Patent ID: 8800432

Claim:
A system for refilling the filter-holders of a machine for the preparation of espresso coffee with selected doses of ground coffee to order, comprising at least one machine for the preparation of espresso coffee, the machine being provided with a plurality of dispensing units for the preparation of respective coffee beverages, each dispensing unit comprising a respective detachable filter-holder and a plurality of keys for selecting the beverage to be dispensed by the relative dispensing unit, at least one coffee bean grinder and metering device provided with a hopper for supplying coffee beans, the coffee bean grinder being adjustable to provide a desired grain size for the ground coffee, an outlet on the coffee bean grinder and metering device for supplying the ground coffee and a fork for supporting a selected filter-holder on the coffee bean grinder and metering device in alignment with a supply outlet to be refilled with the dose of ground coffee, the filter-holder and its respective dispensing unit being provided with a code and a respective code detector to identify the filter holder to be retained on the dispensing unit, the coffee bean grinder and metering device comprising a code detector disposed in the vicinity of the fork supporting the filter-holder for refilling with the dose of ground coffee, an identification unit on the espresso coffee machine generating information for recognising a selected filter-holder of a dispensing unit and information related to the type of dose with which the filter-holder is to be refilled, a detection unit on the coffee bean grinder and metering device for detecting the information generated by the identification unit, the detection unit causing the corresponding dose to be supplied to the selected filter-holder when the latter is removed from its respective dispensing unit and is supported by the fork of the coffe bean grinder and metering device, a wireless communicating device on the espresso coffee machine for transmitting the information generated by the identification unit to the detection unit on the coffee bean grinder and metering device.