TchiBOT: "Smart" coffee devices using robotics & electronics

"The coffee machines of the future": Makes ordering, consuming and interacting with Tchibo coffee products fun, efficient & future proof.

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Inspiration

Stereotype or not the industry of robotic and software engineers is full of nerds coffee aficionados.

When an aspiring nerd robotics engineer sees a hackathon for a leading coffee company and asked to build something for the future...It's like a duck to water, a pig to mud or dog with a bone.

Introducing the TchiBOT range of "smart" coffee devices & robots.

In dire need of a caffeine hit? Fear not here is TchiBOT!

(Try it here: https://tchibot.project.click

What it does

The TchiBOT product range is my take on the future of coffee consumption with a focus on automation, fun, and efficiency.

3 x hardware prototypes and 1x software app:

"Auto" TchiBOT

"Auto" TchiBOT

💡 Not much is worse than waking up to make fresh coffee to discover you have run out of beans or milk, Auto" TchiBOT solves this by automatically ordering milk and Tchibo coffee as soon as you reach a minimum threshold, using a sensor hidden in the base of the tin/jar (coffee based on weight (load/stress gauge sensor), milk-based capacitance on) that is connected via wifi and can measure to the nearest gram/ml how much coffee /milk you have left. Based on how quickly your average consumption is and taking into account delivery time the "Auto" TchiBOT will auto-order your essential coffee supplies for you.

💼 Business case: Most realistic part of this project for use in "today's word", cheap to make (sub $10) and strong business. Bundle the "smart" coffee tin with coffee purchases that help maximizes consumption and locks in brand loyalty through automated regular purchases.

"Smart" TchiBOT

"Smart" TchiBOT

💡 In the world of "smart" devices and IoT (Internet of Things) coffee consumers will expect coffee machines to be seamlessly integrated into their "smart" houses and other "smart" devices.

"Smart" TchiBOT makes "automatic" coffee machines even more so, voice-activated (with optional Alexa integration) automatically add milk, detects optimal settings (heat, pressure, milk ration based on the coffee bean/blend)

Schedule coffees (just like you would your alarm clock)

"Spend less time making coffee and more drinking it"

💼 Business case: In the short term "smart" devices are a trending category for consumers and there is a gap in the market for a "hackable" coffee machine that would have great appeal to a passionate niche. In the long term integrated "smart" coffee machines will become the norm and an essential kitchen application in future "smart" houses.

"Premium" TchiBOT”

"Premium" TchiBOT

💡 The bees knees of coffee automation. Fully automated end-to-end autonomous coffee ordering, brewing and delivery system. (Bundled with the TchiBOT APP)

The killer feature of "Premium" TchiBOT” is the automated delivery robot, what's the point of automating everything if you still need to go walk to the machine to pick up the coffee, 🙄 you no longer need to risk breaking your mental "flow state" 🤓 to get your next caffeine hit. "Premium" TchiBOT” "drives your freshly brewed order directly to your desk, minimizing mental downtime and interruption when your in the "zone".

💼 Business case: Systems are only as strong as their weakest link, TchiBOT is the final piece of the puzzle to a completely automated end-to-end coffee system. Covid may have also accelerated this to a genuine use case in today's distantly social world, a good coffee break can improve productivity but sometimes you just need your caffeine hit to get on with it, perfect for "end-of-month" crunch time when hard nose managers insists no break until "x" is done (hopefully in the future managers acknowledge a good coffee break can give leave you feeling fresh and more productive)

TchiBOT App

💡 A mobile (PWA) / Web App with a Futuristic UIso although this is predominantly a hardware project you can still interact with a realistic simultaneous of the "Premium" TchiBOT” delivering coffee in a futuristic office:

(Try it here: https://tchibot.project.click

Challenges we ran into

Literally hacking a coffee machine... Consumer-grade coffee machines aren't designed to be hacked so taking one apart and identifying the correct components make this a "do not try this at home" project, unless you have a good handle on electronics.

Originally I wanted to mount wheels to the coffee machine but two challenges made this unviable:

  1. The coffee machine was too heavy and this also would blow out the time and budget for this project
  2. Converting the coffee machine from mains power to battery-powered was a bit too risky (Chance of accidentally killing a good but "dumb" machine would not be "smart" )

Although I made some 3D parts they lack some aesthetic qualities.

How we built it

Python backend (MicroPython), PyTorch for A.I and Javascript/JQuery Frontend

Hardware Parts:

  • 1x consumer coffee machine
  • 4 x 3d printed parts and logos
  • 1 x ES8266 microcontrollers (used to control the capacitive and load gauge in the "smart" coffee tin)
  • 1 x ESP32 microcontrollers (to control the coffee machine using python)
  • 1 x ESP32-CAM module (for robot vision)
  • 2 x 5v pumps (for pumping the milk/water and coffee)
  • 1 x Stress/Load gauge sensor (for weighing coffee)
  • 1 x Capacitive touch sensor (for water and milk automation)
  • 1 x Raspberry pi zero (brains of the TchiBOT robot)
  • 1 x 4 microphone array (for voice recognition)
  • 1 x Speakers
  • 2 x 1.2 inch LCD (View the UI on "smart" TchiBOT)
  • 2 x DC engines and wheels (for momentum)
  • 1 x Castor wheel (to balance the 2 wheel design)
  • 3 x Ultrasonic sensors (object avoidance)
  • 1 x 30cm Plastic cake cover (robot base)

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