NZ619995B2 - Apparatus for foaming a liquid - Google Patents

Abstract

apparatus for foaming a liquid is disclosed. The apparatus includes a pump for pumping an aerated liquid to an outlet via a conduit (7). The conduit (7) includes at least one flow resistor which encloses a plurality of adjacent elastic resistor elements (20a) which are movable relative to one another and form passages for the liquid to pass. The resistor elements (20a) are supported against a support (27) and are compressed against the support (27) by the pressure forces (26) of the liquid forced through the resistor. The resistor reduces pressure pulses caused by the pump. The apparatus may be used for frothing milk for a beverage. nother and form passages for the liquid to pass. The resistor elements (20a) are supported against a support (27) and are compressed against the support (27) by the pressure forces (26) of the liquid forced through the resistor. The resistor reduces pressure pulses caused by the pump. The apparatus may be used for frothing milk for a beverage.

Description

TD 184 APPARATUS FOR FOAMING A LIQUID The invention resides in an apparatus for foaming a liq— uid comprising an aerating device by which the liquid can be aerated, an outlet arrangement which is in communication with the aerating device via a conduit and a pump for transporting the aerated liquid from the aerating device to the outlet ar— ent.

Such an tus is known for e from DE 10 2008 058 934 Al. In this known apparatus, a sieve is disposed in m the outlet nozzle through which the already foamed liquid passes. In this way, large air bubbles contained in the foam are destroyed and, dependent on the mesh width of the sieve, small air s are formed. With the small air bubbles a stable foam is formed.

U Even though a high quality foam can be produced with the known apparatus the inventor considered the apparatus in need of improvement.

It is therefore the object of the present invention to provide an apparatus of the type referred to above which per— mits the manufacture of a uality stable foam.

This object is solved by arranging in the conduit at least one flow resistor which ses a plurality of adja— cent resistor elements of an elastic material which are mova— ble relative to one another and between which there are pas- sages for the aerated liquid. Herein the flow resistor can be positioned against a backup structure in such a way that the resistor elements are compressed when exposed to pressure by the aerated liquid.

The invention is based on the recognition that, with in— creasing pressure of the aerated liquid conducted to the flow resistor, the or elements present in the flow resistor are densified and, as a result, the cross~section of the pas— sages between the resistor elements decreases. When the pressure of the aerated liquid which is supplied to the flow resistor decreases, the resistor elements loosen up e of their elasticity and/or because of turbulence which occurs during passage of the aerated liquid through the passages in the resistor elements. In the process, the cross—section of the es formed between the or elements increases.

Upon passage of the d liquid through the flow or U therefore a very fine—pore stable foam is generated. This foam has a high quality. The elasticity of the flow resistor is preferably so adapted to the g re of the pump that the aerated liquid, upon flowing through the flow resis- tor, exerts on the flow resistor a force of 1 Newton to 400 Newtons.

In a preferred ment of the invention, the flow re— sistor is arranged in the outlet ement. Then the appa— ratus produces a particularly fine homogenous foam.

It has been found to be particularly advantageous if the resistor elements are granular. The flow resistor can then be produced at low cost. The granular particles have prefer— ably a shape other than sphere—like, for example, an essen- tially oval shape and/or a rectangular shape. The individual granular particles may have different geometries and/or dif— ferent dimensions. The length of the granular particles is preferably in the area of 0.5 to 3.5 mm, in particular, 0.5 to 1.2 mm. The surface of the granular particles has prefer— ably edges, steps or a roughness. The surface of the granu— lar particles however may also change continuously. The granular particles consist preferably of plastic al which has a hardness of 28 — 100 shore.

It is advantageous if the pump is a cement pump and also if the flow resistor is arranged between the pump and the outlet arrangement, in particular between the pump and a heating apparatus arranged in the conduit for g the aerated liquid. In the process, pressure peaks in the d liquid, which may occur when the displacement pump pumps the aerated liquid in a non—uniform manner, are smooth— ened by the flow resistance. Herein, the flow resistance provides for a more homogeneous foam supply at the outlet ar- rangement wherein in particular ring is avoided. The diSplacement pump may in particular be a hose pump, a shaft pump or a diaphragm pump. The arrangement according to the H invention however may be provided with any other type of pump, in, particular‘ a gear pump or a rotary sliding' vane pump.

If needed a check valve may be arranged in the duct be— tween the pump and the flow or which check valve is pervious for a flow from the aerating arrangement to the out— let ement. With this feature, a uniform foam discharge at the outlet arrangement can also be ed.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the heating apparatus is in the form of a low pressure boiler, wherein a controllable outlet valve is arranged between the heating ap— paratus and the outlet arrangement and. wherein the outlet valve is in communication. with. a control arrangement for maintaining the aerated liquid in the g apparatus at a pressure of 0.5 bar to 4 bar, in particular 1 bar to 3 bar.

The pressure is preferably present also when the pump is switched off. This can be achieved in that the outlet valve is closed by the control arrangement before the pump is shut down so that the aerated liquid is then captured in the duct volume between the check valve and the outlet valve. In this way, it is prevented that, when the apparatus is used as a milk foaming device, the aerated milk forms a skin and/or lactate ts which could clog the flow or.

In an ageous ment of the invention, the re— sistor ts are in a fiber—like form and interconnected to an elastically deformable wool. Herein the fiberelike re— sistor elements consist preferably of an elastic temperature- resistant material, in particular of a metallic material.

The individual fibers have different cross—sectional dimen— m sions. In particular, the cross—sectional dimensions of the individual fibers may change from one end to the other of the fiber.

In another preferred embodiment of the invention, the resistor elements consist of a natural material in particular U of coco fiber and/or hair. In that case, the resistor ele- ments can be disposed of after use in a simple environmental— ly non-polluting manner.

In another advantageous embodiment, the resistor ele— ments are formed by chips or sections of chips which, in a longitudinal direction, have an essentially constant cross- section. The chips have preferably a cross—sectional config— uration which differs from a circular shape, in particular an angled cross—sectional shape. The width of the chips may be between 0.2 mm and 3 mm and preferably between 0.3 mm and 1 mm. The thickness of the chips may be between 0.2 mm and 0.6 mm. Test results have shown that, with such chips, a partic— ularly fine-pore and stable foam can be generated. The chips can be produced for example by means of a g machine with accurately defined cross—sectional dimensions. In this way, the production of a foam of mly high quality is ensured.

It is also advantageous if the resistor elements consist of a plastic al, in particular of Teflon, polyoxymeth- ylene (POM) or polyamide (PA). In this way, the required elasticity of the resistor elements can be ensured even at high temperatures.

In a preferred ment of the invention, the resistor elements are enclosed. n foraminous plates or sieves which are arranged in the conduit in spaced relationship and which are oriented transverse to the longitudinal direction of the conduit and which furthermore can be moved out of a rest position toward one another for compressing the resistor ts. Herein, the foraminous plate or sieve which is fur— m ther remote from the aerating ement forms an abutment stop, against which the resistor elements the resistor ele— ment are positioned when exposed to the pressure of the aer— ated liquid.

By the foraminous plates or sieves the resistor elements H are prevented on one hand from escaping from the space be— tween the two foraminous plates or sieves as the cross— sectional dimensions of the gs in the foraminous plates or the sieves are adapted to the dimensions of the resistor elements so that the resistor elements cannot pass through the openings. On the other hand, the pressure of the d liquid generated by passing through the flow resistor can be transferred via the foraminous plates or sieves to the resis— tor ts so that the or elements are ssed by the flow resistance.

It has been found to be particularly advantageous if the passage cross-section of the inlet—side foraminous plate or sieve is smaller than the passage cross—section of the out— let—side foraminous plate or sieve. In this way, the resis- tor elements are compressed or densified by the pressure of the aerated liquid to a larger degree.

In a further embodiment of the invention, the resistor elements and possibly the foraminous plates or sieves are ar— ranged in the interior of a cartridge which is mounted remov— ably in the conduit and/or on the outlet arrangement. The resistor elements and, if applicable, the foraminous plates or sieves can then be exchanged in a simple manner together with the cartridge and replaced by a spare part. The flow resistance can be maintained in this way in a simple and clean hygienic manner. The cartridge has preferably an outer diameter of about 5 — 50 mm and an axial length of 4 — 60 mm.

Below, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described in greater detail on the basis of the accompanying m drawings. It is shown in: Fig. l a schematic block representation of the apparatus according to the invention, Fig. 2 an aerating component for aerating a liquid in a longitudinal section, U Fig. 3 a cross—sectional view of a check valve, Fig. 4 a cross—sectional view of a first embodiment of a cartridge with an ated flow resistor, Fig. 5 a top View of the outlet end of the flow resis— tor, Fig. 6 a top view of the inlet end of the flow resistor, Fig. 7 a cross-sectional view of the flow resistor shown in Fig. 4, wherein the flow resistor is installed in a con— duit, Fig. 8 a longitudinal cross—sectional view of a second embodiment of the flow resistor, and Fig. 9 a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the flow or.

An apparatus for g a liquid designated in Fig. 1 overall with the nce numeral 1 includes a e con— 3O tainer 2 for milk 3. The milk 3 can be cooled by a cooling arrangement, which is not shown in the drawing, to about 6°C to avoid ial growth in the container 2.

The storage container 2 is connected via a suction line 4 to a suction opening of a displacement pump 5 which is preferably on the form of a hose pump. At its end remote from the pump 5 which end is immersed into the milk 3 the suction line 4 includes a check valve 6 which Opens in the pumping direction of the pump 5 but blocks flow in the oppo- site direction.

The pump 5 is at its outlet connected to an outlet ar— rangement 8 via another conduit 7, so that milk 3 can be sup- plied by means of the pump 5 from the e container 2 to the outlet arrangement 8. m In the suction line 4, an aerating device 9 is arranged which is shown in greater detail in Fig. 2 and which includes a first inlet opening 10 connected to the suction line 4 for supplying milk, a second inlet opening 12 connected to an air supply line 11 for supplying air and an outlet opening 13 U connected to the conduit 7. Via the second inlet opening 12 air is ed to the milk 3 in a direction transverse to the flow direction of the milk so that the air is mixed with the milk 3.

The air supply line 11 includes an adjustable air con— trol valve 14. The connection of the air control valve fac- ing away from the aerating device 9 is connected to a supply line 15 whose inlet opening is so arranged that no contami— nated air is sucked in. In the supply line 15, an activated charcoal filter may be arranged.

The conduit 7 includes a g device 16 for heating the aerated liquid. The heating device is in the form of a low pressure boiler with a liquid storage volume of 0.4 li— ter. The operating pressure in the low pressure boiler is preferably between 2.4 bar and 4 bar. In the heating device 16, a heating coil is arranged which is not shown in the fig— ure and through which aerated milk 3 is conducted. In the interior of the heating device 16, a heat carrier which is heated to a ermined temperature is arranged which ers its heat via the g coil to the milk conducted h the heating coil. The line 7 furthermore includes an electromagnetic outlet valve 17 by which the flow of milk can be interrupted6 Between the outlet valve 17 and the heating device 16, a first flow resistor 18 is arranged in the conduit 7 so that aerated milk flows therethrough. The first flow resistor 18 is mounted in the conduit 7 by a screw coupling which is not shown but which permits its removal.

As apparent from Fig. 4, the first flow resistor 18 com— prises an about rical cartridge 19 whose cross— sectional dimensions correspond about to the internal cross— sectional dimensions of a section of the conduit 7 in which the flow resistor 18 is arranged. The cartridge 19 has an about tubular circumferential wall ng an inner g U in which. as resistor elements 20a a plurality' of elastic granular particles of plastic are arranged, which form a bulk material in which neighboring granular particle abut one an— other loosely. The cartridge is filled with the bulk materi- al in such a way that the granular particles within the inner opening of the cartridge 19 are movable relative to one an— other. Between the granular particles passages are formed through which the aerated milk can flow.

The cartridge 19 has a first front wall formed by a first foraminous disc 21. The first front wall extends in a plane which extends normal to the longitudinal center axis of the circumferential wall of cartridge 19. The edges of the first nous disc 21 butt t the inner surface of the ferential wall of the cartridge 19. As shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the circumferential wall of the cartridge 19 is ed at the inner e thereof with circumferen— tially spaced first projections 22a on which the first foraminous disc 21 is supported.

Fig. 5 shows that the first foraminous disc 21 has a plurality of openings 23 for the passage of milk foam. The width of the openings 23 is smaller than the dimensions of the resistor elements 20a so that those do not fit h the openings 23 of the first foraminous disc. It is apparent from Fig. 4 that the resistor elements 20a or supported on the first foraminous disc 21.

At the supply end remote from the first foraminous disc 21, the cartridge 19 is provided with a second front wall formed by a second foraminous disc 24 which extends parallel to the first front wall and is axially spaced from the first m front wall with the bulk material 20a disposed therebetween.

The edge of the second foraminous disc 24 butts against the inner e of the circumferential wall of the cartridge 19. As shown in Fig. 6, the ferential wall of the car- tridge 19 is provided at its inner side with several circum— ferentially Spaced second projections 22b which extend in— wardly over the second foraminous disc 24.

Fig. 6 shows that the second foraminous disc 24 has a plurality of second openings 25 for the passage of the aerat— ed milk 3. The opening width of the second openings 25 is smaller than the corresponding dimension of the resistor ele— ments 20a so that those do not fit through the second open- ings 25 but are enclosed between the foraminous plates 21, 24. As shown in Fig. 4, the second foraminous disc 24 is disposed on top of the bulk material 20a. The second open— ings 25 are arranged in an r area of the second - nous disc 24 which surrounds a central circular area of the second foraminous disc 24 in which no openings are provided.

The second foraminous disc 24 serves as a baffle plate. As a result, a larger part of the pressure forces generated by the pump is transmitted to the second foraminous disc 24 than to the first foraminous disc 21.

From Fig. 7, it is apparent that the dge 19 is supported at its outlet end on a support 27 provided on the inner wall of the conduit 7. By comparison of Fig. 4 with Fig. 7, it becomes clear that the second foraminous disc 24 is axially movable in the cartridge 19 and is moved in the cartridge 19 toward the first foraminous disc 21 as a result of the flow resistance of the liquid flowing through the car- tridge 19. As a result, the foraminous disc 21 presses with a force of about 50 Newton to 200 Newton against the first flow or 18 so that the bulk al is compressed when the aerated milk 3 flows through the flow resistor 18. By the first flow resistor 18, the pressure pulses in the aerat— ed milk which are generated by the pump 5 are weakened.

In the outlet arrangement 8, a second flow resistor 28 ranged below the outlet arrangement 8. The outlet arrange— U ment 8 consists of two parts with one part being provided at the interface between the two parts with a cavity in which the second resistor 28 is arranged. In this way, the second resistor 28 can be removed from, or respectively installed in, the outlet arrangement 8 in a simple manner.

The outlet arrangement 8 is provided with a second sup- port which is not shown in the drawings but on which the sec— ond flow resistor 28 is supported. By the second support, the second flow resistor 28 is prevented from being displaced in the outlet arrangement 8 in the flow (direction of the milk.

In a first exemplary embodiment, the second flow resis- tor 28 is of the same design as the first flow resistor 18.

In a second exemplary embodiment, the Second flow resis- tor 28 includes, in place of the bulk material, an cal— ly deformable chip of c (Fig. 8). The resistor ele— ments 20b are formed thereby by sections of the chip which are arranged behind one another and which are e rela— tive to one another. atively, the resistor ts 20b may also be formed as separate chips 20b. The chip has an about rectangular cross—section with a width of 2.5 mm and a thickness of 0.5 mm.

The resistor elements 20b are arranged in a cartridge 19 between the foraminous discs 21, 24. The cartridge 19 of the second exemplary embodiment correSponds to that of the first ary embodiment. Also, the foraminous discs 21, 24 of the second exemplary embodiment are of the same design as those of the first exemplary embodiment. The earlier de- scription is correspondingly also valid for the second exem- m plary embodiment.

In a third exemplary embodiment of the invention, the second flow resistor 28 includes like resistor elements 20c which form a wool or fleece (Fig. 9). Herein the resis— tor elements 20c consist of coco fibers. The resistor ele- U ments 200 are arranged in a cartridge 19 between foraminous discs 21, 24. The cartridge 19 of the third exemplary embod- iment is of the same design as that of the first exemplary embodiment. Also the foraminous discs 21, 24 of the third ex- emplary embodiment are of the same design as those of the first exemplary embodiment The r description conse* y also applies to the third exemplary embodiment.

For controlling the apparatus, a control arrangement is provided which is not shown in the gs but which in— cludes a sensor which, when ted, indicates to the con— duced. As a result, the control arrangement activates the pump 5 and causes the outlet valve 17 to open. The pump 5 then pumps milk 3 out of the storage container 2 through the heating device 16, where the milk is heated, to the outlet arrangement. Since the milk flows through the on de— vice 9, air is introduced into the milk via the air supply line 11 so that the milk is aerated.

The milk which is charged with air is heated in the heating device 16 whereby it is further foamed. The foamed— up milk is first conducted through the first flow resistor 18 in order to even out pressure peaks generated by the pump and then s the second flow resistor 28 via the outlet valve 17. When the d milk is pressed through the second flow resistor 28, the resistor elements 20a, 20b, 200 are com- pressed whereby a fine stable milk foam is generated.

It should still be mentioned that the first flow resis- tor 18 may be omitted if this is desired in particular if the pump 5 generates a uniform pumping pressure.

Patent Claims

Claims (12)

What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus (1) for foaming a liquid, comprising an aerating arrangement by means of which air can be mixed into the liquid via an outlet arrangement (8) which is ted to a conduit (7) which includes a pump (5) for pumping the aerated liquid from the aerating ement to the outlet arrangement, characterized in that the conduit (7) or the outlet arrangement (8) includes at least one flow resistor (18, 28) which encloses a plurality of adjacent resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) which consist of an c material and are e relative to one another and between which passages for the aerated liquid are formed and that the flow resistor (18, 28) is supported by a support by which the resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) are supported and against which they are compressed and densified by the pressure forces of the liquid forced through the resistor.

2. tus (1) according to claim 1, terized in that the resistor elements (20a) are granular particles.

3. Apparatus (1) according to claim 1 characterized in that the resistor elements (20c) are in the form of fibers which are interconnected into an elastically deformable wool.

4. Apparatus (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the or elements (20b) are formed by chips or sections of chips which, in a udinal direction, have an essentially constant cross-section.

5. Apparatus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the pump (5) is a displacement pump and that the flow or (18, 28) is arranged between the pump (5) and the outlet arrangement (8), in particular between the pump (5) and a g device (16) disposed in the conduit (7) for heating the aerated liquid.

6. Apparatus (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the g device (16) is in the form of a low pressure boiler, that a controllable outlet valve (17) is arranged between the heating device (16) and the outlet arrangement (8) and that the outlet valve (17) is in communication with a control arrangement in such a way that the aerated liquid in the heating device (16) is maintained under a pressure of 0.5 bar to 4 bar, in particular a pressure of 1 bar to 3 bar.

7. tus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that in the conduit (7) between the pump (5) and the flow resistor (18, 28) a check valve (6) is arranged which permits flow from the aerating device to the outlet arrangement.

8. Apparatus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) consist of a natural material, in particular of coco fibers and/or hair.

9. Apparatus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) consist of plastic, in particular Teflon, polyoxymethylene or polyamide.

10. Apparatus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the resistor ts (20a, 20b, 20c) are enclosed in the conduit (7) between foraminous plates (21, 24) or sieves which are arranged in the conduit in spaced relationship so as to extend transverse to the longitudinal direction of the conduit (7) and which are movable out of a rest position toward one another y compressing the or elements (20a, 20b, 20c) and that the foraminous plate (21) which is further remote from the aerating device or the sieve which is further remote from the aerating device serves as a support against which the resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) are biased when subjected to the pressure of the aerated liquid.

11. Apparatus (1) according to claim 10, characterized in that the flow cross-section of the inlet end foraminous plate (24) or of the inlet end sieve is smaller than the flow cross-section of the outlet end foraminous plate (21) or the outlet end sieve.

12. Apparatus (1) according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the resistor elements (20a, 20b, 20c) and, if applicable, the foraminous plates (21, 21) or sieves are arranged in the interior of a cartridge (19) which is installed bly in the t (7) and/or the outlet arrangement. W0 17225 .9“.