threshold that is dependent on type of food being screened.

28. The method of claim 17 wherein the altered sensitivity corresponds to a user selectable detection threshold.

29. The method of claim 17 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising providing a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to state of freshness of the food.

30. The method of claim 17 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a level of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising providing a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of the food.

31. A detection device comprising:

a detection material having a property that changes in response to exposure to a contaminant, the detection material having an inherent sensitivity to the contaminant governing changes in the property in response thereto; and

a display reporting a food condition based on a response of the detection material indicating a level of the contaminant and a user-selectable reporting threshold.

32. The detection device of claim 31, wherein the user-selectable reporting threshold is dependent on type of food being screened.

33. The detection device of claim 31, wherein the user-selectable reporting threshold is dependent on the contaminant.

34. The detection device of claim 31, wherein the user selectable reporting threshold is dependent on a personal tolerance level.

35. The detection device of claim 31 wherein the contaminant comprises amine.

36. The detection device of claim 31 wherein the property comprises color.

37. The detection device of claim 31 wherein the property comprises an electrical property.

38. The detection device of claim 37 wherein the electrical property comprises an amperometric, coulombic, resistive or potentiometric property.

39. The detection device of claim 31 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a state of freshness of the food.

40. The detection device of claim 31 wherein the detection material comprises a resistive property that varies in response to a level of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of the food.

41. A method of sensing a food condition, the method comprising:

providing a detection material having an inherent sensitivity to a contaminant and a property that changes in response thereto in accordance with the inherent sensitivity;

exposing the detection material to the contaminant such that the property changes in response to exposure to the contaminant; and

reporting a food condition based on the property change and a user-selectable reporting threshold.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the user-selectable reporting threshold is dependent on type of food being screened.

43. The method of claim 41, wherein the user-selectable reporting threshold is dependent on the contaminant.

44. The method of claim 41, wherein the user-selectable reporting threshold is dependent on a personal tolerance level.

45. The method of claim 41 wherein the contaminant comprises amine.

46. The method of claim 41 wherein the property comprises color.

47. The method of claim 41 wherein the property comprises an electrical property.

48. The method of claim 47 wherein the electrical property comprises an amperometric, coulombic, resistive or potentiometric property.

49. The method of claim 41 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising providing a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a state of freshness of the food.

50. The method of claim 41 wherein the detection material has a resistive property that varies in response to a level of decomposition of food to which the detection material is exposed, and further comprising providing a second detection material having a potentiometric property that varies in response to a rate of decomposition of the food.