Inline Freezing & Defrosting Sensors
CALLIFREEZE®
The CALLIFREEZE® is the first inline sensor to continuously monitor and optimize freezing and defrosting processes. The sensor measures the fraction of water within the product that is crystallized into ice which is expressed as the level-of-frozenness (LOF). By measuring through the product and non-metallic packaging material, the sensor provides insights about the core of the product. This information is used to provide real-time feedback to the freezing and defrosting units. The installation of our inline freezing and defrosting sensors translates into an increased production capacity and reduced energy costs while maintaining the highest quality standards. The CALLIFREEZE® is specifically designed to measure the LOF of individual products such as meat products, fish, vegetables, etc. This sensor has shown its importance in the market by winning the innovation price of CFIA EXPO 2019 in Rennes, France!
MICROFREEZE®
The MICROFREEZE® is used to evaluate the level-of-frozenness (LOF) of large blocks of food products (e.g. blocks of meat) or layers of products (e.g. French fries). Given the large dynamic range of the sensor, LOF measurements can be conducted on block frozen products such as meat and fish, with a block thickness of up to 90 cm. Furthermore, the MICROFREEZE® can easily handle layered products with layer thicknesses up to 50 cm. This makes our sensor ideal for monitoring bulk products such as French fries, vegetables, fruits, etc. The MICROFREEZE® can be either installed on non-metallic conveyor belts or integrated in defrosting tumblers to monitor the thawing processes in real time.
Optimized freezing parameters
The inline freezing & defrosting sensors - CALLIFREEZE® and MICROFREEZE® - were developed to continuously adjust and optimize freezing and defrosting parameters. The main benefits of the freezing sensors are:
- Increased production capacity
- Reduced energy consumption
- Minimizing product waste
- Lowered personnel costs
The continuous process optimization translates in an increase of the production capacity up to 15% and a reduction in energy consumption of 5-15 %, while maintaining the same product quality. As an example, using the MICROFREEZE® on a 10-ton line for French fries, reduced the energy consumption with 45 000 - 60 000 Euro/year. These savings corresponds to a return of investment of 1 year. Additionally, by continuously monitoring the production process, any deviations are immediately detected. This allows to intervene very quickly and minimize product loss. On top of that, the use of our freezing sensors reduces the workload on personnel. This leads to a more efficient quality control and reduces the personnel costs.
AI-powered sensors
Artificial Intelligence and Web Interface
The acquired sensor data are fed to our AI-algorithms which provides reliable process information about the freezing and defrosting processes. This type of intelligent sensing facilitates automatic process regulation and optimization. Depending on the application, our sensors can be combined with other sensing modalities to provide a complete image of the process.
The web interface is used to visualize the processed data and manage the device settings for different products. The software supports Modbus TCP/IP direct communication with PLC units for automatic process control.
Quality certificate
To meet the increasing demands for quality reporting and traceability of products, our system automatically generates quality reports of all processed data. The report gives an overview of the evaluated products and their respective Level Of Frozenness (LOF) values. Since the products are scanned inline, the quality of every product or batch is checked. The products which are sufficiently frozen, receive the level-of-frozenness certificate to confirm the highest quality standards. This confirmation will enhance the trust of your customers in your freezing processes.
Applications
Meat & Fish
French Fries
Fruits & Vegetables
Other
Technical information
| Parameter | CALLIFREEZE® | MICROFREEZE® |
|---|---|---|
| Level-of-Frozenness (LOF) | 70 – 100%* * Range depends on the product | 0 – 100%* * Range depends on the product |
| Emitted electromagnetic power | ~10 dBm | ~10 dBm |
| Frequency bands | 61.25 GHz Non-ionizing and non-destructive | 2.4 – 2.5 GHz and 5.725 – 5.875 GHz Non-ionizing and non-destructive |
| Sensor’s spot size @ product | ~2 cm | ~15 cm |
| Power input | AC Single Phase 100-240V~ 0.5A 50-60 Hz | AC Single Phase 100-240V~ 0.5A 50-60 Hz |
| Operational temperature range | -40 °C … 40 °C | -40 °C … 40 °C |
| Housing | Stainless steel AISI 304 - Hygienic design | Stainless steel AISI 304 - Hygienic design |
| IP class | IP66 | IP66 |
| Dimensions receiver – transmitter unit (W x H x D) | 177 mm x 187 mm x 178 mm | 177 mm x 187 mm x 178 mm |
| Dimensions computing unit (W x H x D) | 327 mm x 457 mm x 179 mm | 390 mm x 576 mm x 267 mm |
| Ethernet | RJ45 plug | RJ45 plug |
| Industrial interface | Modbus TCP/IP server | Modbus TCP/IP server |
| Web-server based user interface | Remote interaction with the sensor via a browser | Remote interaction with the sensor via a browser |
| DHCP client | Automatic negotiation of IP address | Automatic negotiation of IP address |
| Capacity of LOF calculations | > 10 LOF values per second | 1 - 500 LOF values per second |
Downloads
- User’s Guide CALLIFREEZE®
- User’s Guide MICROFREEZE®