Machine to prepare coffee beverages and corresponding regulation method
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee machines require significant user expertise and manual adjustments to optimize brewing parameters, leading to inconsistent coffee quality, especially when using different types of coffee beans, and fail to automatically adapt to the actual machine performance.
Innovation Solution
A coffee machine with an interface that acquires coffee bean characteristics, stores optimized brewing parameters, and automatically adjusts settings through a control unit to ensure consistent high-quality coffee production, using feedback from users to refine settings for specific bean types.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If standardized functioning parameters are used for any coffee type, then the machine operation is simplified, but the coffee beverage quality becomes poor and inconsistent
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by automatically acquiring coffee bean characteristics before brewing, storing optimized parameters in advance, and pre-configuring the control unit with bean-specific settings. This eliminates the need for manual user adjustment while ensuring quality consistency through pre-optimized parameters tailored to each coffee type.
Solution Approach 2:
The machine serves itself by automatically detecting coffee bean characteristics, selecting appropriate brewing parameters from stored data, and adjusting its own functioning without user intervention. The control unit autonomously manages the brewing process based on acquired bean information, making the system self-sufficient while maintaining high coffee quality.
2Reliability
If manual regulation of functioning parameters is required, then coffee beverage quality can be optimized, but user expertise and time are significantly required
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where the control unit continuously monitors brewing parameters and coffee bean characteristics, automatically adjusting settings based on acquired data. This closed-loop approach ensures optimal coffee quality without requiring users to manually regulate parameters, as the system self-corrects based on feedback from bean characterization.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical adjustment of brewing parameters with an automated control system that uses electronic sensors and stored data to regulate pressure, temperature, and flow rates. This substitution eliminates the need for user expertise in manually tuning parameters while maintaining or improving coffee quality through precise automated control.
3Reliability
If the machine is designed to automatically adapt to different coffee types, then the device complexity increases, but the coffee quality consistency improves
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit is designed with multi-functionality, serving as both the acquisition interface for coffee bean characteristics, the storage unit for optimized parameters, and the regulation system for brewing. This universal component performs multiple functions that would otherwise require separate systems, reducing overall device complexity while enabling automatic adaptation to different coffee types.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the acquisition unit, storage unit, and control unit into an integrated system where all components work together through a single control architecture. By combining these functions into one cohesive system rather than separate independent units, the device achieves automatic adaptation to different coffee types without proportionally increasing complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A machine for preparing coffee beverages comprises an infusion unit comprising an infusion chamber suitable to contain a quantity of coffee powder to be subjected to infusion, a grinding unit to grind coffee beans and obtain coffee powder, a water tank connected to the grinding unit, means for feeding and heating the water, and a dispensing unit fluidically connected to the infusion unit and configured to dispense the beverage prepared into a receptacle. The invention also concerns a method to regulate a machine for preparing coffee beverages.