BreadBot, a robot capable of making more than 200 loaves a day

BreadBot, a robot capable of making more than 200 loaves a day

Through multiple sensors, the machinery is allowed to operate without the need to be controlled by people

  The technology has shown us that what seemed science fiction in the eighties, has remained only in science. Little trace of fiction. The writings on the future robots of Isaac Asimov had a fundamental paper and at the moment those predictions of the famous writer and professor of Russian biochemistry are glimpsed.

  Robots have ceased to be part of the collective imagination to become part of our industry , to the point of becoming an essential element of their transformation. They already feel the touch as people, have arrived at nursery schools and have taken over the stoves of the most modern kitchens. Experts in robotics agree in assuring that the machines are not the enemy although in many sectors they may not feel the same. For example, will robots ever replace bakers? At the CES in Las Vegas - the most important technology fair in the world - BreadBot, a robot capable of making more than two hundred loaves a day, has just been presented, including the popular French baguette.

  The apparatus mixes, kneads, tests, bakes and sells bread as a vending machine. It seeks to automate a process in an extremely simple way: in just 90 minutes , users can enjoy freshly baked bread.

Through multiple sensors, the machinery is allowed to operate without the need to be controlled by people.

The ingredients needed to bake a loaf are mixed with water and, thanks to an ultrasonic measuring system, the system determines the proper amount of water, flour and yeast for the mixer to knead. Once the mixture has been kneaded enough, it falls on a conveyor belt, which detects, thanks to a special laser , the presence of the mass, measuring the amount of time it would take to compress: once the time passes necessary, the dough is placed in a baking tray, which is inserted in the oven set to the correct temperature and humidity. When the bread comes out of the oven, another laser determines the height and color of the bread, this to determine necessary adjustments to the recipe according to environmental conditions or ingredients: finally, an arm places the bread in a vending machine

It seems that at the moment the baker of the neighborhoods should not worry because the BreadBot is aimed at large areas, interested in offering fresh bread made in the place and save delivery costs, said Randall Wilkinson, head of the manufacturer Wilkinson Baking Company .

"Consumers want the freshest bread possible, but when they go to the supermarket, they do not know when it's cooked," says Wilkinson, who says his machine offers bread fresher than most supermarkets in the United States.

The company says it is in talks with large supermarket chains and also hopes to deliver robots to the US Army to cook loaves of bread on the carriers. For now, the BreadBot knows how to make standard loaves of bread, but Randall Wilkinson says it can be adapted to make other types of bread, such as the famous French baguette.