US scientists have developed specialised non-invasive equipment to accurately assess the taste and quality of fruit and vegetables.
The American Research Service (ARS) team claimed its laser based machine vision tool can predict the quality of fruit or vegetable flavour without touching the product.
Prototypes have been developed which taste the fruit and veg from just after harvest all the way through to the packing line.
ARS claim the non-invasive equipment could revolutionise production in the future by speeding up the inspection process and reducing waste.
The new machine vision tool uses optical sensors to inspect the fruit and can work with any object that is at least as large as an apple or peach.
A detector focuses four laser beams, each at a different wavelength into one beam which shines into the fruit. The amount of light bounced back after contacting with tissue indicated firmness, the company claims. Absorption of the light also indicates the sugar levels in the fruit.
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