Coffee Bean Roaster Sidewall Discharge Port for Air-Driven Ejection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current coffee bean roasting systems face challenges in efficiently and safely discharging roasted coffee beans, as manual handling can be hazardous and energy-intensive, and automation is complicated due to air currents agitating the beans.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus with a chamber and an air current generator, featuring a selectively movable discharge port in the sidewall that allows air to eject beans without altering air velocity or pressure, reducing energy consumption and enabling compact design, along with a control unit for switching between roasting and discharging modes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual handling is used to remove roasted coffee beans, then the system complexity is low, but user safety is compromised and efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the existing air current that is already flowing through the chamber for roasting to automatically discharge the roasted coffee beans. The air current itself performs the discharge function without requiring a separate mechanical discharge mechanism, making the system self-servicing and avoiding additional complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The air current serving the roasting function is made to perform a dual function by also serving to discharge the roasted coffee beans through the discharge port. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate discharge mechanisms while improving user safety and efficiency.
2Ease of operation
If automated discharge using air current is implemented, then user safety is improved, but energy consumption increases due to high velocity requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system reuses the air current that is already present in the chamber for roasting purposes to also perform the discharge function. No additional energy is required to create a separate high-velocity air current for discharge, as the existing air flow is utilized for dual purposes.
Solution Approach 2:
The air current is made multi-functional by using it both for roasting the coffee beans and for discharging them through the discharge port. This eliminates the need for additional energy consumption that would be required if a separate discharge air current were generated.
3Productivity
If the discharge port is positioned on the top of the chamber, then gravity assists discharge, but the apparatus height and energy requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The discharge port is positioned on the sidewall of the chamber instead of on the top, changing the discharge direction from vertical to horizontal. This dimensional change allows the air current to drive beans horizontally through the discharge port, eliminating the need for increased chamber height while maintaining discharge efficiency.
4Speed
If the air current velocity is increased to discharge beans, then discharge speed improves, but the agitation of beans during roasting increases negatively affecting quality
Solution Approach 1:
The air current flow is segmented into different zones: a lower-velocity zone during roasting that maintains bean stability, and a directed high-velocity flow path through the discharge port that enables fast discharge. This segmentation allows different velocity requirements to be met in different spatial regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The air current is designed to have different velocity characteristics in different locations: lower velocity in the roasting chamber to maintain bean stability and quality, and higher velocity localized at the discharge port to enable rapid discharge. This local quality differentiation resolves the contradiction between discharge speed and bean stability.
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 solution provides a safer, more efficient, and energy-efficient method for discharging roasted coffee beans, reducing the risk of user injury and optimizing the system's size and power usage, while allowing for easy further processing without manual handling.
Implementation Method 1
a device for generating a current of air in order to agitate the coffee beans received by the chamber
Implementation Method 2
the current of air generated by the device can drive the coffee beans through the discharge port to be discharged (i.e. ejected) from the chamber
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to an apparatus (1) for more convenient roasting of coffee. The apparatus (1) in particular facilitates an improved means for discharging or ejecting the so roasted coffee beans from the apparatus (1). The apparatus (1), which may be a home appliance apparatus, comprises a chamber (10) in which coffee beans can be received for roasting. The apparatus (1) further comprises a device for generating a current of air in order to agitate the coffee beans received by the chamber (10). The chamber (10) is delimited by a bottom (11), a top (12), and a sidewall (13) extending from the bottom (11) to the top (12), wherein the sidewall (13) comprises a discharge port (30), which is selectively moveable between a closed position and an open position, such that the current of air generated by the device can drive the coffee beans through the discharge port (30) to be discharged from the chamber (10), when the discharge port (30) is in the open position.