Tamping assembly

1 . A coffee compacting assembly that receives ground coffee to compact the coffee in a filter cup having a floor, the coffee compacting assembly including:

an auger having an axis about which the auger is rotated to compact the ground coffee in the filter cup, with the auger extending angularly and longitudinally relative to said axis;

a motor coupled to the auger to rotate the auger about said axis; and

an auger positioning device engaged with the auger to provide for movement of the auger between a start position and a raised position above the start position, with the start position being predetermined so that the auger is located at a predetermined location within the filter cup, wherein the predetermined start position of the auger is adjusted based on the filter cup selected from a series of different filter cups, and

wherein the auger positioning device locates the auger in the start position so as to minimise contact between the auger and filter cup floor.

2 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , wherein the auger positioning device locates the auger at a position at which it does not contact the filter cup floor.

3 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , wherein the coffee compacting assembly includes a first shaft, the first shaft being a driven shaft of the motor, and a second shaft, the second shaft being attached to the auger, and being driven by the first shaft, with the second shaft being mounted for longitudinal movement relative to the first shaft.

4 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 3 , wherein the coffee compacting assembly includes a coupling fixed to the first shaft, and that slidably engages the second shaft and a transmits drive from the first shaft to the second shaft.

5 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 3 , wherein the auger positioning device includes a bracket engaged with the second shaft, with the bracket moved to provide for longitudinal movement of the second shaft, and therefore the auger.

6 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 5 , wherein the second shaft passes through the bracket so as to be rotatable relatively thereto.

7 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , wherein the auger positioning device includes a cam member, moved angularly to provide for adjustment of the start position of the auger.

8 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , wherein the auger positioning device includes a manual lifting method selected from the set of a threaded shaft, a slider, and a ratchet.

9 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 3 , wherein the auger positioning device includes a positioning motor, a threaded shaft rotatably driven by the positioning motor, with the threaded shaft rotated to cause movement of the second shaft and therefore the auger.

10 . An espresso coffee machine including the coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , and a grinding assembly, the grinding assembly providing for the ground coffee to be delivered to the filter cup.

11 . The coffee compacting assembly of claim 1 , wherein the auger positioning device locates the auger at a desired position relative to the filter cup.

12 . A coffee compacting assembly that receives ground coffee to compact the coffee in a filter cup, the coffee compacting assembly including:

an auger having an axis about which the auger is rotated to compact the ground coffee in the filter cup, with the auger extending angularly and longitudinally relative to said axis;

a motor coupled to the auger to rotate the auger about said axis; and

an auger positioning device engaged with the auger to provide for movement of the auger between a predetermined start position and a raised position, wherein the predetermined start position of the auger is adjusted based on a size of the filter cup, and wherein the auger positioning device locates the auger in the start position so as to minimise contact between the auger and filter cup floor.

13 . A method of compacting ground coffee in a filter cup using a coffee compacting assembly, the coffee compacting assembly including an auger having an axis and a motor coupled to the auger, the method including the steps of:

moving the auger to a predetermined start position in which the auger is adjacent a floor of the filter cup, wherein the predetermined start position of the auger is adjusted based on the filter cup selected from a series of different filter cups, wherein an auger positioning device locates the auger in the start position so as to minimise contact between the auger and filter cup floor;

operating the motor to rotate the auger of the coffee compacting assembly about the axis to compact the ground coffee in the filter cup; and

moving the auger to a raised position above the predetermined start position.