Predictive kitchen appliance and method

Abstract

A kitchen appliance (10, 110) comprises a container (11) suitable to contain one or more ingredients to be worked, a rotary tool (12) able to work the ingredients, which during use is disposed in the container (11) and is connected to a motor (14) by means of a shaft (13); a user interface (17) configured to receive an indication from a user on the type of one or more ingredients to be worked or on a recipe to execute, and to receive or provide an indication as to a type of rotary tool (12) to be used; one or more sensors (18, 19, 20) configured to detect at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor (14) in order to make the rotary tool (12) rotate; and a control unit (21) operatively connected to the motor (14), the user interface (17) and the one or more sensors (18, 19, 20), and configured to process the data received from the user interface (17).

Description

[0001] “PREDICTIVE KITCHEN APPLIANCE AND METHOD”

[0002]

[0003] FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0004] The present invention concerns a kitchen appliance, in particular a kitchen appliance suitable to work foodstuffs in order to modify the consistence thereof by means of a rotary tool, and a corresponding operating method.

[0005] BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0006] Kitchen appliances for working foodstuffs are known, such as for example kneaders, blenders or similar mixing apparatuses, suitable to mix one or more ingredients so as to increase their volume, or obtain a substantially homogeneous final product with a desired consistency.

[0007] These kitchen appliances are generally provided with a container able to contain the ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool, for example a kitchen hook, a whisk or sharp blades.

[0008] Although using known kitchen appliances is relatively simple and can therefore be carried out even by non-experienced users, without any cooking skills, in order to obtain a quality final product that reflects the requirements of a given recipe it is still necessary for the user to pay due attention in order to stop the kitchen appliance when the product has reached a certain consistency. In particular, it is important to avoid working the ingredients too much or too little.

[0009] In the event that the kitchen appliance is used to whip cream, in order to obtain a mixture with a foamy and homogeneous consistency it is necessary to work the liquid cream so as to eliminate all the liquids present in the container, if it is mixed too much, the mixture could separate and deteriorate. This disadvantage can also occur when whipping egg whites, although the effect of an excessive mixing is lesser.

[0010] Similar problems are also encountered in the case of kneaders, for example used to mix water and flour to obtain doughs for fresh pasta or baked goods, whose characteristics deteriorate if they are mixed for too long.

[0011] A certain skill is therefore required by the user to identify when it is appropriate to stop working the ingredients.

[0012] In order to facilitate the use of kitchen appliances by users, some known solutions provide being able to select recipes having predefined operating times.Such solutions, however, do not guarantee optimal results given the variability of the starting ingredients, for example in the case of ingredients with different temperatures, or ingredients of different varieties, for example different eggs or different flours, which require different working speeds and / or working times. Apparatuses are also known that provide to detect a characteristic of the motor that is correlated to the torque transmitted to the rotary tool and is variable with the consistency of the product obtained, and to stop the working process when the characteristic detected reaches a threshold value.

[0013] These solutions, however, allow to achieve a desired consistency only if certain types / quantities of products are used, since the threshold values also depend on these variables and therefore the final product may not correspond to the optimal product expected for the starting ingredients used.

[0014] There is therefore the need to perfect an operating method of a kitchen appliance and a corresponding kitchen appliance that can overcome at least one of the disadvantages of the state of the art.

[0015] To do this, it is necessary to solve the technical problem of precisely determining when a process for working ingredients has ended.

[0016] In particular, one purpose of the present invention is to provide an operating method, and a corresponding kitchen appliance, that is efficient and reliable, which is capable of determining when to effectively stop the working process on the basis of the ingredients being treated.

[0017] Another purpose of the present invention is to develop an operating method of a kitchen appliance that is effective and allows to obtain a final product with the desired characteristics for every type of ingredients worked.

[0018] The Applicant has devised, tested and embodied the present invention to overcome the shortcomings of the state of the art and to obtain these and other purposes and advantages.

[0019] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0020] The present invention is set forth and characterized in the independent claims. The dependent claims describe other characteristics of the present invention or variants to the main inventive idea.

[0021] In accordance with the above purposes and to solve the technical problem described above in a new and original way, also achieving considerable advantagescompared to the state of the prior art, a kitchen appliance according to the invention comprises:

[0022] - a container able to contain one or more ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool able to work the ingredients, connected to a motor by means of a shaft;

[0023] - a user interface configured to receive an indication from a user on the type of one or more ingredients to be worked, or on a recipe to execute, and to receive or provide an indication as to the type of rotary tool to be used suitable for the recipe and / or the ingredients;

[0024] - one or more sensors configured to detect at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor in order to make the rotary tool rotate, and

[0025] - a control unit operatively connected to the motor, the user interface and the one or more sensors, and configured to process the data received from the user interface, determine a speed of rotation for the rotary tool on the basis of the type of rotary tool and the recipe selected and / or the ingredients and command the motor with the speed of rotation, and to process the data received from the one or more sensors during the rotation of the rotary tool in order to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor that is correlated to the first and / or second variable and determine whether the product obtained from working the one or more ingredients corresponds to a product expected for the recipe and / or the ingredients, and determine whether or not to stop the motor.

[0026] This solution allows to effectively determine when the product obtained from working the ingredients corresponds to a product expected on the basis of the recipe and / or the ingredients selected, and to automatically stop the rotary tool preventing the ingredients from being worked excessively, which could deteriorate the characteristics of the product itself

[0027] According to one aspect of the invention, the kitchen appliance comprises a plurality of sensors configured to detect one or more of either motor voltage, motor firing angle, motor current, motor speed, container temperature, motor electrical resistance or weight of container and ingredients.

[0028] According to one aspect of the invention, the control unit is configured to receive at least the data detected on motor speed and firing angle, and to process them by executing a calculation algorithm both to determine when the productobtained from working the ingredients corresponds to the product expected and also to recognize any conditions of malfunction of the kitchen appliance.

[0029] According to another aspect of the invention, the kitchen appliance comprises a plurality of rotary tools, alternatively connectable to the motor’s shaft, selected from dough hooks, flat whisks or three-dimensional whisks.

[0030] According to another aspect of the invention, the kitchen appliance comprises a memory unit in which a plurality of predefined recipes are stored, each associated with a given combination of ingredients to be worked and type of rotary tool, and each comprising expected values and / or expected trends over time for one or more of the variables which allow to obtain a final product with specific characteristics, and the control unit is configured to process the sensors’ data and compare them with the expected values and trends, and determine whether and to what extent, that is, by which degree, the product being worked has characteristics corresponding to those of the final product expected.

[0031] The invention also concerns a method for working ingredients with a kitchen appliance according to the present invention, comprising:

[0032] - supplying a kitchen appliance comprising a container suitable to contain one or more ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool connected to a motor by means of a shaft;

[0033] - inserting into the container one or more ingredients to be worked with the rotary tool;

[0034] - receiving by means of a user interface at least one of either a selection of a recipe to be executed from a plurality of selectable recipes, or an indication on the type of the one or more ingredients to be worked;

[0035] - determining a type of rotary tool to be used;

[0036] - processing the data received from the user interface by means of a control unit to determine a speed of rotation for the rotary tool on the basis of the type of tool and of at least one of either the recipe selected or the type of ingredients, and commanding the motor to achieve the speed of rotation;

[0037] - detecting at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor and the rotation of the rotary tool, and processing the data received in order to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor that is correlated to the first and / or second variable, and determining whether the productof the one or more ingredients, worked by the rotary tool, corresponds to a product expected for the recipe and / or the ingredients, and determining whether or not to stop the motor.

[0038] The choice of the type of rotary tool can be determined directly from the type of recipe or ingredients selected on the basis of data stored in a memory unit, in which case the user can be informed via the interface which rotary tool has to be connected to the motor, or recognition devices can also be provided able to recognize a specific rotary tool installed and communicate this to the control unit. According to one aspect of the invention, the method provides to receive and process at least the data detected on motor speed and firing angle, and execute a calculation algorithm on the basis of this data, both to determine when the product obtained from working the ingredients corresponds to the product expected and also to recognize any conditions of malfunction of the kitchen appliance.

[0039] According to one aspect of the invention, the method provides to measure at least the motor’s firing angle and to:

[0040] - calculate a moving average of the firing angle on the basis of a plurality of measurement samples taken in a predefined time interval;

[0041] - calculate a derivative of the moving average by differentiating the moving average samples in order to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from negative to positive, or vice versa;

[0042] - based on the type of rotary tool and on the change in the trend of the derivative, stop the rotary tool or establish a duration of an additional working time interval in which to maintain the rotation of the rotary tool before stopping it.

[0043] According to one aspect of the present invention, the method provides to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from positive to negative, or vice versa, after a transitional step with a predetermined duration.

[0044] According to one aspect of the present invention, the method provides to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from positive to negative when, for at least two successive samples, a difference is calculated higher than a threshold value comprised between 0.02 and 0.2.

[0045] According to another aspect of the present invention, the method provides to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from positive to negative when, for at least two successive samples, a difference is calculated lower than a thresholdvalue comprised between 0.01 and 0.1.

[0046] According to another aspect of the invention, in particular when a rotary tool of the type suitable to knead ingredients, such as a hook or suchlike, is used, the method provides to calculate the time between the last positive sample for which a positive derivative was calculated and the first negative sample for which a negative derivative was calculated, and to consider the duration of the additional working time interval starting from such calculated time.

[0047] According to another aspect of the invention, the duration of the additional working time interval can be set to a predefined value, for example on the basis of the rotary tool used and / or the recipe selected or type of ingredients.

[0048] According to another aspect of the invention, the duration of the additional working time interval can be calculated as a function of the time that has elapsed between the start of the rotary tool and the identification of the change in the trend of the derivative, for example on the basis of a proportional coefficient.

[0049] According to another aspect of the invention, the method provides to calculate the standard deviation of the firing angle on the basis of the detected samples and compare it with predefined threshold values in order to determine whether there has been a malfunction in the process of working the ingredients in the kitchen appliance, and possibly warn the user. The warning can be, for example, given by means of an audio and / or visual signal via the user interface, for example by means of a screen, or by means of a light signal.

[0050] This solution allows, for example, to establish whether a dough is excessively sticky and therefore tends to accumulate and stick to the rotary tool, preventing the ingredients from properly mixing. For example, a significant reduction or increase in the standard deviation of the speed or of the firing angle, for example comprised between 30% and 50%, may indicate a condition of malfunction which the user should be notified of, so they can intervene and restore proper operation.

[0051] According to another aspect of the invention, the control unit can be configured to implement an algorithm based on machine learning (ML) models, which can initially be trained in the laboratory on the basis of analyses carried out on the motor’s variables, the characteristics of the product and of the tool used on each occasion. In this case, the data detected by the sensors are supplied as input to the machine learning model, which processes them on the basis of the previouslygathered data in order to identify when the preparation of the final product can be considered finished.

[0052] According to another aspect of the invention, the method provides to update and implement the machine learning model based on feedback on the characteristics of the final product received from a user, thus increasing its efficiency and reliability as well as adapting the final result to the user’s preferences. This feedback can for example be given through the user interface or an electronic device communicating with the user interface and / or the control unit.

[0053] DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0054] These and other aspects, characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of some embodiments, given as a non-restrictive example with reference to the attached drawings wherein: - fig. 1 is a schematic view of a kitchen appliance of the kneader type according to the present invention;

[0055] - figs. 1A and IB show examples of rotary tools of the kitchen appliance of fig. 1; - fig. 2 is a schematic view of a kitchen appliance of the blender type according to the present invention;

[0056] - fig. 3 is a block diagram of an algorithm implemented by a method for working ingredients with a kitchen appliance according to the present invention;

[0057] - fig. 4 shows a graph of the trend over time of the motor’s firing angle and of the firing angle’s moving average for different types of doughs;

[0058] - fig. 5 shows the samples considered in the graph of the trend of the firing angle’s moving average;

[0059] - fig. 6 shows the values of the discrete derivative calculated for the samples of fig.

[0060] 5;

[0061] - fig. 7 shows the trend over time of the motor’s firing angle and of the firing angle’s moving average during an egg white whipping process and the optimal working time.

[0062] We must clarify that the phraseology and terminology used in the present description, as well as the figures in the attached drawings also in relation as to how described, have the sole function of better illustrating and explaining the present invention, their purpose being to provide a non-limiting example of the invention itself, since the scope of protection is defined by the claims.To facilitate comprehension, the same reference numbers have been used, where possible, to identify identical common elements in the drawings. It is understood that elements and characteristics of one embodiment can be conveniently combined or incorporated into other embodiments without further clarifications.

[0063] DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

[0064] With reference to fig. 1, this shows a kitchen appliance 10 according to the invention, in this specific case in the form of a kneader. Fig. 2 shows a cooking appliance 110 according to the invention in the form of a blender, wherein the elements that correspond to those of the embodiment of fig. 1 are indicated with the same reference numbers.

[0065] The kitchen appliance 10 comprises a container 11 suitable to contain one or more ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool 12 able to work the ingredients, which during use is disposed in the container 11 and is connected to a motor 14 by means of a shaft 13.

[0066] The rotary tool 12 can be connected to a support arm 15 in a known maimer, which can in turn be pivoted to a base body 16 of the kitchen appliance 10 so as to be able to rotate upward and facilitate the insertion and removal of the rotary tool 12 and the container 11.

[0067] The kitchen appliance 10 further comprises a user interface 17 configured to receive an indication from a user on the type of the one or more ingredients to be worked or on a recipe to be executed, and to receive or provide an indication as to a type of rotary tool 12 to be used suitable for the recipe and / or the indicated ingredients.

[0068] The kitchen appliance 10 further comprises one or more sensors 18, 19, 20 configured to detect at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor 14 so as to make the rotary tool rotate, and a control unit 21 operatively connected to the motor 14, the user interface 17 and the sensors 18, 19, 20.

[0069] The control unit 21 can be, for example, a microprocessor or a microcontroller, or a CPU. The control unit 21 can be configured to process the data received from the user interface 17 in order to determine a speed of rotation to be set for the rotary tool 12 on the basis of the type of rotary tool 12 and of the recipe and / or the type of ingredients selected, and to command the motor 14 in such a way as to achievethis speed of rotation, for example by setting a given speed level or by appropriately adjusting the current supplied.

[0070] The control unit 21 can also be configured to receive and process the data detected by the one or more sensors 18, 19, 20 during the rotation of the rotary tool 12, or during the ingredient working process, so as to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor 14 that is correlated to at least one of either the first variable or the second variable, and determine whether the product obtained from working the one or more ingredients corresponds to a product expected for the recipe and / or for the ingredients initially selected, and determine whether or not to stop the motor 14.

[0071] In particular, the control unit 21 is configured to receive and process the data detected by the sensors 18, 19, 20 substantially in real time in order to be able to predict in advance when the working process may end, or to promptly recognize when the product being worked substantially corresponds to the expected product and therefore the process can be terminated.

[0072] According to possible solutions, the user interface 17 can be in the form of, or comprise, a screen 22, in particular of the touch-sensitive type, and possibly comprise one or more keys, buttons or knobs 23 by means of which to turn the kitchen appliance 10 on or off, make a selection between several possible options or confirm, or not, this selection.

[0073] The user interface 17 can be configured to make visible to a user a plurality of recipe options that can be executed, for example kneading, whipping eggs (egg yolks and / or egg whites), whipping cream, whipping butter and sugar together, mincing, chopping, etc.

[0074] In addition, or alternatively, the user interface 17 can be configured to make visible to a user a plurality of options of ingredients to be worked, for example butter, milk, sugar, flour, cream, water, fresh fruit, dried fruit, etc., and possibly the characteristics of such ingredients, for example the temperature, whether room temperature or refrigerated, or the amount of fat contained in them (e.g. whole or skimmed milk), or other, such as the granulometry or “strength” of a flour, etc. According to one aspect of the invention, on the basis of the recipe and / or the ingredients selected, an indication to the user regarding the type of rotary tool 12 to be used can be provided on the user interface 17.In addition, or alternatively, it can be provided that the user interface 17 is configured to receive the selection of a specific rotary tool 12 from the user.

[0075] By way of example, the rotary tool 12 can be one of either a three-dimensional whisk 12A, a flat whisk 12B (fig. 1A), a dough hook 12C (fig. IB), a paddle mixer 12D (fig. 2), possibly provided with cutting edges.

[0076] According to another aspect of the invention, the kitchen appliance 10 comprises a plurality of rotary tools 12A, 12B, 12C, 12D, alternatively connectable to the shaft 13 of the motor 14, selected from dough hooks, flat whisks or three-dimensional whisks or paddle / blade mixers, or even of the same type but with different shapes and sizes.

[0077] According to one aspect of the invention, the kitchen appliance 10 comprises a plurality of sensors 18, 19, 20 configured to detect one or more of either motor voltage, motor firing angle, motor current, motor speed, container temperature, motor electrical resistance, and weight of container and ingredients.

[0078] By way of example, fig. 1 shows a first sensor 18 associated with the motor 14, configured to detect one or more of either motor voltage, motor firing angle, motor current, motor speed, motor electrical resistance.

[0079] Fig. 1 shows a second sensor 19 associated with the base body 16, in particular disposed in the support zone of the container 11, which can comprise one or more load cells able to detect a weight, and a third sensor 20 configured to detect a temperature of the container and the contents. The third sensor 20 can be configured to detect the temperature by contact or by infrared detection, or other, and therefore be suitably positioned in correspondence with the base body 16 or the support arm 15.

[0080] It should be noted that the term “sensor” should not necessarily be intended to indicate a single element, but may in turn comprise several detection devices, even of a different type, suitable to measure and detect the operating variable of interest. The kitchen appliance 10 can further comprise a memory unit 24 in which a plurality of predefined recipes are stored, each associated with a given combination of ingredients to be worked and type of rotary tool 12, and each comprising expected values and expected trends over time for one or more of the operating variables directly detectable by the sensors 18, 19, 20 or derivable from the data detected, in order to obtain a final product having certain characteristics.The control unit 21 is configured to process the data received from the sensors substantially in real time and compare them with the values expected, and in particular with the expected trends over time, to determine whether and how much the product being worked has characteristics corresponding to those of the expected final product.

[0081] The determination as to when the product being worked corresponds to the expected final product can be made in predictive terms, that is, estimated on the basis of the trend over time of the variables of interest, or be made substantially in real time.

[0082] In any case, when it is determined that the expected product has been reached, or the instant in which the expected product will be obtained is established, the control unit 21 can stop the motor 14.

[0083] According to one aspect of the invention, the control unit 21 can be configured to receive and process at least the data detected on motor speed and firing angle, for example by means of the first sensor 18, and is configured to execute a calculation algorithm on the basis of this data both to determine when the product obtained from working the ingredients corresponds to the expected product, and also to recognize any conditions of malfunction of the kitchen appliance 10, in particular due to the characteristics of the ingredients being worked.

[0084] According to one aspect of the invention, the control unit 21 can be configured to implement an algorithm based on machine learning (ML) models, wherein the data gathered by the sensors 18, 19, 20 are supplied as input to the machine learning based algorithm, which processes them on the basis of previous training in order to identify when the preparation of the final product can be considered finished.

[0085] The algorithm can be implemented directly by the control unit 21 or on a remote server 30, communicating with the control unit 21 in wi-fi mode, either directly or through a suitable software application installed on an electronic device 31 of a user, such as a smartphone, a tablet, a PC or suchlike.

[0086] The operation of the kitchen appliance 10, 110, which corresponds to the method for working ingredients according to the invention, comprises:

[0087] - supplying a kitchen appliance 10, 110 comprising a container 11 suitable to contain one or more ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool 12 disposed in thecontainer 11 and connected to a motor 14 by means of a shaft 13.

[0088] - inserting into the container 11 one or more ingredients to be worked with the rotary tool 12;

[0089] - receiving by means of a user interface 17 at least one of either a selection of a recipe to be executed from a plurality of selectable recipes, or an indication on the type of the one or more ingredients to be worked;

[0090] - determining the type of rotary tool 12 to be used;

[0091] - processing the data received from the user interface 17 by means of a control unit 21 to determine a speed of rotation for the rotary tool 12 on the basis of the type of tool and of at least one of either the recipe or the type of ingredients, and commanding the motor 14 with the speed of rotation;

[0092] - detecting at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor 14 and the rotation of the rotary tool 12, and processing the data received in order to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor 14 that is correlated to the first and / or the second variable, so as to determine whether the product obtained from working the one or more ingredients corresponds to the product expected for the recipe and / or the ingredients, and determining whether or not to stop the motor 14.

[0093] The method can provide to receive and process at least the data detected on motor speed and firing angle, and to execute a calculation algorithm on the basis of this data so as to determine when the product obtained from working the ingredients corresponds to the expected product. The implementation of the calculation algorithm can also allow to recognize any conditions of malfunction of the kitchen appliance 10.

[0094] The algorithm can be implemented directly by the control unit 21 or on the remote server 31.

[0095] Fig. 3 shows a schematic flowchart of the algorithm implemented by the method, wherein in step S 1 the desired speed of rotation of the motor is set and in step S2 the actual speed of rotation is detected, which are subsequently compared. According to one aspect of the invention, in step S3 the method provides to measure at least the motor’s firing angle, either directly or on the basis of the data detected at least by the first sensor 18 associated with the motor 14.

[0096] Downstream of the step of receiving the data of the first sensor 18, there canalso be provided a step of removing the background noise so as to extract only the most significant values and information from this data.

[0097] The method can comprise a step S4 of calculating the firing angle’s moving average on the basis of a plurality of measurement samples taken in a predefined time interval (step S4).

[0098] The method can further provide a step of calculating a derivative of the moving average (step S5) on the basis of a difference between the samples of the moving average so as to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from negative to positive, or vice versa.

[0099] By way of example, fig. 4 shows a graph of the trend over time of the motor’s firing angle and of the firing angle’s moving average for a plurality of processes to obtain a dough, in particular for baked goods (for example bread, pizza, sweet cakes), which are correlated to optimal mixing times defined on the basis of the experience of experts, wherein different ingredients and / or proportions of the ingredients (in particular different type of flour, different water / flour ratio, addition of other ingredients) have been used in each process.

[0100] In the graph, the circles indicate, for each of the processes for the different doughs, the points at which the starting ingredients have been aggregated together, substantially forming a single product.

[0101] Fig. 5 shows in a different scale a segment of the curve C (indicated by the arrow in fig. 4) relating to a specific process, wherein the firing angle’s moving average is calculated on a number of samples comprised between 50 and 5000 in a time interval that can vary between approximately 10-30 seconds.

[0102] Fig. 6 shows the values of the discrete derivative calculated for the samples of fig- 5.

[0103] The method can also provide, on the basis of the type of rotary tool 12 and of the change in the trend of the derivative identified, to stop the rotary tool 12 or to determine a duration of an additional working time interval in which to keep the rotary tool in rotation before stopping it. Possibly, the method can also provide to modify the speed of rotation of the motor 14 for at least part of the additional working time.

[0104] The method can provide to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from positive to negative, or vice versa, only after a transitional step with apredetermined duration, for example after a period of time comprised between 10 and 100 seconds.

[0105] According to one aspect of the present invention, in order to identify a change in the trend of the derivative, the method provides to compare the differences between the samples of the moving average (S6) with predefined threshold values (S7).

[0106] According to one aspect of the present invention, the method provides to identify a positive derivative when for at least two subsequent samples a difference is calculated higher than a threshold value comprised between 0.02 and 0.2.

[0107] According to another aspect of the invention, the method provides to identify a negative derivative when for at least two subsequent samples a difference is calculated lower than a threshold value comprised between 0.01 and 0.1.

[0108] According to another aspect of the invention, in particular when a rotary tool 12 of the type suitable to knead ingredients is used, such as a hook 12C or suchlike, the method can provide to calculate the time between the last positive sample for which a positive derivative was calculated and the first negative sample for which a negative derivative was calculated, and to consider the duration of the additional working time interval starting from such calculated time.

[0109] According to another aspect of the invention, the duration of the additional working time interval can be set to a predefined value, for example on the basis of the type of rotary tool 12 used and / or the recipe selected or the type of ingredients. According to another aspect of the invention, the duration of the additional working time interval can be calculated as a function of the time elapsed between the start of the rotary tool 12 and the identification of the change in the trend of the derivative , for example on the basis of a proportional coefficient.

[0110] Depending on the type of ingredients and / or recipe being executed (S8), the instant in which the change in the trend of the derivative is determined, that is, the positive or negative peak (S8) can be considered as the instant in which the worked product in fact corresponds to the expected product (for example in the case of whipping egg whites, whipped cream, or mixing butter and sugar), or as the instant starting from which a certain additional working time should be considered (S10) (for example for baked goods, pasta, short crust pastry or puff pastry).

[0111] In figs. 4-6 it can be seen that for doughs for baked goods the trend of thederivative changes from positive to negative, and the instant the change occurs determines the start of the additional time.

[0112] The method then provides, as a function of the type of process performed, to stop the motor 14 or to keep it operating, possibly with a different speed of rotation, for the additional time.

[0113] According to another aspect of the invention, the method provides to calculate the standard deviation of the firing angle on the basis of the samples detected, and to compare it with predefined threshold values in order to determine whether there has been a malfunction in the process of working the ingredients in the kitchen appliance 10 and possibly warn the user.

[0114] The warning can, for example, be given by means of an audio or visual message via the user interface 17, for example via the screen 22, or by means of a light signal via LED lights or suchlike.

[0115] According to one aspect of the invention, the method provides to alert the user when a significant reduction or increase in the standard deviation of the speed, or of the firing angle, for example between 30% and 50%, for example from 120 rpm to 60 rpm for the speed of rotation, is detected.

[0116] Fig. 7 shows the trend over time of the motor’s firing angle and of the firing angle’s moving average during the process of whipping the egg whites, and the optimum working time.

[0117] In the case eggs are being worked, the trend of the derivative of the moving average of the firing angle changes from negative to positive and, when the change is identified, the motor 14 can be stopped since the change of the derivative occurs when the product being worked has the characteristics corresponding to those of the expected product.

[0118] Similar trends also occur with regard to working cream or butter and sugar. According to a further aspect of the invention, the control unit 21 can be configured to implement an algorithm based on machine learning (ML) models, which can be initially trained in the laboratory on the basis of analyses carried out on the variables of the motor, the characteristics of the product and of the tool used on each occasion. In this case, the data detected by the sensors 18, 19, 20 are provided as input to the machine learning model, which processes them on the basis of the previously gathered data in order to identify when the preparation ofthe final product can be considered finished.

[0119] According to a further aspect of the invention, the method provides to update and implement the machine learning model on the basis of feedback, that is, feedback received from the user on the characteristics of the final product so as to increase its efficiency and reliability, and also adapt the final result to the user’s preferences. This feedback can for example be provided via the user interface 17 or via an electronic device 31 communicating with the user interface 17 and / or the control unit 21.

[0120] In general, the machine learning based algorithm can be realized in different ways:

[0121] - the algorithm is trained in the laboratory and implemented in the kitchen appliance 10, 110, in particular in the control unit 21;

[0122] - the algorithm is trained in the laboratory and implemented in the kitchen appliance 10, 110; at the end of the preparation of a product, feedback is requested from the user, which is then used by the algorithm to re-program and update itself; - the algorithm is trained in the laboratory and implemented in the kitchen appliance 10, 110; at the end of the preparation of a product, feedback is requested from the user, which is then uploaded to a remote server 30, in which the algorithm is re-programmed and updated to be then sent back to the kitchen appliance;

[0123] - the algorithm is trained in the laboratory and implemented online, that is, on the remote server 30, the algorithm communicates with the kitchen appliance 10, 110 while the ingredients are being worked and stops the motor 14 when the preparation is finished; at the end of the preparation, feedback is requested from the user which is uploaded online, that is, on the remote server 30, so as to update the algorithm.

[0124] In the latter case, the algorithm is essentially implemented outside the kitchen appliance, but can cooperate with the control unit 21 of the kitchen appliance 10, 110 in order to command the motor 14.

[0125] It is clear that modifications and / or additions of parts may be made to the kitchen appliance 10, 100 and to the operating method as described heretofore, without thereby departing from the field and scope of the present invention, as defined by the claims.

[0126] It is also clear that, although the present invention has been described withreference to some specific examples, a person of skill in the art will be able to achieve other equivalent forms of kitchen appliance 10, 100 and operating method, having the characteristics as set forth in the claims and hence all coming within the field of protection defined thereby.

[0127] In the following claims, the sole purpose of the references in brackets is to facilitate their reading and they must not be considered as restrictive factors with regard to the field of protection defined by the claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1. Kitchen appliance (10, 110) comprising:- a container (11) for containing one or more ingredients and a rotary tool (12) for working the ingredients, which during use is disposed in the container (11) and connected to a motor (14) by means of a shaft (13);- a user interface (17) able to receive an indication from a user on the type of ingredients to be worked and / or on a recipe to execute, and to receive or provide an indication as to the type of rotary tool ( 12) to be used consistent with said recipe and / or said ingredients;- one or more sensors (18, 19, 20) able to detect at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor (14) and the rotation of the rotary tool (12), and- a control unit (21) operatively connected to the motor (14), the user interface (17) and the sensor(s) (18, 19, 20), configured to process the data received from the user interface (17), determine a speed of rotation of said rotary tool (12) on the basis of the type of rotary tool (12) and said recipe and / or said ingredients and command said motor (14) with said speed of rotation, and to process the data received from said one or more sensors (18, 19, 20) during the rotation in order to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor (14) that is correlated to said first and / or second variable and determine whether a product worked by said rotary tool (12) corresponds to a product expected for said recipe and / or said ingredients, and consequently whether or not to stop said motor (14).

2. Kitchen appliance (10, 110) as in claim 1, characterized in that it comprises a plurality of sensors (18, 19, 20) configured to detect one or more of either motor voltage, motor firing angle, motor current, motor speed, container temperature, motor electrical resistance or weight of container and ingredients.

3. Kitchen appliance (10, 110) as in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said control unit (21) is configured to receive and process at least data detected by said sensors (8, 19, 29) on motor speed and firing angle, and it is configured to process them by executing a calculation algorithm both to determine when the product being worked corresponds to the product expected and also to recognize any conditions of malfunction of said kitchen appliance (10, 110).

4. Kitchen appliance (10, 110) as in any claim hereinbefore, characterized in thatit comprises a memory unit (23) in which a plurality of predefined recipes are stored, each associated with a given combination of ingredients to be worked and type of rotary tool, and each comprising expected values and expected trends over time for one or more variables in order to obtain a final product having specific characteristics, and said control unit (21) is configured to process the data received from the one or more sensors (18, 19, 20) and compare them with said expected values and trends, and determine whether and to what extent the product being worked has characteristics corresponding to those of the final product expected and command the motor (14) accordingly.

5. Method for working ingredients with a kitchen appliance (10, 110) comprising: - supplying a kitchen appliance (10, 110) provided with a container (11) for containing one or more ingredients to be worked and a rotary tool (12) connected to a motor (14) by means of a shaft (13);- inserting one or more ingredients to be worked into the container (11);- receiving by means of a user interface (17) at least one of either a selection of a recipe to be executed from a plurality of selectable recipes, or an indication on the type of the one or more ingredients to be worked;- determining a type of rotary tool (12) to be used;- processing the data received from said user interface (17) by means of a control unit (21) to determine a speed of rotation for said rotary tool (12) on the basis of the type of tool and said recipe and / or said ingredients, and commanding said motor (14) with said speed of rotation;- detecting at least a first and a second operating variable during the operation of the motor (14) and the rotation of the rotary tool (12), and processing the data received in order to monitor the trend of at least one characteristic of the motor (14) that is correlated to said first and / or second variable, and determining whether the product of the one or more ingredients, worked by said rotary tool (12), corresponds to a product expected for said recipe and / or said ingredients, and determining whether or not to stop said motor (14).

6. Method as in claim 5, comprising receiving at least data on motor speed and firing angle detected, and processing them by executing a calculation algorithm, both to determine when the product being worked corresponds to the product expected and also to recognize any conditions of malfunction of said kitchenappliance (10, 110).

7. Method as in claim 6, comprising:- calculating a moving average of the firing angle on the basis of a plurality of measurement samples taken in a predefined time interval;- calculating a derivative of the moving average on the basis of a difference between the moving average samples to identify a change in the trend of the derivative from negative to positive, or vice versa;- based on the type of rotary tool (12) in use and on the change in the trend of the derivative, stopping the motor (14) or establishing a duration of an additional working time interval in which to keep the motor (14) active, and continuing the rotation of said rotary tool (12) before stopping it.

8. Method as in claim 7, wherein to identify a change in the trend of the derivative the method provides to compare the differences between the samples of the moving average with predefined threshold values, wherein the derivative is considered negative when for at least two successive samples a difference is calculated lower than a threshold value comprised between 0.01 and 0.1, while the derivative is considered positive when for at least two successive samples a difference is calculated higher than a threshold value comprised between 0.02 and 0.2.

9. Method as in claim 7 or 8, wherein when a rotary tool (12, 12C) of the type suitable to knead ingredients is used, the method provides to calculate a time between the last positive sample for which a positive derivative was calculated and the first negative sample for which a negative derivative was calculated, and to consider the duration of the additional working time interval starting from such calculated time.

10. Method as in any claim from 6 to 9, comprising calculating the standard deviation of the firing angle on the basis of the detected samples and comparing it with predefined threshold values in order to determine whether there has been a malfunction in the process of working the ingredients in the kitchen appliance (10, 110), and possibly warn the user by means of an audio and / or visual signal.

11. Method as in any claim from 6 to 10, wherein the control unit (21) implements an algorithm based on machine learning models initially trained in the laboratory, wherein the data detected by said sensors (18, 19, 20) are supplied as input to the algorithm and processed on the basis of the previously gathered dataand the initial training in order to identify when the preparation of the final product can be considered finished and to command the motor (14) accordingly.

12. Method as in claim 11, comprising updating and implementing the machine learning model based on feedback on the characteristics of the final product received from a user through the user interface (17) or an electronic device (31) which is able to communicate wirelessly with said control unit (21) directly or by means of a remote server (30) at the end of a working process.

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