Grinding and extraction apparatus for coffee beans

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12440059-B2
Application number	US-202118002748-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 4, 2021
Priority date	Jun 24, 2020
Publication date	Oct 14, 2025
Grant date	Oct 14, 2025

Abstract

The invention relates to a grinding and extraction apparatus for roasted coffee beans comprising a grinding device ( 60 ) and an associated extraction device ( 70 ); the grinding device ( 60 ) comprising one or more housings for receiving one or more beans containers ( 10, 20 ) with roasted coffee beans of the same or different types; the grinding device ( 60 ) comprising a reader ( 62 ) to obtain the information of the product parameters of the roasted coffee beans of the one or more beans containers ( 10, 20 ); the grinding device ( 60 ) further comprising a control unit configured to adapt the grinding size and the quantity of roasted coffee beans for obtaining a certain coffee blend from each beans container to be grinded according to these product parameters and/or according to a recipes database ( 64 ) comprising the beverage information associated to the beverage to be prepared; the grinding device ( 60 ) further comprising an encoder ( 62 ) to encode the beverage information on programmable identification means ( 65 ) on a product holder ( 61 ) in the grinding device ( 60 ), to where the grinded coffee is sent; the extraction device ( 70 ) being configured for receiving the product holder ( 61 ) and comprising reading means ( 72 ) to identify the beverage information in the said product holder identification means ( 65 ), the extraction device ( 70 ) further comprising a control unit to extract the beverage according to the beverage information retrieved and/or from the beverage information retrieved from a beverage database in this control unit. Moreover, the invention relates to a method for grinding roasted coffee beans and preparing a beverage from them using a grinding and extraction apparatus as the one described, and also refers to the use of a grinding and extraction apparatus as the one described for delivering a certain beverage from roasted coffee beans.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A grinding and extraction system for roasted coffee beans comprising a grinding device and an associated extraction device;
the grinding device comprising:
one or more housings configured to receive one or more beans containers with roasted coffee beans of the same or different types,
a first reader configured to obtain product parameters of the roasted coffee beans from the one or more beans containers,
a control unit configured to adapt the grinding size and the quantity of roasted coffee beans to obtain a quantity of roasted coffee beans from the one or more beans containers and to cause the grinding device to grind the roasted coffee beans according to these product parameters and/or according to a recipes database comprising the beverage information associated to the beverage to be prepared, and
an encoder configured to encode the product parameters on a programmable identification member on a product holder in the grinding device to which the grinded coffee is dispensed; and

the extraction device being configured to receive the product holder, the extraction device comprising:
a second reader to identify the product parameters in the programmable identification member, and
a control unit configured to cause the extraction device to extract the beverage according to the product parameters retrieved from the product holder and/or beverage information retrieved from a beverage database in this control unit.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the beverage information comprises data selected from the group consisting of: beverage type, beverage volume, brewing temperature, brewing pump profile, and brewing profile according to time.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the product parameters are selected from the group consisting of: coffee beans type, coffee beans origin, batch volume, recommended roasting level or levels, date of harvest, date of production, production data, farmer data, date of expiration, company and marketing info.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the product holder comprises a plugging member to be plugged and/or unplugged onto the grinding device and onto the extraction device so that the product holder is freely exchangeable.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the product holder is configured to be locked on the grinding device and on the extraction device to allow the product holder to be fixed during the grinding and the extraction operations, respectively.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the quantity of coffee to be grinded, the grinding size and the blend in the grinding device are adapted as a function of the type of beverage to be prepared from the roasted and grinded coffee beans in combination with the product parameters of the roasted coffee beans of the one or more beans containers connected to the grinding device.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein the one or more beans containers have an embedded dosing device to dose only the needed quantity of roasted coffee beans in the grinding device.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein the grinding device comprises a motor and a drive to control the embedded dosing device of the one or more beans containers to dose only the needed dose of roasted coffee beans to the grinding device.

9. The system of claim 6 wherein the first reader comprises a RFID tag reader to obtain product parameters of the roasted coffee beans of the one or more beans containers connected to the grinding device.

10. A method for grinding roasted coffee beans and preparing a beverage from them using a grinding and extraction system comprising the following steps:
reading product parameters in a beans container;
adapting the grinding size according to the product parameters read and/or according to a recipes database;
dispensing a quantity of roasted coffee beans from the beans container in a grinding device;
carrying out the grinding as to grinding size and quantity according to the product parameters and/or according to the recipes database;
encoding the product parameters on a product holder using an encoder in the grinding device;
transferring the product holder to an extraction device manually or automatically;
reading the product parameters from the product holder using the extraction device and extracting the beverage according to the product parameters and/or from beverage information retrieved from a beverage database.

11. The method of claim 10 where a certain coffee blend is produced in the grinding device and put in the product holder, the method comprising the following further steps:
attaching a plurality of beans containers into the grinding device at the same time;
reading the product parameters in each of the plurality of the beans containers; and
carrying out the grinding as to grinding size and quantity of each of the beans containers according to the product parameters read for each and to the type of beverage to be prepared from the recipes database from the roasted and grinded coffee beans.

Assignees

• Nestle Sa

Inventors

• Ait Bouziad Youcef
• Yoakim Alfred

Classifications

• A23F5/26

  Extraction of water soluble constituents {(A23F5/246 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• A47J31/52

  Alarm-clock-controlled mechanisms for coffee- or tea-making apparatus {; Timers for coffee- or tea-making apparatus; Electronic control devices for coffee- or tea-making apparatus} · CPC title

• A47J31/42 Primary

  Beverage-making apparatus with incorporated grinding or roasting means for coffee {(coffee mills A47J42/00; coffee roasters in general A23N12/08)} · CPC title

• A23F5/08

  Methods of grinding coffee (coffee mills A47J42/00) · CPC title

• A47J31/4492 Primary

  Means to read code provided on ingredient pod or cartridge · CPC title