X-ray system can detect bones in meat fillets

24/09/2014

X-ray system can detect bones in meat fillets

Ishida Europe has launched an X-ray model capable of detecting even the smallest bones in meat and poultry at high inspection speeds. The new system provides an ideal quality check for manufacturers producing meat fillets and boneless chicken pieces.

The Ishida IX-G2-4027-H uses advanced dual energy technology to easily distinguish contaminants from the product, even in the most difficult applications. It is particularly appropriate for foods where the density of the product and the potential contamination is similar, for example the bone and meat of a chicken which have almost the same density.

The system can also be used for products that are overlapped in a pack or bag, where a possible contaminant may be obscured by product pieces, such as in bags of frozen chicken nuggets or sausages.

In addition, the dual energy system offers all of the other capabilities of an Ishida X-ray inspection system, including missing pieces, product or pack deformation, product grading by length, and weight estimation, using Ishida’s proven self-learning Genetic Algorithm (GA) technology.

This focuses the machine to identify difficult to detect contaminants with a high degree of accuracy, even at high throughput rates, using image data analysis over a number of inspections.

As it is common in food production for similar contamination problems to recur, data logging can help to build up a more precise calibration protocol with each inspection. This enables permanent or recurring defects to be more easily identified and their location in the pack pinpointed.

Food inspected by the system is not affected by radiation and is therefore not subject to compulsory labelling, while the user-friendly stainless steel design means machines can be easily cleaned, and the belt conveyors removed without tools.

Ishida IX models offer easy operation via a simple-to-use touch screen. Features such as the sensitivity of the inspection process can be adjusted at the touch of a button while up to 100 product settings allow fast changeovers.