Technical Report Draft 1
Background
According to the website from Kitchn (Brones, 2015) siphon coffee maker brews a very clean and fragrance tasting coffee. This method was found earlier in the 1830s by “Loeff of Berlin” and soon it became popular due to a French woman named “Marie Fanny Ameine” Massot of Lyons, who “designed the first commercially successful vacuum coffee brewer” (Brones, 2015, para 2). The design featured “two glass balloons” held by a frame, which is currently recognized as the siphon coffee maker. The two “glass balloons” are known as the upper chamber and lower chamber. By heating the lower chamber, the vapor pressure forces the water to rise into the upper chamber. Once it reaches the upper chamber, the water will mix with the coffee grounds. When the heating source is turned off, the loss in vapour pressure will cause the mixture to flow down into the lower chamber through a filter attached to the bottom of the upper chamber. As a result, the bottom chamber will be filled with brewed coffee. This process of brewing is as beautiful as its functional where it is meant to be brewed in front of your guests and to show off its elegance. Currently, there are two popular commercial brands used in the cafe industry namely, Yama and Hario (kitchn, 2015).
According to the website from Kitchn (Brones, 2015) siphon coffee maker brews a very clean and fragrance tasting coffee. This method was found earlier in the 1830s by “Loeff of Berlin” and soon it became popular due to a French woman named “Marie Fanny Ameine” Massot of Lyons, who “designed the first commercially successful vacuum coffee brewer” (Brones, 2015, para 2). The design featured “two glass balloons” held by a frame, which is currently recognized as the siphon coffee maker. The two “glass balloons” are known as the upper chamber and lower chamber. By heating the lower chamber, the vapor pressure forces the water to rise into the upper chamber. Once it reaches the upper chamber, the water will mix with the coffee grounds. When the heating source is turned off, the loss in vapour pressure will cause the mixture to flow down into the lower chamber through a filter attached to the bottom of the upper chamber. As a result, the bottom chamber will be filled with brewed coffee. This process of brewing is as beautiful as its functional where it is meant to be brewed in front of your guests and to show off its elegance. Currently, there are two popular commercial brands used in the cafe industry namely, Yama and Hario (kitchn, 2015).
The siphon brewing
method is considered to be one of the best brewing methods that produce one of
the best tasting coffees due to several factors. One of the factors is the
controlling of temperature. According to roastycoffee website (n.d), high
temperature of liquid by boiling the coffee can cause coffee ground to be
overly extracted which will result in sour taste or unpleasant smell. Low
temperature of liquid will delay the extraction process of the coffee ground
with the liquid, hence the flavor of the coffee is affected. Another factor is
the skills and attention required to brew the coffee. According to cafemoto
website (2019), to produce an excellent siphon coffee, the ratio of coffee
ground to water must be 1 gram of coffee ground to 16 milliliters of water.
Once the water is boiled and mixed with the coffee grounds, a precise time is
required to stir the coffee several times before turning the heat source off.
In addition, a hula daddy website, the siphon brewing process requires
attention as it “has to be watched and adjusted during the brew. Failure to
stay with the brewer can result in a cracked brewer and a huge mess” (Karen,
2014). The end product of using siphon coffee brewing will be visually &
aromatically stimulating yet having clean and gentle tasting coffee for all
consumers. Based on a study shown in mentalfloss website (2018), the aroma of
coffee will aid in stimulating the brain. On the website, an experiment was
conducted into two different groups of students entering two different rooms,
one room was filled with the aroma of coffee while the other room was not. Both
rooms were given a test and the students who were in the room filled with aroma
of coffee score slightly better as compared to those who were in the other
room.
Despite producing the
best tasting coffee as well as a very visually and aromatically stimulating
experience, the siphon coffee brewing process can be inconvenient and one might
end up having a bad coffee experience. In order to counter this issue, we
decided to implement the usage of a moka pot, where everyone as in home usage
and office usage can experience while keeping the brewing process simple and
maintaining its qualitative coffee (clean and gentle coffee along with its
aroma smell) while sacrificing the visual experience. The moka pot is known as
a stove top coffee brewing method. It uses a similar function to the
traditional siphon coffee maker (two glass vacuum chambers) where there is
siphon (water flows where there is vapor pressure) system involve. The material
used on the moka pot is aluminum and it comprises two chambers (upper and
lower) and the metallic filter resides in the top portion of the lower chamber.
When the water vapor pressure increases and submerges it together with the
coffee grounds, the increasing in pressure will force the fluid up through a
funnel at the bottom portion of the upper chamber and exit at the top small gap
of the upper chamber. The brewed coffee will be contained in the upper chamber.
Hence, the usage of moka pot will aid in reducing the “skills, attention”
required to a certain extent as compared to the siphon brewing method (two
glass vacuum chambers).
Problem Statement
An
ideal excellent tasting smart coffee machine would consist of programming
hardware that mainly focuses on regulating and controlling the temperature
while monitoring the timing of the brewing process at a high precise accuracy.
Purpose
Statement
This
report is to propose modifications on to a siphon coffee maker, which in this
case a moka pot, to enhance its ergonomic features. Implementing these
modifications will not only increase the efficiency of the process, it will
also reduce safety risks.
Proposed modification
The team took reference to the data collected and researched on the moka pot and found out that there are some limitations to its product. Based on these limitations, certain modifications can be implemented on to it.
Implementing a halogen heater to be attached to the moka pot. According to the tansun website, halogen heaters are able to conserve energy since they heat up a small area effectively using thermal radiation as compared to a stove, which uses gas. Moreover, they are relatively safe in most environments as they do not heat up themselves and produce carbon monoxide. The design of the halogen heater will be similar as an induction cooker with touchscreen interface. This allows for easy to carry around on the go.
The team took reference to the data collected and researched on the moka pot and found out that there are some limitations to its product. Based on these limitations, certain modifications can be implemented on to it.
Implementing a halogen heater to be attached to the moka pot. According to the tansun website, halogen heaters are able to conserve energy since they heat up a small area effectively using thermal radiation as compared to a stove, which uses gas. Moreover, they are relatively safe in most environments as they do not heat up themselves and produce carbon monoxide. The design of the halogen heater will be similar as an induction cooker with touchscreen interface. This allows for easy to carry around on the go.
Applications to control
functions such as, temperature and timing will be implemented on to the moka
pot. This will allow the user to determine the amount of heat required to brew
the coffee as well as controlling the entire period of the process.
Building a
water-indicator on the moka pot to check for the amount of coffee that is left.
This remarkable feature allows the user to determine when to brew a new batch
of coffee. The water-indicator is made of a transparent glass that is attached
onto the pot.
Benefits
The moka pot requires a stove in order for it to be heated to perform the siphon brewing process. In order to improve on the safety aspect of the product, the team implemented a halogen heater to be attached onto the moka pot to replace the original heating element, which is using a gas stove. In that way, fire hazard can be prevented since halogen heaters do not produce carbon dioxide, which is dangerous if left unattended. Adding the touch-screen feature on to the halogen heater can allow the user to adjust the temperature
The moka pot requires a stove in order for it to be heated to perform the siphon brewing process. In order to improve on the safety aspect of the product, the team implemented a halogen heater to be attached onto the moka pot to replace the original heating element, which is using a gas stove. In that way, fire hazard can be prevented since halogen heaters do not produce carbon dioxide, which is dangerous if left unattended. Adding the touch-screen feature on to the halogen heater can allow the user to adjust the temperature
The size of the moka pot
is small and therefore it is easy to carry around, making it portable. With
this feature, the team hopes to give consumers an experience whereby they are
able to enjoy their coffee at any time with electrical supply.
One area in which the
team’s coffee machine can be compared to other coffee makers such as Nespresso
is the pricing. The team wants to manufacture a coffee
maker which is cheaper
than a standard Nespresso but still able to give the quality the consumer
desires.
Evaluation
With the implementation of the halogen heating, mobile application and water indicator, the team feels that they are ready to enter the market but expects to suffer minor set-back.
With the implementation of the halogen heating, mobile application and water indicator, the team feels that they are ready to enter the market but expects to suffer minor set-back.
Implementing halogen
heater can reduce the amount of energy induced as the heating process happens
instantly but it can be costly to run which will be a challenge in trying to
bring down the manufacturing price of the coffee maker, affecting the pricing
to purchase the coffee maker machine.
The applications on the
smartphone is dependent on the internet connectivity. In the event where there
is internet connectivity problem, the user would not be able to control the
moka coffee pot through the mobile app and is required to physically attend to
the machine. However, the coffee machine itself is a simple design and is also
automated. Meaning to say, the user just has to press one button to stimulate
the entire cooking process.
Methodology
Having personally
experienced the process of brewing siphon coffee at the Starbucks reserve at
United Square outlet. All the staff at that outlet was given the title of
“coffee master” by wearing a black robe. I wanted to see and experience how the
coffee is being brewed and how it tastes. So, I requested one of the staff to
show me after I had selected the type of coffee bean which is called “Costa
Rica Las Lomas”. Las Lomas refers to “the hills” and these beans are grown
locally in their farm by collaborating closely with local agronomists and wet
mills, which result in their finest harvest into one outstanding lot. The
coffee grounds will allow one user to experience the taste of red apple,
caramel and chocolate notes with a creamy mouthfeel experience. During the
brewing process I had asked how it was made and what the steps were. The coffee
to water ratio they use is 25g to 385ml of water. Additionally, rather than the
given filter and the heating element which came in the package when they
brought the siphon brewing set. They replace it with their own disposable
filter paper as well as halogen heating element to hasten the brewing process.
With the usage of halogen heater, the process they took was only 1min 30seconds
as they used hot boiling water as the initial temperature. Afterwards, they
turn off the heat source and I get to see the coffee fluid flow downwards due
to gravity and lost in vapor pressure, leaving a beautiful curved residue of
the coffee grounds at the bottom of the upper glass chamber where the filter
paper is. In conclusion, the entire process was elegant yet leaving their
customer amazed and a happy ending with a nice aroma yet great tasting coffee
which isn’t too strong, accompanied by a small slice of chocolate chip cookie.
Even I myself, who isn’t a fan of coffee can start getting used to this.
The team researched on
the properties of a siphon coffee maker as well as the limitations to its
brewing method using articles and data sheets found on Google. An official
website of the company who produces the moka pot was used as reference to have
more details on the product. Once we read through the details, we were able to
find articles regarding its limitations. The team then devised multiple
solutions to counter the limitations of the product. In order to solidify our
solutions, articles based on the modifications were thoroughly researched by the
team to provide a strong verification on its feasibility.
Conclusion
In conclusion, in order to make the siphon
coffee brewer an automated machine, two modifications should be implemented.
The halogen heater, with in-built timer and temperature sensors reduce the
required user’s attention since it is a self-heating element. Moreover, the
function of a timer is to control the process based on its pre-set time, hence
the user does not have to pay attention to the whole process of brewing.
By adding these features into the coffee machine
maker, the ability to improve high quality coffee without the need for user’s
attention but still able to produce fine quality coffee is definitely something
to look forward to.
References:
https://www.tansun.com/gb_en/technical/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-halogen-heaters.html (halogen heater advantage and disadvantage)
http://101coffeemachines.info/moka/brikka-vs-moka-express/ (Detailed info about moka pot, all in one you can find)
https://www.tansun.com/gb_en/technical/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-halogen-heaters.html (halogen heating)
https://www.ushio.co.jp/kr/feature/halogenHeater/pdf/ushio_halogen_heater.pdf (details about halogen heating)
https://www.roastycoffee.com/coffee-brewing-temperature/ (details on temperature affecting the quality)
Appendix
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