[serf]

it feels like (as an uneducated outsider) that a microwave could use some kind of spatial awareness (lidar/sonar/whatever) along with beam-forming and array style transmitters to evenly cook something while sampling temperatures remotely.

the size/shape/cost/performance of such a device is left as an exercise to those better suited to execute that kind of artistry than I am.

[doh]

I keep thinking about this topic for a couple of years now (hence my question). I wonder if combination of new technology could be made into much more useful microwave, even if the cost was not suitable for personal use (at least initially).

The dream is a microwave with "single button" (start/stop) and a temperature scale (lukewarm, warm, hot, boiling) that consistently heats up food correctly and doing so within very short period of time (below 3 min).

[macgyverismo]

There is work done one this. search for: software defined microwave (SDC)

[doh]

Super cool. Thanks for the suggestion found this [0] but there appears to be more out there.

[0] https://www.hcii.cmu.edu/news/software-defined-cooking-using...