Coffee Bean Dosing Package for Fresh Grinding Without Cross-Contamination
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee makers suffer from flavor and aroma loss due to prolonged exposure of coffee beans to ambient air, and residual coffee grounds from previous grinding sessions can contaminate new beans, affecting the taste of freshly ground coffee.
Innovation Solution
A system that connects a coffee bean package directly to a grinder, preventing air exposure and using a dosing device to deliver a predetermined dose of coffee beans to the grinder, ensuring package-fresh coffee is ground and minimizing mixing with previous grindings by closing off the outlet after each use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If coffee beans are stored in a holder for later grinding, then convenience is improved, but flavor and aroma are lost due to prolonged air exposure
Solution Approach 1:
Coffee beans are pre-packaged in individual single-serving portions with hermetic seals before use. This preliminary packaging action preserves the beans against air exposure while maintaining convenience, as users simply need to open the seal and grind immediately without prolonged storage in holders.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs hermetic sealing that creates an inert or protected atmosphere within the packaging, preventing oxygen and moisture from reaching the coffee beans. This maintains flavor and aroma integrity while allowing convenient storage and later use without degradation.
2Productivity
If a large amount of coffee beans is loaded into the grinder at once, then productivity is improved, but residual grounds from previous sessions contaminate new beans
Solution Approach 1:
Coffee beans are divided into separate single-serving packages, each containing a precise portion for one brewing session. This segmentation prevents mixing between different coffee types while maintaining efficient grinding, as each package is ground independently without contamination from previous sessions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts only the necessary amount of coffee beans from each hermetically sealed package and loads them into the grinder immediately before use. This extraction approach ensures that no residual grounds remain in the package to contaminate subsequent batches, while the grinder processes only fresh beans.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If coffee beans are ground immediately before brewing, then flavor quality is improved, but time consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
Coffee beans are pre-packaged in precise single-serving portions with the exact amount needed for one brewing session. This preliminary portioning eliminates the need for measuring and reduces grinding time, while still enabling immediate grinding before brewing to preserve flavor quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs disposable single-serving coffee packages that are used once and discarded. Each package contains pre-measured coffee beans ready for immediate grinding, eliminating time-consuming measuring steps while maintaining flavor freshness through right-before-use grinding.
4Adaptability or versatility
If multiple types of coffee beans are stored together, then versatility is improved, but cross-contamination occurs affecting taste consistency
Solution Approach 1:
Different coffee types are segmented into separate individual packages, each hermetically sealed. This allows users to store multiple coffee varieties together without cross-contamination, as each package maintains its integrity until opened. Users can switch between coffee types by simply opening different packages.
Solution Approach 2:
Each coffee package is sealed in an inert or protected atmosphere that prevents interaction between different coffee types. This maintains the distinct flavor characteristics of each coffee variety while allowing versatile storage of multiple types in the same container or space.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for dosing coffee beans, comprising a coffee bean package provided with at least one wall which at least partly encloses an inner space for multiple dosages of coffee beans, and a coffee bean outlet for delivering coffee beans, and an apparatus provided with a coffee bean grinder, a coffee bean inlet for supplying coffee beans from the coffee bean package to the grinder, a connecting device for connecting the coffee bean package to the apparatus, so that the coffee bean outlet can be connected to the coffee bean inlet, and a dosing device provided with a dosing space which is arranged for feeding-through one predetermined dose of coffee beans from the coffee bean outlet to the coffee bean inlet.