Induction heat, on demand.
How does induction technology work? What it is, and what changes when you apply it to milk and to coffee.
One principle, two liquids. Applied to water it removes the boiler. Applied to milk it removes the steam.
What is induction, and how does it work?
Induction is a way of heating metal without touching it. A coil carries an alternating current and creates a magnetic field. Place a suitable metal in that field and the metal itself starts to heat, from the inside. Nothing glows, nothing burns. Switch the current off and the heating stops at once.
In a Heylo unit, that metal is a tube of ferritic steel, a steel chosen because it responds to a magnetic field. The coil is wound around the tube. The liquid flows through the tube and takes the heat from its wall. There is no boiler to fill and keep hot, no stored volume waiting for the next order.
Three things follow. Heat exists only while a drink is being made. Temperature is set electronically, so it can be held or changed during a single drink. And the energy goes into the liquid, not into a tank, its insulation and the air around the bar.
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1. A coil carries an alternating current.
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2. The steel tube heats from the inside.
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3. The liquid takes the heat as it flows through.
THE WATER PATH
- Cold water
- Pump
- Induction coil
- Ferritic steel tube
- Hot water
- Brew chamber
- Cup
A traditional espresso machine keeps a boiler of water above 100 °C from opening to closing, whether the bar serves 200 covers or waits for its first customer of the day. Heylo has no boiler. It has a coil and a path for the liquid.
SINCE 2019
Coffee machines have been heated by gas, by pressure boilers, by electric elements and by thermoblocks. Induction is the next step in that line, borrowed from the kitchen hob.
Heylo started in 2019 with a household induction hob on a workbench, and was first shown at Host Milano that year. The work since has been making induction behave with liquids under pressure and flow, in real service.
What changes for milk?
The traditional way to heat milk is steam. Steam is water: it condenses into the pitcher as it heats, and the result depends on the hand holding the jug. Steam adds water to the milk. With plant-based drinks that changes the texture, and it changes it differently every time.
Heylo works the other way round. Milk is drawn straight from the fridge and flows through the induction path, where it is heated directly. Air is then added in a measured amount. The drink is made of milk only: no water, no dilution.
Because heating and texturing are separate steps, each one is a setting. Temperature follows a profile while the milk heats, avoiding thermal shock. Foam is chosen from over 100 texture levels, hot or cold. Cold foam needs no workaround: without steam, texturing cold is simply texturing without the heat.
Consistent results across dairy and plant-based, hot or cold. Set once at the machine, not relearned by each barista.
Cleaning is part of the design. An automatic cleaning cycle runs through the circuit. Clean the full circuit with Heylo-approved detergent.
What changes for coffee?
An espresso machine stores hot water and keeps it hot. The Heylo Coffee Unit does not. Fresh water is heated on demand by an induction element, for each shot, as it is pulled. It is not a flash boiler. There is no boiler. It is a very efficient induction heater.
Because there is no stored volume, temperature is not a compromise between the shots in the queue. Each recipe carries its own temperature, anywhere from 88 to 96 °C, and can move during the shot with a different start and end temperature. Flow and pressure are part of the recipe too, so a light roast and a dark blend can each have their own settings on the same group, one after the other. Up to 100 recipes per group, as if you had a 100-group multi-boiler machine.
Between shots there is no boiler to keep hot. The rest of the time it draws only 40 Wh. Depending on usage, save up to 90% on energy consumption compared to a traditional machine setup.
No boiler means no stored water. Every shot is brewed with fresh water, heated the moment it is needed.
Every Heylo unit is a standalone module. Pair the Coffee Unit with the Milk Unit, add a second station, or set HeyMilky beside the espresso machine you already run.