Don't worry, I am actually working on incorporating a language model that will replace the control knob ($49 per month for 3 use tokens per day) as well as blockchain based coffee batch identifiers
This is actually the only place I've posted it haha. Will incorporate feedback from here (especially more candid video content) before proceeding.
I filed for a patent a couple days ago on the burr assembly, and a design patent on the wood arch thing, but definitely not looking to prevent anyone from making their own. Only to prevent some massive company from running off with it or even patenting it since I'm never going to be that high profile.
It is definitely true that larger burrs have more surface area to retain grounds. In general, I think most people consider the tradeoff worth it in terms of flavor, especially because in my experience the coffee that builds up in the burr of any grinder is likely to stay there whereas coffee that sits in nooks and crannies around the chute is likely to get cycled each time.
The knocker is actually hidden within the hopper itself, you twist and release it and it knocks into the burr. The basic idea for the design is that you have 3 rings, and each of them is a touch point, the bottom turns it on, the middle adjusts the size, and the top is the knocker.
Every burr grinder I've owned over the years (Cuisinart, De’Longhi, Braun, Black+Decker) had that awful static cling problem, although my newest, a KitchenAid KCG8433DG conical, is notably cleaner and quieter than all of the others were. For comparison, I'd like to see some real life on-the-counter evidence after a Velofuso grind.
BTW, there are a few different means of reducing static cling problems, including stirring the beans in the hopper with a moistened spoon before each run.
This is an incredibly complicated subject full of dissenting opinions and obviously people have their preferences especially across different brew types. In my opinion, the effect of densification within grinders with longer, or multiple cutting paths is universally positive for flavor. Fine particles accumulate with eachother and with larger particles and everything is rolled and rounded. One of the things to remember is that over-grinding coffee, I assume you mean by putting it over and over through the same burr set, is not the same as putting it once through a longer burr set. With the cylindrical burrs, the coffee is doing the same thing that any other set of burrs do, only over a longer distance period of time, so the coffee has more time to densify.
Below is a great James Hoffman video comparing traditional coffee grinders to roller grinders, though the company keeps a lot of the details a secret, their grinder not only has a very long grind path, but also a dedicated densification stage.
I have only done blind taste tests using my friends and family as unwitting participants, and they've universally preferred turbina over a 64mm flat burr grinder with titanium nitride burrs and a high-ish end conical hand grinder. But obviously, this may be a matter of preference!
Thank you! And you should still design an espresso machine!
Argh, yeah squarespace seperates the store from the overall site. Definitely need to re-organize and add some stuff, like an about us page. For now, you can uhhh watch me fighting robots on TV
The ones out there now are wonderful, but quite huge and expensive because they rely on AC motors which sadly aren't very power dense and don't scale down well
Rotary pumps aren't that big -- most of the premium espresso machines with vibration pumps are actually bigger than the ones with rotary pumps, i.e. compare a dual boiler or heat exchange vibration pump like Synchronika with a Linea Micra or Lelit, with two boilers and rotary pump.
I used fusion to design and printed ergonomic/partial prototypes on Prusa 3d printers. Then, I fortunately had a ton of manufacturing contacts because I have worked as somewhat of a production engineer before. Some parts were definitely difficult, especially the outer burr of the grinder (there were a couple viable ways to make it, but it is sometimes difficult to find a shop that is price competitive in say wire EDM machining and 5 axis CNC, or CNC and casting, so you have to get shops to coordinate with eachother) or the wood arch (because high volume wood shops are not nearly as technologically sophisticated as metalworking shops)
PCBway is a good option now, especially for 3D printed metal parts. They have CNC as well but they tend to struggle with anything that has complicated geometry or features. But 3D printing doesn't require approval, and for one offs is often cheaper.
I think I did make a mistake in not having the product in more real life environments. My kitchen is not very pretty so I set up a little photo area to capture all the images and video. Now I will find some kitchens to borrow.
I would love to see the machine in a messy kitchen, where it is used to actually make coffee. Because to be honest, looking at the picture, it looks more like a decorative object than a functional coffee machine. Seeing it in its natural environment shows that it is the machine you use to make your own coffee (you do, right?), give some practicality.
To be fair, no one does that, it is not how marketing works, I guess. But here, it is not a regular espresso machine where we can immediately see how it works because we have already seen dozens of them, so a more practical shot saying "it is doesn't just look good on the countertop, it has a function, and that function is to make coffee".
But just from a practical consumer perspective. I want to know more about what the tube and power cable connect to. Since this is designed to be a new novel "compact" espresso machine, I would have higher standards in that regard compared to more conventional machines.
You obviously invested a lot in this product. I think that maybe renting a high end kitchen and bringing a professional photographer would go a long way!
You might need to give something away to make it happen, but an oddball request to an owner selling their nice home would probably work out, even if it took a few tries to find the right fit.
