阅读说明：本技术 用于制作面包的设备和方法 (Apparatus and method for making bread ) 是由 S·B·贾德弗 M·E·赫耶尔 S·M·约翰逊 W·M·维塔斯 于 2018-02-27 设计创作，主要内容包括：用于使制作例如烤饼的扁面包的过程自动化的装置和方法。在一些实施方案中,设备包括：壳体、配料计量组件、混合碗组件、混合致动器组件、烹饪组件和电子组件。壳体限定内部容积并且具有多个具有相应盖子和/或覆盖物的进入开口。配料计量组件包括面粉容器组件、面粉输送系统、储水器和储油器。混合碗组件包括两个碗和测量系统。混合致动器组件包括混合支架、混合马达、混合桨组件和下马达。烹饪组件包括两个压板和致动器组件。电子组件包括电源、控制模块和LCD输入/输出屏。所有部件都集成在壳体内,使得该设备是消费级台面器具。(Apparatus and method for automating the process of making flat bread, such as a pancake. In some embodiments, an apparatus comprises: a housing, an ingredient metering assembly, a mixing bowl assembly, a mixing actuator assembly, a cooking assembly, and an electronics assembly. The housing defines an interior volume and has a plurality of access openings with corresponding covers and/or coverings. The ingredient metering assembly comprises a flour container assembly, a flour conveying system, a water storage device and an oil storage device. The mixing bowl assembly includes two bowls and a measuring system. The mixing actuator assembly includes a mixing bracket, a mixing motor, a mixing paddle assembly, and a lower motor. The cooking assembly includes two platens and an actuator assembly. The electronic assembly includes a power supply, a control module, and an LCD input/output screen. All of the components are integrated within the housing such that the device is a consumer grade counter top appliance.)

1. An apparatus, comprising:

a container configured to hold ingredients, the container configured to be coupled to a cooking device; and

a machine-readable component coupled to the container, the machine-readable component storing recipe information associated with the ingredients, the recipe information including at least a quantity of the ingredients, electronic circuitry of the cooking appliance configured to receive the recipe information from the machine-readable component, the cooking appliance configured to manipulate the container to transfer the quantity of the ingredients from the container based on the recipe information.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cooking device is configured to move the container a distance associated with the quantity to transfer the quantity of ingredients from the container.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the container is a rigid container configured to hold a solid ingredient.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the outer surface includes a cylindrical portion configured to matingly engage a rolling actuator of the cooking device such that rotation of the rolling actuator rotates the container to transfer the quantity of ingredients from the container.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the container includes an outlet portion including a dispensing protrusion and defining an outlet channel, the dispensing protrusion and the outlet channel collectively configured to deliver a predetermined amount of the ingredient from the container in each rotation of the container.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the outlet channel is a spiral channel.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the machine-readable component is any one of a wireless machine-readable component, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, a barcode, or a Quick Response (QR) code.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the recipe information is encrypted.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein:

the recipe information includes a maximum number of services associated with the ingredient container and an actual number of services associated with the ingredient container; and

the machine-readable component is a machine-writable component configured to receive the incremented actual serving number from the cooking appliance after the amount of ingredient is transferred from the container.

10. The method comprises the following steps:

inserting an ingredient container into a cooking device, the ingredient container containing a first ingredient, the ingredient container associated with a machine readable component, the machine readable component storing recipe information related to the first ingredient; and

actuating the cooking device for:

causing a recipe module of the cooking appliance to receive recipe information from the machine readable component;

mixing a first amount of a first ingredient with a second amount of a second ingredient to produce an ingredient mix, the first amount and the second amount based on the recipe information; and

cooking an ingredient mixture at a temperature for a cooking time, the temperature and cooking time based on the recipe information.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the recipe information is encrypted; and

the recipe module of the cooking appliance decrypts the recipe information.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the cooking appliance mixes the first amount and the second amount without user input.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the cooking appliance cooks the ingredient mixture without user input.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the recipe information includes an expiration date of the first ingredient; and

actuating the cooking appliance also causes the cooking appliance to produce an expiration output when the expiration date has passed.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the expiration output is at least one of a light output, a sound output, a text output displayed on a screen of the cooking appliance, or a wireless signal.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the recipe information includes a maximum number of services associated with the ingredient container; and

actuating the cooking appliance further causes a locking module of the cooking appliance to:

incrementing an actual number of services associated with the ingredient container;

comparing the actual number of services to the maximum number of services; and is

Disabling the cooking appliance when the actual service number is greater than the maximum service number.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the machine-readable component is any one of a wireless machine-readable component, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, a barcode, or a Quick Response (QR) code.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein:

the recipe information includes a maximum number of services associated with the ingredient container and an actual number of services associated with the ingredient container; and

actuating the cooking appliance further causes a locking module of the cooking appliance to disable the cooking appliance when the actual serving count is greater than the maximum serving count

19. The method of claim 18, wherein:

the machine-readable component is a machine-writable component; and

actuating the cooking appliance also causes the recipe module cooking appliance to increment an actual number of services and write the incremented actual number of services to the machine-writable component.

20. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving recipe information from a machine readable component of an ingredient container related to a first ingredient stored within the ingredient container, the recipe information including a first amount of the first ingredient, a second amount of the second ingredient, a cooking temperature, and a cooking time;

sending a first metering signal associated with the first amount to a metering component of a cooking apparatus, the metering component configured to dispense the first amount of first ingredient into a mixing bowl of the cooking apparatus in response to the first metering signal;

sending a second metering signal related to the second amount to the metering assembly, the metering assembly configured to dispense a second amount of a second ingredient into the mixing bowl in response to the second metering signal; and

transmitting a cooking signal associated with the cooking temperature and cooking time to a cooking component of the cooking apparatus, the cooking component configured to cook an ingredient mix of a first ingredient and a second ingredient based on the cooking signal.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the machine-readable component is any one of a wireless machine-readable component, a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag, a barcode, or a Quick Response (QR) code.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the recipe information includes a maximum amount associated with the ingredient container, the method further comprising:

incrementing an actual amount associated with the ingredient container;

comparing the actual amount to the maximum amount; and

disabling the cooking appliance when the actual amount is greater than the maximum amount.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the recipe information includes a maximum amount associated with the ingredient container, the method further comprising:

incrementing an actual amount associated with the ingredient container; and

disabling the cooking appliance when the actual amount is greater than the maximum amount.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, wherein the recipe information includes an expiration date for the first ingredient, the method further comprising:

when the expiration date has passed, an expired output is generated.

25. The computer-implemented method of claim 24, wherein the expiration output is at least one of a light output, a sound output, a text output displayed on a screen of the cooking appliance, or a wireless signal.

26. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, further comprising:

transmitting, from a radio of the cooking appliance, a wireless signal associated with operation of the cooking appliance, the wireless signal received by a mobile computing device.

27. The computer-implemented method of claim 26, wherein:

the recipe information is first recipe information; and

the wireless signal is associated with any one of an expiration date, second recipe information, a bread quantity, or a low ingredient indicator.

28. The computer-implemented method of claim 27, wherein the second recipe information is associated with a size of the bread or a cooking characteristic of the bread.

29. The computer-implemented method of claim 20, further comprising:

receiving, from a mobile computing device, a wireless signal associated with operation of the cooking device.

30. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

receiving, from a machine readable component of an ingredient container, first recipe information associated with a first ingredient stored within the ingredient container, the recipe information including at least one of a first amount of the first ingredient, a second amount of a second dosage, a cooking temperature, and a cooking time;

receiving second recipe information, the second recipe information including a plurality of cooking item numbers;

sending a first metering signal associated with the first amount to a metering component of a cooking apparatus, the metering component configured to dispense a first amount of a first ingredient into a mixing bowl of the cooking apparatus in response to the first metering signal;

sending a second metering signal associated with a second amount to a metering assembly configured to dispense a second amount of a second ingredient into the mixing bowl in response to the second metering signal;

transmitting a cooking signal associated with a cooking temperature and a cooking time to a cooking component of the cooking apparatus, the cooking component configured to cook an ingredient mix of the first ingredient and the second ingredient based on the cooking signal; and

the first metering signal, the second metering signal and the cooking signal are repeatedly transmitted based on the number of cooking items.

31. The computer-implemented method of claim 30, wherein receiving second recipe information comprises receiving a wireless signal associated with the second recipe information from a mobile computing device.

32. An apparatus, comprising:

an ingredient metering assembly configured to deliver a first amount of a first ingredient into a mixing volume, the ingredient metering assembly configured to deliver a second amount of a second ingredient into the mixing volume;

a mixing assembly configured to mix a first ingredient and a second ingredient to form an ingredient mix;

a cooking assembly comprising at least one heating surface, the cooking assembly configured to cook the ingredient mixture at a cooking temperature for a cooking time; and

an electronic circuit system comprises a processing device, a memory, a formula module, a metering module and a cooking module,

the recipe module implemented in at least one of a memory or a processing device, the recipe module configured to receive recipe information associated with at least a first ingredient stored within an ingredient container from a machine readable component of the ingredient container, the recipe information including a first amount of the first ingredient, a second amount of the second ingredient, a cooking temperature, and a cooking time,

the metering module implemented in at least one of the memory or the processing device, the metering module configured to generate a first metering signal to actuate the ingredient metering assembly to deliver a first amount of the first ingredient into the mixing volume, the metering module configured to generate a second metering signal to actuate the ingredient metering assembly to deliver a second amount of the second ingredient into the mixing volume,

the cooking module is implemented in at least one of a memory or a processing device, the cooking module configured to generate a cooking signal to actuate the cooking assembly to cook the ingredient mixture at a cooking temperature for a cooking time.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein:

the first ingredient is a solid;

the second ingredient is a liquid; and

the ingredient metering assembly includes a motor configured to move the ingredient container to deliver a first amount of a first ingredient into the mixing volume in response to the first metering signal and a valve configured to regulate a flow of a second ingredient in response to a second metering signal.

34. The apparatus of claim 33, wherein the motor is configured to rotate the ingredient container.

35. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the cooking assembly comprises a first platen having a first heating surface and a second platen having a second heating surface, the cooking assembly configured to cook a first side of the ingredient mixture through the first heating surface for a first portion of the cooking time, the cooking assembly configured to cook a second side of the ingredient mixture via the second heating surface for a second portion of the cooking time.

36. The apparatus of claim 35, further comprising:

a platen actuator assembly configured to rotate a cooking assembly between a first orientation and a second orientation, the first heating surface being located below the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, the second heating surface being located below the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation.

37. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein:

the recipe information includes an expiration date for the first ingredient; and

the electronic circuitry includes an output module implemented in at least one of the memory or the processing device, the output module configured to generate an expired output when the expiration date has passed.

38. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein:

the recipe information includes a maximum number of services associated with the ingredient container; and

the electronic circuitry includes a lockout module implemented in at least one of the memory or the processing device, the lockout module configured to increment an actual number of servings associated with the ingredient container and disable the cooking device when the actual number of servings is greater than a maximum number of servings.

39. An apparatus, comprising:

a cooking assembly comprising a first platen having a first flattened mass and a first heating surface and a second platen having a second flattened mass and a second heating surface, the second platen coupled with the first platen such that the first heating surface and the second heating surface define a platen volume within which an ingredient mixture can be disposed; and

an actuator assembly configured to move at least one of the first platen or the second platen to reduce the platen volume to place the cooking assembly in a flattened configuration, the first heating surface and the second heating surface each configured to contact the ingredient mix when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration, the actuator assembly configured to rotate at least one of the first platen or the second platen between a first orientation and a second orientation, the first heating surface being below the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, the second heating surface being below the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation.

40. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the first heating surface is positioned between the support surface and the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, and the second heating surface is positioned between the support surface and the first heating surface when the assembly is in the second orientation.

41. The apparatus of claim 40, wherein the actuator assembly is configured to rotate the first and second platens when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration.

42. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein:

the actuator assembly is configured to move at least one of the first platen or the second platen when the cooking assembly is in a first orientation to place the cooking assembly in a first cooking configuration, the first heating surface is configured to contact the ingredient mixture and the second heating surface is configured to be spaced apart from the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration, the first heating surface is configured to heat the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration; and

the actuator assembly is configured to move at least one of the first or second platens when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation to place the cooking assembly in the second cooking configuration, the second heating surface is configured to contact the ingredient mixture and the first heating surface is configured to be spaced apart from the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the second cooking configuration, and the second heating surface is configured to heat the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the second cooking configuration.

43. The apparatus of claim 39, the actuator assembly configured to rotate the cooking assembly between the first orientation and the second orientation about an axis of rotation parallel to at least one of the first heating surface or the second heating surface.

44. The apparatus of claim 42, further comprising:

a controller configured to activate the first cooking surface and deactivate the second cooking surface when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration, the controller configured to deactivate the first cooking surface and activate the second cooking surface when the cooking assembly is in the second cooking configuration.

45. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein the first heating surface is configured to move relative to the first flattened mass.

46. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein the first platen includes a biasing member configured to urge the first heating surface away from the first flattened mass.

47. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein the first heating surface is configured to rotate relative to the first flattened mass.

48. The apparatus of claim 45, wherein:

the first heating surface is not parallel to the first flattened mass when the cooking assembly is in the receiving configuration, the first and second heating surfaces each configured to contact the ingredient mixture to limit movement of the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the receiving configuration; and

the first heating surface is parallel to the first flattened mass when the cooking assembly is in a flattened configuration.

49. The apparatus of claim 48, wherein the first heating surface is configured to rotate relative to the first flattened mass when the actuator assembly moves at least one of the first platen or the second platen to place the cooking assembly in the flattened configuration.

50. The apparatus of claim 42, wherein:

the first heating surface is in contact with the first flattened mass when the cooking assembly is in a flattened configuration; and

the first heating surface is spaced apart from the first flattened mass when the cooking assembly is in a first cooking configuration.

51. The apparatus of claim 39, wherein:

the cooking assembly comprises a connecting member coupling the second platen to the first platen, the connecting member configured to allow movement of the first platen in a first degree of freedom relative to the second platen, the connecting member configured to constrain movement of the first platen in a second degree of freedom relative to the second platen; and is

The actuator assembly includes a first motor configured to move at least one of the first platen or the second platen in a first degree of freedom to place the cooking assembly in the flattened configuration and a second motor configured to rotate the connecting member in a second degree of freedom to transition the cooking assembly between the first orientation and the second orientation.

52. An apparatus, comprising:

a cooking assembly comprising a first platen having a first flattened mass and a first heating surface configured to rotate relative to the first flattened mass, and a second platen comprising a second flattened mass and a second heating surface, the second platen coupled to the first platen such that the first heating surface and the second heating surface define a platen volume within which an ingredient mixture can be configured; and

an actuator assembly configured to move at least one of the first or second pressure plates to transition the cooking assembly from the receiving configuration to the flattened configuration, the first heating surface being non-parallel to the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the receiving configuration, such that when the cooking assembly is in the receiving configuration, the first and second heating surfaces are each configured to contact the ingredient mixture to limit movement of the ingredient mixture within the pressure plate volume, when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration, the first heating surface is parallel to the second heating surface, and when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration, the first and second heating surfaces are each configured to exert a compressive force on the ingredient mixture.

53. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the first heating surface is coupled to the first flattened mass by a hinge joint about which the first heating surface is configured to rotate relative to the first flattened mass when the cooking assembly is transitioned from the receiving configuration to the flattened configuration.

54. The apparatus of claim 53, wherein:

a first side of the first heating surface is coupled to a first flattened mass by the hinge joint, and

the second side of the first heating surface is coupled to the first flattened mass by a releasable latch when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration.

55. The apparatus of claim 54 wherein the actuator assembly is configured to actuate the releasable latch to allow the first heating surface to rotate relative to the first flattened mass to place the cooking assembly in the receiving configuration.

56. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the actuator assembly comprises a first pressing member configured to contact a central portion of the first flattened mass to transfer the compressive force from the first pressing member to the central portion of the first flattened mass, the first pressing member spaced apart from a peripheral portion of the first flattened mass, and a second pressing member configured to contact the second flattened mass to transfer the compressive force from the second pressing member to the second flattened mass.

57. The apparatus of claim 56, wherein the first pressing member is coupled to a first lead screw and a second lead screw, the first flattened mass between the first lead screw and the second lead screw.

58. The apparatus of claim 56, wherein a central portion of the first flattened mass comprises a protrusion comprising a contact surface.

59. The apparatus of claim 52, further comprising:

an electronic control system comprising a sensor configured to generate a force signal associated with a applied force and a pressure module implemented in at least one of a memory or a processing device, the pressure module configured to receive the force signal and adjust a motor signal that controls motor actuation based on the force signal.

60. The apparatus of claim 52, wherein the actuator assembly is configured to rotate the cooking assembly between a first orientation and a second orientation, the first heating surface being located between the support surface and the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, the second heating surface being located between the support surface and the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation.

61. The apparatus of claim 60, wherein:

the actuator assembly is configured to move at least one of the first platen or the second platen when the cooking assembly is in a first orientation to place the cooking assembly in a first cooking configuration, the first heating surface is configured to contact the ingredient mixture and the second heating surface is configured to be spaced apart from the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration, the first heating surface is configured to heat the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration; and

the actuator assembly is configured to move at least one of the first or second platens when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation to place the cooking assembly in the second cooking configuration, the second heating surface is configured to contact the ingredient mixture and the first heating surface is configured to be spaced apart from the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the second cooking configuration, and the second heating surface is configured to heat the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the second cooking configuration.

62. The method comprises the following steps:

delivering an ingredient mixture into a platen volume defined by a cooking assembly comprising a first platen and a second platen, the platen volume defined between a first heating surface of the first platen and a second heating surface of the second platen;

moving at least one of the first platen or the second platen to place the cooking assembly in a flattened configuration, the first heating surface and the second heating surface both being in contact with the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration; and is

Rotating the cooking assembly between a first orientation and a second orientation, the first heating surface being located below the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, the second heating surface being located below the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation.

63. The method according to claim 62, wherein said rotating comprises rotating said first platen and said second platen.

64. The method of claim 62, further comprising:

moving at least one of the first platen or the second platen to place the cooking assembly in a first cooking configuration when the cooking assembly is in a first orientation, the first heating surface being in contact with the ingredient mixture and the second heating surface being spaced apart from the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the first cooking configuration; and is

Heating an ingredient mixture through the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in a first cooking configuration.

65. The method of claim 64, wherein moving at least one of the first platen or the second platen comprises moving the first platen and moving the first heating surface relative to the first flattened mass.

66. An apparatus, comprising:

a container assembly comprising a first container and a second container, the first and second containers defining a mixing volume in which a first ingredient and a second ingredient are mixable to produce an ingredient mix,

at least one of the first container or the second container includes a coupling portion configured to movably couple the second container to the first container, the container assembly is configured to transition between a measuring configuration, a mixing configuration, and a delivery configuration, the first container does not support the second container when the container assembly is in the measuring configuration, the first sealing surface of the first container is in contact with the second sealing surface of the second container when the container assembly is in the mixing configuration, and the first sealing surface is spaced apart from the second sealing surface and defines an oblique angle with the second sealing surface when the container assembly is in the delivery configuration.

67. The apparatus of claim 66, wherein the first sealing surface is spaced apart from the second sealing surface when the container assembly is in the measuring configuration.

68. The apparatus of claim 66, wherein:

the coupling portion of the first container defines an elongated slot; and

the second container is coupled to the first container by a pin disposed within the elongated slot, the second container configured to rotate about the pin relative to the first container as the container assembly moves between the mixing configuration and the delivery configuration.

69. The apparatus according to claim 68, wherein the second container comprises a delivery guide configured to direct the ingredient mixture out of the container assembly when the container assembly is in the delivery configuration.

70. The apparatus of claim 68, wherein an inner surface of the second container comprises a plurality of ribs.

71. The apparatus of claim 66, further comprising:

a container actuator assembly configured to manipulate a second container to transition the container assembly between a measuring configuration, a mixing configuration, and a delivery configuration, an outer surface of the second container configured to contact a platform of the container actuator assembly.

72. The apparatus of claim 71, wherein the container actuator assembly comprises:

a motor configured to move the platform to exert a force on the second container to maintain the second sealing surface in contact with the first sealing surface when the container assembly is in the mixing configuration; and

a load cell configured to support a second container when the container assembly is in a measuring configuration, the load cell configured to generate a signal associated with a quantity of at least a first ingredient within the container assembly.

73. The apparatus of claim 72 wherein the platform comprises a stop surface configured to limit the force exerted by the second container on the load cell.

74. The apparatus of claim 66, further comprising:

a mixing actuator assembly configured to mix the first ingredient and the second ingredient within the mixing volume when the container assembly is in the mixing configuration to produce an ingredient mixture.

75. The apparatus of claim 74, wherein the mixing actuator assembly includes a paddle having a first portion configured to rotate relative to the container assembly and a second portion configured to move relative to the first portion to produce the ingredient mixture.

76. The apparatus of claim 75, wherein the second portion of the paddle is configured to move in a first direction relative to the first portion of the paddle, the first portion comprising a biasing member configured to bias the second portion of the paddle in a second direction.

Technical Field

Embodiments described herein relate generally to the field of making bread, and in particular to the field of making flat bread.

Background

Scones (roti), also known as pancakes (chapatti), are an unfermented flat bread derived from the indian subcontinent. Although a piece of scone may have any suitable shape (e.g., irregular shape), many scones are generally circular in shape, ranging from 150mm to 300mm in diameter and between about 1mm to 4mm thick. The main ingredients used to make the scones are flour, water and oil. Additional herbs and spices can be added to make the scones more palatable. Scones are often used to eat food in place of utensils. The user tears off a small portion of the cookie, folds it around a piece of food, and then grips the food to carry it from the plate into the user's mouth. Scones may also be used as a wrap, where a user places food into the scone and folds the scone around the food.

Traditional methods for cooking scones include producing a large dough mass by mixing and kneading ingredients. Taking out a small piece of dough, and rolling the small piece of dough on a plane by using a rolling pin. The flattened dough is placed on a hot cooking surface, turned once, and then placed on an open flame to expand the tortilla into an approximately spherical shape. The scone is removed from the flame and returned to a flat condition. Finally, the scones are placed in closed-lid containers with other scones until ready for serving. This method involves many steps, is time consuming, and is not amenable to automation with existing bread makers.

Most conventional automatic bread makers require the user to manually measure and add all ingredients to the machine. These bread makers then mix the ingredients and bake the dough in the same chamber for a fixed period of time, set by the cycle selected by the user. Such known bread makers are not suitable for making flat bread, such as scones. For example, while such known bread makers may mix ingredients to produce a dough, they rely on the user to select and measure the ingredients. This may lead to inconsistency in the baked product due to differences in the flour, inaccurate measurements, etc. This known bread maker also does not have any mechanism to flatten the dough and cook the flat bread into its final form. Furthermore, known bread makers do not have a mechanism for tumbling the dough during baking, which is important for producing true pancakes. For example, by tumbling the dough, the dough can be heated from a single side, and moisture can escape from the upwardly oriented side (i.e., the "top" side). However, known bread makers are not able to mimic this part of the cooking process.

Some known bread makers include a mechanism for flattening the dough with two plates (e.g., platens) and then baking the dough on both sides. While these devices are acceptable for some flat breads such as focacci and tortillas, they cannot be used to make some flat breads such as scones. As mentioned above, when cooking a pancake, the dough expands into an approximately spherical shape, which cannot be done in this known flat bread making device.

Therefore, there is a need for an apparatus and method that automates the process of making flat breads, such as pancakes.

Summary of The Invention

Disclosed herein are devices and methods for automating the process of making flat bread, such as pancakes. In some embodiments, the method comprises inserting an ingredient container into a cooking device. The ingredient container contains a first ingredient and is associated with a machine-readable component that stores recipe information related to the first ingredient. The cooking device is actuated to: A) causing a recipe module of the cooking device to receive recipe information from the machine readable component; B) mixing a first amount of a first ingredient with a second amount of a second ingredient to produce an ingredient mix, the first amount and the second amount based on recipe information; and C) cooking the ingredient mixture at a temperature and for a cooking time, the temperature and cooking time based on the recipe information.

In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a container and a machine-readable component. The container is configured to contain ingredients and is configured to be coupled to a cooking device. The machine readable component is associated with the container and stores recipe information related to the ingredient. The recipe information includes at least a quantity of the ingredient. The electronic circuitry of the cooking device is configured to receive recipe information from the machine readable component. The cooking device is configured to manipulate the container to transfer the quantity of the ingredient from the container based on the recipe information.

In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a cooking assembly and an actuator assembly. The cooking assembly includes a first platen and a second platen. The first platen has a first flattened mass and a first heating surface. The second platen has a second flattened mass and a second heating surface, and is coupled to the first platen such that the first heating surface and the second heating surface define a platen volume within which the ingredient mix can be disposed. The actuator assembly is configured to move at least one of the first platen or the second platen to reduce the platen volume to place the cooking assembly in a flattened configuration. The first heating surface and the second heating surface are each configured to contact the ingredient mixture when the cooking assembly is in the flattened configuration. The actuator assembly is configured to rotate at least one of the first platen or the second platen between a first orientation and a second orientation. The first heating surface is located below the second heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the first orientation, and the second heating surface is located below the first heating surface when the cooking assembly is in the second orientation.

In some embodiments, an apparatus includes a housing, an ingredient metering assembly, a mixing bowl assembly, a mixing actuator assembly, a cooking assembly, and an electronics assembly. The housing defines an interior volume and several access openings with corresponding access covers and/or coverings. The ingredient metering assembly comprises a flour container assembly, a flour conveying system, a water storage device and an oil storage device. The mixing bowl assembly includes an upper bowl, a lower bowl, and a measurement system. The mixing actuator assembly includes a mixing bracket, a mixing motor, a mixing paddle assembly, and a lower motor. The cooking assembly includes a first platen, a second platen, and an actuator assembly. The electronic assembly includes a power supply, a control module, and an LCD input/output screen. All of these components are integrated within the housing such that the device is a countertop appliance.