Coffee Bean Hopper Ribs for Low-Height Gravity Feeding
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee machines with bean containers require a high overall height to ensure gravity-driven coffee bean conveyance, which is cumbersome and inefficient, especially with high oil content beans that adhere strongly to flat surfaces, preventing effective emptying.
Innovation Solution
A coffee machine design featuring a bean container with a star-shaped, inclined bottom surface and ribs leading to the outlet opening, reducing adhesive forces and contact area, allowing for gravity-driven conveyance with a lower overall height, and incorporating a distributor plate and varying rib density to guide beans efficiently.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a flat inclined bottom surface is used in the bean container, then the structure is simple, but the adhesive forces between coffee beans and the surface are too strong, preventing gravity-driven conveyance
Solution Approach 1:
The bottom surface is segmented into multiple ribs radiating from the outlet opening, dividing the continuous flat surface into discrete inclined elements. This segmentation reduces the contact area between coffee beans and the bottom surface, thereby reducing adhesive forces and enabling gravity-driven conveyance without requiring excessive inclination angle or height.
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom surface features localized ribs with specific geometric properties (inclination angle, spacing, width) that create optimal conditions for coffee bean conveyance in critical areas. The ribs provide localized reduced adhesion and guided flow paths, while maintaining overall structural simplicity and manufacturing ease.
2Ease of operation
If a large inclination angle is used to ensure coffee beans slip out by gravity, then conveyance is improved, but the overall height of the container increases
Solution Approach 1:
The bottom surface is divided into multiple ribs that create numerous small-scale inclined planes. These segmented inclined surfaces collectively guide coffee beans toward the outlet opening with a gentler overall inclination angle, reducing the required container height while maintaining effective gravity-driven conveyance through cumulative guidance effect.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of relying solely on increasing the inclination angle in the vertical dimension to improve conveyance, the invention introduces a radial dimension with multiple ribs arranged around the outlet opening. This dimensional approach allows coffee beans to be guided toward the outlet through radial convergence, enabling effective conveyance with a smaller vertical height.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the contact area between coffee beans and the bottom surface is increased, then structural stability is improved, but adhesive forces increase, preventing effective emptying
Solution Approach 1:
The bottom surface is segmented into multiple ribs that reduce the continuous contact area between coffee beans and the container bottom. This segmentation minimizes adhesive forces while the ribs themselves provide structural support and guidance, maintaining container stability without requiring excessive contact area.
Solution Approach 2:
The ribs are strategically designed with specific dimensions and spacing to create localized contact points that provide sufficient structural support while minimizing overall adhesive contact area. The local geometry of each rib is optimized to balance stability and conveyance efficiency.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design enables a 20% increase in usable volume with a lower height, ensuring smooth coffee bean conveyance and easy handling, while preventing jamming and allowing for dishwasher-safe components.
Implementation Method 1
The ribs reduce a contact area between a coffee bean and a bottom surface of the container, and the ribs ensure that the adhesive forces between the container bottom and the coffee bean are reduced.
Implementation Method 2
allows the coffee beans to be conveyed by gravity
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3~4
AI summary
A coffee machine (1) comprises at least one container (3) for coffee beans (20) which has an outlet opening (15) in a base area leading to a grinder (5) by means of which the coffee beans (20) can be ground into coffee powder for brewing in a brewing unit (6). A base surface (10) of the container (3) is inclined downwards towards the outlet opening (15), and a plurality of ribs (13) leading to the outlet opening (15) are provided on the base surface (10). This allows the base surface (10) to be relatively flat in order to optimally utilize the installation space for the bean container (3).