Automated beverage formulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Beverage vendors face challenges in offering personalized beverages while maintaining taste quality and reducing environmental impact, as consumers desire customizable options that do not compromise on taste or increase manufacturing and transportation costs.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and system that allows users to adjust ingredients in a beverage formulation, such as sweeteners, through a dispensing device connected to a memory module and communication network, automatically adjusting other ingredients to maintain taste profile and quality, enabling the creation of customized beverages without the need for multiple flavor chips or extensive system reconfiguration.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If consumers are allowed to adjust ingredients such as reducing natural sugars, then personalized beverage options are provided, but the taste profile of the beverage may be adversely impacted
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes parameters of multiple ingredients simultaneously rather than allowing arbitrary single-ingredient adjustment. When a consumer requests modification of one ingredient (e.g., reducing sugar), the system automatically adjusts related ingredients (e.g., artificial sweeteners, acids, carbonation) to maintain the overall taste profile within acceptable parameters.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where the requested ingredient adjustment is processed through algorithms that consider the interrelationships between ingredients. The system evaluates the impact of changes and automatically compensates by adjusting other ingredients to maintain taste quality, effectively using feedback to preserve reliability while enabling adaptability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple variations of branded beverages are manufactured to meet personalized consumer needs, then consumer preferences are satisfied, but manufacturing and transportation costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static pre-manufactured beverage variations to dynamic on-demand formulation. Instead of manufacturing multiple fixed variations in advance, the system dynamically adjusts ingredient concentrations at the point of dispensing based on individual consumer requests, eliminating the need for separate manufacturing and transportation of multiple beverage variants.
Solution Approach 2:
The beverage formulation is segmented into individual adjustable ingredients rather than requiring complete separate formulations. This allows the system to maintain a base formulation and make targeted adjustments to specific ingredients (sugar, sweeteners, acids, carbonation) rather than creating entirely separate beverage products, reducing manufacturing complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If users adjust ingredients in a beverage formulation, then personalized beverages are created, but the system complexity increases requiring multiple flavor chips or extensive reconfiguration
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs a universal base formulation that can serve multiple beverage types through automated ingredient adjustment. Rather than requiring separate flavor chips or extensive reconfiguration for different beverage variations, a single dispensing system can handle multiple beverage types by dynamically adjusting the concentration of ingredients in the base formulation based on the selected beverage type and consumer preferences.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for dispensing beverages are provided. In accordance with various embodiments, beverage vendors may maintain the quality associated with a branded beverage while permitting consumers to enjoy the personalized beverages. In one embodiment, a user input may select a beverage formulation. The beverage formulation may be a commercially available branded beverage. A second user input may be received that is configured to modify a concentration of an ingredient of the selected beverage formulation. The ingredient may be a sweetener, such as a sugar. In response to the adjusting the ingredient, a concentration of at least one second ingredient may be automatically adjusted to form a recipe of a modified beverage formulation. In one embodiment, the user input adjusts a natural sugar and, in response, the carbon dioxide concentration is automatically adjusted. In another embodiment, carbon dioxide and another acid may be adjusted.