Automatic Visual Inspection of Agricultural Grains: Demands, Potential Applications, and Challenges for Technology Transfer to the Agroindustrial Sector

Background: The growing global demand for grains and the pursuit of greater efficiency in agroindustrial production processes have fueled scientific interest in technologies for automatic visual inspection of agricultural grains (AVIAG). Despite the increasing number of studies on this topic, few have addressed the practical implementation of these technologies within industrial environments. Objective: This study aims to investigate the technological demands, analyze the potential applications, and identify the challenges for technology transfer of AVIAG technologies to the agroindustrial sector. Methods: The methodological approach combined a comprehensive literature review, which enabled the mapping of AVIAG technology applications and technological maturity levels, with a structured survey designed to identify practical demands, challenges, and barriers to technology transfer in the agricultural sector. Results: The results show that most of the proposed solutions exhibit low technological maturity and require significant adaptation for practical application, which undermines the discussion on technology transfer. Conclusions: The main barriers to large-scale adoption of AVIAG technologies include limited dissemination of scientific knowledge, a shortage of skilled labor, high implementation costs, and resistance to changes in production processes. Nonetheless, the literature highlights benefits, such as increased automation, enhanced operational efficiency, and reduced post-harvest losses, which reinforce the potential of AVIAG technologies in advancing the modernization of the agroindustrial sector.