Using expertise he gained as a NASA intern, an engineer joined a startup company making one of the world's most advanced coffeemakers. The device draws on recipes stored online to brew coffee beans with unprecedented precision in pressure and temperature control.
NASA often makes use of a class of control systems called proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controllers. These work by continually monitoring and correcting the output of a controlled system through feedback loops. For example, PID controllers help rovers maintain a constant speed even as they move over rough and varying terrain. The technology can also be used to control temperatures, leading one NASA intern to apply the technology to an advanced coffeemaker.
Learn more about how NASA helped develop technology that impacts precision coffee maker within your home's kitchen environment!