Oven Temperature Control via Segmented Heat Modeling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Industrial ovens used in food production, such as tortilla chip production, face challenges in maintaining consistent temperature control, leading to undesirable quality variations in the final product despite advancements in oven design and energy efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A temperature-controlled oven system with a heat control unit that calculates and adjusts gas burner output based on a heat model, using a processor, memory, and feedback control algorithms to maintain a set temperature, incorporating a gas flow network with pressure-regulated gas supply and variable flow control valves to optimize heat demand.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If modern control algorithms are used in large industrial ovens, then temperature control capability is improved, but temperature oscillations still occur causing quality variations
Solution Approach 1:
The oven is divided into multiple independently controllable zones along the belt transport path. Each zone has its own heating elements and temperature sensors, allowing localized temperature control. This segmentation enables precise temperature maintenance in each section without affecting the entire oven, thereby reducing temperature oscillations and improving product quality consistency.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the oven are assigned different temperature setpoints based on the specific heating requirements of the food product at each stage. The control system adjusts heating power locally in each zone rather than uniformly across the entire oven, enabling precise temperature control that adapts to local process requirements and minimizes temperature variations.
2Power
If multiple burners per belt are used in complex oven designs, then heating capability is improved, but temperature control difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
Each heating zone is equipped with temperature sensors that continuously monitor the actual temperature and feed this information back to the control system. The control system compares the measured temperature with the desired setpoint and automatically adjusts the power to heating elements in real-time, maintaining stable temperature control even with multiple burners per belt.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system dynamically adjusts the power distribution to multiple burners based on real-time temperature measurements and process conditions. Rather than operating all burners at fixed power levels, the system modulates burner output dynamically to maintain optimal temperature profiles, reducing control difficulty while preserving high heating capability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively stabilizes oven temperature, reducing oscillations and improving product quality by precisely controlling heat output, thereby enhancing energy efficiency and product consistency.
Implementation Method 1
gas burners, which are configured to bake or toast the food products that are transported on the oven belt
Implementation Method 2
gas burners, which are configured to bake or toast the food products
Implementation Method 3
oven belt, which transports food products that are positioned on the oven belt
Data Source
AI summary
A heat controlled oven system includes a plurality of oven levels, including an oven belt and gas burners; a gas flow network, including a gas supply line, a variable flow control valve, and on/off flow control valves; and a heat control unit, including a processor, a non-transitory memory, and input/output component, a heat modeler, a heat manager, a feedback controller, and a valve controller, such that the heat control unit is configured to calculate an estimated heat demand to adjust to a temperature set point, based on a heat model of the at least one oven level, and further calculates an optimized heat demand using a control loop feedback algorithm. Also disclosed is a method of heat calculation for an oven, including defining a heat model, calculating and optimizing the estimated heat demand, calculating and setting a variable valve position for the gas burners.