HK1085288A - Diagnostic data interchange - Google Patents

Description

Diagnostic data exchange

Cross Reference to Related Applications

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application No.09/587,797, entitled "Smart Commercial Kitchen Network", patent No. xxxx 1, filed 6.2000, No.09/587,797, U.S. patent application No.09/083,671, filed 22.1998, patent No. xxxx 2, entitled "Smart Commercial Kitchen Network", No.09/083,671, is a continuation of U.S. patent application No.08/643,207, filed 2.1996, No.5,875,430, entitled "Smart Commercial Kitchen Network", filed 6.6.6.2000, which are hereby incorporated by reference. Also, the present invention is directed to commonly assigned U.S. patent No.4,812,963 entitled "Multi-Cooking Computer Communication System" and U.S. patent application No.08/501,211 entitled "Multi Probe Intelligent diagnostic System For Food-processing apparatus" filed on 7/11 1995, which are hereby incorporated by reference.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a communication network, and more particularly to a communication network, such as a cooking computer communication system, for monitoring and controlling commercial kitchen or restaurant appliances and for providing two-way communication between the appliances and a control center. Such kitchen or restaurant appliances include, for example, deep fat fryers as found in today's restaurants and fast food chain stores, various different types of ovens and cooling systems, such as refrigerator and HVAC systems, and other related food processing systems.

Background

In recent years, as cooking and restaurant equipment has become more complex in large restaurants or institutional kitchens, there has been an increasing need to diagnose malfunctions with computers. However, today, cooking devices are serviced and serviced by a food service industry, which is poorly equipped and untrained with some exceptions. The home food service industry consists of about three hundred individual service agents, ranging in size from one to several hundred employees. However, most consist of only a small number of employees, which are unfortunately burdened with the responsibility of preparing goods, repairs, inventories, warranties, loans, returns, and the like. For example, these service agencies not only have to make invoices, but also have to collect payments, which is time consuming for obvious reasons. For such other duties, the service broker has no time to keep up with the technology of today's complex kitchens or cooking appliances. Since the existing food service industry is so fragmented and poorly suited to handle management tasks and equipment repairs, it is estimated that their efficiency may be as low as 20%.

Accordingly, there is a need in the art to provide a cost effective system that increases the labor utilization of today's food service industry, allowing for the proper work allocation of management and repair skills among those best suited to perform the task.

The food service industry is also facing a difficult labor market. There is a strong competition for excellent employees and not enough workers to fill the available positions. Supervision is also difficult, especially for an owner/operator who has multiple commercial outlets spread over miles. Workers may be under-trained, careless, or may take shortcuts when they properly complete their tasks. Any of these problems can adversely affect dietary quality, service levels to consumers, and compliance with various health and safety standards, such as Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulations created by the food safety and inspection service of the U.S. department of agriculture to minimize bacterial-related diseases that may be caused by improper food handling, preparation, and preservation. These problems even plague computerized kitchen systems because those systems are unable to independently verify that the attributed tasks have been properly completed, nor to identify employees who are deceiving the system. Moreover, to be competitive in today's global economy, the food service industry must gain tighter control over each process in the kitchen to combat increased labor costs, obtain more accurate product forecasts, and achieve faster and more efficient food preparation to better manage equipment and human resources.

Device status/monitoring

There is a need in the diet service industry today for a system that can generate a computerized task list on a real-time basis to order employees to perform desired tasks and then direct the employees through the desired tasks. For ease of reference, these task lists can be transmitted and displayed on CRTs in the restaurant area where the task is to be performed by the employee. The task list may also be accompanied by audible instructions in addition to or instead of the separate visual device. Such a task list can provide, for example, timely communication between a point of sale (POS) and a kitchen for ordering. The computerized task list may also provide the staff with important training (especially new trainees) due to the high turnover rate of the staff in the food service industry, and this has become an important issue for the restaurant manager, who has valuable little time to draw for initial training. Thus, the computer-generated list may step the employee through the cooking process for preparing various food items related to the cooking appliance and other appliances, various maintenance and cleaning procedures, and any other required routine duties.

Known systems use labor management tools to generate and print out a static list of tasks to be performed, for example, at the beginning of each day. However, such lists do not have any real-time feedback and are therefore not dynamic and do not adapt to actual and ever changing operating conditions and requirements in the restaurant. Therefore, there is also a need for a system that can update and modify task lists based on detected or measured operating conditions.

Current fast-food systems typically use in-store CRTs to display tasks. When a task is completed, the employee typically clicks on a "bump bar" below the screen, informing the system that the task has been performed. The system then updates the CRT to indicate that task was performed. But this assumes that the employee has not "cheated" (i.e., clicked on the bump bar without completing the task properly). This situation is problematic for managers who may not be able to constantly monitor all their employees in the fast food service industry to ensure that the task is in fact being performed correctly. In addition, employee fraud can have a detrimental financial impact on fast food and other restaurants. For example, pulling food prepared in a deep vat fryer before completion can adversely affect the quality of the diet (e.g., taste, texture, appearance, etc.) and shelf life. Also, for example, a baker pulling the product out of the oven before the product is finished baking adversely affects the food quality. Wrongly prepared food causes customer dissatisfaction and loss of return business, which translates into financial loss for the food service provider. Another example of the adverse impact of fraud on the food service industry is in terms of maintenance areas. Lazy or busy employees may often seek shortcuts, i.e., simply skip a maintenance task or improperly perform the maintenance task, but still click on the bump bar. The known system is not able to detect and provide sufficient checking for such fraud. Therefore, there is a need for a system that can provide automatic verification that a desired task has been properly completed by detecting various operating parameters, rather than relying solely on honest staff.

Virtual hold timer

The amount of time a food item may be held and served after it has been cooked is controlled by privilege standards and government regulations. For example, the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) standard established by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) dietary safety and inspection service (FSIS) specifies the amount of time food can be held at different temperatures after it has been cooked before it must be discarded. These standards are intended to prevent disease caused by ingestion of food products contaminated with microbial pathogens that may be passed on to consumers by improper food handling practices. Therefore, accurate metering and tracking of food "hold time" is critical to the food preparation industry. Once this "holding time" expires, the food must be thrown away.

Current systems often use small plastic tags, say "00", "15", "30", "45", etc., to indicate how many minutes have elapsed since the hour the food expired — the tag is shipped with the food. A small mechanical or electronic timer may also be included to be carried with the food. Another known system uses an electrical or mechanical timer at each successive location; however, it can be complicated to set each successive timer based on the amount of time that the timer has left at the previous position. These known systems do not work well and many foods are often sold beyond their proper shelf life, thereby tending the food service operator to violate HACCP standards and potentially exposing the user to illnesses associated with food delivery.

Therefore, there is a need for a system that can establish an automatic "virtual" holding timer associated with each batch of food that is prepared. Such a system can track the movement of each batch of food through a restaurant or kitchen and visually "disseminate" the food along with it from the cooking appliance to various holding areas and points of sale (POS). Such a system may also provide a single continuous hold timer for each batch of food, thereby eliminating the need for kitchen or restaurant personnel to manually set a new time in view of the elapsed hold time from the previous cooking or hold station. This minimizes the risks associated with food handlers who have to physically operate the timer and misplace the timer or make errors in setting successive timers. In addition, such a system may assist in controlling the inventory of cooked food items by detecting that a particular batch of food being held is about to expire and then transmitting a signal commanding another batch of the same product to the food preparation machine. Such a system can also be linked to the POS system and historical sales data maintained by the system to determine how much of a particular food product should be cooked to meet expected demand and replace food whose hold time is about to expire.

Shortening management/fryer maintenance management

Proper maintenance of a deep fat fryer is also of great concern to the operators of commercial or institutional cooking facilities. These fryers typically use cooking or shortening oil as the cooking medium. However, the cooking medium degrades with each cooking cycle. To ensure consistent food quality, periodic filtration and/or replacement of the cooking medium is required. Fryer controllers are often hard-wired to require cleaning at a fixed time each day; it is therefore not possible to adapt the fryer to actual operating data (such as sales, number of cooking cycles, etc.). Other prior art systems, such as described in Koether et al, U.S. patent No.5,331,575, are directed to a stand-alone "smart fryer" in which a cooking computer is physically connected to a separate fryer. These prior art systems provide some improvement over fixed time fryer controllers because they attempt to ensure that changes or filtering of the cooking medium are timely and properly implemented based on tracking actual fryer usage and other relevant parameters such as cooking temperature. However, a single fryer cooking computer only determines when cooking medium maintenance is required for a particular fryer that is physically associated, without regard to any other fryers. This is problematic for restaurant management because it is not desirable to have too many fryers unavailable for maintenance when the restaurant is busy and food demand is highest. Ideally, fryer maintenance should coincide with normal demand periods, or at least, most fryers should not be simultaneously unavailable for service. Therefore, there is a need for a network control system that can monitor and control the maintenance of all fryers at a given restaurant location. Furthermore, there is a need for a networked control system that can balance the use of individual fryers at a given restaurant location and schedule maintenance of all fryers to ensure that a maximum number of fryers are available for service during peak food demand.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention provides a two-way communication network that provides real-time computer-aided diagnosis, asset history, billing records, maintenance records, and energy management. Advantageously, such a network aggregates various work aspects of today's food service industry to ensure proper work distribution of management and repair tasks.

The system includes a control center linked to a point of sale (POS) or Automated Teller Machine (ATM) system, a plurality of kitchen base stations and a plurality of kitchen or restaurant appliances located in a site or cell (group). Maintenance and repair, once initiated, is monitored, for example, by a control center having a database with the necessary software diagnostics, billing records, inventory records and maintenance records for the particular equipment under service to bring together various aspects of billing, payment, repair and energy management.

In a preferred embodiment, each cell is assigned at least one communication channel, preferably a radio channel, for bi-directional communication with base stations, which in turn are interconnected to the control center via high speed data links. In particular, the system monitors and tracks maintenance and repair of kitchen equipment with information transmitted to and received from the kitchen equipment over a data network. Such information may include, among other things, cooking parameters, payment information, device identification, diagnostic information, and maintenance instructions. Direct billing is facilitated by transferring financial information between POS or ATM systems operated by different merchants and the clearinghouse hub.

Each kitchen base station may interrogate the device or the device may request to transmit diagnostic information relating to the operating conditions of the device, which diagnostic information may be immediately communicated to the control center. The control center may take appropriate action including downloading updated operational and/or diagnostic software to the equipment, dispatching a service vehicle, or updating billing and inventory information. Most functions are controlled automatically by the control center, but may also be performed manually by an operator of the control center. Alternatively, some of these functions may be distributed to base stations as if they were in a distributed fabric network.

In the preferred embodiment, the field repair capability can be enhanced, for example, by infrared communication, using a portable hand-held terminal linked to the device, for example, by a radio RS-232 interface. The handheld terminal interrogates the device to diagnose abnormal operating conditions. When the repair is effected, the control center preferably prepares and transmits an appropriate invoice and effects payment through the POS or ATM system. During the repair, if the handheld terminal requires updated diagnostic software for a particular device in service, such a request is transmitted to the control center. The appropriate software is then transmitted to the terminal via the communications data network. In this manner, new diagnostic tools can be readily utilized by the food service industry as they become available for a particular kitchen or restaurant appliance.

Similarly, the database contains maintenance instructions for each type of kitchen or restaurant appliance. If the service personnel is unfamiliar with the equipment, a request may be initiated to the control center to download the necessary repair and maintenance instructions for the equipment in service.

Importantly, the control center includes a database containing customer information, accounting history, equipment data, such as previous repairs and failures, updated diagnostic software and billing data. Advantageously, this allows service personnel, as well as control center operators, to update the loan, warranty, or compensation for a particular user in real time. But the service person can also request the control center to generate and transmit various billing, payment or repair records for a particular user or device. These capabilities enhance quality control and minimize the amount of work that service personnel perform on administrative tasks.

If desired, the control center may control the proper operation of some or all of the kitchen or restaurant appliances in real time. For example, to implement a change in the recipe for a particular food product, new cooking parameters may be communicated to the controller for each desired kitchen or restaurant appliance. In this manner, retail food service chains can easily update their food product cooking profiles (profiles) on a global basis.

In another aspect of the invention, the control center can control when kitchen or restaurant appliances are turned on and off. In this way, the minimum peak power can be achieved by limiting the number of devices that are turned on at any time. Furthermore, devices may be prioritized according to their type and their relative importance to location, thereby enabling a desired device to be serviced first.

Device status/monitoring

According to one embodiment, the system may be used to automatically verify the performance of equipment-related manual tasks for equipment in food preparation. The system includes at least one device having a microprocessor capable of communicating with the system. At least one sensor is provided that is capable of detecting a parameter related to the performance of a manual task associated with at least one device. In one embodiment, the parameter provides an indication as to whether the at least one device-related manual task is completed. In another embodiment, the parameter is indicative of whether the at least one device-related manual task was performed correctly.

The system also includes a control computer that executes control logic that operates to automatically monitor the performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device. A communication network is provided that allows communication between the computer and either or both of the at least one device and the sensor. The control computer may be located in a kitchen base station or in a control center. The appliance may be a kitchen appliance, which in one embodiment may be a fryer.

In one embodiment, the communication network accomplishes communication through the internet. In another embodiment, the communication network completes the communication between the computer and the at least one device by wireless data transmission. The wireless data transmission may be performed through the internet.

In another embodiment, the computer generates at least one message relating to at least one device-related manual task. The at least one message may be displayed on a visual display monitor where it may be viewed by, for example, a person in the food service establishment. The message may also be simultaneously transmitted by the system via the communications network to a remote location remote from the food service establishment (e.g., a control center) to notify the food establishment operator or management. The message may be accessed over the internet by the operator or management through a Web interface.

The system may also include a database containing stored historical information relating to the performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device. In one embodiment, the stored historical information comprises information relating to one or more of the following groups: a type of the at least one device-related manual task; when the task is executed; and the identity of the person performing the task.

There is also provided a method for automatically monitoring the performance of equipment-related manual tasks, which may include the steps of:

providing at least one device for use in food preparation, said device having a microprocessor-based controller;

providing at least one sensor capable of detecting a parameter associated with the performance of a manual task associated with at least one device;

providing a control computer that executes control logic operative to automatically monitor the performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device;

providing a communication network allowing communication between said control computer and either or both of said at least one device and sensor;

monitoring the at least one device;

performing the at least one manual task involving the at least one device; and

detecting performance of the at least one device-related manual task.

In one embodiment, the method further comprises: the communication network accomplishes the communication at least in part through the internet. In another embodiment, the method further comprises: communicating between the control computer and one or both of the at least one device and the sensor at least in part by wireless data transmission. The method may further comprise: the wireless data transmission is performed at least in part over the internet.

The method may further comprise: a step of generating at least one message related to a manual task associated with at least one device. In one embodiment, the method further comprises the step of displaying the at least one message on a visual display monitor.

Shortening management system

According to another embodiment, the system may be used to schedule maintenance of a plurality of kitchen appliances in a food preparation facility. In one embodiment, the apparatus may be a fryer. The system comprises: a plurality of kitchen appliances; a computer capable of communicating with the plurality of kitchen appliances; and a communication network linking the computer with the plurality of kitchen appliances. The kitchen appliance has a microprocessor-based controller that is capable of communicating with the system. Control logic is provided that is executed by the computer and operates to schedule maintenance of the plurality of kitchen appliances. The control logic may be located in a kitchen base station or in a control center.

In one embodiment, the control logic may be operable to determine a daily consumer demand for at least one cooked food product. The system may also include control logic to: which operates to maximize the number of kitchen appliances available for service during selected periods of the day, which in one embodiment are periods of peak demand for food products. The control logic may also be operable to equalize usage of a plurality of kitchen appliances.

In another embodiment, the system further comprises scheduling the maintenance such that a maximum number of kitchen appliances are available for service at any given period of time during the day to coincide with at least one peak demand period for the at least one food product.

In one embodiment, the communication network accomplishes communication through the internet. In another embodiment, the communication network completes the communication between the computer and the at least one device by wireless data transmission. The wireless data transmission may be performed through the internet.

There is also provided a method for scheduling maintenance of a plurality of kitchen appliances in a food preparation establishment, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a plurality of kitchen appliances;

providing a computer capable of communicating with the plurality of kitchen appliances;

providing a communication network linking said computer to a plurality of kitchen appliances;

providing control logic executed by the computer;

monitoring actual operating data of the plurality of kitchen appliances;

predicting a food product demand; and

scheduling maintenance of the plurality of kitchen appliances.

In one embodiment, the method includes scheduling maintenance of the fryer and, in another embodiment, altering or filtering the cooking medium used in the fryer. The method may further include scheduling maintenance of the plurality of kitchen appliances to maximize the number of appliances available for a selected period during the day. In one aspect of the invention, the selected period of the method coincides with at least one peak demand time for at least one food product.

Virtual save timer

According to one embodiment, there is provided a system for tracking cooked food product shelf life, the system comprising: at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time; a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product; a control computer; and control logic executed by the computer. The control logic operates to determine when the hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the control logic is further operative to determine whether the at least one cooked food product has moved from the first food holding area to the at least one second food holding area. The control logic is further operative to record the at least one cooked food product being moved to the at least second food holding area.

The control logic is further operable to generate an expiration signal when the hold time of the at least one cooked food product has elapsed. An audiovisual indicator may also be provided that is responsive to the expiration signal to indicate that the hold time has elapsed. An audiovisual indicator as used herein is defined to mean an audio warning or a visual message display.

According to one embodiment, the control logic of the system is further operable to assign a batch identification number to the at least one cooked food product. The system may also include data entry means that allow a batch identification number to be manually entered into the system to identify in which food holding area food has been placed. In one embodiment, the batch identification number is entered into the system at least in part by wireless data transmission. The data input device may be a keypad associated with the food holding area.

The system may further comprise a sensor for measuring a parameter associated with the at least one cooked food product, the sensor providing a signal to the control computer related to the parameter. In one embodiment, the parameter relates to whether the at least one cooked food product is present in a particular holding area. In another embodiment, the parameter relates to a temperature of the at least one cooked food product.

According to another embodiment, the system may be used to manage an inventory of cooked food products in a food preparation facility. This system comprises: at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time; a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product; a control computer; and control logic executed by the computer. The control logic operates to determine when a hold time for the at least one food product will elapse in the future and operates to provide an advance notice of when the hold time will elapse. The system may further include: different types of advance notice times corresponding to the at least one cooked food product are stored in a database accessible to the control logic.

The control logic may be further configured to generate an advance notification message signal indicating when the hold time will elapse in the future. In one embodiment, in response to the signal, an audiovisual indicator provides an advance indication of when the hold time will elapse in the future. The system may also include an audio-visual indicator that provides an indication that more of the at least one cooked food product was cooked before the food product save time elapsed. In one embodiment, the system may further comprise: the control logic operates to determine whether more of the at least one cooked food product whose hold time will elapse in the future is available or is cooked in another location at the time of food preparation establishment.

There is also provided a method for tracking the shelf life of cooked food products, the method comprising the steps of:

providing at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

providing a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

providing a control computer;

providing control logic executed by the control computer, the control logic operative to determine when a hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed; and

determining when a holding time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

The method may further comprise: a data entry device is provided for manually entering a batch identification number for the at least one cooked food product into the control computer. In one embodiment, the method further comprises: a step of determining whether the at least one cooked food product has been moved from the first food holding area to the at least one second food holding area. The method may further comprise displaying a message that the holding time of the at least one cooked food product has expired. In another embodiment, the method includes assigning a batch identification number to the at least one cooked food product.

There is also provided a method for managing an inventory of cooked food products in a food preparation establishment, the method comprising the steps of:

providing at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

providing a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

providing a control computer;

providing control logic executed by the control computer, the control logic operative to determine when a hold time for the at least one food product will elapse in the future and operative to provide an advance notification of when the hold time will elapse;

determining when a holding time of the at least one cooked food product will elapse in the future; and

providing an advance notice of when a preservation time of the at least one food product will elapse in the future.

In one embodiment, the method may further comprise: notifying a food preparation facility person to cook more of the at least one cooked food product before the hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed. The method may further comprise: determining whether more of the at least one cooked food product whose hold time will elapse in the future is available or is cooked in another location in the food preparation mechanism.

Drawings

The features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the invention in which like elements are labeled similarly and in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of a current intelligent commercial kitchen network, including a control center, a plurality of kitchen base stations, and a plurality of kitchen or restaurant appliances;

FIG. 2 is a more detailed block diagram of the appliance and kitchen base station of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a more detailed block diagram of the control center of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary illustration of an overlay that may be displayed to a control center operator;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a transmitter and receiver of a kitchen or restaurant appliance used in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating operation of the kitchen base station of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 7A and 7B are flow charts illustrating operation of the control center of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic representation of a repair process used in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 9A is a schematic diagram showing a fryer and food holding arrangement for a commercial kitchen, including a plurality of fryers and food holding areas;

FIG. 9B is a schematic view showing a deep vat fryer and various accessories;

FIG. 9C is a flow chart showing exemplary control logic of the system for automatically verifying completion of manually performed cooking appliance related tasks;

FIG. 10A is a flow diagram showing exemplary control logic for the system for a virtual holding timer used to track the movement of batches of food through a commercial kitchen and determine when the food holding time has expired;

FIG. 10B is a flow chart showing exemplary control logic of the system for assisting a commercial kitchen management with inventory control of cooked food products; and

FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating exemplary control logic of the system for providing networked cooking medium maintenance of multiple fryers.

Detailed Description

The intelligent commercial kitchen (SCK) network of the present invention has the ability to, among other things, monitor and control in real time the maintenance, repair, and energy management of kitchen or restaurant appliances located over a wide geographic area. Maintenance and repair, once initiated, is monitored through a control center that contains the necessary software diagnostics, billing records, inventory records, and maintenance records for the particular equipment in service. The ability to aggregate various billing and repair services provides an efficient means for providing timely service to system users. The SCK network can be customized for the specific needs of the user and can be installed and used virtually anywhere in the world since wireless communications, such as cellular radio communications, are preferred.

It is contemplated that current SCK networks may be implemented in part by wireless communication. It should be understood, however, that the network described below is for illustration only and not for limitation. The invention may also use other suitable communications, whether optical or wired.

And in the following embodiments, integrated repair and billing services are preferably provided and coordinated through a centralized control center. It should be clearly understood, however, that some of these services may be allocated or offloaded to a base station, which may be programmed to accomplish the latter services. The choice depends on whether the network is constructed as a highly centralized structure or a distributed structure.

Referring to fig. 1, there is shown, in schematic block diagram form, a communication system 100 in accordance with the principles of the present invention. In fig. 1, an arbitrary geographic area may be divided into a plurality of radio coverage areas or cells 105 (C)₁-C₆). It should be clearly understood that: these cells may be located in the same or different buildings. Although the system in fig. 1 is shown to include only six (6) cells, it should be clearly understood that the number of cells may be larger.

Is located in cell 105 (C)₁-C₆) Within, and associated with, each of the one or more kitchen or restaurant appliances 110 (A) in the context of reserving service for the system₁-A₁₁). Each kitchen appliance 110 (A)₁-A₁₁) Preferably equipped with an RF transmitter 120, RF receiver 130 and microprocessor-based controller 140, as shown in fig. 2. Alternatively, each kitchen device may complete the communication through a wired data link. For example, a restaurant, bakery, or hotel may have from one to forty (40) kitchen appliances at any location in a single site or cell. Such kitchen or restaurant appliances include, for example, deep fryers, fire-resistant ovens, combination ovens, infrared ovens, rotisseries, refrigerators, HVAC systems, and the like.

For example, food automation-service technology corporation of Connecticut, USA (FAST.)^*In recent years, microprocessor-based controllers have been developed to assist in preparing properly cooked food. These controllers are under the trade name FASTRON^*In particular, to adjust the temperature within the kitchen appliance to ensure that the food is cooked or roasted to a properly cooked degree. More particularly, under program control, the controller adjusts various operations of the kitchen appliance, such as cooking time and temperature, for a single food product or for multiple food products. That is, the kitchen appliance is programmed to operate with cooking parameters designed for a particular food product. See, for example, U.S. patent No.4,920,948, which is incorporated herein by reference.

In addition, the controller adjusts the percentage of time power that power is applied to the heating (or cooling) unit based on the cooking parameters selected by the user. For example, the heating element or elements may be pulsed with a fixed or variable duty cycle (proportional to the heating controlled), may be fully on, or operate in an off/on manner similar to a thermostat, depending on the heating mode of the kitchen appliance.

In addition, such controllers may include built-in intelligent sensing and diagnostic devices coupled through an interface board and detect and identify various types of faults. These faults include faulty heaters, sensors, fans, etc. See, for example, U.S. patent No.5,043,860 and applicant's co-pending application: U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/549,098, entitled "Diagnostic system For A cooking application," filed on 26.10.1995 and U.S. Pat. No.08/501,211, all of which are commonly assigned and incorporated herein by reference.

With continued reference to fig. 1, the corresponding cell 105 (C) may be in₁-C₆) Find kitchen base station 150 (B)₁-B₆). Preferably, each kitchen base station 150 (B)₁-B₆) Can be connected to the kitchen appliance 110 (A) by wireless means, such as by cellular radio or other wireless means₁-A₁₁) Communication is performed. Manual changes in menus or cooking profiles may be implemented, if desired, by an appropriate terminal 155 attached to the base station. Thus, each kitchen base station 150 (B)₁-B₆) Both comprise an RF transmitter 160 and an RF receiver 165 as shown in fig. 2. Wired interconnections are undesirable, primarily because these wires may be inadvertently cut by the cooking device. However, it should be understood that wired interconnects may be used. Of course, satellite, microwave or infrared communication may be used according to principles known to those skilled in the art.

Preferably, cell 105 (C)₁-C₆) To implement two-way communication, in order to utilize the information transmitted to or received from those devices to the kitchen equipment 110 (a)₁-A₁₁) Is monitored and tracked. Such information may include cooking parameters, billing information, equipment identification, diagnostic information, and maintenance instructions, as discussed below. Those skilled in the art will readily note that the channel may operate in an analog mode or a digital mode or a combination of both. In digital modeThe analog signal is converted to a digital representation before transmission over the RF channel. Purely digital messages, such as those generated by the microprocessor-based controller 140, may be formatted and transmitted directly over a digital channel.

At kitchen base station 150 (B) via a communication link 175 of a data network 180₁-B₆) And a control center 170. One or more trained operators may participate in the control center 170 via the terminal 185. A digital link operating at 56 Kb/sec or higher may be used as the communication link 175. Data network 180 may be an Integrated System Digital Network (ISDN) device. In this latter example, the X.25 protocol may be used such that base station 150 (B) is in the kitchen₁-B₆) And the control center 170. The x.25 protocol is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art and will not be discussed here for the sake of brevity.

It should be understood that the control center 170 includes a repair and billing database 190, the database 190 allowing for the exchange of information relating to repair, billing and accounting. In addition, each kitchen base station 150 may include an internal database that is necessary or useful in the customer billing or accounting process. The control center 170 may be located, for example, in the same physical location as the cell. However, for extended coverage worldwide, multiple control centers linked to each other may be employed.

Each kitchen base station 150 (B)₁-B₆) A corresponding controller 140 may be queried or the controller 140 may request to transmit with the kitchen device 110 (a)₁-A₁₁) And the operating conditions of the vehicle, which can be immediately communicated to the control center 170. It is contemplated that such diagnostic information may also be stored in an internally-located database of the kitchen base station. The control center 170 may take appropriate action including, among other things, downloading updated diagnostic software to the controller 140, dispatching a service vehicle 195 through a mobile kitchen center 200, or updating billing and inventory informationWe will discuss them in more detail below. Most of the functions are controlled automatically by the control center 170, but they may also be performed manually by an operator of the control center. Some of these functions may be allocated to the base station if desired.

The service cart 195 is independently provided, maintained and operated by a service agent user of the system. Although fig. 1 shows only one service vehicle, it should be clearly understood that a fleet of service vehicles may be used in practice.

Preferably, the communication network 100 is also linked to a common point of sale (POS) or an Automated Teller Machine (ATM) system 205, which is linked to each kitchen base station 150 via the data communication network 180. Further, the ATM/POS system 205 includes a POS/ATM data communication network 210. A plurality of independently operating ATM/POS systems simultaneously communicate with each other to provide fulfillment services to subscribers of the communications network of the present invention. The data communications network of a clearing house also interconnects a plurality of ATM/POS systems to the network center of the clearing house. By passing information between different ATM/POS systems operated by different retailers, the clearinghouse's data communications network and the clearinghouse's hub allow for direct inter-institution transactions, such as transactions between ATM/POS system 205 and a particular ATM/POS system operated by the user's financial institution.

Referring to the illustration of fig. 3, the control center 170 may include a communications controller 215 and a display controller 220 with a suitable conventional interface 225 therebetween. As described above, the control center 170 includes the database 190, and the database 190 includes, for example: location of kitchen equipment, diagnostic software, associated billing and execution information, and energy management data, as discussed below. Interface 225 may be a Local Area Network (LAN) interface having one or more terminals 185 that allow an operator of the control center to enter information. It should be appreciated that terminal 185 includes any of a variety of input devices, such as a keyboard, mouse, trackball, or other user interface.

The communication controller 215, among other things, serves as a processor and buffer memory between the kitchen base station 150, the display controller 220, and the database 190. Data transmitted by the communications controller 215 may be displayed on a communications display 230. The display controller 220 is equipped with a map display that graphically displays information about kitchen equipment on a digitized map of, for example, a pre-existing arbitrarily large geographic area, such as a city or a state. Fig. 4 illustrates such an overlay display. For example, the devices may be represented by dots and those services requested may be represented by red. Other suitable legends may be displayed such as indicating, among other things, the type of equipment, the date of last service, availability of parts, etc.

Referring now to fig. 5, there is shown a simplified schematic block diagram of an apparatus for kitchen equipment 105 in accordance with the present invention for transmitting and receiving data from a kitchen base station 150. In particular, the apparatus shown in fig. 5 may be used to communicate with a kitchen base station 150 via a digital channel. Data destined for transmission to kitchen base stations is broken into data packets of messages according to, for example, Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) techniques of digital communication. Those skilled in the art will readily note that other techniques, such as CDMA, may be used. The data packets are time-division multiplexed by a multiplexer 510 together with a supervisory message generated by a so-called Fast Associated Control Channel (FACCH) generator 515. The output of multiplexer 510 is provided as an input to a burst interleaver 520, which burst interleaver 520 divides the data into n consecutive time slots, each time slot being occupied by a byte of m bits of control information. This interleaved data forms the input to a burst generator 525, and the burst generator 525 generates "message bursts" of data, each burst consisting of a slot identifier, a digital check code, control or monitoring information, and data to be transmitted.

The message burst generated by burst generator 525 is provided as an input to an RF modulator 530. The RF modulator 530 is used to modulate a carrier frequency in accordance with, for example, pi/4 DQPSK techniques that are well known to those skilled in the art of cellular radio communications. Using this technique means that the information transmitted by each device transmitter is differentially encoded, i.e., two bit symbols as four possible phase variations: and + or-pi/4 and + or-3 pi/4 are emitted. The carrier frequency for the selected transmitted channel is provided to the RF modulator by a transmit frequency synthesizer 535. The burst modulated carrier signal output of RF modulator 530 is amplified by a power amplifier 540 and transmitted to a base station via an antenna 545.

Each device 110 receives burst modulated signals from kitchen base station 150 via antenna 550 coupled to receiver 555. A receiver carrier frequency for the selected receive channel is generated by a receive frequency synthesizer 560 and provided to an RF demodulator 565. The received carrier signal is demodulated to an Intermediate Frequency (IF) signal by RF demodulator 565. The intermediate frequency signal is then further demodulated by an IF demodulator 570. IF demodulator 570 recovers the original digital information as it existed prior to pi/4 DQPSK modulation. The digital information is then passed to a symbol detector 575, which symbol detector 575 converts the provided digital data in a two-bit symbol format into a one-bit data stream. For a more detailed description of the use of cellular radio communication, see for example Raymond c.v. macario, "cellular radio communication", McGraw-Hill, 1993: principle and design ".

Those skilled in the art will readily note that most of the equipment used by the equipment 110 to implement cellular communications may also be used by the kitchen base station 150 and the mobile kitchen center 200. Therefore, for simplicity, that device will not be discussed herein. However, there is an important difference. Unlike the appliance 110, the kitchen base station 150 is preferably connected to the control center 170 via a high speed communication link of a data network 180. Furthermore, each kitchen base station 150 includes a microprocessor 167, the microprocessor 167 controlling the activities of the base station and the communication between the equipment and the kitchen base station. The determination is made by the microprocessor based on data received from the control center 170. The microprocessor also has a terminal keyboard and display unit 155 allowing the user to exchange information with the device 110 and the control center 170.

Fig. 6 is a simplified flow diagram illustrating the operation of a kitchen base station. Briefly, the flow chart includes a series of generally repeating instructions arranged in a loop in which the base station polls or is interrupted by a specific event, and transitions to an appropriate communication mode.

Power is applied at block 600 and control passes to block 605 where block 605 determines whether data has been received from the kitchen appliance. Decision block 605 basically determines whether the kitchen appliance is communicating to the control center. If such communication is requested, control passes to block 610 to effectuate the communication. Otherwise, block 615 determines whether the control center is attempting to communicate with the kitchen device. If so, the received data is forwarded to the appropriate device, block 620. Control then passes to block 625, where block 625 determines whether an operator has entered any message data into a device or control center. Any such data is then transmitted at block 630.

Generally, an application-oriented protocol is used to coordinate activities between the devices and the control center in order to guarantee common syntax semantics for the transmitted application data. For example, an application-oriented protocol may specify a particular encoding type for the device identification data and the source of such information with a message. The application-oriented protocol formats and transmits the message to the kitchen appliance or control center. The control center 170 may transmit, for example, updated diagnostic software for the appliance, updated cooking profiles, and data typically related to the operation of the kitchen appliance. On the other hand, the data transmitted from the kitchen appliance may include identified faults or malfunctions in the cooking appliance, including identification information of the kitchen appliance.

Normally, after a malfunction or fault has been reported by the microprocessor-based controller, control of the monitoring and tracking is passed to the control center. However, even when no malfunction is reported, the control center can perform preventive maintenance. Scheduled preventative maintenance is stored in database 190. Alternatively, each base station may request preventive maintenance of its associated kitchen equipment. When appropriate, the control center 170 dispatches a service vehicle.

Referring now to fig. 7A and 7B, the operation of the control center will be described. Fig. 7A and 7B are diagrams showing a manner in which the control center of the present embodiment tracks and monitors repair and maintenance. In most cases, it will be appreciated that the control center initialization service is simply a service used to perform repairs or preventative maintenance. The ability of the system to perform execution and billing is combined with this function.

Normally, message data from a device consists of four different types: repair, billing, diagnostics, or reporting. At decision blocks 705, 710, 715 and 720, the control center 170 determines which type of message data it is. Block 705 checks the repair message data. If a repair request is received from the device at decision block 725, control passes to block 755, where a service vehicle is dispatched once the location of the device and the nearest service agent are determined.

Those skilled in the art will readily note that the network system of the present invention allows the control center to monitor kitchen appliances located over a wide geographic area to provide early warning of malfunctions or degradations in performance. However, if the degradation is severe, the control center may communicate and display a message on the kitchen appliance's console alerting the kitchen appliance that it is not acceptable to cook the task. If desired, in the latter case, the control center may be programmed to disable the kitchen appliance, thereby eliminating any possible health hazards. Alternatively, the cooking parameters of the kitchen appliance may be changed to compensate for the malfunctioning appliance until repairs can be performed.

Once a service vehicle has been dispatched, the devices, as well as any graphical displays of the database 190, are updated to indicate the current status of the devices in service, as shown at block 760.

It is desirable for the control center to respond to diagnostic information periodically transmitted by the device. At block 730, such diagnostic information is stored in the database 190. Such diagnostic information may include, but is not limited to, the following:

device location

Type of device

Controller type

Diagnostic software versions

Date of last repair

Date of next maintenance

Time stamp

Date mark

Type of failure

Heating device

Fan with cooling device

Power supply

Sensor with a sensor element

Electronic circuit

Software

Statistical cooking data

Hours of operation

Deviation from operating temperature

Deviation from normal operating temperature

Rate of change

Cooking profiles

Time

Temperature of

Setting of fans

Setting of humidity

Rotational setting (for portable rotary barbecue device)

Speed of the belt

Position of shock absorber

Microwave energy setting

Time and temperature of freezing

According to a preferred embodiment, the control center 170 analyzes such diagnostic information at block 735 to determine whether to deactivate the appliance at block 740 or at block 745 to change the cooking profile stored in the appliance. Such analysis may use published techniques, For example, those of U.S. patent application Ser. No.08/501,211 filed in U.S. Pat. No.5,043,860 and on 26.10.1995 and U.S. patent application (Ser. No. 08/549,098) entitled Diagnostic System For A Cooking Appliance. Other such diagnostic-specific software may be written by those of ordinary skill in the cooking arts. For example, it is contemplated that such diagnostic software may use artificial intelligence or so-called "fuzzy logic".

Such diagnostic information stored in the database 190 may also be later recovered and used for quality control to determine the frequency and type of failure for a particular type of kitchen appliance.

In an iterative process, a repair person may be dispatched to the location of the kitchen equipment requiring service or preventative maintenance based on the information transmitted to the control center 170. Such dispatch can be accomplished by radio communication (e.g., mobile kitchen station 200) or by using a conventional telephone set to contact an appropriate service center located proximate to the location of the kitchen appliance.

Referring to fig. 8, field repair work is enhanced by using a portable handheld terminal 810 having, for example, a Palm/Laptop computer linked to the microprocessor-based controller 140 through a suitable interface (e.g., a wireless RS-232 interface using infrared communication). Of course, wireless or optical interfaces may also be used. These hand-held small computers are readily available from Texas instruments, Hewlett packard and Casio, among others. The handheld terminal 810 interrogates the controller to determine the model and model number of the device in service and then diagnoses abnormal operating conditions. Of course, if infrared communication is used, the controller 140 is equipped with an infrared transmitter/receiver 820. Those skilled in the art can easily write the low-level software. For example, conventional database management software may be employed in the handheld terminal along with appropriate diagnostic software. It is desirable that such software, and similar software, can be stored in, for example, a standardized memory card that complies with both the JEIDA standard and the PCMIA standard. For application in 68 pin interchangeable memory cards, the two standards are essentially the same.

The handheld terminal 810 also has a local RF receiver and transceiver with an antenna by which it communicates with the control center 170 through the kitchen base station 150. As discussed above, cellular communication to kitchen base stations may be implemented. In order to preserve the data content of the hand-held terminal, the memory preferably has a battery backup.

However, before performing the repair, the terminal 810 may request billing and service information related to the devices in service from the control center 170. This is illustrated in block 710 of fig. 7. Such charging and service information includes, but is not limited to:

name of customer

Location of customer

ID

Service area

Account number

Bank

Service guarantee certificate

Deposit of money

When the repair is to be performed, the control center 170 prepares and transmits an appropriate invoice at block 770. The user or an authorized person enters a secret password or code, such as a Personal Identification Number (PIN), which authorizes the transfer of cash from the user's institution to the service agent performing the repair or maintenance. Alternatively, an unauthorized signature may be digitized and captured. Upon approval, the control center 170 initiates a transfer of cash from the customer or user's financial institution to the service agent's account at block 775. Once completed, the invoice is transmitted to the terminal 810 at block 780, and the terminal 810 prints out a hard copy of the invoice.

Those skilled in the art will readily recognize the advantage of such an integrated billing and accounting service as it eliminates the need for any accounting at the service agent's office.

On the other hand, invoices may be prepared by the handheld terminal 810 because the handheld terminal 810 contains billing records for the devices in service. In the latter case, the handheld terminal 810 is accessed in memory with a standard billing and invoicing format. Once prepared, the billing records may be transmitted to the control center 170. In this way, some of the charging functions may be distributed or downloaded to the hand-held terminal. Of course, those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the kitchen base station 150 may also be programmed to enable invoice preparation. These latter options depend on whether the network is built into a highly centralized structure or a distributed structure.

Once the repair has been completed, the control center 170 then updates the billing, accounting and maintenance records in the database. Moreover, the control center 170 may update the inventory to account for any components that have been used in making repairs. In this manner, the attendant can later, for example, easily ascertain the availability of components for a particular piece of equipment via the handheld terminal 810.

When repairs are made, if the terminal 810 needs updated diagnostic software for a particular device in service, such a request is transmitted to the control center. Such a request is responded to at block 715 and then transmitted to the terminal 810 over the communications network using appropriate software, as shown at block 785. In this manner, the food service industry can now easily use new diagnostic tools as they become available for a particular kitchen appliance.

Similarly, the database 190 may contain maintenance instructions for each type of kitchen equipment. If the service personnel is unfamiliar with the equipment, a request may be initiated to the control center 170 requesting the control center 170 to download the necessary repair and maintenance instructions for the equipment in service.

Importantly, the control center 170 includes a database 190, the database 190 containing customer information, billing history, equipment data such as previous repairs and failures, updated diagnostic software and billing data. Advantageously, this allows service personnel, as well as control center operators, to update the deposit, warranty, or return records for a particular customer in real time. Furthermore, the service person may request at block 710 that the control center 170 generate and transmit various records for a particular user or a particular device as shown below:

history of payments

Maintaining history

Inventory of equipment components

Data of customers

Previous repairs or malfunctions

Warranty record

These capabilities enhance quality control and minimize the amount of work performed by service personnel on administrative tasks. Database management software running under UNIX may be employed in the control center 170 and can be readily implemented by those skilled in the art.

Also, it is desirable that the control center can control the normal operation of all or part of the kitchen appliance in real time, if desired. For example, to implement a change in a recipe for a particular food product, new cooking parameters may be communicated to the controller of each desired kitchen appliance. In this manner, retail food service chains, such as McDonaldl's * or Burger King *, can easily update the cooking profiles of their food products globally.

One skilled in the art will readily appreciate that in normal operation, the controller of each kitchen appliance adjusts the percentage of time that power is applied to the heating device based on the stored cooking profile of the food product. For example, a pulse of either a fixed or variable duty cycle may be applied to the heating device, the heating device may be fully powered on, or operate in an on/off manner similar to a thermostat. The specific control algorithm is based on the specific type of kitchen equipment to be controlled, e.g., fryer, stove, air conditioner, etc.

In accordance with the principles of the present invention, it is also contemplated that the control center may alternatively, if desired, control the peak power demand of the kitchen appliances in real time, for example, based on their relative priorities. Of course, each base station may control the peak power requirements, if desired. That is, the control center may control the amount of power utilized by the kitchen appliance in each cell or cells by controlling the time that the various heating (or cooling) devices of the kitchen appliance are powered on. This is particularly important because in determining the electricity charge charged by a utility, one of the key parameters is determined by the peak power load over a particular period of time. Normally, utility companies charge higher fees to customers who are delivered a higher peak power.

Advantageously, by limiting the number of kitchen appliances that are powered on at any one time, a minimum peak power can be achieved. Furthermore, kitchen devices can be prioritized such that the desired device can be serviced first in terms of energy management, depending on the nature of the device and its relative priority or importance to the user.

The actual demand for peak power by the kitchen appliance may be included in the diagnostic information that is periodically transmitted to the control center 170. In normal operation, the control center 170 determines a limit on the maximum power requirement within each cell or a desired number of cells. Preferably, the maximum power requirement for each cell is programmable by the user and can be stored, for example, in database 190. The actual power requirements depend on the type and amount of kitchen equipment in each cell or cells. If the actual power demand exceeds the limit of the maximum power demand, the control center 170 may reduce the duty cycle of at least one kitchen appliance, as will be discussed in greater detail below. I.e., the "off" time of the duty cycle of one or more devices is extended. It should be understood that the duty cycle herein refers to the electrical load within the kitchen appliance, e.g., the heating or cooling device, being "on" and "off" powered.

In other words, the system determines whether the maximum demand will be exceeded by comparing the calculated load value to the maximum system load value. The maximum system load value is programmable by the user. The calculated load is determined by factoring in the power requirements of the devices currently operating in one or more cells. It is contemplated that the user has the ability to change the configuration of the system by entering the power requirements of each device, the device's priorities, and other parameters, such as the control algorithms used in adjusting the temperature.

Preferably, each kitchen appliance is programmed with a minimum power "on/off duty cycle to ensure that the appliance operates acceptably. For example, the duty cycle may vary widely when unloaded, and for devices with mechanical relays that may be damaged during frequent operation, it is desirable to limit the frequency at which the relay is turned off or on. This can be achieved by pre-programming and implementing a minimum number of "on/off's". For example, the minimum "on" time may be 4 seconds and the minimum "off" time may be 2 seconds.

When the control center 170 determines that the maximum demand within a cell or a desired number of cells will be exceeded, the control center 170 places the selected kitchen appliance having the lowest priority and the shortest time to power on in a power cycle "off" state. Because the controller 140 and control center 170 know whether the appliance is in an idle mode or a cooking mode, the appliance can be intelligently powered down without affecting the operation of the appliance. Alternatively, the base station 105 may place the appropriate kitchen appliance in a power cycle "off" state and notify the control center 170 of its activity. In addition, other kitchen appliances that may not be currently operating may have their "off" time extended by the control center 170 through communication to and from the corresponding microprocessor controller 140. For example, a device with the lowest priority for the minimum "on" time is "off" when the maximum demand level is exceeded. The "off" time of the low priority device will then be extended, for example, one second. After a calculated delay time, the power requirements of the devices in one or more cells are again calculated and appropriate action is taken, including shortening the "off" time on a priority basis, if necessary.

In the manner described above, the control center 170 executes a so-called "load balancing" algorithm to place the power demand level in each cell or cells into a "seat belt". Such a "load balancing" algorithm may be required when additional kitchen equipment within each cell or cells is to be operated online.

It should be understood that: the above-described safety belt is a range below the maximum allowable requirement that allows the kitchen appliance to operate in a cyclic manner, e.g., variable duty cycle or pulsed manner. When the power demand is lower than the seat belt, there is a power capability to handle bringing more devices into operation. When the power requirements are within the safe band, the devices within the respective cell are considered to be operating harmoniously. When the power demand is lower than the safety belt, the control center adjusts the number of allowed "shutdowns" of the kitchen appliance by shortening the "shut down" time of the appliance given preference.

The largest seat belt is programmable and it can be set, for example, at 5% of the maximum demand. As a result all devices under control in one cell will be controlled, which control is not interrupted until the maximum demand level. By reducing the duty cycle when the maximum demand level is exceeded, the power cycle of the lowest priority kitchen appliance in operation is changed. A portion of the maximum cell load assigned to each device is programmed into the control center. The allocation of the maximum cell load is performed by determining the total maximum cell load requirement and the desired maximum cell load. This information can then be used to calculate the percentage of load each device contributes to the total power load. For example, a device rated at 2Kw contributes s% of the load in a cell with 40Kw of device. When a desired maximum system load is 20Kw, the device uses a maximum load of 1 Kw.

Preferably, the network accumulates the on/off status of each kitchen appliance over a 15 minute period in one second or less intervals. The latter data is used to determine the present peak power demand. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize that the preference of the device varies with time of day. For example, a fryer may have a lower priority at breakfast time than at lunch time when the fryer is heavily used. Thus, the priority of the desired device may be programmed by the user so that it varies with the anticipated needs.

Another unique feature of the present SCK network is that the assets of a company can be easily audited without having to send auditors to the site. In fact, the control center not only has a database about the location of the equipment, but also knows, among other things, what the statistical failure rate of the equipment is, which agent has the parts and inventory applicable to a particular equipment. In contrast to the prior art rationale for responding to a failure, the system actively monitors the performance of the device, not only providing a quality control function, but also minimizing the cost of repairs over long runs.

We should emphasize that the above-described flow diagrams are only examples, which illustrate how the system can be programmed for the purpose of tracking and monitoring activities for billing, repair and maintenance. Other application specific software may be readily written by those skilled in the art, having an understanding of the operation of the present invention as set forth in the above description.

Accordingly, it is to be understood that the embodiments herein are merely illustrative of the principles of the invention. Various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art which will embody the principles of the invention and yet be within the spirit and scope thereof. For example, the kitchen or cooking appliance may be connected to the control center by a hard wire, fiber optic, infrared or microwave communication channel. In addition, some of the repair and billing services may be distributed or downloaded to the base station.

Device status/monitoring

Referring now to fig. 9A, 9B, and 9C, the system of the present invention can be used to automatically determine whether and when various kitchen equipment related cooking or maintenance tasks are completed and/or performed properly by employees. The system can accomplish this by detecting or sensing various operating parameters associated with a particular device. This eliminates the need to rely on personnel to manually activate a "crash bar" (typically associated with a CRT display) to inform the system that a cooking or maintenance task has been completed. Determining task completion not by the employee's instructions but based on the sensed parameters reduces the likelihood of the employee taking shortcuts or cheats in performing a required task and reporting task completion to the system via the crash bar. Indeed, the present invention does not require the crash bar as a means for the employee to communicate with the system.

For example, in one embodiment, the system may be used to verify proper cooking of food products prepared by batch cooking in a deep vat fryer. Referring to fig. 9A, a typical restaurant or other food preparation establishment kitchen 900 may include: several deep vat fryers (F1-F3) having a microprocessor based controller; several food holding areas 902 (FHB) located behind the kitchen in the counter area₁-FHB₃) And, for example, several food holding areas 915 (FHPOS)₁-FHPOS₃) At a point of sale (POS) that is delivered to the consumer. Food holding areas are well known in the art and are used to hold or retain food after it has been cooked until it is finally sold to consumers. Although food holding areas may be unheated, they often may have a heat source to maintain cooked food at a selected temperature to extend the shelf life of the cooked food product before it has to be discarded at the expiration of its shelf life. Such heat sources may include, but are not limited to, infrared radiation, heat bulbs, electric heaters, steam heating, gas heating, hot air blowers, and the like. Alphanumeric data entry keypad 916 may also be equipped with food holding areas 902 and 915 for purposes that will become apparent in the discussion of fig. 10A below. Once the food is cooked in any fryer 901, it may be placed and stored in any food holding bin 902, or alternatively, if customer demand is tight, it may be placed and stored directly in any food holding bin 915 at the POS. The restaurant management and staff may decide which holding bin 902 or 915 to place the food into, or alternatively, the selection may be automatically indicated by the system as discussed below in connection with the discussion of fig. 10A.

Referring now to FIG. 9B, eachThe physical cooking hardware associated with a deep vat fryer 901 may consist of a deep vat 903, with a cooking basket 904 inserted into the deep vat 903, the cooking basket 904 holding the food product 905 while cooking. A placement sensor 906 is located in vat 903 and provides verification that cooking basket 904 has been inserted (placed) into or removed from the fryer. Layout sensor 906 may be a snap-action electrical switch, a proximity sensor, or any other type of switch or sensor readily known to those skilled in the art that can provide a means for detecting that a cooking basket has been inserted into or removed from a fryer pot. A cooking medium 907, typically oil or shortening, is provided along with at least one heating element 908, the heating element 908 heating the temperature T of the medium_mediumIs raised and maintained at a proper cooking temperature T_cook. The temperature sensor 909 is also equipped with a deep vat 903 to measure the temperature T of the cooking medium 907_medium. A CRT monitor 910 is provided to service at least one fryer 901 and to display information communicated from the system of the present invention to the food preparer. However, a single CRT monitor 910 may serve more than one fryer 901 and/or food holding bin 902.

Exemplary control logic is shown in fig. 9C, which may be used with the system of the present invention for controlling the normal cooking of food product 906 in deep fryer 901 as described above. This control logic may be located and executed in the kitchen base station or control center, as considered by the system user. The kitchen base station and control center data processor can be, but are not limited to, a conventional stand-alone computer unit or several interconnected and networked units capable of performing the necessary computational and logic operations and performing the communication and networking functions necessary for the present invention. Indeed, any type or combination of microprocessors or processors capable of performing the necessary operations of the present system described herein are suitable for use in the present invention and will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. The computer unit or network computer may be equipped with all necessary peripherals (e.g. modem, printer, scanner, CRT display, etc.), the choice of which will be apparent to a person skilled in the art. The type of peripheral device selected is a design choice and depends on the particular desired application of the system.

Logic process 920 begins the cooking and control process at step 930. At step 940, the system receives a cook command signal to begin preparing a batch of food product 906. The decision to cook another batch of food product 906 may be determined manually, for example, by a food preparer. In this case, the food preparer may simply press a button located on the device to begin transmitting a cooking command signal to the system, which is received at step 940. Alternatively, the cooking command signal may be electronically input into the system through any number of system input interface methods (e.g., through a keyboard, voice commands, radio, etc.). The employee may also specify the type of food product 906 to be cooked (e.g., fried chicken, fried fish, french fries, etc.) and enter it into the system.

Cooking command signals may also be automatically generated by the system of the present invention based on inputs received from a POS (point of service) system or other system-based determinations. For example, based on a comparison between the received customer orders and the supply of fried chicken available on hand in food holding bins 902 and 915, the POS system may identify a need for fried chicken that exceeds the current inventory. The system then generates a command signal to cook more fried chicken to ensure that sufficient supply is available to meet the expected demand.

Still referring to FIG. 9C, for a particular food product 906 to be prepared, at step 931, an appropriate cooking time t_cookThe control logic is preprogrammed. Cooking time t_cookIndicates the total cooking time required for normal cooking of the food, which is the cooking medium temperature T_mediumA function of (a). This information may be stored electronically in a look-up table or database accessible by the system. Deep fryer 901 (F)₁-F₃) When used to cook different types of food products 906, the appropriate cooking time for each type may be stored in a look-up table or database and then identified by the system as the food product to be cookedThe kind of said cooking command signal is automatically determined. The cooking medium temperature T is detected and read by a temperature probe 909 in the fryer vat 903_mediumThe system may be used to assist in determining the cooking time t_cook. The system then accesses a look-up table or database into which various cooking times t for any number of types of food products 906 have been entered_cookAnd the temperature T of the cooking medium_medium。

The system, in response to the signal generated in step 940, may provide an audio-visual indicator, which may be an audio alert or a visual message displayed on a CRT, as shown in step 950, instructing the food preparer to cook the food product 906. The food product may be identified by a name in the message (e.g., fried chicken, fried fish, french fries, etc.) that has been programmed into the system and entered into the cooking time t_cookIn a look-up table or database. This message may be displayed on CRT monitor 910 as shown in fig. 9B. The system next performs a test at step 960 to determine if the placement sensor 906 has been activated, thereby providing an objective positive indication: the food preparer has inserted a food basket 904 with food products 906 into the fryer vat 903. If the placement sensor 906 is not activated, control returns to step 960 to repeat the test. The logic may also be configured to transmit a second update instruction if the desired action contained in the initial message does not occur and is not detected by the system within a predetermined first response time (which may be programmed into the system) from when the initial message was transmitted to the food preparer. This second instruction may be presented to the food preparer more urgently via the monitor and with an appropriate audible alert. If the food preparer has not yet responded to the second instruction in a timely manner within a predetermined second response time (as indicated by a system failure to detect the requisite action), the logic can be further configured to transmit an additional urgency message to the food preparer and/or transmit a management alert message to another location (e.g., on-site or in-field)Off-site manager's computer).

If the test in step 960 indicates that the layout sensor has been activated, then step 970 is performed, where the cooking timer is initialized. Next, the system begins the cooking process at step 980.

In step 985, a test is performed to determine the total cooking time t necessary_cookWhether it has elapsed, thereby indicating that food product 906 is finished cooking. If the total cooking time t_cookIf not, control proceeds to step 986 and step 986 performs a test to determine if the layout sensor has been deactivated. If the sensor has been deactivated, this indicates that the food preparer has prematurely removed cooking basket 904 from fryer 900 before food product 906 has finished cooking. This is a common problem when the restaurant is busy and the food preparer is anxious to supply food products to the customer. However, such premature removal may result in improperly cooked food being served to the consumer. As shown in step 987, an audiovisual indicator may be provided, which may be an audio warning or a visual message displayed on a CRT, which indicates cooking is not complete in response to finding that the sensor has been deactivated. This indicator may be provided to alert the food preparer and/or regulatory agency. Step 988 is then performed in which the system recognizes that the food preparer made an error and registers the date, time, and other relevant monitoring details of the event (e.g., food product removed from the fryer 5 minutes earlier). The food preparer responsible for operating the fryer will have been previously identified to the system by data entered from the restaurant management (e.g., a move graph) or the food preparer (e.g., at the beginning of the move). It should be noted that the restaurant management authority may explicitly decide what parameters and information it wishes to track, and then program the system to record that information accordingly. In step 989, the system stores information relating to the event in a database which can later be recalled and displayed by the manager or authority to determine the staff involved and the appropriate action. Alternatively, by using the system via the cellDigital, internet or other wireless communication means; the ability to transmit data via conventional telecommunications means of modem access or over a conventional internet connection, the system can provide a remote location with a real-time notification of this information. This would be particularly advantageous when the management authority oversees the operation of one or more restaurants from a remote location.

Returning to step 985, if total cooking time t_cookHaving elapsed, an audible indicator may be provided to instruct the food preparer to remove cooking basket 904 from fryer 900 because food product 906 is finished cooking, wherein: the audiovisual indicator may be an audio alert or a visual message displayed on a CRT, as shown in step 990. This may be accompanied by an audible alarm issued by the system. Control then returns to step 940 to await receipt of another cooking instruction.

It should be recognized that: the system is not limited to manual task verification in connection with cooking food, but may be used to verify completion of any equipment related manual tasks, such as maintenance and other procedures, for example, changing or filtering shortening or oil used in deep fat fryers. To verify that proper shortening or oil maintenance has been performed, the system control logic may be programmed to record various parameters, such as the actual time it takes for personnel to drain, clean, and refill the fryer with new shortening or oil. The system can then compare this information to a preprogrammed baseline duration that is typically associated with the normal completion of these tasks. If the comparison indicates that these tasks are completed in less time than the baseline value, the maintenance operation may not have been performed normally. The system may also be programmed to monitor the temperature of the cooking medium (i.e., oil or shortening), for example by a temperature probe located in the vat, wherein the temperature probe is typically immersed when the fryer is in an operational condition. If the fryer is completely emptied during maintenance (when it should be) the temperature probe will be exposed to air and the system will see a temperature close to ambient. If the employee only partially empties the fryer vat, the probe will not be exposed to air and the system will detect a higher than ambient temperature, indicating that the maintenance was not performed properly.

It should be recognized that: the system is not limited to use of any particular type of sensor 906 to verify completion of a manual device-related task. The specific manual task to be verified is a design choice, depending on which the system may be equipped with and depending on its choice and application are any suitable sensors (e.g., temperature sensors, flow detectors, etc.) known to those skilled in the art. Furthermore, the system need not be equipped with any separate sensors at all, and indeed various equipment operating parameters, such as current (amperage) draw, may be measured to obtain the information needed to verify that a manual task involving the equipment has been performed.

Virtual save timer

The system of the present invention may also be used to establish a "virtual timer" to track the hold time of the food after it has been cooked. For example, in one embodiment, the system may be used to track the shelf life of fried chicken prepared in a deep vat fryer. This embodiment may be understood by referring to fig. 9A and 10A described above, with fig. 10A depicting exemplary control logic that may be used to generate a virtual timer. This control logic may be located and executed in the kitchen base station or control center, as considered by the system user.

Referring now to FIG. 10A, logic process 1000 begins at step 1005. At step 1010, the system receives a signal that a batch of food (e.g., fried chicken) has finished cooking ("cook complete" signal). A button on the fryer controller may be manually depressed by the food preparer in the system to trigger this signal to confirm that the chicken has been removed from the fryer after the cooking cycle is completed. Alternatively, the system may automatically detect removal of the fryer basket by deactivation of the placement sensor 906 (as shown in FIG. 9B), the function of the placement sensor 906 being described above with reference to another embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIG. 9C.

Once the cooking complete signal is received, the system automatically assigns a batch identification number (BID) to the batch of food, which has been prepared in one of fryers 901 at step 1015 (see fig. 9A). The BID will be used to track the batch of food as it moves through the restaurant's various holding areas 902 and 915 (fig. 9A) until it is sold and delivered to the consumer or discarded if the batch holding time has expired. The system generates a signal representative of the BID at step 1016 and displays the BID on a local CRT display located proximate to the fryer 901 at step 1017. After subsequently moving the food product around the restaurant, the employee will use the assigned BID as a portal into the system. Of course, the BID may alternatively be manually assigned by an employee.

The restaurant employee next places the batch of cooked food in one of the food holding areas 902 or 915 (fig. 9A). After placing the food in a food holding area, the employee finishes reading the BID of the CRT display associated with the cooking/preparation device (e.g., FCHK3 represents a third batch of fried chicken prepared on a given day) and enters this information into the system via the alphanumeric keyboard 916 (fig. 9A), which may be provided with either holding area 902 or 915. Preferably, the keyboard 916 is capable of wireless communication with the system and need not be physically part of the food holding area 902 or 915. Alternatively, the employee may enter the BID into the system via any available data entry means, which may be equipped with a system such as an alphanumeric keypad, a voice recognition system, a handheld wireless data entry device, which communicates with the system (e.g., similar to those used in inventory control or completing mobile POS purchase transactions), or any other suitable device. The type of data input device used is a design choice.

The save area keyboard 916 may be linked to and in communication with the system by a wireless or conventional hardwired data communication link. The use of a wireless communication link between a keyboard and a host system is not only well known in the food preparation industry, but also on a wireless premiseInterferometric alarm systems are also well known in the art. Such keyboard devices may operate from standard 120 volt alternating current hard wired power or from battery power. It should be recognized that: the employee may select a holding area to place the food, or alternatively, the control logic of the system may be programmed to automatically select a holding area and then transmit instructions to the employee to place the food in the selected area of the system, displaying the BID on the CRT associated with the holding area where the food should be placed. In this case, a variation of the logic in FIG. 9C may be used to verify that the proper batch of food has been placed there. It is apparent that cooked food may be placed in any available (empty) holding area 902 or 915. Each holding area is assigned its own unique designation code (e.g., FHB) by the restaurant management₁，FHPOS₃Etc.), as illustrated in fig. 9A. These save area indicator codes are preprogrammed into the system and are recognized by the system. The keypad 916 may be equipped with a visual display or reader that identifies the BID of the food product already in the respective food holding area. Alternatively, this information may be shown on a system CRT display, which may show several food holding area indicator codes and BIDs of the food products located therein.

With continued reference to fig. 10A, at step 1020, depending on the employee entering the BID into the system via the holding area keypad (or the system allocating a holding area for use and commanding the employee to place cooked food there), the control logic next creates a link and associates the holding area indicator code with the BID, as described above. For example, an employee may place a fried chicken BID FCHK3 in holding area FHB₁And inputting BID into holding area FHB₁In the keyboard. It should be recognized that: the keypad may be an integral part of the save area device and may be physically attached to the save area device during its manufacture, or the keypad may be a separate stand alone unit which is subsequently attached to the save area device.

In logic step 1025, the system next determines the appropriate holding time at a particular holding temperature for the type of food product that has been prepared (here, the type of food product is, for example, fried chicken). To make this determination, the control logic accesses a database into which the holding time as a function of the holding temperature has been entered by the restaurant management for all of the various types of food products that a given restaurant may be preparing. This database may be located within the local base station or in the control center. For example, the control logic may read a database entry indicating that the maximum holding time for a fried chicken when held at 110 degrees Fahrenheit is 60 minutes. It should be recognized that: the hold times may be stored in tabular form in a database having separate entries for temperature and hold time. Alternatively, the hold time information may be stored in the system database as a set of curves in the form of hold time versus temperature. The stored retention time information may include an "offset" such that any alert generated in relation to the expiration of the retention time will sufficiently precede the actual retention time expiration to allow appropriate steps to be taken (i.e., an "advance notice" time). This aspect of the invention is further described below in conjunction with FIG. 10B.

Once the appropriate holding time has been determined at step 1025, the control logic next starts a holding timer at step 1030, which begins counting down the remaining holding time for the particular batch of food in question. This "virtual" hold timer will continue to monitor the elapsed time of the food product with its associated BID as the food is physically moved in the restaurant by the employee, as described below.

In logic step 1035, a test is performed to determine if the hold time for the tracked batch of food has elapsed. If the holding time has not elapsed, step 1036 performs a test to determine if the batch of food products has changed the location of the holding area. For example, if a batch of fried chicken BID FCHK3 are kept in area from their original back room (FHB)₁) Is moved to a point-of-sale holding area FHPS₂Then the employee will BID FCHK₃Input to and FHPOS₂The associated save area keyboard. The system will therefore receive the relevant BID FCHK₃Currently in holding area FHPOS2 instead of FHB₁The information in (1). Thus, using this example, the control logic performing the test at step 1036 would return an acknowledgement: namely, BID FCHK₃Has changed location of the save area. In this case, control returns to step 1020, which records in the system the batch of fried chicken BID FCHK₃The relative newly changed save area location. Since the hold time may vary depending on such factors as the hold temperature, for example, the remaining hold time for the new location is recalculated in step 1025 to include into the calculation any time that has been consumed in the previous save area location. Logic processing then continues with steps 1030 and 1035, as described above.

If a negative answer is initially returned to the test at step 1036, indicating that the food holding area position has not changed, control returns to step 1035.

If, however, at step 1035, it is found that the hold time has elapsed, then step 1040 is executed, generating a signal indicating that the batch of food has expired (using the example above, bifchk 3). In response to the signal generated at step 1040, an audiovisual indicator may be provided that indicates that the holding time has expired and that the batch of food should be discarded, wherein the audiovisual indicator may be an audio alert or a visual message displayed on a CRT, as shown at step 1041. Control then returns to step 1010 in preparation for starting the logic process again.

Fig. 10B depicts an additional embodiment logic process 1050, (which is a variation of logic process 1000) that is intended to assist a restaurant in controlling its inventory of cooked food products. The system can perform this function by detecting that the holding time for a batch of food will soon expire and then transmitting an advance command to cook more of that particular food. This allows restaurant management and staff to have sufficient advance warning to prepare additional batches of food that will be prepared in time to replace the upcoming expired food category, thereby ensuring that the consumer's needs for that particular food item can be met without undue delay and consumer dissatisfaction.

Referring to FIG. 10B, after the test of step 1035 is performed (FIG. 10A), and a negative response is returned, then control passes through steps 1049 through 1055, which are performed in parallel with step 1036 (FIG. 10A). In step 1055, the system selects the appropriate advance notification time t_notif.Which has been previously entered into a database accessible by and residing in the restaurant management system. This database may be located in the base station or in the control center. Time t_notif.Generally represents the total lead time necessary to prepare and cook any particular alternative batch of food product and may be determined empirically. For example, the advance notice time t of preparing and cooking a fried chicken_notif.Perhaps twenty minutes.

At step 1060, the remaining hold time t is calculated by referring to the batch hold timer issued at step 1030 (FIG. 10A)_rem.. At step 1065, a test is performed to determine if an advance notice message should be submitted to begin preparing another batch of food to replace those whose hold time is about to expire. This advances the notification time t by comparing_notif.And the remaining retention time t_rem.To be implemented. If at step 1065, t_rem.Greater than t_notif.Then step 1042 is performed which transfers control back to step 1035 (fig. 10A) in logic process 1000. If at step 1065, t_rem.Is equal to or less than t_notif.Then step 1070 is performed which generates a signal instructing the employee to cook more food. An audio-visual indicator, which may be an audio alert or a visual message displayed on a CRT as shown in step 1075, may be provided in response to the signal generated in step 1070, indicating that the employee should prepare and cook another batch of food in place of those whose holding time is about to expire. Alternatively, as shown in step 1066The system and control logic may be configured so that an advance notice message is also generated with an audiovisual indicator to alert the employee as to the point at which food preservation time is about to expire. A visual message may be displayed showing minutes (e.g., 20 minutes) at the expiration of the future holding time, the actual time of day (e.g., two afternoon hours), or both.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that with the networking capabilities of the present invention, the logic process 1050 can be modified and customized in many different ways to assist a restaurant in managing and controlling its inventory of cooked food products. For example, optional logic process 1080 in FIG. 10B is a variation of logic process 1050 to check the inventory of cooked food products available in a restaurant before commanding employees to cook an additional batch of food. Logic process 1080 begins with the results of the test performed in step 1065 of logic process 1050. Based on a negative result obtained in step 1065, step 1085 is performed, which is a test of: it is determined whether an alternate batch of food product (the batch for which the alternate holding time is to expire) is already available during the cooking process or in another holding area. Since the system is able to communicate with cooking devices connected to the system communication network, the system can easily determine what food products are in the cooking process and when their desired cooking is complete. If, at step 1085, the system finds another batch of food product available, control proceeds to step 190, which stops the logic process 1080. This prevents the possibility of unnecessarily cooking a replacement batch of food, causing the inventory of that particular food product to exceed the consumer's demand. This undesirable situation would mean that excess food would eventually be discarded after the expiration of the holding time of the food and increase the operating costs of the restaurant. If an alternate batch of cooked food product is not found in the restaurant in the test of step 1085, steps 1086 and 1087 are executed, which are identical to steps 1070 and 1075, respectively, which generate a signal and audio-visual indicator informing the employee and/or regulatory agency that an additional batch of food should be cooked.

Reduced management/fryer maintenance management

The system of the present invention can also be used to provide networked and integrated management, including maintenance of multiple fryers at a given restaurant location (e.g., oil or shortening changes and filtering). In one embodiment of the invention, the system may be used to balance the use of multiple fryers and schedule maintenance of individual fryers to ensure that a maximum number of fryers are available for service during periods of peak demand for food. Exemplary control logic that can be programmed into the system of the present invention to balance fryer usage and maintenance is shown in the flow chart of FIG. 11. This control logic may be located and executed in the kitchen base station or control center, as considered by the system user.

Referring to FIG. 11, logic process 1100 begins at step 1110. At step 1111, the control logic is preprogrammed with baseline fryer maintenance data that is used to determine a desired maximum number of fryer cooking cycles per fryer before the cooking medium needs to be changed or filtered. Such baseline data may include, but is not limited to: the type of food product cooked, the duration of active cooking and idle time, the cooking temperature, the type of cooking medium that may be used (e.g., shortening, vegetable oil, rapeseed oil, etc.), and other parameters considered by restaurant management to be used in determining when fryer cooking medium maintenance is required. The baseline data can be readily determined by empirical methods and from the experience of the restaurant industry. The control logic is also preprogrammed with the duration required to complete a maintenance cycle, such as changing or filtering the cooking medium (i.e., maintenance downtime), at step 1112. This data will depend on the particular brand or type of fryer used and their design characteristics (e.g., volume of fryer vat, cooking medium pump flow rate, etc.).

It should be noted that the baseline data discussed above in steps 1111 and 1112 may preferably be stored in a database accessible to the system and may be located in the local kitchen base station or may be located remotely in the control center.

At step 1120, logic continues, and the system next reads historical sales data maintained by the system to determine the need for various types of food products (i.e., fried chicken, french oil fryer, fried fish, onion rings, etc.) to be served at a particular restaurant location for a given day of the week and a given time of day. This data can be stored and updated in a database located in the system of a local kitchen base station or a remotely located control center. This information is preferably collected by the POS (point of sale) system of a particular restaurant, as the demand for various types of food will vary due to the restaurant's geographic location and the preferences of the consumers it serves.

At step 1130, the system monitors and determines the actual usage of individual fryers at a particular restaurant location or cell as shown in FIG. 1. In this step, the system collects and reads relevant data regarding the actual operating environment for each fryer. This data will be used by the system to determine when the cooking medium of each fryer will require maintenance and the type of maintenance operation required (i.e., cooking medium change or filtering). This may include (but is not limited to): the number of cooking cycles actually completed since the last cooking medium filtration or change, the time of fryer usage, fryer idle time and temperature of the cooking medium while idle, cooking cycle temperature, type of food cooked, and other data to be used by the system to determine when the cooking medium needs to be changed or filtered. Information regarding the actual usage of each fryer may be tracked and stored by each individual appliance microprocessor controller, a local kitchen base station, a remotely located control center, or any combination of the preceding. Also note that if a fryer is broken and not available for service, the system will identify the fryer as unavailable during step 1130. Thus, a broken fryer would not be included in the subsequent logic step decisions described below.

At step 1140, using the baseline data preprogrammed into the system at steps 1111 and 1112 and the actual operating data acquired by the system for each fryer at step 1130, a predicted time that each fryer will require maintenance and an expected duration of maintenance may be determined for each fryer at a given restaurant location.

Using the historical sales data read in step 1120, step 1150 continues the control logic to predict or predict the expected demand for each type of food product served at a particular restaurant location at any given time on any given day of the week. The system thus generates a demand profile for each type of food product consisting of the number of sales versus the time of day given in the week. For example, the system may thus know that consumer demand for fried fish may peak at friday noon, while demand for fried chicken reaches a maximum at six o' clock in the same day at night. Preferably, the demand profile generated by the system is updated on a continuous basis using historical sales data from the POS system to ensure that the most accurate prediction of food product demand is generated. It should be recognized that: there will typically be more than one cycle for any given day, with the food product demand for any given product typically peaking, typically two peaks (lunch time and dinner time). Alternatively, the system may also read historical food product demand from the past few years to reflect seasonal variations in consumer food product order habits, which are known to exist by restaurant management. Thus, it is apparent that the system is flexible and the type of data used by the system in generating the food product demand profile is controlled by and considered by restaurant management.

Proceeding to logic step 1160, the predicted maintenance timing (time of day), duration, and type of operation required (i.e., filtration or change of cooking medium) for each fryer calculated by the system at step 1130 is compared to the demand forecast for each type of food product served by the restaurant on a given day of the week determined at step 1150. This allows the system to determine whether a sufficient number of fryers will be available to meet the upcoming peak demand for various types of food products being served.

Still referring to FIG. 11, the logical processing continues at step 1170, where: the system schedules the timing of all fryer maintenance operations for a particular restaurant location based on the fryer maintenance requirements determined in the preceding logic step. Preferably, the maintenance cycle is scheduled to ensure that a sufficient number of fryers are available for service to meet peak demand periods for the various types of food products being served. Therefore, it is preferable that the maintenance operation be scheduled to coincide as much as possible with off-peak periods of food product demand. When it is time to run the maintenance program for a particular fryer, the system next generates and transmits a signal containing that information at step 1180. In a restaurant having a fully automatic fryer maintenance operation, the generated signal is a control signal that automatically initiates the necessary maintenance operation. When a fryer maintenance operation is manually initiated by restaurant personnel, the generated signal is an informational signal that provides notification to the personnel via an informational display to initiate a maintenance cycle. This information signal will identify the particular fryer and the type of maintenance operation required (e.g., "change cooking medium" or "filter cooking medium"). This information can be displayed on a local CRT display and, optionally, with an audible alert, also generated by the system, in concert with the delivery of the information maintenance message. After step 1180, control returns to step 1120 to continue logic process 1100.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that the control logic described in figure 11 may be modified in many ways to suit the individual needs and preferences of the various restaurant establishments. For example, by allocating and scheduling cooking cycles between fryers at a particular restaurant location, the control logic may include steps to balance fryer usage. The system will therefore instruct the employee as to which fryers to use for which food products at any given time during the day. These instructions may be displayed on a local CRT display associated with the fryer. Balancing fryer usage will help to further ensure that a maximum number of fryers are available to meet peak demand periods for food.

With respect to the embodiments of the invention that have been described above, it should be recognized that: communication, whether between individual devices, base stations, control centers, or any combination thereof, may be accomplished by any suitable wireless or wired means of the intended application and is a design choice. Preferably, the communication is accomplished through a wireless communication platform, the technology of which is well established and well understood by those skilled in the art. More preferably, the wireless communication is performed using an established nationwide wireless network. However, the internet link may also be a conventional, wire-based connection, such as: through standard telecommunication lines, DSP lines, T-services, etc.

It will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art that individual devices and base station local networks may communicate through any of the many mobile communication devices prevalent in electronic technology today. These devices may include, but are not limited to, cellular and other wireless communication devices, which may be embodied as a telephone platform, laptop or notebook computer, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) or pocket PC, or the like. Thus, for example, the devices may be used to upload or download data, control device and base station operations including food preparation and maintenance, monitor device status and sales, etc., all from a remote location. These communication devices may utilize established nationwide wireless networks to complete connections with devices or base stations via wireless internet connections.

It should be noted that: no system is perfect and employees can always try to find a way to cheat. Moreover, there is always some level of manual involvement somewhere in any automated process, especially in operating the food service. Thus, there is no system that can actually achieve complete compliance at any time with one hundred percent certainty "check". However, the present invention goes beyond past systems because it checks those tasks that are being completed normally based more on experimental data and actual measurements of the target parameters.

It should also be recognized that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. Accordingly, many modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the claims appended hereto. For example, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention is not limited to restaurant applications, but may be used in any commercial, institutional, or residential application in which a device is used. Moreover, the present invention is not limited to use with any particular type of food product or device, and will find wide utility in the food preparation and service industry where the present invention may be reasonably used. Thus, the present invention may be used with ovens, ice makers, dishwashers, refrigerators, heating and air conditioning units, and the like, which may be equipped with microprocessor-based controllers to provide a communications interface to the system and network of the present invention. Thus, these devices may be "Web-enabled" to complete communications with the system via the internet.

Claims (47)

1. A system for automatically monitoring performance of device-related manual tasks relating to devices used in food preparation, the system comprising:

at least one device for use in food preparation, the device having a microprocessor-based controller;

at least one sensor capable of detecting a parameter associated with the performance of a manual task associated with at least one device;

a control computer executing control logic operative to automatically monitor the performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device; and

a communication network allowing communication between the control computer and either or both of the at least one device and the sensor.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein: the communication network completes the communication at least in part by wireless data transmission.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein: the communication network also accomplishes communication at least in part through the internet.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein: the at least one device is a kitchen device.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the kitchen appliance is a fryer.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein: the communication network accomplishes the communication at least in part through the internet.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein: the parameter provides an indication as to whether the at least one device-related manual task was completed.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein: the parameter provides an indication as to whether the at least one device-related manual task was performed correctly.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein: the control computer is a local kitchen base station.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein: the control computer is located in a control center.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein: the computer is capable of generating at least one message related to at least one device-related manual task.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising a visual display monitor on which at least one message may be displayed.

13. The system of claim 1, further comprising a database containing stored historical information relating to performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the stored historical information comprises information relating to one or more of the group consisting of: a type of the at least one device-related manual task; when the task is executed; and the identity of the person performing the task.

15. A method for automatically verifying performance of a device-dependent manual task involving a device used in food preparation, the method comprising:

providing at least one device for use in food preparation, the device having a microprocessor-based controller;

providing at least one sensor capable of detecting a parameter associated with the performance of a manual task associated with at least one device;

providing a control computer that executes control logic operative to automatically monitor the performance of manual tasks associated with the at least one device;

providing a communication network allowing communication between said control computer and either or both of said at least one device and sensor;

monitoring the at least one device;

performing the at least one manual task involving the at least one device; and

detecting performance of the at least one device-related manual task.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein: communicating between the control computer and one or both of the at least one device and the sensor at least in part by wireless data transmission.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein: the wireless data transmission is performed at least in part over the internet.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein: the communication network accomplishes the communication at least in part through the internet.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of generating at least one message related to a manual task associated with at least one device.

20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of displaying said at least one message on a visual display monitor.

21. A system for tracking cooked food product shelf life, comprising:

at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

a control computer; and

control logic executed by the control computer, the control logic operating to determine when a hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein: the control logic is further operative to determine whether the at least one cooked food product has moved from the first food holding area to the at least one second food holding area.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein: the control logic is further operative to register movement of the at least one cooked food product to the at least second food holding area.

24. The system of claim 21, wherein: the control logic is further operative to generate an expiration signal when the hold time of the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

25. The system of claim 24 further comprising an audiovisual indicator that is responsive to the expiration signal to provide an indication that the hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

26. The system of claim 22, wherein: the control logic is further operative to assign a batch identification number to the at least one cooked food product.

27. The system of claim 22 further comprising a data entry device that allows a batch identification number of said at least one cooked food product to be manually entered into the system to identify in which holding area the food has been placed.

28. The system of claim 27, wherein: the data input device is a keypad associated with the food holding area.

29. The system of claim 27, wherein: the batch identification number is entered into the system at least in part by wireless data transmission.

30. The system of claim 22 further comprising a sensor for measuring a parameter associated with said at least one cooked food product, said sensor providing a signal to said control computer related to said parameter.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein: the parameter relates to the presence or absence of the at least one cooked food product in a particular holding area.

32. The system of claim 30, wherein: the parameter relates to the temperature of the at least one cooked food product.

33. A system for managing an inventory of cooked food products in a food preparation establishment, comprising:

at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

a control computer; and

control logic executed by the control computer that operates to determine when a hold time of the at least one food product will elapse in the future and operates to provide advance notification of when the hold time will elapse.

34. The system of claim 33, further comprising: different types of advance notice times corresponding to the at least one cooked food product are stored in a database accessible to the control logic.

35. The system of claim 33, further comprising: the control logic operates to generate an advance notification message signal indicating when the hold time will elapse in the future.

36. The system of claim 35, further comprising an audio-visual indicator responsive to said advance notice information signal for providing an advance indication of when the hold time will elapse in the future.

37. The system of claim 33, further comprising: the control logic operates to generate a signal to cook more of the at least one food product.

38. The system of claim 37 further comprising an audio-visual indicator responsive to said signal for providing an indication that more of said at least one cooked food product has been cooked.

39. The system of claim 33, further comprising: the control logic operates to determine whether more of the at least one cooked food product whose hold time will elapse in the future is available or is cooked in another location of the food preparation mechanism.

40. A method for tracking the shelf life of a cooked food product comprising:

providing at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

providing a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

providing a control computer;

providing control logic executed by the control computer, the control logic operative to determine when a hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed; and

determining when a holding time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

41. The method of claim 40, further comprising: a data entry device is provided for manually entering a batch identification number for the at least one cooked food product into the control computer.

42. The method of claim 41, further comprising: determining whether the at least one cooked food product has moved from the first food holding area to the at least one second food holding area.

43. The method of claim 40 further comprising displaying a message that the shelf life of the at least one cooked food product has expired.

44. The method of claim 40 further comprising assigning a batch identification number to said at least one cooked food product.

45. A method for managing an inventory of cooked food products in a food preparation establishment, comprising:

providing at least one cooked food product having a predetermined holding time;

providing a plurality of food holding areas for holding the at least one cooked food product;

providing a control computer;

providing control logic executed by the control computer, the control logic operative to determine when a hold time of the at least one cooked food product will elapse in the future and to provide advance notice of when the hold time will elapse,

determining when a hold time of the at least one food product has elapsed in the future; and

providing an advance notice of when the hold time of the at least one food product will elapse in the future.

46. The method of claim 45, further comprising: notifying a food preparation facility person to cook more of the at least one cooked food product before the hold time for the at least one cooked food product has elapsed.

47. The method of claim 45, further comprising: determining whether more of the at least one cooked food product whose holding time will elapse in the future is available or is cooked in another location of the food preparation mechanism.