Automatic Coffee Maker Pre-Soak Control for Balanced Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee brewing methods often result in under- or over-extracted coffee due to inadequate control over water quantity and contact time, leading to undesirable flavor profiles.
Innovation Solution
An automatic coffee maker with a reservoir, heater, brew basket, flow meter, and controller that delivers a predetermined amount of water for pre-soaking the coffee grounds before completing the brewing cycle, optimizing the ratio of bloom water to brew water and contact time to achieve balanced extraction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fixed amount of water is delivered to the brew basket, then the brewing process is simple to operate, but the coffee extraction cannot be optimized for different container sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the water quantity delivered to the brew basket based on the detected container size. The controller modifies the predetermined amount of water accordingly, allowing the same device to adapt to different container volumes without requiring manual intervention or complex user input.
Solution Approach 2:
The system automatically detects the container size and self-adjusts the water quantity without requiring user input. The controller receives signals from the flow meter and autonomously determines the appropriate water amount, making the system self-configuring and eliminating the need for manual setup.
2Manufacturing precision
If the water contact time with coffee grounds is not controlled, then the brewing process is fast and simple, but the coffee extraction quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs a preliminary wetting action by delivering a first predetermined amount of water to the brew basket before the main brewing cycle. This preliminary action prepares the coffee grounds for optimal extraction by ensuring they are properly saturated, which improves the overall extraction precision without significantly extending the total brewing time.
3Manufacturing precision
If the ratio of bloom water to brew water is not optimized, then the brewing process is simple, but the coffee flavor quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The water delivery process is segmented into distinct phases: a first predetermined amount of water for blooming/wetting the coffee grounds, and a second predetermined amount for the main brewing cycle. This segmentation allows independent optimization of each phase's water quantity, enabling precise control over the bloom-to-brew ratio and resulting in superior coffee flavor quality.
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
Produces coffee with a more pleasant taste by ensuring the right balance of solubles yield, preventing under- or over-extraction, and allowing for customizable brewing based on container size.
Implementation Method 1
a heater in fluid communication with the reservoir, the heater being configured to heat water delivered from the reservoir to the heater
Implementation Method 2
a flow meter disposed between the reservoir and the brew basket, and a controller coupled to the heater and the flow meter
Implementation Method 3
the brew basket being configured to hold ground coffee and to receive heated water from the heater
Implementation Method 4
ensuring the right balance of solubles yield
Data Source
AI summary
Included herein are methods and systems for brewing coffee. In one example, a method of brewing coffee includes delivering a predetermined amount of water from a reservoir to a heater, heating the predetermined amount of water with the heater to form heated water, delivering the predetermined amount of the heated water from the heater to a brew basket containing ground coffee, and soaking the ground coffee with the predetermined amount of the heated water for a predetermined period of time to enable the heated water delivered to the brew basket to presoak the ground coffee contained in brew basket prior delivering a remaining amount of water from the quantity of water to the brew basket to complete the brewing cycle.