An improved auger system for delivering combustible material to a burn box within a cooker, such as a grill or smoker, uses a pivotable coupling between the auger shaft and the drive motor, enabling the auger to adjust its alignment within the tube to accommodate irregularly shaped materials, thus minimizing jamming and improving the consistency of material delivery. The system also incorporates a mechanism to prevent material bridging in the hopper, ensuring the continuous flow of material into the auger tube as well as an auger cover flap pivotably mounted at the outlet end of an auger tube. A programmable controller allows users to select between variable combustible materials and regulate grill systems, allowing adjustment of cooker elements including the auger, airflow fans, and a hopper agitator to optimize combustion efficiency and maintain consistent cooking temperatures, adapting to the characteristics of each fuel type.

An improved auger system for delivering combustible material to a burn box within a cooker, such as a grill or smoker, uses a pivotable coupling between the auger shaft and the drive motor, enabling the auger to adjust its alignment within the tube to accommodate irregularly shaped materials, thus minimizing jamming and improving the consistency of material delivery. The system also incorporates a mechanism to prevent material bridging in the hopper, ensuring the continuous flow of material into the auger tube as well as an auger cover flap pivotably mounted at the outlet end of an auger tube. A programmable controller allows users to select between variable combustible materials and regulate grill systems, allowing adjustment of cooker elements including the auger, airflow fans, and a hopper agitator to optimize combustion efficiency and maintain consistent cooking temperatures, adapting to the characteristics of each fuel type.

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for controlled burning of experimental solid fuel test strands. The fuel test strand is advanced by a screw attached to a computer-controlled stepper motor. The stepper motor controls the fuel test strand position via a proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control loop, adjusting velocity based on transmission of a diode laser beam located at the desired fuel surface position. This provides real-time monitoring of fuel strand position and fuel regression rate during combustion experiments.

One or more techniques and/or systems are disclosed for a pellet stove system that incorporates a thermoelectric generator for efficient electricity generation. The system features a combustion chamber for burning pellet fuel, a heat exchanger to transfer generated heat to an external environment, a heat sink to transfer a portion of the generated heat to a thermoelectric generator comprising a first portion thermally coupled to the heat sink and a second portion designed to maintain a lower temperature. This arrangement allows the generation of electricity through the temperature difference, powering stove components. Additionally, the system can include mechanisms for remote monitoring and control, optimizing fuel consumption, and enhancing heat distribution, facilitated by a control unit and wireless communication module.