Vacuum Roaster Segmented Heating for Uniform Coffee Bean Roasting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional vacuum roasters face issues with uneven heating, smoke generation, and the need for additional cooling and impurity removal processes, particularly when roasting small quantities of coffee beans, leading to inefficiencies and increased facility volume.
Innovation Solution
A compact vacuum roaster design featuring a cylindrical chamber with a rotating basket, vacuum adjustment device, and integrated cooling coil, which maintains a vacuum state to prevent smoke and allows for in-chamber cooling and automatic husk discharge, ensuring even roasting and reduced equipment complexity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If heat is supplied from the burner to the lower surface of the rotating drum, then the green beans are roasted, but the heat is concentrated on the lower surface causing uneven roasting and deterioration of coffee quality
Solution Approach 1:
The heating system is segmented into multiple independent heating units (first heating unit at the lower surface and second heating unit at the upper surface) that can operate independently or simultaneously, allowing heat to be distributed uniformly across different zones of the rotating drum to eliminate concentration on a single surface
Solution Approach 2:
Different heating units are positioned at different locations (lower surface and upper surface) of the rotating drum to provide localized heating where needed, ensuring that each region receives appropriate heat treatment for uniform roasting rather than concentrating all heat at one location
2Reliability
If a large vacuum chamber with continuous supply inlet is used, then vacuum state is maintained and even heating is achieved, but the device is not suitable for small quantity roasting and increases facility volume
Solution Approach 1:
The basket is designed to be rotatable within the vacuum chamber, allowing dynamic movement of the material being roasted. This rotation ensures uniform exposure to heat and vacuum conditions while maintaining processing effectiveness in a smaller chamber volume, eliminating the need for large stationary configurations
Solution Approach 2:
The vacuum chamber is designed to accommodate a rotatable basket that can handle various quantities of material, making the same chamber suitable for both small and medium batch sizes. The multi-functional design allows the chamber to adapt to different roasting needs without requiring separate large and small chambers
3Productivity
If coffee beans are roasted continuously in a rotating drum, then processing efficiency is improved, but additional cooling devices and impurity removal devices are required increasing overall facility volume
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling function is merged into the vacuum chamber by utilizing the vacuum environment itself for cooling purposes, and the impurity removal is integrated through the vacuum system that can抽吸 (suction) away husks and byproducts. This combination eliminates the need for separate cooling devices and impurity removal devices, reducing facility complexity while maintaining continuous processing capability
4Temperature
If the lower surface of the rotating drum is heated, then roasting can be performed, but smoke is generated requiring additional smoke removal systems
Solution Approach 1:
A vacuum environment (inert atmosphere) is created within the chamber during the roasting process, which prevents combustion and smoke generation by removing oxygen. This allows high-temperature heating to proceed without producing harmful smoke, eliminating the need for additional smoke removal systems while maintaining effective roasting
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
Enables efficient, smoke-free roasting of coffee beans without additional cooling or impurity removal processes, maintaining even pressure distribution within the cylindrical chamber, and allowing for precise temperature control, thus improving roasting quality and reducing facility size and costs.
Implementation Method 1
maintaining the inside of a chamber in a vacuum state
Implementation Method 2
a heater installed to the vacuum chamber... the object to be processed is heated
Implementation Method 3
integrated cooling coil, which maintains a vacuum state to prevent smoke and allows for in-chamber cooling
Implementation Method 4
effectively remove moisture from a material that is being roasted without generating smoke
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5(a)~5(b)
AI summary
Disclosed is a vacuum roaster including a chamber, a door cap formed on one side of the chamber so as to be opened or closed, a vacuum cap formed on an opposite side of the chamber, a basket spaced apart from an inner circumferential surface of the chamber, and including a basket door that is opened or closed for introduction and discharge of an object to be processed, a vacuum adjustment device for adjusting a vacuum state inside the chamber, a drive motor connected to the basket via a shaft for rotating the basket, and a heater provided inside the chamber so as to be spaced apart from the basket.