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History of Cafelat Robot 

We decided to use Kickstarter to first launch Cafelat Robot. We have been around for many years and our products are found all over the world, but we are a very small company. We like to take a very hands on approach to everything and are therefore involved in every step. Every product we ship out has been fabricated, assembled, and packed by us. 

When we set out to make the Robot, we wanted it done properly. We could have gone small, CNC cut all the parts and that would have lowered our financial outlay since we could have produced in small quantities. But we would rather invest in the correct tooling, have it die-cast so we can meet prospective orders and aim for the machines to be making coffee decades later.    

Development and Prototypes

We had the first development meeting with our friends, who manufacture cookwares, in late 2014. They came up with a few ideas a month later.

It looked fantastic but it needed some non-slip grips. We thought about silicone overmolds, or even bakelite grips but it really ruined the simple looks. We always joked that it resembled a robot, so hey presto claws were added to make it easier to grip and press down and the Robot was born.

Towards the end of 2015 our manufacturers very wisely decided to produce a CNC prototype of the Robot to test that our design was working. I am 101% glad we did as it gave us vital information and we learned a lot from it. We still had basket issues, so we had to have the prototype basket CNC machines as well. 

The prototype allowed me to make changes to the piston shape and size, and adjust the travel of the piston to ensure we got a good drink volume.

In the end of 2016 we received the actual basket samples from our own toolings, this was the key to the whole project.

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