Intelligent Cutting in Fish Processing: Efficient, High-quality, and Safe Production of Fish Products

Fish processing is an indispensable part of fish food production. It mainly involves de-heading, gutting, filleting, skinning, trimming, and slicing, with the cutting operations holding a critical role. Unfortunately, inefficiency, low quality, and poor safety are the primary problems facing the fish processing industry today, dramatically hindering the automation and intelligence of fish processing. Consequently, it is vital to develop intelligent cutting in current fish processing in an efficient, high-quality, and safe manner. This review summarizes the main cutting techniques for fish processing. The critical techniques to achieve intelligent cutting in fish processing from imaging, image processing, and modeling dimensions are outlined, with their applications in practical fish processing. Fish characteristics, cutting mechanisms, and cutting process control are emphasized. In addition, Industry 4.0 technologies, especially the Internet of Things (IoT), big data analytics, and digital twins (DT), are emphasized. Finally, challenges and future work are highlighted, which will serve as references for subsequent researchers and enterprises engaged in this field to promote the automation and intelligence of fish processing production, ultimately realizing the high-efficiency, high-quality, and safe production of fish food products.