Appliances with weight sensors for nutritional substances

• US 9,436,170 B2
• Filed: 04/23/2014
• Issued: 09/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Iceberg International SARL
• Original Assignee: Iceberg International SARL
• Inventors: Minvielle, Eugenio
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, THIEN MINH
• Application Number:
  US14/260,115
• Publication Number:
  US 20140236359A1
• Time in Patent Office: 867 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 23547201-47203, 235/383
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 10/00 Shaping or working of foodstuffs characterised by the products
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/0001 by organoleptic means
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/02 Food
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/0092 Nutrition
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/60 relating to nutrition control, e.g. diets
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 90/10 Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation

Abstract

Nutritional substance systems and methods are disclosed enabling the tracking and communication of changes in nutritional, organoleptic, and aesthetic values of nutritional substances, and further enabling the adaptive storage and adaptive conditioning of nutritional substances.

Claims

1. A system for nutritional substances comprising:

a reader for detecting a dynamic information identifier provided with a nutritional substance;

a database with conditioning protocols referenced to the dynamic information identifier and related to a Δ

N of the nutritional substance;

a weight measurement sensor for detecting the weight of the nutritional substance wherein the weight measurement sensor is incorporated in an electronic scale;

a controller configured to determine prospective nutritional values based on the Δ

N of the nutritional substance and data output by the weight measurement sensor; and

a display for outputting the prospective nutritional values of the substance based on the Δ

N determined by the controller.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the display is configured to output the nutritional value as a per unit weight value.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the system further comprises a conditioner.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the system further comprises an input panel configured to receive a consumer'"'"'s input regarding the nutritional substance.

5. A system for utilizing nutritional information relating to nutritional substances comprising:

an input panel configured to receive a consumer'"'"'s input regarding a nutritional substance;

a database with conditioning protocols referenced to known nutritional substances and Δ

N information of the known nutritional substances;

a weight measurement sensor for detecting the weight of the nutritional substance wherein the weight measurement sensor is incorporated in an electronic scale;

a controller configured to determine prospective nutritional values based on the Δ

N of the nutritional substance and data output by the weight measurement sensor; and

a display for outputting prospective nutritional values of the nutritional substance based on the Δ

N determined by the controller.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the display is configured to output the nutritional values as per unit weight values.

7. The appliance of claim 5, further comprising a reader for detecting a dynamic information identifier provided with a nutritional substance.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein the system further comprises a conditioner.

9. A method for determining nutritional information related to a nutritional substance, the method comprising:

determining a weight of a nutritional substance using an electronic scale;

accessing data from a database of conditioning protocols referenced to known nutritional substances; and

determining a prospective Δ

N of the nutritional substance based on the data from the database of conditioning protocols referenced to known nutritional substances and the weight of the nutritional substance.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the prospective Δ

N is determined as a per unit weight value.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising displaying the determined prospective nutritional value.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising determining a prospective nutritional value of the substance based on the determined prospective Δ

N of the nutritional substance.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the accessing step further comprises scanning a dynamic information identifier provided with a nutritional substance.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising displaying the determined prospective Δ

N.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the accessing step further comprises receiving input from a consumer regarding the nutritional substance.

16. A system for utilizing nutritional information relating to nutritional substances comprising:

a database with conditioning protocols referenced to known nutritional substances and Δ

N information of the known nutritional substances based on the conditioning protocols;

a sensor for outputting data representing a weight of a nutritional substance, wherein the sensor is an optical sensor;

a controller configured to determine prospective nutritional values based on the Δ

N of the nutritional substance and the weight of the nutritional substance; and

a display for outputting the prospective nutritional values of the nutritional substance based on the Δ

N determined by the controller.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising an input panel configured to receive a consumer'"'"'s input regarding the nutritional substance.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the display is configured to output the nutritional values as per unit weight values.

19. The appliance of claim 16, further comprising a reader for detecting a dynamic information identifier provided with a nutritional substance.