A system for managing on-site food processing and traceability.

Abstract

This invention relates to a system and method for managing on-site food processing and traceability. The system includes an industrial computer housed in a waterproof enclosure, and a touchscreen display, weighing interface, label printer, code reader, and communication interface connected to the industrial computer. It receives source batch and product information via a graphical user interface, and generates a machine-readable code and corresponding label after obtaining a stable weight from the weighing device. The label is affixed to the food item, and a traceability record is established in a database. During subsequent processing, inventory, and shipping, processing data and status are obtained by scanning the label, continuously updating the traceability record to maintain a complete traceability chain from the source batch through multiple stages of processing. Furthermore, it can generate reports and recall lists that comply with food safety regulations through a multilingual human-machine interface and a cloud database.

Claims

1. A system for managing on-site food processing and traceability, comprising: A housing suitable for a food processing environment; an industrial computer housed within the housing, the industrial computer including one or more processors and a memory storing instructions; a touch display operationally connected to the industrial computer and configured to display a graphical user interface; a weighing interface operationally connected to the industrial computer and configured to receive weight data from at least one weighing device; at least one label printer operationally connected to the industrial computer and configured to print labels carrying machine-readable codes; at least one code reader operationally connected to the industrial computer and configured to read the machine-readable code from the label; and a communication interface operationally connected to the industrial computer and configured to communicate with a database; wherein the processor, when executing the instructions, is configured to: receive source batch identification information for identifying food items from a source batch through the graphical user interface and / or the code reader; receive product information of at least a portion of the food items associated with the source batch through the graphical user interface; and obtain weight data of the portion of the food items through the weighing interface; Generate a machine-readable code that encodes at least one code identifier and is associated in the database with source batch identification information, product information, and weight data; control the label printer to print a label carrying the machine-readable code that can be affixed to the food item; establish a traceability record for the food item in the database, which associates the machine-readable code with the source batch, product information, and weight data; maintain a current state for each traceability record, selected from a predetermined set of states representing the lifecycle of the food item through multiple processing stages; execute a set of state transition rules that define permitted and prohibited state transitions between the predetermined set of states; and implement a gate on a requested processing operation, allowing the requested processing operation to be registered as a state transition only when the following conditions are met simultaneously: The machine-readable code is successfully read by the code reader; and the set of state transition rules indicates that the requested state transition from the current state to a target state is permitted; and after permitting the requested processing operation, a single update transaction is executed on the database to simultaneously update: the processing event data of the trace record corresponding to the requested processing operation; and the current state to the target state, thereby maintaining consistency between the trace record and the current state across the multiple processing stages.

2. The system as described in claim 1, wherein the processor is further configured to determine that the weight data is stable over at least a predetermined time interval, and to generate and print the label only after the weight data is determined to be stable.

3. The system as described in claim 1, wherein the at least one label printer includes a first label printer for printing one type of box-level labels and a second label printer for printing one type of pallet-level or container-level labels, and wherein the one or more processors are configured to generate a pallet-level or container-level summary code associated in the database with identification codes of the plurality of box-level labels.

4. The system as described in Request 1, wherein the set of state transition rules requires that: before recording the transfer of the food item from a first processing station to a second processing station, the machine-readable code must be successfully read, and station identification information must be recorded in the single update transaction, the station identification information being used to identify the first processing station and / or the second processing station.

5. The system as described in claim 1, wherein the one or more processors are configured to prevent the creation of a traceability record not associated with any of the said source batch identification information, thereby preventing the creation of an orphan traceability record.

6. The system as described in claim 1, wherein the communication interface is configured to communicate with a cloud database server, and wherein the one or more processors are configured to: buffer at least a portion of the trace record and / or the single update transaction locally when communication with the cloud database server is unavailable, and synchronize the buffered at least portion when communication is restored.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface is configured to display a plurality of optional product keys to represent different food products and / or operating modes, and wherein the processor is configured to automatically reorder and / or prominently display the optional product keys based on recent usage frequency.

8. The system as described in claim 1, wherein the graphical user interface can be configured to display text and product information in multiple languages, and wherein the processor is configured to select a display language and a label printing language based on user profiles, target markets and / or regulatory requirements.

9. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising at least one audio output device, wherein the processor is configured to generate an audible alarm when the machine-readable code read by the code reader does not correspond to any trace record stored in the database, and / or corresponds to a batch designated for blocking, isolation and / or retrieval.

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