Intelligent coffeemaker appliance

• US 20030079613A1
• Filed: 11/01/2001
• Published: 05/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spectrum Brands, Inc. (Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Salton Incorporated (Spectrum Brands Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Williamson, Charles G.
• Granted Patent: US 7,151,968 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 99/282
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/52 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 Class Codes: A47J 31/521 the electronic control being performed over a network, e.g. by means of a computer or a handheld device

Abstract

The invention may be broadly conceptualized as an approach in which a coffeemaker (116) receives a plurality of timer settings from a network and communicates the state of the coffeemaker (116) to another network device while keeping a real-time clock (1112) synchronized and correctly set by receiving period time synchronization messages.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a coffeemaker;

a clock with a plurality of timers;

a controller with a communication path to the clock;

a network interface connected to the communication path in receipt of a plurality of timer settings that are set in the clock by the controller that controls the coffeemaker.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the controller forms a message that contains a state of the coffeemaker.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the state of the coffeemaker is a not ready state upon the plurality of timer settings being set.

4. The apparatus of claim 3, further comprising:

a button that when selected results in the state of the coffeemaker being in a ready to brew state.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein a brew timer is set upon a time kept by the clock matching one of the plurality of timer settings and results in the state of the coffeemaker apparatus being in a brewing state.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, further comprising:

a warming plate that is turned off upon the expiration of a warming timer that is set upon the expiration of the brew timer and results in the state of the coffeemaker being a coffee ready state.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a memory that stores the plurality of timer settings.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a time synchronization message having a time that is received by the network interface and results in the clock being set to the time in the time synchronization message.

10. The apparatus of claim 2, further comprising:

a display in communication with the clock over the communication path that displays a time on the display.

11. The apparatus of claim 2, further comprising:

a display in communication with the controller over the communication path that displays the state of the coffeemaker.

12. A method, comprising:

receiving at a coffeemaker apparatus with a network interface a plurality of timer settings at the network interface; and

setting a clock with the plurality of timer settings.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

setting a state of the coffeemaker apparatus;

formatting a state message containing the state; and

transmitting the state message from the network interface for reception by another device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein setting the state further includes:

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state upon the setting of the clock with the plurality of timer settings.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein setting the state further includes:

signaling from an input device on the coffeemaker apparatus; and

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a ready to brew state in response to the signaling of the input device.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein setting the state further includes:

identifying that the clock has reached one of the plurality of timer settings;

initializing a brew timer to a predetermined time value; and

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a brewing state.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein setting the state further includes:

identifying that brew timer has expired;

setting a warming timer in response to the brew timer expiring; and

changing the state of coffeemaker apparatus to a coffee ready state.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein setting the state further includes

identifying that the warming timer has expired;

changing the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state in response to the expiration of the warming timer.

19. The method of claim 17, further including:

deactivating a warming plate in response to expiration of the warming timer.

20. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

displaying on a display a time from the clock.

21. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

displaying on a display a state of the coffeemaker appliance.

22. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving a time synchronization message at the network interface of the coffeemaker appliance; and

setting the clock in response to the time synchronization message.

23. An apparatus, comprising:

means for receiving at a coffeemaker apparatus a plurality of timer settings at the network interface; and

setting a clock with the plurality of timer settings.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for setting a state of the coffeemaker apparatus;

means for formatting a state message containing the state for reception by another device; and

means for transmitting the state message.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the means for setting the state further includes:

means for setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state upon the setting of the clock with the plurality of timer settings.

26. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the means for setting the state further includes:

means for signaling from an input device on the coffeemaker apparatus; and

means for setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a ready to brew state in response to the input device.

27. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the means for setting the state further includes:

means for identifying that the clock has reached one of the plurality of timer settings;

means for initializing a brew timer to a predetermined time value; and

means for setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a brewing state.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the means for setting the state further includes the steps of:

means for identifying that brew timer has expired;

means for setting a warming timer in response to the brew timer expiring; and

means for changing the state of coffeemaker apparatus to a coffee ready state.

29. The apparatus of claim 28, wherein the means for setting the state further includes the steps of:

means for identifying that the warming timer has expired;

means for changing the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state in response to the expiration of the warming timer.

30. The apparatus of claim 28, further including:

means for deactivating a warming plate in response to expiration of the warming timer.

31. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for displaying on a display a time from the clock.

32. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for displaying on a display a state of the coffeemaker appliance.

33. The apparatus of claim 23, further comprising:

means for receiving a time synchronization message at the network interface of the coffeemaker appliance; and

means for setting the clock in response to the time synchronization message.

34. A machine-readable signal-bearing medium containing instructions that cause a system to perform a method for operating a coffeemaker apparatus, the method comprising:

receiving at a coffeemaker apparatus with a network interface a plurality of timer settings at the network interface; and

setting a clock with the plurality of timer settings.

35. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 34, further comprising:

setting a state of the coffeemaker apparatus;

formatting a state message containing the state; and

transmitting the state message from the network interface for reception by another device.

36. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 35, wherein setting the state further includes:

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state upon the setting of the clock with the plurality of timer settings.

37. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 35, wherein setting the state further includes:

signaling from an input device on the coffeemaker apparatus; and

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a ready to brew state in response to the signaling of the input device.

38. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 35, wherein setting the state further includes:

identifying that the clock has reached one of the plurality of timer settings;

initializing a brew timer to a predetermined time value; and

setting the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a brewing state.

39. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 38, wherein setting the state further includes:

identifying that brew timer has expired;

setting a warming timer in response to the brew timer expiring; and

changing the state of coffeemaker apparatus to a coffee ready state.

40. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 39, wherein setting the state further includes:

identifying that the warming timer has expired; and

changing the state of the coffeemaker apparatus to a not ready state in response to the expiration of the warming timer.

41. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 39, further including:

deactivating a warming plate in response to expiration of the warming timer

42. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 34, further comprising:

displaying on a display a time from the clock.

43. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 34, further comprising:

displaying on a display a state of the coffeemaker appliance.

44. The machine-readable signal-bearing medium of claim 34, further comprising:

receiving a time synchronization message at the network interface of the coffeemaker appliance; and

setting the clock in response to the time synchronization message.