Back in 2020, Miso Robotics teamed up with White Castle to pilot a kitchen robot that can cook sliders called Flippy in select locations. Now, thanks to data and employee feedback gathered from the pilot, Miso was able to create a new version of the machine called Flippy 2, which works faster and doesn't need human intervention. Apparently, one of the main things Miso learned from the pilot was that human assistance was still needed on both sides during operation. Since basket management wasn't automated, human employees would still need to help load the uncooked product and unload the cooked food in the holding area.
Miso has designed an "AutoBin" system for the Flippy 2 that solves that problem, specifically for lower volume and specialty foods like onion rings and chicken tenders. The machine's AI vision can automatically identify the ingredients it's working with, place them in the right fry basket and then place the cooked food in the holding area. The company says the closed-loop system it creates can increase the kitchen's throughput by around 60 baskets per hour.
In addition to that upgrade, Flippy 2 also takes up less space than its predecessor. It doesn't take up as much of the kitchen aisle, is a bit shorter and has fewer overall surfaces that need to be cleaned. After its pilot with White Castle, Miso upgraded the original Flippy with more features, including the ability to adjust the queue to ensure that everything in an order finishes cooking at the same time. However, basket management hasn't been an automated process until now.
Mike Bell, CEO of Miso Robotics, said in a statement:
"Flippy 2 takes up less space in the kitchen and increases production exponentially with its new basket filling, emptying and returning capabilities. Since Flippy’s inception, our goal has always been to provide a customizable solution that can function harmoniously with any kitchen and without disruption. Flippy 2 has more than 120 configurations built into its technology and is the only robotic fry station currently being produced at scale"
