Decent Espresso Machine - Page 119

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decent_espresso (original poster)
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#1181: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

Two hand-made steam wand prototypes for the DE1CAFE just arrived today. Looking forward to trying it out. We have 1 and 4 hole steam wand tips for this.


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#1182: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

I came across this today looking at the World Barista Championship "helpful tips" guide about the Black Eagle. Interesting, neh?


roastini
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#1183: Post by roastini »

decent_espresso wrote:Ray and I agree that this could be useful, and we're implementing "should the flush valve be open" as a simple "yes/no" that can be set at any stage of espresso making.

The "advanced shot" UI on the tablet will have this feature as a checkbox: "flush valve open: [yes/no]".
That's great.

I think an interesting recipe to try would be something like (1) preinfuse at 0.5ml/sec with the flush valve open for 25 seconds, then (2) switch to preinfusion at 0.5 ml/sec with the flush valve closed until saturation is detected, next (3) pause (with the valve closed) for a few seconds, and finally (4) start the shot.

If step 2 ends up being over five seconds, I'd lengthen the time for step 1. The idea is to preinfuse without pressure, but close the valve toward the end to take advantage of the automatic detection of saturation. Step 3 might not be necessary; it's there just to allow the saturation to even out. Based on my single test, I think the puck would readily absorb water without pressure at 0.5 ml/sec, at least for a fairly long time (like my 25 second step 1).

(This game will be much more fun once I actually have a machine on which to try these ideas out!)

mm1854
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#1184: Post by mm1854 »

decent_espresso wrote:Since there's a bit a of wordsmithing talent here, I was wondering if you could lend some brain cells toward a different problem, of clearly and concisely describing the DE1 vs the DE1+. The advice I'm mostly seeing, from successful approaches to this problem, is to elevate a single feature, and present it as a "do this, get this".
First off, incredible all the advances that have been made over the last few months; drip tray, new heating element, water connections, porcelain containers, metal group head cover (yeah!!!), new engineers, optimized layout, new water connections, "unheard of" sharing of designs to promote third party interest, CFD optimization of water pathways (super cool, and not just pretty pictures), ... just breathtaking => I can't wait to get my unit in July (fingers crossed:)!

Regarding describing the DE1 and DE1+. Not sure the following is appropriate for your intended use, but here is how I think of DE if I was only given few words to describe what you have created:

Next Gen Espresso machine - Feed-back control of key flavor parameters
DE1 - Fully automated, customizable flavor profiles
DE1+ - Additional sensors and full parameter customization

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#1185: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

We're currently testing this heavy duty USB-A panel mount connector with a completely sealed power converter.

I like this because it's highly water resistant (water in the USB-A will still short it, though), independent, and should stand up to a lot of abuse.

Because we have two panels in the front: a strong one where this USB connector would mount, and then a thin, shiny "splash panel" that mounts in front of it, the two screws for this USB plug won't be visible on the front of our espresso machine.


roastini
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#1186: Post by roastini »

decent_espresso wrote:We're currently testing this heavy duty USB-A panel mount connector with a completely sealed power converter.
Looks good.

For anyone who wants a trip down memory lane, I ran across the this FB post from December 2015.
It discusses an October 2015 prototype that used plastic tubing (which would expand under pressure - since replaced with the teflon tubing), didn't use the water mixing chamber, had an expensive DC pump, and didn't yet have steam capability. The hope was to start "real manufacturing" in April or May... of 2016. As Tom Cargill of Bell Labs once said, "The first 90 percent of the code accounts for the first 90 percent of the development time. The remaining 10 percent of the code accounts for the other 90 percent of the development time."

I did run across this one explanation of an innovation that was in place back in 2015. Is this approach still being used?
Decent Espresso Machines (on Facebook) wrote:An innovation built into the trade show prototype was that when you hit "make espresso", water exits the heater at the desired (measured) temperature, and then is re-measured as it is about to go into the group head (a few inches further). If it has been cooled by the tubing and connectors, the water goes back to the tank.

This "last minute heating" of the entire water path to the group head takes about 20 seconds, but it provides absolutely on-the-button water temperature right to the group head. When the water temperature behind the group head is exactly right, it is then allowed to enter the group head, which is preheated to the water set point temperature, and thus suffers no change in temperature.

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#1187: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

roastini wrote:It discusses an October 2015 prototype that used plastic tubing (which would expand under pressure - since replaced with the teflon tubing), didn't use the water mixing chamber, had an expensive DC pump, and didn't yet have steam capability. The hope was to start "real manufacturing" in April or May... of 2016. As Tom Cargill of Bell Labs once said, "The first 90 percent of the code accounts for the first 90 percent of the development time. The remaining 10 percent of the code accounts for the other 90 percent of the development time."I did run across this one explanation of an innovation that was in place back in 2015. Is this approach still being used?
Yes, still doing that. When you his "start" the entire system tries to get the right water temperature, flowing through everywhere, and the shot doesn't begin until the temperature probe behind the group head is within 0.1°C of the right temperature. Valves, tubing, who knows what, all can destabilise the temperature. The goal is a good espresso shot, not necessarily the fastest one.

For the DE1PRO, we still have R&D work to do, to shorten that start-button-to-pour time.

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#1188: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

We've placed our order for 1000 tablets, and now we're working with the manufacturer to get the tablet looking exactly the way we want.

Here's what it looks like with the logo printed on the back. I think it looks awful.



Pictured above is their dual-boot (Android/Windows) Intel model. Our tablet is Android only, with an ARM CPU (much faster, better battery life).

The manufacturer was very surprised that I didn't want our logo printed on the back, but I think a black tablet without a logo looks really elegant.

We're also picking a texture for the case, and I've gone for a matte black on ABS plastic, which is fairly fingerprint resistant (we're doing the one on the right)



I previously was going to use a material called "oil rubber" for the back (that's what the Windows tablet in the photo above is using) but all my engineers worried that it might turn sticky in a few years, so we're being conservative and going with matte ABS plastic.

The printing next to the ports is in small, Futura type and is fairly unobtrusive.

Finally, we were able to find silicone sleeves that were made for this tablet. We got a sample from them (ugh, in blue) and we'll need to punch a hole for the steelie stand in the sleeve, but otherwise it works well. I personally don't think the silicone sleeve is necessary, but if you're splashing water all over the tablet, or just worried about doing so, we'll be offering the sleeve as a low-cost accessory. Because this sleeve was moulded for this tablet, the fit is quite good and it doesn't look sloppy, like the other not-quite-perfect-fitting sleeves I've tried.


GAC
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#1189: Post by GAC »

Very glad your engineers put you off the oily rubber. It annoys the hell out of me when computer mice, tablets, phones etc. become sticky and peel off - and they always do prematurely in our tropical climate.

What about a subtle logo imprinted on the abs back like on the original Nexus 7? (for example)

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#1190: Post by decent_espresso (original poster) »

GAC wrote:Very glad your engineers put you off the oily rubber. It annoys the hell out of me when computer mice, tablets, phones etc. become sticky and peel off - and they always do prematurely in our tropical climate. What about a subtle logo imprinted on the abs back like on the original Nexus 7? (for example)
To be super honest, the tablet price we're getting at these low quantities is pretty bad (1000 units is the minimum allowed). We're paying about the same price as Argos is selling them retail for in the UK. And obviously Argos is selling them at a profit, but their quantity purchases from this company must be huge, so they get a big discount.

And so another reason to put no logo on the back of the tablet is that I've had two companies approach me, wanting small quantities (100 or so) of our tablet for their own uses, to run their app talking to our Decent Scale. If I can (re)sell some of our tablets to these other companies, then I can get our tablet ordering quantities up and get better pricing in the future. Not slapping Decent on the back of the tablet means it's more interesting to other companies to use for their own devices.

So <grin> if anyone is looking for a few dozen OEM tablets for their app....

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