Abstract

Rice is the single most important agricultural crop in the Philippines and is therefore a
major source of income for millions of Filipino farmers (Bordey, 2010). Rice is a staple food in
every Filipino tables in breakfast, lunch and dinner. Rice can also be a snack if cook in a certain
way.

Rice puffing is the process of transforming the moisture content of a rice grain into
steam, thus causing a volumetric expansion in the structure of the rice grain. A method of
puffing rice involves firing the puffed rice on a cannon like machine which is dangerous and
unsanitary. The pressure released by the machine causes a loud booming sound that is too risky
for the ears. Manual operation of the machine is required to produce puffed rice from loading
the rice of the grain to firing the puffed rice in a room. Frequent operation can cause lifelong
hearing damage to the operator. This study focuses on automizing the puffing process.

Equipped with a pneumatic system, a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and a heat
cartridge, the machine was designed to address the problem of manually operating a puffing
process; as well as to help local industries to produce clean and good quality products.

Keywords: Pneumatic System, Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), heat cartridge

Reference:

The impacts of research on Philippine rice production (F. Bordey, 2010)