Proposed SmartBarrel System for Monitoring and Assessment of Wine Fermentation Processes Using IoT Nose and Tongue Devices

Abstract

This paper introduces SmartBarrel, an innovative IoT-based sensory system that monitors and forecasts wine fermentation processes. At the core of SmartBarrel are two compact, attachable devices—the probing nose (E-nose) and the probing tongue (E-tongue), which mount directly onto stainless steel wine tanks. These devices periodically measure key fermentation parameters: the nose monitors gas emissions, while the tongue captures acidity, residual sugar, and color changes. Both utilize low-cost, low-power sensors validated through small-scale fermentation experiments. Beyond the sensory hardware, SmartBarrel includes a robust cloud infrastructure built on open-source Industry 4.0 tools. The system leverages the ThingsBoard platform, supported by a NoSQL Cassandra database, to provide real-time data storage, visualization, and mobile application access. The system also supports adaptive breakpoint alerts and real-time adjustment to the nonlinear dynamics of wine fermentation. The authors developed a novel deep learning model called V-LSTM (Variable-length Long Short-Term Memory) to introduce intelligence to enable predictive analytics. This auto-calibrating architecture supports variable layer depths and cell configurations, enabling accurate forecasting of fermentation metrics. Moreover, the system includes two fuzzy logic modules: a device-level fuzzy controller to estimate alcohol content based on sensor data and a fuzzy encoder that synthetically generates fermentation profiles using a limited set of experimental curves. SmartBarrel experimental results validate the SmartBarrel’s ability to monitor fermentation parameters. Additionally, the implemented models show that the V-LSTM model outperforms existing neural network classifiers and regression models, reducing RMSE loss by at least 45%. Furthermore, the fuzzy alcohol predictor achieved a coefficient of determination ((Formula presented.)) of 0.87, enabling reliable alcohol content estimation without direct alcohol sensing.