Food movement and control within a container for food preparation

摘要

An apparatus and method for controlling the movement of a food product in a container is described. The apparatus can be cleanable, portable, and fully automated. It can include a main container for holding the food product and one or more other containers for holding a substance, such as liquid. The main container can be moved between the one or more other containers so that the food product is immersed in the substance (e.g., liquid) in the one or more other containers. Any of the containers can be heated to heat the food product. This movement of the main container can be used run fully automated cycles (e.g., sprouting, rinsing, soaking, cooking, cleaning, etc.) that do not require user interaction.

主权项

1. A portable apparatus for preparing a food product comprising:
a first liquid container; a second liquid container; a main container associated with the first liquid container and the second liquid container, the main container for holding the food product; a mover associated with the main container for controllably moving the main container containing the food product between the first liquid container and the second liquid container, the mover further configured for controllably moving the food product in the main container to a draining location that is spatially disjoint from the first and second liquid containers; a heater associated with the second liquid container for heating the food product when the food product is in the second liquid container; a controller in communication with the heater and the mover for controlling the heater and the mover; and a sensor in communication with the controller that communicates to the controller when to control the mover to move the food product to the second liquid container, wherein the sensor is configured to automatically sense when to move the food product between the first liquid container and the second liquid container, and wherein the mover is configured to move the food product between the first liquid container and the second liquid container responsive to a signal from the sensor.