Model-Based Design Applied to Home Appliances

Offering a safe and energy-efficient solution, induction cooktops have gained popularity among a wide range of cooks. These cooktops use electromagnetic fields to directly heat the cookware, eliminating the need for traditional burners or open flames. However, induction cooktops are complex systems due to their reliance on advanced electronics and precise control mechanisms. The technology involves intricate circuitry, sophisticated power management, and thermal regulation to ensure efficient and consistent heating while maintaining safety standards. Whirlpool’s Model-Based Design team utilized MATLAB^® and Simulink^® to design an induction cooktop. This journey began with product requirement management, system architecture design, and algorithm development. From an early stage in the project, a rapid control prototype (RCP) was developed utilizing Speedgoat® systems. This aided in the development and testing of control algorithms throughout the entire development process. The collected data from the RCP was then used to create thermal and electrical plant models of the system. By incorporating all of these tools and methodologies, the team was able to make a complete digital twin of the induction cooktop. The digital twin of the cooktop enabled the team to analyze the system behavior, understand fault scenarios, and optimize system parameters as early as possible using the same software that would later be deployed in the production hardware. This approach ensured a robust and efficient design process, enhancing the cooktop's performance and reliability for the current and future induction projects.