Sous-vide cooker with image translation functionality

• US 10,117,538 B2
• Filed: 06/01/2015
• Issued: 11/06/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/20/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Anova Applied Electronics, Inc. (AB Electrolux)
• Original Assignee: Avona Applied Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Wu, Jeff
• Primary Examiner(s): Becker, Drew E
• Application Number:
  US14/727,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20150342390A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,254 Days
• Field of Search: 426231-233, 426523, 426509-510, 99330
• CPC Class Codes: A21B 7/005 in combination with mixing or kneading devices
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 5/13 using water or steam
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 27/10 Cooking-vessels with water-bath arrangements for domestic use
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 36/165 Stirring devices operatively connected to cooking vessels when being removably inserted inside mixing, whipping, or beating devices A47J43/00
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/1257 electrically heated A47J37/1209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/1266 Control devices, e.g. to control temperature, level or quality of the frying liquid
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 43/044 with tools driven from the top side
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 43/082 for machines with tools driven from the upper side A47J43/087, A47J43/09 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/5011 portable during use, e.g. hand-held
• CPC Class Codes: B01F 33/5012 adapted to be mounted during use on a standard, base or support
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 3/085 on ranges
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1917 using digital means
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/68 Heating arrangements specially adapted for cooking plates or analogous hot-plates
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/1209 induction cooking plates or the like and devices to be used in combination with them

Abstract

A system and apparatus for translating cooking time and temperatures from arrays of pictures of foods cooked to different degrees of doneness or other type of result. The system enables users to select a desired doneness from pictures of food and optionally add additional modifiers it based on the size, weight, shape, and fat content of the meat with additional pictures indexed to different modification parameters. The system enables users to adjust a setting if the user has modified the food he or she intends to cook, such as by cutting in half, or if the food was frozen, allowing additional cook time and parameter modifications. A program of instructions pertaining to the system can be located on a sous vide cooking device or on a device external to the a sous vide device, such as on a personal computing device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a fluidic temperature control device, a pre-cooked food, wherein the pre-cooked food corresponds to at least one picture from amongst a plurality of pictures of pre-cooked foods, each of which has at least one cook time and at least one cook temperature associated therewith;

receiving, at a controller of the fluidic temperature control device, a selection of the at least one picture from amongst the plurality of pictures, the at least one picture associated with a cook time and temperature;

receiving, at the controller of the fluidic temperature control device, a selection of a second picture from amongst a second plurality of pictures, each of which displays one or more food attributes and the second picture having at least one supplemental cook time and at least one supplemental temperature associated therewith;

identifying, at the controller of the fluidic temperature control device, a specific cook time and a specific temperature based on the cook time and the temperature associated with the at least one picture and the at least one supplemental cook time and the at least one supplemental temperature associated with the second picture; and

actuating, by the controller, a heating element of the fluidic temperature control device to heat the pre-cooked food according to the specific cook time at the specific temperature in response to receiving the selection of the second picture.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the controller of the fluidic temperature control device, a selection of a doneness level, wherein the doneness level is indicated from a selection of a picture of the doneness level from a plurality of pictures of doneness levels with a corresponding second supplemental cook time and a second supplemental temperature; and

modifying, at the controller of the fluidic temperature control device, the specific cook time and the specific temperature with the second supplemental cook time and the second supplemental temperature.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

actuating, by the controller, the heating element of the fluidic temperature control device to heat the pre-cooked food according to the specific cook time at the specific temperature modified with the second supplemental cook time and the second supplemental temperature.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

rendering, at a display of the fluidic temperature control device, a notification of an unsafe cook time and an unsafe cook temperature when either or both the specific cook time and the specific temperature are outside a threshold safety value.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

rendering, at a display of the fluidic temperature control device, a notification of an unsafe cook time and an unsafe cook temperature when either or both the specific cook time and the specific temperature are outside a threshold safety value.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving, at the controller of the fluidic temperature control device, a manual input of a temperature;

modifying, by the controller, the specific temperature according to the temperature indicated by the manual input; and

actuating, by the controller, the heating element of the fluidic temperature control device to heat the pre-cooked food at the specific temperature modified according to the temperature indicated by the manual input.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, by the controller, a speed based on the received selection of the second picture; and

actuating, by the controller, an agitator of the fluidic temperature control device to the speed.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising:

updating, by the controller, the speed to an updated speed based on a selection of a doneness level indicated from a selection of a picture of the doneness level; and

actuating, by the controller, the agitator of the fluidic temperature control device to the updated speed.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein either or both the selection of the at least one picture and the selection of the second picture are received from a remote device communicatively coupled to the fluid temperature control device.