Method and apparatus for brewing hot beverages

Apparatus for brewing a beverage by infusing an infusible material with a liquid during a brewing interval, said apparatus comprising:

• A) a beverage container for the liquid that includes a handle, a spout for pouring the beverage therefrom and electrical contacts,
• B) a base that includes electrical contacts and means for locating said beverage container on said base whereby said electrical contacts on said base and beverage container align and enable said beverage container to be removed from said base,
• C) a heater in said beverage container for heating the liquid in said beverage container to a predetermined brewing temperature,
• D) an infuser basket having a permeable body for the infusible material, and
• E) an electro-mechanical positioner attached to said infuser basket to lower said infuser basket into the liquid during the brewing interval and to raise said infuser basket from the beverage container contents to an emerged location upon completion of the brewing interval whereby both the lowering and raising operations occur in a controlled manner and wherein said beverage container handle enables said beverage container to be lifted from said base to pour brewed beverage therefrom and supports a portion of said electro-mechanical positioning means.

Apparatus for brewing a beverage from an infusible material and a liquid during a brewing interval, said apparatus comprising:

• A) beverage container means for containing the liquid including means for pouring the beverage therefrom,
• B) base means for detachably supporting said beverage container means during the brewing interval, said beverage container means being removable from said base means for pouring brewed beverage therefrom,
• C) infuser basket means for containing the infusible material,
• D) heater means in said beverage container means for heating the liquid in said beverage container means to a brewing temperature, and
• E) electro-mechanical positioning means for controlling the submerging of said infuser basket means in the liquid for the brewing interval and for controlling the removal of said infuser basket means to an emerged location from the liquid upon completion of the brewing interval, said positioning means and said infuser basket means including complementary releasable attachment means including a magnetic pickup on said infuser basket means and on said positioning means:
• i) a magnet,
• ii) a flexible connector attached to said magnet,
• iii) a shuttle attached to said flexible connector,
• iv) a bidirectional drive that moves said shuttle in a linear fashion between first and second positions corresponding to the emerged and submerged positions, respectively whereby said infuser basket means can be attached and detached from said electro-mechanical positioner means.