Automatic Temperature Control System for a Bee Hive

The research team has analyzed the physical processes occurring in a hive for the winter aggregation of bees. The primary in-hive processes were analyzed by means of Comsol 5.4. The analysis used the mathematical models of the heat transfer, air flow, and air humidity alteration interfaces. The solutions employed special blocks for simulating the multiphysical relations of the analyzed processes. Visual analysis of the temperature fields proves the bees’ outstanding thermal insulation. Simulation-based optimization of the electric heater parameters is proposed. The obtained knowledge of the winter aggregation status of bees has been used to design an electric heating control scheme that makes no use of in-hive temperature feedback. Comparing the thermal field images rendered by the thermal imaging camera as well as by simulation shows a high degree of match. An experiment conducted in Krasnodar Krai shows that the new control system reduces the power consumption by 20 to 25% compared to electric heating controlled by an in-hive temperature sensor.