U.S. patent application number 14/362937 was filed with the patent office on 2014-10-02 for content provider feeds in a food product asset related network.
The applicant listed for this patent is Illinois Tool Works Inc.. Invention is credited to Richard W. Cartwright, Damon C. Childers, Eric A. Soller.
Application Number | 20140297467 14/362937 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 47472103 |
Filed Date | 2014-10-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140297467 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Soller; Eric A. ; et
al. |
October 2, 2014 |
Content Provider Feeds in a Food Product Asset Related Network
Abstract
A method for enabling network communication relating to a food
preparation asset may include receiving, from a third party
participant, a registration request to join a community including
asset operators that operate at least one food preparation asset
and registering the third party participant as a community member.
The method may further include providing the third party
participant with access to a communication network for sharing
content items related to the asset and providing the third party
participant with content creation tools to facilitate the creation
of content items that include instructions associated with
operation of the asset relative to preparation of a food product.
The method may further include enabling the third party participant
to distribute the content items to the asset operators via the
communication network. The content items may include at least
identifying information to identify the third party participant and
a contact link to enable the asset operators to contact the third
party participant. The content items may provide at least one
instruction specific to operation of the asset.
Inventors: |
Soller; Eric A.; (Dayton,
OH) ; Childers; Damon C.; (Scottsdale, AZ) ;
Cartwright; Richard W.; (Piqua, OH) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Illinois Tool Works Inc. |
Glenview |
IL |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
47472103 |
Appl. No.: |
14/362937 |
Filed: |
December 14, 2012 |
PCT Filed: |
December 14, 2012 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/US12/69774 |
371 Date: |
June 5, 2014 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61576560 |
Dec 16, 2011 |
|
|
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/26.8 ;
705/319 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04L 65/1073 20130101;
H04L 67/10 20130101; Y02P 90/86 20151101; H04L 65/4084 20130101;
Y02P 90/80 20151101; G06Q 10/0631 20130101; H04L 65/403 20130101;
G06Q 50/01 20130101; G06Q 10/101 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/26.8 ;
705/319 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 50/00 20060101
G06Q050/00; H04L 29/06 20060101 H04L029/06 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: receiving, from a third party participant,
a registration request to join a community including asset
operators that operate at least one food preparation asset;
registering the third party participant as a community member;
providing the third party participant with access to a
communication network for sharing content items related to the
asset; providing the third party participant with content creation
tools to facilitate the creation of content items that include
instructions associated with operation of the asset relative to
preparation of a food product; and enabling the third party
participant to distribute the content items to the asset operators
via the communication network, wherein the content items include at
least identifying information to identify the third party
participant and a contact link to enable the asset operators to
contact the third party participant, and wherein the content items
provide at least one instruction specific to operation of the
asset.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the third party
participant with content creation tools comprises enabling the
third party participant to define a recipe readable by the asset
operators to define ingredients and food preparation steps for
preparation of the food product.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the third party
participant with content creation tools comprises enabling the
third party participant to define a cooking signature for execution
by the asset, the cooking signature providing non-human readable
instructions for operation of the asset to prepare the food product
via at least a series of cooking instructions sequentially
performed by the asset.
4. The method of claim 1, wherein the contact link is selectable to
launch an at least partially preformatted message to be sent to the
third party participant.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the contact link is selectable to
enable the asset operators to place an order for ingredients
associated with the content item from the third party
participant.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the contact link is selectable by
a particular asset operator to launch an at least partially
preformatted message to be sent to a sales representative
affiliated with the third party participant, the sales
representative being determined based on context information
associated with the particular asset operator.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein providing the third party
participant with content creation tools further comprises enabling
the third party participant to solicit asset operator feedback
regarding one or more of the content items.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein enabling the third party
participant to distribute the content items comprises enabling the
third party participant to create the content items and place them
in a public library accessible by the asset operators via the
communication network.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein enabling the third party
participant to distribute the content items comprises enabling the
third party participant to create the content items and tag content
items for distribution to selected asset operators based on context
information associated with the selected asset operators.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein enabling the third party
participant to distribute the content items comprises enabling the
third party participant to create the content items and tag content
items for association with selected search terms.
11. A content distribution platform comprising processing circuitry
including a processor and memory, the memory storing a plurality of
content items associated with at least one content library, wherein
the processor is configured to: receive, from a third party
participant, a registration request to join a community including
asset operators that operate at least one food preparation asset;
register the third party participant as a community member; provide
the third party participant with access to a communication network
for sharing content items related to the asset; provide the third
party participant with content creation tools to facilitate the
creation of content items that include instructions associated with
operation of the asset relative to preparation of a food product;
and enable the third party participant to distribute the content
items to the asset operators via the communication network, wherein
the content items include at least identifying information to
identify the third party participant and a contact link to enable
the asset operators to contact the third party participant, and
wherein the content items provide at least one instruction specific
to operation of the asset.
12. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to provide the third party participant
with content creation tools comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to define a recipe
readable by the asset operators to define ingredients and food
preparation steps for preparation of the food product.
13. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to provide the third party participant
with content creation tools comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to define a
cooking signature for execution by the asset, the cooking signature
providing non-human readable instructions for operation of the
asset to prepare the food product via at least a series of cooking
instructions sequentially performed by the asset.
14. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
contact link is selectable to launch an at least partially
preformatted message to be sent to the third party participant.
15. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
contact link is selectable to enable the asset operators to place
an order for ingredients associated with the content item from the
third party participant.
16. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
contact link is selectable by a particular asset operator to launch
an at least partially preformatted message to be sent to a sales
representative affiliated with the third party participant, the
sales representative being determined based on context information
associated with the particular asset operator.
17. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to provide the third party participant
with content creation tools further comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to solicit asset
operator feedback regarding one or more of the content items.
18. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to enable the third party participant to
distribute the content items comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to create the
content items and place them in a public library accessible by the
asset operators via the communication network.
19. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to enable the third party participant to
distribute the content items comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to create the
content items and tag content items for distribution to selected
asset operators based on context information associated with the
selected asset operators.
20. The content distribution platform of claim 11, wherein the
processor being configured to enable the third party participant to
distribute the content items comprises the processor being
configured to enable the third party participant to create the
content items and tag content items for association with selected
search terms.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Application No. 61/576,560, filed Dec. 16, 2011, the contents of
which are incorporated herein in their entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] Example embodiments generally relate to enterprise
management and, more particularly, relate to the distribution of
recipe or other food product related information associated with a
particular asset in the context of a communication network.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Many food service companies are enterprises which conduct
operations at numerous locations, some of which may be in different
geographic regions. However, such companies often strive to provide
consistency and quality across the entirety of their organization.
To achieve consistency and quality, many such enterprises generate
recipes and/or processes to standardize the use of equipment that
is shared across the enterprise for use in food preparation.
[0004] While standardization of certain processes and/or recipes
may have some advantages, it may also be desirable to foster the
proliferation of creative processes and technical improvements.
Moreover, many chefs are inquisitive and creative by nature as well
as being familiar with the creation and consumption of content
associated with modern network communication tools such as social
networking sites, blogs, and/or the like. Thus, it may be desirable
to implement network communication tools into enterprise management
for food service companies.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF SOME EXAMPLES
[0005] Some example embodiments may provide an enterprise
management system that may enable enterprise wide sharing of
content to improve utilization of network assets. In one example, a
particular network asset such as an oven that may employ multiple
cooking sources that are electronically controlled via processing
circuitry may be a focal point of such a system. In this regard,
for example, ovens may be distributed to numerous customers. In
some cases, a plurality of ovens may be provided to individual
customers with standard (e.g., company generated) recipes and/or
cooking signatures being provided to operators (e.g., chefs) from
the corporate level. The operators may be enabled, either directly
via the ovens or via other computer based access terminals, to
communicate with each other, with the organizational leadership, or
enterprise management entities in order to share content such as
recipes and/or cooking signatures across the enterprise relating to
the ovens. The system may therefore enable standardization to be
provided by company driven dissemination of procedures, recipes
and/or cooking signatures. However, feedback and process
improvement data may also be easily shared throughout the system to
enable synergistic cooperation across the enterprise. Furthermore,
such a system may enable integration with other parties outside the
organization, such as distributors, manufacturers, or even
professionals from other food service companies, which could be
either competitors or partners. The network asset, such as the
oven, may therefore become the focal point for a network of parties
that service or use the oven in one way or another to share in a
cooperative experience that can be mutually beneficial to all
parties.
[0006] In an example embodiment, a method for enabling network
communication relating to a food preparation asset is provided. The
method may include receiving, from a third party participant, a
registration request to join a community including asset operators
that operate at least one food preparation asset and registering
the third party participant as a community member. The method may
further include providing the third party participant with access
to a communication network for sharing content items related to the
asset and providing the third party participant with content
creation tools to facilitate the creation of content items that
include instructions associated with operation of the asset
relative to preparation of a food product. The method may further
include enabling the third party participant to distribute the
content items to the asset operators via the communication network.
The content items may include at least identifying information to
identify the third party participant and a contact link to enable
the asset operators to contact the third party participant. The
content items may provide at least one instruction specific to
operation of the asset. Some or all of the operations of the method
may be executed via processing circuitry configured
accordingly.
[0007] In another example embodiment, a content distribution
platform is provided. The content distribution platform may include
processing circuitry having a processor and memory. The memory may
store a plurality of content items associated with at least one
content library. The processor may be configured for receiving,
from a third party participant, a registration request to join a
community including asset operators that operate at least one food
preparation asset and registering the third party participant as a
community member. The processor may be further configured for
providing the third party participant with access to a
communication network for sharing content items related to the
asset and providing the third party participant with content
creation tools to facilitate the creation of content items that
include instructions associated with operation of the asset
relative to preparation of a food product. The processor may be
further configured for enabling the third party participant to
distribute the content items to the asset operators via the
communication network. The content items may include at least
identifying information to identify the third party participant and
a contact link to enable the asset operators to contact the third
party participant. The content items may provide at least one
instruction specific to operation of the asset.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)
[0008] Having thus described the invention in general terms,
reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are
not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates a functional block diagram of a system
for provision of oven related content or information according to
an example embodiment;
[0010] FIG. 2 illustrates a functional block diagram of an
apparatus for provision of oven related content or information
according to an example embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 3 illustrates a set of communication flow paths that
may be enabled by the system of FIG. 1 according to an example
embodiment;
[0012] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a recipe that may be
provided by a featured chef or other community member according to
an example embodiment;
[0013] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a recipe that may be
provided by in a vendor library according to an example
embodiment;
[0014] FIG. 6 illustrates a search page for use in connection with
a public library according to an example embodiment;
[0015] FIG. 7 illustrates a search page for use in connection with
a vendor library according to an example embodiment;
[0016] FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a preformatted message
generated according to an example embodiment;
[0017] FIG. 9 illustrates a block diagram of a method that may be
supported by the system of FIG. 1 according to an example
embodiment;
[0018] FIG. 10 illustrates a block diagram of a method according to
an example embodiment;
[0019] FIG. 11 illustrates an example of direct integration of the
oven into the system according to an example embodiment; and
[0020] FIG. 12 illustrates an example series of activities that may
be associated with one channel concept implementation according to
an example embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0021] Some example embodiments now will be described more fully
hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which
some, but not all example embodiments are shown. Indeed, the
examples described and pictured herein should not be construed as
being limiting as to the scope, applicability or configuration of
the present disclosure. Rather, these example embodiments are
provided so that this disclosure will satisfy applicable legal
requirements. Like reference numerals refer to like elements
throughout. Furthermore, as used herein, the term "or" is to be
interpreted as a logical operator that results in true whenever one
or more of its operands are true. As used herein, operable coupling
should be understood to relate to direct or indirect connection
that, in either case, enables functional interconnection of
components that are operably coupled to each other.
[0022] As indicated above, some example embodiments may provide an
enterprise management system that may enable enterprise wide
sharing of content to improve utilization of network assets.
Moreover, some example embodiments may provide a system via which
content may be shared relating to a particular network asset (e.g.,
food preparation related equipment such as an oven, holding
cabinet, fryer, food weighing equipment, refrigerator, or other
food cooling, heating or food processing appliances). The content
sharing may be accomplished via a network based system employing
tools enabling collaborative, instructive, and/or interactive
content publication or distribution. The result of establishing the
network based system may be the provision of a set of online tools
that can be leveraged for enterprise level management of assets and
content generated that relates to the assets. As such, for example,
recipes, cooking signatures and other content created relative to
the employment of the asset may be shared throughout the
enterprise. Moreover, management of the asset itself (e.g.,
diagnostics, service, training, and/or the like) may also be
accomplished using the online tools provided. In some embodiments,
the enterprise may also engage distributors, customers, service
organizations or other partners into synergistic partnerships
relative to the asset. A complete ecosystem for interaction of all
users, consumers, servicers and suppliers of the asset may
therefore be provided to facilitate use, maintenance, training,
distribution of supplies, and other activities that are related to
the asset.
[0023] An example embodiment of the invention will now be described
in reference to FIG. 1, which illustrates an example system in
which an embodiment of the present invention may be employed. As
shown in FIG. 1, a system 10 according to an example embodiment may
include one or more client devices (e.g., clients 20). Notably,
although FIG. 1 illustrates three clients 20, it should be
appreciated that many more clients 20 may be included in some
embodiments and thus, the three clients 20 of FIG. 1 are simply
used to illustrate a multiplicity of clients 20 and the number of
clients 20 is in no way limiting to other example embodiments. In
this regard, example embodiments are scalable to inclusion of any
number of clients 20 being tied into the system 10. The example
described herein will be related to an asset comprising an oven to
illustrate one example embodiment. However, it should be
appreciated that example embodiments may also apply to any asset
including, for example, any of the assets listed above or other
food preparation related equipment.
[0024] The clients 20 may, in some cases, each be associated with a
single oven, or a group of ovens, which may be owned, leased, or
otherwise employed by an organization. In some embodiments, each of
the clients 20 may be associated with different corresponding
locations within a single food service company. For example, among
the clients 20, one client may be associated with a first facility
of a first organization (e.g., a food service company that prepares
or cooks food using the oven) and all of the ovens of a particular
type that are associated with the first facility. Meanwhile, a
second client may be associated with a second facility of the first
organization and all of the ovens of a particular type that are
associated with the second facility. As an alternative, each client
20 may be associated with a single corresponding oven. In still
other embodiments, each client 20 may actually be incorporated into
respective ones of the ovens.
[0025] In other examples, some of the clients 20 may be associated
with the first organization, while other ones of the clients 20 are
associated with a second organization (again with individual ones
clients 20 being associated with or embodied at one of the ovens,
or a group of ovens. As such, in some cases, multiple clients 20
may be associated with the same organization. However, a single
oven could be associated with some or all of the organizations in
other embodiments.
[0026] Each one of the clients 20 may include or otherwise be
embodied as computing device (e.g., a computer, a network access
terminal, a personal digital assistant (PDA), cellular phone, smart
phone, or the like) capable of communication with a network 30. As
such, for example, each one of the clients 20 may include (or
otherwise have access to) memory for storing instructions or
applications for the performance of various functions and a
corresponding processor for executing stored instructions or
applications. Each one of the clients 20 may also include software
and/or corresponding hardware for enabling the performance of the
respective functions of the clients as described below. In an
example embodiment, one or more of the clients 20 may include a
client application 22 configured to operate in accordance with an
example embodiment of the present invention. In this regard, for
example, the client application 22 may include software for
enabling a respective one of the clients 20 to communicate with the
network 30 for requesting and/or receiving information and/or
services via the network 30. Moreover, in some embodiments, the
information or services that are requested via the network may be
provided in a software as a service (SAS) environment. The
information or services receivable at the client applications 22
may include deliverable components (e.g., downloadable software to
configure the clients 20, or information for consumption at the
clients 20). As such, for example, the client application 22 may
include corresponding executable instructions for configuring the
client 20 to provide corresponding functionalities as described in
greater detail below.
[0027] The network 30 may be a data network, such as a local area
network (LAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a wide area
network (WAN) (e.g., the Internet), and/or the like, which may
couple the clients 20 to devices such as processing elements (e.g.,
personal computers, server computers or the like) and/or databases.
Communication between the network 30, the clients 20 and the
devices or databases (e.g., servers) to which the clients 20 are
coupled may be accomplished by either wireline or wireless
communication mechanisms and corresponding communication
protocols.
[0028] In an example embodiment, devices to which the clients 20
may be coupled via the network 30 may include one or more
application servers (e.g., application server 40), and/or a
database server 42, which together may form respective elements of
a server network 32. Although the application server 40 and the
database server 42 are each referred to as "servers," this does not
necessarily imply that they are embodied on separate servers or
devices. As such, for example, a single server or device may
include both entities and the database server 42 could merely be
represented by a database or group of databases physically located
on the same server or device as the application server 40. The
application server 40 and the database server 42 may each include
hardware and/or software for configuring the application server 40
and the database server 42, respectively, to perform various
functions. As such, for example, the application server 40 may
include processing logic and memory enabling the application server
40 to access and/or execute stored computer readable instructions
for performing various functions. In an example embodiment, one
function that may be provided by the application server 40 may be
the provision of access to information and/or services related to
operation of the ovens with which the clients 20 are associated.
For example, the application server 40 may be configured to provide
cooking signatures, recipes and/or the like to clients 20 for use
with the ovens associated with the clients. Alternatively or
additionally, the application server 40 may be configured to
provide diagnostic or troubleshooting information for servicing of
the ovens, or to provide training information for procedures
relating to the care or use of the ovens. In some embodiments, the
application server 40 may be further configured to provide social
networking type interaction among the clients 20 (e.g., posting
comments, message, or content to be shared with other clients 20).
In still other embodiments, the application server 40 may be
configured to provide access for food manufacturers and/or
distributors to publish or consume content and interact with the
clients 20. As such, in at least one example, a food manufacturer
or distributor may be associated with one of the clients 20.
[0029] In some embodiments, for example, the application server 40
may therefore include an instance of a content manager 44
comprising stored instructions for handling activities associated
with practicing example embodiments as described herein. As such,
in some embodiments, the clients 20 may access the content manager
44 online and utilize the services provided thereby relating to
creation of and/or consumption of content items. However, it should
be appreciated that in other embodiments, the content manager 44
may be provided from the application server 40 (e.g., via download
over the network 30) to one or more of the clients 20 to enable
recipient clients to instantiate an instance of the content manager
44 for local operation. As yet another example, the content manager
44 may be instantiated at one or more of the clients 20 responsive
to downloading instructions from a removable or transferable memory
device carrying instructions for instantiating the content manager
44 at the corresponding one or more of the clients 20. In such an
example, the network 30 may, for example, be a peer-to-peer (P2P)
network where one of the clients 20 includes an instance of the
content manager 44 to enable the corresponding one of the clients
20 to act as a server to other clients 20. In still other
embodiments, a computer terminal associated with a network operator
(which may be a client 20 or another access terminal) may access
the content manager 44 to perform functionality associated
therewith.
[0030] In an example embodiment, the application server 40 may
include or have access to memory (e.g., internal memory or the
database server 42) for storing instructions or applications for
the performance of various functions and a corresponding processor
for executing stored instructions or applications. For example, the
memory may store an instance of the content manager 44 configured
to operate in accordance with an example embodiment of the present
invention. In this regard, for example, the content manager 44 may
include software for enabling the application server 40 to
communicate with the network 30 and/or the clients 20 for the
provision and/or receipt of information associated with performing
activities as described herein. Moreover, in some embodiments, the
application server 40 may include or otherwise be in communication
with an access terminal (e.g., a computer including a user
interface) via which enterprise managers may interact with,
configure or otherwise maintain the system 10. In an example
embodiment, the enterprise managers may be associated with a
distributor of the ovens. As such, for example, the oven
distributor may maintain the system 10 for facilitating interaction
of all parties related to the operation of the ovens.
[0031] As such, the environment of FIG. 1 illustrates an example in
which provision of content and information associated with the
ovens may be accomplished by a particular entity (namely the
content manager 44 residing at the application server 40) that may
act as a content distribution platform relative to a plurality of
assets (e.g., ovens). However, it should be noted again that the
content manager 44 could alternatively handle provision of content
and information within a single organization. Thus, in some
embodiments, the content manager 44 may be embodied at one or more
of the clients 20 and, in such an example, the content manager 44
may be configured to handle provision of content and information
associated with ovens that are associated only with the
corresponding single organization.
[0032] An example embodiment of the invention will now be described
with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows certain elements of an
apparatus for provision of food preparation related content or
information to an asset such as an oven or one of the other assets
mentioned above according to an example embodiment. The apparatus
of FIG. 2 may be employed, for example, on a client (e.g., any of
the clients 20 of FIG. 1) or a variety of other devices (such as,
for example, a network device, server, proxy, or the like (e.g.,
the application server 40 of FIG. 1)). Alternatively, embodiments
may be employed on a combination of devices. Accordingly, some
embodiments of the present invention may be embodied wholly at a
single device (e.g., the application server 40 or one or more
clients 20) or by devices in a client/server relationship (e.g.,
the application server 40 and one or more clients 20). Furthermore,
it should be noted that the devices or elements described below may
not be mandatory and thus some may be omitted in certain
embodiments.
[0033] Referring now to FIG. 2, an apparatus for provision of food
preparation related content or information is provided. The
apparatus may be an embodiment of the content manager 44 or a
device hosting the content manager 44 to facilitate content
distributions. As such, configuration of the apparatus as described
herein may transform the apparatus into the content manager 44 so
that the content manager 44 may function as a content distribution
platform. In an example embodiment, the apparatus may include or
otherwise be in communication with processing circuitry 50 that is
configured to perform data processing, application execution and
other processing and management services according to an example
embodiment of the present invention. In one embodiment, the
processing circuitry 50 may include a storage device 54 and a
processor 52 that may be in communication with or otherwise control
a user interface 60 and a device interface 62. As such, the
processing circuitry 50 may be embodied as a circuit chip (e.g., an
integrated circuit chip) configured (e.g., with hardware, software
or a combination of hardware and software) to perform operations
described herein. However, in some embodiments, the processing
circuitry 50 may be embodied as a portion of a server, computer,
laptop, workstation or even one of various mobile computing
devices. In situations where the processing circuitry 50 is
embodied as a server or at a remotely located computing device, the
user interface 60 may be disposed at another device (e.g., at a
computer terminal or client device such as one of the clients 20)
that may be in communication with the processing circuitry 50 via
the device interface 62 and/or a network (e.g., network 30).
[0034] The user interface 60 may be in communication with the
processing circuitry 50 to receive an indication of a user input at
the user interface 60 and/or to provide an audible, visual,
mechanical or other output to the user. As such, the user interface
60 may include, for example, a keyboard, a mouse, a joystick, a
display, a touch screen, a microphone, a speaker, a cell phone, or
other input/output mechanisms. In embodiments where the apparatus
is embodied at a server or other network entity, the user interface
60 may be limited or even eliminated in some cases. Alternatively,
as indicated above, the user interface 60 may be remotely
located.
[0035] The device interface 62 may include one or more interface
mechanisms for enabling communication with other devices and/or
networks. In some cases, the device interface 62 may be any means
such as a device or circuitry embodied in either hardware,
software, or a combination of hardware and software that is
configured to receive and/or transmit data from/to a network and/or
any other device or module in communication with the processing
circuitry 50. In this regard, the device interface 62 may include,
for example, an antenna (or multiple antennas) and supporting
hardware and/or software for enabling communications with a
wireless communication network and/or a communication modem or
other hardware/software for supporting communication via cable,
digital subscriber line (DSL), universal serial bus (USB), Ethernet
or other methods. In situations where the device interface 62
communicates with a network, the network may be any of various
examples of wireless or wired communication networks such as, for
example, data networks like a Local Area Network (LAN), a
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN), and/or a Wide Area Network (WAN),
such as the Internet.
[0036] In an example embodiment, the storage device 54 may include
one or more non-transitory storage or memory devices such as, for
example, volatile and/or non-volatile memory that may be either
fixed or removable. The storage device 54 may be configured to
store information, data, applications, instructions or the like for
enabling the apparatus to carry out various functions in accordance
with example embodiments of the present invention. For example, the
storage device 54 could be configured to buffer input data for
processing by the processor 52. Additionally or alternatively, the
storage device 54 could be configured to store instructions for
execution by the processor 52. As yet another alternative, the
storage device 54 may include one of a plurality of databases
(e.g., database server 42) that may store a variety of files,
contents or data sets. Among the contents of the storage device 54,
applications (e.g., client application 22 or service application
42) may be stored for execution by the processor 52 in order to
carry out the functionality associated with each respective
application.
[0037] The processor 52 may be embodied in a number of different
ways. For example, the processor 52 may be embodied as various
processing means such as a microprocessor or other processing
element, a coprocessor, a controller or various other computing or
processing devices including integrated circuits such as, for
example, an ASIC (application specific integrated circuit), an FPGA
(field programmable gate array), a hardware accelerator, or the
like. In an example embodiment, the processor 52 may be configured
to execute instructions stored in the storage device 54 or
otherwise accessible to the processor 52. As such, whether
configured by hardware or software methods, or by a combination
thereof, the processor 52 may represent an entity (e.g., physically
embodied in circuitry) capable of performing operations according
to embodiments of the present invention while configured
accordingly. Thus, for example, when the processor 52 is embodied
as an ASIC, FPGA or the like, the processor 52 may be specifically
configured hardware for conducting the operations described herein.
Alternatively, as another example, when the processor 52 is
embodied as an executor of software instructions, the instructions
may specifically configure the processor 52 to perform the
operations described herein.
[0038] In an example embodiment, the processor 52 (or the
processing circuitry 50) may be embodied as, include or otherwise
control the content manager 44, which may be any means such as a
device or circuitry operating in accordance with software or
otherwise embodied in hardware or a combination of hardware and
software (e.g., processor 52 operating under software control, the
processor 52 embodied as an ASIC or FPGA specifically configured to
perform the operations described herein, or a combination thereof)
thereby configuring the device or circuitry to perform the
corresponding functions of the content manager 44 as described
below.
[0039] The content manager 44 manager may include tools to
facilitate the creation and distribution of content via the network
30. In an example embodiment, the content manager 44 may also be
configured to manage the provision of access to various parties
attempting to employ services provided via the application server
40. Thus, for example, the content manager 44 may be configured to
receive queries for information and determine whether the party
providing the query has been granted access to receive the
information. The content manager 44 may then either fulfill or
route requests that are authorized appropriately so they can be
fulfilled. The content manager 44 may further be configured to
receive data provided thereto and store such data for access by
other parties according to the classification of the data, the
access restrictions associated with the data, the type of data, or
other content management rules that may be defined within the
content manager 44. In some embodiments, devices or clients
attempting to interface with the content manager 44 may be required
to identify themselves with a login and password or other
identifying means, which may then be used to determine the access
that is appropriate for the corresponding devices or clients. In
some cases, certain functionalities executable via the content
manager 44 may also only be offered to certain parties, and
therefore the content manager 44 may also be enabled to restrict
certain performance capabilities of the application server 40 to
authorized users. In an example embodiment, parties may subscribe
to be members of a service managed by the content manager 44 and
restrictions may be applied to service subscribers based on their
respective subscriptions.
[0040] The content manager 44 may include a registration function
46 that receives electronic information identifying receivers of an
asset (e.g., an oven). The registration function 46 may record
identifying information of the receiver (e.g., organization name,
location, etc.) and identifying information of the asset (e.g.,
oven model number, software or firmware version information, and/or
the like). In cases where multiple assets are associated with the
same organization, a listing may be recorded of all of the assets
associated with the corresponding organization. In some cases, the
listing may be organized by location and/or function. The
registration function 46 may register the receiver as a community
member and distribute community member service descriptions, login
information and/or the like to email addresses of the community
member. Any applicable access restrictions that apply to the
community member may be assigned, and access may be provided
thereafter to all accessible content and/or services for which the
community member is authorized access via the system 10.
Individuals associated with a community member may further register
as individuals associated with the community member and may receive
access to the corresponding content and/or services that are
applicable to the community member with which they are associated.
In some embodiments, profile information may be gathered regarding
individuals or the community member as a whole. The profile
information may, in some cases, be used to determine access levels
for the community member or individual, or may be used for
determining which services or content to inform the corresponding
community member or individual about when a login occurs. Vendors
(e.g., food distributors and/or manufacturers) may also be
registered as such by the registration function and may receive
access to content and/or permission to post content based on access
restrictions that may be defined upon registration. In some
embodiments, the vendors may also receive exposure to certain
information about community members relating to the asset, to
identify leads or possible interaction opportunities with specific
community members or individuals.
[0041] In some embodiments, the registration function 46 may
further manage subscription levels and corresponding access
restrictions that apply based on the subscription level of a
community member or vendor. In cases where subscriptions are
applicable, the level of subscription of a community member or
vendor may be used to determine the content to which the
corresponding community member or vendor has access. The
subscription level may also or alternatively determine which
content creation tools or services (e.g., enhanced or smart
services) to which the community member or vendor will have access.
Furthermore, in some cases, the subscription level may determine
the type and/or amount of information that a vendor may receive
about community members or individuals. Subscription level may also
be used in other ways, or no subscription level may be defined at
all in some embodiments.
[0042] In some embodiments, the content manager 44 may further
include a context determiner 48 that may be configured to determine
context information associated with a particular asset so that
content items (or libraries) that will be presented to the
particular asset (or an operator associated with the particular
asset) can be tailored to the context of the particular asset or
entity with which the particular asset is associated. The context
information may include geographic location, equipment registered
to a community member (e.g., model, type, version, etc.), operator
identity, entity identity, seasonal considerations, preferences
(e.g., favored distributors, chefs, product lines, and/or the
like), upcoming holidays, weather, fault indications, training
schedules, and/or the like. The context determiner 48 may query
equipment associated with the community member and/or may reference
profile information associated with the community member to
determine any applicable context information and provide content
item recommendations, libraries or access to content items or
libraries based at least in part on the context information
determined.
[0043] Accordingly, although some content items may be broadcast
via the network for general availability, others may be targeted to
specific operators, entities, and/or assets based on context
information associated therewith. In some embodiments, the content
manager 44 may be configured to enable a content creator (e.g., a
third party participant in the network such as a product or
equipment distributor) to tag content items so that distribution,
presentation or recommendation of the content items may be
facilitated based on the tags associated with the content items. In
some cases, the tags may identify specific context situations to
which the content items apply. Accordingly, assets, individuals or
entities that fit the context situations may be presented with the
corresponding content items (e.g., as recommended or featured
items). Alternatively or additionally, the tags may identify
specific search terms with which the corresponding items should be
associated. For example, dessert related items may be provided with
a "dessert" tag, and specific types of desserts such as cakes may
be provided with a "cake" tag. Thus, when an individual conducts a
search for an item including or associated with the term "dessert"
or "cake," items having the corresponding tags may be presented or
otherwise be candidates for presentation as search results. Search
result presentation may be provided based on ranking criteria
defined separately.
[0044] The content manager 44 may define a content distribution
platform via which numerous parties may interact relative to
activities and/or content items associated with a particular oven.
In an example embodiment, the oven may be an oven capable of
employing more than one energy source in a controlled manner. In
this regard, for example, the oven may be enabled to heat food at
least partially using radio frequency (RF) energy. In one
embodiment, the oven may be configured to generate RF energy at
selected levels over a range of 800 MHz to 1 GHz and may include an
antenna assembly configured to transmit the RF energy into a
cooking chamber of the oven and receive feedback to indicate
absorption levels of respective different frequencies in the food
product. The absorption levels may then be used, at least in part,
to control the generation of RF energy to provide balanced cooking
of the food product. Meanwhile, in some cases, airflow that may be
provided may be heated to enable browning to be accomplished as
well. Other or additional heat sources may also be included.
[0045] In an example embodiment, the oven may be controlled, either
directly or indirectly, by a cooking controller. The cooking
controller may be configured to receive inputs descriptive of the
food product and/or cooking conditions in order to provide
instructions or controls to the energy sources employed by the oven
to control the cooking process. In some embodiments, the cooking
controller may be configured to access data tables that define RF
cooking parameters used to drive an RF generator to generate RF
energy at corresponding levels and/or frequencies for corresponding
times determined by the data tables based on initial condition
information descriptive of the food product. The cooking controller
may further be configured to enable the oven to communicate with
other ovens and/or with external devices via wireless or wired
connections (e.g., via network 30). Alternatively, the cooking
controller may be configured to enable a removable device to be
installed to allow data and/or instructions to be uploaded to the
oven, and/or allow data to be downloaded from the oven. Cooking
signatures, recipes and other data may therefore be communicated to
and/or from the ovens in any of these manners.
[0046] In the context of the present disclosure, a recipe should be
understood to define the cooking materials to be used for
preparation of a food product and corresponding instructions to be
carried out by an operator or chef relative to preparing the food
product. Thus, for example, the recipe may provide a list of
ingredients, mixing and/or preparation instructions for the
operator or chef, and/or oven settings and cooking times for the
operator or chef to follow. Meanwhile, a cooking signature should
be understood to relate to specific machine instructions relating
to execution of the preparation of the food product for the oven to
employ. Thus, the cooking signature may, in some cases, not include
any human readable code, but may instead simply include machine
executable instructions for operation of the oven relative to
preparing a desired food product. Accordingly, the recipe may
provide operator or chef instructions that are visible or readable
by the operator or chef, and the cooking signature may provide
machine instructions for defining cooking parameters or sequences
that may be invisible or unreadable by the operator or chef. The
recipe and cooking signature may be used together to define a
superior prepared food product by enabling the operator or chef to
conduct the macro level activities associated with preparing the
food product and enabling the oven itself to conduct specifically
tailored or defined cooking operations that optimize the results
achievable via operation of the oven.
[0047] In an example embodiment, the cooking controller may include
processing circuitry configured to receive an indication of cooking
parameters entered by an operator of the oven where the cooking
parameters define at least a food product category of the food
product. The cooking controller may then be configured to select a
cooking signature corresponding to the food product category. The
cooking signature may include information descriptive of inherent
properties of the food product category and input response
properties defining one or more sets of instructions associated
with a cooking sequence for the food product based on the cooking
parameters. As such, while a recipe may generally identify
ingredients, quantities associated with the ingredients, and basic
cooking times and processing techniques, a cooking signature may
take into account the inherent properties of the ingredients
themselves to enable the dynamic controlling of the hardware (and
software in some cases) used to control cooking processes in the
oven. As such, a cooking signature may be specifically tied to a
corresponding platform (e.g., a specific oven) since the cooking
signature may include specific cooking instructions based on the
capabilities of the oven relative to expected interactions between
the cooking processes of the oven and the specific food products
being cooked in the oven. In some cases, a recipe may further
include one or more cooking signatures.
[0048] The content manager 44 may therefore provide a central
repository for content and services related to the ovens including
acting as a storage and distribution center for recipes and/or
cooking signatures. However, other content and utility may also be
provided by the content manager 44 and, as indicated above, the
content manager 44 may enable the creation of an ecosystem via
which interactions related to the ovens may be fostered. The
ecosystem may include a plurality of communication flow paths
facilitated by the content manager 44. Moreover, in some
embodiments, in connection with providing a SAS environment related
to the oven, the content manager 44 may provide a cloud library via
which information may be provided for consumption by authorized
parties.
[0049] FIG. 3 illustrates a set of communication flow paths that
may be enabled by the system of FIG. 1 according to an example
embodiment. In this regard, FIG. 3 illustrates several of the
access mechanisms that may be employed to provide content to the
content manager 44 or receive distributed content from the content
manager 44. Moreover, FIG. 3 also illustrates an example of how
some content may be organized for access and/or use according to
one exemplary embodiment.
[0050] The content manager 44 may be provided within a SAS context.
As such, the content manager 44 may essentially reside in "the
cloud", as shown in FIG. 3. Communications between the content
manager 44 and other entities may, in some cases, be protected by a
firewall. In some examples, the content manager 44 may define
public and private cloud sections. In this regard, a public section
may be exemplified by a cloud library 100 that may be accessible to
all community members (e.g., the oven distributor and enterprise
manager, customers, food manufacturers, food distributors, and/or
the like). The cloud library 100 may therefore include recipes
and/or cooking signatures that are provided for general consumption
to all users of the ovens.
[0051] In some cases, the cloud library 100 may further include
content related to various smart services 110 such as
troubleshooting or diagnostic services. As such, for example,
operational data may be uploaded to the cloud library 100 by a
community member for analysis, community member may navigate
troubleshooting flowcharts, or online chat may be conducted with
technicians to diagnose and resolve technical issues. Access to
smart services 110 may enable remote configuration of the ovens,
the provision of software or firmware updates, and/or the provision
of services based on usage or operational data. Usage data (e.g.,
products being cooked in the ovens and methods used to cook such
products) may be used to identify related products, recipes,
cooking signatures or improvements to products, recipes or cooking
signatures. Operational data may be used to provide predictive
failure analysis to suggest preventive maintenance or measures
and/or provide content or service related to such measures. Remote
troubleshooting and/or servicing may also be employed in connection
with smart services 110 by engaging offsite personnel with
knowledge of the specific equipment located onsite. Oven status
updates may also be provided in connection with smart services 110.
Accordingly, smart services 110 may be provided and/or supported to
greatly expand the ability of community members to perform and
receive assistance relative to performance of asset management.
[0052] Remote configuration of ovens (or other assets) may be
accomplished on an individual or group basis. Moreover, a
particular organization that is a community member (e.g., a
restaurant chain) may define configurations for all or a portion of
its ovens so that the ovens can be configured remotely in a
consistent manner. The configurations may be accomplished on an
individual basis during startup of a new oven (e.g., so that the
new oven has the same configuration as other deployed ovens).
Alternatively or additionally, the configurations may be
accomplished on an organization-wide basis as a part of an upgrade
or maintenance related activity. Preferences and other settings may
therefore be provided with some form of consistent default across
the organization. However, in some cases, chefs may be enabled to
define particular preferences or settings (some of which may be
shared or published for comment as is also described herein) to
tailor the ovens, or their own profiles, to their specific needs or
desires.
[0053] In some embodiments, the content manager 44 may be enabled
to also define private cloud sections so that individual community
members may have their own respective libraries or cloud sections
(e.g., My Cloud Library 120, My Training 122 and My Support 124).
Private cloud sections may be used by a particular organization
(i.e., a community member) to provide contents such as recipes
and/or cooking signatures (e.g., in My Cloud Library 120) that are
specific to the organization. Access to private cloud sections may
be limited to the organization and those invited by the
organization. In some embodiments, one or more of the private cloud
sections may even exclude the system administrator or enterprise
manager from access.
[0054] Other sections (e.g., My Training 122 and My Support 124)
may include content that is specific to the hardware and/or
software modules employed by the particular organization and may be
interactive or otherwise cooperatively maintained with the
enterprise manager or system administrator. For example, when new
ovens are purchased by a community member, the community member's
private training and support sections may be updated to include
training materials and support related materials that are specific
to the new oven models. The materials may include, for example,
training videos, equipment manuals or other training material that
is specifically associated with the actual equipment that the
community member has registered or purchased. As such, community
members do not need to navigate through a plurality of training or
service manuals to find those that apply to the equipment employed
by the particular organization with which they are affiliated.
Instead, the training and support manuals that are applicable to
the equipment employed by the particular organization will be known
to the system and provided to community members seeking training or
support. In other words, the content manager 44 may provide global
access to all community members for some content, while private
sections specific to some (e.g., based on subscription level) or
all members be provided for more personalized content and/or
services. Online chatting with service personnel and other owner
relations services may also be provided in connection with smart
services 110 or in connection with specific cloud sections tailored
to the provision of corresponding specific services.
[0055] As shown in FIG. 3, parties that may interact with the
system may include individual chefs 130, community members 132
(e.g., customers or purchasers of ovens) on an entity wide basis,
manufacturers 134 (e.g., makers of food products that can be cooked
in the ovens), and distributors 136 (e.g., companies that
distribute the food products produced by the manufacturers).
Manufacturers 134 and distributors 136 may be examples of third
party participants that may publish content to the cloud library
100, or in some cases, directly to specific individual chefs 130
and/or community members 132. These parties may have reading
capabilities for content in the public portions of the cloud (e.g.,
the cloud library 100) and for content provided by entities that
have given them access. These parties may also themselves generate
and publish content to the public portions of the cloud and to any
entities that have given them access.
[0056] In some embodiments, ovens 140 themselves may be enabled to
interact with the content manager 44. However, in other
embodiments, the ovens 140 may interact with mobile client devices
150 or fixed client devices 160 via any of various communication
methods (e.g., USB 170, local network communications 172, Internet,
intranet, LAN, etc.). Moreover, the fixed client devices 160 may
include local databases 162 and/or local recipe generation tools
164. Content may be selectively uploaded/downloaded or exchanged
between the cloud library 100, My Cloud Library 120, and the local
databases 162. In some embodiments, an application may be provided
that may be run on a smart phone or other mobile communication
device (e.g., mobile client device 150) so that the local databases
162 and/or local recipe generation tools 164 may be accessed, or
content in the cloud may be accessed. Content may be printed,
posted, shared, downloaded, uploaded, or otherwise exchanged via
the content manager 44 according to any applicable restrictions
defined for the corresponding content or community member.
[0057] Using the tools provided via the example systems shown in
FIGS. 1 and 3, various libraries of recipes and products may be
provided. Publicly available libraries may be placed in the cloud
library 100. However, private libraries may be placed in My Cloud
Library 120 or other restricted access locations. In some cases,
manufacturers and distributors may provide their own respective
libraries (e.g., vendor libraries) that include recipes (and in
some cases also corresponding cooking signatures) that include
products from the respective food manufacturers or distributors. In
some cases, the recipes may include private label distributor
items. The vendor libraries may be publicly available in some
embodiments. However, in other cases, the vendor libraries may be
provided to private cloud sections of specific customers of
respective vendors.
[0058] In an example embodiment, the oven distributor or enterprise
manager may also create recipes (and/or cooking signatures) for
public distribution via a community library. The community library
may also host content from featured chefs, sponsors, or other
parties that may be engaged by the enterprise manager. Other
community members (e.g., oven users) or individual chefs that
desire wide dissemination of their content may also publish content
to the community library in some embodiments. In some cases, the
community library may be synonymous with the cloud library 100 and
may be fully public. However, in other embodiments, the cloud
library 100 may include some exclusive portions that have
subscription based or other access limitations. For example, oven
purchasers may automatically receive a basic subscription that
provides access to public forums and enables the purchaser to set
up certain private libraries and functions tailored to the specific
equipment purchased. Meanwhile, higher level subscription
purchasers may be entitled to access to restricted access
libraries. The restricted access libraries may be associated with
featured chefs, sponsored products, enhanced services, and/or the
like.
[0059] Private libraries may be maintained on an organizational or
even individual level. In some cases, any organization may be
enabled to set up private libraries for the storage of content
(e.g., recipes and/or cooking signatures) that is either generated
by or within the corresponding organization. The private libraries
may also store content acquired from the vendor libraries or the
community library for easy access. Organizations may also allow (or
their accounts may be setup accordingly to allow) individuals
within the organization (e.g., chefs, managers and/or the like) to
store content in their own individual private libraries. Privacy
levels may be established as desired by the organization. For
example, the organization may enable selected individuals or
selected other community members to have access to the
organization's private libraries. Alternatively or additionally,
the organization may restrict access to just people associated with
the organization (including excluding access to the enterprise
manager). Accordingly, a community member that uses the system 10
to distribute and/or standardize recipes, cooking signatures,
procedures, etc., may be enabled to confidentially distribute such
information. Meanwhile, a community member that seeks to actively
promote their products and/or brands may open access (or target
access) to potential customers or consumers. In some embodiments,
signing into the system 10 (e.g., with a login and password) may
automatically provide for access to the public library and any
private libraries to which the logged in user is admitted.
Alternatively, some private libraries may require separate secure
logins.
[0060] In some embodiments, content within certain libraries or
specifically identified content within any particular library may
be submitted for public comment. For example, recipes or cooking
signatures may be submitted in a public forum for comment or
review. Reviewers may submit comments, make recommendations for
modifications, submit questions, provide ratings, or request
product and/or product information associated with content posted
for review. In some embodiments, preformatted feedback or order
forms may be generated responsive to selection of an option to
provide feedback or comment with respect to content posted in a
public library. The preformatted forms may then be submitted to
provide feedback or solicit information or products. In other
embodiments, existing social network platforms 180 may be
integrated (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.) into the
system 10. As such, although the system 10 itself may be set up in
a manner that is similar to a social network, in some cases the
system 10 may also interact with other social networks to enable
integration with the message posting, status updating, and/or
professional engagement that is facilitated by other social
networks.
[0061] In an example embodiment, some of the content that may be
posted in the libraries (e.g., in the vendor library) may be
associated with particular manufacturers or distributors and may be
associated with specific brand name products. Meanwhile, content
generated by the oven distributor or enterprise manager, and
content generated by community members or other individuals may not
be associated with specific brand name products. Thus, in some
cases, content items including recipes or other products may be
different depending upon the source of the content. In an example
embodiment, content items including products or recipes that are
associated with a particular manufacturer or distributor (e.g., a
third party participant) may include an identifier (e.g., logo,
brand symbol, and/or the like) of the corresponding third party
participant along with a title of the product/recipe and a
description provided by the entity. Recipes may include cooking
signatures for use in the oven around which the system is setup in
some cases as well. Thus, for example, third party participants may
design recipes including their products and may provide specific
machine instructions defining cooking sequences responsive to
instructions that are specific to control of the asset (e.g.,
oven). In other words, the content items provided by the third
party participants may be tailored specifically to the equipment to
be used for preparing the food product associated with the recipe
provided in a content item. The specific tailoring may refer to the
fact that machine code specific to the oven or other asset (i.e.,
not generally or generically executable by any oven, but
specifically readable by the corresponding oven for which the code
is written) is included.
[0062] In some cases, the product or recipe may also include a
photo and/or pitch materials, or even a distributor call to action.
Other community member generated products or recipes may include a
product title and description along with a photo and full recipe.
If applicable, a cooking signature may also be included. Authorship
information may be included to identify the source of the product
or recipe/signature. Printing functionality may also be provided to
enable readers to print desired recipes.
[0063] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a recipe that may be
provided by a featured chef or other community member. As shown in
FIG. 4, a selection option 200 may be provided to enable the viewer
to add the recipe to a personal or company library. Alternatively,
a print option 210 may be provided to print the recipe. A rating
option 212 may also be provided in some cases. Some embodiments may
also or alternatively include a share option 214, which may be
selected to post information associated with the recipe to a social
networking site or to a public library. Meanwhile FIG. 5
illustrates an example of a recipe that may be provided by in a
vendor library (e.g., by a manufacturer). The example of FIG. 5
also includes a selection option 220 to enable the recipe to be
added to a personal or company library. The example of FIG. 5
further shows an example in which a rating option 222 and a share
option 224 are provided. Thus, third party participants may enable
asset operators to provide feedback on content items in the form of
ratings or specific comments.
[0064] As shown in the example of FIG. 5, in some embodiments, a
content item further includes a contact link or option 230, the
selection of which may call up a preformatted message to enable the
viewer to contact a distributor or other third party participant.
In some cases, selection of the contact link 230 may enable an
asset operator to send a preformatted message about obtaining
product to enable preparation of the recipe. The preformatted
message may take information identifying the product, or contents
of the recipe, and use such information to identify a distributor
and/or sales representative having contact information on file in
association with the corresponding recipe or product line. The
corresponding sales representative or distributor may then be
contacted directly (e.g., via email) to inquire about the recipe or
to order product. Alternatively or additionally, the contact link
230 may be selectable by a particular asset operator to launch an
at least partially preformatted message to be sent to a sales
representative affiliated with the third party participant. In some
cases, the sales representative to be addressed may be determined
based on context information associated with the particular asset
operator. FIG. 8 illustrates an example of a preformatted message
generated according to an example embodiment.
[0065] Alternatively or additionally, distributors or producers may
obtain information on selections made to inquire about products,
download recipes, and/or the like. Thus, for example, the
distributor or manufacturer of products may use the content manager
44 to provide a mechanism by which to obtain leads on products that
customers want. As such, some example embodiments may be used in
connection with the establishment of an affiliate program. Such a
program may include the passing along of information by the oven
distributor or enterprise manager to affiliates to let the
corresponding affiliates know about leads, click through volume,
questions, orders or other information associated with customer or
potential customer activity as such activity relates to the ovens.
The affiliate program may serve as a low-cost channel with
relatively wide scope via which customers or potential customers
may be reached with multiple motivation points.
[0066] In an example embodiment, the content manager 44 may further
enable community members to conduct searching operations for
content of interest. For example, community members may search a
given library for recipes of interest. FIG. 6 illustrates an
example search page for use in connection with a community library.
As shown in FIG. 6, the search query may be provided in a search
field 300. The search may be for a particular recipe, cooking
signature, manufacturer, distributor, content item, chef, and/or
the like. A list of search results 310 may then be provided. In
some cases, an identity of the author of each listing may be
provided via an icon, image or graphic 312 along with a short title
314 of the corresponding content item. If one of the content items
is selected (e.g., at one of the clients 20), a corresponding
recipe may be retrieved (e.g., by the content manager 44 at the
application server 40) and presented to the user (at the client
20). As an example, if the top content item in FIG. 6 is selected,
the recipe of FIG. 4 may be retrieved and presented.
[0067] Similarly, FIG. 7 illustrates an example search page for use
in connection with a vendor library and responsive to selection of
a top item among the content items in search results 350 of FIG. 7,
the recipe of FIG. 5 may be retrieved and presented. As such, FIG.
7 may include a search field 360 in which a query may be provided
in a manner similar to that which was described above in connection
with the description of FIG. 6. In FIG. 7, author identities may be
replaced with brand or company identifiers 362. However, short
titles or descriptors 364 may also be provided.
[0068] In some embodiments, the content manager 44 may host
discussion forums, or provide a platform for sharing cooking
demonstration videos as streamed or downloadable content in
addition to recipes, products and/or cooking signatures. Community
members may post status information, questions, or other discussion
to public or private message boards, and other community members
may exchange information or discussion points with each other via
the message boards. As such, the content manager 44 may provide a
platform for the receipt of content from community members (e.g.,
oven owners), from the enterprise manager (e.g., the oven
distributor), and from other organizations that provide services or
products related to the oven (e.g., service companies, food
distributors, food manufacturers, and/or the like). The content
manager 44 may provide tools for the storage or posting of content
at any of various libraries or other forums, and may further
provide tools for accessing the content, which may in some cases
include access restrictions.
[0069] As such, the system of FIG. 1 may provide a mechanism via
which a number of useful methods may be practiced. FIG. 9
illustrates a block diagram of one method that may be associated
with the system 10 of FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 9 the method may
include distributing (e.g., via sale, lease, grant, etc.) an asset
(e.g., an oven) at operation 400. The method may further include
enrolling recipients of the asset as community members in a
communication network supported by an electronic communication
platform (e.g., the system 10 and specifically, the content manager
44) at operation 410. At operation 420, the method may further
include providing the community members with access to content
creation tools and content consumption tools for content associated
with the asset via the electronic communication platform. Although
not required, the method may further include enrolling vendors
providing products and services related to the asset as
participants in the community at operation 430. In some
embodiments, the method may further include facilitating
distribution of content created by community members, vendors, or a
network manager at operation 440.
[0070] From a technical perspective, the content manager 44
described above may be used to support some or all of the
operations described in FIG. 9. As such, the platform described in
FIGS. 1-3 may be used to facilitate the implementation of several
computer program and/or network communication based interactions.
As an example, FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method and program
product according to an example embodiment of the invention. It
will be understood that each block of the flowchart, and
combinations of blocks in the flowchart, may be implemented by
various means, such as hardware, firmware, processor, circuitry
and/or other device associated with execution of software including
one or more computer program instructions. For example, one or more
of the procedures described above may be embodied by computer
program instructions. In this regard, the computer program
instructions which embody the procedures described above may be
stored by a memory device of a user terminal (e.g., oven 10, client
20, application server 40, and/or the like) and executed by a
processor in the user terminal. As will be appreciated, any such
computer program instructions may be loaded onto a computer or
other programmable apparatus (e.g., hardware) to produce a machine,
such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other
programmable apparatus create means for implementing the functions
specified in the flowchart block(s). These computer program
instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that
may direct a computer or other programmable apparatus to function
in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the
computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture which
implements the functions specified in the flowchart block(s). The
computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or
other programmable apparatus to cause a series of operations to be
performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to
produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions
which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus
implement the functions specified in the flowchart block(s).
[0071] Accordingly, blocks of the flowchart support combinations of
means for performing the specified functions and combinations of
operations for performing the specified functions. It will also be
understood that one or more blocks of the flowchart, and
combinations of blocks in the flowchart, can be implemented by
special purpose hardware-based computer systems which perform the
specified functions, or combinations of special purpose hardware
and computer instructions.
[0072] In this regard, a method according to one embodiment of the
invention, as shown in FIG. 10, may include receiving information
indicative of a recipient of an asset (e.g., an oven) at operation
500. The information may be electronic data indicating an identity
of the asset and an organization associated with the asset. The
method may further include registering the recipient in association
with the corresponding asset to establish the recipient as a
community member at operation 510. The method may further include
providing the community member with access to a communication
network for sharing content related to the asset at operation 520.
In some embodiments, the method may further include providing the
community members with access to content creation tools and content
consumption tools for content associated with the asset via the
communication network at operation 530. Although not required, the
method may further include providing access to smart services
associated with the asset identified in association with
registration of the community member at operation 540. Also not
required, the method may include receiving electronic data
indicating and identity of a vendor providing products or services
related to the asset at operation 550 and in some cases registering
the vendor as a participant in the communication network. In some
embodiments, the method may further include facilitating
distribution of content created by community members, vendors, or a
network manager at operation 560. The method may further include
facilitating the provision of information (e.g., leads, orders,
etc.) to vendors regarding community member activity relating to
the asset at operation 570. In some embodiments, facilitation as
described herein may include the application of algorithms for
determining which content to present to corresponding community
members and/or the application of algorithms for organizing the
content received according to access rules and/or the generation of
preformatted messages to be used to provide communication between
or regarding community members and vendors.
[0073] In an example embodiment, an apparatus for performing the
method of FIG. 10 above may comprise a processor (e.g., the
processor 52) configured to perform some or each of the operations
(500-570) described above. The processor may, for example, be
configured to perform the operations (500-570) by performing
hardware implemented logical functions, executing stored
instructions, or executing algorithms for performing each of the
operations. In some cases, the method of FIG. 10 may be tailored
specifically to third party participants aiming to provide content
feeds to asset operators. In such an example, the method may
include receiving, from a third party participant, a registration
request to join a community including asset operators that operate
at least one food preparation asset and registering the third party
participant as a community member. The method may further include
providing the third party participant with access to a
communication network for sharing content items related to the
asset and providing the third party participant with content
creation tools to facilitate the creation of content items that
include instructions associated with operation of the asset
relative to preparation of a food product. The method may further
include enabling the third party participant to distribute the
content items to the asset operators via the communication network.
The content items may include at least identifying information to
identify the third party participant and a contact link to enable
the asset operators to contact the third party participant. The
content items may provide at least one instruction specific to
operation of the asset. Some or all of the operations of the method
may be executed via processing circuitry configured
accordingly.
[0074] In some cases, providing the third party participant with
content creation tools may include enabling the third party
participant to define a recipe readable by the asset operators to
define ingredients and food preparation steps for preparation of
the food product and/or enabling the third party participant to
define a cooking signature for execution by the asset, the cooking
signature providing non-human readable instructions for operation
of the asset to prepare the food product via at least a series of
cooking instructions sequentially performed by the asset. In an
example embodiment, the contact link may be selectable to launch an
at least partially preformatted message to be sent to the third
party participant and/or to enable the asset operators to place an
order for ingredients associated with the content item from the
third party participant. In some cases, the contact link is
selectable by a particular asset operator to launch an at least
partially preformatted message to be sent to a sales representative
affiliated with the third party participant, the sales
representative being determined based on context information
associated with the particular asset operator. In an example
embodiment, providing the third party participant with content
creation tools further comprises enabling the third party
participant to solicit asset operator feedback regarding one or
more of the content items. In some cases, enabling the third party
participant to distribute the content items may include enabling
the third party participant to create the content items and place
them in a public library accessible by the asset operators via the
communication network and/or enabling the third party participant
to create the content items and tag content items for either or
both of distribution to selected asset operators based on context
information associated with the selected asset operators and
association with selected search terms.
[0075] Example embodiments may also provide for easy integration
with the ovens themselves in situations where the ovens are capable
of being online with or at least accessible via the network 30.
FIG. 11 illustrates an example of how the oven may be directly
integrated into the system 10. In this regard, for example, an oven
control console 600 is displayed. The details of the workings
and/or display capabilities of the oven control console may vary in
different embodiments, and thus, the oven control console 600 of
FIG. 11 is merely exemplary. However, the oven control console 600
shows a selection ribbon 610 that is populated with the selections
defined for creating a recipe via the icons 620 presented in
association with various food types. In an example embodiment, the
oven control console 600 may further include a save button 630 that
may save the recipe defined to the content manager 44. Thus, for
example, the recipe may be saved to the cloud library 100 or to a
private cloud (e.g., My Cloud Library 120). In some embodiments,
the chef or other individual creating the recipe may be signed or
logged in and may therefore be associated with a customer profile
640. The customer profile 640 may also have an association with one
or more social networking sites 650. The oven control console 600
may further include a share button 660. By selecting the share
button 660, the recipe defined (e.g., in the selection ribbon 610),
or comments/status reports associated with generation of the
recipe, may be shared via one or more of the social networking
sites 650 in a message posting 670. Thus, social interaction may be
directly initiated based on activity at the oven via tools provided
by the system 10.
[0076] Example embodiments may also define channels for mass market
engagement between distributors and manufacturers and potential
customers that may be community members. FIG. 12 illustrates an
example series of activities that may be associated with one
channel concept implementation. In this regard, a lead or message,
which may indicate an interest expressed in a product of a
distributor by a potential customer, may be generated and sent to
the distributor at operation 700. A pitch may also be provided to
encourage the distributor to become an affiliate at operation 705.
The affiliate may register at operation 710 and may be recorded
into a registry of affiliates at operation 715. Thereafter,
customer emails may be customized for representatives of the
distributor at operation 720 for use in facilitating engagement
with customers. Product information pages may also be generated at
operation 725 in order to provide information for customers. An
organizational chart of representatives may be provided at
operation 730 to facilitate proper routing of messages when
customer interest is expressed. Demonstrations may be provided at
operation 735. At operation 740, sales and distribution related
activity may be commenced by preparing customer ecommerce pages.
Orders and other customer activity may be reported to the
enterprise manager at operation 745 and routed via the affiliate
network at operation 750. Representatives may be engaged
accordingly at operation 755 and then at operation 760, and
commissions that are due may be provided.
[0077] Many modifications and other embodiments of the inventions
set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to
which these inventions pertain having the benefit of the teachings
presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated
drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the inventions are
not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed and that
modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included
within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although the
foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings describe
exemplary embodiments in the context of certain exemplary
combinations of elements and/or functions, it should be appreciated
that different combinations of elements and/or functions may be
provided by alternative embodiments without departing from the
scope of the appended claims. In this regard, for example,
different combinations of elements and/or functions than those
explicitly described above are also contemplated as may be set
forth in some of the appended claims. In cases where advantages,
benefits or solutions to problems are described herein, it should
be appreciated that such advantages, benefits and/or solutions may
be applicable to some example embodiments, but not necessarily all
example embodiments. Thus, any advantages, benefits or solutions
described herein should not be thought of as being critical,
required or essential to all embodiments or to that which is
claimed herein. Although specific terms are employed herein, they
are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for
purposes of limitation.
* * * * *