US 20080089986Al

(19) United States

(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2008/0089986 A1
Song
(43) Pub. Date:
Apr. 17, 2008
(54)

COFFEE ROASTER AND CONTROLLING

METHOD OF SAME

Publication Classi?cation

(51)

Eugene Song, Seoul (KR)

(76) Inventor:

Correspondence Address:
FISH & ASSOCIATES, PC

(52)

ROBERT D. FISH
2603 Main Street, Suite 1050

(57)

Irvine, CA 92614-6232

Int. Cl.
A23N 12/12
A23F 5/04
A23N 12/08

(2006.01)
(2006.01)
(2006.01)

US. Cl. ........................... .. 426/466; 99/484; 99/486

ABSTRACT

Contemplated fully automated coiTee roaster have signi?

(21) Appl. No.:

11/608,025

cantly reduced energy demands, use electrical heat as a heat

source in a temperature-only driven program mode, and

(22) Filed:

Dec. 7, 2006

eliminate smoke and smell Within the roaster. Most prefer

ably, contemplated fully automated roasters Will consume
only about 10 percent of the energy as compared to known

(30)

Foreign Application Priority Data

devices on a per kilogram basis of beans and require no

Oct. 13, 2006

operator experience.

(KR) ...................... .. l0-2006-0099924

Temperature Control Processing Chart

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19 MAX I

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Apr. 17, 2008

US 2008/0089986 A1

COFFEE ROASTER AND CONTROLLING

METHOD OF SAME

[0007] Therefore, there is still a need to provide improved

colfee roasting devices that Will alloW fully automated
operation by an inexperienced user or even novice at sig

ni?cantly reduced poWer consumption.

[0001] This application claims priority to the Korean
national patent application With the serial number 10-2006
0099924, Which Was ?led Oct. 13, 2006.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002]

This invention relates to a coffee roaster and con

trolling methods of same, particularly, to a coffee roaster for

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008]

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to

provide a coffee roaster Which can e?iciently roast coffee

beans by using an electrical heater With very small poWer

consumption and eliminate smoke and smell generated When

roasting coffee beans, Whereby everyone can easily roast

economiZing in electric poWer only by using electrical heat

coffee beans in the optimum state While maintaining com

as a heat source When roasting coffee beans, eliminating

fortable circumstances in a room.

smoke by burning the smoke generated When roasting coffee

computer of a control unit so that inexperienced users can

[0009] It is another object of the present invention to

provide a coffee roaster Which is provided With an equip
ment for removing the smell and cooling the green beans
instead of a separate large-siZed equipment so as to be
installed at any places and circumstances, and Which is
provided as a poWer saving automatic machine like home

easily roast coffee beans to an optimum state.

electronics so that everyone can easily use it.

beans Within the device itself and eliminating smell gener

ated When roasting coffee beans, and a method of controlling
the same, in Which an optimal method for roasting coffee
beans is selected in advance and then preset in a micro

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] In general, When using electric poWer as a heat

source for roasting coffee beans, the heat source for roasting
1 kg of coffee beans needs 14 to 20 KW. Thus, if the Weight
of coffee beans to be roasted is 1 kg or more, gas heating (for

example, propane gas and LNG gas) is almost alWays used.

HoWever, gas heating typically requires an expert to pre

[0010] It is yet another object of the present invention to

provide a coffee roaster Which is made smaller for saving
electricity, in Which an electric heater is appropriately dis
posed so as to be capable of removing the smoke and
providing the additional heating, and in Which an open air
coil heater, a ceramic heater and sheath heater are disposed
at the outside of a rotating drum, and in Which a halogen

dictably roast coffee beans to an predetermined degree.

lamp heater for directly transferring heat to the beans is

installed Within the drum to increase thermal e?iciency.
[0011] It is yet another object of the present invention to

[0004]

provide a coffee roaster in Which a curved re?ector is

Further, an important knoW-hoW for roasting coffee

beans is to ?nd certain points When a ?rst crack sound is

installed at the upper side of the halogen lamp heater to

generated upon applying the heat to green beans, Wherein

the ?rst crack sound is failed by reducing the heat after a

protect the halogen lamp heater and to re?ect light doWn

While, and When the heat is further reduced after a second

crack sound is generated again so that the beans have a
desired color.

[0005] As described above, since the technique of roasting

coffee beans is largely depended upon the experts experi
ence and skill to ?nd the points of the ?rst, second, and third
crack sounds and requires increasing or reducing the heat

Wardly.
[0012]

It is yet another object of the present invention to

provide a coffee roaster provided With a multi-step smoke

eliminator assembly in Which a coil heater is Wound up in a

spiral shape Within a ceramic base through Which smoke

generated in the rotating drum is smoothly guided and then

completely burned at high temperature (about 700~l000o
C.) While passing along the heat coil.

While observing and heating the roasted coffee beans, it

[0013]

generally very dif?cult, if not even impossible for an inex

perienced user to predictably and reliably roast coffee beans
to a desired state. Even though neW machines for roasting

provide a coffee roaster in Which Water is injected into the

rotating drum so that steam is generated by the heat of the

coffee beans using hot air have been developed, resulting

roasted coffee is often not satisfactory for the general public.
Thus, the coffee roasting industry largely relies on expert
roasters.

[0006]

Further, When roasting the coffee beans, a consid

erable amount of smoke is generated, Which is in heretofore

knoWn devices typically discharged to the outside by install

ing a smoke pipe, or eliminated by installing a large smoke
collector (often 5 to 6 times larger as the roasting machine)
above the device in combination With an after-bumer for
burning the smoke collected in a smoke reserve tank (Which
is also six or more times as large as the roasting machine).
Therefore, a very large space is required to roast coffee
beans using heretofore knoWn devices. Moreover, a smoke

It is yet another object of the present invention to

rotating drum and the roasted beans, and the smoke is

pushed out by the steam and then completely removed by a
smoke eliminator and a deodoriZer (typically activated char

coal ?lter).
[0014] In order to accomplish these and other objects, a
coffee roaster according to the present invention comprises
a casing of a coffee roaster assembly; a rotating drum Which
is installed in the casing to roast beans; a drum shield for

surrounding an outer surface of the rotating drum; heating

elements, including a halogen lamp heater Which is installed
in the rotating drum to heat the rotating drum and beans, an

roasting operations, even When roasting a small amount

open air coil heater assembly Which is installed at an upper

part of the drum shield and a ceramic heater and a sheath
heater Which are respectively installed at the sides of the
drum shield; a ?rst sensor for bean temperature Which is
disposed at an inside of the rotating drum to measure a
temperature of the beans; a second sensor for drum tem
perature Which measures an inner temperature of the rotating
drum; a memory element for storing data values of tem

(several kilogram) of coffee beans.

peratures of the beans and the rotating drum, Which are

pipe is often essential to discharge the burned gas placing

further restriction to general use. Consequently, coffee bean

roasting is generally performed only in factories or smaller