The data logger, protective thermal barrier, and Insight software make up the Datapaq® Food Tracker® temperature profiling systems. Users can ensure the quality and security of their prepared meals, baked goods, cooked meats, poultry, and other foods with a Datapaq system.
Image Credit: Fluke Process Instruments
Image Credit: Fluke Process Instruments
Image Credit: Fluke Process Instruments
Key Features
- Data logger (6 or 8 Channels) with IP67 waterproofing rating
- Software for Insight™ analysis that is effective yet simple to use, including calculations for process lethality
- Up to eight runs are stored before requiring data download
- HACCP temperature profiling systems that are dependable and accurate for use in demanding food processing applications
- Thermocouples that can be changed to fit the product range
- Broad selection of thermal barriers to meet various process requirements
Product Overview
The food product travels through the oven or freezer with Datapaq systems, built to withstand the harshest environments, creating an accurate record of the product temperatures.
Steam cookers, deep fat fryers, blast freezers, conveyorized ovens, and other cooking and freezing appliances allow users to keep an eye on the product’s temperature throughout the entire cooking and freezing process.
Food Tracker Insight Software
Using Insight software, users can transform raw data into insightful reports on the process, including immediate lethality assessments. Along with formal documentation such as HACCP, users can document the process to increase productivity. Features include:
- Process analysis: To meet the HACCP requirements, automatically calculate all of the process critical control points
- Lethality calculations and reporting: Make sure the food is of the highest caliber by using precise lethality calculations for the microorganism risk in the specific process and product (Fo value)
- Process optimization and fault finding: Locate hot or cold spots in the oven as quickly as possible to reduce production loss
- Reporting: Create traceable, certified profile reports, meeting all of the HACCP validation documentation requirements
- Monitoring: Watch the precise moment that the product reaches the necessary safe cooking temperature on the computer
MultiPaq21 Data Logger
It is possible to simultaneously collect the product and environmental temperatures from up to eight locations using the MultiPaq21 data logger’s eight channels (Type T or K). The temperature sensors can be placed precisely inside the product, on the surface, or in the air using flexible thermocouple cables.
They can measure temperatures without the data logger’s mass or other components interfering with the sensors’ sensitivity or accuracy.
The data logger is rated to IP67 and has special waterproof thermocouple connections that guard against steam, water showers, and standard cleaning procedures. It is made to withstand even the most challenging food processing applications. Up to eight profiles can be stored in the logger before it needs to be downloaded.
Thermal Barriers
Datapaq thermal barriers use the same insulation technology as an aircraft's “black box” and are housed in a durable stainless-steel casing that lasts for many years. The harshest industrial cooking environments can be handled by Datapaq thermal barriers, including steam cooking, prolonged high-temperature baking, or even flash frying, where the entire system is submerged in oil.
Unlike other commercial systems, there is no requirement to protect the data logger inside the product. The monitoring equipment will not impact the product’s heating characteristics as the barrier can be placed far from the product.
Thermocouples
The IP67 rating of the logger is provided by thermocouples (Type T or K) that are supplied with watertight connectors and gold-plated connections. Even in the most hostile environments, such as those with steam, water, and condensation, dependability and accuracy are assured.
Thermocouples can be combined, matched, and swapped out depending on the process and product. The lengths of thermocouple cables can also be altered to precisely meet the process’s needs.
Accessories
Datapaq provides a range of accessories to complement temperature profiling for food processing. These include::
The Food Tracker Radio Telemetry System: Users can monitor what happens to their product in real-time while it is being heated. While the process runs, users can optimize cycle times by comparing the actual product temperatures to the specifications.
The Food Tray and Jig: In conveyorized processes, the repeatability of the profile is guaranteed. The food tray can be used without disrupting production or the conveyor belt. Food trays are made for small items such as chicken nuggets. Large bakery ovens are one example of a wide conveyorized process for which the Thermocouple Jig is designed.
The Humidity Sensor: In processes up to 200 °C/400 °F, the humidity sensor measures humidity and temperature. This sensor is best suited for baking tasks such as proofing or proving, and where humidity readings can be used to verify oven settings, maximize yields, and enhance quality.