Community Documents
One of NIUK's newest employees has been using LabVIEW for a while to make more repeatable and tasty home brews. Read more about Nathan's project here:
What did you control with LabVIEW and an Arduino?
I wanted to keep an accurate and constant temperature during the mashing process. During this process the proteins break down the long sugar chains into smaller chains. The temperature determines how many of these chains get broken down and so has big effect on the taste and strength of the beer. Controlling the temperature means I can easily repeat a beer that I really like, otherwise it can be a bit unpredictable!
Why did you use LabVIEW?
Because of the data dashboard, I wanted to integrate an iPad into the system. I had learnt LabVIEW at university and thought it would be the quickest way to get up and running. I used the LINX 2.0 toolkit which lets you control the Arduino.
What was the most difficult aspect of the project?
Finding the right hardware - the software was pretty simple. But I struggled to find some the niche equipment I needed for brewing. For example, I needed a heating element which ended up being a 15m piece of coiled stainless steel I got from the Netherlands!
How did the beer taste?
Awesome!
You're now expanding the project, what will that include?
Before introducing LabVIEW my system had one gas burner and a 50 litre vessel. I've now added the Arduino and have multiple 50 litre vessels plus all the electronics. This means I have loads to clean and sanitise to avoid contamination. My new build is going to be a RIMS (Recirculating Infusion Mash System) which only has one vessel again with a low wattage heating element to control the temperature. I'm currently waiting for some materials to build it. This time I'll be using LINX 3.0 with the BeagleBone.
Great stuff! Back in 2013 Ben Black of NI USA did the same thing: http://www.ni.com/newsletter/51643/en/
Maybe you two can share tips?
