TREBALL DE FI DE GRAU

Grau d’Enginyeria en Tecnologies Industrials

Design of a semi-automated home brewing system

PROJECT REPORT

Autor: David Catalán Conde

Director: Manuel Moreno Eguílaz
Convocatòria: July 2017

ESCOLA TÈCNICA SUPERIOR

D’ENGINYERIA INDUSTRIAL DE BARCELONA
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 1

Abstract
Beer is, by far, the most widely consumed alcoholic drink and the third most popular drink
overall, only surpassed by water and tea. But no, this project will not consist of explaining its
characteristics or the alleged benefits of this golden drink.
In recent years, among the growth of craft beer, the number of people who make their own
beer at home has been increased, those are called homebrewers, and it seems that this
tendency will continue expanding. This project aspires to create a system that allows to speed
up this process making use of the technology, also, set up the basis to carry forward the idea
and materialize it.

The first stage of this work will be to outline the fundamentals of the idea that we want to
achieve and how. Designing the equipment, as well as which components will belong to, will
let to see the final elements needed and how they will be controlled. In turn, the boundaries
must be defined to know until which part of the process the system will take part in.
Once all the elements of the system and the steps that have to be controlled have been
defined, set in motion the design of the software in charge will become possible.

An application will be created in order to read recipes in a standardized and widely used format
by the entire brewing community. This program will also show all the relevant information of
the corresponding recipe, its characteristics, ingredients, duration of each step and all those
parameters that are relevant to the process. At the same time, the program itself will guide the
user through the whole procedure, allowing him or her to know the temperatures in real time,
control the actuators and ultimately, simplifying the way to brew beer.

From the start, the plan is to build up the project as open-source to allow its free exploitation
and provide the possibility to enhance it to keep it growing.
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DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 3

Index
ABSTRACT.................................................................................................................. 1
INDEX ........................................................................................................................ 3
GLOSSARY ................................................................................................................. 5
LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... 8
LIST OF TABLES ......................................................................................................... 10
1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................ 11
BACKGROUND ............................................................................................... 11
MOTIVATION .................................................................................................. 12
2. OBJECTIVES .................................................................................................... 13
SCOPE ......................................................................................................... 13
3. PRECURSOR PROJECTS ..................................................................................... 14
COMPARISON CHART ...................................................................................... 16
4. PREVIOUS KNOWLEDGE ..................................................................................... 18
BEER ........................................................................................................... 18
4.1.1. Water ................................................................................................................................. 18
4.1.2. Cereals .............................................................................................................................. 19
4.1.3. Hops (Humulus lupulus) ................................................................................................... 19
4.1.4. Yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) .................................................................................. 20
THE CRAFT BEER SCENE ................................................................................. 21
LEGALITY ...................................................................................................... 22
THE HOMEBREWING PROCESS ......................................................................... 23
5. PROPOSED SOLUTION ....................................................................................... 27
DESIGN CRITERIA ........................................................................................... 27
PHYSICAL DESIGN .......................................................................................... 27
5.2.1. Electronics......................................................................................................................... 33
OVERVIEW. FINAL EQUIPMENT ......................................................................... 37
SOFTWARE DESIGN ........................................................................................ 40
5.4.1. BeerXML Parser ................................................................................................................ 41
5.4.2. Software Structure............................................................................................................. 42
5.4.3. GUI .................................................................................................................................... 47
6. CBBS. FINAL IMPLEMENTATION .......................................................................... 52
7. VALIDATION TESTS ............................................................................................ 58
FOLLOWING THE PROCESS .............................................................................. 59
8. PROJECT SCHEDULING AND BUDGET .................................................................... 68
9. SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT .................................................................. 71
PAGE 4 PROJECT REPORT

10. CONCLUSIONS................................................................................................. 74
FUTURE IMPLEMENTATIONS............................................................................. 75
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................................. 76
BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES ................................................................................. 77
REFERENCES: ........................................................................................................... 77
LICENSE .................................................................................................................. 79
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 5

Glossary

ABV: Alcohol by Volume [%] - Millilitres (mL) of pure ethanol present in 100 mL
of solution at 20 °C.

ALDEHYDE: Organic compound containing a functional group with the structure –CHO.
Provides “green” flavours, as green apples, grass or fry cider.

ALPHA/BETA ACIDS: [%] - Chemical compounds found in the resin glands of the flowers of the
hop plant. They are the main source of beer bitterness.

ARDUINO: Open source single-board for building digital devices and interactive
objects.

ATTENUATION: [%] – Percentage of converted sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide by
the fermentation process.

BARLEY: Cereal grain. One of the main ingredients to brew beer.

BATCH: Quantity of beer made at the end of the process.

BLEB: Bulge or protrusion of the plasma membrane of a cell. In this case, yeast.

BREWER'S WINDOW: Adequate temperature range to perform the mash step and obtain the
desired sugars.

CRAFT BEER: Beer made by independently-owned commercial breweries or

homebrewers that employ traditional brewing methods emphasizing its
flavour and quality.

DEXTROSE: C6H12O6. Simple sugar obtained from the grains during the mash.

DIACETYLE: C4H6O2. Organic compound naturally formed in alcoholic beverages. Gives

buttery, rancid and undesired sweet flavours.

DIODE: Two-terminal electronic semiconductor device that conducts primarily in

one direction.

EBC SCALE: European Brewery Convention Scale. Provides the beer colour using a
spectrophotometer to measure the attenuation of light of a particular
wavelength, 430 nanometres, as it passes through a liquid sample.

EFFICIENCY: Measurement of potential fermentables converted into sugar in the wort

during the mash.

ENZYME: Macromolecular biological catalysts. Related to beer, these enzymes are

developed during the malting process and reduce starches and proteins
during the mashing. Contributes with clarifying and providing body.

ESTER: Chemical compounds derived from acids. Brings fruity flavours to beer.
PAGE 6 PROJECT REPORT

ETHANOL: Principal alcohol found in alcoholic beverages.

FERMENTATION: Metabolic process that converts sugar to acids and gases, or alcohol.

FUSEL ALCOHOL: Mixture of several alcohols produced as a by-product of alcoholic

fermentation. Provides an unbalanced major alcoholic character.

GLUCOSE: See: DEXTROSE

GLYCOLYSIS: Metabolic pathway that converts glucose into an acid to be converted into
ethanol via fermentation.

GRAVITY: Relative density of the beer compared to water.

GUI: Graphical User Interface. Type of user interface that allows users to interact
with electronic devices.

HERMS: Heat Exchanged Recirculating System.

HOP: Flowers of the hop plant Humulus lupulus. They are used mainly as a
flavouring and stability agent in beer.

IBU: International Bitterness Unit. Iso-alpha acids milligrams for litre of wort. The
major the number, the major the bitterness of beer.

IRISH MOSS: Algae that helps to remove proteins in suspension from the wort and
clarifies the final product.

KETONE: Organic compound with structure RC(=O)R'. Similar properties than

aldehydes.

MALT: Germinated cereal grains that have been dried in the malting process.

MALTING Process to convert raw grains into malt. It consists of various internal
procedures: Drying, Cleaning, Storaging, Steeping, Germination, Kilning,
Deculming and Second Cleaning.

MASHING: Process of combining a mix of milled malt and other grains and hot water
to break down the starch into sugars to produce wort.

MICROBREWERY: Independently owned brewery that produces small amounts of beer.

OXIDATION: Chemical reaction in which the oxidation states of atoms are changed. In
beer, it is not desirable to happen since it can originate unpleasant flavours.

PCB: Printed Circuit Board. Non-conductive substrate panel which supports and
electrically connects electronic components using conductive tracks.

PRIMING: Action based on adding sugars to beer just before bottling it, feeding the
yeast to keep fermenting and produce CO2.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 7

PULL-UP RESISTOR: Resistor connected between a signal conductor and a positive power
supply voltage to ensure that the signal will be a valid logic level if external
devices are disconnected or high-impedance is introduced.

PYTHON: Programming language for general-purpose programming.

RASPBERRY PI: Single-board computer to develop all kinds of computing and electronics
projects.

RELAY: Electrically operated switch.

RIMS: Recirculating Infusion Mash System

SCRIPT: Computer program written in a scripting language.

SPARGING: Trickling water through the grain to extract sugars during the mash.

STAGE-TIER RIG: Structure dedicated to brew beer. It has the necessary elements compactly
arranged to carry out the process adequately

STARCH: Polymeric carbohydrate consisting of a large number of bounded glucose

units.

TANNINS: Astringent biomolecule that helps to precipitate proteins producing the

haze during the boiling step, which should be removed.

TERPENES: Large class of organic compounds produced by plants (hops in this case)
that can provide a wide range of aromas.

TKINTER: Standard Python interface to the Tk GUI toolkit.

TRANSISTOR: Semiconductor device used to amplify or switch electronic signals and

electrical power.

WORT: Liquid extracted from the mashing process during the brewing of beer or
whisky. It contains the sugars that will be fermented.

XML: Markup language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents with
tags in a format readable by humans and machines.

YEAST: Single-celled microorganisms. By fermentation, the yeast (Saccharomyces

cerevisiae in brewing) converts carbohydrates to CO2 and alcohols.
PAGE 8 PROJECT REPORT

List of figures
FIG. 1. CBBS LOGO. .................................................................................................................................. 12
FIG. 2. BREWPI LOGO. ................................................................................................................................ 14
FIG. 3. CRAFTBEERPI LOGO. ....................................................................................................................... 14
FIG. 4. BREWTROLLER LOGO. ...................................................................................................................... 15
FIG. 5. BEERSMITH LOGO. ........................................................................................................................... 15
FIG. 6. HOP CONTRIBUTION BY TIME CHART. ................................................................................................. 20
FIG. 7. HOMEBREWING STANDS CONFIGURATION. ......................................................................................... 28
FIG. 8. RIMS SYSTEM ................................................................................................................................. 29
FIG. 9. HERMS SYSTEM............................................................................................................................. 29
FIG. 10. HYDRAULIC SCHEME ...................................................................................................................... 30
FIG. 11. 2-WAY AND 3-WAY VALVES. ............................................................................................................. 30
FIG. 12. PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER ................................................................................................................ 31
FIG. 13. COIL HEAT EXCHANGER .................................................................................................................. 31
FIG. 14. FEMALE AND MALE CAM LOCKS ...................................................................................................... 31
FIG. 15. ELECTRIC ELEMENTS SCHEME ......................................................................................................... 32
FIG. 16. BRUSHLESS DC PUMP ................................................................................................................... 32
FIG. 17. FOLDED TUBULAR HEATING ELEMENT .............................................................................................. 32
FIG. 18. RASPBERRY PI V3. ......................................................................................................................... 33
FIG. 19. DS18B20 SENSOR ........................................................................................................................ 34
FIG. 20. PT100 SENSOR ............................................................................................................................. 34
FIG. 21 DS18B20 SCHEMATIC .................................................................................................................... 35
FIG. 22. RELAY SCHEMATIC ......................................................................................................................... 36
FIG. 23. EXPANSION SHIELD USED FOR THIS PROJECT.................................................................................... 37
FIG. 24. HOT LIQUOR TANK. ....................................................................................................................... 38
FIG. 25. MASH LIQUOR TANK. ..................................................................................................................... 38
FIG. 26. BOILER TUN. ................................................................................................................................. 38
FIG. 27.SINGLE TIER STRUCTURE................................................................................................................. 39
FIG. 28. DESIGNED PUMP+VALVES ASSEMBLIES. .......................................................................................... 39
FIG. 29. DESIGNED PLATE HEAT EXCHANGER. ............................................................................................... 39
FIG. 30. PROPOSED SOLUTION. ................................................................................................................... 39
FIG. 31. FINAL ENSEMBLE. .......................................................................................................................... 40
FIG. 32. CBBS SCHEME. ............................................................................................................................ 43
FIG. 33. STEPS SECTION ............................................................................................................................. 44
FIG. 34. PLOT FUNCIONS BLOCK .................................................................................................................. 45
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 9

FIG. 35. TIMER FUNCTIONS BLOCK ............................................................................................................... 45

FIG. 36. HELPER FUNCTIONS BLOCK............................................................................................................. 46
FIG. 37. CONTROL FUNCTIONS BLOCK .......................................................................................................... 46
FIG. 38. SETUP CODE.................................................................................................................................. 47
FIG. 39. TKINTER. MAIN WIDGETS. ................................................................................................................ 48
FIG. 40. TKINTER. FRAME STYLES. ................................................................................................................ 49
FIG. 41. TKINTER. BUTTON WIDGET. ............................................................................................................. 49
FIG. 42. TKINTER. BUTTON MESSAGE. .......................................................................................................... 50
FIG. 43. TKINTER. LISTBOX WIDGET. ............................................................................................................. 50
FIG. 44. TKINTER. CANVAS WIDGET. ............................................................................................................. 51
FIG. 45. TKINTER. NOTEBOOK WIDGET.......................................................................................................... 51
FIG. 46. CBBS. MAIN SCREENS. .................................................................................................................. 52
FIG. 47. CBBS. GENERAL INFORMATION. ..................................................................................................... 54
FIG. 48. CBBS. STYLE AND RECIPE CHARACTERISTICS. .................................................................................. 54
FIG. 49. CBBS. COLOR BY RECIPE............................................................................................................... 54
FIG. 50. CBBS. INGREDIENTS LIST. .............................................................................................................. 55
FIG. 51. CBBS. SELECT RECIPE WINDOW. .................................................................................................... 55
FIG. 52. CBBS. ABOUT WINDOW. ................................................................................................................ 56
FIG. 53. CBBS. RECIPE PROGRESS STEPS. ................................................................................................... 56
FIG. 54. CBBS. MANUAL CONTROL. ............................................................................................................ 57
FIG. 55. CBBS. TIMER SCREEN. .................................................................................................................. 57
FIG. 56. CBBS. PLOTS AREA. ...................................................................................................................... 57
FIG. 57. BEERSMITH RECIPE. ....................................................................................................................... 58
FIG. 58. GANTT CHART. TFG TIMELINE DEDICATION. ...................................................................................... 68
FIG. 59. CO2 EMISSIONS. ............................................................................................................................ 72
FIG. 60. CO2 PRODUCED BY BEER ................................................................................................................ 72
PAGE 10 PROJECT REPORT

List of tables
TABLE 1. ALTERNATIVES. COMPARISON CHART. ............................................................................................ 16
TABLE 2. FERMENTATION CHEMICAL EQUATION BALANCED. ............................................................................ 26
TABLE 3. INTELLECTUAL COST. .................................................................................................................... 68
TABLE 4. MATERIAL COST. ........................................................................................................................... 69
TABLE 5. ENERGETIC COST. ........................................................................................................................ 69
TABLE 6. TOTAL PRICE. ............................................................................................................................... 70
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 11

1. Introduction
“We brewers don’t make beer, we just get all the ingredients together
and the beer makes itself.”

- Fritz Maytag, former owner of Anchor Brewing Company

This citation summarizes the main essence not only from this project but also from the
homebrewing basis.
What this introduction wants to emphasize is the importance to know that homebrewers are
just partakers in the process of brewing beer. The best master brewer will never get to brew a
good beer with low quality ingredients, using a deficient equipment or even if the control on
the procedure is inadequate.
This thesis will focus on this last aspect mostly. By enhancing and establishing a better
dominion during the brewing, the margin of error is reduced, permitting a higher performance
and going a step further on the preparation, allowing, like the quote says, to obtain flawless
beers.

Background
CBBC, Catalán Brothers Brewing Company, was born about 4 years ago in a kitchen thanks
to my brother and me. Shortly after discovering the gorgeous world of craft beer, we raised
the idea to go a step further and start brewing our own beer. We were not aware of what was
needed, we did not know if we could overtake the situation and we were unsure about
everything, but due to all information found on the Internet, the help from the skilled people on
this field and the eagerness given over to drink our favourite drink made by us, we took the
first steps to do it.
An “All Grain” basic equipment was bought firstly, composed by the sufficient and necessary
elements to brew about 20 litres of beer. From there, during all this time, a few of improvements
have been made by buying new and better components. The last upgrade was to control the
refrigerator with an Arduino board programmed to be capable of switch the power to maintain
the temperature on a specific range during the fermentation.
So, why not try to automate more parts of the process?
PAGE 12 PROJECT REPORT

Whit this question, the name of CBBS, – Catalán Brothers Brewing System, was born. The idea
was to create a software that could guide and simplify the brewing process. CBBS has been
for few years just a preliminary sketch, always postponing it for “whenever I have time”. Until
now, this TFG has offered the option to carry out with the idea and make it possible.

Motivation
The main incentive that has made feasible this project is the keen interest in the beer per se,
as well as in the procedure to make it. As an engineer, I have always had a special interest in
production processes and automation, and thanks to the fact that the beers made during this
time have been quite decent, has led to look for a little more and not stop growing as a
homebrewer.
An aspect that should be considered for the realization of this project is all the help received
from the homebrewer community, thousands of people, both locally and internationally, which
make their own beer, participate regularly in forums, and attend to craft beer fairs. Due to all
the shared knowledge and their contributions, it had been decided to put my grain of sand in
this community writing the project report and the code in English, so it can reach more people
around the world. From all this, the idea of creating our own system was originated, not only
looking for the sake of us, but also to engage in the homebrewer world actively.

Fig. 1. CBBS logo.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 13

2. Objectives
The objectives of this project were clear since the beginning. The most relevant ones are:

 Process definition and determination of the procedures to act on.

 Equipment design and hardware selection.

 Build and develop a control application to regulate the setup and help to carry out the
whole process.

 Create a graphical user interface (GUI) with a responsible design granting a greater
control over the application.

 Generate and simulate a new recipe to seek to ensure the proper functioning.

 Steer the idea for a future implementation, always watching to keep alive the
homebrewing essence.

Scope
In order to define the boundaries of the project, its scope must be considered:

 The project is based on the creation of a system to help to brew beer, so any beer will
be made by the end of the project.

 The physical equipment will only be designed, with the exception of the control
elements already bought.

 The solution will not be fully automated, since the user will need to interact and keep
an eye on the process until its end.

 The used recipes must be in a specific extension and properly fulfilled. Also, they are
limited by the own equipment.
PAGE 14 PROJECT REPORT

3. Precursor projects
For many years, homebrewers have used a myriad of tools that have helped with the artisan
brewing process. From a basic chronometer and a thermometer to control the most basic
aspects, until a computer-controlled system that takes care of every detail of the
manufacturing. In recent years, with the rise of technologies and the possibilities to have a
custom-made equipment, some solutions have emerged and become commercialized, being
widely used by thousands of people around the world.
At this point, some of the possibilities that currently exist in the market will be exposed.

BrewPi[1]
BrewPi is probably the most widely used option for brewing
control around craft beer, although it is also the most limited of
the following.
The system consists of a Raspberry Pi[2], connected to
Fig. 2. BrewPi logo.
different temperature sensors pertinently coupled to a Source: https://www.raspberrypi.org

refrigerator, and two additional elements, one heater and another for cooling. This system
regulates the temperature of the refrigerator and thus to control the fermentation. In addition,
it can be connected to the network to warn the user of possible sudden temperature changes
or problems during the fermentation. It has its own online store to buy several components
and an installation guide to be able to have the small setup ready in few hours.
Nowadays, the authors are making some improvements in the process, manufacturing their
own printed circuit boards (PCB) and designing a system that also regulates mash and boil
processes.

CraftBeerPi[3]
CraftBeerPi is a relatively new concept, but more complete than any other
system. It consists of a Raspberry that works as a central computer, which
connects three relays that control a pump and two heating resistors, in
addition to three sensors to measure the temperature of each container.
Fig. 3. CraftBeerPi logo.
Source: http://web.craftbeerpi.com/
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 15

This system can be configured to control from mashing to fermentation, allowing a greater
control and autonomy of the process. It measures temperatures in real time and notifies the
user of any anomaly in the system.

BrewTroller[4]
BrewTroller is the most expensive option but at the same time the
more automated. It is the only option between the previous ones that
works with a PCB of its own brand and an Arduino[5] connected to it.
This system, besides monitoring the mashing and boiling steps,
Fig. 4. BrewTroller logo.
also controls the valves of the equipment, allowing to speed up the Source: https://brewtroller.com/
process being less likely to make any mistake. It also has its own
store to buy the control elements and the different subsystems that form the equipment.

Beersmith TM[6]
Beersmith is not exactly a control system since it works autonomously
and separately from the main process. But it is thanks to this program
that others have emerged. That is why it has been chosen to be in this
list. Beersmith is a software that facilitates the creation, modification
and diffusion of recipes as well as a section that helps to follow Fig. 5. Beersmith logo.
Source: http://beersmith.com/
the process allowing to perform modifications and corrections.
Thanks to this company, a significant portion of the homebrewer sector has been unified as
well as the community that has been commented before expanded. Another facet to
emphasize is that the creators of Beersmith bring into existence the standardized recipe format
BeerXML[7].
PAGE 16 PROJECT REPORT

Comparison chart
Once these systems have been presented, a summary revealing the different options will be
shown in Table 1.

BREWPI CRAFTBEERPI BREWTROLLER CBBS

MODIFY RECIPES ✘ ✘ ✘ ✘

RECIPE READING ✘ ✔ ✘ ✔

MASH CONTROL ✘ ✔ ✔ ✔

BOIL CONTROL ✘ ✔ ✔ ✔

FERMENTATION CONTROL ✔ ✔ ✘ ✘

ADDITION WARNINGS ✘ ✘ ✘ ✔

REAL-TIME PLOTS ✔ ✔ ✘ ✔

USER COMMUNICATION ✔ ✔ ✔ ✘

OTHER USES ✘ ✘ ✘ ✔

OPEN SOURCE ✘ ✔ ✔ ✔

APPROX. COST [€]1 300 – 1000 200 – 800 600 – 950 ≈150

Table 1. Alternatives. Comparison chart.

Source: own.

1
This value is given by the range between the most basic and the full kit exposed on their webpages, and it
reflexes the total price it will cost to use this system at home. In case of CBBS, the cost is only the value of the
used components.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 17

It can be seen how the system on which this work is addressed, intends to be quite complex
but more competitive, economically talking, than any of the others shown up. Two features
were wanted to be added after observing that the other options did not count with them.
CBBS will have a real-time warning system that will notify when it is time to make an addition
(hops or any miscellaneous), preventing the requirement to put a separate alarm to avoid the
chance of forgetting.

In addition, the fact that this software is a script running on an operating system, and not a
dedicated OS by itself, allows the controller to be used for other issues and not just dedicated
to brewing.
PAGE 18 PROJECT REPORT

4. Previous knowledge
In order to understand how the program features behaves or are based on, some basic
considerations should be taken into account and of course, it is essential to know how the
process of brewing works. To do this, we will go a little further and a brief introduction about
beer will be explained, the basic ingredients and processes that are carried out.

Beer
Investigators have been found signs that show that fermented beverages were begun to
develop from grain and roots from 11000 BC. However, the earliest mention of the closest
definition of beer as we know nowadays was over 5,000 years ago in the ancient Egypt. [8]
Then, it was made from baked barley bread. During the building of the Great Pyramids in Giza,
each worker got a daily ration of around four litres of beer, which served as both nutrition and
refreshment that was crucial to the pyramids' construction.
Essentially, beer is the product of the fermentation of barley malt extracts by the action of
yeast. While malt and yeast make important contributions to the profile of beer, its quality and
character depends equally on the water and hops used in its production.
Today, there are hundreds of documented beer styles, and all of them mainly consist of four
essential ingredients: water, cereals, hops and yeast. The quality of these raw materials has a
decisive influence on the quality of the obtained beer. Understanding the properties of those
raw materials, their influence during the process and on the final product, provides the basis
for their use and processing. For more information about Beer Styles, please see ANNEX 3.
The role of each ingredient will be briefly explained with regard to figure out how they affect.

4.1.1. WATER
As a matter of fact, beer is composed mostly of water, sometimes being the 95% of the final
product. And even then, only a slightly amount of water required is used directly in beer, while
another part is required for cleaning, rinsing and other purposes. The convenient procurement
and treatment of the water are of particular importance to the brewer, since the quality of the
water influences substantially on the quality of beer made from it.[9]
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 19

Before the arrival of modern science, beer styles were limited by the type of water available in
the region. Scientific knowledge and technology have enabled the artisan brewers to design
and manufacture beers that are not restricted by geographical boundaries.

4.1.2. CEREALS
Grain is the main raw solid material for brewing. This grain comes from cereals, usually barley,
but may be from wheat, rye, oats, corn, rice, etc., partially germinated and dried. Malting and
maceration processes convert starches into different fermentable and non-fermentable
sugars.
The load is composed of the base malt, special malts and other attachments (raw cereals).
Those are selected according to the desired beer style and profile, contributing on the flavour
and on the body of the final drink. Malt is also responsible of beer colouring. The amount of
colour given by it is determined during the process of kilning[10] throughout the malting, where
the high temperatures of this process produce different levels of toast in the grains through
the Maillard reaction.[11] It is expressed with a numeric scale and it is measured in Europe with
the EBC system.[12] For more information about EBC Scale, please see ANNEX 4.

4.1.3. HOPS (HUMULUS LUPULUS)

It is used since the Middle Ages in the beer production to avoid the detriment of other
ingredients. The dry cones of this plant of the family Cannabaceae contain bitter resins and
ethereal oils that provide almost all the bitterness of beer. Hops also have antioxidant
properties and a great chemical importance right through the whole process. Late hops
additions and the different varieties used have a great influence on beer aroma and taste.
Dried hops are composed of:
 Bitter compounds/resins 18.5%
 Hop oils 0.5%
 Tannins 3.5%
 Proteins 20.0%
 Mineral substances 8.0%
The rest is composed by cellulose and other substances that are not of importance for
brewing. The most important components for brewing are these bitter compounds and hop
oils.
PAGE 20 PROJECT REPORT

Bitter compounds, mainly (α)alpha acids and (β)beta acids, are aggregates that isomerize
when are heated and are responsible for the bitter character of beer. Alpha-acids are
measured in IBU[13] (International Bittering Units) and are defined as iso-alpha acids milligrams
for litre of wort.
Hop oils are very soluble and volatile compounds, including esters, fusel alcohol, aldehydes,
ketones, terpenes, and others, which contribute on the different notes of flavour and aromas.
The different hop additions, which vary according to the recipe, are added during the boiling,
providing different characteristics depending on the moment in which there are introduced.
It is important to use fresh hops, since these compounds, as explained before, are lost causing
the hops oxidation, providing unpleasant flavours or aromas.

Fig. 6. Hop contribution by time chart.

Based on a plot made by http://www.homebrewtalk.com.

4.1.4. YEAST (SACCHAROMYCES CEREVISIAE)

Yeast is a single-celled fungus. There are many species, and they are classified according to
the characteristics of their cellular form, reproduction, their physiology and their habitat. Their
natural surroundings are varied: fruits, leaves, flowers, and even the human skin. The
characteristic of our interest is its ability to metabolize sugars and produce alcohol; and the
class that interests us is Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, extraordinarily qualified to do so. The
cells, if they are healthy and are in the right conditions, reproduce by budding, divide into two,
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 21

and the smallest part, the bleb, detaches from the parent cell, grows and continues
reproducing.
The cycle continues while there is oxygen, and once the cells have used all the oxygen, they
begin to metabolize sugars and to produce ethyl alcohol, CO2, heat, and other by-products
(esters, diacetyle, aldehydes...) that can also modify the taste and the aroma.
It should be mentioned that it is the most "dangerous" ingredient among the others. A deficient
yeast preservation, an unwanted mixture, a misstep during cleaning, can allow other wild yeast
(found in the environment) or bacteria to react with the beer spoiling and contaminating the
whole lot. Hoewever, it is also true that there are certain styles that interacts with these
elements to ferment the wort, although they are a minority.

The craft beer scene

The terminology "craft beer" has origin in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s and was used
to describe the new generation of small breweries that focused on the traditional production
of ale beers.

Although originally "microbrewery" was used to describe the size of breweries, used to
designate breweries producing less than 15,000 litres of beer per year. Gradually it came to
reflect the attitude, the alternative approach to the brewing, and the exceptional adaptability
and customer service.[14]
Microbreweries have adopted a different marketing strategy, considerably far away from those
conceived by mass-market breweries, offering products that compete according to their
quality and diversity, rather than low prices and advertising.
It should be interesting to mention that in 2008, the number of microbreweries in Spain was
only 21, but in 2011, the "revolution of artisan beers” was exposed[15], and more recently, by
2013, the trend had spread to a large number of regions. In mid-2015, there were around 400
microbreweries spread all over the country. To date (June 1, 2017), there are 770 companies
registered as such.[16]

It is noteworthy, and as a small tribute, that this revolution was initiated thanks to the initiative
of Steve Huxley [1950-2015], a brewmaster who dedicated his life to the craft beer elaboration
and the dissemination of them.
PAGE 22 PROJECT REPORT

Legality
Surprisingly, one of the most asked questions by the general public is whether making an
alcoholic beverage at home is legal or not, or even if a homebrewer, as an individual producer,
could sell his beer. [17]
Well, starting from the roots of this point in question, it should be interesting to study the current
regulations applied today. And therefore, it is necessary to read the “Real Decreto 678/2016,
de 16 de diciembre, por el que se aprueba la norma de calidad de la cerveza y de las bebidas
de malta”, from the Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE), the official gazette of the Government of
Spain.[18]
In can be observed how it is not explicitly specified which requisites exist to commercialize
craft beer, but what characteristics should have beer to be considered as such, regardless of
whether it is craft or not.
Likewise, it does not indicate what health or legal requirements should exist to be able to sell
beer. For this reason, and getting in touch with the Barcelona City Council, it has been known
that to have the right to sell beer, it is needed:

Sanitary Registration

Industrial Registration

Opening licence

CAE (Código de Actividad y Establecimiento)

Bottling license

Civil liability insurance

Taking into account of no regulatory authority will accept a domestic kitchen as a suitable
place to brew beer, the Sanitary Registration will not be procured, so it will not be possible to
commercialize (in a legal way) craft beer made at home.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 23

The homebrewing process

Now, to finish off and begin with the explanation of the control tool, this section will go in depth
into the brewing process. Already knowing the main ingredients, it can be seen how they are
employed and when they join this process.

Cleansing
Before starting to brew beer it must be ensured that all the equipment is cleaned, disinfected,
and if necessary, sterilized. It is also crucial to keep an eye at all time on which materials are
being used and what type of cleaning agents can be applied on them, since an error could
mean the breakage of any of the equipment elements.
Detergents or disinfectants may be used depending on the amount of dirt to be removed and
the use of this equipment. Of course, every item should be rinsed thoroughly before using it.

Preparation
The whole preparation phase starts with choosing the recipe, followed by the purchase of the
consequent ingredients, the arrangement of all equipment and the necessary material, and
getting ready the ingredients. During the preparation, milling the grains accurately is vital to
obtain a good beer.
Milling is the process of crushing malt or different grains in smaller pieces in order to enable
enzymes to act on the malt components and to decompose them during maceration. It should
be taken into account that although the husks do not contain fermentable sugars, they must
be treated carefully and not get rid of them, since they are needed as a natural filter all along
the mash step.
Additionally, an extreme caution must be taken with the dust generated when grinding the
grain, in high concentrations it can be explosive and ignite due to a spark originated from the
friction between the different mill parts. Another consideration about this malt powder is that it
should be set apart from the production space, as it may contain traces of unwanted yeasts
which could contaminate the beer.
Depending on the class of malt, its water content or the sugar amount, the grain fragments
must be finest or thickest, as the quality of the grinding affects the maceration process, the
ability to filter the wort and the process efficiency as well as the beer taste and character.
PAGE 24 PROJECT REPORT

Mashing
Mashing is the most important step in the wort production. During this procedure, the
fermentable grain is hydrated, the malt enzymes are activated and the grain starches are
converted into fermentable sugars. There are several fundamental groups of enzymes involved
in the starch conversion. These enzymes are a kind of proteins that provoke chemical
reactions without changing their own structures. This part of the process is so extensive and
complex that several reports could be done, although as a summary, it should be emphasized
that transformations during maceration are of decisive importance in many factors, such as
flavour, colour, aroma, body and acidity.
There is the so-called Brewer’s Window[19], which is the temperature range to perform the
mash and obtain the desired sugars, knowing that if we want more alcoholic and dry beers,
we must macerate between 62 and 65 °C, or between 68.5 and 70 °C to obtain beers of lower
content of alcohol, sweeter and with fuller body.
This step can be done from its simplest version, “simple infusion”, where all the grain is added
since the beginning, fixing a single temperature. More complex forms, as the “step infusion”,
where the grain is added at different stages and modifying the temperature according the time
to obtain diverse sugar types.
At the same time, if the wort is recirculated during the maceration process, the efficiency, the
production of sugars and, in general, the quality of the beer, is increased significantly.

Sparging
Sparging is trickling water through the grain to extract the remaining sugars and transfer the
wort to the boiler tun. This is a delicate step, since if it is done at wrong temperature or pH,
this step will extract tannins from the chaff, resulting in an unpleasant bitter brew. Typically, is
used 1.5 times more water for sparging than for mashing.[20]

Boiling
Once the wort is in the boiler tun, it is brought to the boil. This step must last at least for one
hour, and must be vigorous to let the desired chemical reactions occur.
During this period of time the hops and other adjuncts are added. These ingredients provide
the different organoleptic characteristics.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 25

There has already been talk about hops and its influence according its addition instant, but
also the presence of other adjuncts, such as candy sugar (present in many Belgian beers),
aromatic seeds, herbs, and almost as a rule, Irish Moss[21], an algae that helps to remove
proteins in suspension from the wort and clarifies the final product.

Chilling
Once the boiling is finished, since the yeast can only ferment at low temperatures, the hot wort
must be cooled as quickly as possible. This is fundamental because if the wort rests long
between 30 and 50 °C, there will be many possibilities of irruption by uninvited organisms,
such as bacteria or wild yeasts. Oxidation may also occur. It is not interesting to add oxygen
until the wort is below 24 °C and the yeast has been added.
For a proper cooling, heat exchangers are often used, which reduce the temperature quickly
by avoiding the exposure to air.
As soon as the wort is around 20 °C, it can be transferred to the fermenter to go on with the
process.

Fermenting[22]
To convert wort into beer, the contained wort sugars must be fermented by yeast enzymes to
produce ethanol and carbon dioxide in a ten-step process called glycolysis. Fermentation by-
products are formed in this process too, having a substantial influence on the taste, aromas
and other remarkable beer characteristics.
Alcoholic or ethanol fermentation is expressed according to the following Gay-Lussac formula:

C6H12O6  2 C2H5OH + 2 CO2

PAGE 26 PROJECT REPORT

If the formed products are calculated quantitatively according to their atomic mass, the
following relationships result:

C6H12O6  2 C2H5OH + 2 CO2

C: 72 48 24
H: 12 12 -
O: 96 32 64

180 92 88

Table 2. Fermentation chemical equation balanced.

Source: KUNZE, WOLFGANG. Tecnología para Cerveceros y Malteros. VLB Berlín, 2006.

From 1 mole of glucose (180 g), 92 g of ethanol and 88 g of CO2 are formed during the
alcoholic fermentation, meaning that sugar is separated in almost equal parts by mass of
alcohol and CO2.
One point that should be emphasized is the major differences between industrial beers and
craft beer. On these last ones, fermentation occurs throughout the beer's life cycle, since the
yeast is added and until the beer is drunk. Although it is true that the activity diminishes over
time. This makes to craft beer be named as a "living product". In industrial beer, a process of
filtration and pasteurization will end up applying, which reduces the presence of agents
present in the liquid, including yeast. For this reason, a can of an industrial beer will taste the
same now that in four months, something that does not happen with the artisanal ones.

Conditioning/Bottling
Once the first stage of fermentation is finished, which usually lasts between 10 and 15 days
and the most amount of alcohol is produced by letting the CO2 escape, it is time to transfer it
to bottles (or barrels) to let it rest and be able to drink it as we know it.
What is typically done is to add sugars in a clean recipient and stir the blend to mix the parts
and oxygenate the beer (this step is called priming), once finished, the beer can be bottled.
Now, the yeast that is still alive has more nutrients to react with, generating a small part of
alcohol and the CO2 that will make the beer has gas and bubbles.
Dextrose (corn sugar) is commonly used since it is stable, neutral, and has no side effects.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 27

5. Proposed solution
Once the brewing process has been understood, which it is necessary to recognize each step
that the program will carry out, the explanation about what elements were considered
necessary while the project was under development will be examined. It will be disclosed the
selection of hardware and software, also the discussion of possible alternatives and an
explanation of what the program by itself is, how it is composed and how it works.

Design criteria
As we have been taught during all these years of study, all projects must follow a method in
order to be able to develop it and accomplish a possible solution from the given circumstances
and wills. It is well known that there is no a standard or right way to build up a project or a
unique procedure to solve a problem.
All along this project, a series of methodologies have been followed to start thinking about a
solution. Possibly, the most important was to define what stages of the brewing process were
wanted to be supervised and the elements that would make up the solution.
As mentioned before, CBBS will be put in charge from the beginning, starting by heating water
for the following steps, and ending with the wort transfer to the fermenter once it has been
cooled. It has been decided to limit up to this point and not to continue with the fermentation
process because the large number of variables that would have to be taken into account for
it, as well as preparing a refrigerator to keep the temperature controlled and the time that this
entails. Even so, in future versions, it is not excluded to add this functionality.
Once all the parts of the process that will control the software have been defined, it is time to
proceed with choosing which kind of equipment and installation will be built, the appliances
used and how these elements will be arranged. All this will be pointed out in the next section,
as well as the possible existing alternatives.

Physical design
Of course, one of the variables that most influences on which kind of system will be installed
is the available space. It is not the same to brew beer in a kitchen, in a garage, or in a 300 m2
room. Among the diverse craft beer rigs made, the Stage-Tiers equips are the most commonly
employed. These equipments are distinguished by their containers arrangement, placed in
one, two or three heights. To design the equipment that CBBS will control, it must be
PAGE 28 PROJECT REPORT

considered that will be placed in a small space. Therefore, it has been decided to make a
Single-Tier rig, where the three kegs are at the same height. This facilitates among other things,
the addition of ingredients in each of them, the subsequent cleaning, visibility and a lower
expense on construction materials, as well as the homebrewer safety, since there are no heavy
elements above the head. On the contrary, it is a somewhat more expensive design in terms
of control elements, since all the fluid movements are made by pumps and not by gravity, in
contrast to what happens in at least one of the processes of other Stage-Tiers systems.

.
Fig. 7. Homebrewing stands configuration.
Single, Two and Three Tier respectively.
Source: http://www.homebrewtalk.com/

Once the barrels arrangement has been chosen, it is important to decide what type of
recirculation method will be installed on the system. There are two options: RIMS and HERMS.

RIMS (Recirculating Infusion Mash System)

This system uses direct heat on the tube to heat the wort as it is recirculated. The heat source
may be electric or gas, but the wort is heated as it passes through the tube and is pumped
during recirculation. The pump keeps the wort moving through the tube at a steady rate to
avoid scorching it. The pump must run continuously during the mash when heating, though
the heater itself is often cycled on and off to control temperature. A risk with the RIMS system
is scorching the wort if the pump fails for some reason.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 29

HERMS (Heat Exchanged Recirculating System)

With this other system the wort is passed through a heat exchanger. The most common type
of heat exchanger is an immersion setup where a coil of copper tubing is immersed in a hot
liquor tun. In this type of setup the hot liquor tun is often kept at a constant temperature slightly
above the target mash temperature and the pump is cycled on and off to maintain the
temperature of the mash.

Fig. 8. RIMS System Fig. 9. HERMS System

Source: www.vandelogt.nl Source: www.vandelogt.nl

The HERMS system has been demonstrated to be faster and more efficient, and therefore it
is the used until the date on the current equipment.
Another made decision is to use beer barrels instead of regular pots. The average price for a
50 litre pot is around 70 €, and around 200 € if you want it with valve, thermometer and volume
indicator. However, setting up your own mentioned elements into a barrel (which cost is
around 30 €), the expense can be reduced in more than 100 €.
To determine the other apparatus to use, an electric and hydraulic scheme has been done, as
shown in Fig 10:
PAGE 30 PROJECT REPORT

Fig. 10. Hydraulic scheme

Scheme made with ProfiCAD software.
Source: own.

Looking at this first scheme, it can be seen that along with the three barrels, five two-way
valves are needed, one for each barrel and two for both pump in order to regulate the liquid
flow.
Simultaneously, to assemble correctly the connections and minimize the number of tubes, four
three-way valves have been added allowing fluid direction changes.

Fig. 11. 2-way and 3-way valves.

Source: http://uk.rs-online.com
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 31

As Figure 10 shows, a coil heat exchanger is required to carry out the HERMS system.
Additionaly, a plate exchanger for a faster wort cooling.

Fig. 13. Coil heat exchanger Fig. 12. Plate heat exchanger
Source: https://dir.indiamart.com Source: https://dir.indiamart.com

It should be noticed, and as one might expect, that each element will dispose of threaded
connections or adjusting hook elements for the other parts. In this case, the ensemble will be
equiped with Cam Locks.[23] Those allow the pipes to be connected and disconnected without
needing nuts, bolts or screws, since Cam Locks are safe, easy to assemble and disassemble,
and ensure the correct liquid transference.

Fig. 14. Female and male Cam Locks

Source: http://www.camlock-fittings.com
PAGE 32 PROJECT REPORT

Fig. 15. Electric elements scheme

Scheme made with ProfiCAD software.
Source: own.
With the scheme in Fig. 15 it can be seen all those components that need electricity to work.
The first thing seen on the left is the control device, a Raspberry Pi, which will be discussed
later.
There are two brushless DC pumps, one to boost and move the water and another dedicated
to the wort. The two pumps will only work together during the cooling step, where both liquids
will be recirculating. As punctuation, remark that both pumps are not connected directly to the
Raspberry, since they need 12 V to operate and the board is only able to provide 5 V. For this
reason, they will be connected to relays connected to the Raspberry and to the electric network
at the same time. In the same way connected, there will be a low-density electrical resistance
inside the HLT, being able to raise the water temperature on this recipient in a more precise
way than with the butane burner.

Fig. 17. Folded tubular heating element Fig. 16. Brushless DC pump
Source: https://www.brewpi.com/ Source: https://www.picclickimg.com
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 33

In the scheme, three temperature sensors are showed up, those will measure this value inside
the HLT, at the MLT exit and the wort temperature at the plate exchanger exit.
Furthermore, relays and sensors connections and the Raspberry Pi characteristics, will be
explained in more detail in the following section.

5.2.1. ELECTRONICS
On this section it will described the hardware for monitoring the process, how it was chosen,
and how it is connected. A Raspberry Pi is, with the permission of beer, the main component
of the whole project, the "brain" of the operation.
Raspberry Pi is a small single-board computer developed in the United Kingdom by the
Raspberry Pi Foundation to promote the teaching of basic computer science in schools and
in developing countries. Despite this, due to its versatility, Raspberry has been used around
the world by millions of people to carry out their projects and ideas.
In the present case, the latest released model has been used, the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B,
more powerful than its predecessors and perfectly equipped for its purpose.

Fig. 18. Raspberry Pi V3.

https://www.raspberrypi.org/

Of course, it was not chosen from the beginning. Before thinking about what kind of application
it would be done, Arduino was a good option. This last one board belongs to an open-source
electronic prototyping platform allowing users to create interactive electronic objects. This
single-board, even being able to control some process steps such temperatures, is far more
limited for other options, such as reading recipes, plotting, being able to design an interface,
etc ...
PAGE 34 PROJECT REPORT

Once determined the "computer" that was going to control everything, it was necessary to
decide on the devices that would control the temperature and how the pumps would be
connected.
In reference to the temperature sensors, two possible solutions were found. Probes based on
PT100 sensors[24] (RTD sensors, Resistance Temperature Detectors) or DS18B20 sensors. [25]
These latter were chosen for several reasons, such as its easier usability through Raspberry,
as they use 1-Wire technology for sending data (can send information from several sensors
through the same cable or bus), for its resolution and reading time (despite being not so fast
than the alternative, was sufficient for the requirements), and its price, around 5 times cheaper.
Additionally, both offer the possibility to go encapsulated with a stainless steel tube suitable
for feeding.

Fig. 20. PT100 sensor Fig. 19. DS18B20 sensor

Source: https://www.amazon.com Source: https://www.amazon.es

These sensors have 3 pins, power (VDO), Ground (GND), and Data (DQ). The power supply
is 3.3 V (Raspberry Pin 1) and has a 4.7kOhm pull-up resistor[26] between VDO and data bus
(connected to Pin 7 or GPIO 4) as shown in Figure 21 on the next page.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 35

Fig. 21 DS18B20 schematic

Source: http://www.reuk.co.uk

Once connected, it must be understood the information sent to Raspberry from these sensors.
Before begin, note that these sensors come with a 12 bit resolution by default (configurable
between 9 and 12), so the maximum conversion time for this resolution is 750 ms. Although it
is true that the reading could be faster if the resolution is lowered, the system will not ask for
such speed to configure it as well.
To be able to read the temperatures, first of all the Raspberry must be configured to activate
the One-Wire interface. Once done, it should be found which sensor is which from the
recognized in “/sys/bus/w1/devices” folder, on the Raspberry root files. There are
several folders named such “28-XXXXXXXXXXXX” where the "X" refers to the “name” (each
sensor has a 64 bit unique address) and within each folder among other files, a folder called
w1_slave is found. These folders are read using “cat w1_slave” command, resulting in an
output similar to the following one:
73 01 4b 46 7f ff 0d 10 41 : crc=41 YES
73 01 4b 46 7f ff 0d 10 41 t=23187

Two text lines are displayed2, although the last numbers are what really matters, in this
example, t=23187. This value is the temperature with a resolution of three decimals but
without decimal point. Therefore, the measured temperature is 23.187 °C. To obtain this
temperature during the process, it will be as easy as reading this folder each time a particular
temperature is requested and pull these last five characters out.

2
When data is communicated between two devices, it is common to use some type of error, in this case, cyclic
redundancy check (CRC) is used. The general idea is that the transmitter calculates and transmits a value and
the receiver performs the same calculations and compares the result with the check value.
PAGE 36 PROJECT REPORT

Once having learned to use the temperature sensors connected to the Raspberry, it is
necessary to do the same with the relays to control both pumps and the heating resistor.
To do this it is needed a 1 kOhm resistor[27], a diode (1N4007 in this case)[28], an NPN transistor
(PN2222 model)[29] and a solid state relay[30] for each circuit. So, three circuits like the figure
below will be required:

Fig. 22. Relay schematic

Source: https://raspberrypi.stackexchange.com

Essentially, the transistor is used to energise the relay coil with the required voltage and
current. To activate the relay, what the circuit does is send a few milliamps at 3.3V from the
GPIO pin through a 1K resistor. This current is enough to saturate the transistor, causing
current to flow on the 5V rail through the transistor, and therefore also through the relay coil.
The diode in the circuit is there to conduct the current generated by the de-energising coil
back across the coil, allowing the power to dissipate more gradually, avoiding a voltage spike.
Once the three circuits are connected (in this project, to the physical pins 15, 16 and 18), it is
time to learn how they are controlled.
The first thing to do is to configure these three pins as output pins. That can easily done on
the script, not before importing the RPi.GPIO library, which allows a simpler manipulation to
activate and deactivate these pins and thus control the pumps and the thermal resistance.
To set up the prototype, once the connections have been checked and secured, a Raspberry
Pi compatible shield has been used to provide the base to mount and weld the circuit in a
compact way, being easier to move and to connect.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 37

Fig. 23. Expansion shield used for this project

Overview. Final equipment

At this section, the final design of the equipment to be assembled will be explained. The most
important elements and a possible layout of them will be shown, as well as those not
mentioned but equally important.
As already seen, the setup will consist of 3 barrels in Single-Tier configuration, or at a single
height. Those barrels are the Hot Liquor Tank (HLT), the Mash Liquor Tank (MLT) and the
Boiler Tun, each of them conveniently prepared and with all necessary connections, as well
as an analogue thermometer and a level control tube.
The HLT contains, apart from all those mentioned elements, the HERMS coil system and the
electric heating resistor. In the MLT case, there is a round shape diffuser for a proper sprinkling
of the wort during the mashing step, spreading out all around the barrel. The boiler is a
standard barrel with the respective Cam Locks.
All the elements have been designed using Autodesk Inventor 2016 software or downloaded
from the GrabCAD library.[31]
PAGE 38 PROJECT REPORT

Fig. 24. Hot Liquor Tank.

Source: own.

Fig. 25. Mash Liquor Tank. Fig. 26. Boiler Tun.

Source: own. Source: own.

Of course, all these barrels must be mounted on some type of structure. To get an idea, a
1.80x0.85 m rig has been designed. It has intermediate spaces to keep the utensils and
protect the Raspberry with the screen to follow the process. On the other hand, two butane
burners will be installed and a space will be left for the respective gas bottle.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 39

Fig. 27.Single Tier structure.

Source: own.

Both pumps and the plate heat exchanger will be suitably coupled to the structure to ensure
their fastening and to be easily accessible.

Fig. 28. Designed pump+valves assemblies. Fig. 29. Designed plate heat exchanger.
Source: own. Source: own.

Fig. 30. Proposed solution.

Both ensembles are easily reachable.
Source: own.
PAGE 40 PROJECT REPORT

Once the ensemble is finished, it will be enough separation between the barrels to be able to
handle them without problems. In addition, the highest point will be at a maximum height of
1.50 m, enough to keep controlled the process and add the ingredients without stairs required,
which could be dangerous for the homebrewer.

Fig. 31. Final ensemble.

Source: own.

Software design
Once the physical implementation of the system is done, let's move on to the software section,
how it is done, how it has been developed and what tasks it performs.
CBBS is composed of three fundamental blocks, a BeerXML format reader, the CBBS main
code and the graphical interface designed with Tkinter. The following parts will explain the
particularities of each, their use and how it is integrated into the main program.
First of all, note that Python 3[32] has been the programming language chosen due to its
versatility and because it is installed by default on Raspberry. The operating system installed
on the Raspberry Pi, Raspbian, has already installed the essential modules to be able to use
it and was the option that seemed to offer more possibilities.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 41

5.4.1. BEERXML PARSER

An important point was to be able to read a recipe in one of the most commonly used formats
among the homebrewers, BeerSmith files (.bsmx) or BeerXML (.xml). The decision was not
difficult actually, while BeerSmith files are made to read them in the eponymous program, the
XML (Extensible Markup Language) format instead, is a markup language that defines a set
of rules for encoding documents in a format that is both human-readable and machine-
readable in different ways. The BeerSmith author by himself and other colleagues created this
standard with the primary purpose to exchange recipes, but it could be used for the exchange
of other brewing data too, as styles or ingredients.
Once the reading format was determined, some kind of reader should be created to read this
Standard, since it would allow more versatility and advantages over modifying the code for
each recipe. Before starting, it was searched if there was some kind of library created for this
function, and although in the official documentation does not appear anything, a project was
found uploaded to the well-known github repository. This project was defined as a recipe
reader in XML format with Python. It was started by Tom Herold with MIT license two years
ago, and it seems to have been abandoned, after trying to contact the author and not receive
response, it was decided to use the base code and make it work.[33]
To make it operational has been spent more time than desired, but finally, it has been possible
to implement a code that is able to read any recipe in .xml format and return the desired values.
It should be noted that additional functions have been implemented and more time has been
spent for making a universal recipe reader, and not just for the processes involved with CBBS.

Finally, the python script beerxmlparser.py has been created, being able to read and return
information related to the following aspects:
Recipe information Fermentables/grain
Style information Hops
Equipment information Miscellaneous
Mash information Water
Mash steps Yeast

The complete list of elements and additional information that can be procured from each of
these key aspects can be found in ANNEX 2.
PAGE 42 PROJECT REPORT

Beerxmlparser.py consists on one file, the main code, and individual scripts for each tag inside
the recipe. In total, there are 12 independent scripts plus the main one that makes up the
whole library.
The idea, once the project is finished, is to publish this script as an independently library of
CBBS and allow its free distribution among the homebrewer community. In the same way, as
it has taken leverage of the first version to develop it, anyone will be allowed to modify the
code and make it in their own way.
The form of use it is simple, importing firstly beerxmlparser.py at the main code and make a
call to it with:
recipe = beerxmlparser.Recipe()

Where the Recipe class stores all the information in the "recipe" object, being able to get the
values specified in the attachment easily. For example, writing "recipe.Name" let the brewer
knows the name of the selected recipe.
A detail to keep in mind is to know that BeerXML Parser is designed to work with complete
recipes, in other words, there must be no missing information. Otherwise, the program will not
suffer any type of malfunction but it could lead to different troubles when following the recipe
if those values are relevant.
On Validation Tests chapter, a recipe will be created to check the proper functioning of this
program and it will be seen how the format is organized.

5.4.2. SOFTWARE STRUCTURE

Once the reading of recipes is achieved and have means for extracting all the necessary
information, it is time to design the program that will control each of the necessary steps to
brew, hopefully, a good beer. Before starting to conceive the code, it is necessary to specify
exactly how it will be structured, what kind of objects it will use and thus define the main
functionalities contained in the application. In it, the user must enter the recipe that wants to
produce and the program by itself will be in charge of processing the data and use it during
the guidance of the operation.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 43

Fig. 32. CBBS scheme.

Source: own.

Fig. 32 shows in a very simplified way everything that the application should do. By reading
the recipe data and the information received by the sensors, it must use, interpret and return
somehow this data to create the beer, to act on the mechanical elements and to apprise the
brewer of any consideration. It was decided to create the program only with two main scripts,
the already known beerxmlparser.py and CBBS.py, which will use the first one to manage the
recipes. CBBS will have all the necessary information to execute the application and carry out
the process.

Libraries
In order to execute the code, some libraries need to be loaded and executed.
- Tkinter, ttk, tkFont, tkMessageBox, FigureCanvasTkAgg. Referring
to the libraries used by the GUI. They allow to modify the fonts, images, text boxes and
other features that do not come by default in Tkinter package.
- Pylab, matplotlib. They allow to draw plots from data easily and visually. It is
quickly customizable and widely used in Python.
- Time. It allows to create operations with time in the necessary steps, for example, a
countdown.
- Os. Provides a portable way of using operating system dependent functionalities. By
this way, to open a file or read a document, in this case, the recipe file.
- RPi.GPIO. Indispensable for the Raspberry correct functioning. It allows to initialize
and control the GPIO board pins, for example, to switch the relays state.
PAGE 44 PROJECT REPORT

The code
Even considering that the whole code will be added in ANNEX 1, the most important parts will
be explained and how they work. Looking into CBBS, it can be seen that it is composed by a
homonymous class with different functions.
First, the __init__ method is started, which is a constructor that allows inheriting the
variables declared in this one at any time. It is useful to create the main code variables, the
program configuration, or where the GUI base will be defined. Among many other things,
appear the variables used as flags, these are used to control time, relays or temperature
sensors themselves, and this facilitates the control of these elements and let to know their
status quickly.
In this same method, the variables to control the separate steps are found, always helping to
know which step is under way and what the next ones are.
The next function in the code is Selectrecipe(self), executed at the time the button is
pressed to choose the recipe. Then, the code carries out both processes of deleting the
previous loaded recipe and reading the new one
selected.

The next part of code is the one which refers to

all the steps in the process. It is structured in
such a way that each step has a function
associated with it. In each function the main
message and the relevant flags are updated,
also, the parameters are modified if necessary,
and the interface is refreshed.
There are a total of eleven steps plus the Reset
function, which is executed when the process is
finished.
Note that the user can move forward easily to the
next step thanks to a button clicking on it, useful
in case there is a problem or simply if it is desired
by the homebrewer.

Fig. 33. Steps section

DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 45

The next code division is built by four common blocks; Plot, Timer, Helper and Control
functions.

The first block, called Plot Functions, contains the

necessary functions to restart, execute and draw the
graphs respectively.
As it can be seen in Figure 34, each temperature
sensor has associated a group of three functions. This
is due to it is much faster reading the sensors and the
subsequent plotting during the process if it is done
individually.
Fig. 34. Plot funcions block

The second, Timer Functions, defines the required

functions to execute and control the time, as well as
those that are related to the interface.
The gettime function converts a given time in
minutes (all recipe times are given in this magnitude)
and convert them to hours and minutes for a correct
display in the screen.
Fig. 35. Timer functions block
start_btn and pause_btn, are in charge of
controlling the time, basically resume it or pause it when the corresponding button is pressed.
The subsequent two functions, moremin and lessmin, let the brewer to increase or
decrease the time manually by pressing on the linked button. This is useful if any step is done
incorrectly or by any external decision to the recipe.
Finally, the tick function is the responsible to run the time as well as advance toward the next
step when the time finishes if it is the case, also printing on the screen a message if necessary.
PAGE 46 PROJECT REPORT

On the Helper Functions block, the first function found

is sortingingredients, which as its name
indicates, reads the recipe and collects all data
referring to the ingredients to display these parameters
on screen, sorted and divided by groups. This allows
its subsequent use during the process. Something
similar does the styleprops function, which reads, Fig. 36. Helper functions block
interprets and shows all the information belonging to the beer style.
The next two, read_temp and write_temp, refer to the temperature sensors. Read_temp
is responsible for reading the data (saved in the w1_slave folder as seen above) and
write_temp extracts the temperature value on the text and converts it into a float number in
order to use it.
Updatesteps function is executed each time a new step occurs during the recipe and
updates the variables accordingly. It works keeping at all times under control the actual step
and the remaining ones to end the process.
Center and displaybuttons play an important role in the interface, the first let align the
window according to the screen resolution, although it must be configured for each computer
conveniently. Displaybuttons, on the other hand, shows the on-screen buttons and makes
them functional.
Finally, the about function displays the application software information on the main screen
when the button is pressed.

The last block, Control Functions, contains the functions designated to control the relays,
activating or deactivating these elements when the function is called changing their status or
flag as convenient.

Fig. 37. Control functions block

DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 47

Having established the sections that form the main class, there are some lines in the end of
the script to execute this code.

Fig. 38. Setup code

As Figure 38 shows, the first part configures the Raspberry to use the GPIO pins. These braces
connected to the relays are defined as output pins, in this case 15, 16 and 18, in order to be
disposed to switch on and off when required, and simultaneously, the code runs
os.system('modprobe w1-gpio') and os.system('modprobe w1-therm') to
read and collect the data from temperature sensors.
To execute the part that builds the program interface, a basic Tkinter widget named root is
created with tk.Tk(), which is included in the CBBS call.

5.4.3. GUI
Once the base code has been developed to carry out the process, an interface is needed to
guide the homebrewer and allow the interaction between this user and the application. A GUI
(Graphical User Interface) has been implemented on a screen using the aforementioned
Tkinter library, a Python binding to the Tk GUI Toolkit developed for to create different widgets
and objects. There are other alternatives, but Tkinter comes predefined with Python installation
and it is the most commonly used, so it is also the best documented.
In this section it will be seen which kind of elements and objects the program uses to display
the interface, and then, how it is applied in the final implementation.
PAGE 48 PROJECT REPORT

 Definitions
Window: Rectangular area somewhere on the display screen that allows to add other widgets
or objects. It is usually called “root” and it is the main widget.

Widget: The generic term for any of the building blocks that make up an application in a
graphical user interface. For example, buttons, text fields, frames or text labels. Widgets and
objects in general can be active or passive, depending on the kind of interaction with the user.
Active objects are clickable or modifiable, passive instead, just show information.

Frame: Basic unit of organization for complex layouts. A frame is a rectangular area inside a
window that can contain other widgets.

Child/parent: When any widget is created, a parent-child relationship is created. For example,
if you place a text label inside a frame, the frame is the parent of the label.

Layout: Arrangement of different widgets or objects inside windows or others widgets. These
widgets can be arranged or placed around the available areas by rows and columns. Also, to
place any widget on the application screen you must “register” this widget with the .grid( )
method. If it is not done, the widget will exist internally but it will not be visible on the screen.
The internal layout management is done with this option.

 Main widgets
As it shows in Figure 39, the principal widgets are visible, Window and Frame, additionally, the
Label widget lets to add any text inside other objects. Different arrangements and child/parent
bonds are done as it can be seen too.

Fig. 39. Tkinter. Main widgets.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 49

Different Frame styles can be displayed as shown in Figure 40. This is useful to differentiate
between parts on the same window or object.

Fig. 40. Tkinter. Frame styles.

Source: own.

 The Button widget

Button is an active widget that lets the user interact with it, calling a function (callback) when
it is pressed and showing a message (or not) if it is needed.
This object will be useful to communicate with the program and to control the process.

Fig. 41. Tkinter. Button widget.

Source: own.
PAGE 50 PROJECT REPORT

As it is said, when a button is pressed a function is called. This usually shows a message (with
the command tkMessageBox.showwarning (“text to display”) and proceeds with another
action written.

Fig. 42. Tkinter. Button message.

Source: own.

 The Listbox widget

The purpose of the Listbox widget is to display a set of lines of text. Generally they are intended
to allow the user to select one or more items from a list, even though, this functionality will not
be used in CBBS, since the listbox will provide the ingredients list and the steps information.

Fig. 43. Tkinter. Listbox widget.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 51

 The Canvas widget

A canvas is a rectangular area intended for drawing pictures or other complex layouts.
Graphics, text, widgets, or frames can be placed on it. This is useful to improve the user
experience and enhance the GUI.

Fig. 44. Tkinter. Canvas widget.

Source: own.

 The Notebook widget

The last widget shown is the Notebook. It has the purpose to create different but related tabs
in a window. As it is seen in Figure 45, every tab acts as an individual main frame, being able
to place other widgets on it.
This widget will be used in the application to divide the recipe information and the process
guidance.

Fig. 45. Tkinter. Notebook widget.

Source: own.
PAGE 52 PROJECT REPORT

6. CBBS. Final implementation

Now, thereafter the main code functions and how Tkinter works have been seen, the
developed application will be finally unveiled to go into detail about how it works and what the
contained elements are. Subsequently, a simulation will be done with a new recipe created for
the occasion.

Fig. 46. CBBS. Main screens.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 53

REFERENCE KEYPOINTS

① RECIPE INFO ⑨ RECIPE PROGRESS THUMBNAIL

Notebook widget. Active object. Canvas widget. Passive object.
App’s first tab, shows the recipe information. Indicates the actual main step.

② RECIPE PROCESS ⑩ ACTUAL STEP

Notebook widget. Active object. Listbox widget. Passive object.
App’s second tab, shows the process information. Display the step information and other things to keep
in mind.
③ GENERAL INFORMATION
Label. Passive object. ⑪ NEXT STEPS
Basic information about the beer, Listbox widget. Passive object.
Shows the next step messages. Useful to know what
the next actions are.
④ STYLE AND RECIPE CHARACTERISTICS
Label. Passive object.
Displays the main characteristics and set these ⑫ MANUAL CONTROL
values in a range. Buttons. Active/passive object.
Activate and deactivate the different elements shown
in any moment.
⑤ INGREDIENTS
Listbox widget. Passive object.
Shows the ingredients, sorted by type and time. ⑬ TIMER
Buttons and label widgets. Active/passive object.
Shows the time left on the required steps and let the
⑥ SELECT RECIPE user start and stop the countdown and modify the
Button. Active object. time.
Opens a window that allows to select the recipe.

⑦ ABOUT ⑭ PLOTS
Matplotlib object. Passive object.
Button. Active object. Draws the different temperatures and the target to
Display a screen that shows the app information. reach.

⑧ EXIT ⑮ ACTION BUTTON

Button. Active object. Button. Active object.
Stops and ends the app. Communicates with the app, ends steps or accepts
messages…

⑯ QUICK NEXT STEP

Button. Active object.
Jumps instantly to the next step.
PAGE 54 PROJECT REPORT

③ General Information

Fig. 47. CBBS. General information.

Source: own.

Name: Recipe name. Batch size: Estimated amount of beer

Style: Beer style, according to the BJCP after fermentation.
guide. Mash time: Total mashing time.
Type: Type of recipe, it can be “All grain”, Boil time: Total boiling time.
“Partial grain” or “Extract”. Efficiency: Measurement of potential
Brewer: Brewer’s name. fermentables converted into sugar in the
wort during the mash.

④ Style and recipe characteristics

Fig. 48. CBBS. Style and recipe characteristics.

Source: own.

Estimated OG: Original Gravity [Min: 1.028 – Max: 1.130]

Estimated FG: Final Gravity [Min: 0.998 – Max: 1.040]
Estimated ABV: Alcohol by volume [Min: 0 – Max: >13]
Estimated IBU: IBUs [Min: 0 – Max: >100]
Estimated Color: EBC color [Min: 0– Max: >79]

The estimated colour bar, modifies its colour depending on the ingredients. As it has seen, the different
levels of kilning provide different colours to the grain. The recipe has associated a value and it changes
the colour seen.

Fig. 49. CBBS. Color by recipe.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 55

⑤ Ingredients

Fig. 50. CBBS. Ingredients list.

Source: own.

In Figure 50 the list of ingredients can be seen. As it is said, sorted by type. Also, the hops and
miscellaneous are sorted by addition order. All the needed quantities are also shown.

⑥ Select recipe

Fig. 51. CBBS. Select recipe window.

Source: own.

When the Select recipe button is clicked, a window is opened, allowing to choose the recipe. Before
the process is started, the recipe can be changed freely, once it is started, the button is deactivated.
PAGE 56 PROJECT REPORT

⑦ About

Fig. 52. CBBS. About window.

Source: own.

This buttons opens this window, which shows the information about the program.

⑨ Recipe progress thumbnail

Fig. 53. CBBS. Recipe progress steps.

Source: own.

These rectangles are highlighted depending on which of the four main steps is currently running,
heating the water, mashing, boiling the wort or chilling it.

⑫ Manual Control
This panel allows to turn on/off the elements connected to the relays. Even any recipe is selected or the
process is paused, the buttons are clickable. This provides a useful support in order to clean the kegs,
pipes and any other physical element.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 57

Fig. 54. CBBS. Manual control.

In the first image, pump nº1 and the heater are turned on.
Source: own.

⑬ Timer

Fig. 55. CBBS. Timer screen.

Source: own.
If the step requires it, a countdown is showed to know the time left to end the current step. This timer
can be stopped/resumed if desired. Additionally, there are two buttons implemented to add or decrease
minutes, this means that in any moment, the brewer can reach any point of the process.

⑭ Plots

Fig. 56. CBBS. Plots area.

Source: own.

There are three different plots that are displayed depending on the active step. The refresh rate is about
one second, more than enough to have controlled the process. Also, if the step requires it, some
guidance lines are shown.
Figure 56 exposes this example during the mashing step. The temperature must be around 66 ºC, and
never outside the range of +/- 2 ºC. If the temperature falls under this value, the heater is activated
automatically to heat the water that provides the necessary heat.
PAGE 58 PROJECT REPORT

7. Validation tests
In order to show the entire process, a new recipe has been created with Beersmith software.
Once the recipe was done, it was exported in .xml format to allow CBBS to read it.
Honey Citra Pale Ale is an American Pale Ale with Pale Malt as base malt and others to
complement the recipe. Additionally, honey will be added during the mash to provide some
sweet flavouring and more fermentable sugars.
It has three different hop varieties, Citra, added before during the first minutes (it will produce
the beer bitterness as seen), Cascade while the wort boils and Centennial to give some floral
and citrus aromas3. A half tablet of Irish Moss is added as well when there are ten minutes left.
Straightaway, it is going to proceed to follow all the steps viewing the parts mentioned on the
last section. The brewer should get 24 litres of effective beer once the process is completed.

Fig. 57. Beersmith Recipe.

Source: own

3
The estimated IBUS calculated on Beersmith and CBBS are slightly different. This is because Beersmith uses
[34]
Rager formula to calculate this value, and CBBS uses the Tinseth Method.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 59

Following the process

Once opened the program and loaded the recipe created, it shows
the main screen (See Screenshot 1) with all the information needed.
Screenshot 2

Going to the second tab (See Screenshot 2) it allows to start the

process by pressing the “Go!” button.
Screenshot 1
PAGE 60 PROJECT REPORT

Screenshot 3 Screenshot 4

Screenshot 5 Screenshot 6

The process starts ordering the brewer to heat 40 litres of water to 75.6 ºC. Once reached, a message appears requesting to check the connections.
(The user must change the valves direction properly) (See screenshots 3 and 4)
When the confirmation button is pressed, the pump nº1 starts running and the brewer must press “OK” when the Mash Liquor Tank has 17.3 litres of
water. Immediately, pump nº1 stops and appears a warning reminding to close the HLT valve in order to start the mashing step. (See Screenshots 5
and 6)
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 61

Screenshot 7 Screenshot 8

Now, it is time to add the fermentables and remove to ensure the proper
grain bath. When all the different grains and the honey are added, the
brewer must press OK to proceed with the next step. (See Screenshot 7)
Before start running the pump nº2, the app shows another reminder to
check the connections and fill the HLT if needed, at least to cover the coil
(See Screenshot 8)
Just when it is confirmed, the pump turns on and recirculates the wort,
always ensuring appropriate temperature, 66 in this case, switching the
heating element to keep the HLT water warm. (See Screenshot 9)

Screenshot 9
PAGE 62 PROJECT REPORT

Screenshot 10 Screenshot 11

Screenshot 12 Screenshot 13

At 15 minutes left, a warning is showed to close the MLT valve and stop recirculating to let rest the grain. (See screenshots 10 and 11)
When the mashing is completed, it is the moment to start the sparging. Opening valves nº1 and nº2 and making the appropriate connections as
alerted, both pumps turns on and the brewer must control the water flux as much from the HLT as from the MLT, since the water volume should remain
stable inside the Mash Lauter Tun. (See Screenshot 12). When all the wort is extracted, pressing OK stops the pumps and initiates the next step. (See
Screenshot 13)
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 63

Screenshot 14 Screenshot 15

Screenshot 16 Screenshot 17
To start the boiling, the user must light the burner to heat the wort, and by pressing “Go!” when it bubbles intensely, the time starts running. (See
Screenshot 15)
From now on, the additions must be added when are needed. In this recipe, the first addition is just in the beginning, so the user should have ready the
hops. (See screenshots 1 and 16). For the next 60 minutes, the wort will be boiling.
PAGE 64 PROJECT REPORT

Screenshot 18 Screenshot 19

Screenshot 20 Screenshot 21
As Screenshot 18 shows, the next addition is at 30 minutes left. After that, at 10 minutes left, the Irish Moss tablet and the last hops are added. (See
Screenshots 19 and 20).
When the boiling time is ended, the wort must be cooled. First of all, some ice must be added into the HLT to cool some water. Additionally, and when
the connections are checked (current water is used firstly), the pumps starts running to move the liquids. (See screenshot 21)
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 65

Screenshot 22 Screenshot 23

Screenshot 24 Screenshot 25
The wort must be cooled the fastest possible to avoid infections or contamination. A plot is shown drawing the temperature from the 3rd probe, in the
plate heat exchanger wort exit. It must reach 45 ºC before using the cold water, and when it does, it is demanded to close the water circuit and connect
it to the HLT. Once confirmed, the cooling is resumed to reach the final temperature. (See the above screenshots)
PAGE 66 PROJECT REPORT

Screenshot 26 Screenshot 27

Screenshot 28 Screenshot 29

The wort keeps chilling, and when it reaches 20 ºC (the wort should be at this temperature to ensure the proper yeast growth), a warning comes out
to remind to close the valves and also stops pump nº2. (See Screenshot 26, 27, 28).
To finish the process, the cold wort must be transferred to the fermenter. Following the exposed message in Screenshot 29, the brewer will connect
the Boiler to the fermenter and pump nº2 will continue moving the wort.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 67

Screenshot 30 Screenshot 31

Once all the wort is transferred, the brewer must press the “OK” button to turn off both pumps. (It is interesting to keep cooling the wort even when it
has reached 20 ºC) (See Screenshot 30)
As soon as the button is pressed and the pumps are disabled, a warning will be shown announcing the end of the process. (See Screenshot 31).
PAGE 68 PROJECT REPORT

8. Project scheduling and budget

An approximate schedule and budget plan of the project is going to be carried out in this
section.
The amount of credits that ETSEIB normative stipulates is 12 ECTs, and since each credit has
assigned 25 hours of work, the project can be considered to need 300 hours in order to be
accomplished.[35] Despite that, the number of real hours dedicated has been higher, thanks
to a proper counting, the amount of hours worked equals to 390 approximately.

Fig. 58. Gantt chart. TFG timeline dedication.

Source: own.
As it can be seen in the figure above, the main activities are focused on coding and designing,
and the principal research has been done during the first hours.

In order to estimate the costs of the project, the total will be calculated from the different items
included, intellectual and material cost.
The first item includes the price of the people involved around the design and the execution of
the idea.

ITEM WORKING HOURS (H) COST PER HOUR (€/H) COST (€)

ENGINEER 390 40 15600

TOTAL 15600

Table 3. Intellectual cost.

Source: own.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 69

The material cost is composed of the different components used to achieve the actual project.
As it has been said, CBBS and everything that goes around it is still evolving and growing, but
the additional parts will not be reflexed on this budget.

ITEM AMOUNT (#) COST PER ARTICLE (€/#) COST (€)

RASPBERRY PI 3 1 39.90 39.90

SD CARD 32 GB 1 12.99 12.99

RPI SCREWS PROTOTYPE SHIELD 1 7.94 7.95

SSR-25 DA RELAY 3 4.95 14.85

DS18B20 DIGITAL SENSOR 3 2.30 6.90

WATER PUMP 2 16.45 32.90

STAINLESS STEEL HEATING ELEMENT 1 35.90 35.90

ELECTRONIC COMPONENTS4 1 2.00 2.00

TOTAL 153.39
Table 4. Material cost.
Source: own.

Also, it would be interesting calculating how much en energy consumption it will be used for
every batch. We will consider 4 hours of total work for the Raspberry Pi and the screen, 2.5
hours for the pumps and 1 hour the heating resistor. Finally, the cost will be calculated
considering 0.128€/kWh according to the actual PVPC rate given by the Government of
Spain.[36]

ITEM POWER USED [W] ENERGY CONSUMED [KWH] COST (€)

RASPBERRY PI 3 2.4 0.0096 ≈0

12” SCREEN 20 0.08 0.01

WATER PUMPS 38.4 0.096 0.01

STAINLESS STEEL HEATING ELEMENT 3000 3 0.384

TOTAL 3.1856 0.40

Table 5. Energetic cost.
Source: own.

4
Composed by resistors, transistors, wires, tin for welding... Everything needed but not bought exclusively for the
project.
PAGE 70 PROJECT REPORT

As it can be seen, the electricity cost can be neglected for the final cost.
Before calculating the sum, it is important to say that the software cost is another item that it
should be shown. Nevertheless, it can be omitted since the cost is considered zero. SO
Raspbian can be downloaded free of charge on their webpage. Autodesk Inventor have
available a Student License with the essential features to develop the idea. The only software
that it could be included is BeerSmith5, but since the program had been bought beforehand,
it will not compute on the final price.

The final amount of this Bachelor’s Thesis is:

ITEM COST (€)

INTELLECTUAL COST 15600

MATERIAL COST 153.39

TOTAL6 15753.39

Table 6. Total price.

Source: own.

5
The actual cost for a BeerSmith license is between 27.95$ and 89.95$ depending on the version.
http://beersmith.com/order/

6
Other costs such as internet, electricity, the computer or tools used have been neglected.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 71

9. Social and environmental impact

Nowadays, being aware of the environmental repercussion associated with any activity is a
must, in particular for the engineering field.
In our case, the main influential factors over the environment can be divided into three groups.
The equipment components, the raw material and the emissions.
In the first aspect, the production cost of the different elements that constitute the project is
an important point to consider. It is necessary to know that although the final construction
consists of several metal containers, metal profiles, plumbing and other elements, this project
only focuses on the system design and the creation of the software to control it, so the
components used that must be manufactured is reduced to the electronics used. Needless to
say that for the final equipment construction, the idea is to use recyclable and light materials,
such as aluminium or stainless steel since they are reusable and have a longer life expectancy
than plastic for example.
Thereupon the impact of the raw material used must be considered. Although as in the
previous paragraph is said, is not something that directly influences this work, but it is good
to look forward how the waste generated in the brewing process will affect.
Once finished the batch, two leftovers must be retired to cleanse all the other elements, the
hops added during the boil and the grain used in maceration. It should be noted that both
ingredients are completely organic and biodegradable, so they are a good option to use as
fertilizer. In the case of grain, it is quite common to use it as raw material for cooking as own
consumption or feeding domestic animals, as well as cookies or porridge made from the same
grain.
Finally, it would be necessary to consider the emissions generated during the process. To get
an idea whether the process is actually polluting, the equivalent mass if kg of CO 2 emitted by
a production cycle will be estimated. It will be taken into account an approximation of energy
used, butane emissions during the combustion and, as addition, the effect of fermentation for
the total emissions.
Using a spreadsheet generated jointly by the European Regional Development Fund and
Cámara de Zaragoza, the CO2 equivalent emissions has been calculated related to electricity,
butane gas and water.[37]
In the previous section it has already measured the electric consumption to produce a batch,
being 3.1856 kWh. Knowing that a butane bottle has the approximate gas charge for 5
PAGE 72 PROJECT REPORT

batches, also that are used about 80 water litres between the production and cooling the wort,
it results in:

Fig. 59. CO2 emissions.

Source: own.

In addition, we will go a little further into the influence of the fermentation on CO2 emissions.
Investigations published on Life, Fermented, showed that the total amount of CO2 produced
by 18.9L is between 0.4 and 1.8 kg CO2, depending on the specific gravity (Original Gravity)
and on the attenuation percentage7. Considering a 40L batch, we will define the emitted
quantity as the maximum possible, around 4 kg CO2.[38]

Fig. 60. CO2 produced by beer

Source: https://lifefermented.wordpress.com

7
The attenuation is the percentage used to describe the percent of malt sugar that is converted by the yeast strain
to ethanol and CO2 during the fermentation. Is the result determined by comparing beer Original and Final
gravities.
𝑂𝐺 − 𝐹𝐺
𝐴𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 [%] =
𝑂𝐺
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 73

To sum up, the peak of CO2 emitted is about 5.9 kg for every batch (being the fermentation
the main source with two thirds of the whole emissions).
Considering the best-selling car of 2016 in Spain, Seat León[39], the average emissions
discharged among their models, with combined driving (urban and extra-urban cycles) is 130
g/km.[40] This means that in approximately 45 km this average car would has emitted the same
quantity than all the process of making the beer. Another way to look on this aspect, is with
the volume of gasoline burned to expel those 5.9 kg of CO2. Establishing that a litre of gasoline
produces 2.3 kg, leads to the conclusion that the effect produced to the atmosphere by
brewing a 40 litre batch of beer is the same than burning 2.56 litres of gasoline (not including
the amount expelled during the exploitation process).[41]
So, in view of the high amount of petrol (or gasoil, with even more CO2 expelled) consumed
every day, the environmental consequences are roughly negligible.

On the other hand, the project may also raise interest within the homebrewing members,
resulting in a positive impact for the actual community and to help persuading new people
interested in beer.
PAGE 74 PROJECT REPORT

10. Conclusions
It is not easy to mark out concrete conclusions beyond assessing and verifying the correct
functioning of the program created. Even so, the present work started from some well-defined
objectives that have been gradually completing point by point until finishing the project.
It should be emphasized the importance of an adequate structure as well as a clear
organization when starting an assignment of these characteristics. It should be noted that it
has managed to implement the base (hardware and software) to be able to semi-automatically
control the brewing proceeding without forgetting at any time the homebrewer essence and
leaving the doors open to continue improving the idea and implement new functionalities.
Taking into account that has managed to have a fairly stable version of what could be perfectly
a semi-professional product the latter has even more sense.
Another relevant reminder is the importance of choosing the right hardware, without gambling
unnecessarily or rushing. This may slow down the early project decisions but it allows to build
a more solid and concise structure.
A further outcome is the presence of secondary tasks that, without considering them from the
beginning, have helped with the development of the idea and boosted the possibilities to
complete it. These ones, like the recipe parser, have contributed in the project constituting a
great added value.
Finally, as a particularity, the fact of have spent some considerable time to the world of beer
during all these years and to have turned it into something more than a hobby, has helped
with the accomplishment of this task. This permitted to be aware of feasible details that could
escape in sight of an inexperienced person. This same aspect, makes to want to continue
working on this project so it can serve as a model of inspiration for other future homebrewers.
A final conclusion could be that it is unequivocal that the project is still alive and a lot of work
still has to be done to complete the whole idea, although it will never end.
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 75

Future implementations
As a final point, as already mentioned, there is a significant interest in continuing to develop
the project, not only for personal reasons or interests but also to continue contributing in the
homebrewer community.
Being not an essential part of this project and does not concerning directly with the report
itself, only some future additions are considered important to incorporate in the idea that has
been done until now.
At the level of hardware and equipment, obviously, the first thing to do is build the
prototype. This means obtain the adequate metal profiles, the necessary instruments
to heat the liquid (an additional butane burner and the thermal resistance), all the
plumbing elements and make the relevant modifications in the containers.
Merge this control system with the fermentation one that is currently implemented
independently, being able to control this last stage also from the CBBS.
Improve the program by adding new functionalities allowing the production of more
complex recipes, with several mash steps, or modifications in the water profile.
Add the possibility to communicate with the user and be able to control the process
from a Smartphone or receive alerts anywhere.
And of course, increase the frequency of brewing beer and the batch size, as well as
the speed of production and the quality of the resulting beers.
PAGE 76 PROJECT REPORT

Acknowledgments
Once and for all, on a personal note, I would like to thank some people who have aided me
during all this time and my studies as engineer.
Foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Manuel Moreno.
Thanks to his help, his encouragement and all his advices. He consistently allowed this report
to be my own work, but steered me in the appropriate direction whenever he thought I needed
it.
I would also like to thank my brother for all his help and guidance not only in the course of this
thesis, but also all these years brewing and enjoying beer.
I specially thank my fellow classmates and friends for all the support given during my university
journey. Also, declare my gratitude for all the professors and personal from ETSEIB, for
empowering me to grow as a student and person.
The homebrewing community also deserves an honourable mention for sharing their
knowledge (as well as their beers) to build the solid foundation which I based my idea.
Last but not least, I must express my sense of gratitude for my parents, whose work provided
me the strength to achieve my purposes, and their patience to encourage me throughout my
years of study and those to come.

― David Catalán Conde

DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 77

Bibliography and references

The following books have been read or consulted to comprehend the different aspects
needed to develop this project:

- DANIELS, RAY. Designing Great Beers. The Ultimate Guide to Brewing Classic Beer Styles.
Brewers Publications, 2000.

- FIX, PH, D. GEORGE. Principles of Brewing Science. Brewers Publications, 1999.

- HUXLEY, STEVE. La cerveza... Poesía líquida. Ediciones Trea S.L., 2006.

- KUNZE, WOLFGANG. Tecnología para Cerveceros y Malteros. VLB Berlín, 2006.

- PALMER, JOHN J. How To Brew. Everything You Need To Know To Brew Beer Right The First
Time. Brewers Publications, 2006.

- PAPAZIAN, CHARLIE. The New Complete Joy of Home Brewing. Avon Books, 1991.

- WHITE, CHRIS AND ZAINASHEFF, JAMIL. Yeast. The Practical Guide to Beer Fermentation.
Brewers Publications, 2010.

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[2] https://www.raspberrypi.org/

[3] http://web.craftbeerpi.com/

[4] https://brewtroller.com/

[5] https://www.arduino.cc/

[6] http://beersmith.com/

[7] http://www.beerxml.com/

[8] http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-beer-archaeologist-17016372/?no-ist=&page=2

[9] PALMER, JOHN. Water. A Comprehensive Guide for Brewers. Brewers Publications, 2013.

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[11] https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/AVLhhy07n5/maillard-reaction/

[12] http://beersmith.com/blog/2008/04/29/beer-color-understanding-srm-lovibond-and-ebc/

[13] https://beerconnoisseur.com/articles/whats-meaning-ibu

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[15] http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2011/08/30/actualidad/1314655201_850215.html
PAGE 78 PROJECT REPORT

[16] https://birrapedia.com/cervecerias/de-espana?cl_tipo=ar

[17] http://www.cerveceros.org/cont_mlegal.asp

[18] https://www.boe.es/diario_boe/txt.php?id=BOE-A-2016-11952

[19] https://missionarybrewer.wordpress.com/2012/02/01/the-brewers-window-what-temperature-should-
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[20] PALMER, JOHN J. How To Brew. Everything You Need To Know To Brew Beer Right The First Time.
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moss/

[22] WHITE, CHRIS AND ZAINASHEFF, JAMIL. Yeast. The Practical Guide to Beer Fermentation. Brewers
Publications, 2010.

[23] https://www.brewhardware.com/category_s/1844.htm

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Electronic_Temperature/Pt100_Pt1000_cablesensor_EN.pdf

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[26] https://www.vishay.com/docs/31014/ccf50.pdf

[27] https://www.vishay.com/docs/31014/ccf50.pdf

[28] http://www.onsemi.com/pub/Collateral/1N4001-D.PDF

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[30] http://www.fotek.com.tw/pdf/etc_34.pdf

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[32] https://www.python.org/

[33] https://github.com/hotzenklotz/pybeerxml

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[39] http://www.lavanguardia.com/motor/rankings/20170104/413051337613/ranking-coches-vendidos-
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[40] http://www.seat.es/content/dam/countries/es/Models/carworld-generic/catalogos/catalogo-
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technologies/autosmart_factsheet_6_e.pdf
DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM PAGE 79

License

DESIGN OF A SEMI-AUTOMATED HOME BREWING SYSTEM BY DAVID CATALÁN CONDE IS LICENSED UNDER A CREATIVE
COMMONS RECONOCIMIENTO-COMPARTIR IGUAL 4.0 INTERNACIONAL LICENSE.
PAGE 80 PROJECT REPORT