Coffee grinder and brewer apparatus with basket sensing and grind only feature

An apparatus for the grinding of coffee beans and brewing of the ground coffee comprising

• a storage hopper for coffee beans,
• a grinder mechanism in communication with said hopper for grinding said beans,
• a pair of articulating brewer basket retaining arms positioned beneath a passageway leading to said grinder for retaining a brew basket in contact with an underneath surface of said apparatus, said arms pivotally attached to said apparatus and being biased to pivot toward each other so as to grasp said basket when urged therebetween,
• a hot water distribution system for distributing hot water to said brew basket, said system including a hot water storage tank and a water distribution head positioned in a region bounded by the contact between said basket and said underneath surface, said distribution head in communication with a hot water storage tank, and
• a control circuit for operating said grinder mechanism and hot water distribution system, said circuit including
• a first switch for initiating a grinding and brewing cycle,
• a second switch for initiating a grind only cycle, and
• a third switch positioned to abut one of said arms when no basket is positioned between said arms whereupon said third switch is open, said control circuit energizing said grinder mechanism only when said second and third switches are closed and enrgegizing both of said grinder mechanism and said water distribution system only when said first and third switches are closed.

A coffee bean grinding and brewing apparatus including

• a storage hopper for containing coffee beans,
• a coffee bean portioning mechanism communicating with said hopper for providing selected quantities of beans;
• a grinder communicating with said portioning mechanism and a grinder motor for driving said grinder,
• a pair of basket retaining arms pivotally mounted to a support structure below said grinder, said arms being biased toward one another and said support structure providing a stop for said arms when a basket is not therebetween, said structure being pivotally mounted within said apparatus and being biased so as to pivot said arms upwards and cause a basket retained by said arms to abut against an underneath surface of said apparatus,
• a passageway leading from said grinder to an opening in said underneath surface within an area abutted by said retained basket,
• a hot water distribution system including a hot water tank and a hot water distribution head communicating with said tank for distributing hot water to ground coffee in said retained basket, and
• a control means for energizing said grinder motor and controlling flow of hot water from said tank to said head, said control means energizing said grinder only when said basket is being retained between said pair of retaining arms.