Automation of temperature system for formed meat products: A simulation approach

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) requires that formed meat products should be cooked to a specified minimum internal temperature to eliminate harmful bacteria most notable of which is E Coli. In order to meet this requirement, ready-to-eat meat products are tested on exit from an oven. An Automated Temperature Measurement System (ATMS) was developed to improve the current mode of the testing process of the cooked meat products. The development of the system included three modules - a robotic manipulator (for handling the meat products), a database management system and a process control system. The development of the work cell has been documented through photographs and it has been built to scale to display to interested parties. The system was not implemented due to the lack of a graphical or animated simulation for presentation to parties interested in its implementation. The interested parties include different levels of Management, Engineers, Shift Supervisors, Operators, Maintenance Personnel and Quality Assurance Personnel. The methodology of 3D simulation developed in this research will fully convey the working relationship of the various components to make the ATMS operate with great precision.