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      Mill City Roasters with Delta/Fotek controls (Manual Control Roasters) - Roasting Intelligence (RI) Setup (beta)

      This manual explains how to connect a Mill City Manual Control Roaster with Delta/Fotek controls to Cropster's Roasting Intelligence

      If you haven't been invited to participate in the beta program for this integration, but you are interested in participating and testing the feature, please sign up here.

      Beta means that the features are being tested with a select group of users to help us identify minor flaws under everyday conditions that we cannot reproduce internally. Therefore, it will be necessary that you share feedback with us and let us know whenever you come across some unexpected behavior.

      Specifications

      Requirements

      Note: On recent MacOS devices, the driver may be already pre-installed with your operating system.

      Supported measurements

      • Drum temperature
      • Bean temperature
      • Environmental temperature
      • Airflow (Hz)

      Roasting Intelligence (RI) Setup

      Installing the Roasting Intelligence (RI) software

      1. Download the Roasting Intelligence from https://download-beta.cropster.com/
      2. The Cropster installer leads you through all the installation steps.
      3. Open the RI by double-clicking the Cropster icon on the desktop.
      4. Enter your username and password.
        The user name is the email address your Cropster invitation has been sent to and use the password you've generated when accepting the invitation.
      5. Check the Remember credentials box if you want to be able to run the RI offline.
      6. Click the Login button.
         

      Establishing a connection to the machine

      1. Go to Account > Preferences > Machine tab.
      2. Select the Roasting machine you would like to connect from the drop down menu (e.g. Mill City)
      3. Select Mill City (all versions - Phidgets and PIDs/PLC) from the drop-down for all measurements.
      4. Click on the gear () icon to open the PID settings.
      5. Select the Mill City Version, Serial port referring to your roast machine, and the Temperature unit. 
        For the version, refer to the Temperature controller readout on your Mill City roast machine, and identify whether your machine is equipped with Delta or Fotek controls.
        1. Version: Fotek controls (Standard control panel)
          • Serial port:
            Windows: choose the COM option that refers to the roaster's connection.
            Mac: choose the USB option that refers to the roaster's connection.
          • Temperature unit: choose Celsius or Fahrenheit according to the temperature unit displayed from the machine's temperature readouts.
        2. Version: Delta controls (Standard control panel)
          • Serial port:
            Windows: choose the COM option that refers to the roaster's connection.
            Mac: choose the USB option that refers to the roaster's connection.
          • Temperature unit: choose Celsius or Fahrenheit according to the temperature unit displayed from the machine's temperature readouts.
      6. Click OK, then Save to confirm the changes. The RI requires a restart to apply the settings.

              If the setup was successful, you will be able to see temperature values on the right-hand side of the RI screen after the restart.

              Customize your RI user preferences. 

              Troubleshooting

              If the RI indicates No source connected and/or you cannot see any measurements, please check the following: 

              • Did you choose the correct version?
              • Did you choose the correct serial port?
              • On MacOS: try installing the beta VCP driver. MacOS X10.15 to MacOS 11 (this is a Beta driver release and the installer should be run from the /Applications folder on your machine)

              Bean temperature stall (RoR Valley)

              You have successfully connected your Mill City with RI, but you are experiencing a consistent stall in the Bean temperature (shown as a valley in the RoR):



              The temperature and RoR curves shown above were tracked during one roast, using a Standard control panel Mill City roast machine with Fotek controls.

              Please reach out to support.cropster.com to request more information about this.

                For further assistance, please create a support ticket by clicking the Support button in the left lower corner of the app. A Cropster support rep will get in touch with you.

                Congratulations! You have successfully set up the Cropster Roasting Intelligence!

                Check out our Getting started video and enjoy tracking your first roasts! 

                More manuals and videos can be found on help.cropster.com.