Coffee machine with product selectivity

• US 5,158,793 A
• Filed: 12/11/1991
• Issued: 10/27/1992
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/1988
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Edward Helbling
• Original Assignee: Edward Helbling
• Inventors: Helbling, Edward
• Primary Examiner(s): JENKINS, ROBERT
• Application Number:
  US07/805,364
• Time in Patent Office: 321 Days
• Field of Search: 426/231, 426/433, 426/388, 99/275, 99/279, 99/280, 99/281, 99/282, 99/283, 99/285, 99/286, 99/288, 99/289 R, 99/290, 99/291, 99/295, 99/299, 99/300, 99/302 R, 99/306, 99/307 , 99/316
• US Class Current: 426/231
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/007 for brewing on a large scale, e.g. for restaurants, or for use with more than one brewing container
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/467 for the infusion
• 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 31/525 the electronic control being based on monitoring of specific process parameters

Abstract

A plurality of carafes on a coffee machine primarily for restaurant and institution use can be filled selectively with decaffeinated or normal coffee via a distributor between a brewing chamber and the outlets to the carafes. The microprocessor controller operates the device selecting the coffee for delivery to the brewing chamber in response to signals received from the carafes if they are placed at respective stations on the machine so that a decaffeinated carafe at any station will receive only decaf and a normal carafe will receive only normal coffee regardless of the station at which it is placed.

Claims

1. A method of operating a coffee-making machine having brewing means on a housing for brewing at least two different coffee beverages and dispensing same and means forming at least two dispensing stations at said housing and respectively dispensing at least one of said beverages, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) automatically sensing a level of a coffee beverage in a receptacle disposed at one of said stations;

(b) identifying said receptacle with a particular one of said beverages; and

(c) upon the level sensed in step (a) falling below a predetermined level, automatically brewing the particular one of said beverages and dispensing the brewed beverage into said receptacle.

2. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising the step of establishing a duration of time for which a quantity of one of said beverages has been present in a respective receptacle and interrupting a brewing cycle when said time exceeds a predetermined duration.

3. The method defined in claim 1, further comprising the step of establishing a duration of time for which a quantity of one of said beverages has been present in a respective receptacle and terminating heating thereof when said time exceeds a predetermined duration.

4. A method of brewing a selected infusion beverage which comprises the steps of:

(a) placing a selected coded receptacle of a plurality of receptacle coded to receive respective infusion beverages at a dispensing station;

(b) automatically reading coding of said selected receptacle;

(c) automatically introducing an infusion beverage product into a brewing chamber in response to the reading of said coding;

(d) automatically feeding hot wat to said brewing chamber to form said beverage; and

(e) automatically dispensing said beverage into said selected receptacle at said station in response to said coding.

5. The method defined in claim 4, further comprising the step of automatically sensing a level of beverage in said selected receptacle and controlling the dispensing of beverage into said selected receptacle in response to the sensed level.