Coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules
A coffee preparation machine that uses capsules containing whole coffee beans. The machine removes the whole beans from the capsule, grinds the beans, places ground coffee back into the capsule, adds hot water to brew coffee, and then ejects the used capsule after brewing is complete. An illustrative capsule may have two compartments: a lower compartment that initially contains whole beans, and an upper compartment where the ground coffee is placed after grinding. The machine may include a series of actuators to open the seals of the capsule, extract the beans, transport ground coffee and water into the upper compartment of the capsule, and move the used capsule out of the machine. The entire coffee preparation process may be automated so that a user need only place a capsule in the machine and press a button to initiate the sequence of actions.
1 . A coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules, comprising:
a water reservoir;
a water heater;
a water pump;
a grinder;
a bean collector coupled to the grinder;
a ground coffee chute coupled to the grinder;
a vertical tube configured to receive a capsule, wherein the capsule comprises:
a lower compartment initially containing coffee beans;
an upper compartment that is initially empty; and
a filter between the lower compartment and the upper compartment;
a seal opener configured to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment;
one or more actuators configured to move at least one of the bean collector and the ground coffee chute; and,
a controller coupled to the bean collector, the ground coffee chute, the water pump, the water heater, the grinder, the seal opener, and the one or more actuators, wherein the controller is configured to:
actuate the seal opener to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment and actuate the one or more actuators to position the bean collector to receive the coffee beans and transport the coffee beans to the grinder;
activate the grinder to grind the coffee beans, yielding ground coffee;
actuate the one or more actuators to transport the ground coffee from the grinder through the ground coffee chute into the upper compartment; and
activate the water pump and the water heater to pump water from the water reservoir into the water heater, and from the water heater into the upper compartment, wherein heated water brews the ground coffee and brewed coffee flows through the filter and exits from the lower compartment into a container placed below the vertical tube.
2 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 1 , further comprising:
a capsule holder within the vertical tube that holds the capsule when it is inserted into the vertical tube;
a capsule position actuator coupled to the capsule holder that moves the capsule vertically up and down within the vertical tube;
wherein the seal opener is configured to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment when the capsule position actuator moves the capsule to contact the seal opener;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
actuate the capsule position actuator to move the capsule to contact the seal opener to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment.
3 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 2 , wherein:
the capsule comprises:
an outer sleeve that is hollow with a top seal and a bottom seal; and
an inner container that fits within the outer sleeve, comprising the lower compartment and the upper compartment;
the seal opener is further configured to:
open the top seal; and,
move the inner container downward relative to the outer sleeve, thereby opening the bottom seal.
4 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 3 , wherein the seal opener comprises:
one or more blades configured to cut open the top seal; and,
one or more elements configured to engage with a top edge of the inner container to prevent the inner container from moving further upward.
5 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 2 , further comprising:
a lid coupled to the seal opener;
a lid actuator coupled to the lid and configured to open the lid and to close the lid;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
actuate the lid actuator to open the lid to receive the capsule; and,
actuate the lid actuator to close the lid upon receiving a start command.
6 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 2 , wherein the one or more actuators comprise
a bean collector actuator coupled to the bean collector and configured to extend the bean collector into an interior of the vertical tube and to retract the bean collector from the interior of the vertical tube;
a ground coffee chute position actuator coupled to the ground coffee chute and configured to extend the ground coffee chute into the interior of the vertical tube and to retract the ground coffee chute from the interior of the vertical tube;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
actuate the bean collector actuator to extend the bean collector into the interior of the vertical tube before moving the capsule to contact the seal opener to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment;
actuate the bean collector actuator to retract the bean collector from the interior of the vertical tube after the coffee beans are transported to the grinder;
actuate the capsule position actuator to move the capsule downward in the vertical tube; and
actuate the ground coffee chute position actuator to extend the ground coffee chute into the interior of the vertical tube to transport the ground coffee from the grinder through the ground coffee chute into the upper compartment.
7 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 6 , wherein the one or more actuators further comprise
a ground coffee chute vibration actuator coupled to the ground coffee chute;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
actuate the ground coffee chute vibration actuator to vibrate the ground coffee chute while transporting the ground coffee into the upper compartment.
8 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 6 , further comprising:
a water spout that receives water from the water heater;
wherein the one or more actuators further comprise
a water spout actuator coupled to the water spout and configured to extend the water spout into the interior of the vertical tube and to retract the water spout from the interior of the vertical tube;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
after the ground coffee is transported from the grinder into the upper compartment, actuate the water spout actuator to extend the water spout into the interior of the vertical tube to deliver heated water into the upper compartment.
9 . The coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules of claim 2 , further comprising:
a filling area located below a bottom of the vertical tube and configured to receive the container that receives brewed coffee;
a presence sensor proximal to the filling area that detects whether the container is in the filling area;
wherein the controller is further configured to:
after the heated water brews the ground coffee in the upper compartment, when the presence sensor indicates that the container has been removed, actuate the capsule position actuator to move the capsule downward through the bottom of the vertical tube to the filling area for removal.
10 . A coffee machine that grinds beans contained in capsules, comprising:
a vertical tube configured to receive a capsule, wherein the capsule comprises:
an outer sleeve that is hollow with a top seal and a bottom seal;
an inner container that fits within the outer sleeve, wherein the inner container comprises:
a lower compartment initially containing coffee beans;
an upper compartment that is initially empty; and,
a filter between the lower compartment and the upper compartment;
a water reservoir;
a water heater;
a water pump;
a water spout that receives water from the water heater;
a water spout actuator coupled to the water spout and configured to extend the water spout into an interior of the vertical tube and to retract the water spout from the interior of the vertical tube;
a grinder;
a bean collector coupled to the grinder;
a bean collector actuator coupled to the bean collector and configured to extend the bean collector into the interior of the vertical tube and to retract the bean collector from the interior of the vertical tube;
a ground coffee chute coupled to the grinder;
a ground coffee chute position actuator coupled to the ground coffee chute and configured to extend the ground coffee chute into the interior of the vertical tube and to retract the ground coffee chute from the interior of the vertical tube;
a ground coffee chute vibration actuator coupled to the ground coffee chute;
a capsule holder within the vertical tube that holds the capsule when it is inserted into the vertical tube;
a capsule position actuator coupled to the capsule holder that moves the capsule vertically up and down within the vertical tube;
a seal opener configured to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment when the capsule position actuator moves the capsule to contact the seal opener, wherein the seal opener comprises:
one or more blades configured to cut open the top seal; and,
one or more elements configured to engage with a top edge of the inner container to prevent the inner container from moving further upward;
a lid coupled to the seal opener;
a lid actuator coupled to the lid and configured to open the lid and to close the lid;
a filling area located below a bottom of the vertical tube and configured to receive a container that receives brewed coffee;
a presence sensor proximal to the filling area that detects whether the container is in the filling area;
a controller coupled to the bean collector actuator, the ground coffee chute position actuator, the ground coffee chute vibration actuator, the water pump, the water heater, the grinder, the lid actuator, the capsule position actuator, and the presence sensor, wherein the controller is configured to:
open the lid to receive the capsule;
extend the bean collector into the interior of the vertical tube;
close the lid upon receiving a start command;
move the capsule to contact the seal opener to release the coffee beans from the lower compartment;
collect the coffee beans in the bean collector and transport the coffee beans to the grinder;
retract the bean collector from the interior of the vertical tube;
activate the grinder to grind the coffee beans, yielding ground coffee;
move the capsule downward in the vertical tube and extend the ground coffee chute into the interior of the vertical tube to transport the ground coffee from the grinder through the ground coffee chute into the upper compartment;
vibrate the ground coffee chute while transporting the ground coffee into the upper compartment;
retract the ground coffee chute from the interior of the vertical tube;
extend the water spout into the interior of the vertical tube;
activate the water pump and the water heater to pump water from the water reservoir into the water heater, and from the water heater through the water spout into the upper compartment, wherein heated water brews the ground coffee and brewed coffee flows through the filter and exits from the lower compartment into a container placed below the vertical tube; and,
after the heated water brews the ground coffee in the upper compartment, when the presence sensor indicates that the container has been removed, move the capsule downward through a bottom of the vertical tube to the filling area for removal.