IT202000025501A1 - DEVICE AND METHOD TO REHYDRATE FOOD FREEZE-DRIED POWDER - Google Patents

Description

Description of the Industrial Invention entitled:

?DEVICE AND METHOD TO REHYDRATE FOOD FREEZE-DRIED POWDER?

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a device and method for rehydrating a lyophilized food powder; in particular, of a food freeze-dried powder used for the preparation of a portion of food that can be consumed by a patient suffering from dysphagia, ie who suffers from a dysfunction of the digestive system that causes a difficulty? in swallowing and does not allow the correct transit of the bolus in the upper digestive tract.

How ? known, protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) (even at the patient's home) is still of particular importance today both for the dimensions of the phenomenon and for the clinical and welfare implications it entails, as described in the article ?ZANINI, Milko, et al. Returning to the sacred? the importance of careful attention to patients? nutritional needs in hospital settings. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 2017, 73.3: 523-526?.

Individuals with swallowing impairments are particularly at risk of malnutrition. This category of population includes subjects of all age groups, with a prevalence of frail elderly subjects, but there are also neurological patients, subjects with dysphagia following surgery, patients on antiblastic therapy who develop mucositis and patients who are already sick. sarcopenic (Bressan, V., Bagnasco, A., Aleo, G., Catania, G., Zanini, M. P., Timmins, F., & Sasso, L. (2017). The life experience of nutrition impact symptoms during treatment for head and neck cancer patients: a systematic review and meta-synthesis.Supportive Care in Cancer, 25(5), 1699-1712).

Each of these subjects, in addition to the risk of suffocation deriving from the incapacity? management of the food bolus, runs the risk of developing aspiration pneumonia deriving from food particles aspirated into the respiratory system following the lack of complete occlusion of the trachea during swallowing.

In fact, the presence in the meal of multiple consistencies that are little or nothing tolerated by subjects with the described deficit, increases the probability direct complications of dysphagia. Does this condition involve the adoption for the recovery period, if following surgery, or for life of a diet with food density? modified (MTF) that reaches conditions of viscosity?, density? and consistency consistent with the capabilities? residues of the subject.

The diet of patients with swallowing impairment is divided into two main categories:

? the power supply through autologous preparations, based on blending or homogenizing food already? prepared according to mode? traditional methods, mixing them with diluents, such as water or broth, and both chemical and natural thickeners in order to obtain the consistency, density and and the viscosity? desired;

? industrial preparations in the form of semi-finished products or ?ready meals? that are administered according to the density? provided by the manufacturer by heat treatment, reconstitution from lyophilisate or ready to use.

The use of self-prepared products (autologous preparations) presents a series of problems related to the food technology applied in order to modify the consistency of the food; these problems are listed below:

? dilution of the food by adding liquids; ? increase in the volume of the preparation following the incorporation of air during the centrifugation of the food with consequent difficulty? in maintaining the desired consistency during the entire duration of the meal, without phase separation.

Since these preparations are carried out by an operator (human) who manipulates the food, ? it is very difficult to obtain a standardized final product (ie food with modified density), i.e. one which maintains its chemical-physical characteristics of the product (such as density) over time and, above all, in repetitions of production; in fact, the intervention of the human operator who prepares the food can, and often happens, change its viscosity, consistency, density and and granulometry thus modifying the parameters themselves that the product must have to meet the needs? expressed by the user (the patient).

There are freeze-dried or dehydrated based products on the market today, but the standardized preparation? prepared only for large-scale healthcare facilities, where the number of subjects involved ? relevant, since the machines used for the preparation of food with modified textures are large and, therefore, not very flexible; therefore this type of machine is not able to be used for the preparation of meals for patients at home. In fact, the homes of these patients could be very far from these machines, making it impossible to serve hot meals three times a day.

It should be noted that the preparations, even at home, must respond to the characteristics of density foreseen by the international and European frameworks on consistencies, i.e. these preparations must have a consistency that is at a level equal to ?3? or ?4? (see fig. 1, Italian translation of Figure 1 of the article ?CICHERO, Julie AY, et al. Release of updated International Dysphagia Diet Standardization Initiative Framework (IDDSI 2.0). Journal of texture studies, 2020, 51.1: 195?).

The present invention proposes to solve these and other problems by making available a device for the rehydration of a food freeze-dried powder.

Furthermore, the present invention proposes to solve these and other problems by making available a method for the rehydration of a food freeze-dried powder.

The idea behind the present invention ? to control, by means of control means, a supply of said water and/or of said lyophilized powder into a mixing chamber on the basis of mixing data which define how much water and/or how much lyophilized powder must be introduced into said mixing chamber in the course of time.

In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with modified texture having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion. This makes it possible to prepare food with modified textures at home, without the need for cooking. to use measuring instruments, such as hydrometers or other, which are typically used in an industrial environment where the quantity? of prepared food and much greater; in fact, it is highlighted that measure the density? or the consistency of a single course of food at density? modified (MTF) ? very complex if not impossible, as ? for example, it is impossible to immerse a hydrometer in a single portion of food at a density? modified (MTF) which, typically, has a volume which, depending on the lyophilized preparations in use, preferably varies between 150 and 500 millilitres, and even more? preferably between 150 and 180 millilitres.

Further advantageous characteristics of the present invention are the subject of the attached claims.

These characteristics and further advantages of the present invention will become clearer from the description of an embodiment thereof shown in the attached drawings, provided by way of non-limiting example only, in which:

? fig. 1 illustrates a schematic representation showing the different consistencies of foods and beverages according to the state of the art;

? fig. 2 illustrates a perspective view of a device for rehydrating a food freeze-dried powder according to the invention;

? fig. 3 shows a block diagram representing the components of the device of fig. 2;

? fig. 4 shows a perspective view of a variant of the device of fig. 2.

Reference to "an embodiment" within this specification means that a particular configuration, structure, or feature is comprised in at least one embodiment of the invention. Thus, the terms "in one embodiment" and the like, found in different parts of this specification, do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular configurations, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable way in one or more? forms of implementation. References used below are for convenience only. and they do not limit the scope or scope of the implementations.

With reference to figures 2 and 3, verr? a device 1 for the rehydration of a lyophilized food powder according to the invention has now been described.

The device 1 according to the invention comprises the following elements:

? a tank 11, in which pu? be filled with water;

? a loading duct 13, in which can? said lyophilized powder being introduced;

? a mixing chamber 17 in communication with said tank 11 and said loading duct 13;

? memory means (for example a fixed or removable memory of the flash type, SSD or other) containing at least mixing data that define at least one quantity? of water and/or a quantity? of lyophilized powder which must be introduced into said mixing chamber over time;

? control means 20 (for example a CPU, a microcontroller of an ATmegaxxxx, ESPxxxx, or other family) suitably interfaced to control a supply of said water and/or of said freeze-dried powder into the mixing chamber on the basis of said mixing data; these control means 20 can also comprise the memory means.

The device 1 preferably also comprises a box-shaped body 30, inside which the elements described above are positioned, as follows: to allow the safe operation of the device 1 inside a domestic environment; does this box-like body 30 comprise a cavity? 31 in whose lower portion 311 ? possible to engage, preferably in a removable manner, a support surface 18 on which it can a container (not shown in the attached figures) be positioned, such as a plate P or other, in which a potion of food with a modified consistency prepared by the device 1 must be collected. How will it be? better described in the following of this description.

Furthermore, in the lower portion 311 of the cavity? 31 ? preferably positioned a collection container (not shown in the attached figures) below the support surface 18; in fact, the support surface 18 preferably comprises one or more? openings which allow liquids and/or freeze-dried food poured thereon to be collected in said collection container.

In this way it is avoided to dirty or damage objects in the vicinity of the device 1 when the container is not positioned on the support surface 18 or when said container has a capacity too small to hold an entire portion of texture-modified food It is possible to use the device 1 in a domestic environment.

When device 1 ? in a working condition, ? It is possible to perform a method for rehydrating a food freeze-dried powder according to the invention which comprises the following steps:

? a loading phase, in which a volume of water ? placed in the tank 11, and a quantity? of said food freeze-dried powder? fed into the loading duct 13;

? a mixing step, in which a supply of said water and/or said freeze-dried powder into the mixing chamber 17 is controlled by means of control means on the basis of the mixing data.

In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with modified texture having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion. This makes it possible to prepare food with a modified texture at home.

Pi? in detail, the mixing chamber 17 preferably has a cylindrical or conical shape and comprises an opening 171 on the bottom, said chamber 17 allows mixing of the lyophilized powder with the diluting liquid (preferably water) through a suitable mixing mechanism. This mechanism has the objective of preparing the mixture in the best possible way by advantageously reducing the inclusion of air in the preparation, thus optimizing the the result in terms of quantity? of food to volume.

The opening 171 is therefore facing the support surface 18 on which it can a plate P or another type of container can be positioned to collect the portion of food with a modified consistency prepared by the device 1 and ready to be consumed.

When device 1 ? in an operating condition, the water can? be introduced through a nozzle in the upper part of this chamber, cos? to increase the speed? of the incoming flow. This allows to generate a vortex inside said mixing chamber 17 in which ? advantageously poured the lyophilized food powder which, being in contact with a flow of water moving at a certain speed, rehydrates itself without advantageously forming lumps; moreover, any lumps present in the powder are advantageously reduced due to the friction of the latter with the walls of said mixing chamber 17. When does the powder settle? completely rehydrated, the preparation loses speed? until it accumulates on the bottom of the mixing chamber 17, from which it emerges from the opening 171 by the action of gravity.

It should be noted that the mixing chamber preferably also comprises a discharge valve which ? controlled by the control means 20 and what ? able to block or free the opening 171. Closing the discharge valve ?, therefore possible, completely load (for example by feeding by means of a regulated flow) the lyophilized powder into the mixing chamber and add the water progressively according to what is specified by the data of mixing; in fact, the loading duct 13 can? be rectangular or cylindrical in section and, therefore, not have any type of dosing action.

Furthermore, the mixing chamber 17 can also comprising an impeller (for example a magnetic stirrer or other) positioned inside it and configured to impart a swirling motion to the water and to the food powder suspended in said water.

In this way ? possible, by controlling the water supply, making the process of preparing a single portion of food with modified consistency advantageously repeatable having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and granulometry) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, making cos? It is possible to prepare food with modified texture at home.

The mixing data, which, as mentioned above, define how much water and/or how much lyophilized powder must be introduced into said mixing chamber over time, can comprise a set of numbers, each of which specifies the volumetric flow rate (or mass ) of water or dust at a certain time; alternatively, the blend data may also comprise a set of pairs of numbers, each pair specifying the volumetric (or mass) flow rate of water and lyophilized powder at any given time.

In addition, the mixing data can also define a ratio of water to freeze-dried powder that must be maintained when preparing a certain type of food (for example, 4-5 grams of water for every 1 gram of freeze-dried food).

In addition to what has just been described above and how will it be? better described later, said mixing data can also define the speed? of rotation of the impeller and the temperature of the water introduced into the mixing chamber 127.

It remains possible for the person skilled in the art to define the mixing data in an alternative way to what is described above, without however departing from the teachings of the present invention.

In addition to what is described above, the device 1 can? also include means of communication for communicating, over a network, preferably a network interface operating according to a standard of the family 802.11 (known by the name of WiFi), 802.16 (known by the name of WiMax), IEEE 803.2 (also known with the name of Ethernet), 802.15 (known with the name of Bluetooth), or an interface to a data network of the GSM/GPRS/UMTS/LTE, TETRA or other type), through which to update the mixing data described above . In other words, the control means (which may also comprise said communication means) is preferably configured to receive, by means of said communication means, the mixing data (preferably from a server), and store said mixing data in the memory.

In this way it is possible to remotely update the mixing data of said device 1, making it always possible to obtain single portions of food with modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and granulometry) even when the composition of the food is varied, thus making? It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

In combination or as an alternative to the above, the mixing data can be changed according to the type of textured food being prepared. This can be done manually, preferably via a menu? specific to the user interface 119, for example by specifying the water/powder ratio that must be maintained during preparation.

As an alternative or in combination with manual entry, device 1 can? also include an image sensor capable of acquiring an? image in which ? represented a potion of a container (which preferably contains the freeze-dried powder to be inserted into the device 1) on which ? represented a barcode, preferably of a two-dimensional type (such as a QR code); for this purpose, the control means 20 are preferably also configured to perform (before the mixing phase):

? an acquisition step, in which a barcode is acquired by means of said image sensor and preferably coded information is extracted from a graphic representation of said barcode, for example by executing (or having executed) an image recognition algorithm;

? a determination step, in which the mixing data is determined on the basis of said barcode or the information encoded in said barcode, for example by using the information encoded in said barcode to recognize the type of lyophilized powder feed which is being used and, therefore, recovering, in the memory means, the mixing data associated with said powder, or by extracting the mixing data (directly) from the information encoded in said code.

In this way, ? It is possible to adapt the mixing data to the type of food with modified consistency that must be prepared, making it always possible to obtain single portions of food with modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and granulometry) even when the composition of the food is varied, thus making? It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

During the loading phase, the water which is introduced into the tank 11 preferably comes from a water mains R through which sanitary water is supplied. For this purpose, the tank 11 includes an inlet valve 111, which can be placed in communication with the water mains R, and a level sensor (such as a float, a magnetic sensor or other) configured to detect a level of the tank 11 and to activate (directly, for example through a force generated by the hydrostatic thrust received by a float, or indirectly, by generating an electric signal) called admission valve 111, so? to keep the tank 11 constantly fed, without the user of said machine 1 having to worry about it.

If the admission valve 111 is not present or said level sensor is not connected directly to said valve (as in the case of the magnetic sensor), said level sensor can? be in communication with the control means 20 which can preferably be configured to inhibit food preparation when the level detected by said sensor ? below a threshold. In this way, ? It is possible to advantageously inhibit food preparation until the user manually restores the correct level of water in the tank 11.

This allows you to avoid the situation where there is too little water in the tank, thus preventing? that a portion of food is prepared with too little water; in fact, this situation would lead to preparing a portion of food with a modified consistency having a consistency/density? incorrect and, therefore, dangerous for the patient. In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

In combination with what has been described above, the device 1 preferably also comprises a control interface 19 in communication with the unit? control 20, for example by means of a serial bus SPI or other; this interface comprises a touch-sensitive liquid crystal screen 191 and/or buttons 192 which allow at least the switching on, operation and shutdown of the device 1. The presence of the screen 191 is particularly important, in fact, the? unit? control 20 pu? be configured to send, via the screen 191, support messages to the user of the device 1 which describe the steps to be taken to prepare a portion of food with a modified consistency, so as to reduce the risk of errors in the preparation of the portion of food that would make the consumption of that portion dangerous for the patient.

In combination with what has been described above, the device 1 preferably also comprises a pumping unit 12 configured to pump water from the tank 11 to the mixing chamber 17.

Pi? in detail, the pumping unit 12 (and, therefore, also the device 1) comprises a pump 121 positioned downstream of the tank 11 and upstream of the mixing chamber 17; such a pump 121 ? preferably of the volumetric type (volumetric pump), cos? that the unit? of control 20 can control the flow rate (and, therefore, the volume) of water which is introduced into the mixing chamber 17. This allows to prepare a portion of food with a modified consistency without the formation of lumps during the mixing phase; in fact, if c?? too much water in the mixing chamber 17 there is a risk that the freeze-dried powder floats on the surface of the water forming lumps, while if there is? with little water, there is a risk that not all of the freeze-dried powder will be reached by the water. In fact, the presence of lumps ? to avoid why? could trigger phenomena of rejection of food by the patient.

In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

Furthermore, the pumping unit 12 (and, therefore, also the device 1) preferably also comprises anti-reflux means 122 (for example an anti-reflux tank also known by the name of "air break" or other) positioned downstream of the tank 11 and upstream of the pump 12, i.e. between the suction duct of the pump 12 and the tank 11. This allows the pressure to be kept constant on the suction duct of the pump 121, as well as preventing the entry of air into said pump and therefore into the mixing 17. In this way, in addition to preserving the integrity? of the pump 121, the control of the volume of water introduced into the mixing chamber is improved, thus? to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to prepare food with modified texture at home.

Furthermore, the pumping group 12 (and, therefore, also the device 1) preferably also comprises a filter 123 positioned downstream of the tank 11 and upstream of the pump 121 (and any anti-reflux means), i.e. between the suction duct of the pump 121 and the tank 11. This filter 123 prevents solid particles coming from the water mains R from entering the device 1, damaging it or, even worse, ending up in the mixing chamber 17 and, therefore, in the portion of food with modified consistency that the device 1 is preparing. These solid particles can also have considerable dimensions which, if they end up in the food being prepared, could make it difficult for the patient to swallow the bolus.

In this way, in addition to preserving the? Integrit? of the pump 121 and of the entire device 1, the entry of particles into the mixing chamber 17 is prevented, thus to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

In addition to what has been described above, the device 1 preferably also comprises a heater 14, preferably of the electric type, positioned upstream of the mixing chamber 17 and preferably downstream of the unit. pumping 12; such heater 14 ? configured to heat a flow of water which, starting from the tank 11, is introduced into the mixing chamber 17 preferably by means of a nozzle (not shown in the figures). The thermal power generated by the heater 14 ? preferably controlled by? unit? of control 20, cos? that this unit? of control 20 can control the temperature of the flow of water entering the mixing chamber 17. In this way, ? It is possible to dissolve the lyophilized powder in water at an optimal temperature (78-92?C), thus avoiding? the formation of lumps of powder in the prepared portion of modified texture food.

In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

In addition to what has been described above, the device 1 preferably also comprises a solenoid valve 15 positioned upstream of the mixing chamber 17 (and downstream of the pumping unit 12) and in communication with the unit? control 20, where said unit? of control 20 ? configured to open the solenoid valve 12 (for example by powering it) only when the pump 121 ? in a working condition. This prevents air from entering the unit. pumping 12, cos? to advantageously avoid the introduction of an error in the control of the volume of water entering the mixing chamber 17; furthermore, the presence of the solenoid valve 15, the pump 121 and the anti-reflux means 122 also allows the solenoid valve 15 to be used to vent the air present in the circuit without introducing water into the mixing chamber 17. To do this, the unit ? control can? be configured to close the solenoid valve 15 (for example by cutting it off) and operate the pump 121, thus causing? the ascent of any air in the anti-reflux means 122 and the venting of said air into the atmosphere.

In this way, ? It is possible to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

Numerous variations to the example described up to now are obviously possible.

A first variant? the one illustrated in fig. 4; for brevity? in the description that follows, only the parts which differentiate this and the subsequent variants with respect to the main embodiment described above will be highlighted; for the same reason, where possible, the same numerical references will be used with one or more? superscripts to indicate structurally and functionally equivalent elements.

A 1 device? similar to the device 1 described above, comprises a loading conduit 13? conical in shape, preferably funnel-shaped. This makes it possible to dose the loading of the lyophilized powder into the mixing chamber 17 and to add the water progressively according to what is specified by the mixing data. It should be noted that the loading duct 13 of the previous embodiment, preferably having a rectangular or cylindrical section, is not capable of exerting any type of dosing action.

This allows you to improve control over the preparation of textured food, as well as to obtain a single portion of said food with desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and grain size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion. This makes it possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

In addition to what is described above, the loading duct 13? of this embodiment preferably also comprises one or more? loading sensors (for example a laser, infrared or other sensor) capable of detecting the successful loading of the lyophilized powder in the loading duct 13?.

Also, device 1? also includes control means which are similar to the control means 20 of the preceding embodiment and which are in communication with said one or more? loading sensors; these control means, compared to those of the previous version, are also configured to start the mixing phase when at least one of said one or more? loading sensors detect the loading of the lyophilized powder.

This allows you to control the preparation even better, as well as to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

A second variant of the device 1 also comprises a screw configured to move the freeze-dried powder from the loading duct to the mixing chamber, a motor (preferably of the direct current or step-by-step electric type, or of another type) coupled to said screw, and a?unit? similar to that of the main embodiment and also configured to control said motor based on mixing data. Pi? in detail, if the engine is of the electric type, this engine ? subjected to the control of? unit? control 20 what ? configured to determine the amount? of freeze-dried powder introduced into the mixing chamber 17 by operating on parameters such as speed? of rotation and duration of motor operation. Speed control? of engine rotation can? take place (in stepper motors) by means of the speed control? rotation of the electric field or (in direct current motors) by controlling a supply voltage, for example using PWM pulse width modulation to vary the average value of the direct component of said supply voltage.

When the device ? in an operating condition, the auger is rotated by the motor, whose speed? of rotation ? as well as the instants of start and end of the drive ? ? controlled by? unit? control. This allows you to control the amount of lyophilized powder in the mixing chamber.

This way, you have maximum control over the preparation of modified texture foods, as well as the to obtain a single portion of food with a modified consistency having the desired physical characteristics (such as viscosity, consistency, density and particle size) regardless of the environmental conditions and who prepares the portion, thus making it It is possible to safely prepare food with modified texture at home.

It should be noted that in this embodiment the mixing data can specify the volumetric (or mass) flow rate of the water and lyophilized powder over time.

Some of the possible variations have been described above, but ? it is clear to the person skilled in the art that, in the practical implementation, there are also other embodiments, with different elements which can be replaced by other technically equivalent ones. The present invention is not therefore limited to the illustrative examples described, but ? susceptible to various modifications, improvements, replacement of parts and equivalent elements without involving deviations from the basic inventive idea, as specified in the following claims.

Claims (12)

A device (1,1?) for rehydrating a food lyophilized powder, comprising ? a tank (11), in which pu? be introduced water, ? a loading duct (13,13?), in which pu? be introduced said lyophilized powder, ? a mixing chamber (17) in communication with said tank and said loading duct (13,13?), in which the water and lyophilized powder can be mixed, characterized in that it comprises ? memory means containing at least mixing data that define at least one quantity? of water and/or a quantity? of lyophilized powder which is to be fed into said mixing chamber over time, e ? control means (20) configured to control a supply of said water and/or said freeze-dried powder into the mixing chamber on the basis of said mixing data. 2. Device (1,1?) according to claim 1, wherein the tank (11) comprises ? an admission valve (111) that can? be put in communication with a water network (R), e ? a level sensor configured to detect a level of said tank (11) and to activate said admission valve (111). 3. Device (1,1?) according to claims 1 or 2, comprising a pump (121) positioned downstream of the tank (11) and upstream of the mixing chamber (17), where said pump (121) ? volumetric type. 4. Device (1,1?) according to claim 3, comprising anti-backflow means (122) positioned downstream of the tank (11) and upstream of the pump (12). 5. Device (1,1?) according to claims 3 or 4, comprising a filter (123) positioned downstream of the tank (11) and upstream of the pump (12). 6. Device (1,1?) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising a heater (14) positioned upstream of the mixing chamber (17). 7. Device (1?) according to any one of claims from 1 to 6, wherein the loading conduit (13?) has a conical shape. The device (1?) according to claim 7, comprising at least one loading sensor capable of detecting a loading of the lyophilized powder in the loading conduit (13?), and wherein the control means is also configured to start controlling the? supply of said water and/or of said lyophilized powder into the mixing chamber when said at least one loading sensor detects the loading of the lyophilized powder. 9. Apparatus according to any of the claims from 1 to 6, further comprising an auger configured to move the lyophilized powder from the loading conduit to the mixing chamber, a motor coupled to said auger, and wherein the unit? control ? also configured to control said engine based on mixing data. A device (1,1?) according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising communication means for communicating through a network, and wherein the control means (20) is also configured for ? receive, by means of said means of communication, the mixing data, e ? storing said mixing data in the memory means. 11. Device (1,1?) according to any one of the preceding claims, comprising an image sensor, wherein the control means (20) are also configured for ? acquire, by means of said image sensor, a bar code, e ? determining, on the basis of said barcode, the mixing data. 12. A method of rehydrating a food freeze-dried powder, comprising ? a loading phase, in which a volume of water ? placed in a tank (11), and a quantity? of said food freeze-dried powder? fed into a loading duct (13,13?), characterized by the fact that it also includes ? a mixing step, in which a supply of said water and/or said freeze-dried powder is controlled by means of control means in a mixing chamber (17) on the basis of mixing data, wherein said mixing data define at least one quantity? of water and/or a quantity? of lyophilized powder which must be introduced into said mixing chamber over time.