Goofinder
Wild Elephant Brewery
- Joined
- 31/3/07
- Messages
- 612
- Reaction score
- 1
Not sure if this has been asked before, but is there any reason why you're trying to do the whole lot in one go?
Maybe I've been brainwashed by years of Systems Engineering, but I can't help but think that it would be easier to break this down into smaller chunks and get them working first. Of course you need the overall view of the system to know how it all fits together, but once you've got that you should be looking at how you can partition it into smaller subsystems with defined interfaces so that you can build it up in parts.
The actual brewing part is reasonably complicated without adding in everything to get all the right inputs into the right place at the right time. If you could define the interfaces better, then you could build a subsystem that creates wort from grain, water, hops and yeast and get that working. Then build the fermentation subsystem. And then build the rest of the ingredient delivery subsystem to fully automate the process.
Looking at your diagram, at first glance I think the fermentation fridge is too tightly coupled into the rest of the system to partition it up straight away. I would be looking at ways to simplify the interface there and also trying to bring all the 'inputs' over to one side so you can clearly see what needs to go into the 'brewing' subsystem.
Maybe I've been brainwashed by years of Systems Engineering, but I can't help but think that it would be easier to break this down into smaller chunks and get them working first. Of course you need the overall view of the system to know how it all fits together, but once you've got that you should be looking at how you can partition it into smaller subsystems with defined interfaces so that you can build it up in parts.
The actual brewing part is reasonably complicated without adding in everything to get all the right inputs into the right place at the right time. If you could define the interfaces better, then you could build a subsystem that creates wort from grain, water, hops and yeast and get that working. Then build the fermentation subsystem. And then build the rest of the ingredient delivery subsystem to fully automate the process.
Looking at your diagram, at first glance I think the fermentation fridge is too tightly coupled into the rest of the system to partition it up straight away. I would be looking at ways to simplify the interface there and also trying to bring all the 'inputs' over to one side so you can clearly see what needs to go into the 'brewing' subsystem.