CN219206653U

CN219206653U - Motor control system of micro fruit puree machine and food processor device

Info

Publication number: CN219206653U
Application number: CN202222657115.0U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 克雷格·怀特; 埃里克·霍尔泽
Original assignee: Sharkninja Operating LLC
Current assignee: Sharkninja Operating LLC
Priority date: 2022-05-25
Filing date: 2022-10-10
Publication date: 2023-06-20
Anticipated expiration: 2032-10-10
Also published as: CN117158801A

Abstract

A micro puree machine includes a drive motor coupled to a drive shaft by at least one gear. The drive motor is arranged to rotate the drive shaft and the blade assembly. A positioning motor may be used to change the position of the drive shaft by rotation of the position. The user interface is arranged to: i) Receiving a user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type, and ii) displaying a status of the processing of the first food type while the first routine is running. The controller is arranged to: i) Receiving the user input selecting the first routine and retrieving the configuration data associated with the first routine, ii) controlling operation of the drive motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) controlling operation of the positioning motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

Description

Motor control system of micro fruit puree machine and food processor device

Cross reference to related applications

The present application claims priority and benefit from U.S. provisional patent application No. 63/220,858 entitled "MICRO PUREE machine with programmable motor (MICRO PUREE MACHINE WITH PROGRAMMABLE MOTOR)" filed on 7/12 of 2021, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to kitchen tools and food processor devices, and more particularly, to automated motor control of devices and systems for mashing food materials into micropulp for making food and beverage products.

Background

Machines for making ice cream, ice cream of the formula (gelato), frozen yoghurt, smoothies and the like are known in the art. Typically, a user adds a series of unfrozen food materials to a bowl. Then, the food material is stirred by a stirring bar (paddle), and the cooling mechanism simultaneously freezes the food material. Known drawbacks of these devices include the significant time and effort required by the user to complete the ice cream making process. Machines of this nature are not practical for preparing most non-dessert foods.

An alternative type of machine for making frozen foods is a micro puree machine. Typically, machines of this nature spin the blade and insert the blade into the pre-frozen food material or combination of food materials. The micro puree machine is not only suitable for making frozen desserts such as ice cream, frozen yoghurt, smoothies and the like, but also for preparing non-dessert foods such as non-dessert purees and mousses. In addition, the device may prepare an entire batch of food material for use or pre-required portions. Known machines of this nature are generally of commercial grade and are very large and heavy. These machines often require complex systems that are difficult to maintain and often too expensive, cumbersome, and/or impractical for consumer home use.

In addition, the limited capabilities of known machines do not allow an operator to mix the product by rotating the blade at various speeds, at different depths within the product, and for various amounts of time depending on the product. Furthermore, it is sometimes desirable for the user to include solid or semi-solid food materials in the final product. For example, nuts, granola, chocolate and other potato chips, foodstuff, candy bars, biscuits, fruit or other snack products are used to develop a number of flavors that are highly desirable to the user. Mixing may allow the solid or semi-solid food material to be ground or reduced in size. In existing micro purees, the user has limited ability to control operations such as blade and motor rotational speed depending on the type of food product being processed. Thus, there is a need for a micro puree machine that can handle a variety of food types more flexibly and accurately.

Disclosure of Invention

A micro puree device is described herein in which a blade assembly can be controlled in a programmable manner at different rotational speeds and moved up and down in different modes and speeds and for different periods of time to produce different food products, such as frozen purees and desserts.

The present disclosure additionally describes a micro puree machine having processing features that enable more appropriate and automated processing of various food types, thereby enhancing food preparation. The present disclosure includes a micro puree machine having a controller arranged to operate a motor, a mixing shaft, and a blade according to a routine or processing sequence optimized for processing and/or preparing a particular food type. The micro puree machine includes a mixing or drive shaft coupled to the blade and rotatable via a drive motor and/or gear.

The controller controls the rotational speed of the drive motor, and in turn the rotational speed of the mixing shaft and blade, during one or more periods during the food processing routine and/or sequence, depending on the type of food that the user may select via the user interface. The controller also controls a positioning motor arranged to change the position and/or distance at which the mixing or drive shaft and blade extend into or retract from the mixing container, vessel or cup. Advantageously, the processing feature allows a user to conveniently and flexibly process a variety of different food types when the controller is preconfigured with routines and/or recipes for various drive and/or positioning motor speeds and/or mixing shaft movement sequences.

In one aspect, the micro-puree machine includes a drive motor coupled to a drive shaft by at least one gear. The drive motor is arranged to rotate the drive shaft and blade assembly attached thereto such that the rotational speed of the drive motor corresponds to the rotational speed of the drive shaft. The positioning motor may be adapted to change the position of the drive shaft by rotation of the positioning motor such that the rotational speed of the positioning motor corresponds to the rate of change of the position of the drive shaft. The user interface is arranged to: i) Receiving a user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing the plurality of food types, and ii) displaying a processing status of the first food type when the first routine is running. The data store is arranged to store a database comprising configuration data associated with the plurality of routines. The controller is arranged to: i) Receiving the user input selecting the first routine and retrieving configuration data associated with the first routine from the data store, ii) controlling operation of the drive motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) controlling operation of the positioning motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

Controlling operation of the drive motor may include controlling activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and/or rotational speed of the drive motor. Controlling operation of the positioning motor may include controlling activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and rotational speed of the positioning motor. The controller may be arranged to receive timing data from a timer such that the controller controls operation of the drive motor and the positioning motor based on the configuration data and the timing data. The timer may include a clock operated by a processor associated with the controller.

The configuration data may include a first zone designation of a plurality of zone designations. The first zone indicia may be associated with a full volume of the container containing the first food type. A second zone designation may be associated with a top of the container volume and a third zone designation may be associated with a bottom of the container volume. The user interface may be configured to receive a user selection of one of a plurality of zones associated with different portions of the container volume containing the first food type.

The food processing routine may include multiple phases. The first routine and the second routine may differ in the number of stages. Each phase may correspond to a period of time. The time periods of at least two phases may be the same. The user interface may display the progress and/or status of the processing of the first food type by displaying a number associated with each stage of operation of the routine while the first routine is running. As the routine proceeds sequentially in time to each stage, the value of the number may decrease until the routine is complete.

In another aspect, a food processor motor control system includes a drive motor coupled to a drive shaft through at least one gear. The drive motor is arranged to rotate the drive shaft and blade assembly attached thereto such that the rotational speed of the drive motor corresponds to the rotational speed of the drive shaft. The positioning motor may be adapted to change the position of the drive shaft by rotation of the positioning motor such that the rotational speed of the positioning motor corresponds to the rate of change of the position of the drive shaft. The user interface is arranged to: i) Receiving a user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing the plurality of food types, and ii) displaying a processing status of the first food type when the first routine is running. The data store is arranged to store a database comprising configuration data associated with the plurality of routines. The controller is arranged to: i) Receiving the user input selecting the first routine and retrieving configuration data associated with the first routine from the data store, ii) controlling operation of the drive motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) controlling operation of the positioning motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

In another aspect, a method for manufacturing a motor controller for a food processor apparatus includes mounting at least the following in or on a housing of a food processor:

a drive motor coupled to the drive shaft by at least one gear, the drive motor being arranged to rotate the drive shaft and blade assembly attached thereto, the rotational speed of the drive motor corresponding to the rotational speed of the drive shaft;

a positioning motor operable to change a position of the drive shaft by rotation of the positioning motor, a rotational speed of the positioning motor corresponding to a rate of change of the position of the drive shaft;

a user interface arranged to: i) Receiving user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing a plurality of food types, and ii) displaying a processing status of the first food type while the first routine is running;

a data store arranged to store a database comprising configuration data associated with the plurality of routines; and

a controller arranged to: i) Receiving the user input selecting the first routine and retrieving the configuration data associated with the first routine from the data store, ii) controlling operation of the drive motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) controlling operation of the positioning motor based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

These and other features and advantages will become apparent upon reading the following description and upon review of the associated drawings. The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are merely exemplary and are not limiting of the aspects of the disclosure as claimed.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an apparatus including a bowl assembly and a lid assembly according to an illustrative embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 2 is another isometric view of the device of FIG. 1 without the bowl assembly and the lid assembly;

FIG. 3A is a left side view of the device of FIG. 1 without the bowl assembly and the lid assembly;

FIG. 3B is a left side view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in an up position;

FIG. 3C is a left side view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in a lowered position;

FIG. 4A is a right side view of the device of FIG. 1 without the bowl assembly and the lid assembly;

FIG. 4B is a right side view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in an up position;

FIG. 4C is a right side view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in a lowered position;

FIG. 5A is a rear view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in an up position;

FIG. 5B is a right side cross-sectional view of the device of FIG. 5A along section A-A;

FIG. 6A is a rear view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the bowl assembly and lid assembly in a lowered position;

FIG. 6B is a left side cross-sectional view of the device of FIG. 6A along section B-B;

fig. 7 is an isometric view of the internal components of the device of fig. 1.

FIG. 8A is a front view of the gear box and drive motor assembly of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8B is a side cross-sectional view of the assembly of FIG. 8A along section C-C;

FIG. 9 is an isometric view of the gear box and drive motor assembly of the device with the housing removed;

FIG. 10 is an isometric view of a blade assembly of the device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of a controller for controlling the operation of the drive and positioning motors during various food processing routines;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a computing system; and

fig. 13 shows a view of a user interface of the micro puree machine.

Detailed Description

As shown in fig. 1, the device 10 includes a lower housing or base 100 and an upper housing 140. The intermediate housing 120 extends between the lower housing 100 and the upper housing 140. The upper housing 140 includes an interface 142 for receiving user inputs to control the device 10 and/or display information, including inputs to select a particular program to control the blade rotation speed, descent speed, etc., depending on the desired product. The interface 142 may also include a progress bar that displays progress of the selected program. The apparatus 10 includes a removable bowl assembly 350 and a lid assembly 400 on the base 100. The bowl assembly 350 receives one or more food materials for processing. The bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400 are placed on the lower housing 100. The bowl assembly 350 and lid assembly 400 can be rotated on the lifting platform 362 from a lower position to an upper position and vice versa.

Fig. 2 shows the device 10 with the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400 removed.

Fig. 3A-3C illustrate left side views of the device 10 without the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400, with the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400 in an up position, and with the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400 in a down position, respectively.

Fig. 4A-4C illustrate right side views of the device 10 without the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400, with the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly 400 in an upper position, and with the bowl assembly 350 and the lid assembly in a lower position, respectively. When the bowl assembly 350 and lid assembly 400 are raised vertically to the up position, the blade assembly 300 within the lid assembly 400 engages the power coupling 252 at the distal end of the power shaft 250 extending from the upper housing 140. Rotational force is delivered to the blade assembly 300 through the power coupling 252 to spin one or more blades as they engage the food material inside the bowl assembly 350.

Fig. 5A is a rear view of the device 10 with the bowl assembly 350 in the upper position, showing a cross-sectional line A-A. Fig. 5B is a right side cross-sectional view of the device 10 along section A-A.

Fig. 6A is a rear view of the device 10 with the bowl assembly 350 in a lowered position, showing a cross-sectional line B-B. Fig. 6B is a left side cross-sectional view of the device 10 along section B-B. The upper housing 140 includes a gear box assembly 220 and a drive motor assembly 240 connected to the gear box assembly 220. The drive motor assembly 240 includes a drive motor housing 242 and a drive motor 244. The gearbox assembly 220 includes a gearbox housing 222 that includes a plurality of gears for delivering power from a drive motor 244 to a power shaft 250. A power coupling 252 is positioned on the distal end of power shaft 250.

Fig. 7 is an isometric view of the gear box assembly 220 and drive motor assembly 240 of the device 10 with surrounding structure. The device 10 includes an upper support 280 and a lower support 282 positioned in the upper housing 140. The gearbox assembly 220 and the drive motor assembly 240 are slidable up and down along a plurality of

struts

270, 272, 274, 276 relative to an upper support 280 and a lower support 282. The struts and supports provide rigidity and concentric alignment. In the illustrative embodiment, the gearbox assembly 220 and the drive motor assembly 240 are supported on the struts through

apertures

223, 225 in the gearbox housing 222. In other embodiments, apertures may be present on the drive motor housing 242 in addition to or in lieu of the gearbox housing 222.

The apparatus 10 includes a positioning motor 260 (e.g., a DC motor) that drives a gear box 262. The gear box 262 is engaged with a vertically threaded rod or worm gear 264 extending between an upper support 280 and a lower support 282. Actuating the positioning motor 260, either manually or automatically through the interface 142, moves the gearbox assembly 220 and drives the motor assembly 240 up and down. The pitch of the rods of worm gear 264 is related to the vertical descent rate of device 10. The drive motor assembly 240 moves downwardly into the cavity 122 in the intermediate housing 120 (see fig. 5B and 6B).

The power shaft 250 and power coupling 252 move with the gear box assembly 220 and drive motor assembly 240. Thus, actuation of the positioning motor 260 in turn allows for vertical movement and positioning of the blade assembly 300 removably attached to the power coupling 252. In an illustrative embodiment, the up and down travel distance is between 70mm and 120mm, or between 90mm and 100mm, such as about 94mm. Different programs selected by the user at interface 142 may be used to control the power coupling 252 (e.g., by driving motor 244) and thus the blade assembly 300 to move up and down in different modes and speeds (e.g., by positioning motor 260) to produce different food products, such as frozen purees and desserts.

Fig. 8A is a front view of the gear box assembly 220 and drive motor assembly 240 of the device 10 of fig. 1. Fig. 8B is a side cross-sectional view of the assembly of fig. 8A along section C-C. As discussed above, the gear assembly 220 includes a housing 222. In the illustrative embodiment, the housing 222 includes upper and lower portions that are removably attached together. A housing 242 of the drive motor assembly 240 is removably attached to a lower portion of the housing 222. In other embodiments, the housing 242 is formed with the housing 222 or at least with a lower portion of the housing 222. In the illustrative embodiment, the housing 242 includes a plurality of openings 243 for ventilating and cooling the drive motor 244. The device 10 may also include a fan 245 on the motor 244.

Fig. 9 is an isometric view of the gear box assembly 220 and drive motor assembly 240 with the

housings

222, 242 removed. In the illustrative embodiment, a drive motor 244 is rotatably coupled to transmission 230. The transmission 230 is connected to a first gear 232. The first gear 232 drives the gear 238, either directly or through one or more

intermediate gears

234, 236, which then drive the power shaft 250.

Fig. 10 is an isometric view of a moving blade assembly 300 for treating food and beverage products. The food processing routine and/or sequence may vary depending on the size of the blade assembly.

Fig. 11 is a block diagram of a food processing control system 1100 that includes a controller 1102 for controlling the operation of a drive motor 1110 and a positioning motor 1112 as various food processing routines are run. The system 1100 includes a user interface 1106, a timer 1108, a data store 1104, and one or more sensors 1114. The drive motor 1110 may be coupled to the drive and/or power shaft 250 through at least one gear. The drive motor 1110 may be arranged to rotate the drive shaft 250 and the blade assembly 300 attached thereto such that the rotational speed of the drive motor 1110 corresponds to the rotational speed of the drive shaft 250. However, the speed need not be the same as the speed of drive shaft 250, and will depend on the reduction ratio of at least one gear. The positioning motor 1112 may be configured to change the position of the drive shaft 250 by rotation of the positioning motor 1112 such that the rotational speed of the positioning motor 1112 corresponds to the rate of change of position of the drive shaft and/or the assembly housing the drive shaft. The positioning motor 1112 may change the position of the drive shaft 205 by changing a position of a housing and/or gear assembly associated with the drive motor 1110. The direction of rotation of the positioning motor 1112 may be controlled by the controller 1102 to extend and retract the drive shaft 250 into and from the puree and/or the housing of the device 10.

The controller 1102 may also control the direction of rotation of the drive shaft 250 and/or the blade assembly 300. The user interface 1106 may be arranged to: i) Receiving a user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing the plurality of food types, and ii) displaying a processing status of the first food type via the indicator 1302 of fig. 13 while the first routine is running. The data store 1104 may be arranged to store a database, such as shown in tables 1400 and 1500, that includes configuration data associated with a plurality of routines. The controller 1102 may be arranged to: i) Receiving the user input selecting the first routine and retrieving configuration data associated with the first routine from the data store 1104, ii) controlling operation of the drive motor 1110 based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) controlling operation of the positioning motor 1112 based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

The system 1100 may include one or more sensors associated with running routines. For example, a sensor may be used to monitor the speed of the drive motor 1110. A sensor may be used to monitor the speed of positioning motor 1112. One or more sensors may be used to monitor the position of the drive shaft 250. The sensor may include a magnetic or contact switch that detects when the drive shaft 250 is in its retracted position, intermediate position, and/or fully extended position. The controller 1102 may use timing data from the timer 1108 and sensor speed data associated with the rotation of the positioning motor 1112 to determine the distance of travel and/or position of the drive shaft 250.

Controlling operation of the drive motor 1110 may include controlling activation (e.g., start), deactivation (e.g., stop), rotational direction, and/or rotational speed of the drive motor 1110. Controlling operation of the positioning motor 1112 may include controlling activation, deactivation, direction of rotation, and/or speed of rotation of the positioning motor 1112. The controller 1102 may be configured to receive timing data from the timer 1108 and control operation of the drive motor 1110 and the positioning motor 1112 based on the configuration data and the timing data. Timer 1108 may be a software program that accesses a clock operated by, for example, the processor of computer 1200 associated with controller 1102.

Fig. 12 is a block diagram of a computing system 1200 associated with a controller 1102. Computer system 1200 may represent a processing system within a device, such as a mini-puree machine, a blender, an ice cream maker, an immersion blender, or an accessory to any such device. Computer system 1200 may include a system on a chip (SoC), a client device, and/or a physical computing device, and may include hardware and/or virtual processors. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 12, computer system 1200 and its elements each involve physical hardware, and in some embodiments, one, more, or all of the elements may be implemented using an emulator or virtual machine. Regardless, the computer system 1200 may be implemented on physical hardware.

As also shown in fig. 12, computer system 1200 may include user interfaces 1212 and/or 1106 with, for example, a keyboard, keypad, touchpad, or sensor readout (e.g., a biometric scanner) and one or more output devices, such as a display, speakers for audio, LED indicators, and/or indicator lights. Computer system 1200 can also include a communication interface 1210, such as a network communication unit that can include wired communication components and/or wireless communication components, that can be communicatively coupled to the processor 1202. The network communication unit may utilize any of a variety of proprietary or standardized network protocols, such as ethernet, TCP/IP (to name a few of many protocols), to enable communication between the processor 1202 and another device, network, or system. The network communication unit may also include one or more transceivers that utilize ethernet, power Line Communication (PLC), wi-Fi, cellular, and/or other communication methods.

Computer system 1200 includes a processing element, such as processor 1202, that contains one or more hardware processors, where each hardware processor may have a single or multiple processor cores. In one embodiment, the processor 1202 includes at least one shared cache that stores data (e.g., computing instructions) utilized by one or more other components of the processor 1202. For example, the shared cache may be stored in memory for processing by the constituent processor 1202 The components of the element access the locally cached data more quickly. Examples of processors include, but are not limited to, central Processing Units (CPUs) and/or microprocessors. The processor 1202 may utilize a processor based on, but not limited to

8051 architecture, < >>

68HCX、/>

80X86, etc. The processor 1202 may include, but is not limited to, an 8-bit, 12-bit, 16-bit, 32-bit, or 64-bit architecture. Although not shown in fig. 12, the processing elements comprising the processor 1202 may also include one or more other types of hardware processing elements, such as a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), and/or a Digital Signal Processor (DSP).

Fig. 12 illustrates that the memory 1204 can be operatively and communicatively coupled to the processor 1202. Memory 1204 may be a non-transitory medium configured to store various types of data. The system 1200 may include one or more storage devices 1208, including non-volatile storage and/or volatile memory. Volatile memory, such as Random Access Memory (RAM), may be any suitable volatile storage device. The non-volatile storage 1208 may include one or more disk drives, optical drives, solid State Drives (SSDs), tape drives, flash memory, read-only memory (ROM), and/or any other type of memory designed to maintain data for a certain duration after a power-off or shutdown operation. In some configurations, nonvolatile storage 1208 may be used to store overflow data if the allocated RAM is insufficient to accommodate all of the working data. The non-volatile storage 1208 may also be used to store programs, such as programs that run one or more food processing routines and/or recipes, that are loaded into RAM when such programs are selected for execution.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that software programs may be developed, encoded, and compiled in a variety of computing languages for various software platforms and/or operating systems and subsequently loaded and executed by processor 1202. In one embodiment, the compilation process of a software program may convert program code written in one programming language into another computer language such that the processor 1202 is capable of executing the programming code. For example, the compilation process of a software program may generate an executable program that provides coded instructions (e.g., machine code instructions) to the processor 1202 to implement specific, non-general purpose, specific computing functions.

After the compilation process, the encoded instructions may be loaded into the processor 1202 from the storage 1208, from the memory 1204, and/or embedded within the processor 1202 (e.g., via a cache or on-board ROM) as computer executable instructions or process steps. The processor 1202 may be configured to execute stored instructions or process steps to perform the instructions or process steps to convert the computing apparatus into a specific specially programmed machine or device that is not general. Stored data, such as data stored by storage device 1208, may be accessed by processor 1202 during execution of computer-executable instructions or process steps to instruct one or more components within computing system 1200 and/or other components or devices external to system 1200.

The user interface 1212 may include a display, a position input device (e.g., mouse, touch pad, touch screen, etc.), a keyboard, a keypad, one or more buttons, or other forms of user input and output devices. The user interface component may be communicatively coupled to the processor 1202 and/or the controller 1102. When the user interface output device is or includes a display, the display may be implemented in a variety of ways, including by a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) or a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) or a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display, such as an OLED display. The input/output interface 1206 may interface with one or more sensors, such as sensor 1114, that detect and/or monitor environmental conditions within or around the system 1200. Environmental conditions may include, but are not limited to, magnetic field levels, rotation and/or movement of a device or component, temperature, pressure, acceleration, vibration, motion, radiation levels, location of a device or component, and/or presence of a device or component. Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the computer system 1200 may include other components well known in the art, such as a power source and/or an analog-to-digital converter not explicitly shown in fig. 12.

In some implementations, the computing system 1200 and/or the processor 1202 includes a SoC having a plurality of hardware components including, but not limited to:

A microcontroller, microprocessor, or Digital Signal Processor (DSP) core, and/or a multiprocessor SoC (MPSoC) having more than one processor core;

a memory block comprising a series of Read Only Memory (ROM), random Access Memory (RAM), electronically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), and flash memory;

a timing source comprising a clock, an oscillator, and a docking collar;

a peripheral device comprising a counter-timer, a real-time timer, and a power-on-reset generator;

external interfaces including industry standards such as Universal Serial Bus (USB), fireWire, ethernet, universal synchronous/asynchronous receiver/transmitter (USART), serial Peripheral Interface (SPI);

an analog interface including an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and a digital-to-analog converter (DAC); and

voltage regulators and power management circuits.

The SoC includes the hardware described above and software that controls the microcontroller, microprocessor and/or DSP cores, peripherals and interfaces. Most socs are developed from pre-authenticated hardware blocks (e.g., referred to as modules or components, which represent IP cores or IP blocks) of hardware elements, and software drivers that control their operation. The above list of hardware elements is not exhaustive. The SoC may include a protocol stack that drives an industry standard interface, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB).

Once the overall architecture of the SoC has been defined, the individual hardware elements can be described in an abstract language called RTL, which represents the register transfer level. RTL is used to define circuit behavior. The hardware elements are connected together in the same RTL language, resulting in a complete SoC design. In digital circuit design, RTL is a design abstraction that models synchronous digital circuits based on the flow of digital signals (data) between hardware registers and the logic operations performed on those signals. RTL abstractions are used in Hardware Description Languages (HDL) such as Verilog and VHDL to create high-level representations of circuits from which lower-level representations can be derived and ultimately the actual wiring. RTL-level designs are a typical practice in modern digital designs. Verilog is standardized as Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 1364 and is an HDL for modeling electronic systems. Verilog is most commonly used for the design and verification of digital circuits at the RTL level of abstraction. Verilog can also be used to verify analog and mixed signal circuits, as well as to design genetic circuits. In some embodiments, some or all of the components of computer system 1200 are implemented on a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). One or more features of system 1200 may be implemented within the systems and processors described with respect to fig. 11.

Fig. 13 illustrates a view of a user interface 1300 of the micro puree machine and/or food processor device 10. The user interface 1300 includes a progress and/or status indicator 1302, a vessel and/or container installation indicator 1304, a completion indicator 1306, a treatment zone selector and/or indicator 1308, a food processing routine selector dial or wheel 1310, a power switch and/or indicator 1312, a mix indicator 1314, and a rework switch 1316. Progress indicator 1302 may include numbers associated with the operational phase of the running routine. In some embodiments, the number corresponds to about one minute. In other embodiments, other time periods may be used. For example, FIG. 13 illustrates a number "5" indicating that the run routine is in a fifth phase and/or operating period. As the routine continues to run, the numbers will gradually decrease to 4, 3, 2, 1, and 0 until the routine is complete, which may be indicated by the illumination light at the completion indicator 1306. The user interface 1300 may include a mylar (mylar) plate with tactile switches and discs and/or wheels. The progress indicator 1302 may take different forms, such as a progress bar, that includes a plurality of lights that are turned off sequentially from start to end as a food processing routine. As the routine runs, the plurality of lights that are on progressively turn off until no light is one, at which point the routine is complete.

The zone indicator and/or selector 1308 may include multiple zones, such as a full zone, a top zone, and a bottom zone. The full zone may be associated with the full volume of the container holding the first food type such that the controller 1102 extends the drive shaft 250 and blade assembly 300 fully into the container and processes the food type in both the top and bottom of the container. The zone indicator and/or selector 1308 may also include a top zone of the container volume and a bottom zone associated with a bottom of the container volume. When the top zone is selected, the controller 1102 receives the selection and controls the positioning motor 1112 so that only a portion of the food product in the top zone of the container is processed. When the bottom zone is selected, the controller 1102 receives the selection and controls the positioning motor 1112 so that only a portion of the food product in the bottom zone of the container is processed.

The food processing routine selector disk or wheel 1310 enables a user to select a routine and recipe from a plurality of routines. The routine may be associated with various food types such as, but not limited to, ice cream, low calorie ice cream, smoothie, ice cream, frozen yogurt, ice cream (ice fusion), slush (ice frost), italian ice, milkshake, and creme keno (streamicino). Each routine may include multiple phases. However, the number of stages between different routines may be different based on the different food types being processed. Each phase may correspond to a period of time. As previously described, each time period may be approximately 60 seconds long, although other time periods may be used, and the length of the time period may vary between different phases of a particular routine, as shown in tables 1400 and 1500, respectively, below. In some embodiments, at least two phases have the same time period.

Table 1400: various food processing routines associated with various food types associated with processing food types in all zones of the container

Table 1500: various food processing routines associated with various food types associated with processing the food types in the top zone of the container

The user may initiate a food processing routine using the power button and/or indicator 1312. The power button 1312 may include a stable light to indicate that the process is running. The power button 1312 may repeatedly blink intermittently to indicate that the system is malfunctioning or that the system is not ready to begin the routine. The installation indicator 1304 may be repeatedly flashed intermittently to indicate that the vessel and/or container has not been installed for food processing. The mixing selector and/or indicator 1314 may enable the user to add food material to any food type and cause the controller 1102 to initiate a mixing routine to mix the food material in the vessel. Regardless of the type of food product, the user may use the rework button and/or selector 1316 to initiate a rework routine to further process the food product in the vessel.

Table 1400 includes various food processing routines in column 1402 that are associated with various food types when processed in all areas of a vessel and/or container, such as bowl assembly 350. Column 1402 includes a list of ten routines associated with food types ranging from ice cream to cream keno, as well as a remaking routine and a mixing routine. Section 1404 includes configuration data of controller 1102 to control operations such as rotational speed of drive motor 1110 and/or drive shaft 250, rotational speed and direction of positioning motor 1112, and activation and deactivation of positioning motor 1112. Section 1406 includes display logic for the stage period and progress indicator 1102 associated with each routine.

For example, row 1408 includes configuration data and phase period data associated with processing ice cream food types. The row 1408 of section 1404 includes configuration data for the food processing routine used by the controller 1102 to run the ice cream. The configuration data parameters may include: proper blade speed 1200rpm, proper time 75 seconds, hold at boom speed 450rpm, hold at bottom time 3 seconds, retract blade speed 450rpm, retract time 38 seconds, hold at top 450rpm, and hold at top 5 seconds. Line 1408 of section 1406 shows the overall timing and two phases associated with processing ice cream food types. Since the total time of the routine is 121 seconds, there are only two phases of 60 seconds and 61 seconds, i.e. about 1 minute each. Thus, progress indicator 1302 will display a "2" during the first 60 seconds (e.g., first phase) and a "1" during the next 61 seconds (e.g., second phase). Then, when the ice cream processing routine is completed, the progress indicator 1302 will display a "0" for five seconds. Table 1400 may be stored in data store 1104.

As another example, row 1410 includes configuration data and phase period data associated with processing frozen yogurt food types. The row 1410 of section 1404 includes configuration data for the controller 1102 to run the food processing routine of the frozen yoghurt. The configuration data parameters may include: proper blade speed 1800rpm, proper time 150 seconds, hold at boom speed 1800rpm, hold at bottom time 3 seconds, retract blade speed 1800rpm, retract time 150 seconds, hold at top 1800rpm, and hold at top 5 seconds. Line 1410 of section 1406 shows the total timing and five stages associated with processing frozen yogurt food types. Since the total time of the routine is 309 seconds, there are five phases of 62, 62 and 61 seconds, i.e. about 1 minute each. Thus, progress indicator 1302 will display "5" during the first 62 second phase, "4" during the second 62 second phase, "3" during the third 62 second phase, "2" during the fourth 62 second phase, and "1" during the last 61 second phase. Then, when the ice cream processing routine is completed, the progress indicator 1302 will display a "0" for five seconds. Thus, each row of table 1400 includes configuration data that is used by controller 1102 to control the operation of the food processing routine for a particular food type accordingly. As previously described, the configuration data may be based on the size of the blade and/or blade assembly. The configuration data of table 1500 is based on a blade size of 95 mm. The data store 1104 may include a plurality of food processor routine tables similar to table 1500 but with different configuration data based on blade and/or blade assembly sizes.

Table 1500 shows various food processing routines in column 1502 associated with various food types as the food types are processed in the top zone of the container. Column 1502 includes a list of five routines associated with food types ranging from ice cream to frozen yogurt, as well as a reconstitution routine and a mixing routine. Section 1504 includes configuration data for controller 1102 to control operations such as the rotational speed of drive motor 1110 and/or drive shaft 250, the rotational speed and direction of positioning motor 1112, and activation and deactivation of positioning motor 1112 when a top zone process has been designated. Section 1506 includes a phase period associated with each routine. Similar to table 1400, table 1500 includes configuration data associated with each food type in each row for that food type.

The present disclosure also relates to a process for manufacturing a motor controller for a micro-puree and/or food processor device 10 arranged to perform various food processing routines as described in tables 1400 and 1500. The process may include installing at least the following in or on the housing 100 and/or 140 of the micro puree device 10 and/or the food processor device:

A drive motor 244 coupled to the drive shaft 250 by at least one gear, the drive motor 244 being arranged to rotate the drive shaft 250 and the blade assembly 300 attached thereto, the rotational speed of the drive motor 244 corresponding to the rotational speed of the drive shaft 250;

a positioning motor 260 operable to change the position of the driving shaft 250 by rotation of the positioning motor 260, the rotational speed of the positioning motor 260 corresponding to the rate of change of the position of the driving shaft 250;

a user interface 1300 arranged to: i) Receiving user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing the plurality of food types, and ii) displaying a processing status of the first food type while the first routine is running;

a data store 1104 arranged to store a database comprising configuration data associated with a plurality of routines, such as the configuration data shown in tables 1400 and 1500; and

a controller 1102 arranged to: i) User input selecting a first routine is received and configuration data associated with the first routine is retrieved from the data store 1104, ii) operation of the drive motor 244 is controlled based on the configuration data associated with the first routine, and iii) operation of the positioning motor 260 is controlled based on the configuration data associated with the first routine.

It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that certain aspects involved in the operation of the controller 1102 and/or computer system 1200 may be embodied in a computer program product that includes a computer usable and/or readable medium. For example, such a computer usable medium may be composed of a read only memory device, such as a CD ROM disk or a conventional ROM device, or a random access memory, such as a hard drive device or a computer diskette, or a flash memory device having computer readable program code stored thereon. While the present disclosure has been particularly shown and described with reference to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the application as defined by the appended claims. The scope of the present application is intended to cover such variations.

Claims

1. A micro puree machine, characterized in that it comprises:

A user interface arranged to receive user input to select a first routine associated with processing a first food type of a plurality of routines associated with processing a plurality of food types;

2. The micro puree machine of claim 1, wherein controlling operation of the drive motor includes controlling at least one of activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and rotational speed of the drive motor.

3. The micro puree machine of claim 1, wherein controlling operation of the positioning motor includes controlling at least one of activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and rotational speed of the positioning motor.

4. The micro puree machine according to claim 1, wherein the controller is further arranged to receive timing data from a timer, the controller controlling operation of the drive motor and the positioning motor based on the configuration data and the timing data.

5. The micro puree machine of claim 4, wherein said timer includes a clock operated by a processor associated with said controller.

6. The micro puree machine of claim 1, wherein the configuration data includes a first zone designation of a plurality of zone designations.

7. The micro puree machine of claim 6, wherein said first zone designation is associated with a full volume of a container containing said first food type.

8. The micro puree machine of claim 7, wherein a second zone designation is associated with a top of said volume of said container and a third zone designation is associated with a bottom of said volume of said container.

9. The micro puree machine of claim 1, wherein the user interface is configured to at least one of: a user selection of one of a plurality of zones associated with different portions of a container volume containing the first food product type is received, and a status of the processing of the first food product type is displayed while the first routine is running.

10. The micro puree machine of claim 1, wherein the routine includes a plurality of stages.

11. The micro puree machine of claim 10, wherein the first routine and the second routine differ in number of stages.

12. The micro puree machine according to claim 10, wherein each phase corresponds to a period of time.

13. The micro puree machine according to claim 12, wherein said time periods of at least two phases are the same.

14. The micro puree machine of claim 9, wherein said user interface displays said status of processing of said first food type by displaying a number associated with each stage of operation of said routine when said first routine is running.

15. The micro puree machine according to claim 14, wherein the value of said number decreases as said routine enters each phase in time sequence until said routine ends.

16. A food processor appliance motor control system, comprising:

17. The food processor appliance motor control system of claim 16 wherein controlling operation of the drive motor comprises controlling at least one of activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and speed of the drive motor.

18. The food processor appliance motor control system of claim 16 wherein controlling operation of the positioning motor comprises controlling at least one of activation, deactivation, rotational direction, and speed of the positioning motor.

19. The food processor appliance motor control system of claim 16 wherein the controller is further arranged to receive timing data from a timer, the controller controlling operation of the drive motor and the positioning motor based on the configuration data and the timing data.