FIELD OF THE INVENTION
Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to the field of food quality assessment, and, more particularly, to systems and methods for accessing the internal quality and features of fresh food and meat.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
It is well known that at present, food quality assessment can only be done through manual sorting, lab test for small sampling, or maybe few devices based on NIR technology are available.
However, presently available solutions suffer from various disadvantage, such as, for example, but not limited to, absence of label with quantitative values for quality, errors due to manual methods, slow lab tests that cannot be implemented on large volumes, and the like. In addition, presently available devices do not print labels with quantitative values.
Some prior known solutions relate to using traceability methods to check the quality of the food name of the food product, the area where the food was produced, the date on which the food was produced, and the like, in use, all this information is displayed and recorded as a barcode on the product packaging. But, there are certain limitations to the traceability system when it shows the information through the barcode. For tracing all histories generated

during production, transporting, and distribution processes, radio frequency identification technology such as an RFID tag is used.
Additionally, to overcome the RFID tracking problem, another technology for monitoring a state change of a product during the transportation has been developed in the past. This technology disclosed in prior art displays an expiration date and price corresponding to the most important factors of the food, which are determined according to a food state when the food is shipped only on an outer surface of the package without evaluating food quality in real¬time. For that reason, there is a problem in that an expiration date and price reflecting a quality index of the food or an actual quality worth of the food according to a change in a transporting environment of the food cannot be provided to the consumers.
In addition to that, there is a problem in that a quality index of the food or an actual quality worth of the food according to a change in a transporting environment cannot be accurately obtained since a sensing time of the sensor tag cannot be adjusted according to an environment change generated during the transporting process of the food.
Furthermore, there is a problem in that an individual quality analysis item is set according to a characteristic and a nutritional content of the food and a state of the food is evaluated according to the individual quality analysis item of the food so that a quality index of the nutritional content remaining in the food or the remainder of the expiration date according to an environment change

generated during the transporting and distribution processes of the food cannot be provided to the consumers.
In accordance with an embodiment of the prior art disclosure, a standard food quality monitoring method attaches a sensor tag to a container or palette on which a plurality of food is stacked, senses a change in an environmental factor generated during a transporting process in real-time by using a sensor tag, and monitors a quality change in the food so as to manage food quality and determine a price of the food according to the quality change in the food, which however is error prone and expensive.
It is also well known in the prior art that food items with a considerable quantity of proteins, such as red meat, pork, poultry, processed meat and seafood, spoil over time due to the growth of microbes, such as bacteria, yeasts and fungi. Bacterial decomposition of protein-based non-preservable foods, in turn, produces certain volatile chemical compounds known as amines. Putrescine, cadaverine and histamine are the primaries, amines produced by proteins during decomposition, with the level of amines produced directly corresponding to the degree of microbial spoilage.
Subsequently, the consumption of non-preservable food items with considerable levels of microbial spoilage can result in the contraction of various types of foodborne illnesses. Accordingly, as a protective measure, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) promotes adherence to a food spoilage safety standard of roughly 10 million colony-forming units per gram or CFU/g. Food items with measured bacterial levels above the FDA standard are considered unsafe for consumption and should, therefore, be immediately discarded.

Laboratory testing is every so often performed to ensure that non-preservable food items delivered to consumers meet the food spoilage safety standard. Although successful, laboratory testing is relatively costly, time-consuming and often limited in its availability. As a result, laboratory-quality testing is only performed, if at all, at specified points during the food production supply chain. In addition, it is to be understood that once the food product has been purchased, consumers do not similarly have access to laboratory-quality testing to continuously monitor the spoilage state of the product. Rather, food spoilage is traditionally monitored at the consumer level by either discarding certain products after a predefined period of time (e.g., 3-5 days after opening the food packaging) and/or using basic observational testing (e.g., spot testing of the product by sight, smell or taste). However, since these traditional methods are largely subjective and speculative in nature, they have been found to be highly ineffective in preventing the consumption of food items with unsafe spoilage levels.
Accordingly, consumer-based food quality indicators are known in the art for measuring microbe levels in food items. One type of food quality indicator, or FQI, that is known in the art is constructed in the form of a label that is designed to be affixed to either the inside of a clear food packaging or the outside of a breathable or gas-permeable food packaging. The label includes an externally viewable indicator composition or biosensor, that is sensitive to the presence of amines and, in response thereto, changes color based on the number of amines detected. In this manner, an individual can visually determine the extent of microbial spoilage for a particular food product by observing the color state of the biosensor.

For example, in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0057022, there is disclosed a label-type food quality indicator that is designed to detect unhealthy levels of food spoilage in a sealed food product package, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. In one embodiment, the food quality indicator includes a porous substrate layer onto which is applied an indicator composition, the indicator composition being adapted to change color in response to the presence of chemical compounds that are characteristic of decomposing foods. A patterned adhesive is applied to the underside of the substrate layer to enable the indicator to be affixed to food packaging. In addition, a polyethylene film is secured to the top of the substrate layer by another adhesive layer, the polyethylene film including a die-cut window for viewing the color state of the indicator composition. Therefore, label-type food quality indicators of the type described in the '022 application have been found to suffer from a number of notable shortcomings. As a first shortcoming, label-type food quality indicators of the type described above include dying cuts in one or more its layers in order to, inter alia, adequately expose the indicator composition to amines produced by the food product as well as provide an opening for visually inspecting the color state of the indicator composition. However, it should be noted that the inclusion of die cuts in selected layers prematurely exposes the indicator composition to certain environmental contaminants that can significantly jeopardize its accuracy, such as moisture. As a result, proactive steps are typically required to limit the likelihood of contamination of the biosensor throughout all stages of the manufacture, packaging and use of the food quality indicator, which is highly undesirable.

As a second shortcoming, label-type food quality indicators of the type as described in detail above are relatively complex in construction and, as such, are expensive to manufacture, which is highly undesirable. Specifically, as noted above, each indicator includes a large number of individual layers that are independently die cut. In addition, the plurality of layers is permanently affixed together in a stacked fashion by separately applying multiple layers of adhesives.
In other related prior art disclosure, an indicator for assessing the quality drop, mishap or the like of the foods and beverages, there is a technique revealed, for instance, in JP-A-11 -194053. This disclosure relates to a technique wherein a temperature history is affirmed by diffusing and entering a diffusible dyestuff into a dyestuff diffusing layer to cause a shading change by the temperature rise and the time section.
Additionally, JP-A-11-296086 uncovers a technique wherein a temperature history of the foods and beverages is demonstrated by utilizing an ink changing color reliant upon the heating temperature and time, and legitimately printing an image or a symbol figure or letter on a package for the food sources and drinks or conferring a printed paper or resin sheet onto the package. Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for innovative, novel, efficient solutions for providing systems and methods for accessing internal quality and features of fresh food and meat.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The embodiments of the present disclosure have several features, no single one of which is solely responsible for their desirable attributes. Without limiting

the scope of the present embodiments as expressed by the claims that follow, their more prominent features will now be discussed briefly. After considering this discussion, and particularly after reading the section entitled "Detailed Description", one will understand how the features of the present embodiments provide advantages.
In one embodiment, a system for accessing internal quality and features of fresh food and meat includes, a handheld device for determining internal quality and features of the fresh food and meat; and, an indicator comprising a color changing LED ring for indicating a spoilage level of the fresh food and meat. In use, the indicator is capable of providing quantitative values for quality, print labels or stickers, and can also be used for large volumes of the fresh food and meat. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates a flow diagram of a method for accessing the internal quality and features of fresh food and meat, according to an embodiment of the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Various embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein below, which relate to systems and methods for accessing the internal quality and features of fresh food and meat.
Generally, it is common knowledge that understanding the internal quality of food is very difficult, which raises concerns of food safety and health.

Consequently, lab tests are done to understand the quality parameters, wherein such methods are destructive and generally used for sampling. Embodiments of the instant invention are aimed at detecting internal quality of food in nondestructive manner and quantify the same. In use, the invention disclosed herein allows the users to print a sticker with quantitative information on quality.
Embodiments of the present invention are aimed at solving the problem of
quality check in fresh food. In use, the systems and methods as disclosed
herein are aimed at providing quantitative values for quality, print labels or
stickers, and can also be used for large volumes. In operation, various systems
and methods as disclosed herein integrate multiple IOT sensors, using artificial
intelligence and machine learning to quantify the quality.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a system for
accessing internal quality and features of fresh food and meat includes, a
handheld device for determining internal quality and features of the fresh food
and meat; and, an indicator comprising a color changing LED ring for indicating
a spoilage level of the fresh food and meat. In use, the indicator is capable of
providing quantitative values for quality, print labels or stickers, and can also
be used for large volumes of the fresh food and meat.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the indicator
indicates the spoilage level by changing a crossfade level from a Red color to
a Green color.
FIG. 1 illustrates a flow diagram of a method for accessing the internal quality
and features of fresh food and meat, according to an embodiment of the
invention.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the system further comprises a conveyor belt made with capacitance plates to be used for fruit and vegetable sorting to detect spoilage on a conveyor system. In use, the system further allows for on device printing of a fruit spoilage and brix level report for each scan.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the system is developed to provide integration of multiple IOT sensors, using artificial intelligence and machine learning to quantify the quality.
Conditional language used herein, such as, among others, "can," "could," "might," "may," "e.g.," and the like, unless specifically stated otherwise, or otherwise understood within the context as used, is generally intended to convey that certain embodiments include, while other embodiments do not include, certain features, elements and/or steps. Thus, such conditional language is not generally intended to imply that features, elements and/or steps are in any way required for one or more embodiments or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic for deciding, with or without author input or prompting, whether these features, elements and/or steps are included or are to be performed in any particular embodiment. The terms "comprising," "including," 'having," and the like are synonymous and are used inclusively, in an open-ended fashion, and do not exclude additional elements, features, acts, operations, and so forth. Also, the term "or" is used in its inclusive sense (and not in its exclusive sense) so that when used, for example, to connect a list of elements, the term "or" means one, some, or all of the elements in the list.

While there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of the instant invention it is to be appreciated that the invention may be embodied otherwise than is herein specifically shown and described and that, within said embodiment, certain changes may be made in the form and arrangement of the parts without departing from the underlying ideas or principles of this invention as set forth in the Claims appended herewith. Therefore, the appended claims are to be construed to cover all equivalents falling within the true scope and spirit of the invention.

Claims
We claim,
1. A system for accessing internal quality and features of fresh food and
meat, said system comprising:
a handheld device for determining internal quality and features of said fresh food and meat; and,
an indicator comprising a color changing LED ring for indicating a spoilage level of said fresh food and meat,
wherein said indicator is capable of providing quantitative values for quality, print labels or stickers, and can also be used for large volumes of said fresh food and meat.
2. The system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said indicator indicates said spoilage level by changing a crossfade level from a Red color to a Green color.
3. The system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said system further comprises a conveyor belt made with capacitance plates to be used for fruit and vegetable sorting to detect spoilage on a conveyor system.
4. The system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said system further allows for on device printing of a fruit spoilage and brix level report for each scan.
5. The system as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said system is developed to provide integration of multiple IOT sensors, using artificial intelligence and machine learning to quantify the quality.