WO2017142186A1 - Drying apparatus and control method therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

A drying apparatus and a control method therefor are disclosed. The drying apparatus comprises: a main body for forming a cavity in which objects are dried; multiple waveguides provided at one side of the main body, and emitting a microwave to the objects; a plurality of magnetrons provided at one side of the main body, and generating the microwave and respectively transmitting the same to the multiple waveguides; a plurality of power units for respectively transmitting, to the plurality of magnetrons, high voltage for generating the microwave; and a control unit, wherein the control unit controls the plurality of power units so as to successively turn the power units on/off in a preset pattern such that the microwave is uniformly emitted in the cavity from the multiple waveguides.

Description

Drying apparatus and its control method

The present invention relates to a drying apparatus and a control method thereof, and more particularly, to a drying apparatus for uniformly drying an object and a control method thereof.

In order to keep food for a long time, various methods are used. Among them, a commonly used method is to dry food and store it.

In order to dry food, humidity and temperature must be properly maintained, which is very cumbersome. Recently, various drying devices have been developed to easily dry food.

On the other hand, uniform drying of the dry matter during drying is very important in terms of commerciality of the dry matter. Conventionally, the drying apparatus uses a rotating plate or a stirrer pan to uniformly dry the dried object, but it is very difficult to uniformly dry all of the various dried items because the shape and size of the dried object are different. In addition, as a device such as a rotating plate or a fan is provided in the drying device, there is a disadvantage in that the volume of the drying device increases and the manufacturing cost increases.

Accordingly, there has been a need for a search for a method for uniformly drying the dried object without any special apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in accordance with the above-described needs, and an object of the present invention is to provide a drying apparatus and a method of controlling the same, which can dry an object uniformly by controlling the emission of microwaves based on the arrangement position and time of the waveguide.

Drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object is provided on one side of the main body, the body to form a cavity (cavity) to dry the object (object), and emits microwaves to the object A waveguide, provided on one side of the main body, a plurality of magnetrons generating the microwaves and transmitting the plurality of magnetrons to the multiple waveguides, and a plurality of power supply units respectively transmitting high voltages for generating the microwaves to the plurality of magnetrons, and a control unit. The controller controls the plurality of power units to be sequentially turned on / off in a predetermined pattern so that the microwaves are uniformly radiated in the cavity in the multiple waveguide.

The multiple waveguides may include individual waveguides that respectively radiate the microwaves, and the plurality of individual waveguides may be arranged in a symmetrical structure.

The control unit sequentially controls the power supply unit to emit the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the same single row or column, and radiate the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the next one row or column after a predetermined time. can do.

In addition, the control unit may control the power supply unit to emit the microwaves for a predetermined time alternately in a plurality of non-adjacent individual waveguides.

In addition, the control unit may sequentially control the power supply unit to emit the microwaves only for a predetermined time in the individual waveguides arranged in the predetermined zone, and to emit the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the next zone after the preset time. .

In addition, the control method of the drying apparatus including a cavity according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object is a step of receiving a control command by a user interface, the microwave based on the received control command Sequentially generating the microwaves in a predetermined pattern to uniformly radiate therein and radiating the generated microwaves sequentially into the object through the multiple waveguides.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the drying apparatus and a method of controlling the same may uniformly dry an object by controlling the radiation time and the radiation position of the microwave according to the arrangement position and time of the waveguide.

1 is a view showing a drying apparatus according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken toward the cutting line A-A 'of FIG. 1.

3 is a view showing a part of a drying apparatus according to another embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a drive system of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a driving process of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a method for improving uniformity by controlling multiple waveguide lengths and phases of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

7 and 8 are views for explaining the structure of the drying chamber and the single waveguide analysis and design according to it.

9 and 10 are diagrams for explaining the structure of the drying chamber and the single waveguide analysis and design according thereto.

11 and 12 are views showing the layout and design of the analysis of the multiple waveguides.

13 is a diagram illustrating a temperature analysis according to a multiple waveguide arrangement.

14 is a view for explaining an optimized state of the waveguide for uniform radiation.

15 is a diagram illustrating a temperature distribution state according to various conditions.

16 to 18 are diagrams for explaining the design and fabrication of the impedance matching device for improving the reflected power.

19 is a diagram for describing a drying apparatus, according to an exemplary embodiment.

20 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment.

21 is a diagram for describing a method of controlling a temperature of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment.

22 is a diagram for describing a multiple waveguide, according to an exemplary embodiment.

23 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling a drying apparatus, according to an embodiment.

24 is a block diagram of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment.

FIG. 25 is an enlarged block diagram of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. 24.

26 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of waveguides according to an exemplary embodiment.

27 illustrates a microwave radiation pattern according to an embodiment.

FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating an experimental result of the radiation pattern of FIG. 27.

29 is a diagram for explaining a microwave radiation pattern, according to another embodiment.

30 and 31 are diagrams illustrating experimental results of the radiation pattern of FIG. 29.

32 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling a drying apparatus, according to an embodiment.

Hereinafter, various embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments described herein may be variously modified. Specific embodiments are depicted in the drawings and may be described in detail in the detailed description. However, the specific embodiments disclosed in the accompanying drawings are only for easily understanding the various embodiments. Therefore, the technical spirit is not limited by the specific embodiments disclosed in the accompanying drawings, and it should be understood to include all equivalents or substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the invention.

 Terms including ordinal numbers such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but these components are not limited by the terms described above. The terms described above are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

In this specification, the terms "comprises" or "having" are intended to indicate that there is a feature, number, step, operation, component, part, or combination thereof described in the specification, and one or more other features. It is to be understood that the present invention does not exclude the possibility of the presence or the addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, components, or a combination thereof. When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "connected" to another component, it may be directly connected to or connected to that other component, but it may be understood that other components may be present in between. Should be. On the other hand, when a component is said to be "directly connected" or "directly connected" to another component, it should be understood that there is no other component in between.

On the other hand, "module" or "unit" for the components used in the present specification performs at least one function or operation. The module or unit may perform a function or an operation by hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. In addition, a plurality of “modules” or a plurality of “parts” other than “modules” or “parts” to be executed in specific hardware or executed in at least one processor may be integrated into at least one module. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

In addition, in describing the present invention, when it is determined that a detailed description of a related known function or configuration may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be abbreviated or omitted.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a view illustrating a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view viewed toward a cutting line A-A 'of FIG. 1.

1 and 2, the drying apparatus 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is a microwave oven, for example, the main body 10, the cooking window 20, the door 30, the operation panel ( 40) and microwave generators 60, 70, 110, and 120.

The inside of the main body 10 is provided with a cavity (cavity) 50 having a receiving space of a predetermined size so that food can be accommodated, for example cooking by microwave. In addition, the cooking window 20 is attached to the front portion of the main body 10, the door 30 is coupled to open and close, and the operation panel 40 is coupled to one front side of the main body 10. Here, the operation panel 40 may correspond to a control unit or a user interface unit for controlling the drying apparatus 100. Therefore, it may be called a control panel.

On the other hand, the outer surface of the cavity 50 is provided with a plurality of magnetrons 120 for generating microwaves, and the output of the plurality of magnetrons 120 to the microwaves generated from the magnetron 120 to the inside of the cavity 50 Multiple waveguides 110 for guiding each are combined. In addition, a transformer 60 for supplying power to the plurality of magnetrons 120 is installed at the lower side of the magnetron 120, and the magnetron 120 is provided around the magnetron 120. A cooling fan 70 for cooling is installed.

According to the exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, since the drying apparatus 100 includes multiple waveguides 110 that emit microwaves into the cavity 50, the drying apparatus 100 does not need to have a tentable in the cavity as in the prior art, The configuration of the motor for rotating can also be omitted. Through this, the cost of the drying apparatus 100 can be saved.

The multiple waveguide 110 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure preferably has a left-right symmetry structure. Through this, it is possible to achieve a uniform temperature distribution in the cavity 50. For example, it may have a symmetrical structure with respect to the incident surface on which the food is placed. Individual waveguides, that is, islands, independent of other waveguides, form islands, that is, islands, which form a symmetrical structure as a whole. For example, it may be square, hexagonal and octagonal.

Unlike the conventional microwave oven, the main body 10 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure has a design for guiding a space in which the food is placed because the table does not have a ten table or a separate structure. It may be formed.

3 is a view showing a part of a drying apparatus according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in FIG. 3, the drying apparatus 100 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure includes a main body 310, a conveyor belt 320, and a multiple waveguide 330 forming a cavity, and include a plurality of magnetrons. The control unit may further include.

The main body 310 forms a cavity by the upper main body. The object to be dried, that is, the object (object) moved along the conveyor belt 320 is moved into the cavity and dried by microwaves emitted by the multiple waveguide 330. This may be appropriately applied to food waste drying.

The outer main body 310 wraps the conveyor belt 320 from the outside and forms a cavity, and the multiple waveguides 330 are provided by forming a symmetrical structure. The outer body 310 may be formed of various kinds of materials.

Although not shown in the drawing, the multiple waveguide 330 includes an input terminal 340 to which microwaves are respectively input from a plurality of magnetrons. As shown in FIG. 3, the multiple waveguides 330 have the same length as the waveguides 330. Thus, for example, when impedance matching is performed by the impedance matching tuners 350 provided in the individual waveguides 330-1, 330-2, 330-3, and 330-4, microwaves having the same characteristics may be radiated into the cavity. Could be. For example, if the source damage of the microwave due to the reflected power, that is, the feedback power, can be a problem, the tuner 350 may be adjusted. In fact, the tuner 350 may be omitted from the drying apparatus 100 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. However, when adjusting the tuner 350, the LC value of the waveguide 330 is changed, through which the reflected power is adjusted to change the characteristics of the microwave. Here, "characteristic" may include the intensity and intensity of the microwave.

Of course, the above case is assumed that the multiple waveguides 330 are formed in the same length. If multiple waveguides 330 are formed at different lengths, the intensity or intensity of the microwaves may vary. In other words, the characteristics of the microwave may be changed by controlling the voltage or current input to the magnetron through the controller. For example, by changing the magnitude or phase of the input voltage to generate microwaves, the intensity and intensity of the microwaves may be controlled.

As such, the multi-waveguide 330 according to the embodiment of the present disclosure goes beyond simply changing the arrangement structure, the length of each waveguide (330-1 ~ 330-3), the electric field incidence and phase of the input terminal 340 Through various methods such as adjustment and impedance matching, the performance of the dryer, for example, the microwave oven 100 of FIG. 1 or the drying apparatus 100 of FIG. 3 may be improved.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a drive system 400 of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. 3.

As shown in FIG. 4, the driving system of the drying apparatus 100 of FIG. 3 may include some or all of the power supply unit 410, the control unit 420, the microwave generator 440, and the user interface unit 430. Can be.

Here, "including all or part" means that some components such as the user interface unit 430 may be omitted, or may be integrated with other components such as the control unit 420, and the like. Explain all inclusive to aid understanding.

Compared with the microwave oven 100 of FIG. 1, the power supply unit 410 and the microwave generator 440 of FIG. 4 are the control unit 420 and the user interface unit 430 of the microwave generator of FIG. 1. May correspond to.

Here, the user interface unit 430 means an input button selected by a user to start cooking of food. If remote control is possible, it may be a signal receiver using a remote controller.

When a user command is input through the user interface unit 430, the controller 420 may operate an internal timer to calculate a cooking time, and simultaneously operate the microwave generator 440 to uniformly operate the inside of the microwave oven. To form a temperature distribution. In addition, the controller 420 may provide the voltage generated by the power supply unit 410 to the microwave generator 440. The microwave generator 440 generates microwaves through the magnetron using the high pressure provided from the power supply unit 410.

In addition, the controller 420 may adjust the intensity and intensity of the microwave generated from the microwave generator 440 by adjusting the magnitude and phase of the voltage input to the microwave generator 440. According to the structure change of the multiple waveguides 330-1 to 330-4 of FIG. 3, the controller 420 may perform various types of control operations.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a driving process of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The drying apparatus 100 of FIG. 3 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure receives a control command by a user interface (S500).

Then, the drying apparatus generates microwaves based on the received control command (S510). For example, if the user has set a drying time of about 30 minutes by operating the drying apparatus 100, the drying apparatus will emit microwaves through the multiple waveguides for 30 minutes.

In addition, the drying apparatus controls at least one of the generated intensity and intensity of the microwave to emit microwaves into the dried material through waveguides having different lengths (S520). Here, the intensity and intensity of the microwave may be adjusted according to the magnitude and phase of the input voltage. Such a change in the characteristics of the microwave may be determined by the system designer designing the multiple waveguide 330 of FIG. 3. Therefore, the above description is not particularly limited.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a method for improving uniformity by controlling multiple waveguide lengths and phases of the drying apparatus illustrated in FIG. 3.

For convenience of description, referring to FIG. 6 together with FIG. 3, the drying apparatus 100 of FIG. 3 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure may have angles for individual waveguides 330-1 to 330-4 of the multiple waveguide 330. The length may be arranged to have a phase difference or an arrangement with a difference of 1 / 4λ.

FIG. 6 shows the result of electromagnetic wave and temperature analysis on the water surface, for example, the conveyor belt 320 (or a peripheral portion thereof) after applying 1 KW of power to the multiple waveguide 330. 3, the conveyor belt 320 may be formed with an antenna and an RF system lab. (A) of FIG. 6 shows before length adjustment, and (b) of FIG. 6 shows after length adjustment, respectively.

By using a scheme for improving uniformity using multiple waveguides 330 as in embodiments of the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce the non-radiated point, and the point where the radiation of microwaves in the dried product is over-radiated and / Alternatively, the electromagnetic waves at non-radiated spots can be made uniform to reduce drying or reduce burning products.

7 and 8 are diagrams for explaining the structure of the drying chamber and the single waveguide analysis and design according to it, showing that the drying chamber is a cavity structure.

7 and 8 show the electromagnetic wave analysis according to the excitation position of the magnetron. When the 2.45 GHz electromagnetic wave signal is excited in the 1 KW single waveguide as shown in FIG. 7, the temperature distribution of the water surface in the cavity is as shown in FIG. 8. Appearing. In summary, it is shown in <Table 1>.

Wavelength (λ)	Length (L: mm)	Temperature distribution (℃)
2/8 λ	30	20-227
3/8 λ	45	20-65
4/8 λ	60	20-90
5/8 λ	75	20-140
6/8 λ	90	20-113
7/8 λ	105	20-196
8/8 λ	120	20-160

9 and 10 are diagrams for explaining the structure of the drying chamber and the single waveguide analysis and design according to it, showing that the drying chamber is a shielded structure.

When using the structure of the drying chamber as a shielded structure as shown in Figure 9 and 10, it can be seen that there are many differences depending on the wavelength or the length of the conduit. In summary, the temperature distribution can be expressed as shown in <Table 2>.

Wavelength (λ)	Length (H: mm)	Temperature distribution (℃)
5/24 λ	25.5	20-110
7/24 λ	35.5	20-147
9/24 λ	45.5	20-245
11/24 λ	55.5	20-201
13/24 λ	65.5	20-188
15/24 λ	75.5	20-196
17/24 λ	85.5	20-233
19/24 λ	95.5	20-302
21/24 λ	105.5	20-342
23/24 λ	115.5	20-328
25/24 λ	125.5	20-291
27/24 λ	135.5	20-300
29/24 λ	145.5	20-320
31/24 λ	155.5	20-249

11 and 12 are views showing the layout and design of the analysis of the multiple waveguides, showing the shielded dry chamber analysis conditions according to the multiple waveguide arrangement of 4 KW. 13 is a figure which shows the temperature analysis by multiple waveguide arrangement.

In FIG. 11, the distance between the waveguides is d, the distance from the upper excitation portion is L, the distance from the lower shield drying chamber excitation portion is H, and the height between the water surface and the shielding drying chamber is represented by H, respectively.

Of course, the multiple waveguides may be arranged in various shapes as shown in FIG. 12, and six types may be considered as shown in FIG. 12. In the multiple waveguide according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in FIG. 12, the entire structure is preferably a symmetrical structure.

The temperature distribution measured using the multiple waveguides according to various forms of FIG. 12 shows the form as shown in FIG. 13, and the temperature distribution can be seen as shown in Table 3. Of course, this may be the case if the above conditions are the same and only the arrangement is changed.

type	Temperature distribution (℃)
①	20-364
②	20-900
③	20-800
④	20-480
⑤	20-429
⑥	20-500

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an optimized state of a waveguide for uniform radiation, and FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating a temperature distribution state according to various conditions.

As shown in FIG. 14, in the various arrangement structures of FIG. 12, the fifth form is selected as a waveguide arrangement suitable for improving the uniformity of electromagnetic waves and temperature, and excites a 1 KW signal at each waveguide inlet, and electromagnetic waves on the water surface. And temperature analysis.

As shown in (a) to (c) of FIG. 15, electromagnetic waves and temperature analysis were confirmed while maintaining a symmetrical structure, and as shown in (b) and (c), the phase difference of each waveguide and the size of the waveguide I tried to increase. For example, the phase difference allows each waveguide to have a phase difference of 90 degrees, and the size of the waveguide is increased by 1 / 4λ.

As a result, as can be seen in FIG. 15, it can be seen that there are many differences.

16 to 18 are diagrams for explaining the design and fabrication of the impedance matching device for improving the reflected power.

As shown in FIG. 16, the intensity of the microwave may be improved by inserting a tuner for impedance matching of multiple waveguides. In FIG. 16, the waveguide uses WR-340, and the excitation position is 1/4 lambda point (30 mm), and shows impedance matching by length adjustment of z, r, and s. Where z is the distance from the excitation, r is the tuner radius, and s is the tuner length, respectively.

When comparing the Smith chart by the impedance matching as shown in Figure 17, before the tuner is inserted (see Figure 17a) and after the tuner is inserted (see Figure 17b) is clearly contrasted.

In addition, when analyzing the water surface temperature by impedance matching as shown in Figure 18, it can be seen that the temperature distribution intensity is improved after the tuner insertion than before the tuner insertion.

On the other hand, the drying apparatus 100 may emit microwaves uniformly in the cavity in another manner.

19 is a view for explaining a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Fig. 19, the drying apparatus 100 of the present invention dries a dry object (object) 2. Here, the cavity form with an internal space like the microwave oven of the drying apparatus 100 is demonstrated, for example.

The drying apparatus 100 dries the dried object 2 (for example, foods, such as a vegetable and meat). Specifically, the drying apparatus 100 heats and evaporates moisture contained in the object to be dried 2 using microwaves.

To this end, the drying apparatus 100 may radiate while changing the direction of the microwaves.

Specifically, the object to be dried 2 contains moisture, that is, the water molecules are polar. By constantly changing the direction of the emitted microwaves, the direction of the arrangement of water molecules also changes and heat is generated. Using this principle, the drying apparatus 100 may evaporate the moisture contained in the dry matter (2).

Here, microwaves are electromagnetic waves with a very high frequency. Electromagnetic waves can be classified according to frequency. Generally, electromagnetic waves from 300 MHz to 30 GHz are called microwaves.

The drying apparatus 100 may be implemented in various forms such as a agricultural product dryer, a food waste dryer, a refrigerator, as well as the microwave oven illustrated in FIG. 19.

On the other hand, the drying apparatus 100 may include a conveyor belt (not shown). In this case, the conveyor belt moves the object placed on the conveyor belt, and the object is dried by microwaves while being moved. The drying apparatus 100 may sense a temperature of a region where microwaves are emitted simultaneously with or sequentially during drying, and adjust the intensity of the microwaves emitted based on the sensed temperature.

On the other hand, the drying apparatus 100 may dry the entire portion of the object to be dried 2 uniformly, hereinafter will be described in detail with respect to various embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

20 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

According to FIG. 20, the drying apparatus 100b includes a multiple waveguide 110, a plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150, and a controller 140.

The multiple waveguide 110 radiates microwaves to the object, respectively, to dry the object (object).

In general, as the distance from the waveguide to which the microwaves are radiated increases to the object, the intensity of the microwaves reaching the object decreases. Thus, each of the multiple waveguides 110 may emit microwaves to each of the plurality of virtual spaces inside the drying apparatus 100b so that uniform microwaves reach the entire region inside the drying apparatus 100b. That is, each of the multiple waveguides 110 may be matched with each of the plurality of virtual spaces to emit microwaves. Here, each of the plurality of virtual spaces matched with each of the multiple waveguides 110 is defined as a target region of the multiple waveguide 110.

On the other hand, the plurality of temperature sensor 150 senses the temperature inside the drying apparatus (100b). That is, the plurality of temperature sensors 150 may sense the temperature of each target region where each of the plurality of microwaves is radiated.

Here, the temperature sensed in each target region may be a different temperature depending on the shape of the object to be dried.

If the plurality of microwaves are of the same intensity and the object is uniform in shape, the entire area of the object will be heated uniformly, but if the object is not in a uniform shape, it is difficult to uniformly heat the entire area of the object.

In other words, when the shape of the object is irregular, the intensity of the microwaves reaching each part of the object may be different even when the multiple waveguide 110 emits microwaves of the same intensity. Thereby, the temperature for each site | part of a to-be-dried thing may differ, and the dryness (degree of drying) of each site | part of a to-be-dried thing may also differ. In this regard, it is necessary to make the temperature constant for each site of the object to be dried.

To this end, the plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150 senses the temperature of each of the plurality of virtual spaces matched to the multiple waveguide 110 and provides the sensed temperature information to the controller 140 to be described later, and the controller 140 By controlling the multiple waveguides 110 it is possible to adjust the micro radiation dose.

Here, the temperature sensor 150 may be a non-contact temperature sensor, such as an infrared temperature sensor, a radiation temperature sensor, but is not limited thereto, and may be a contact temperature sensor such as a platinum resistance temperature sensor. Of course.

The controller 140 uniformly adjusts the temperature inside the drying apparatus 100b. To this end, the controller 140 may use the temperatures sensed by the plurality of temperature sensors 150.

In detail, the controller 140 may adjust the intensity of power applied to at least one of the multiple waveguides 110 based on the temperatures sensed by the plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150.

For example, the controller 140 calculates a deviation with respect to the temperature of the region in which each of the plurality of microwaves is radiated, and adjusts the temperature inside the drying apparatus 100b or based on whether the predetermined temperature is satisfied. The temperature inside the drying apparatus 100b can be adjusted. This will be described by way of example with reference to FIG. 21.

21 is a view for explaining a temperature control method of the drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Here, it is assumed that the interior of the drying apparatus 100 ′ is divided into virtual spaces A, B, C, and D having the same size. In addition, it is assumed that each of the multiple waveguides 110 '110'-1, 110-2', 110-3 ', and 110-4' has virtual spaces A, B, C, and D as target regions, respectively. In addition, each of the plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150 '150'-1, 150'-2, 150'-3, 150'-4 senses the temperature of each of the virtual spaces A, B, C, and D. Assume

For example, the controller (not shown) may calculate a deviation with respect to the temperature of the region in which each of the plurality of microwaves is emitted, and adjust the temperature inside the drying apparatus 100 ′ based on the deviation.

Referring to FIG. 21, the controller calculates a deviation (deviation = variance-average) with respect to the temperature of the regions A, B, C, and D in which each of the plurality of microwaves is emitted. For example, the temperatures of the virtual spaces A, B, C, and D sensed from each of the plurality of temperature sensors 150 '(150'-1, 150'-2, 150'-3, 150'-4) Assuming 50, 54, 58, and 62, the average is 56, and the deviations of the virtual spaces A, B, C, and D are -6, -2, 2, and 6 in order.

In this case, the controller may adjust the intensity of the power applied to at least one of the multiple waveguides 110 ′ such that the calculated deviation of the temperature is equal to or less than a preset threshold. Here, when the temperature deviation of a virtual region is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold value, temperature adjustment for the virtual region may be unnecessary. This threshold value can of course be manipulated and changed by the user of the drying apparatus 100 '.

Specifically, when there is a region having a positive deviation of the calculated temperature, the controller may reduce the intensity of the power applied to the waveguide for emitting microwaves in the positive deviation region.

For example, assuming that the preset threshold value is 4 in the above-described example, the control unit may select one of the virtual spaces C (deviation is 2) and D (deviation is 6), in which the deviation of the calculated temperature has a positive value. The intensity of power applied to the fourth waveguide 110 ′ -4 having the virtual space D exceeding a predetermined threshold value as a target area is reduced. Accordingly, when the deviation of the virtual space D falls within the range of the threshold value, the control unit sets the intensity of the power source of the fourth waveguide 110'-4 to a predetermined intensity or other waveguides 110'-1, 110'-. 2, 110'3) can be the same intensity.

On the other hand, when there is a region having a negative value of the calculated deviation of temperature, the controller may increase the intensity of the power applied to the waveguide for emitting microwaves in the negative deviation region.

For example, assuming that the preset threshold value is 4 in the above-described example, the controller controls the virtual spaces A (deviation is -2) and B (deviation is -6) in which the calculated deviation of the temperature has a positive value. The intensity of the power applied to the second waveguide 110 ′-2 having the virtual space B exceeding the region of the predetermined threshold value as the target region is increased. Accordingly, when the deviation of the virtual space D falls within the range of the threshold value, the control unit sets the intensity of the power supply of the second waveguide 110'-2 to a predetermined intensity or other waveguides 110'-1 and 110'-. 3 and 110'4).

Meanwhile, as another example, the controller (not shown) may adjust the internal temperature of the drying apparatus 100 ′ based on a preset temperature.

Here, it is assumed that the preset temperature is 56 degrees, the preset threshold value is 4, and the temperatures of the virtual spaces A, B, C, and D are 50, 54, 58, and 62, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 21, the control unit emits each of the plurality of microwaves based on the temperatures A, B, C, and D that are sensed by the plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150 ′ in the order of 50, 54, 58, and 62, respectively. A waveguide for determining the virtual regions A and D in which the difference between the predetermined temperature of 56 degrees and the predetermined threshold value 4 or more exists and the temperature of the virtual regions A and D is smaller than the predetermined threshold value 4. The intensity of the power applied to can be adjusted. For example, since the temperature of the virtual region A is different from the preset temperature by 6, the controller increases the intensity of the power applied to the first waveguide 110'-1. In addition, since the temperature of the virtual region B and the predetermined temperature differ by 6, the controller decreases the intensity of the power applied to the second waveguide 110'-2. Accordingly, when the temperature of at least one of the virtual spaces A and D falls within a range of a predetermined threshold value, the controller may control the power of at least one of the first waveguide and the fourth waveguide 110'-1 and 110'-4. The intensity may be a preset intensity or may be the same as at least one of the other waveguides 110'-2 and 110'-3.

FIG. 22 is a diagram for describing a plurality of waveguides according to an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 22: shows the state which looked down the drying apparatus 100 'of FIG. 21 from the upper side.

Referring to FIG. 22, the drying apparatus 100 ′ may include multiple waveguides 110 ′ -1, 110 ′ -2, 110 ′ -3 and 110 ′ -4 and a plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150 ′ -1 and 150 ′. -2, 150'-3, 150'-4). Here, the multiple waveguides 110'-1, 110'-2, 110'-3, 110'-4 and the plurality of temperature sensing sensors 150'-1, 150'-2, 150'-3, 150'- 4) may be arranged symmetrically to each other.

Referring to FIG. 22, the multiple waveguide 110 ′ -1 may include a microwave input terminal 110 ′ -11. Here, the drying apparatus 100 ′ may receive microwaves from the outside through the microwave input terminal 110 ′ -11.

In the above, the method of keeping the temperature inside the drying apparatus 100 divided into the some space constant was demonstrated in detail. In this way, by controlling each of the plurality of waveguides that target each of the plurality of spaces, the dried object can be dried uniformly regardless of the shape or type of the dried object. In addition, it is possible to further reduce the size and production cost of the drying apparatus 100 by not further providing a separate mechanism such as a rotating plate or a stirrer pan for uniformly drying the dried object.

Meanwhile, the microwave introduction unit may include a waveguide, a magnetron (not shown), and a power supply unit (not shown). Here, the microwave introduction portion may be composed of only the waveguide, in this case, the microwave introduction portion may receive the microwave from the external magnetron through the input terminal. Of course, the microwave introduction portion may be composed of only the waveguide and the magnetron. In addition, the plurality of micro introduction portions may be provided symmetrically.

Meanwhile, in FIG. 21, the lengths of the waveguides 110 'are assumed to be the same. However, when the lengths of the waveguides 110' are variable, the controller 140 varies the length of the micro-introduction section 110 'to increase the intensity of the microwaves. Of course, you can adjust.

On the other hand, the temperature sensor 150 has been described as measuring the temperature around the temperature sensor 150, the temperature sensor 150 may measure the temperature distribution of the entire area of the interior space of the drying apparatus 100. (Eg infrared temperature sensor). In this case, the controller 140 may include a microwave introduction unit corresponding to a region (eg, a region showing a higher or lower temperature distribution than the peripheral region) in which the temperature needs to be changed based on the temperature distribution of the internal space of the drying apparatus 100. It is also possible to adjust the intensity of the applied power.

23 is a flowchart illustrating a control method of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, in a method of controlling a drying apparatus for drying a dried object, sensing a temperature of a region in which each of the plurality of microwaves radiated from the multiple waveguides is radiated (S2310) and applying to at least one of the multiple waveguides based on the sensed temperature. The intensity of the power is adjusted (S2320).

The adjusting may include calculating a deviation with respect to a temperature of a region where each of the plurality of microwaves is radiated, and adjusting the intensity of the power applied to at least one of the multiple waveguides so that the calculated deviation is less than or equal to a predetermined threshold value. I can regulate it.

In this case, the adjusting may reduce the intensity of the power applied to the micro introduction unit that emits microwaves in the region having the positive deviation, when there is a region having the positive deviation of the calculated temperature.

In addition, the adjusting may increase the intensity of the power applied to the micro introduction unit that emits microwaves in the region having the negative deviation when there is a region having the negative value of the calculated temperature deviation.

In addition, the adjusting may include determining a region in which the difference between the preset temperature and the preset temperature is greater than the preset temperature among regions where each of the plurality of microwaves is radiated, and the temperature of the region is smaller than the preset threshold. The intensity of the power applied to the waveguide that emits microwaves in the region can be adjusted.

On the other hand, the drying apparatus 100 may radiate microwaves uniformly in the cavity in another manner.

24 is a block diagram of a drying apparatus according to an embodiment. 25 is an enlarged block diagram of the drying apparatus of FIG. 24.

Referring to FIG. 24, the drying apparatus 100 includes a main body 10, a waveguide 110, a magnetron 120, a power supply unit 130, and a control unit 140. The main body 10 forms a cavity in which the object is dried. An object means a dry object, for example, the object may be food, garbage, an object including moisture, or the like. The object is located in the cavity of the body 10 and may be dried by microwaves emitted from the waveguide 110.

The waveguide 110 is provided at one side of the main body. Waveguide 110 emits microwaves to an object located within the cavity by emitting microwaves inside the cavity. There may be a plurality of waveguides 110. That is, as shown in FIG. 25, the drying apparatus 100 may include multiple waveguides 110-1 and 110-n. The multiple waveguides 110-1 and 110-n may be arranged in a predetermined pattern, and the number of waveguides arranged in the cavity may be determined based on the size of the cavity or the output voltage.

Magnetron 120 is provided on one side of the body. The magnetron 120 generates microwaves and transmits them to the waveguide 110. One magnetron 120 may transmit microwaves to one waveguide 110. Therefore, when a plurality of waveguides 110 are disposed, a plurality of magnetrons 120 may be included in the drying apparatus 100 corresponding to the number of waveguides 11. That is, as shown in FIG. 25, the drying apparatus 100 may include a plurality of magnetrons 120-1 and 120-n.

The power supply unit 130 may transmit a high voltage for generating microwaves to the magnetron 120. One power supply 130 may transmit a high voltage to one magnetron 120. Therefore, when a plurality of magnetrons 120 are included, a plurality of power supply units 130 may be included in the drying apparatus 100 corresponding to the number of magnetrons 120. That is, as shown in FIG. 25, the drying apparatus 100 may include a plurality of power supply units 130-1 and 130-n.

One power supply unit 130-1 may transmit a high voltage for generating microwaves to one magnetron 120-1. One magnetron 120-1 may transmit the generated microwaves to one waveguide 110-1. One waveguide 110-1 may radiate microwaves into the cavity. In the above-described manner, the plurality of power supply units 130 may transmit high voltages for generating microwaves to the plurality of magnetrons 120, respectively. The plurality of magnetrons 120 may transmit the generated microwaves to the multiple waveguides 110, respectively. The plurality of waveguides 110 may radiate the generated microwaves into the cavity, respectively.

The control unit 140 may sequentially turn on / off the power supply unit 130 in a predetermined pattern so that the microwaves are uniformly radiated in the cavity in the waveguide 110. When the drying apparatus 100 includes a plurality of power units 130, the controller 140 may control the plurality of power units 130 individually or in a certain group. A detailed description of the control unit 140 controlling the power supply unit 130 so that microwaves are uniformly radiated in the cavity will be described later.

26 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of waveguides according to an exemplary embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 26, there are shown multiple waveguides arranged in the body 10. Multiple waveguides include individual waveguides 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5, 110-6, 110-7, 110-8, and 110-9 which radiate the microwaves respectively. The plurality of individual waveguides may be arranged in a symmetrical structure. FIG. 26 illustrates an embodiment in which nine waveguides 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5, 110-6, 110-7, 110-8, and 110-9 are arranged. However, the number of waveguides may vary from 2, 3, 4, 6, 10, 12, 16, and the like. That is, various numbers of waveguides may be disposed in the main body 10 according to the size, area of the cavity, the output size of the power supply, and the like. In addition, although FIG. 26 illustrates an arrangement of waveguides having a 3 × 3 pattern, the waveguides may be arranged in various patterns. In addition, although FIG. 26 shows waveguides arranged in a long direction (0 degrees) from side to side, waveguides may be arranged at 0 degrees, 45 degrees, 90 degrees, and 135 degrees 180 degrees. Also, only some waveguides may be disposed at the same angle and the remaining waveguides may be disposed at different angles.

Hereinafter, a process of controlling to emit microwaves sequentially in a predetermined pattern will be described.

FIG. 27 is a diagram illustrating a microwave radiation pattern according to an embodiment, and FIG. 28 is a diagram illustrating an experimental result of the radiation pattern of FIG. 27.

Referring to FIG. 27, there is shown a drying apparatus in which twelve waveguides are arranged. The twelve waveguides are arranged in a 3x4 pattern, and among the twelve waveguides, the first waveguide 110-1, the third waveguide 110-3, the fifth waveguide 110-5, and the seventh waveguide 110- 7), the ninth waveguide 110-9 and the eleventh waveguide 110-11 are disposed at an angle of 0 degrees, and the second waveguide 110-2, the fourth waveguide 110-4, and the sixth waveguide ( 110-6), the eighth waveguide 110-8, the tenth waveguide 110-10, and the twelfth waveguide 110-12 may be disposed at an angle of 90 degrees. The waveguides arranged in FIG. 27 are an embodiment, and the multiple waveguides may be arranged in various forms.

Referring to FIG. 27, the drying apparatus 100 may control the power supply unit to simultaneously emit microwaves from the waveguides arranged in units of columns. As an example, the drying apparatus 100 may set a mode for controlling the waveguides 110-1, 110-4, 110-7, and 110-10 arranged in the first column to simultaneously emit microwaves as the first mode. have. In addition, the drying apparatus 100 may set a mode for controlling the waveguides 110-2, 110-5, 110-8, and 110-11 arranged in the second column to emit microwaves at the same time, and The mode for controlling the waveguides 110-3, 110-6, 110-9, and 110-12 arranged in three rows to simultaneously emit microwaves may be set as a third mode. In some cases, the drying apparatus may set the modes for controlling the waveguides disposed in the first row, the second row, and the third row to emit microwaves at the same time as the first mode, the second mode, and the third mode.

The drying apparatus may sequentially execute the first mode, the second mode, and the third mode at regular time intervals. As an example, the drying apparatus may execute the control mode in the form of 3 minutes in the first mode, 3 minutes in the second mode, and 3 minutes in the third mode thereafter. That is, the drying apparatus 100 may sequentially control the power supply unit so as to emit microwaves only from individual waveguides arranged in the same single row or column, and emit only microwaves from individual waveguides arranged in the next one row or column after a predetermined time. have. Alternatively, the drying apparatus may simultaneously execute the first mode and the third mode, subsequently execute the second mode and the first mode, and then simultaneously execute the third mode and the second mode.

On the other hand, the drying apparatus 100 may simultaneously execute the first mode and the second mode, and then simultaneously execute the second mode and the third mode, and then simultaneously execute the third mode and the first mode. The drying apparatus 100 may set the radiation time of the microwave to 5 minutes each. 28 shows the experimental results of the drying amount according to the radiation pattern. FIG. 28 (a) shows the results of an experiment performed for 15 minutes by distributing 500 watts to each of the 12 waveguides by 500 watts, and FIG. 28 (b) shows waveguides corresponding to the two modes described above (6 waveguides). This is the result of experiment which is set to 5 minutes of microwave emission time by distributing 750kw each. As shown in FIG. 28, the experimental result of FIG. 28 (b) indicates that the microwaves were radiated relatively uniformly compared to the experimental result of FIG. 28 (a).

29 is a diagram for explaining a microwave radiation pattern, according to another embodiment.

FIG. 29 illustrates a radiation pattern in a different manner than FIG. 28. Drying apparatus 100 may be controlled to radiate microwaves for a predetermined time alternately in a plurality of non-adjacent individual waveguides. Alternatively, the drying apparatus 100 may sequentially control the microwaves to emit the microwaves only for a predetermined time in the individual waveguides arranged in the preset zone, and to emit the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the next zone after the preset time. Alternatively, the drying apparatus 100 may control to emit microwaves in a radiation pattern in which the various methods described above are mixed.

29, radiation patterns are set by mixing various types of modes. The drying apparatus 100 is configured to control the waveguides 110-1, 110-4, 110-7, and 110-10 arranged in the first column to simultaneously emit microwaves in the first mode and the waveguides arranged in the second column ( Waveguides (110-3, 110-6, 110) arranged in the second mode, the sixth mode, and the third column control modes for the 110-2, 110-5, 110-8, and 110-11 to simultaneously emit microwaves. The second waveguides 110-4, 110-6, 110-7, and 110-9 among the third mode, the first row, and the third row are controlled by the -9, 110-12 to simultaneously emit microwaves. Set the mode for controlling the microwave to emit microwaves at the same time, and the mode for controlling the four waveguides 110-1, 110-3, 110-10, and 110-12 at the corners to simultaneously emit the microwave at the fifth mode. Can be.

In addition, the drying apparatus 100 may set an execution time of 6 in mode 1 to 2 minutes. The above experimental results are shown in Figs. 30 (b) and 31 (b). 30 and 31 show experimental results of the radiation pattern of FIG. 29 and experimental results in which the entire waveguide radiates microwaves at the same time.

30 (a) and 31 (a) show the results of an experiment performed by dividing 3 kw power into each of 12 waveguides by 250w for 12 minutes, and FIGS. 30 (b) and 31 (b) simultaneously show microwaves of 3 kw power. It is an experiment result which distributed 750w to each of the four waveguides to emit, and performed the 1st mode-6th mode for 2 minutes, respectively. As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, it is possible to radiate microwaves relatively uniformly when the drying apparatus 100 is controlled to radiate microwaves alternately in a predetermined pattern than when the drying apparatus 100 controls to radiate microwaves simultaneously in all waveguides. Can be.

Meanwhile, the drying apparatus 100 may set the radiation time and the radiation pattern in various forms so as to simultaneously emit microwaves from one or a plurality of waveguides based on the set pattern. So far, a method of uniformly radiating microwaves has been described. The flowchart of the drying apparatus control method is described below.

32 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling a drying apparatus, according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 32, the drying apparatus receives a control command by a user interface in operation S3210. For example, the user interface may be an operation panel or a control panel outside the drying apparatus. The drying apparatus may receive the output power or the drying time through the user interface.

The drying apparatus sequentially generates microwaves in a predetermined pattern so that the microwaves are uniformly radiated into the cavity based on the received control command (S3220). The drying apparatus may include a plurality of power units and a plurality of magnetrons that receive high voltages from the plurality of power units, respectively, and multiple waveguides that receive microwaves from the plurality of magnetrons and radiate to the body. Accordingly, individual waveguides included in the multiple waveguides may receive microwaves by voltages transmitted from different power supplies.

The drying apparatus may control the output power of the individual power supply units based on the output power and the number of waveguides. The drying apparatus may consider the preset output power or the input output power. The drying apparatus may also consider the number of waveguides that generate microwaves. As an example, the drying apparatus may control to output 2 kw of output power for each waveguide if five waveguides simultaneously radiate microwaves at a total output power of 10 kw.

In addition, the drying apparatus may sequentially generate microwaves in a predetermined pattern based on the arrangement of the plurality of waveguides. As described above, the preset pattern may be set in various forms.

The drying apparatus sequentially radiates the generated microwaves to the object through the multiple waveguides (S3230). The drying apparatus described herein can uniformly heat or dry the object by radiating microwaves uniformly in the cavity.

The control method of the drying apparatus according to the above-described various embodiments may be implemented in a program and provided to the drying apparatus. For example, receiving a control command by a user interface, generating microwaves sequentially in a predetermined pattern so that the microwaves are uniformly radiated into the cavity based on the received control command, and sequentially generating the multiple waveguides. A non-transitory computer readable medium may be provided in which a program for radiating to an object is stored.

The non-transitory readable medium refers to a medium that stores data semi-permanently and is readable by a device, not a medium storing data for a short time such as a register, a cache, a memory, and the like. Specifically, the various applications or programs described above may be stored and provided in a non-transitory readable medium such as a CD, a DVD, a hard disk, a Blu-ray disk, a USB, a memory card, a ROM, or the like.

In addition, although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described specific embodiment, the technical field to which the invention belongs without departing from the spirit of the invention claimed in the claims. Of course, various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art, and these modifications should not be individually understood from the technical spirit or the prospect of the present invention.

-

Claims (6)

1. A body forming a cavity in which an object is dried;

   A plurality of waveguides provided on one side of the main body and radiating microwaves to the object;

   A plurality of magnetrons provided at one side of the main body and generating the microwaves and transferring the microwaves to the multiple waveguides; And

   A plurality of power supply units respectively transmitting high voltages for generating the microwaves to the plurality of magnetrons;

   A control unit;

   The control unit,

   And controlling the plurality of power supplies to be sequentially turned on / off in a predetermined pattern so that the microwaves are uniformly radiated in the cavity in the multiple waveguide.
2. The method of claim 1,

   The multiple waveguide,

   And individual waveguides each emitting said microwaves, said plurality of individual waveguides being arranged in a symmetrical structure.
3. The method of claim 2,

   The control unit,

   Drying the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the same one row or column, and controlling the power supply sequentially so as to emit the microwaves only in the individual waveguides arranged in the next one row or column after a predetermined time.
4. The method of claim 2,

   The control unit,

   And control the power supply to radiate the microwaves for a predetermined time alternately in the plurality of non-adjacent waveguides.
5. The method of claim 2,

   The control unit,

   And sequentially controlling the power supply unit to emit the microwave only for a predetermined time in an individual waveguide arranged in a preset zone, and to emit the microwave only in an individual waveguide arranged in a next zone after a preset time.
6. In the control method of the drying apparatus including a cavity,

   Receiving a control command by a user interface;

   Generating the microwaves sequentially in a predetermined pattern such that the microwaves are uniformly radiated in the cavity based on the received control command; And

   And radiating the generated microwaves sequentially into the object through the multiple waveguides.

Images