A food processing machine for processing a food product includes a processing module having a housing with a sidewall, opposing end walls, and a chamber between the end walls and a conveyor extending through the end walls and the chamber and configured to convey the food product through the chamber. A microwave generating device is coupled to the sidewall and configured to generate microwave energy. A waveguide assembly is configured to receive the microwave energy, direct the microwave energy along a waveguide axis, and subsequently direct the microwave energy in a transverse direction that is transverse to the vertical direction through the sidewall and into the chamber such that the microwave energy heats the food products.

An electronic oven with a set of variable reflectance elements for controlling a distribution of heat in the electronic oven and associated methods are disclosed herein. The electronic oven includes a chamber, an energy source coupled to an injection port in the chamber, and a set of variable reflectance elements located in the chamber. In some of the disclosed approaches the variable reflectance elements are nonradiative. A control system of the electronic oven can be configured to alter the states of the variable reflectance elements to thereby alter and control the distribution of energy within the chamber.

An apparatus for applying a field of microwave energy for the processing of an absorbent article is disclosed. The apparatus comprises an elongate chamber having a longitudinal axis and first and second circularly polarized microwave radiation transmitting device radiatingly coupled to the elongate chamber and oriented so that the microwave energy is transmitted from the first and second circularly polarized microwave radiation transmitting devices is directed toward the longitudinal axis. The elongate chamber has a surface distributed about the longitudinal axis, a proximal end providing ingress for the absorbent article into the elongate chamber, and a distal end providing egress of the absorbent article from the elongate chamber. The second circularly polarized microwave radiation transmitting device is coupled to the elongate chamber at a position relative to the longitudinal axis that ranges from about 30 degrees to about 150 degrees relative to the position of the first circularly polarized microwave radiation transmitting device.

A selective heating device comprises a chamber configured to contain a target to be at least partially heated, an active electromagnetic (EM) element to generate an electromagnetic field in the chamber and a passive EM element in the chamber. The passive EM element is capable of electromagnetically coupling to the active element. The active EM element and passive EM element are controllable to selectively heat a portion of the target.

Processes and systems that enhance the heating of packaged foodstuffs and other items in various microwave heating systems are described herein. The foodstuffs may be contained in a package including one or more energy control elements that interact with microwave energy in order to alter the effect that microwave energy has on the foodstuff. These energy control elements can enhance or inhibit microwave energy and a single package may include one or more energy control elements. In some cases, the energy control element may respond differently to different types of microwave energy. As a result, some packages described herein may exhibit different absorption or reflectance characteristics when exposed to microwave energy while being pasteurized or sterilized in a larger-scale microwave heating system than when the package is reheated in an at-home microwave oven prior to consumption or use.

An electromagnetic cooking device includes an enclosed cavity configured to receive a food load, a plurality of high power amplifiers and RF feeds for introducing electromagnetic radiation into the cavity, and a controller for controlling the frequency, phase and amplitude of the electromagnetic radiation fed into the cavity by the RF feeds. The controller is configured to identify resonant modes, develop and implement a heating strategy based on the resonant modes, utilize an asynchronous manager to automatically detect when a variable has changed to a degree that requires an updated identification of resonant modes and an updated heating strategy, and if the asynchronous manager determines that updates are needed, repeat the steps above to determine a new heating strategy, otherwise continue with the current heating strategy.

Processes and systems that enhance the heating of packaged foodstuffs and other items in various microwave heating systems are described herein. The foodstuffs may be contained in a package including one or more energy control elements that interact with microwave energy in order to alter the effect that microwave energy has on the foodstuff. These energy control elements can enhance or inhibit microwave energy and a single package may include one or more energy control elements. In some cases, the energy control element may respond differently to different types of microwave energy. As a result, some packages described herein may exhibit different absorption or reflectance characteristics when exposed to microwave energy while being pasteurized or sterilized in a larger-scale microwave heating system than when the package is reheated in an at-home microwave oven prior to consumption or use.

Method and systems for heating an item in a chamber where a first electromagnetic wave is applied to an array of variable reflectance elements and a corresponding array of variable impedance devices are disclosed. The corresponding array includes first and second variable impedance devices. The first wave is reflected from the array to the item when the first device has a first impedance value. The reflecting places a local maximum of energy at a first location on the item. An impedance of the first device is altered. A second electromagnetic wave is applied and reflected. The reflecting places the local maximum at a second location on the item. Altering the impedance of the first variable impedance device alters a reflectance of a first variable reflectance element in the array of variable reflectance elements.

An electronic oven and associated methods for heating an item by controlling a distribution of microwave energy using a set of reflective elements are disclosed. The electronic oven can include a chamber, a microwave energy source coupled to an injection port in the chamber, a set of actuators connected to the set of reflective elements, and a controller that controls the set of actuators. The controller can reposition the set of reflective elements via the set of actuators, and stores instructions that independently cause a repositioning of each reflective element in the set of reflective elements using the set of actuators. The set of actuators and set of reflective elements are each sets of at least three units.

A microwave oven includes a waveguide having an E-bend structure with multiple openings disposed on a lateral face of a heating chamber that allow the waveguide to communicate with the heating chamber. The waveguide has a first section for propagating a microwave from a magnetron toward the heating chamber, and a second section having a wide plane that abuts an outer wall of the heating chamber. The openings include at least one circularly-polarized-wave opening for generating a circularly polarized wave. A cross section of the first section orthogonally intersects a tube axis of the first section projects virtually along the tube axis of first section and onto a lateral face of the heating chamber, and the circularly-polarized-wave opening is configured such that its center is located outside the resultant projected region.