Now, a smartphone app that scans and reveals what is inside objects

London: Next time you eat an apple, you can know its specific constituents by looking directly inside it using your smartphone, thanks to the engineers who developed an app that can 'scan' an object and reveal the information about it.

The "HawkSpex mobile" app developed by engineers from Fraunhofer Institute for Factory Operation and Automation IFF in Magdeburg (Germany) gives the information about the objects by aiming the smartphone at the object and scanning it.

For example, if you want to know about an apple, just take out your smartphone and open "HawkSpex mobile" app and scan it. The results will show you if the apple contains pesticide residues and its constituents.

Though such scanning devices already exist, they require users to install additional parts such as a prism onto the front of the integrated camera. 

What makes this app unique is "users do not need anything for a scan other than the camera already integrated in their smartphones," said Udo Seiffert from Fraunhofer IFF.

Researchers said the app can be used for quality control of foods, the effectiveness of cosmetic products or even agriculture.

The app might be launched in the market around the end of 2017.