Combining fuzzy querying of imprecise data and predictive microbiology using category-based reasoning for prediction of the possible microbial spoilage in foods: application to [i]Listeria monocytogen[/i]es

Patrice Buche (1) , Catherine Dervin (1) , Agnès Brouillaud-Delattre (2) , Nathalie Gnanou-Besse (3)

1 MIA-Paris - Mathématiques et Informatique Appliquées
2 Agence Française de Sécurité Sanitaire des Aliments
3 Laboratoire d'Etudes et de Recherches sur l'Hygiène et la Qualité des Aliments

Various predictive models of microbial behavior have been created and extensive data collection has been done by numerous private or public laboratories. However, significant differences between predicted and observed values in foods have been observed and need to be stressed, understood and explained as much as possible. In this paper, we present a software tool (currently at the level of a prototype) able: (i) to store in a database all relevant information expressed on one hand as qualitative or quantitative data and on the other hand as precise or imprecise data; (ii) to retrieve the more relevant information from the database using queries where criteria may be expressed as fuzzy values in order to enhance the flexibility of the search; (iii) to compute, in addition to the nearest data, an estimation of searched values using statistical models. The architecture of this software tool is structured as a category-based reasoning system. Example queries about Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) illustrate the functionalities of this tool.

Mots clés: Predictive microbiology; Information retrieval system; Fuzzy logic

Domaines: Logique en informatique [cs.LO]; Génie des procédés

Patrice Buche, Catherine Dervin, Agnès Brouillaud-Delattre, Nathalie Gnanou-Besse. Combining fuzzy querying of imprecise data and predictive microbiology using category-based reasoning for prediction of the possible microbial spoilage in foods: application to [i]Listeria monocytogen[/i]es. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 2002, 73 (2-3), pp.171-185. ⟨10.1016/S0168-1605(01)00647-X⟩. ⟨hal-01229554⟩