Abstract:
A blender having a base, a container, and a blade base includes a motor, a microcontroller, memory, a sensor and a user interface. The blade base connects the container to the base and includes a blade unit having at least a first blade and a second blade of a different design from the first blade. The microcontroller is in communication with the memory, sensor, motor, and user interface. Programs with preprogrammed motor commands for desired operations are stored in the memory. The user interface includes a liquid crystal display, or function switches and light emitting diodes. Upon selection of a particular pre-defined function, the microcontroller retrieves the appropriate program from the read only memory and specifies the preprogrammed motor commands to accomplish the selected function.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to an improved blender with food processor capabilities for blending, mixing, processing, slicing, chopping, separating, liquefying, aerating, etc. liquids and/or solids and having preprogrammed routines for the preparation of various food items.  
         BACKGROUND INFORMATION  
         [0002]    Blenders are household devices often used to blend or mix drinks or liquids. On the other hand, food processors are household devices commonly used to chop, cut, slice and/or mix various solid foods such as vegetables, fruits, or meats. Different blade designs and rotation speeds are used in a blender or a food processor in order to accomplish the mixing or cutting actions desired.  
           [0003]    Conventional household blenders typically have a motor connected to a blade assembly, and the speed of the rotating blade or motor may be varied based on selections made by the user.  
           [0004]    For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,678,288 to Swanke et al. describes a blender having seven speed selection push buttons. The push-buttons drive slider elements which close switches so as to selectively energize various combinations of fields in a drive motor having multiple fields. Field selection provides seven speeds in a high range. Seven speeds in a low range are obtained by applying only half cycles of the AC energizing voltage to the motor when certain combinations of the switches are actuated. Once a speed selection push button is depressed, the motor is energized until an OFF switch is actuated. The device also has a jogger or pulse mode pushbutton which energizes the motor at one speed only as long as the pushbutton is depressed. Pulsing the motor on/off or at high and then low speeds permits the material being processed to fall back to the region of the cutting knives thereby improving the processing of the material.  
           [0005]    U.S. Pat. No. 3,951,351 to Ernster et al. describes a blender having a rotary switch for selecting a high or low range of speeds and five pushbutton switches for selecting a speed within the selected range. The pushbutton switches connect various segments of the motor field winding in the energizing circuit. This device also includes a pulse mode pushbutton which causes energization of the motor only as long as the pushbutton is depressed. The motor may be energized in the pulse mode at any selected speed.  
           [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 3,548,280 to Cockroft describes a blender provided with 10 speed selection switches. A SCR is connected in series with the motor and has a control electrode connected to resistances which are brought into the electrode circuit by actuation of the speed selection switches to control the angle of firing of the SCR and thus the speed of the motor. This device also has a mode selection switch for selecting the manual mode or a cycling or pulse mode in which the motor is alternately energized and deenergized over a plurality of cycles, the number of cycles being set by a potentiometer controlled by a rotatable knob. In a preferred embodiment, the on and off intervals are set during manufacture but two potentiometers may be provided to enable an operator to vary the on and off times.  
           [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,205 to Piland describes a blender with a microcontroller for controlling energization of the blender drive motor. The speed of the motor is determined by a manual selection of N speed range selection switches, M speed selection switches, and a pulse mode switch.  
           [0008]    Typically, the blade attachment in conventional blenders consists of two straight edge blades, a top blade and a bottom blade, joined together at a central point with their respective ends oriented in opposite directions. Because of this blender blade design, conventional blenders have limited applications because they are not able to chop, slice or cut solid food as well as food processors. Food processors, which generally operate at slower speeds than a blender, are able to better chop, slice or cut solid food because of the curved or s-shaped blade design. Liquid typically must be added to the blender in order to successfully liquefy or cut solid food into very small pieces.  
           [0009]    Additionally, conventional blenders are not functionally preprogrammed with any motor control commands (e.g., speed, time, direction of rotation) which are automatically implemented when the user identifies a function for the blender, such as to prepare particular types of foods or drinks by selecting a button or key dedicated to the particular food or drink.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    The present invention provides a blender with a novel blade unit design which has improved food processing capabilities. The blade unit comprises a first blade and a second blade of a different design from the first blade. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the first blade is a straight edge blade and the second blade is a curved blade. There may also be an extraction mechanism for the blade unit.  
           [0011]    There is also provided a blender which is programmed to accomplish predetermined functions and tasks. The programs are preprogrammed into the microcontroller of the blender and include motor commands which are automatically accessed and implemented upon selection of a desired function.  
           [0012]    In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a blender comprises a base, a container, and a blade base wherein the base comprises a motor, a microcontroller, a sensor and a user interface. The microcontroller is in communication with the sensor, motor, and user interface, and can include a read only memory, a nonvolatile memory, and a central processing unit. Programs with preprogrammed motor commands are stored in the read only memory. The blade base connects the container to the base and includes a blade unit having at least a first blade and a second blade of a different design from the first blade. The user interface includes, for example, a liquid crystal display, function switches and/or light emitting diodes. Upon selection of a function, the microcontroller retrieves the respective program from the read only memory and executes the preprogrammed motor commands to accomplish the selected function. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
       [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an exemplary embodiment of the blender apparatus in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 is an exemplary embodiment of the blade base in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 is a general schematic diagram of an exemplary embodiment of a microcontroller in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIGS. 4A, 4B,  4 C, and  4 D show exemplary embodiments of various user interfaces for the blender apparatus in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the general logic of a LED blender apparatus in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 6 is an exemplary flowchart illustrating the general logic of a LCD blender apparatus in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 7 shows an exemplary embodiment of the cap and lid in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 8 shows an exemplary embodiment of the interaction between the cap and the bottom of the blade base in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 9 shown an exemplary embodiment of the interaction between the container and the sensor on the base in accordance with the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0022]    In the following description, various aspects of the present invention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specific configurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will also be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without the specific details. Furthermore, well known features may be omitted or simplified in order not to obscure the present invention.  
         [0023]    In an exemplary embodiment, a blender apparatus is provided with a novel blade unit design which enables the blender to have improved food processing capabilities. The blender apparatus is preprogrammed with a plurality of routines designed for particular food or drink items, for example, by taking a particular sequence of motor commands (e.g., direction of rotation, speed, duration or time of rotation, etc.) which are automatically implemented based on the function (e.g., end result) selected by the user. Additionally, sensors may be present on the apparatus of the present invention to detect the type of container in which the mixing or processing will take place. Other novel features of the present invention will become apparent below.  
         [0024]    As shown in an exemplary embodiment in FIG. 1, the blender apparatus  1  comprises a base  2 , a blade unit  3 , and a container  4 . The base  2  includes a motor which is adapted to actuate blade unit  3 . The motor may be uni-directional (capable of actuating or rotating the blade unit  3  in one direction only), or bi-directional (capable of actuating or rotating the blade unit  3  in either direction) as well as capable of oscillating the blade unit  3 . Such motors are well-known to those skilled in the art.  
         [0025]    The blade unit  3  can be permanently or removably attached to the blade base  11 , which in turn, can be permanently or removably attached to the bottom of container  4 . Blade unit  3 , as shown in an exemplary embodiment in FIG. 2, includes several blades: top or first blade(s)  12 , middle or second blade(s)  13 , and third or bottom blade(s)  14 . The top blade  12  and bottom blade  14  may be of any conventional blender blade design (e.g., straight edged). The middle blade  13  has, for example, a food processor blade design (e.g., curved, s-shaped). It has been discovered that including a food processor design blade  13  in combination with two conventional blender design blades  12  and  14  enables blender  1  to have superior chopping, cutting, and slicing capabilities which until now were typically limited to food processors. Other arrangements which combine straight edge blender blades with curved food processor blades may be used as well (e.g., two food processor blades and one blender blade, or one food processor blade and one blender blade). These blades may be made of any durable material such as metal, steel, carbon, etc. which can be sharpened and withstand high stress and heat.  
         [0026]    Blade unit  3  may also include an optional extraction mechanism  50  which allows a user to disengage blade unit  3  from blade base  11 . In an exemplary embodiment as shown in FIG. 1, extraction mechanism  50  comprises a projection extending from the center of the blade unit  3  which the user may pull to disengage the blade unit from the blade base  11 . The extraction mechanism  50  may be made of rubber, plastic, or any other suitable nontoxic material.  
         [0027]    To prevent the blade unit  3  from rotating out of the container  4  when a bi-directional motor is used and the motor runs in reverse, there is also present in an exemplary embodiment an anti-rotation projection  58  on base  2  as shown in FIG. 1. The anti-rotation projection engages with projections (e.g., projection  8  in FIG. 8) on the bottom of the blade base  11  to prevent the blade base from rotating out of the container when the motor is reversed.  
         [0028]    Container  4  may be any container known in the art used with blenders. Containers of any size, shape, function or design may also be used as long as there is a corresponding blade base  11  attached to the container which can properly engage the motor and base  2 . Thus, container  4  may be a single serving container useful for recipes such as a drink made for consumption by one person. A food processor container with food processor blades may also be used on the blender apparatus. This container flexibility allows the blender, even though it has enhanced food processor capabilities due to the novel blade design of the present invention, to operate purely as a food processor if desired. Each container  4  can be designed for use with a different blade unit  3  and/or a different blade base  11 . Alternatively, certain containers  4  can be designed for use with the same blade unit  3  and/or a same blade base  11 . Container  4  can be made from glass, plastic, metal, or any other suitable, nontoxic material which can resist high stress. Additionally, the inside of container  4  can be coated with non-stick coating such as Teflon® and the like to allow for better mixing or easier cleaning. The inside of container  4  may also have a smooth or circular cross sectional area to further promote better mixing or to minimize any accumulation of food or materials which may occur in containers having cross sectional areas with edges or corners (e.g., square, rectangular cross sectional areas).  
         [0029]    Markings  51  indicating various ingredient levels for recipes may be placed onto the container  4  to assist the user. For example, there may be markings  51  on a blender container  4  to illustrate the proper amounts of ice or liquids to use for making a drink. Such markings  51  can be a permanent (e.g., etched or embossed) or removable (e.g., removable stickers) part of the container  4 .  
         [0030]    A lid  52  is placed on top of container  4  to keep the food inside the container during operation. Lid  52  may include a lid opening  54  for the user to add materials into the container  4  during the operation of the blender. As shown in an exemplary embodiment in FIG. 7, a multi-purpose cap  53  is used to cover the opening  54  as well as to disengage the blade base  11  from container  4 . As illustrated in FIG. 8, the multi-purpose cap  53  includes notches  7  which engage the projections  8  on the blade base  11  to form a fitted connection for easier disengagement (e.g., by turning, pulling, etc.) of the blade base  11  from the container  4 .  
         [0031]    Sensors  40  may be present on base  2  to detect which type of container  4  is placed on the base  2 . As shown in FIG. 3, these sensors  40  are connected or interfaced with microcontroller  15 .  
         [0032]    In an exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 9, sensor  40  includes female members  55  and  56  which are located in different positions on base  2  and are each triggered by a different corresponding male member  57  located on container  4  or blade base  11 . For example, female member  55  may only be triggered by corresponding male member  57  as shown while a different male member (not shown) may be needed to trigger female member  56 . Additionally, there could be multiple male members  57  which are equidistantly positioned on the container  4  such that the container  4  may be attached to the base  2  from any direction and still trigger the proper female member  55 . The triggering of the female member identifies for the microcontroller  15  which container  4  is on base  2  and thus which preprogrammed functions may be used. The triggering of the female members  55  or  56  can depend on location, size, or any other physical properties of the blade base or container. Other sensor technologies (e.g., infrared, electrical, mechanical) known in the art can be used.  
         [0033]    Also located on base  2  is a user interface  5  which allows a user to operate the apparatus manually and/or select from the various preprogrammed functions available. As shown in a block diagram in FIG. 3, the user interface  5  is connected to a microcontroller  15  which includes, for example, a central processing unit (cpu)  6 , a read only memory  16  and a nonvolatile memory  17 , such as electronically erasable programmable memory (“E 2  PROM”). The microcontroller  15  is connected to or interfaced with power source  18 , motor  10 , and display  21 .  
         [0034]    Read only memory  16  is preprogrammed with various motor commands (e.g., direction of rotation, speed, duration, reversing of rotation, oscillation, etc.) designed to achieve a particular result. Thus, the preprogrammed motor commands are grouped together according to a function of the blender (e.g., the end result or purpose which the blender will be used for). For example, memory section  19  may contain a program with all the motor commands necessary to make salsa; memory section  20  may contain a program with all the motor commands necessary to mix a drink, etc. These preprogrammed motor commands are accessed and implemented upon selection on the user interface  5  of a desired function for the blender.  
         [0035]    Additionally, as described earlier, microcontroller  15  may be programmed to only implement certain functions based on which container  4  is detected by sensor  40 . For example, microcontroller  15  may be preprogrammed to implement the motor commands for making powdered drinks only if a regular blender or single serving container is used. Thus, if sensor  40  detects a food processor container on base  2 , then microcontroller  15  will not allow the powdered drinks program/function to be selected and implemented. In such a circumstance, if the user wants to make powdered drinks with a food processor container, the user would do so manually using the manual speed switches  27  and  28 .  
         [0036]    In a further exemplary embodiment, the user interface  5  includes a display  21  (see FIG. 4A or  4 D) such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or the like. In such an embodiment, the E 2  PROM  17  stores user-selectable parameters for the initial operation of the blender. When the blender  1  with LCD  21  is turned on, the LCD  21  is initialized and set up in accordance with the stored programming from the E 2  PROM  17 . Additionally, E 2  PROM  17  includes programming which will allow the text in LCD  21  to be displayed in multiple languages (e.g., English, Spanish) or units (e.g., metric, English). Further uses for the E 2  PROM  17  include subsequent storage of information in order to organize the LCD menu based on the most commonly selected functions or programs (e.g., the creation of a “favorites list”).  
         [0037]    E 2  PROM  17  also includes programming which allows the user to pause a program in operation and then resume the program from where it left off as well as to temporarily continue a selected function when a user pushes pulse switch  25  after a program has ended.  
         [0038]    [0038]FIGS. 4A, 4B,  4 C and  4 D illustrate exemplary embodiments for two types of user interfaces  5  which may be used with base  2 . One type, shown in FIGS. 4A and 4D, includes LCD  21 . Other types, shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C may use one or more light emitting diodes (“LED”)  22 .  
         [0039]    A power switch  23  is included on the LCD and LED variants of the user interface  5  to turn on or off the power, as is a start/stop switch  24  to begin or stop operation of the blender.  
         [0040]    There is also a pulse switch  25  which, when depressed, causes a temporary power surge to motor  10 . In this manner, the pulse switch  25  serves as a temporary “start” button which will cause the motor to run without hitting start/stop switch  24  as long as it remains depressed. Pulse switch  25  also can be depressed at the end of a program to keep the program or last motor speed implemented temporarily running until the pulse switch  25  is released.  
         [0041]    A pause/resume switch  26  can stop the operation of the blender when pressed a first time, and then resume operation of the blender from where it left off when pressed a second time.  
         [0042]    The user interface  5  also contains manual speed switches  27  (high) and  28  (low) so that the user can manually control the speed and operating time of the blade unit  3  to perform other functions not preprogrammed into the blender. The user can monitor the relative speed of the motor (e.g., the relative speed of the rotation of blade unit  3 ) on LCD  21  as the manual speed switches  27  or  28  are pressed. Such relative speed may be indicated by text, bars, symbols, or the like. With the LED-based user interfaces of FIGS. 4B and 4C, the relative speed of the motor is indicated by the position of the lighted LED  22  relative to the speed markers  29  (e.g., high, low; drink, food) or the relative blinking speed of a lighted LED  22 .  
         [0043]    A plurality of preprogrammed function switches  9  is included on the LED-based user interfaces of FIGS. 4B and 4C. The function switches  9  represent various programs for functions or end results which have been preprogrammed into the read only memory  16 . Thus, for example, pressing or touching a function switch  9  labeled “salsa” will cause microcontroller  15  to access memory section  19  of read only memory  16  for the program containing preprogrammed motor commands used to make salsa, and the preprogrammed commands will be executed by microcontroller  15  to control motor  10 . One skilled in the art will recognize that these preprogrammed motor comments or routines may be written using any conventional programming language such as c plus, java, and the like. To alert the user which function or program is running, a LED  22  can light up on the particular function switch  9  that was pressed.  
         [0044]    The LED-based variants of the user interfaces shown in FIGS. 4B and 4C may include a progress indicator  32  which indicates the relative completion of the program by color, lighted LED, or any other indicator means known in the art.  
         [0045]    In an exemplary embodiment of a LCD based user interface shown in FIG. 4D, a plurality of function switches  9  is also used to choose the various functions or programs for the blender. Here, the function switches  9  are lined up to correspond to a preprogrammed function/program shown on the LCD  21  screen. To select the program displayed on the LCD  21  screen, the user only need to press the corresponding function switch  9 ′.  
         [0046]    In another exemplary embodiment of a LCD-based user interface as shown in FIG. 4A, navigation switches  30  are used to choose the various functions or programs for the blender. Thus, as shown in FIG. 4A, navigation switches  30  are directional buttons (e.g., back, forward, up, down, or arrow symbols) which allow the user to navigate the LCD  21  screen until a particular function/program is selected using the select switch  31 . A progress indicator, as well as a manual speed indicator, may appear on the LCD  21  screen.  
         [0047]    The various switches  9  and  23 - 31  may be any kind of push button, membrane, or touch sensitive buttons or switch known in the art which sends a signal or command, or closes/opens a circuit when pressed or touched by the user.  
         [0048]    As shown in FIG. 5, in order to operate blender  1  with the LED-based user interfaces, the user first turns the power on at block  33  by pressing the power switch  23 . After container  4  and blade unit  3  have been properly secured to base  2 , and food or drink is loaded into container  4 , the user then selects a function/program for the blender  1  at block  34  by pressing any of the various function switches  9 . If there is a particular function switch which is not available (e.g., no preprogrammed motor controls for that function), the user can manually control the motor with manual speed switches  27  and  28 . Additionally, a preset function switch  9  may not work if the sensor  40  detects an incompatible type of container  4  for that function. Manual speed switches  27  and  28  could be used in that situation as well. A LED  22  on the selected function switch  9  lights up to remind the user of the current selection.  
         [0049]    Once a function is successfully chosen, the start/stop switch  24  is pressed at block  35  to begin the programmed operation. The microcontroller  15  runs motor  10  based on the preprogrammed motor commands stored in read only memory  16  for that selected function or program. Preprogrammed motor commands can include instructions on, for example, how fast the motor will run, the direction of blade rotation, the reversal of the blade rotation direction, the duration of rotation in a given direction, the oscillation of the blade unit, etc. A soft start program in the microcontroller  15  controls or slows the acceleration of the motor to a desired speed for better processing or mixing than prior conventional blenders where the motor accelerates to the maximum speed as fast as possible.  
         [0050]    As motor  10  runs during operation block  36 , the progress of the program is displayed on progress indicator  32  while the microcontroller  15  continues to execute the preprogrammed motor commands. There may be an overheating prevention control programmed into the microcontroller  15  (e.g., programming a limit as to how much power may be supplied to the motor).  
         [0051]    At block  37 , the pause/resume switch  26  is optionally pressed by the user to temporarily stop the blender operation. The program remains in effect, but the implementation of the preprogrammed motor commands is suspended and the status stored so that when the pause/resume switch  26  is pressed again at block  35 , the microcontroller  15  at operation block  36  will simply resume the program from where it left off. Thus, for example, if the program contained a preprogrammed motor command to rotate the motor at 60 rps for ten seconds, and the pause/resume switch  26  is pressed at block  37  five seconds into the program, then when the pause/resume switch  26  is pressed again at block  35 , the motor will resume rotation at 60 rps for another five seconds before ending the program.  
         [0052]    If the operation has not been paused, then the program simply continues until all of the preprogrammed motor commands for that function or program are fulfilled at block  38 . A termination tone may sound to alert the user of the program completion. If the user is not satisfied with the result and would like to continue the same program for an arbitrary time period, the user may depress the pulse switch  25  after the program ends.  
         [0053]    The user can then turn off the blender at block  39 , or begin the process again at block  34  by loading new materials into container  4  and then selecting a function/program.  
         [0054]    [0054]FIG. 6 illustrates a logic flowchart for the operation of a blender with an LCD-based user interfaces. The power is first turned on at block  41  by pressing power switch  23 . A menu of options is then displayed on LCD  21  at block  42 . A standard menu may appear each time the power is turned on, or the menu may vary depending on which container  4  is placed on the base  2  as detected by sensor  40 . For example, if sensor  40  identifies a blender container on base  2 , then the LCD menu would display blender functions (e.g., mixing powder drinks, salsa, etc.) instead of food processor functions (e.g., fruits, vegetables, etc.) The menu may also include an option for choosing which language or measurement unit to display. Additionally, the menu may be set up depending on the most frequently selected functions or programs by the user. As described earlier, E 2  PROM  17  can be programmed to remember the most popular selections and to display them at the start of each operation for the user to choose.  
         [0055]    At block  43 , the user navigates through the LCD menu using the navigation switches  30  and makes selections using the select switch  31 , or the user simply makes a selection using the function switch  9 . If a particular function is not available on the menu, the user can manually control the motor with manual speed switches  27  and  28 . A function may not be displayed if the preprogrammed motor controls for that function are not available, or if that function is not available for the type of container detected by sensor  40 .  
         [0056]    Once a function is chosen, the start/stop switch  24  is then pressed at block  44  to begin the operation. The microcontroller  15  then runs motor  10  based on the preprogrammed motor commands stored in read only memory  16  for that selected function/program. Microcontroller  15  may also be programmed with a “soft start” feature to control the acceleration of the motor to the desired speed.  
         [0057]    As motor  10  runs at operation block  45 , the progress of the program is displayed on LCD  21  while the microcontroller  15  continues to monitor and implement the preprogrammed motor commands. As described earlier, microcontroller  15  can also be programmed with an enhanced speed control for the motor as well as an overheating prevention control.  
         [0058]    At block  46 , the pause/resume switch  26  may be pressed to temporarily stop the program (e.g., suspending the current implementation of preprogrammed motor commands). The status of these commands are stored by E 2  PROM  17  so that when the pause/resume switch  26  is pressed again at block  44 , the microcontroller  15  at operation block  45  will simply run the program from where it left off.  
         [0059]    If the operation has not been paused, then the program simply continues until all of the preprogrammed motor commands for that function are fulfilled at block  47 . A termination tone may sound to alert the user of the program completion. If the user is not satisfied with the result and would like to continue the same program for an arbitrary time period, the user may depress the pulse switch  25  after the program ends.  
         [0060]    At the end of the program, the LCD  21  will return to block  42  to display the menu again and the user may proceed with another operation. Alternatively, the user can turn off the blender at block  48 .