Self-Tuning Vision System for Monitoring Bioreactor Cell Populations

A common goal of biotechnological research and of commercial production is the definition of optimum conditions for achieving predetermined objectives. This goal is usually translated into the problem of finding the optimum control strategy that will produce the desired end-product. Today´s fermentation controllers rely mostly on environmental state variables which only provide information on the general behavior of the culture. To achieve optimum performance an on-line supervision of growth is essential. Image processing is widely employed in the laboratory for cell analysis and provides a single cell analysis. The morphological appearance of a microbial cell provides information regarding its health and implications on its metabolic status.