Portable devices for preparing and transporting brewable beverages

• US 9,713,399 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2016
• Issued: 07/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bruvida Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Teango Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Boone, Alexander, Lozano, Raphael
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, PHUONG T
• Application Number:
  US15/184,888
• Publication Number:
  US 20160367072A1
• Time in Patent Office: 404 Days
• Field of Search: 99275, 99288, 99280, 99287, 99295, 99299, 99300, 99303, 99305, 99306, 99307, 99315, 99316, 99318, 99320, 99321, 99327
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/005 Portable or compact beverage making apparatus, e.g. for travelling, for use in automotive vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/20 having immersible, e.g. rotatable, filters
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 43/046 with tools driven from the bottom side

Abstract

Disclosed are methods, systems, and devices for portably brewing tea, coffee, or other beverages in a container that regulates the temperature and diffusion during and after brewing. For example, the present technology allows people to prepare and consume tea, coffee and other beverages while on the go. In some aspects, a portable brewing device includes a container having a specialized canister system in the interior of the container that encloses the beverage material and controls the diffusion of water in/out of the canister; an intelligent heating and cooling system to continuously regulate the temperature of water in the device; and a data processing unit in communication with the canister and heating and cooling systems to control operational features and store user-specialized settings for the device.

Claims

1. A brewing canister for a beverage brewing device, the brewing canister comprising:

a) an inner canister comprising at least one opening;

b) an outer canister comprising at least one opening;

the inner canister positioned at least partially within the outer canister and having a common rotational axis with the outer canister to form a brewing chamber configured to contain a brewing material;

the inner canister, the outer canister, or both rotatable such that the at least one opening of the inner canister and the at least one opening of the outer canister align in an open position or unalign in a closed position;

c) an actuator operable to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both between the open position and the closed position, such that fluid located outside the brewing canister is able to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the open position and is unable to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the closed position;

d) a data processing unit including a processor to process data and a memory to store or buffer data, the data processing unit configured to send a control signal to the actuator to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister, between the open position and the closed position to regulate flow of the fluid in and out of the brewing chamber to brew the brewing material, wherein the actuator comprises a motor or a servo in communication with the data processing unit and wherein the control signal causes the motor or servo to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister between the open position and the closed position; and

e) one or more connectors for communicating with a temperature sensor to detect a temperature of the fluid in the brewing chamber.

2. The brewing canister of claim 1, further comprising connectors for communicating with a heating unit, wherein a connected data processing unit is configured to control the operation of a connected heating unit.

3. The brewing canister of claim 1, further comprising connectors for communicating with a cooling unit, wherein a connected data processing unit is configured to control the operation of a connected cooling unit.

4. The brewing canister of claim 1, wherein the at least one opening of the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister comprises a set of perforations.

5. The brewing canister of claim 1, wherein the actuator rotates the inner canister by 1 degree to 180 degrees to rotate between the open position and the closed position.

6. A portable beverage brewing device comprising:

a) a container body open at one end and forming an interior chamber configured to contain a fluid;

b) a brewing canister positioned in the interior chamber such that the brewing canister is at least partially submerged when the interior chamber contains fluid, the brewing canister comprising;

i. an inner canister comprising at least one opening;

ii. an outer canister comprising at least one opening;

the inner canister positioned within the outer canister to form a brewing chamber configured to contain a brewing material;

the inner canister, the outer canister, or both rotatable such that the at least one opening of the inner canister and the at least one opening of the outer canister align in an open position or unalign in a closed position; and

iii. an actuator operable to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both between the open position and the closed position, such that the fluid is able to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the open position and is unable to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the closed position;

c) a data processing unit including a processor to process data and a memory to store or buffer data, the data processing unit configured to send a control signal to the actuator to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister between the open position and the closed position to regulate flow of the fluid between the interior chamber and the brewing chamber of the at least partially submerged brewing canister to brew the brewing material, wherein the actuator comprises a motor or a servo in communication with the data processing unit and wherein the control signal causes the motor or servo to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister between the open position and the closed position; and

d) one or more connectors for communicating with a temperature sensor to detect a temperature of the fluid in the brewing chamber.

7. The device of claim 6, further comprising a heating unit, wherein the data processing unit is in communication with the heating unit to control the operation of the heating unit to heat the fluid.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the heating unit comprises a Peltier device.

9. The device of claim 6, further comprising a temperature sensor to detect a temperature of the fluid in the interior chamber, wherein the data processing unit is configured to receive temperature data from the temperature sensor and regulate the temperature of the fluid based on the detected temperature.

10. The device of claim 6, further comprising a display on the exterior of the container body and in communication with the data processing unit, wherein the display is configured to display the temperature of the fluid, the stage of the brewing process, the time remaining in the brewing process, the elapsed time of the brewing process, or a combination thereof.

11. The device of claim 6, further comprising a reversibly attachable lid to cover the open end of the container body, the lid including an aperture and an aperture cover to allow the fluid to flow out of the interior chamber when the lid is attached to the container body.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the brewing canister is positioned on the interior chamber of the container body by connection to the lid.

13. The device of claim 6, further comprising a cooling unit, wherein the data processing unit is in communication with the cooling unit to control the operation of the cooling unit to cool the fluid.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the cooling unit comprises a spinning apparatus to generate forced convection, a Peltier device, or both a spinning apparatus and a Peltier device.

15. The device of claim 6, wherein the brewing canister is positioned on the interior chamber of the container body by connection to the container body.

16. A portable beverage brewing platform comprising:

a) a portable beverage brewing device comprising;

a container body open at one end and forming an interior chamber configured to contain a fluid;

a brewing canister positioned in the interior chamber such that the brewing canister is at least partially submerged when the interior chamber contains a fluid, the brewing canister comprising;

i) an inner canister comprising at least one opening and an outer canister comprising at least one opening;

the inner canister positioned within the outer canister and having a common rotational axis with the outer canister to form a brewing chamber configured to contain a brewing material;

the inner canister, the outer canister, or both rotatable such that the at least one opening of the inner canister and the at least one opening of the outer canister align in an open position or unalign in a closed position; and

ii) an actuator configured to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both between the open position and the closed position, such that the fluid located in the interior chamber is able to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the open position and is unable to flow in and out of the brewing chamber when in the closed position;

iii) a data processing unit including a processor to process data and a memory to store or buffer data, the data processing unit configured to send a control signal to the actuator to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister between the open position and the closed position to regulate flow of the fluid between the interior chamber and the brewing chamber of the at least partially submerged brewing canister to brew the brewing material, wherein the actuator comprises a motor or a servo in communication with the data processing unit and wherein the control signal causes the motor or servo to rotate the inner canister, the outer canister, or both the inner canister and the outer canister between the open position and the closed position; and

iv) one or more connectors for communicating with a temperature sensor to detect a temperature of the fluid in the brewing chamber; and

b) a mobile processor configured to provide a mobile consumer beverage brewing application comprising;

i) a software module presenting a user interface allowing the consumer to select a pre-configured brewing protocol or configure a custom brewing protocol, wherein each brewing protocol comprises a brew temperature and a brew time; and

ii) a software module wirelessly transmitting the selected pre-configured brewing protocol or the consumer-configured custom brewing protocol to the portable beverage brewing device.

17. The platform of claim 16, wherein the portable beverage brewing device further comprises a spinning apparatus in the interior chamber configured to stir the fluid and wherein each brewing protocol further comprises:

when a spinning apparatus is initiated, the speed of a spinning apparatus, and the length of time of a spinning apparatus operates.

18. The platform of claim 16, wherein each brewing protocol further comprises a drinking temperature.

19. The platform of claim 16, wherein each brewing protocol further comprises when a brewing sequence is initiated and a speed of protocol execution.

20. The platform of claim 16, wherein the application further comprises a software module presenting a user interface allowing the consumer to schedule a start time for the selected pre-configured brewing protocol or the consumer-configured custom brewing protocol.

21. The platform of claim 16, wherein the brewing canister is positioned on the interior chamber of the container body by connection to the container body.

22. The platform of claim 16, wherein the portable beverage brewing device further comprising a reversibly attachable lid to cover the open end of the container body, the lid including an aperture and an aperture cover to allow the fluid to flow out of the interior chamber when the lid is attached to the container body.

23. The platform of claim 22, wherein the brewing canister is positioned on the interior chamber of the container body by connection to the lid.