Updates on P3000 - the hybrid production roaster
Time flies, and it's time for an update on the P3000 - the production hybrid roaster. Yes, you read correctly, the P2000 has now become P3000 because of its upgraded capacity. Our development team is currently working, roasting, and testing on Prototype #6 in the line (may mention that this version has been heavily retrofitted during the past year).
Getting feedback and thoughts from you, our customers are so important to us when we are developing P3000. Our conversations with Scott Rao have contributed to installing an Inlet temperature sensor and Between Batch Protocol on our sample roaster.
…I’m even more excited for their next, larger machine that collects data from (I believe) 18 sensors as well as a color-reading camera. Exciting times!
- Scott Rao
IT’S GETTING BIGGER
The most important update is that we have now made it possible to roast up to 3kg of coffee. On our current prototype, we use a maximum of 6kW and we have increased this to 6,6 kW on the next version so that you have plenty of power to roast 3kg as fast as you like. As always, we are focusing on quality above cost. The P3000 is built as a very solid construction, with easy access for cleaning and maintenance.
SOME UPDATES ABOUT THE ROASTER
The preferred way to control the roasting process is by having the machine follow a profile based on the inlet temperature sensors. These sensors are located on the outside of the drum, but they are still only 2-3cm away from the coffee. By having them so close to the coffee beans, we get a more accurate measurement of the temperature and instant response to changes in the power input. (you can of course control the machine in different ways)
The roaster is using three heating elements that are individually controlled for optimal consistency. And it has a grid of six custom-made sensors that are measuring the inlet temperature entering the roasting chamber for the highest possible accuracy. Custom heating elements to adapt to different electrical setups will be made available.
On P3000 the drum temperature is measured in three different locations. That is done so that we can get a more precise reading of the energy stored in the roasting chamber. By knowing how much heat is stored and how much energy we are putting in, it’s much easier to recreate roasts accurately.
We have installed two different types of custom-made bean temperature sensors, two k-types, and two RTDs, so we can get a more accurate measurement of the bean temperature. These sensors are located on both sides of the roasting chamber as the chamber is completely symmetric for even heat distribution.
There will also be an option to have a bean temperature IR sensor that uses a grid to measure the bean's surface temperature.
We will use machine learning to enhance the user experience. Some exciting features will be bean temperature prediction in the profile editor and recommended profiles for your coffee. And some less exciting, but very useful features will be predicting your machine’s maintenance need in order to reduce downtime.
TESTING, TESTING…
We have started testing an electrical afterburner to remove the smoke. This will be an efficient unit that will adapt the temperature to the roasting process based on the bean temperature and color of the coffee.
As promised, there will be a custom feeding unit for the machine that can store up to 100 kg of green coffee and automatically vacuum feed it to the roaster based on weight. The prototype unit has been standing unused for almost 8 months as we have focused on the main roasting unit, but we will start testing it now.
We aim to have the development of P3000 ready for release by the end of 2023. Right now we are finalizing all the small details so that we can start producing a pre-production model at the beginning of February. This unit will be a massive upgrade compared to our existing prototype that we showcased in Milano 2022.
More info about ROEST P3000: Read more about it here!
