The future! Imagine a pop machine with seemingly endless combinations of styles and flavors that can be mixed up and poured on demand. Coca-Cola and software company Bsquare have developed “The Freestyle”, an internet-connected soda fountain with over 100 different available flavors spanning carbonated, non-carbonated, and energy drink beverages.
The machine uses a touchscreen interface developed by Bsquare, which allows the user to select a base Coca-Cola product — Coke, Diet Coke, Dasani, Sprite, Powerade, etc. — and then add flavors like cherry, grape, lemon, and so forth. The drink is then mixed up right inside the machine and then poured.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOotl8T_o6I&hl=en&fs=1&]
The fountain uses an internet connection to collect various data that can be used to reorder certain popular mixes, for instance. The machine can also be administered remotely so, in the case of a recall of a certain product, the fountain will stop dispensing the recalled flavors immediately.
It’s not quite clear if this will be a machine that any consumer can just walk up to and use or if it’ll be used primarily in restaurants by wait staff. It certainly looks easy enough for anyone to use, so perhaps it’ll serve both purposes. Test machines are apparently already in place in California, Georgia, and Utah, with more being rolled out elsewhere this summer.
Bsquare Collaborates with The Coca-Cola Company to Deliver New Fountain Beverage Dispenser [Bsquare via Fast Company]
