Abstract: A novel cleaning container is disclosed for backflushing and hence clean an espresso machine. The container may include a body having a top, an opposing bottom, and an interior cavity for holding water, detergent, and/or other cleaning fluid. A piston is slidably disposed within the interior cavity between up and down positions, wherein the piston and an opening of the body at the top define a variable volume for cleaning the machine. A spring is seated firmly within the body underneath the piston for biasing the piston to the up position. A stopper disposed about the top of the piston limits the motion of the piston at the top of the body. One or more grooves within the body are in fluid communication with one or more outlets to permit fluid to exit the body during cleaning. The body may be transparent or translucent.

Abstract: A back-blush cleaning container may have a spring-biased piston that allows the container to fill with hot water when attached to a group head of the espresso machine. When the hot water of the espresso machine is turned off, the piston due to the spring urges the hot water out and back through a 3-way valve to clean the espresso machine. The backflush cleaning container also may have a steam conduit that allows steam from a steam wand of the espresso machine to clean the group head, 3-way valve and tubes. Moreover, the container may have a window which based on the position of the piston, a particular color is shown. The colors indicate whether the container is safe to remove from the group head of the espresso machine and when the container is full of water.

Abstract: A back-blush cleaning container may have a spring-biased piston that allows the container to fill with hot water when attached to a group head of the espresso machine. When the hot water of the espresso machine is turned off, the piston due to the spring urges the hot water out and back through a 3-way valve to clean the espresso machine. The backflush cleaning container also may have a steam conduit that allows steam from a steam wand of the espresso machine to clean the group head, 3-way valve and tubes. Moreover, the container may have a window which based on the position of the piston, a particular color is shown. The colors indicate whether the container is safe to remove from the group head of the espresso machine and when the container is full of water.

Abstract: A device for moving coffee grounds from the coffee grinder into a portafilter or other coffee brewing device without spilling coffee grinds. The device may consist of 3 separate parts—a main body, a plug, and a cap—that fit together such that when shaken or agitated coffee grinds on the inside cannot spill out. This allows for easy homogenization without mess of the grinds before brewing, a process that is becoming more prominent in the industry with the advance of specialty coffee. The device fits onto the lip of a portafilter such that removal of the cap and plug allow all of the homogenized coffee grinds to fall directly into the portafilter basket.

Abstract: A device for grinding coffee beans one shot at a time. The device may consist of an inlet funnel attached to a main body, wherein the beans are gravity fed to a set of burrs that grind the coffee into a grounds chamber, where they are then expunged into a grounds receptacle. The grounds receptacle may be adjusted in height via arms attached to the grinder depending on the workflow of the user and the type of receptacle being used. The grounds chamber is a clamshell design easily removable by the user for cleaning and held in place with magnets and alignment pins. As the grinder grinds coffee, wipers on the mounts for the burr create a positive pressure air flow to expunge the ground beans in addition to physically manipulating them out of the exit chute. This allows for grinding and expulsion of all of the input coffee without retention, a common problem in the industry when grinders are used for single shot grinding.

Abstract: A device for steaming and/or foaming milk primarily for, but not limited to, coffee beverages. The device attaches via machined threads to a standard coffee machine steam wand, but nonstandard sizes can be accommodated via a thread adapter. The device consists of two machined stainless pieces each with crescent shaped apertures that, when rotated relative to each other, allow for the increase or decrease in effective hole size to adjust the volume and pressure of steam being expunged. This adjustability allows for the user to decrease the aperture when foaming a small amount of milk (e.g. for a macchiato), or to increase the aperture for foaming more milk (e.g. for a latte).

Abstract: A device for precise dispensation of whole coffee beans. The device may consist of a coffee bean hopper attached to an incremental dispensation device such as a toothed gear rotated by a stepper motor, whereby the rotation of the gear precisely dispenses whole coffee beans into a receptacle mounted upon a load cell or other weighing device. As the beans are dispensed into the receptacle, a PCB or other electronic component controls a feedback loop from the weighing device to the motor such that the dispensed amount is within +/?one coffee bean in weight. The desired weight may be input via buttons attached to the PCB with a readout that allows 0.1 g accuracy, or roughly the weight of one coffee bean.