Time
The accuracy of time measurements is dependent upon the accuracy of the clock on which the time measurements are based. Time data is generally derived from a crystal oscillator that produces high precision pulses that drive the sample system. This is used to feed time data from the Texture Analyser to the graph viewed by the user. The resolution of time data corresponds to the number of data points per second on the final graph. This is controlled by the data acquisition rate.
Speed
Texture analysis techniques are frequently designed to be imitative, with the test setup based on a real-life situation in many cases. For example, the Volodkevich Bite Jaws use a pair of blunt wedges with the aim of simulating the biting action of the front incisor teeth. This method is used to measure the bite hardness of cheese or the tenderness of meat. Other imitative tests include three-point bend testing of biscuits, imitating the snapping motion performed by consumers before they are eaten, the use of a Warner-Bratzler Blade on sausages to imitate the forces experienced during consumption, or the tensile measurement of a piece of pizza to imitate the process of pulling with the teeth. Consequently, the test settings in many cases aim to imitate the process as much as the experimental setup does. The results of many texture analysis measurements are influenced by the test speed used, including those measured during Texture Profile Analysis. The velocity of the jaw during a standard chewing cycle, for example, ranges approximately from 0 to 50 mm.s-1, and so the test speeds used in the majority of cases sit somewhere in this range.
