WO2024136803A1

WO2024136803A1 - A method for measuring average product temperature in refrigerated display cabinets

Info

Publication number: WO2024136803A1
Application number: PCT/TR2023/051492
Authority: WO
Inventors: Çağri BALKAN
Original assignee: Kaplanlar Soğutma Sanayi̇ Ve Ti̇caret Anoni̇m Şi̇rketi̇
Priority date: 2022-12-20
Filing date: 2023-12-07
Publication date: 2024-06-27

Abstract

The invention relates to an average product temperature measurement method developed to ensure the protection of product food safety in refrigerated display cabinets used in the retail industry, which enables the calculation of the displayed product temperatures and the protection of the displayed products by taking action in advance in case of possible fault conditions. The invention also relates to an average product temperature measurement method for interpreting and calculating the data from these sensors, using the temperature sensors already present in refrigerated display cabinets.

Description

A METHOD FOR MEASURING AVERAGE PRODUCT TEMPERATURE IN REFRIGERATED DISPLAY CABINETS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to an average product temperature measurement method developed to ensure the protection of product food safety in refrigerated display cabinets used in the retail industry, which enables the calculation of the displayed product temperatures and the protection of the displayed products by taking action in advance in case of possible fault conditions.

The invention particularly relates to an average product temperature measurement method using temperature sensors already present in refrigerated display cabinets, in order to interpret and calculate data from these sensors.

PRIOR ART

Nowadays, energy consumption, carbon emissions and conservation of existing energy resources have become an increasingly important issue due to the global climate and environmental pollution problems we are experiencing. Only in the United Kingdom, the yearly CO2 emission caused by the energy consumption of large retail stores is 215 million metric tonnes. Particularly, the cooling systems in retail stores and the equipment of these systems account for approximately 50% of the said consumption. In these retail stores, refrigerated display cabinets are used to display food products and store them in accordance with food safety. In addition, refrigerated display cabinets should protect the displayed products I foods in a certain temperature range to comply with the relevant regulations.

For this purpose, studies are carried out using temperature sensors in order to monitor food safety in the sector. Particularly in methods where the shelf life and the health of the end customer are taken into consideration, various sensors or options similar to the test package are used in line with the controller capability to obtain data from the point where the cabinet is probably the hottest. This situation brings along problems that may be encountered during the use of a physical device in the field. For example; obstruction of air flow due to the way the product is loaded, deterioration of the content or operability of the device, etc. jeopardises the above - mentioned food safety issues. In addition, installation costs increase due to the placement of an extra device/sensor.

The developments known in the present art on the subject are given below.

The patent document US2022011045A1 is a food safety system for foodstuffs in refrigerated environments, comprising a temperature sensor, a power supply, a data transmission element and a temperature sensor unit. The temperature sensor unit is positioned in a cooler, said cooler having a predefined location of a plurality of foodstuffs. A control center unit having a computer processor and a memory is adapted to execute a deterministic mode function for predicting a center temperature change of such a food item at a predefined food item position in said cooler. The deterministic mode allows to measure the estimated temperature of the foodstuff based on the heat transfer parameters related to the predefined foodstuff location of the cooler used, the food - specific coefficients related to the type of foodstuff taken from a group of food types, the ambient temperature measured by the temperature sensor and the estimated temperature of the foodstuff. As mentioned above, the said invention places too many devices and sensors and is far from adapting to the dynamic conditions realized in the display cabinets of the retail industry.

The patent document US2020143294A1 provides various embodiments for intelligent cooling state classification in an Internet of Things (loT) computing environment by a processor. It provides a method/system for automatically classifying cooling states using a single temperature sensor signal using an loT computer within a cooling system. A signal from a single loT sensor associated with a refrigeration system can be used to help automatically classify refrigeration states based on a test phase or operational phase. In the test phase, according to a categorization process and a machine learning process, a plurality of cooling state classifiers for the cooling system are identified. The operation phase can be defined to continuously collect temperature data over the time period selected by the loT sensor, to apply noise removal to multiple signal distortions from multiple sources, and/or to generate a report that automatically labels the cooling. In this document, additional temperature sensors are placed in the cabinet and it is interpreted whether the cabinet is operating in test mode or cooling mode through these sensors. In this document, no concrete action is taken regarding the product temperatures, but the data related to the instantaneous operation of the cabinet is interpreted and the cabinets connected to the same system are categorized.

Patent document WO9209977A1 relates to a system for monitoring the condition of one or more refrigerated units, a system comprising sensing means adapted to provide a signal indicating the temperature condition of one or each unit. The system herein comprises at least one printer and a power supply circuit for monitoring refrigerated units. In order to develop the voltage or voltages necessary for the function of the device, said device is adapted to operate as a refrigeration information output device. The printer is capable of printing information derived from the signal or signals from the sensing means. In the system covered by this patent, the system has been developed for analyzing and printing the performance and statistics of a plurality of refrigerated units. Food safety and food temperatures were not discussed.

As a result, due to the above - mentioned disadvantages and the inadequacy of the existing solutions, a development in the relevant technical field has become necessary.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The main purpose of the invention in question is to develop an average product temperature measurement method, which is developed to ensure the protection of product food safety in refrigerated display cabinets used in the retail industry, to calculate the displayed product temperatures and to protect the displayed products by taking action in advance in case of possible fault conditions, and to eliminate the disadvantages in the existing technique. In this context, the purpose of the invention is to provide an average product temperature measurement method for interpreting and calculating the data from these sensors by using the temperature sensors currently available in refrigerated display cabinets.

The inventive average product temperature measurement method aims to develop an average product temperature measurement method by deriving the data of the sensors that provide the operation of the refrigerated display cabinets and are currently required to be included in the refrigerated display cabinets, instead of the product temperature sensors used to ensure the traceability of food safety in the sector. In this way, product temperatures can be determined without creating an additional cost on refrigerated display cabinets and possible failure situations can be detected in advance.

Since the inventive average product temperature measurement method does not include additional sensors and detection systems during its management, it will not increase the cost on the cabinets and will be widely used in the retail industry due to increased accessibility and will help protect food safety.

The inventive method for measuring the average product temperature is capable of calculating the average product temperature and the range of product temperature classes, i.e. the highest and lowest product temperatures.

The inventive average product temperature measurement method is able to determine the trends of product temperatures in a certain period of time by forecasting by interpreting the values obtained.

In order to fulfil the aforementioned purposes, the invention comprises at least one compressor driving the refrigerant. There is at least one evaporator unit used to provide heat transfer between environments and to cool the ambient air. There is at least one condenser unit that ensures the completion of the thermodynamic cycle in the mentioned refrigerated display cabinet and enables the fluid to be switched from gaseous to liquid state, and at least one expansion valve that controls the flow and switches it from liquid to gaseous state again. There is at least one primary sensor, at least one secondary sensor and at least one controller that interprets and stores the data received from these sensors and controls the parameters and operating functions of the refrigerated display cabinet. In addition, this controller includes a user interface that displays the relevant data and helps to take the necessary actions. These necessary actions can happen the following;

- Switching off the system in case of emergency,

- Changing cabinet configuration settings (changing setpoints),

- Change from temperature class M1 to temperature class MO as specified in ISO 23953,

- Changing the graphics shown on the interface,

- Conversion operations from average product temperature to blowing suction temperature.

The method of the invention relates to a method for measuring the average product temperature of a refrigerated display cabinet for protecting the displayed products by ensuring that the temperatures of the displayed products and possible fault conditions can be acted upon in advance in order to protect food safety. In order to realize the aforementioned objectives, this method consists of the following steps:

- receiving instantaneous temperature data from said primary sensor and secondary sensor,

- transmission of temperature data to the controller,

- receiving the weighted averages of the temperature data collected in the said controller and calculating and interpreting by damping with the help of an exponential compound function,

- storing in the memory unit of the controller (1.7) and sending to the user interface (Ul) of the interpreted result, i.e. the average product temperature value calculated from the blowing and suction temperatures,

- warning the user when the interpreted result is in the range where it threatens food safety. The method of the invention is also based on the data obtained as a result of testing and operation (the cabinets subject to the invention are tested according to ISO 23953-2 and with this test, sensors are placed on all products during the operation of the cabinet in the test room and at the same time the data from the sensors in the cabinet are recorded. The data obtained as a result of the test and operation are these product temperatures and the sensor temperatures on the cabinet) and the database of the controller provided as a result of deep learning and the data provided instantaneous flow with the algorithm running on the controller. In this way, it is possible to detect the product temperature trends (decrease or increase in product temperatures) in a certain period of time defined on the controller and to warn the user by indicating them on the user interface (for example, data 1 hour later are predicted by deriving from the relevant data).

The structural and characteristic features and all advantages of the invention will be more clearly understood by means of the figures given below and the detailed description written by making references to these figures, and therefore, the evaluation should be made by taking these figures and detailed description into consideration.

FIGURES TO HELP UNDERSTANDING OF THE INVENTION

Figure - 1 is a schematic drawing of the cross - section of a refrigerated storage cabinet on which said average product temperature measurement method is operated.

Figure - 2 is the interface of said average product temperature measurement method, which can be controlled and observed by the user.

The figures are not necessarily to scale, and details not necessary for understanding the present invention may be omitted. Furthermore, elements which are at least substantially identical or have at least substantially identical functions are indicated by the same number. REFERENCE NUMBERS

1. Refrigerated Display Cabinet

1.1. Compressor

1.2. Evaporator Unit

1.3. Condenser Unit

1.4. Expansion Valve

1.5. Primary Sensor

1.6. Secondary Sensor

1.7. Controller

Ul. User Interface

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In this detailed description, the subject matter of the invention and the average product temperature measurement method are described for a better understanding of the subject matter and without any limiting effect.

Cooling is a thermodynamic heat transfer cycle that utilizes the latent thermal properties of the refrigerant to transfer heat from a colder medium to a warmer medium (by removing heat). In order for this heat transfer to take place, it is essential that the refrigerant used has a thermodynamic structure lower than the temperature of the medium to be cooled and higher than the temperature of the medium to be heated.

Figure 1 shows a schematic drawing of a cross - section of a preferred embodiment of a refrigerated display cabinet (1 ) on which said average product temperature measurement method is to operate. In order to provide the basic function of said refrigerated display cabinet (1 ) comprising of from the following; a compressor (1.1 ) driving the refrigerant, an evaporator unit (1 .2) used to provide heat transfer and to cool the ambient air, a condenser unit (1 .3) that ensures the completion of the thermodynamic cycle and the transition of the fluid from gaseous to liquid state, an expansion valve (1 .4) for controlling the flow and switching it from liquid to gaseous state.

The aforementioned compressor (1.1 ), evaporator unit (1 .2), condenser unit (1 .3) and expansion valve (1 .4) are preferably connected to each other by copper tubing.

The primary sensor (1.5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) are connected to the controller (1.7) by a cable assembly. The user interface (Ul) is software running on the controller (1 .7). The controller (1 .7) can be accessed wirelessly via the Internet or by wired connection.

Said refrigerated display cabinet (1 ) includes at least one primary sensor (1 .5) and at least one secondary sensor (1.6), which enable dynamic measurement of the conditions of the display cabinet (1 ). There is at least one controller (1.7) that interprets the data received from the mentioned sensors and controls the parameters and operating functions of the refrigerated display cabinet.

The operations of the controller (1 .7) for receiving and interpreting data, controlling parameters and operating functions are as follows: The data received from the primary sensor (1.5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) via cable are read through the controller (1.7). According to the standards of the display cabinets, there are various classes to ensure the food safety of the products. The most commonly used class is M1. According to this standard, the temperatures of the products displayed must be in the range of -I 'C +5C (this range is the range in which food safety is ensured if the cabinet is an M1 class cabinet and is determined in accordance with the relevant ISO standards). In order to ensure this, the data received from the blowing and suction points of the cabinets with temperature sensors (1 .5, 1 .6) are read on the controller (1.7). In order to stay within the M1 range specified in the standard; assumptions are made according to the model of each cabinet and the performance of the refrigerant. When the temperature at the suction point reaches +8 <0, the compressor is started and the cooling system is activated. The system measures this suction and blowing temperature instantaneously and reduces energy consumption by stopping the system when it enters the acceptance limit. The problem with the current technique is that none of these temperatures reflect the product temperature. The retailer is informed by mathematically calculating the average product temperature from these values read on the controller (1 .7) and turning it into a value that can be seen instantly on the interface on the controller (1 .7).

Figure - 2 shows the user interface (Ul) of this average product temperature measurement method. The user interface (Ul) can display the average product temperatures as well as the instantaneous values taken from the primary sensor (1 .5) and the secondary sensor (1 .6).

As mentioned in the state of the art, product temperature measurement in refrigerated display cabinets (1 ) cannot be performed under retail conditions, but can be performed under test conditions. This technical problem is caused by the fact that these products displayed in the markets are sold and it is not possible to connect any sensor on these products. In order to solve this technical problem, the refrigerated display cabinet (1 ) of the invention uses the capabilities of the controller (1.7) to functionally derive the product temperature as a function of the temperature data received from the primary sensor (1.5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) and without using a physical product temperature sensor. The primary sensor (1.5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) are referred to as blowing and suction respectively in the literature. The temperature values derived from the data obtained from these sensors were also verified by the tests performed in accordance with TS EN ISO 23953-2 standard.

The capabilities of the controller (1 .7) mentioned in are listed below:

• store the data received from the primary sensor (1 .5) and the secondary sensor (1 .6),

• decide whether the compressor (1.1 ) of the cabinet should be stopped or started by checking the data received from the primary sensor (1 .5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) in the range in which it is set (at target temperatures such as M1 , M2), thus ensuring cooling stability and energy efficiency

• increase or decrease the speed of the fans, control and manage the defrosting period of the refrigerator.

The inventive refrigerated display cabinet (1 ) performs the following process steps to calculate the average product temperature.

- transmission to the controller (1.7) of the instantaneous temperature data measured by the primary sensor (1 .5) and the secondary sensor (1 .6),

- receiving the weighted averages of the temperature data collected in the controller (1 .7) and calculating and interpreting by damping with the help of an exponential compound function,

- storing on the controller (1.7) of the interpreted result and sending to the user interface (Ul),

- warning the user when the interpreted result is in the range where it threatens food safety,

- By analysing the data obtained as a result of the test and operation and the deep learning database, the algorithm running on the controller (1 .7) analyses the data provided with instantaneous flow, determines the trends of the product temperatures in a certain period of time with the forecasting method and warns the user by specifying it on the user interface (Ul). (The warning process is as follows: When the average product temperature rises above the temperature determined according to the cabinet class, if the cabinet is a Class M1 cabinet, the controller (1.7) activates the alarm function when the temperature rises above +5^<C. The system administrator is then notified via the user interface (Ul) and the status is displayed).

Claims

1.

- at least one compressor (1.1 ) for driving the refrigerant,

- at least one evaporator unit (1 .2) used for heat transfer and cooling of the ambient air,

- at least one condenser unit (1.3), which ensures the completion of the thermodynamic cycle and ensures that the fluid is transferred from the gaseous state to the liquid state,

- at least one expansion valve (1.4) for controlling the flow and switching it from liquid to gaseous state,

- at least one primary sensor (1 .5) and at least one secondary sensor (1 .6), enabling the conditions of the cabinet to be measured dynamically,

- at least one controller (1.7) which interprets and stores the data received from the primary sensor (1.5) and the secondary sensor (1.6) and controls the parameters and operating functions of the refrigerated display cabinet,

- a user interface (Ul) that helps to display relevant data and to take necessary actions, comprises; a method for measuring average product temperature in refrigerated display cabinets (1 ) and protecting the displayed products by ensuring that the displayed product temperatures and possible malfunction situations are acted in advance in order to ensure the protection of product food safety, characterized by comprising the following steps;

- transmission of the instantaneous temperature data measured by said primary sensor (1 .5) and secondary sensor (1 .6) to the controller (1 .7),

- receiving the weighted averages of the temperature data collected in the said controller (1 .7) and calculating and interpreting by damping with the help of an exponential compound function,

- storing in the memory unit of the controller (1.7) and sending to the user interface (Ul) of the interpreted result, i.e. the average product temperature value calculated from the blowing and suction temperatures, - warning the user when the interpreted result is in the range where it threatens food safety.

2. The method for measuring average product temperature in refrigerated display cabinets (1 ) according to claim 1 , characterized in that the database of the controller (1.7) provided as a result of deep learning with the data obtained as a result of testing and operation and the algorithm running on the controller (1.7) analyses the temperature data provided in the instantaneous flow, detects the trends of the product temperatures in a certain period of time defined on the controller (1.7) with the method of predicting the possible failure situation, and warns the user by indicating it on the user interface (Ul).