# Dalian Amazon smart roasters



## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

Hi all,

I quite like the look of the Dalian Amazon and I'm aware there is a lot of support for it on here. But, I want much more computer control. The Amazon does not officially support this and even with mods only gives limited data/control.

Has anyone bought direct from Dalian? I notice they are are now doing a couple of "smart" roasters.

Its a real shame there doesn't seem to be any advances towards this on the Amazon from BB.

Woody


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

What's the limited data/control you're talking about?


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

@Rob1 Might be he doesn't realise you can get a PT100 with two outputs and then control the heating elements using SSRs, or directly via the relay etc.. I think there were some posts about it on the Dalian main thread.


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

DavecUK said:


> @Rob1 Might be he doesn't realise you can get a PT100 with two outputs and then control the heating elements using SSRs, or directly via the relay etc.. I think there were some posts about it on the Dalian main thread.


 No I didn't know! But although I'm quite handy I'm not sure what PT100 or SSRs are. Please explain more to me. Can the \pt100 be controlled directly by Artisan? On a side issue, if these mods do work it still remains a shame they are not official

Woody


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

Rob1 said:


> What's the limited data/control you're talking about?


 Basically I'd like full control via Artisan ideally


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

PT100 are very accurate temp sensors. You could use k-type thermocouples too.

SSR stands for solid state relay. They are electrical switches that turn on and off depending on an input voltage.

You don't control the PT100s, you collect and plot the data from them in software like artisan and use SSRs to turn the heating element on and off at a rate based on the current temperature and the desired temperature or rate of rise.

Basic data collection and control like this is quite easy to do with artisan and a raspberry pi or arduino and tc4 shield.

I went the rasperry pi route and bought a commercial phase angle and burst fire controller to control the power to the heating element proportionally based on an 0-5v input signal rather than rapidly switch it on and off. It's basically a software controlled SCR like the dimmer mod but capable of automation. I use the PWM function of a 5v digital out phidget as the input signal.


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

@Rob1 I'm afraid much of that went straight over my head.

Whilst I could drill a couple of holes add a thermocouple or two and a basic interface, the rest (phase controllers etc) is well beyond me or the average person.

I suspect this is why roasters like the Bullet and Sniper are gaining much more popularity, because the interface side is already done for you. Even the Artisan 3e can apparently be modded easily.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

@ukwoody sounds like you need one of those roasters to achieve what you want.


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

DavecUK said:


> @ukwoody sounds like you need one of those roasters to achieve what you want.


 No. My original question was about dealing with The manufacturer direct. I would prefer a traditional type drum roaster but with at least some Artisan connection already built in. Rather than drilling holes, "playing around" and voiding warranties.

Many if not most manufacturers are now producing Artisan connected, and or, Artisan controllable roasters including Dalian.


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

ukwoody said:


> No. My original question was about dealing with The manufacturer direct. I would prefer a traditional type drum roaster but with at least some Artisan connection already built in. Rather than drilling holes, "playing around" and voiding warranties.
> 
> Many if not most manufacturers are now producing Artisan connected, and or, Artisan controllable roasters including Dalian.


 So you want to purchase direct from the manufacturer with the computerised control fully built in. At "least" artisan ,meaning what exactly? What level of automation are you looking for?

i think we've understood you want a direct from manufacturer product, presumably with a good warranty.


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

@DavecUK Dave, Firstly I would like the Amazon, but sadly thats not really feasible, I would have really liked to buy from a British supplier as I try to as much as possible, but budgets are limited too.

I may be perhaps reading too much into Artisan. So, Some form of "Screen interface" to operate as much of the machine as possible, but with an Artisan connection to at the very least record all necessary data, ROR, BT etc. (and yes in the perfect world totally control it from Artisan)

I am trying to obtain the ability to create consistant roasts/blends that I can eventually sell and use in my small cafe.

The idea of buying direct was for both choice and budget and I could still get a real drum roaster.. Oh. needs to be electric as no gas in the cafe.

Woody


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## DavecUK (Aug 6, 2013)

@ukwoody If you buy something unknown, direct, you're risking a lot of money on something that may not work well. That said The Bullet or the Sniper pro might meet your needs, I've not used either.

I suspect you want to be able to plug in, load a profile, then roast fabulous coffee without the tedium of learning about coffee and how to roast.


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## ukwoody (Oct 25, 2018)

DavecUK said:


> @ukwoody If you buy something unknown, direct, you're risking a lot of money on something that may not work well. That said The Bullet or the Sniper pro might meet your needs, I've not used either.
> 
> I suspect you want to be able to plug in, load a profile, then roast fabulous coffee without the tedium of learning about coffee and how to roast.


 That is a very unfair and rather condescending attitude and cannot be further from the truth. I've spent many many hours, and about a hundred pounds buying books, reading forums and looking at the cost of a sca roasting course. Just because I want a level of automation doesn't mean I do not want to learn!


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## Rob1 (Apr 9, 2015)

ukwoody said:


> @Rob1 I'm afraid much of that went straight over my head.
> 
> Whilst I could drill a couple of holes add a thermocouple or two and a basic interface, the rest (phase controllers etc) is well beyond me or the average person.
> 
> I suspect this is why roasters like the Bullet and Sniper are gaining much more popularity, because the interface side is already done for you. Even the Artisan 3e can apparently be modded easily.


 I'm not an electrician or anything, very much average. I've just read up on controlling roasters having used them for almost a decade and wanted better control of the heating element with the little Gene cafe and thought about modding it for computer control. I didn't know anything about SSRs until a couple of weeks before I bought the right one (and actually bought and tried to use the wrong type before that). The wiring is about as simple as wiring an SCR only the SSR itself requires a power supply so I have two wires on the input side of the SSR, one going to the heating element and the other going the input of an AC-DC LED driver that powers the SSR itself....it's probably not ideal but it's only a few watts and I'm never going to need max power anyway as I'm always well over 240v.

The complex thing is the software side and learning how to control the roaster, which you'll still need to do and understand before any automation can be attempted. Unfortunately it requires a lot of hands on experience with the roaster and isn't something you can prepare for by reading or taking a course (unless you use your roaster in training). Reading and courses will help you improve your roasts quickly though, of course.

The idea behind adding this control to the roaster was not to pursue automation straight away but to cut down on the manual logging and make things more consistent.


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