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Non-Invasive Measurement of Subcutaneous Fat Thickness in Beef Cattle

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 February 2011

Leonard S. Taylor  and
Nelson L. Buck
Leonard S. Taylor
Affiliation:
Electrical Engineering Department, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742
Nelson L. Buck
Affiliation:
Instrumentation and Sensing Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705
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Abstract

The object of this project was the evaluation of microwaves as a non-invasive tool for determining the thicknesses of the fat layers directly beneath the hides of beef cattle. The motive for the project is the elimination of the cost of feeding cattle beyond the point at which the muscle is optimally marbled. The nature of the animals and the conditions for operation require a simple, rugged, non-invasive system. Modified open-ended microwave S-band coaxial cavities were applied as contact radiators to the surface of a three-layer sample composed of lean meat and fat tissue, which simulated the configuration of hide, fat and muscle on the outside of an animal. The lean and fat layers loaded the cavity, affecting the resonance frequency, bandwidth, and center-frequency reflection coefficient. Measurements were made with a network analyzer. An exact analysis of the microwave circuit has not been possible, but the in vitro laboratory tests show that a system based on this device can be used to measure subcutaneous fat layer thicknesses up to 16 mm beneath hides up to 16 mm thick.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 347: Symposium O – Microwave Processing of Materials IV , 1994 , 195
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1994

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References

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