Background Research Paper
Intelligent Refrigeration
4/10/2013
Jacob Lafond
Contents
Contents .........................................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 2
Background ..................................................................................................................................... 3
Technological Advances ................................................................................................................. 5
Needs............................................................................................................................................... 6
Ranking of Needs ............................................................................................................................ 7
Objectives ....................................................................................................................................... 8
Objective Tree ............................................................................................................................... 10
Stakeholders .................................................................................................................................. 11
References ..................................................................................................................................... 12
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Abstract
Refrigeration has been around for thousands of years, and has been necessary in the aid
of food preservation. Originally using the evaporation process of water to absorb heat, or using
ice in a closed area, to the introduction of the electric refrigerator in the early 20th century.
The Intelligent Refrigerator’s purpose is to change the way people view the refrigerator.
For many years the refrigerator has remained unchanged. While the world around it has gotten
smarter, with the emergence of smart phones and smart TVs, the refrigerator has remained its
simple design.
Recently Samsung’s Smart Refrigerator introduced the refrigerator to the market of
smart products. But the Samsung’s refrigerator is still not where it potentially could be. The
Intelligent Refrigerator attempts to recreate some of the great features of Samsung’s refrigerator,
while adding features that will completely change the refrigerator for the public.
The Intelligent Refrigerator will include features like an automated storage and retrieval
system, a barcode scanner to recognize items, automated shopping list, and recipe generation that
will not only help make people’s lives a little easier, but will help reduce the amount of food
people waste by letting food expire, ultimately saving people money.
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Background
Refrigeration is the process of lowering the temperature of an enclosed space, or a
substance, by removing heat (Inventors). Before refrigeration systems people needed to find
ways to preserve their foods, such as meats and produce. They would use ice or snow found
locally or from mountains and store the ice along with the foods in cellars. Early forms of cellars
were holes dug in the ground, lined with straw or wood and filled with the snow or ice (Peak
Mechanical Ltd.).
In areas where ice and snow were difficult to find, year round, like in India and Africa,
people would have to be more creative with their food preservation techniques. Many people
used methods of salting, pickling, drying, spicing, and smoking their food (Peak Mechanical
Ltd.). Because of this people’s diets did not consist of much fresh foods, they typically consisted
of bread, cheese, and salted meats.
Dairy products like milk and cheese were especially difficult to keep fresh, and despite
people best efforts they could not prevent rapid spoilage. At this time people were not aware and
did not understand pasteurization which led to bacterial infestation to be widespread (Peak
Mechanical Ltd.). During warm months it was not uncommon for people to die of ‘summer
complaint’ due to spoiled food. (Peak Mechanical Ltd.).
In India they recognized this need, and implemented an idea that evidence first showed
up around 2500 B.C. in the Old Kingdom of Egypt. It was an evaporative cooling system. Where
a liquid vaporized quickly and raises its kinetic energy. This increase in energy is drawn from the
immediate surroundings of vapor, which will cause to surroundings to cool (Peak Mechanical
Ltd.). This idea will later be called a pot-in-pot refrigerator whose design came from a Nigerian
teacher, Mohammed Bah Abba, in an attempt to create a cheap and easy way for people of
Africa to cool their foods (Warren Mclaren). The pot-in-pot refrigerator uses two different sized
pots, one inside the other, with sand between them and uses water mixed with the sand. When
the water evaporates the temperature of the inside pot decreases because of the heat absorbed in
the evaporation process.
In the 19th century ice became high in demand, as it was used in refrigeration. This led to
the creation of the ice box; similar to the modern electric refrigerator used today. The ice box
was a large wooden box that would store food that had to be kept cold, though not using coolant.
It was named an ice box because it required the use of blocks of ice, similar to coolers used today
(Wisegeek). An ice box was a similar size to the modern refrigerator, but slightly shorter. Every
day, similar to the milk man, the ice man would deliver the blocks of ice and place it directly in
the ice box. This type of refrigerator was the most popular and affordable choice up to the early
to mid-20th century.
In 1805 Oliver Evans designed the first refrigeration machine, but never built it. An
American physician, John Gorrie, built Evans’ design in 1844 to make ice to cool the air for his
yellow fever patients (Inventors). The first practical refrigeration machine was built be Jacob
Perkins in 1834, using ether in a vapor compression cycle (Inventors).
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Although the technology existed it was not introduced to the public for in home use until
General Electric Monitor Top Refrigerator in 1927, which is considered to be the first
widespread in home electric refrigerator. Although it was not a widely popular product because
of its high price, $300-$500 compared to a new 1927 Model T Ford at $380 (Railway Village).
Soon it was determined that the refrigerators were using toxic gases; methyl chloride,
ammonia, and sulphur dioxide as refrigerants (Peak Mechanical Ltd.). There were incidents
where the methyl chloride leaked out of the refrigerators causing fatalities, which led to
companies researching less dangerous methods or refrigeration (Peak Mechanical Ltd.). The
research lead to the discovery of chlorofluorocarbons (Freon), which quickly became the
standard used in compressor refrigerators (Peak Mechanical Ltd.).
For decades after the introduction of the electric refrigerator, and its change to Freon, the
refrigerator has remained relatively unchanged. Some of the major changes that have occurred
have come in the form of the design. From the freezer being located on the top to side-by-side to
freezer located below the refrigerator. But the basic features of the refrigerator have remained the
same.
One of the major issues of the modern refrigerator is they are set to a specific
temperature, and this temperature attempts to be consistent throughout the entire refrigerator. But
the different foods stored in a refrigerator have different ideal storage temperatures. The average
temperature setting typically is around 40ºF. But for many fruits this could be too high or it could
be too low. For fruits and vegetables their ideal temperature can range from 30ºF to 70ºF for
items that are refrigerated. As well as meats have a specific range to be consistent to remain
fresh.
Since the average refrigerator does not have a way to adjust the temperature many items
tend to spoil faster than they can be eaten. The average family of four tends to throw away about
122 pounds of food each month (Groovy Green). Which is about a third of all edible food that
they buy per year, that turns out to be about 30 billion pounds of food a year (in the US), 11
billion of which are fruits and vegetables. The average family of four wastes about $600 a year
(WiseGeek).
The Intelligent Refrigerator attempts to combat food wastes by implementing features
that will either extend the shelf life of items, or by reminding the user of the items being stored.
The Intelligent Refrigerator will possibly be able to save people hundreds of dollars a year by
cutting down on wasted food.
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Technological Advances
The advancements in technology recently has allowed for many opportunities for
appliances to take advantage. Things like phones have taken off in the last ten years from a
simple cell phone that can make calls and send texts to smart phones that can do just about
anything a normal computer can do. TV’s have even made the technology jump, adding the
ability connect to your TV from a phone or computer, and gives the TV internet access.
The refrigerator has just recently begun to get into this market. Samsung has recently
released their Smart Fridge, which has Wi-Fi capabilities. The refrigerator is equipped with a 10inch tablet on the door which comes pre-loaded with applications that can be useful (Natasha
Baker). These applications include a not taking application, Evernote, which can be synced with
a smart phone. This app can be useful in creating a shopping list, where the user can create a list
in Evernote that is a shopping list and they can access this list on their smart phone.
The refrigerator also has a grocery manager app that will keep track of what is going into
the fridge, fresh and leftovers (Andrea Smith). This is done with a drag and drop of items on the
screen. It will also allow the user to set expiration dates on both fresh and leftover foods, and will
pop up notes displaying what foods will expire in a day (Smith).
The refrigerator also comes with the Epicurious app that will find a recipe, using the
ingredients inside the refrigerator (Smith). This app will use the grocery manager app to know
what ingredients the user currently has, and will search for recipes that can be complete.
Samsung has also partnered with Unilever. So if a coupon that is relevant to the user, it will
appear on the screen.
Independent cooling zones have begun to be introduced in refrigeration. This creates
sections within a refrigerator that have different cooling temperatures. So for a fruit such as
grapes whose ideal storing temperature is about 31-32ºF (Engineering Tool Box) and meats
whose ideal temperature is about 38-40ºF (Meat Safety) will not be stored at the same
temperature, but instead closer to its ideal temperature. This can help increase the life of meat
and vegetable by up to 5 times longer (Appliances Online).
So far the independent cooling zones technology has primarily been used for wine
coolers, because different types of wines call for different optimal storing temperatures. And the
Samsung Smart Refrigerators and models similar to them have yet to incorporate the
independent cooling zones. As well as the refrigerators are limited to only know what the user
has input manually. So if the user does not manually input everything they get at the store the
refrigerator will not include those items in their recipes.
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Needs
The Intelligent Refrigerator will attempt to put all the existing features, as well as new
technology, into one refrigerator. The average modern refrigerator has remained unchanged,
relatively to the technological advances of average products around it. And the Intelligent
Refrigerator will attempt to change the way people see their refrigerator similar to the way Smart
Phones changed the way people see cell phones.
One of the major features of the refrigerator is the way the user will retrieve an item from
the refrigerator. Currently the only way of retrieving an item is to open the door, and reach for
the item and pull it out. This can be tricky, especially for items located in the back of the
refrigerator. The Intelligent Refrigerator will incorporate an automated retrieval system. This
means that the refrigerator will retrieve the item for the user, getting rid of the problem of
attempting to locate a desired item.
Similar to the automated retrieval feature the Intelligent Refrigerator will include an
automated storage system. Currently storing items in a refrigerator can be difficult, especially if
there are many items to be stored or if the item is being stored in the back. This feature will
move the storage location for the item to the front of the refrigerator for easy storage.
Currently the only way for Samsung’s Smart fridge and similar models to know what
items are being stored is to use a drag and drop application that will remember what the user has
put. This feature can be very useful, but only if the user actually takes the time to input all the
items they just entered into the refrigerator. In an attempt to make this easier, the Intelligent
Refrigerator will use a barcode scanner. This way it will be much faster and easier for the user to
put the item into the refrigerators system.
For items that do not have barcodes, such as fruits and vegetables and leftovers, the
Intelligent Refrigerator will also include a manual input feature, similar to the drag and drop
feature of the Smart fridges. Also if possible an object recognition software may be used, so then
the user will not have to scan an item they can just hold it up in front of a camera and the
refrigerator will recognize the item and store it.
After scanning the item and storing it into the system. The Intelligent Refrigerator will
create a list of all items stored into the refrigerator. This should cut down on the user not
remembering what is in the refrigerator. A major factor in food spoilage is because of the fact
that people just forget what is in the refrigerator, especially if it is in the back. But by creating a
list of all items, the user will not forget what is in the refrigerator.
Another major factor in why people throw food away, is because people will forget when
an item expires. Foods that have a longer shelf life tend to get forgotten and will pass their
expiration date before being consumed. Items such as salad dressings could sit in the refrigerator
and ultimately get thrown away because people forgot it was there. The Intelligent Refrigerator
will include an expiration date warning. This will tell the user that an item may be about to
expire. With this in the salad dressing example, the user may see that it will expire and they may
decide to use that dressing instead of another so it will not go to waste. This will also help with
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fruits and vegetables where some people may not know about how long they may last, or that
they still have them in the refrigerator.
Using an application similar to the one Samsung’s Smart refrigerator uses the Intelligent
Refrigerator will create recipes from items stored in the refrigerator. This application is very
useful because people tend to not know exactly what they could make with the items in their
refrigerator.
Also the Intelligent Refrigerator will allow for the user to ask for recipes that include
certain items. So if a person has chicken, and they know it might be expiring soon. They could
ask for recipes that they can make with chicken, so they can avoid throwing the chicken away.
This feature will help in reducing the amount of food that gets wasted by giving recipes that
might include food that will expire soon.
The Smart refrigerators use a feature that will allow the user to create a list, but the list
can only be manually created. The Intelligent Refrigerator will include a feature that will
automatically create a list of items that are not currently being stored but were.
The Intelligent Refrigerator will also include the ability to generate either a text message
or an email to be sent to the user telling them items added to their shopping list or if an item is
about to expire. This will help cut down on letting food expire because that would add another
way the refrigerator will prompt the user about expiring food. Also it will help in people
remember what items they need to replace, it is easy to forget if you are out of milk or eggs, but
the refrigerator will help by sending alerts to the users phone.
One of the most contributing factors to food wastes is that most foods are not being
stored at their optimal temperature. If foods, such as fruits and vegetable, were stored at their
ideal temperature setting then they could last significantly longer. The problem is that
refrigerators do not have a way of regulating the temperature of certain areas. The Intelligent
Refrigerator will use independent cooling zones to cool area to an item’s ideal temperature.
Currently if a person were to put lemons and peaches in the refrigerator they would most likely
be stored in the same place. The problem with this is that the ideal storing temperature for
lemons is 52-55ºF and the ideal temperature for peaches is 31-32º (Engineering Tool Box),
which is significantly different. This would most likely lead to both expiring before they would if
stored correctly. For both lemons and peaches they would be stored at the wrong temperature,
considering the average temperature of a refrigerator is about 40ºF. By using independent
cooling zones, both lemons and peaches, as well as other produce, could be stored at their ideal
temperature.
Ranking of Needs
1.
2.
3.
4.
Automated retrieval using carousel.
Automated storage using carousel.
Barcode scanner.
Manual input ability.
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5. Item list.
6. Recipe generation.
7. Shopping list generation.
8. Item specific recipe generation.
9. Expiration date warning.
10. Voice recognition.
11. SMS/Email based shopping list alert.
12. SMS/Email based expiration date alert.
13. Independent cooling zones.
14. RFID use in item input.
15. Object recognition for item input.
Objectives
The Intelligent Refrigerator has to be able to perform many actions in order to be
considered successful at the completion of the prototype. One of the main functions the
refrigerator must be able to perform is the automated retrieval and storage. The storage system
will be performed using a carousel type multi-level shelf with movable dividers. When the user
attempts to input an item, the refrigerator will locate an open space on the shelf and rotate that
space to the front of the refrigerator for the user to place the item on the shelf.
The retrieval system is similar to the way the item gets stored. The user will tell the
refrigerator which item(s) they would like to retrieve from the refrigerator. The refrigerator will
then locate the item on the shelf, and rotate that item to the front of the refrigerator for the user to
the remove.
The system will need to be able to handle multiple requests to remove items. Therefore if
items are located on different shelves, multiple shelves must be able to rotate at the same time.
Also the system would need to know when an item is taken off the shelf, especially if another
requested item is located on that shelf. This would require the use of weight sensors, that would
recognize when the item was removed, then rotate the shelf to the next item.
A few more specification pertaining to the storage/retrieval system is that it should only
take a maximum of five seconds to find and rotate the item/position to the front of the
refrigerator. This is because if it takes too long then people would most likely get annoyed when
attempting to retrieve and store many items at once. Also the shelves need to be able to be hand
turned in the event of a power outage. So that people will still be able to access their food.
The barcode scanner is also necessary for the completion of the Intelligent Refrigerator.
The barcode scanner will be the primary way the user will be able to enter an item into the
refrigerators database, and storage system. When the user attempts to enter an item into the
refrigerator, they must scan the barcode, which is universal to all items that include a barcode,
the scanner will read the barcode, determine the item, and enter the item’s information into the
database. If an item does not have a barcode, such as fresh produce or leftovers, then a manual
input option must be available, with a large enough database that almost all options are available.
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The manual input option should be very simple to use, either a simple drag and drop or a way to
type the items name.
A list of all items currently being stored in the refrigerator is also a must. In order to
retrieve an item from the refrigerator, the user must select an item from a list of items current in
storage. The list should be simple and easy to read, and should separate foods into like
categories. Instead of just putting foods in the order they arrive, the list should be created by
putting meats, fruits, vegetables, leftovers, condiments, and liquids all together in an easy to read
categories.
The refrigerator will generate recipes by using the items known to be currently stored in
the refrigerator. In a similar fashion as the Samsung Smart Refrigerator, the application will have
a list of know recipes, and compare the recipes to the items in the refrigerator. And the
refrigerator will give back a list of recipes that can be made with the items stored in the
refrigerator. The item specific recipe application will be performed when the user asks for
recipes to be found that could be or are close to being able to be made that include the given
item.
The refrigerator will create a shopping list when the user removes an item from the
refrigerator, and it does not get replaced within a set amount of time, it then gets considered
needs to be replaced, and gets added to the shopping list. It remains in the shopping list until the
item gets placed back into the refrigerator.
When an item gets added to the refrigerator there are two different ways for the
expiration date warning to be done. One way is for the refrigerator to have a known set of
approximated expiration dates for given items. So when the item gets added to the refrigerator,
an approximate expiration date is given to that item. Or the user can enter the expiration date of
the item. And when the item’s expiration date nears the refrigerator will give the user warnings
so that the food will not go to waste. The problem with this is that in the estimated date the date
could be significantly off and could be ineffective. But the manual input the user may not
actually take the time to enter the expiration date of all items they place into the refrigerator.
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Objective Tree
Intelligent
Refrigerator
Software
Hardware
Automated
Storage
Shopping List
Generator
Automated
Retrieval
Recipe
Generator
Barcode
Scanner
Specialized
Recipe
Generator
Expiration Date
Warning
Manual
Input
RFID
SMS Shopping List
Warning
SMS Expiration
Date
Warning
Object Recognition
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Voice
Recognition
Stakeholders
This product has many stakeholders. The biggest stakeholder is the consumer.
Considering this product is intended to eventually be a product to be sold, the consumer is the
largest stakeholder. Almost all features of the Intelligent Refrigerator will be tailored for the
consumer. If the product fails to meet the consumer’s needs or interests then the products will
fail. Therefore the features in the refrigerator must be able to be used by the average person.
The features must be easy enough that anyone can be able to use them without a problem.
If the applications are too difficult to use then people simply will not find a reason to use them,
the whole purpose of the applications are to make people’s lives easier.
One of the other main purposes of the Intelligent Refrigerator is to reduce the amount of
wasted food. That means that the features used in the Intelligent Refrigerator must do this. The
application that alerts the user that an item is about to expire must actually help in causing less
foods to reach the expiration date without being consumed. One of the main selling points for the
refrigerator is that it can help reduce food wastes which will in turn save the consumer money,
but if the consumer does not find that they are actually reducing waste, then the product will not
be very successful.
Reducing the amount of wastes affects many other stakeholders. Grocery stores will be
affected because people will consume less perishable foods because they will not be forced to
throw out and replace foods that have expired. But this could also be beneficial to grocery stores
for the same reason. If people buy fruits, such as grapes, and actually consume them before they
expire because of the warnings. Then they might be more inclined to replace them, instead of
forgetting about the grapes for weeks or even months before discovering them and replacing
them.
Grocery stores have more at stake with the refrigerator than just sales based on expiration
dates. If the refrigerator is ultimately successful then the grocery stores could work with the
refrigerator’s company to create features and applications that would be beneficial for both.
There could be applications that would advertise certain grocery stores coupons, based upon the
individual refrigerators users shopping habits. Also with grocery stores that offers a delivery
service, where they deliver food to your house, there could be an app that would use the grocery
list that gets created by the refrigerator and use that for their delivery service.
Another stakeholder can be other companies that produce refrigerators. If the SmartFridge idea takes off in the consumer market, then other companies will have to take notice.
Then they will have to determine if it is worth their time to try and compete with the SmartFridge if they determine this to be the future of refrigerators.
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References
What technologies are available in modern refrigerators? Retrieved March 3, 2013.
From Appliances Online: http://www.appliancesonline.co.uk/advice/refrigerators/buyingguide/what-technologies-are-available-in-modern-refrigerators.aspx.
Natasha Baker (2013). Smart refrigerator runs apps for shopping lists, recipes. Retrieved
March 5, 2013. From Reuters: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/01/21/us-app-refrigeratoridUSBRE90K0PX20130121.
Andrea Smith (2013). Samsung Smart Fridge Dishes Up Recipe Ideas and Coupons.
Retrieved March 5, 2013. From mashable.com: http://mashable.com/2013/01/12/samsung-smartfridge-recipes/.
Warren McLaren (2006). Mohammed Bah Abba And His Pot-in-Pot. Retrieved April 7,
2013. From treehugger.com: www.treehugger.com/kitchen-design/mohammed-bah-abba-andhis-pot-in-pot.html
History of Refrigeration. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From peakmechanical.ca:
www.peakmechanical.ca/history-of-refrigeration.html
What is an Ice Box?. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From wisegeek.com:
www.wisegeek.com/what-is-an-ice-box.htm
Optimal temperature and humidity conditions for some common fruits and vegetables.
Retrieved April 7, 2013. From engineeringtoolbox.com:
http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/fruits-vegetables-storage-conditions-d_710.html
The History of the Refrigerator and Freezers. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From
inventors.about.com: http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blrefrigerator.htm
Storing Meat in Your Refrigerator. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From web.extension.illinois.edu:
http://web.extension.illinois.edu/meatsafety/refrigerator.cfm
How Much Food Does the Average American Waste?. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From
wisegeek.com: http://www.wisegeek.com/how-much-food-does-the-average-americanwaste.htm
How Much Food Does The Average American Family Throw Away Each Month?.
Retrieved April 7, 2013. From groovygreen.com: http://www.groovygreen.com/groove/?p=3055
The 1927 General Electric Monitor Top Refrigerator. Retrieved April 7, 2013. From
railwayvillage.org: http://www.railwayvillage.org/ge1927refrigerat.html
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