A method for dispensing a beverage from a bottle that includes communicating a dispensing authorization message from a control unit to at least one of a server interface carried by a beverage server and a pour spout secured to a bottle, wherein the dispensing authorization message at least one of includes or initiates a dispensing command, and wherein the pour spout responds to the dispensing command by opening a spout valve through which a beverage flows from the bottle and out of the pour spout.

A pour spout, for attaching to a bottle, has a first wireless transceiver and a valve for selectively controlling flow of a beverage from the bottle. A server interface, adapted to be carried by a person who serves beverages, has a second wireless transceiver. A control unit is provided to wirelessly communicate with the second transceiver. In one mode, the pour spout transmits a spout identifier to the server interface, which responds by transmitting the spout identifier and a server identifier to the control unit. The control unit responds with a reply transmission causing the server interface to command the pour spout to open the valve. In another mode, a person selects a cocktail, that results in the control unit sending designations of a plurality of liquor ingredients to the server interface. The server interface controls dispensing each of the plurality of liquor ingredients.

Embodiments of the present invention provide corks and cork systems that find particular use in connection with wireless spouts used for monitoring the amount of liquid poured from liquid containers. It is desirable to be able to use a wireless spout with various differently-sized bottle. Accordingly, the cork features provided can ease removal and replacement of the wireless spouts onto and off of variously sized bottles, and allow the same spout to be re-used with a differently sized bottle.

Methods, devices, and systems are disclosed to implement an electronic pourer to dispense a liquid from a container. The electronic pourer can be used with an inventory system for inventory and/or accounting purposes. In one embodiment, the electronic pourer includes an orientation determining subsystem configured to determine an orientation of the electronic pourer, a wireless communication subsystem, a processing subsystem having at least one processing core, and a power source configured to power up the electronic pourer. The processing subsystem can be coupled to the orientation determining subsystem and the wireless communication subsystem to determine whether liquid has been dispensed from the electronic pourer based on the angular displacement of the orientation determining subsystem, and transmit information to an external computing device via the wireless communication subsystem. In another embodiment, the electronic pourer is equipped with a tamper-proof subsystem.

Using various embodiments, methods devices and systems to implement an electronic pourer to dispense a liquid are described. The electronic pourer can be used with an inventory system for inventory and/or accounting purposes. In one embodiment, the electronic pourer includes an orientation determining subsystem configured to determine an orientation of the electronic pourer, a wireless communication subsystem, a processing subsystem having at least one processing core, and a power source configured to power up the electronic pourer. The processing subsystem can be coupled to the orientation determining subsystem and the wireless communication subsystem to determine whether liquid has been dispensed from the electronic pourer based on the angular displacement of the orientation determining subsystem, and transmit information to an external computing device via the wireless communication subsystem. In another embodiment, the electronic pourer is equipped with a tamper-proof subsystem.

A scalable system that can secure, mount, and store a plurality of beverages of different sizes, shapes, and capacities on mobile racks for performing processor-assisted, hands-free ingredient dispensing and other ancillary dispensing activities. The mobile racks can be individually extracted from the system to perform empty beverage replacement. A beverage plug and tap is inserted into an opening of a beverage and the beverage plug compressed to seal the beverage opening. A spout is attached to the tap and fastened. The beverage is mounted onto a cradle in a dispensing position, the spout is inserted into a spout controller, and the mobile rack stowed back to the system with the mounted beverage ready for ingredient dispensing. A client-server applies the methods of a messaging protocol to manage the distributions of messaging protocol packets between connected clients over a wireless network. The messaging protocol packets carry beverage dispensing requirements to the controllers to direct the performances of beverage dispensing activities and, in particular to the spout controllers to direct ingredient dispensing. Abnormal events detected by sensors within the system are distributed by messaging protocol packets to report the abnormal events to clients that have subscribed to the client-server to receive the events.

A pour spout, for attaching to a bottle, has a first wireless transceiver and a valve for selectively controlling flow of a beverage from the bottle. A server interface, adapted to be carried by a person who serves beverages, has a second wireless transceiver. A control unit is provided to wirelessly communicate with the second transceiver. In one mode, the pour spout transmits a spout identifier to the server interface, which responds by transmitting the spout identifier and a server identifier to the control unit. The control unit responds with a reply transmission causing the server interface to command the pour spout to open the valve. In another mode, a person selects a cocktail, that results in the control unit sending designations of a plurality of liquor ingredients to the server interface. The server interface controls dispensing each of the plurality of liquor ingredients.

A vented transfer lid includes an inner collar projecting from a top panel of the transfer lid and having an outer circumferential surface having a texturized EDM surface finish. In some example forms, an interior surface of the top panel includes a texturized EDM surface finish. In example forms, the transfer lid includes a transfer port wherein at least a portion of an interior surface of the transfer port includes a texturized EDM surface finish. In other embodiments, at least a portion of the vented transfer lid comprises a nonpolar boundary such that fluids exposed to the nonpolar boundary bead and form droplets having a dimension rendering them incapable of passing through one or more vent paths.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a water dispenser, a water dispensing apparatus and a water dispensing reminder system. The water dispenser comprises a communication module and a water volume detection module which is configured to detect a water volume received by a user with a drinking vessel and output a result of the detection of the water volume through the communication module. The water dispensing apparatus comprises: the water dispenser, and an electronic device comprising at least one of a vital sign sensor and a motion sensor, and a signal transmission module; the vital sign sensor being configured to detect a vital sign information of a human body and to output the vital sign information through the signal transmission module, and the motion sensor being configured to detect a motion information of a human body and to output the motion information through the signal transmission module into the water dispensing reminder system. The communication module of the water dispenser and the signal transmission module of the electronic device are configured so as to transmit related information into the water dispensing reminder system, such that the water dispensing reminder system synthesizes the water volume received by the user or the vital sign information or the motion information of the human body which information may reflect conditions of the human body to determine a timing for providing a drinking reminder, so as to send a drinking reminder message in a more accurate manner.

A beverage dispensing system includes a point of sale and one or more free-pour and/or controlled-pour spouts. The system receives data at the point of sale that includes a beverage selection entered at a user interface and determines the ingredients in the beverage selection. A dispensing instruction is sent to one of the controlled-pour spouts to dispense a quantity of the ingredient based at least in part on the beverage selection. For the free-pour spouts, a quantity of the ingredient is measured as the ingredient is dispensed from a container through a free-pour spout. The point of sale receives data that includes the identity of the ingredient and the measured quantity. A price of the beverage selection is calculated based at least in part on the ingredients dispensed and the quantities thereof. The price may be automatically calculated upon dispensing of the beverage selection.