DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0018] FIG. 1 is a simplified functional block diagram of an embodiment of the system of the present invention utilized with a cooking apparatus such as a grill. The present invention is an item-based control system rather than a ticket-based control system. A Controller 11 includes a Filtering Process 12 , Firing Process 13 , Cooking/Timer Process 14 , Temperature Process 15 , Alert Process 16 , and Timers 17 . Each of these processes is described in further detail below. Through a point-of-sale (POS) interface, the Controller receives information relating to particular tickets from a food server order-entry terminal 18 . When the food server enters an order, the order includes the food types, thickness (if applicable), and degree of doneness desired for each item. At that point, a grill-space manager 19 determines whether there is space available on the grill surface for any food item on the ticket that requires grilling. If there is space available, the Controller accesses an icon library 21 , and displays an icon corresponding to the food item on one or more touch-screen display monitors 22 . If there is no space available on the grill surface, the Controller calculates a time delay, and if the delay is excessive, may page a manager through a paging subsystem 23 .

[0019] Each food item is broken down into components, and the Controller 11 then determines from a cooking times and turn times database 24 , the proper cooking time for each item and component. The Controller then calculates when the cook should place each item on the grill, and when each item should be turned. A grill temperature sensor 25 may be utilized by the Controller to calculate the cooking time and turn time, which may vary according to the temperature of the grill. When the item is done, and is ready to “sell”, the Controller sends a message to an expediter 26 .

[0020] As noted, the system includes one or more display screen monitors 22 in the kitchen near the cook's station. The monitor provides a visual representation of the cooktop surface such as the cooking surface of the grill. Each type and thickness of food has an associated icon that the Controller 11 displays on the monitor in the kitchen. The Controller displays each icon on the monitor in the position where the cook should place the corresponding food item on the cooking apparatus. The display screen is laid out in a grid so that the Controller knows the physical location where each item has been placed. The Controller also knows the amount of space occupied by each item, and thus can determine, at any given time, whether there is any space available. Each icon is displayed at the proper time so that every item in the order is done to the desired degree at the same time.

[0021] It should be understood that the present invention is applicable to any type of cooking apparatus such as, but not limited to, grills, deep fat fryers, ovens, stove tops, and the like. In addition, the system may control a plurality of display monitors, with each monitor visually representing the cooking surface of a different cooking apparatus. For example, one monitor may represent the surface of a grill while another monitor represents positions on the shelf of an oven. If an order includes, for example, a hamburger (cooking time 6 minutes) and french fries (cooking time 3 minutes), the system will first display an icon corresponding to the hamburger on the monitor representing the oven. Three (3) minutes later, the system will display an icon corresponding to the french fries on the monitor representing the grill.

[0022] When each icon appears, the cook places the corresponding food item on the cooking apparatus in the position indicated on the monitor 22 . The monitor may be a touch screen display, enabling the cook to touch the icon on the screen to indicate to the Controller 11 that the action has been taken. The Controller then starts the countdown timer 17 for that item, and updates the Estimated Time to Completion (ETC). Icons continue to appear in their assigned positions on the monitor when it is time to place additional items on the grill. When it is time to turn an item, this may be indicated in some way such as rotating the icon, flashing the icon, or changing its color. Likewise, when an item is done, a different indication is given to the cook to indicate that the item should be removed.

[0023] In each case, the cook performs the indicated action and touches the icon on the display screen 22 . If the cook does not respond to a displayed or changed icon, the system may try several levels to alert the cook such as color changes or an audio alert. If the cook fails to respond to all alerts within a specified time period, the system may use the paging subsystem 23 to page a manager to investigate.

[0024] Some items may be more accurately cooked by checking the internal temperature with a probe. Therefore, the Controller 11 may also manipulate the icon or provide some other indication to the cook when it is time to check the temperature on an indicated item.

[0025] In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, whenever the cook is required to take an action, he must touch the icon on the monitor screen 22 to indicate that the action has been taken. The system updates the ETC, and determines whether the new ETC falls within acceptable parameters. For example, the cook may delay too long in putting on a steak, and the ETC may indicate that the steak will not be done for too long a time after the rest of the food items in the order are ready. Whenever the new ETC does not fall within acceptable parameters, an alert is indicated, and the manager may be paged.

[0026] At any given time, the Controller 11 knows how much space is left on each cooking apparatus, and how much cooking time is left for each item. Therefore, if an order for a table comes in, and the required cooking apparatus is full or does not have enough space for the new order to be placed on the apparatus within a predefined time period, a message may be sent to the restaurant manager using the paging subsystem 23 . The manager may then choose to visit the table and explain to the customers that there will be a slight delay.

[0027] The icons displayed on the monitor screen 22 may pictorially represent the corresponding food items. Thus, the basic functionality of the present invention is language-independent, and may be used with grill cooks who speak any language.

[0028] FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an overall process flow performed by the system of the present invention. At step 31 , the Controller 11 receives information relating to a particular ticket through the POS interface from the food server order-entry terminal 18 . When the food server enters an order, the order includes the food types, thickness (if applicable), and degree of doneness desired for each item. The system then performs a filtering process 32 (see FIG. 3 ); a firing process 33 (see FIG. 4 ), and a cooking/timer process 34 (see FIG. 5 ). A temperature process 35 (see FIG. 6 ) and an alert process 36 (see FIG. 7 ) may also be performed if conditions warrant.

[0029] FIG. 3 is a flow chart of the filtering process 32 performed by the system of the present invention. When the system receives an order (ticket) from the order-entry terminal 18 , the Controller 11 filters the order into component parts (items) at step 41 . The items are then sorted based upon their relative cooking times and the capacity of the equipment used to cook them. Thus at step 42 , the cooking time for each item is determined, and at step 43 , the system determines the firing order for the items based on their cooking times. At step 44 , the item preparation time is determined for each item based on the available space on the cooking surface.

[0030] Once the items are sorted, an Estimated Time of Completion (ETC) is generated at step 45 based upon the item with the longest preparation time. The ETC is a time period that begins as the sum of the cooking time for a Primary Fire Item (PFI) and the primary queue. It then counts down the completion of the ticket. The PFI is the item with the longest cooking time upon which the firing order of the other items will be based. The cooking time is generally the sum of the turn times for a particular item. The primary queue is the wait time before the PFI is fired. It is zero or the highest preparation time minus the PFI cook time, whichever is greater. An item's preparation time is defined as the sum of an item's cook time and queue time, the queue time being the time an item waits before the cooking process begins based on available equipment capacity.

[0031] At step 46 , the ETC is compared to the restaurant's acceptable cooking time standard. If the ETC exceeds the acceptable standard, the process performs the alert process 36 (see FIG. 7 ). An alert to management may be generated utilizing, for example, the paging subsystem 23 . However, if the ETC is acceptable, a primary queue is established at step 47 based upon the relative cooking times of the items. At step 48 , the queued data is provided to the firing process 33 , thus ensuring that the cooking process for each item in the ticket is completed at approximately the same time.

[0032] FIG. 4 is a flow chart of the firing process 33 performed by the system of the present invention. From FIG. 3 , the sorted items are sent to their appropriate cooking stations based upon the timing of the firing queue. At step 51 , an icon for the PFI is displayed on the monitor screen 22 at a position corresponding to the position at which the cook should place the item on his grill fryer, broiler, and so on. The monitor may “beep” or provide some other signal to get the cook's attention. At step 52 , the Controller 11 determines whether or not an acknowledgment is received from the cook that the item has begun the cooking process. If an acknowledgment is not received within a predefined period of time, the process may perform the alert process 36 (see FIG. 7 ) and update the ETC. However, if an acknowledgment is received, the process performs the cooking/timer process 34 (see FIG. 5 ).

[0033] Simultaneously, the process moves to step 53 where it is determined if there are additional items. If not, the firing process is complete. However, if there are additional items, the process moves to step 54 where the fire time of the next item is determined. The fire time may be determined from the queued data at step 55 . At step 56 , an icon for a the next item is displayed on the monitor screen 22 at a position corresponding to the position at which the cook should place the item on the cooking apparatus. The process then repeats itself until all items have been fired.

[0034] FIG. 5 is a flow chart of the cooking/timer process 34 performed by the system of the present invention. Once an item is fired in the firing process 33 , the item's overall cooking time is broken down into turn times at step 61 . At step 62 , one of the timers 17 is utilized to determine when the turn time for each item has expired. After each item's turn time expires at step 63 , it is determined at step 64 whether the expiring turn time is the item's final turn time. If not, the process moves to step 65 where an indication is provided on the monitor for the cook to turn the item. The Controller 11 prompts the cook for an acknowledgment that the action step has been completed, and at step 66 , it is determined whether an acknowledgment is received from the cook within a specified period of time. If not, the process performs the alert process 36 and updates the ETC. However, if an acknowledgment is received, the process returns to step 62 and starts a new turn timer for the item.

[0035] If it is determined at step 64 that the expiring turn time is the item's final turn time, the process moves to step 67 where it is determined whether or not the item is an item that should be tested for doneness with a temperature probe. If so, the process performs the temperature (temp) process 35 . However, if the item is not an item that should be tested for doneness with a temperature probe, the process moves to step 68 where the Controller issues a “sell alert” at the cook's station, prompting the cook for an acknowledgment that the item has been “sold”. At step 69 , it is determined whether an acknowledgment is received from the cook within a specified period of time. If not, the process performs the alert process 36 and updates the ETC. However, if an acknowledgment is received, the process moves to step 70 where the item is “sold” by, for example, sending an indication to the expediter 26 that the item is ready to serve.

[0036] FIG. 6 is a flow chart of the temperature process 35 performed by the system of the present invention. If a food item is an item that should be tested for doneness with a temperature probe, the Controller 11 issues a temperature alert at step 71 , instructing the cook to determine the temperature of the item with the temperature probe. At step 72 , it is determined whether or not an input is received from the probe within a specified period of time. If not, the process performs the alert process 36 and updates the ETC. However, if an input is received from the probe within the specified period of time, the process determines at step 73 whether the temperature is acceptable. If not, the process continues to loop between steps 72 and 73 until the temperature reaches an acceptable level. At step 74 , the Controller prompts the cook to “sell” the item once an acceptable internal temperature is reached.

[0037] FIG. 7 is a flow chart of the alert process 36 performed by the system of the present invention. If the cook does not respond to a displayed or changed icon, the system may try several levels to alert the cook. At step 81 , a level-1 alert is attempted. For example, the color of the displayed icon may be changed. At step 82 , it is determined whether or not an input is received from the cook within a specified period of time. If not, the process may attempt a level-2 alert at step 83 . For example, the icon may be made to flash on the display screen. Once again, at step 84 , it is determined whether or not an input is received from the cook within a specified period of time. If not, the process may attempt a level-3 alert at step 85 . For example, an audio alert may be sounded to get the cook's attention. Once again, at step 86 , it is determined whether or not an input is received from the cook within a specified period of time. If not, the process performs a level-4 alert at step 87 . This alert may include paging the manager to investigate why the cook has not responded. This level of alert may continue until an input is received at step 88 . At any level of alert, if an input is received, the process returns to the main process in which the alert process was activated, and the main process continues.

[0038] It is thus believed that the operation and construction of the present invention will be apparent from the foregoing description. While the method, apparatus and system shown and described has been characterized as being preferred, it will be readily apparent that various changes and modifications could be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.