CHARACTERIZATION OF FOOD MATERIALS BY OPTOMAGNETIC FINGERPRINTING

• US 20120321759A1
• Filed: 05/18/2012
• Published: 12/20/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: mySkin Inc.
• Original Assignee: mySkin Inc.
• Inventors: Marinkovich, Sava, Koruga, Djuro, Bandic, Jadran, Mehendale, Rahul, Matija, Lidija
• Application Number:
  US13/475,137
• Publication Number:
  US 20120321759A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 426/231
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 2044/007 Devices for determining the condition of hair or skin or for selecting the appropriate cosmetic or hair treatment
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 44/005 for selecting or displaying personal cosmetic colours or hairstyle
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0077 Devices for viewing the surface of the body, e.g. camera, magnifying lens
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0531 Measuring skin impedance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1032 Determining colour for diagnostic purposes measuring colour in general G01J3/46
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/442 Evaluating skin mechanical properties, e.g. elasticity, hardness, texture, wrinkle assessment
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/443 Evaluating skin constituents, e.g. elastin, melanin, water
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/444 Evaluating skin marks, e.g. mole, nevi, tumour, scar
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/445 Evaluating skin irritation or skin trauma, e.g. rash, eczema, wound, bed sore
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4547 Evaluating teeth
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4875 Hydration status, fluid retention of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7257 using Fourier transforms
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/50 using electric radiation detectors
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/508 measuring the colour of teeth
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/21 Polarisation-affecting properties G01N21/19 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/55 Specular reflectivity
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10152 Varying illumination
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30036 : Dental; Teeth
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30088 : Skin; Dermal
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0016 : involving temporal comparison
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 : ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 : for processing medical images, e.g. editing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 : for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/70 : for mining of medical data, e.g. analysing previous cases of other patients

Abstract

The present invention generally relates to methods and systems to determine the properties of light-matter interaction in the characterization of food materials using an incident light source and a sensor to measure the opto-magnetic properties of light reflected from the food material. The opto-magnetic properties can be used to generate an opto-magnetic footprint. Comparison of the opto-magnetic footprint with opto-magnetic footprints of known materials enables characterization of the food materials. This enables detection of pesticide residues, confirmation of “organic” labeling, and determination of freshness of the food materials.

Claims

1. A method for checking food quality, the method comprising:

determining an opto-magnetic fingerprint of a food material in a first state based on opto-magnetic properties of light reflected and refracted from the food material, wherein determining comprises;

capturing an image of the food material illuminated with diffuse white (W) light and an image in reflected white polarized light (P), wherein W and P are from the same light source;

generating a normalized red and a normalized blue color channel histogram for at least one of a reflected and refracted light in each image;

correlating the normalized red and normalized blue color channel histograms to a wavelength scale to obtain red and blue color channel spectral plots; and

combining the red and blue color channel spectral plots by subtracting a spectral plot for polarized light from a spectral plot for diffuse light for each color channel to generate red and blue normalized, composite color channel spectral plots of a specific wavelength scale and subtracting the normalized, composite blue channel spectral plot from the normalized, composite red channel spectral plot to generate a red-minus-blue (R−

B)W spectral signature for the food material.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising, comparing the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material obtained in the first state with an opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material obtained in a second state to determine a change in the food material due to a difference in the first and second states.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising, comparing the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material to at least one opto-magnetic fingerprint in a database of opto-magnetic fingerprints.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining a freshness of the food material.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining an organic status of the food material.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining a presence of a pesticide in the food material.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining a concentration of at least one nutrient in the food material.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining a presence of a genetically-modified organism (GMO) in the food material.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for determining a ratio of captured water to free water in the food material.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprint is useful for identifying a specific GMO in the food material.

11. A method for checking food quality, the method comprising:

capturing a first image of a food material in a first state with polarized light (P) from a first angle;

capturing a second image of the food material with light (W) from a second angle;

generating a normalized red and a normalized blue color channel histogram for at least one of reflected and refracted light in each image;

correlating the normalized red and normalized blue color channel histograms to a wavelength scale to obtain red and blue color channel spectral plots;

combining the red and blue color channel spectral plots by subtracting a spectral plot for polarized light from a spectral plot for diffuse light for each color channel to generate red and blue normalized, composite color channel spectral plots of a specific wavelength scale and subtracting the normalized, composite blue channel spectral plot from the normalized, composite red channel spectral plot to generate a red-minus-blue (R−

B) W spectral signature or opto-magnetic fingerprint for the food material; and

comparing the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material with the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material in a second state to determine a change in the food material.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first angle is useful to generate the first image with reflected polarized light.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein the second angle is useful to generate the second image with diffuse white light.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein varying at least one of the first angle and the second angle varies a depth of measurement in the food material.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprints are useful for determining a presence of pesticide in the food material.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprints are useful for determining a presence of a genetically-modified organism (GMO) in the food material.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprints are useful for determining a ratio of captured water to free water in the food material.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the opto-magnetic fingerprints are useful for determining a change in a protein selected from the group consisting of tubulin and collagen.

19. A device for checking food quality, the device comprising:

an incident light source adapted to direct incident light to a food material;

a module for determining a spectral signature of the food material based on opto-magnetic properties of light reflected and refracted from the food material; and

a module for characterizing the food material and a state of the food material based on a comparison of an opto-magnetic fingerprint with opto-magnetic fingerprints of different materials in different states.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein the module for determining the spectral signature comprises a spectrometer or an optical assessment unit.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein the module for characterizing comprises a computerized system for comparing the spectral signature of the food material to other spectral signatures.

22. The device of claim 19, wherein the incident light source is adapted to direct angled white light and unangled polarized light to the food material.

23. A method for checking food quality, the method comprising:

determining an opto-magnetic fingerprint of a food material in a first state based on opto-magnetic properties of light reflected and refracted from the food material, wherein determining comprises;

capturing an image of the food material illuminated with diffuse white (W) light and an image in reflected white polarized light (P), wherein W and P are from the same light source;

generating a normalized first color and a normalized second color channel histogram for at least one of a reflected and refracted light in each image;

correlating the normalized first color and normalized second color channel histograms to a wavelength scale to obtain first color and second color channel spectral plots;

combining the first and second color channel spectral plots by subtracting a spectral plot for polarized light from a spectral plot for diffuse light for each color channel to generate first color and second color normalized, composite color channel spectral plots of a specific wavelength scale and subtracting the normalized, composite second color channel spectral plot from the normalized, composite first color channel spectral plot to generate a first color-minus-second color (R−

B)W−

P spectral signature for the food material; and

comparing the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material with the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material in a second state to determine a change in the food material.

24. A method for determining the opto-magnetic fingerprint of a food material based on the properties of light reflected and refracted from the food material, wherein determining comprises:

capturing an image of the food material in a first state illuminated with diffuse white (W) light and an image in reflected white polarized light (P);

processing the images to obtain color channel spectral plots for each type of light source;

subtracting the spectral plot for polarized light from the spectral plot for diffuse light for each color channel to generate color normalized, composite color channel spectral plots; and

subtracting one normalized, composite color channel spectral plot from the other normalized, composite color channel spectral plot to generate a spectral signature for the food material.

25. A method of claim 24, further comprising:

comparing the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material in the first state with the opto-magnetic fingerprint of the food material in a second state to determine a change in the food material.