A new concept to improve microwave heating uniformity through data-driven process modelling

Abstract

[EN] For a long time, the heating pattern of the workpiece within a multimode microwave oven was considered to be highly sophisticated. As a consequence, the uneven microwave heating problem can only be partly alleviated by a random movement between the electromagnetic field and the workpiece, like the rotating turntable or mode stirrers. In this paper, we reported that the heating behavior has a specific correspondence with the power ratio of multiple microwave sources under certain conditions. The influence factors of this relationship and the corresponding mechanisms were systematically studied by both theoretical analysis and experimental investigations. On this basis, a data-driven process model was introduced to learn the material’s dynamic temperature behaviors during microwave heating process, and a new concept to improve the microwave heating uniformity by temperature monitoring and active compensation was presented.