The project conducted together with dr. Milan Bizjak at the Institute of Materials and Metallurgy in Ljubljana, Slovenia, is intended for material curing furnace control and data analysis.
The system is very flexible and enables reception of signals from the temperature sensors installed in the furnaces. The signals are displayed graphically on a PC screen. In addition to the temperature data acquisition, the system also enables the control of the heaters installed inside the furnace. The operator can draw a stipulated temperature growth graph in the user interface to program the temperature movement. With heaters automatically turning on and off, the current temperature level in the furnace closely follows the pre-programmed temperature. This enables a very precise curing of the materials.
The specific feature of the system is the possibility to simultaneously control eight furnaces, and display all measured (temperature sensors) and pre-programmed values. This ensures a simple overview of the furnace control and of the feedback from sensors.
The system hardware includes an analogue-digital card with 8 analogue inputs, combining data from the temperature sensors, and 8 digital TTL outputs for heater control. The analogue-digital card transfers data via a USB interface allowing connection to any computer.