Networked food preparation apparatus

A system comprising:

• a plurality of food preparation apparatuses, each of the food preparation apparatuses comprising:
• a single board computer communicatively coupled to a wireless mesh network, the mesh network comprising a plurality of nodes, wherein the single board computer is one of the nodes of the mesh network, the single board computer comprising:
• a processor,
• a built-in antenna, and
• one or more memory devices communicatively coupled to the processor,
• the memory devices storing a database containing provisioning and configuration data for at least two of the nodes of the mesh network, the memory devices further storing processor-executable instructions that, when executed by the processor:
• transmit and receive data, via the antenna, on the mesh network,
• generate a control signal for controlling an operation of the food preparation apparatus, and
• communicate the control signal on a physical data bus according to a message-based protocol;
• and
• an input/output (I/O) circuit communicatively coupled to the single board computer via the physical data bus and configured to receive the control signal therefrom, the I/O circuit responsive to the control signal for driving one or more components of the food preparation apparatus to perform the operation.