Drying process of tobacco leaves by using a fuzzy controller

This paper presents the first results from a research project devoted to the application of the fuzzy control based technology to the drying process of tobacco leaves, which the authors are carrying out in the province of Pinar del Rio (Cuba). The fuzzy controller here reported has been designed and implemented by means of a fuzzy rule base constructed from the knowledge of the expert curers taking part in the natural drying process. The preliminary results obtained are very promising. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.