A Robust Methodology for Fruit Quality Prediction and Estimation Using Intelligent Learning Based Image Processing Logic

Fruit quality prediction plays a vital role in agricultural and food industries, ensuring that only high-quality produce reaches the consumer. Traditional methods of assessing fruit quality rely on manual inspection, which is both time-consuming and prone to human error. This paper presents a robust methodology for fruit quality prediction and estimation, utilizing a hybrid deep learning model that integrates DenseN et for feature extraction with LightGBM for efficient classification. The proposed model is designed to automate the process of fruit quality assessment by analyzing key attributes such as color, texture, and shape from high-resolution fruit images. The Fruit360 dataset was used for training and testing, with images classified into categories such as fresh, ripe, overripe, and damaged. A comprehensive comparison with nine existing models, including SVM, Random Forest, and XGBoost, was conducted using performance metrics such as accuracy, precision, recall, and Fl-score. The proposed model achieved an accuracy of 96.78%, significantly outperforming all other models. Furthermore, the model's precision and recall reached 95.33% and 95.67%, respectively, demonstrating its reliability in distinguishing high-quality fruits from low-quality ones.