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Submitted via IRC for AndyTheAbsurd
The kitchen assistant, known as 'Flippy', was designed by a startup called Miso Robotics which specializes in "technology that assists and empowers chefs to make food consistently and perfectly, at prices everyone can afford."
[...] Flippy uses feedback-loops that reinforce its good behavior so it gets better with each flip of the burger. Unlike an assembly line robot that needs to have everything positioned in an exact ordered pattern, Flippy's machine learning algorithms allow it to pick uncooked burgers from a stack or flip those already on the grill. Hardware like cameras helps Flippy see and navigate its surroundings while sensors inform the robot when a burger is ready or still raw. Meanwhile, an integrated system that sends orders from the counter back to the kitchen informs Flippy just how many raw burgers it should be prepping.
Source: http://www.zmescience.com/science/news-science/burger-robot-flipping-meat-0432432/
(Score: 3, Informative) by requerdanos on Thursday September 14 2017, @04:13PM (4 children)
Contact heat is better because you get a sear [wikipedia.org]:
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 14 2017, @04:41PM (2 children)
You don't need contact heat to get browning. My burgers wind up plenty browned when I grill and not just where the metal contacts the burger. All it takes is a higher heat so that the browning is kept nearer the surface where it doesn't dry out the meat.
The real reason why this kind of robot is such a good thing is that they'll eventually be programmed to handle multiple heat zones. So, they'll be able to do the actual cooking on a lower temperature before moving to a higher temperature to sear the burger and get that browning that makes burgers tasty.
I like to think that in the future food is going to be not just cheaper, but actually better for you and better tasting.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Thursday September 14 2017, @05:21PM (1 child)
I still don't see why you'd need a complex robot with failure-prone actuators (hostile environment) do replace a couple multi-zone conveyor-belt ovens.
Tack some auto-feeders onto the ovens, and a few simple actuators on the output to direct the meat onto the bread and add the sauces, and you have a fully-automated production line without needing any fancy AI training.
This is a science experiment, not an industrial process.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 14 2017, @09:14PM
The only thing I can think of is if you want to offer different doneness options. But, then again, that's not really fast food.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 14 2017, @07:03PM
We got browning in the roll-through grill, it had a broiler in top and on the bottom, it would get seared as it went past the hottest part. I also remember now that it would also toast the buns through the same machine but a different slot. Can't a grill cooked burger get seared?