Foodstuff equipment data integration system and data processing method thereof

• US 7,809,469 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2008
• Issued: 10/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 02/28/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: KAI Will Industrial Company Limited
• Original Assignee: KAI Will Industrial Company Limited
• Inventors: Hsu, Che-Ting
• Primary Examiner(s): BARNES-BULLOCK, CRYSTAL JOY
• Application Number:
  US12/071,931
• Publication Number:
  US 20090222126A1
• Time in Patent Office: 950 Days
• Field of Search: 700231-234, 700/236, 700/237, 700/241, 700/244, 705/14.4, 705/14.51, 705 15- 17, 705 24- 26, 705/28, 702/188
• US Class Current: 700/236
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants

Abstract

A system and method integrates the functions of manipulating foods/beverages and the interactions of the information related with the manipulation. The system includes a remote server, and a foodstuff equipment operation system. The operation system further includes a foodstuff equipment comprising an operation circuit; a display panel; and a computer control system comprising a network interface, an input interface, a data processing unit, and a circuit control unit. The integration system receives users'"'"' commands via the input interface, and delivers the commands to the data processing unit. The data processing unit interprets users'"'"' commands, and then requires the circuit control unit to make the operation circuit to manipulate foods/beverages, meanwhile, the data processing unit also sends out information to the remote server for analyzing. The remote server delivers multimedia data to the foodstuff equipment operation system, for displaying information related to foods/beverages while the equipment is idle.

Claims

1. A foodstuff equipment data integration system, comprising:

a remote server, connected to the Internet and providing multimedia data; and

a foodstuff equipment operating system, consisting of;

(a) a foodstuff equipment, which is a food or beverage sealer or a filler/bottler used to manipulate, fill or pack foodstuffs, and includes an operating circuit that controls the execution of foodstuff manipulation, filling, or package in the foodstuff equipment, as well as sets and adjusts the operational status of the foodstuff equipment;

(b) a computer control system, consisting of;

(b1) a network interface, which enables the foodstuff equipment operating system to connect to the Internet, allowing the remote server and the foodstuff equipment operating system to mutually access data;

(b2) an input interface, which allows entry of instruction for operating the foodstuff equipment, and issues an input signal based on the entered instruction;

(b3) a data processing unit, which processes the data in the computer control system, wherein the data includes the multimedia data provided by the remote server and the input signal issued by the input interface, and the data processing unit determines the operation required to be performed based on the received data; and

(b4) a circuit control unit which instructs, based on the determination from the data processing unit, the operating circuit to perform the foodstuff operations of manipulation, filling, or package according to the input signal; and

(c) at least one display panel, which is/are electrically connected to the foodstuff equipment, used to display the output data from the computer control system.

2. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 1, wherein the said computer control system further includes:

a memory, which is used to store the data in the computer control system, including the multimedia data input from other computer peripheral devices, allowing access by the data processing unit.

3. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 2, wherein the data processing unit reads the multimedia data provided by the remote server and the multimedia data stored by the memory from the other computer peripheral devices, performs coding, decoding, decompression or related compilation for the multimedia data, and outputs the multimedia data after performing coding, decoding, decompression or related compilation for the multimedia data to the display panel.

4. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing unit transfers the information contained in the input signal to the remote server through the network interface.

5. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 1, wherein the operating circuit detects operational data of temperature, power, material quantity or abnormal status in the foodstuff equipment.

6. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 5, wherein the circuit control unit transfers the operational data detected by the operating circuit to the data processing unit for the determination process in the data processing unit.

7. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 6, wherein the data processing unit further processes the data of the foodstuff equipment operation, wherein the data of the foodstuff equipment operation includes the operational data transferred by the circuit control circuit and detected by the operating circuit, product types and quantity entered from the input interface, or other data related with the operation of the foodstuff equipment.

8. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 7, wherein the remote server further receives operational record of the foodstuff equipment processed by the data process unit, and performs quantitative calculation or analysis based on the received record, or outputs a responsive instruction to the computer control system.

9. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 8, wherein the responsive instruction is to instruct the computer control system to output an alarm or description concerning the foodstuff equipment'"'"'s operational status onto the display panel.

10. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 8, wherein the responsive instruction is to instruct the computer control system to control the operating circuit to adjust the operational status of the foodstuff equipment.

11. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 1, wherein the data processing unit is configured to transmit the input signal to the remote server when the input signal requests a ratio of a foodstuff manipulation, or an ingredient description in a product.

12. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 1, wherein the display panel is a touch screen.

13. The foodstuff equipment data integration system according to claim 12, wherein, during the display of the multimedia data, when the touch screen detects an input action, the touch screen initiates an interrupting signal to the data processing unit, and the data processing unit switches the data on the display panel so as to provide an operational screen acting as the input interface.

14. A data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system, comprising the following steps:

providing a foodstuff equipment defined by a food or beverage sealer or a filler/bottler;

the foodstuff equipment receiving data provided by a remote server;

displaying the data received from the remote server on a display panel of the foodstuff equipment;

receiving a user input and generating an input signal;

determining an instruction represented by the input signal;

analyzing information contained in the determined instruction;

transferring the information to the remote server; and

displaying the data originally displayed on the display panel prior to the user input.

15. The data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system according to claim 14, wherein, after the step of displaying the data received from the remote server on a display panel of the foodstuff equipment, the data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system further includes the steps of:

detecting a tapping action made by a user;

issuing an interrupting signal to interrupt the display of a multimedia data on the display panel of the foodstuff equipment; and

displaying an input screen with available selections to allow a user'"'"'s tapping input.

16. The data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system according to claim 15, wherein, after the step of displaying the data received from the remote server on a display panel of the foodstuff equipment, the data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system further includes the step of:

outputting, by a data processing unit, the received data and the multimedia data stored in a memory conjunctively to the display panel for display.

17. The data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system according to claim 14, wherein, after the step of determining an instruction represented by the input signal, the data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system further includes the steps of:

transferring an execution command to the foodstuff equipment based on the determined instruction; and

performing an operation of foodstuff manipulation, filling or package by the foodstuff equipment, according to the execution command.

18. The data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system according to claim 14, wherein, after the step of the foodstuff equipment receiving data provided by a remote server, the data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system further includes the steps of:

determining, by a data processing unit, whether the received data is an instruction to instruct the foodstuff equipment to perform an operation;

transferring an execution command to the foodstuff equipment for execution based on a determined instruction, if the determination shows that the received data is an instruction to instruct the foodstuff equipment to perform an operation; and

outputting the received data to the display panel, if the determination shows that the received data is an instruction that does not require performing any operation.

19. The data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system according to claim 14, wherein, after the step of transferring the information to the remote server, the data process method of foodstuff equipment operating system further includes the steps of:

determining, by the remote server, whether the received information requests any response;

recording the received information on the remote server, if no response is needed; and

returning a signal responding to the instruction by the remote server, if a response is needed.