Coffee Roasting Chamber With Horizontal Bean Circulation
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing coffee roasting technologies are inefficient, noisy, and intrusive in domestic environments, often resulting in poorly roasted beans due to lack of control over roasting processes, and roasted coffee beans tend to lose freshness quickly, leading to higher costs for consumers and unfair compensation for farmers in the supply chain.
Innovation Solution
A coffee roasting apparatus with a horizontally circulating roasting chamber, controlled by a controller that adjusts air flow rates for optimal roasting and cooling, integrated with a grinding and brewing module, allowing for customizable roasting profiles and efficient separation of chaff from beans, enabling users to roast, grind, and brew coffee with improved freshness and control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If beans are vertically circulated in the roasting chamber, then roasting can be achieved, but the fan needs to operate at high speed causing noise and intrusiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional vertical circulation approach by implementing horizontal circulation of beans through the roasting chamber. The fan blows air horizontally across the beans, causing them to move laterally rather than vertically. This inversion reduces fan speed requirements and associated noise while maintaining effective roasting contact between beans and heated air.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the circulation parameter from vertical to horizontal movement. By altering the direction of air flow and bean circulation from the vertical axis to the horizontal plane, the system achieves effective roasting with lower fan speeds, thereby reducing noise and making the appliance more suitable for domestic environments.
2Ease of operation
If a mechanical valve is provided to divert roasted beans, then bean discharge can be controlled, but additional moving parts are introduced that could malfunction
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the mechanical valve component from the system. Instead of using a mechanical valve to control bean discharge, the system relies on the horizontal air flow to naturally carry roasted beans to an outlet. This eliminates the mechanical valve and its associated moving parts, reducing complexity and potential failure points while maintaining operational control.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes the mechanical valve system with a pneumatic control system. The horizontal air flow, generated by the fan, serves to both roast the beans and transport them to the discharge outlet. This replacement of mechanical moving parts with a fluid-based system reduces complexity and improves reliability.
3Ease of operation
If all beans are subjected to the same roasting process, then the apparatus is simple to operate, but not all beans are roasted as well as they might be with controllable processes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamic control capabilities that allow the roasting process parameters to be adjusted based on bean characteristics. The system can vary fan speed, air flow rate, and roasting time to optimize the process for different bean types, sizes, and desired roast levels. This dynamic adjustment maintains ease of operation through automated controls while significantly improving roasting precision and quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates feedback mechanisms that monitor the roasting process and adjust parameters accordingly. Sensors can detect bean temperature, moisture content, and roast development, providing real-time feedback to the control system. This enables the apparatus to automatically optimize the roasting process for different bean types while maintaining simple operation for the user.
4Duration of action of stationary object
If roasted coffee beans are ground and vacuum packed, then freshness can be extended, but coffee quickly goes stale once the vacuum seal is broken
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary grinding immediately before brewing. The integrated grinder is activated only when coffee is needed, grinding the roasted beans at the moment of use. This eliminates the need for vacuum packing and advance grinding, ensuring the coffee is ground and brewed fresh each time, thereby preventing staling entirely rather than merely extending freshness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the roasting, storage, grinding, and brewing functions into a single integrated system. The roasted beans are stored in the same chamber where they are later ground and brewed. This consolidation eliminates the need for separate vacuum packing and storage containers, allowing the coffee to remain in a controlled environment until the moment of use when it is ground and brewed fresh.
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 apparatus provides a quieter, more efficient, and customizable coffee roasting experience, ensuring high-quality roasted coffee while reducing waste and energy consumption, and allowing consumers to produce fresh coffee at home, potentially increasing fair compensation for farmers by reducing intermediaries in the supply chain.
Implementation Method 1
a heater for heating air; means for driving heated air into the chamber to roast coffee beans received therein
Implementation Method 2
means for driving heated air into the chamber to roast coffee beans received therein
Implementation Method 3
means for driving air into the chamber to lift roasted coffee beans from the chamber to and through said outlet
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
One embodiment of the invention relates to apparatus (10) for roasting coffee beans, the apparatus comprising: a chamber (12) in which a supply of coffee beans can be received for roasting;means (15) for heating air; and means (20) for driving heated air into the chamber (12) for roasting coffee beans received therein; wherein the air driving means (20) and chamber (12) are configured and arranged so that coffee beans located in the chamber (12) circulate generally horizontally about the periphery of the chamber (12) when the air driving means (20) drives heated air into the chamber (12).