PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a new water content measuring method of a low water-content tea leaf and a device therefor, capable of measuring the water content of the low water-content tea leaf highly accurately and inexpensively, and to provide a rational control method in the periphery of a fine rolling process and a drying process positioned on the final stage of a tea manufacturing process.SOLUTION: In this method for forming a transmission path comprising a microstrip line 15 between a transmitter 17 and a receiver 18 of a microwave, positioning a measuring object on the microstrip line 15, and measuring the water content of the measuring object, the measuring object is a tea leaf A whose water content is below 30%, and a microwave is transferred through the microstrip line 15 and a phase-shift quantity is measured, and a temperature of the measuring object at that time is measured, and the water content is derived based on a relational expression using the phase-shift quantity and the temperature as variables: Y=aX+bT+c (Y is a measured moisture, X is the phase-shift quantity, T is the temperature of the tea leaf, and a, b, c are correction values).COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT【課題】 低含水率茶葉の含水率を高精度で、且つ低コストで測定することのできる、新規な低含水率茶葉の含水率測定方法及びその装置並びに製茶加工工程の最終段階に位置する精揉工程及び乾燥工程周辺における合理的な制御方法を開発することを技術課題とした。【解決手段】 マイクロ波の送信機17と受信機18との間にマイクロストリップ線路15から成る伝送路を形成し、このマイクロストリップ線路15上に被測定物を位置させて被処理物の含水率の測定を行う方法において、被測定物を含水率が30%以下の茶葉Aとし、マイクロストリップ線路15にマイクロ波を伝送させて移相量を測定し、このときの被測定物の温度を測定し、移相量と温度とを変数とした関係式Y=aX+bT+c(Yは計測水分、Xは移相量、Tは茶葉の温度、a、b、cは補正値)に基づいて含水率を導出することを特徴として成る。【選択図】図1
