In Food Distribution, Technologies to Improve Convenience
and Save Labor and Energy
In Food Distribution, Technologies to Improve Convenience and Save Labor and Energy
[Purpose]
The increasingly critical labor shortage in the food distribution industry is accelerating the fierce competition to secure workforce. The diversification of workers calls for easy-to-use products and pleasant working environments. Meanwhile, consumers’ needs also diversify and the demand for high-quality products and services is increasing. Fuji Electric’s customers now face various challenges, such as new modes of operating physical “real stores” in the era of e-commerce, labor shortages, the aging population, and energy. In order to address each of these highly changeable challenges, Fuji Electric pursues research and development of relevant technologies based on the keywords of “Enhanced convenience,” “Labor savings” and “Energy-saving technology” to supply products that meet customer needs.
This Issue introduces the core technology for the food distribution industry, including heating and cooling technology, mechatronics and the IoT. It also introduces elemental technologies for our vending machines and store and distribution equipment.
[Preface] Expectations for Technological
Development to Improve Convenience in Food Distribution
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AOKI, Masao
In Food Distribution, Technologies to Improve Convenience and Save Labor and Energy: Current Status and Future Outlook
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SUGIMOTO, Koji
The labor market today, with diminishing working population and increasing foreign workers, demands user-friendly products and worker-friendly environments. Fuji Electric is pursuing the development of technology relevant to the food distribution industry to respond to the changing market needs, such as demand for high-quality products and services based on the three keywords “Enhanced convenience,” “Labor savings” and “Energy-savings.” In terms of the enhanced convenience and diversification, we have developed a vending machine that can sell -5°C beverages, cloud-based vending machines, and ICT solutions. For labor savings, we have developed a showcase with built-in cooling unit, labor-saving showcase, automatic change dispenser and drip coffee extraction technology. For energy savings and environmental conservation, we have established a positive pressure control system and freshness-keeping technology.
Vending Machine That Can Sell -5°C Beverages
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OSAWA, Katsuyuki
Asahi Soft Drinks Co., Ltd. and Fuji Electric have jointly developed a subfreezing beverage vending machine. Opening the beverage container triggers the contents to turn into a sherbet-like state. This unexpected event is caused by the supercooling phenomenon, that is, the liquid starts freezing as the internal pressure is altered by the container being opened. To consistently reproduce this event, we adopted the hot gas defrosting method, which does not affect beverage temperature. The vending machine has three zones, sub-freezing temperature zone, preliminary cooling zone, and replenished product cooling zone and allows the change of the maximum number of beverages to be sold per day. This structure enables the machine to stably supply sherbet-like subfreezing beverages.
Cloud-Based Vending Machines Quickly Responding to Market Needs
Vending machines are being required to quickly respond to dramatically changing needs as the market is growing outside Japan, notably China. To meet these needs, Fuji Electric has developed a cloud-based vending machine. We replaced some common functions of vending machines, such as payment and the display of product samples and their prices with functions on smartphones and cloud-based servers. Equipped with a minimum set of software, such as for product dispensing and heating and cooling, the vending machine helps significantly increase operational efficiency, despite the low price.
Vending Machine Business Processes Enhanced with ICT Solutions
The diversification of vending machine functions has increased and complicated business operations. At the same time, the declining birthrate and aging population has made it harder to secure workers. Fuji Electric has thus started offering services that improve business processes of vending machine operators by building an operation support system that utilizes information and communication technology (ICT). This system consists of service applications, cloud data services, and a global communication platform. The system connects vending machines, communication devices, base stations, switching centers, cloud servers, and customer systems via communication lines.
Showcase Using HFO Refrigerant with Built-In Cooling
Unit to Render Installation Work Unnecessary
Fuji Electric has developed an environmentally friendly showcase for the convenience store industry. It is designed to be installed in stores that have imposed restrictions on installation work, such as those inside buildings, helping locate a store in excellent property and further improve consumer convenience. The showcase comes with a built-in cooling unit system to simplify installation work and maintenance. Equipped with ducts below the product showcase shelves and airflow guides at the edge of the shelves, it optimizes the amount of airflow to reduce invading heat by about 30%. Moreover, it is the industry-first showcase in the Japanese market to use HFO-1234yf refrigerant, which has a proven track record of use in vending machines, to significantly reduce the environmental burden.
The advancement of population aging and declining birthrates in recent years has been increasing the need for labor savings in relation to showcases. To reduce the workload in operating showcases, three labor-saving items have been developed. Firstly, the easy-slide sloping shelf, which can be pulled out for stocking and easily put in a sloping position for display to simplify operational tasks. Secondly, the “swing rack,” which controls physically demanding tasks with movable racks that assist the transfer of heavy items when stocking products. Third, the showcase with a built-in cooling unit and equipped with an easy-filter-access mechanism that makes it easy to clean the condenser air filter.
Store Air Conditioning Solution to Save Storewide Labor and Energy
In the supermarket and convenience store industries, there has been an increasing demand to save labor and energy for store equipment. We have developed an in-store heat balance analysis tool that targets storewide heat load and airflow. The accuracy of heat balance calculation has been improved dramatically by performing analysis in consideration of store location conditions, size, equipment configuration, and layout. By using this tool, we found that the intrusion of outside air through the doors is responsible for a large percentage of the store’s heat load. To reduce the air invasion, we developed a positive pressure control system that equalizes differential pressure inside and outside the store. We confirmed an energy savings effect of about 10% for stores that implement positive pressure control using our equipment for evaluating store performance.
Drip Coffee Extraction Technology for Coffee Machines
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NAGAYOSHI, Kenya; NISHIKAWA, Yohei; ITO, Shuichi
Fuji Electric has developed drip coffee extraction technology for coffee machines that rapidly prepare tastier coffee in large quantities. The coffee mill, which determines the quality of the coffee taste, is protected from static electricity and enhanced in the precision of the grinder blade gap adjustment to equalize grain size. For the brewer, which extracts coffee, a system that adds hot water during extraction and a tapered filter block are added to shorten the serving time and continuously extract a large quantity of coffee. Furthermore, as paper filters are sometimes unavailable outside Japan, we have developed a mesh filter that is finer than paper filters.
“ECS-777” Automatic Change Dispenser That Meets the Needs of the markets
In recent years, the distribution industry has faced increasing difficulty in securing labor force, and self-checkout systems are actively employed to enhance efficiency, reduce labor costs, and minimize checkout waiting times. Change dispensers in such systems are operated by customers instead of the checkout staff. Therefore, easy operation, prevention of jamming of bills and coins, and safety in use are demanded more for present change dispensers than for previous ones. To meet these market needs, Fuji Electric has developed the “ECS-777” change dispenser and the “CST35” slim coin roll stocker.
Freshness-Keeping Technology with Ambient Humidity Control
In recent years, food being discarded even though it is still edible (food loss) has become a social problem. Taking note of how freshness is lost as food becomes dry, Fuji Electric has developed technology that controls ambient humidity to keep food fresher for longer. This method applies Fuji Electric’s polymer electrolyte fuel cell technology. Using no liquid water significantly reduce the risk of bacterial and fungal growth that causes food poisoning. The technology allows users to determine appropriate humidity conditions for specific food materials, store them with little loss of fresh texture, and increase sales opportunities, reducing food loss.
Regular Paper
Earthquake-Resistant Technology for Uninterruptible Power Systems
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YASUMOTO, Koji; WU, Ping; SHIGA, Hiroshi
Uninterruptible power systems (UPSs) need to have adequate earthquake resistance because they are used as backup power during blackouts at data centers, financial institutions, hospitals and other places requiring a stable supply of power. After the Great East Japan Earthquake, the guidelines on the earthquake resistance of transformers have been established. Fuji Electric thus tested the earthquake resistance of its UPSs using seismic waves, for which the acceleration response of the building was considered, and confirmed their stable operation. On the basis of the analysis on the deformation of transformers by the finite element method, we took anti-sway measures and revised the housing frame of the transformer panel to improve earthquake resistance.
High-Efficient Power Supply Systems Utilizing 3-Phase 4-Wire Uninterruptible Power Systems
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YASUMOTO, Koji; WANG, Fangfang; TAKIZAWA, Ayumu
In recent years, data centers have increasingly been using electricity, and their power supply systems need to improve efficiency. Fuji Electric has offered power supply systems using 400-V, 3-phase, 4-wire uninterruptible power systems, as well as 3-phase, 4-wire power supply systems using conventional 200-V, 3-phase, 3-wire power supply systems. Both types eliminate the need for a PDU transformer, achieving high efficiency. Using a current-limiting circuit-breaker enables short-circuit protective coordination. Furthermore, the Igr method allows users to reliably monitor insulation and reduces the effect of harmonics on the K-factor and transformer equivalent capacitance more than standard power supplies.
New Products
VVVF Inverters Using SiC Hybrid Modules for Renovated
5000 Series Railcars of Sanyo Electric Railway Co., Ltd.
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TAJIMA, Hirokazu
To cope with environmental issues such as global warming, energy savings in the transportation equipment has been proceeded. In railcars, the energy losses in power electronic equipment such as variable voltage variable frequency (VVVF) inverters for propulsion and auxiliary power supplies have been steadily reduced. In this situation, Fuji Electric has developed a compact and lighter VVVF inverter applicable to urban and commuter railways using own developed low-loss semiconductor devices.
A long standing customer that tested several competitors’ products over a decade ago, chose a Fuji Electric product that not only meets their application criteria, but exceeded their expectations regarding: performance, quality and reliability for their commercial mixer product lines.
As their standard of choice, our AC Drives continue to surpass expectations as our product models offer the versatility and flexibility required for any demanding environment. Fuji Electric AC Drives prove to be technically superior compared to other products offered in the market. Our compact design, 3-year warranty, and exceptional torque features is ideal for many recipe requirements that make Fuji Electric their sole supplier for all of their AC drives needs.
Our products are designed to operate in 50 deg C ambient under full load conditions with no derating factor. The VFDs also maintains a UL rating under single phase power input. Fuji Electric’s ECO-DY model has a standard feature of a simultaneous control of Pump pressure and water table level control. This feature will control a pump’s output pressure and automatically switch to water table level control when the level sensor goes below an adjustable threshold. This prevents costly dry run damage to the submersible pump.
Fuji Electric VFDs are designed to handle harsh outdoor conditions needed for Agriculture Irrigation control. For this case, the ECO-DY model achieves the control by switching between two PID loops. Throughout this process, the first loop, PID1, will control the output pipe pressure. The second loop, PID2, controls the water table level. There is a sensor threshold and time that controls the switching between PID1 or PID2. One of the PID sensors will need to be a 0-10v signal and the second will need to be a 4-20ma input.
Fuji Electric VFDs are a tough, rugged and designed to operate in the harsh conditions of the oil field. Our VFDs are used in thousands of Oil field pump jack applications. For this Oil Field application, they run in 50 deg C ambient at full power without derating.
In this application, our VFDs provided the standard capability to overcome the regeneration portion of the pump jack cycle without needing braking resistors. Our VFD accurately senses the regenerative energy created by the beam pump and precisely increases the speed to eliminate the need for a braking resistor.
Peter Pugger is the world’s leading manufacturer of mixing extruders (pugmills). With the growing demand to mix and extrude new and innovative products, Peter Pugger machines require versatility and efficiency as it relates to motor control, speed control, soft start/stop and remote capability. The utilization of Fuji Electric's FRENIC-Mini and FRENIC-ACE drives has allowed their systems to maintain product quality, durability and performance. The durability of our Fuji Electric drives and the three-year warranty has established our drives as the drive of choice for all of our units. With thousands of machines worldwide, Fuji Electric’s dependability has played a key role in their success.
H2O Technologies is a high quality, highly innovative OEM Control Panels fabricator that specializes in the engineering, designing and building of Bypass Control Panels for hydraulic pump related industries that construct fountains, waterfalls and municipal pools. Fuji Electric’s FRENIC -Eco and EcoPAK Bypass Panels quickly became H2OTechnologies’ exclusive offering due to its high quality, product adaptability, and superb technical & support staff. “We have discovered a hidden gem working with Fuji Electric; it’s their ability to take us back to better days, when there was less bureaucracy, where management decisions and issues resolution were local and only a phone call away. That is a “game-changer” that sets them far apart from almost every other large organization”, exclaims Greg Sills, PPX Central’s President & CEO.
Fuji Regenerative Blowers are used to provide Air agitation for Plating, Cleaning and Rinse Tanks. They can provide high amounts of air at low pressures. They offer the advantages of clean, oil-free air that does not deliver any contaminants to foul or spoil the tank fluid. Fuji Regenerative Blowers offer a form of agitation without any moving parts in the bath. Blowers require no lubrication and that means no contaminated chemical baths. Fuji Blowers are dependable and reliable devices with no wearing, rubbing or sliding components.
Fuji Electric Power Semiconductors are used in Wind Turbines of major Wind Turbine Manufacturers. The PrimePACK™ 3+ improves power conversion efficiency to reduce power loss and increase output power. Amid the beautiful and expansive natural landscape of northern Denmark, you can see lines of wind turbines. These wind turbines use our large-capacity IGBT module PrimePACK™ 3+. In this wind power generation, the force of wind spins the blades of the wind turbine, which in turn rotates the generator to generate electricity. In order to feed this electricity into transmission lines, the voltage and frequency must be changed, and that power conversion is where our power semiconductors play a vital role.
Fuji Electric VFDs are designed to handle harsh outdoor conditions needed to run Electric Submersible pumps (ESPs) in the Oil Field. They operate in 50 deg C ambient under full load conditions with no derating factor. VFDs also maintain a UL rating under single phase power input.
For ESPs, Fuji Electric’s FRENIC-Mega is packaged in a Nema 3R enclosure along with a sine wave filter that feeds a step up transformer to create the high voltage needed for the special ESP motor. The ESP motor is sometimes thousands of feet down in the well bore. Some ESP motors are induction style while others are permanent magnet style. The Fuji Electric FRENIC-Mega works on both types of ESPs. Fuji Electric's VFD has a special feature that allows motor base voltage at speed to be adjusted while monitoring current for maximum operating efficiency thus saving valuable electrical power operation costs.
Significant levels of refrigerants and heating are needed to slow down spoilage and maintain preharvest freshness and flavor of ripe fruit and vegetables. Fuji Electric Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) make it possible to quickly provide the necessary cooling or heating to maintain a uniform temperature, humidity, air-circulation or fresh air requirements in cold storage while at the same time the energy consumption is reduced to a minimum. In standard system designs, electric motors are intended to operate at a fixed speed. This speed is determined by the frequency of the power supply and the motor design (number of poles).
The shaft load on the motor is determined by the product of shaft speed and torque. With a fixed speed, motor power is determined by the torque of the load. With a change in speed the motor load will not only benefit from the speed reduction, but also any reduction in torque with speed. Two types of motor load exist; constant torque and variable torque.
VFDs give better control and more efficiency for compressors, fans and pumps:
VFD speed control will reduce the power penalty associated with slide valve, poppet valve or throttling capacity control. On compressors with no capacity control speed control will eliminate other poor control strategies.
VFD speed control provides dramatic fan power reductions at reduced speed. This also translates into reduced motor heat loads in refrigerated spaces.
VFD speed control provides dramatic fan power saving relative to fan cycling
For maintenance of AC Drives, it is best to institute a schedule of routine maintenance which includes cleaning of the drives and their heatsinks. This prevents overheating and also prevents other debris from being lodged inside the drive!
Scheduling a Freight Pick Up
A customer was given incorrect information for scheduling a freight pick up and the terms for shipping the item. The shipment was delayed and stuck in a freight branch location. This led our team to coordinate communications between several stakeholders (Customer, Logistics Company, End User, and the freight company shipping the order). Information had to be confirmed for accuracy and ease of understanding to avoid confusion or delays. Our team at Fuji Electric was able to keep the customer informed of status regularly and get the info needed in order to resolve the issue and get the order completed.
Meeting Production Schedules
Due to material challenges, in order to meet our customer's production schedule, our team members participate in weekly meetings, provide status and shipping updates, and facilitate direct shipments from our factories. It requires daily attention and time management skills to keep track of multiple avenues to achieve delivery. However, there is a great sense of satisfaction knowing we are part of a team doing everything possible to meet their expectations!
Critical Need of Our Parts
An auto supplier was in critical need of parts or they go line down. Our team called members from Fuji Electric Japan's shipping team and got them to move an ocean orders to air drop ship to customer. No lost downtime!
Did you also know Fuji Electric Corp. of America (FECOA) was established in 1970? Fuji Electric Corp. of America is happy to celebrate over 50 years in the United States! Fuji Electric now aims to become a leading-edge company in “energy and the environment” by building upon our core platform of five technology fields which unlock the potential of electricity—energy, industrial systems, social systems, power electronics, and electronic devices.
Industrial Laundry Solutions
Fuji Electric’s FRENIC-Ace model, Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) are commonly used in commercial laundry equipment for their ability to control the speed of electric motors. In the context of commercial laundry, VFDs are often employed in various machines and systems to enhance efficiency, reduce energy consumption, and provide better control over operations. Here are some ways VFDs are utilized in commercial laundry equipment.
Motor Control: Can regulate the speed of electric motors in washers, dryers, extractors, and other laundry equipment. By adjusting the motor speed according to the load and operational requirements, VFDs help optimize energy consumption and extend the lifespan of the equipment.
Energy Efficiency: Enable soft starts and stops, reducing the energy demand during motor acceleration. They also allow for precise control of motor speed, preventing unnecessary energy consumption when full speed is not required. This contributes to energy savings and overall operational efficiency.
Customized Washing Cycles: In laundry equipment, different fabrics and loads may require varying levels of agitation, spin speed, or drying time. VFDs provide the flexibility to customize washing cycles by adjusting motor speeds, ensuring that each load is treated appropriately.
Load Balancing: Used to balance loads in commercial laundry systems. In situations where multiple machines are connected to a common power supply, VFDs help distribute the load evenly, preventing overloads and optimizing the use of available power.
Maintenance Benefits: By controlling motor speed and providing real-time performance data, VFDs can contribute to predictive maintenance strategies. Monitoring motor parameters allows for early detection of issues, reducing downtime and preventing costly equipment failures.
Environmental Compliance: The ability of VFDs to control motor speed based on demand aligns with energy efficiency requirements and environmental regulations. Using VFDs in commercial laundry equipment helps businesses meet sustainability goals and adhere to energy efficiency standards.
In summary, Variable Frequency Drives play a crucial role in enhancing the performance, energy efficiency, and operational flexibility of commercial laundry equipment. They contribute to cost savings, reduce environmental impact, and improve the overall reliability of laundry systems.