INTERNAL TEMPERATURE OF COOKED CHICKEN MEAT THROUGH INFRARED IMAGING AND TIME SERIES ANALYSIS

摘要

A non-invasive method for the estimation of internal temperature of chicken meat immediately after cooking was developed. In this study, a statistical model to express the internal temperature of chicken breast muscle samples in terms of the external temperature and time is presented. For non-invasive and accurate external temperature measurement, an infrared camera based on focal plane array technology and with spectral band of 3.4 to 5 µm was employed. From temperature versus time data, the external temperature (measured from infrared imaging) with internal temperature (measured with embedded thermocouples) and time was correlated through time series analysis. Temperature time series observations were obtained from chicken breast muscle samples with similar thickness and shape, cooked in an industrial multipurpose oven at different cooking conditions. A time series autoregressive model to estimate internal temperature from external temperature data and time is proposed here. An estimation of internal temperature within an accuracy of ±1.22°C for cooling times between 0 and 450 s, and within an accuracy of ±0.55°C for zero seconds (immediately after cooking) resulted from this analysis. This method has great potential for the real-time determination of internal temperature of cooked chicken meat in industrial lines, which can aid quality control personnel and regulators to verify that the minimum endpoint temperature is achieved to ensure food safety.