Quaternion-Type Representation for Measuring the Rennet Coagulation Time of Milk by Color Image Sequences Processing

Abstract

The determination of the rennet coagulation time of milk by image sequences processing was performed using a computer vision system (CVS), consisting of a computer coupled with a transmitted light microscope equipped with a digital camera. Algorithms implemented with Matlab 2014 encoded the color image as a quaternion, computed and analyzed the histogram peak. The evolution of this last parameter was monitored as a function of the milk coagulation time, for different concentrations of calcium chloride (0.01–0.03 M) and for coagulation temperatures varying between 30 and 36°C. No statistically significant difference was observed in the measurements of the rennet coagulation time, neither by the Berridge method nor by the analysis of the image sequences, except for those at 36°C. The association of the optical microscopic method and the analysis of image sequences by a quaternion-type representation, made it possible to identify optical changes during gel formation and to accurately determine the rennet coagulation time of milk.