Bartender’s Buddy
Charlie Durfee, Nathan Ouellette, Kurt Wiessmeyer
Abstract
The purpose of our project is to design and
create a machine that can automatically
create a beverage at the press of a button. By
providing an automated drink service, the
machine is able to help relieve bartenders at
rush times as they prepare drinks for many
different customers. This could reduce wait
times while increasing sales and customer
satisfaction. This product could also be used
at home as a consumer product to serve
drinks for guests at parties.
Problem Definition
● Wait times at bars can be upwards of 15
minutes for a drink that can be made in
30 seconds
● Waiting can cause patrons to order less,
leave smaller tips, or even find a different
bar due to frustration
● Having a machine to quickly produce
multiple drinks at once would massively
shorten such wait times
● We decided to create an automated
drink-dispensing device that can work
alongside a bartender
● Reduce waiting times at bars by
alleviating the bartenders’ workload
during peak business hours
Figure 1: Arduino Mega
Professor Bo Tao
Wentworth Institute of Technology
Functional Requirements
The final product conforms to the following
specifications:
● Operates at the push of a button to
create a drink of pre-specified parts
● Capable of pouring 4 drinks at a time
● Drinks have the proper percentage of
each part, within 5% of the full scale.
● Capable of creating drinks from 6
different bottles at once
● All drink options are automatically
determined from the bottles connected to
the machine
● Drinks are made in equal or less time
than what a bartender is capable of
doing.
● All materials that are in contact with fluids
are FDA approved
Figure 2: Rendering of Bartender’s Buddy
Parts Results
Chart 1: Test Times, 6 oz. drink
Board: 1 x Arduino Mega, chosen due to
memory usage and connections needed for
Drink
the system
2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part
Pumps: 6 x 12V Peristaltic Pumps, chosen Type
due to their ability to pump accurate and
Pour
consistent volumes of fluid per revolution 9.4 5.7 4.3 3.5
Time (s)
Motor Drivers: 4 x L298 motor drivers,
chosen due to their ease of use with Arduino
Note:
Boards ● Since pumps run simultaneously, the time
Stepper Motor: 1 x Nema 17, chosen to
to pour is dependent on the largest
accurately rotate the drinks tray due to its component of drink
consistency and ease of use with Arduino
User Interface: 1 x 16x2 LCD display with
click encoder, chosen due to the simplicity of
Conclusions
● Drink times are far better than expected -
the system for the user and easier coding
max drink time is ~35% faster than initial
integration
testing
Power Supply: 1 x 20V Lenovo Charger,
● The machine can successfully output up to
chosen due to cost and performance
4 separate drinks that a user can select
benefits. Motors will run at higher RPMs at
from a generated menu based off of
20V
available bottles
● Initial designs called for full device to be
3D printed, this was adjusted with the
back half being made out of wood.
Future Improvements:
● Noise reduction through smoother direct
drive motors and better motor mounts
● Insulated area for temperature sensitive
mixers/alcohols
● More space for bottles in the back of the
device (Ability for full handles)
Acknowledgements
Some final notes:
Figure 3: Peristaltic Pump Diagrams • Special thanks to Professor Tao and
Alexander Cate
www.postersession.com