A beverage production system is provided that includes a cup dispensing station configured to dispense cups and a beverage dispensing station configured to dispense a beverage. The beverage production system also includes a turntable assembly having a central axis, an inner turntable including a row of cup receptacles, and an outer turntable disposed circumferentially about the inner turntable. The inner turntable configured to rotate about the central axis to align the cup receptacles of the row with the cup dispensing station and the beverage dispensing station. The turntable assembly configured to align an opening in the turntable assembly with a cup receptacle in the row, the opening adjacent the outer turntable. The beverage production system also having an actuator configured to move a cup positioned in the cup receptacle in the row onto the outer turntable.

The present disclosure relates to an automatic beverage vending machine. The vending machine includes at least one beverage maker operable for making at least one beverage. The vending machine further includes a receiving station operable for receiving at least one cup at an exterior of the vending machine and moving the cup to an interior of the vending machine. The vending machine further includes a conveying mechanism operable for transferring the cup from the receiving station to the beverage maker in order to receive the beverage into the cup. The vending machine further includes a controller connected to the beverage maker, the receiving station and the conveying mechanism, and operable for coordinating movement of receiving the cup, transferring the cup and dispensing the beverage into the cup.

In one embodiment, the present disclosure includes a cloud computer system for controlling a plurality of remote devices comprising a cloud server including a cloud based operating system comprising a data model stored in a computer memory. The data model includes commands that may be performed by a plurality of remote devices in a remote system and, for each remote device, one or more operations for triggering processes executed by the remote device. The cloud based operating system generates a set of instructions from the plurality of commands and corresponding operations to control a portion of the remote devices to perform a task.

An apparatus for producing beverages. The apparatus comprises a dispensing system, a mixing unit, and a control unit comprising a user interface, which interact to prepare a particular beverage when requested by a user. When the control unit receives user input requesting the particular beverage via the user interface, it causes the dispensing system to dispense various ingredients (e.g., fragmented ice, water, flavoring ingredients, milk product) that are mixed by the mixing unit in order to prepare the particular beverage, which is served in a cup. In various embodiments, the apparatus may produce frozen beverages that include fragmented ice (e.g., shaved or crushed ice) as one of their ingredients, such as slush beverages and smoothie beverages, and/or hot beverages that include heated water as one of their ingredients, such as coffee and flavored coffee beverages (e.g., French Vanilla, Mocha, etc.).

The present application provides an automated beverage dispenser for dispensing a beverage and ice into a cup. The automated beverage dispenser may include an ice dispensing station with an ice auger and a weight sensor, a beverage dispensing station, and a control device. The control device instructs the ice auger to fill the cup with a predetermined amount of ice and instructs the beverage dispensing station to fill the cup with a predetermined amount of the beverage in response to a weight of the cup as determined by the weight sensor.

A beverage production system is provided that includes a turntable assembly comprising a central axis. The turntable assembly further includes an inner turntable and an outer turntable disposed circumferentially about the inner turntable. The beverage production system also includes a cup dispensing station configured to dispense cups onto one of the inner or outer turntables. The beverage production system also includes a beverage dispensing station configured to dispense a beverage into the cups.

A drink producing apparatus includes: a dispensing unit for dispensing carbonized liquid from the drink producing apparatus, a dispensing container, which is formed for receiving a carbonized liquid addable to a drink by the drink producing apparatus, wherein the dispensing container is connected to the dispensing unit of the drink producing apparatus for leading the carbonized liquid from the dispensing container to the dispensing unit, the dispensing unit comprises a dispensing opening, from which the carbonized liquid can be dispensed, a receiving device for receiving a vessel, wherein the carbonized liquid to be dispensed from the dispensing opening can be filled into the vessel, a position variation device, by which a position between the dispensing opening and the receiving device is variable, and a distance setting device, by which a vertical distance between the dispensing opening and a local reference location at or in the vessel is kept constant during the dispensing process of the carbonized liquid.

The invention also relates to a household refrigeration apparatus and to a method for producing and dispensing a mixed drink.

A human powered beverage-making apparatus powered by a user for providing an iced beverage includes a frame member, a hollow cylindrical wheel, an ice dispenser assembly, a conveyor assembly, and a beverage dispensing assembly. The frame member accommodates a hollow cylindrical wheel. The hollow cylindrical wheel is rotatably mounted on roller assemblies positioned on the frame member. The user rotates the hollow cylindrical wheel to generate a rotary drive. The ice dispenser assembly is attached to the frame member and positioned above a conveyor assembly. The ice dispenser assembly includes a drive plate rotatable by the rotary drive to dispense ice shavings into a container positioned on the conveyor assembly. The conveyor assembly is driven by multiple manual crank drives to convey a cup to the ice dispensing assembly, then to the compaction assembly, and then the filled container to a beverage dispensing assembly. The beverage dispensing assembly selectively dispenses one or more beverages into the filled container to provide the iced beverage.

A beverage dispensing apparatus includes a dispensing structure, a transportation mechanism linked with the dispensing structure and a staging structure linked with the transportation mechanism. A control system is linked with the dispensing structure, staging structure and the transportation mechanism. A sensor mechanism is linked with the control system. The sensor mechanism provides signals indicating the position of a cup. A cup identification system having an interactive display is connected to the control system. The display has visual characteristics indicating the position and characteristics of a cup.

In one embodiment, the present disclosure includes a cloud computing system for controlling a plurality of remote devices. The cloud computing system generates a set of instructions from a plurality of commands and corresponding operations to control the remote devices. In some embodiments, the system may be used to automatically produce an item, such as a food item.