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  • Author Author: jkutzsch
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KCON - Pi Chef Challenge Intro Blog

jkutzsch
  1. Intro Blog   <<<---
  2. Unboxing
  3. Setup
  4. Gourmet Install
  5. Load up some Recipes!
  6. Enclosure Planning.
  7. 7inch Touchscreen Time
  8. AIY Build / Google Voice
  9. AIY API & Certs
  10. Succes with Google AIY!

 

This challenge gives me an opportunity to implement some ideas I have had to assist my wife in the Kitchen as well as take some new technology equipment and work them into a Cool Design Challenge!

 

With my family, any involved cooking usually ends up with a laptop being dragged onto a counter to look up information and recipes.  And most likely provide cooking music appropriate to the theme.  December is a big month for Christmas songs to go with the pies and cookies and fudge.  :-)

 

As the time for applications was extended I find I now have the opportunity to show how my family kitchen looks for something as simple as cookie and gingerbread house creation:

 

image

 

You can see with the laptop on the counter space becomes a little cluttered.  In fact my wife moved most of the kid ready messy stuff over to the table that you can see in the background.

 

As you can probably imagine, having delicate computer equipment on the same surface as liquids and various powder mixes seems to be a Murphy Playground!

 

My project is to take a Raspberry Pi and create a Kitchen CONsole.  Safely above the cooking work areas and easily accessible.  Ready access to recipe management, measurement charts and streaming music!  The only thing cooler would be to add a hands free option...

 

 

Having a computer in the Kitchen is not a new idea.

 

Per the Computer History Museum, Neiman Marcus offered a Kitchen Computer in their Christmas Catalog back in 1969.

 

image

 

According to the wiki listing for Honeywell 316 this Kitchen Computer was the first time a computer was offered as a Consumer Product!

 

This petite Pedestal model H316 weighed over 100 pounds and only cost $10,200.00 back then!  (That is about $77,000.00 today!)  For some reason this model never really caught on, other than in the dreams of future kitchen owners.

 

 

I believe the present is a most opportune time for the Raspberry Pi to step up as a replacement for the aged but loved Honeywell 316!  Low price computer with a hefty amount of power in a small package, what is there not to love?

 

I have some additional items that I will bring into the build.  A 7" touch screen and a Google AIY voice Kit.

 

The touch screen of course for providing an interface that does not require a keyboard/mouse setup on the counter once again impacting our workspace.

Remember when I mentioned the only thing cooler being hands free?  I am excited to see how Google Assistant will interface with the KCON!

 

I am hoping that the Google Assistant will be a boon for the Kitchen but I will also be running a recipe software package to assist the Chef.

 

Currently the two that seem most intriguing are Krecipes and Gourmet Recipe Manager.

 

They both seem very helpful and provide a lot of useful options such as:

  • Recipe Search
  • Shopping List
  • Diet Helper
  • Other options that I have not verified are adding a picture (it will be interesting to see if the RPi Camera will tie into that) and measurement conversions,

Location is a key part of my project since I want to keep the system up and away from messy problems. image Ideally I have an 11.5" spacing under my kitchen cabinets that I can custom build a wooden flip down option that will easily hold the Kitchen Console and allow for it to be swung back up and out of the way when not needed.  Thin will be a key for design since the 11.5 inches is from the front of the cabinet to the back wall, by working in wood I should be able to meld the Console with the existing cabinetry and paint to minimize wifey disapproval. I have marked in green an optimal flipdown location in the above picture. All of the commercial options I have found so far seem to focus on an articulating metal arm that really doesn't conceal very well and seems to more be designed to just have the display in a mounted position for the whole world to see 24/7. Aesthetics are important for this project since I want it to be something that my wife will enjoy and not cringe at the sight of.

 

To summarize and provide a list of goals toward reaching accomplishment I have provided the below:

 

Goal level 1-  Operational KCON!

  • Install the RPi3 with working OS.
  • Add the 7" touchscreen for interface
  • Add the Google AIY Voicekit
  • install Recipe Software
  • wire up a custom power option
  • install Console in a custom enclosure and test
  • provide blog details showing how this was done to allow others to replicate

  • I love when design challenges solve a need in someones life. We often get pi (mind the pun) in the sky ideas that will solve a partially hypothetical issue, this is something that can be used every day!  Welcome to the challenge!

  • Nice project John.

     

    I like the idea of adding theme music to the cooking process.

     

    DAB

  • Hi John,

     

    This is an excellent project. I too recall seeing that Honeywell in an old magazine, but I'd only seen a black-and-white photo, so it is nice to see that they had an attractive design in red/white.

    I try to use the mobile phone for recipes, but it is really awful because I don't like touching anything except the cooking implements, and the screen times out, etc. Also a lot of websites really suck, they separate the ingredients list and the preparation method into two tabs, which is not a good workflow. Who measures out all the ingredients first, and then flips to the preparation tab? Ordinarily it is way easier to measure out the ingredient one at a time, as it is called for in the preparation steps order, so that involves going back-and-forth (or scrolling up-and-down) to see the quantity/weights. It is really silly, and nearly all food websites have this issue. A kitchen computer could solve this, while also looking forward to the upcoming steps, and advising when to switch on the oven. The voice capability is really awesome, to move through it without requiring any touch. That would speed things up immensely.

  • John,

    Great start!  Very interesting project. It will interesting to watch the progress.  I have noticed that my son also uses his laptop in the kitchen for recipes and music while cooking.  I feel so primitive with by cookbooks and stereo (at least it is not an 8-track player).

    Good luck with your project,

    Gene