Monday, February 15, 2016
A robot originally built by University of Minnesota dentistry professor Ralph DeLong to test dental restoration materials is now being used by food companies to evaluate new versions of existing products. In response to consumer demand for healthier ingredients, many food items are being made with less sugar, salt, or without artificial coloring. But, as DeLong notes, “Sugar doesn't just make a product sweet and salt doesn't just make it salty. They also have chemical interactions with the other things that affect the texture of the food.” That's where the chewing robot comes in; it can, for instance, objectively measure the crispiness of a product based on audio frequencies. See the robot in action and learn more here.