HK1025940A - Postmix beverage dispenser - Google Patents

Description

Post-mix beverage dispenser

The present invention relates to a post-mix beverage dispenser.

Such dispensers are well known for mixing a concentrate with water in a desired ratio and dispensing beverages, such as tea, coffee, juices, etc., as desired. Such dispensers have a storage tank and a refrigeration system for forming an ice bank within the tank. A drinking water circuit includes a cooling coil within the tank. A cooled concentrate compartment is provided for holding the concentrate. In one known arrangement, the concentrate is in a bag-in-box package with a dispensing hose. The tubes are controlled by peristaltic pumps. The peristaltic pump and the solenoid valve in the drinking water circuit are simultaneously opened to dispense the beverage when it is to be dispensed.

A post-mix beverage dispenser for dispensing tea, coffee, juice, etc. comprises: a housing; a water storage tank; a refrigeration system for forming an ice bank within the water tank; a potable water circuit including a cooling coil within the tank; a bag-in-box chamber for a plurality of packages; a cooling system for the chamber; a plurality of concentrate pumping devices, each comprising a peristaltic pump driven by a geared motor with an encoder; a water meter in the drinking water circuit; and a control system for receiving signals from the water meter and controlling the motor speed accordingly to provide a desired ratio of water to concentrate.

The present invention includes a separate ratio card for each beverage that is inserted into a slot in the dispenser and the dispenser control system reads the information on the card as to what ratio to use for each bag-in-box package. The invention also includes: an improved cooling system for bag-in-box compartments; a potable water spiral pipe which is easy to lift, and the drinking performance at any time is improved due to the improved potable water loop; an improved water nozzle; a more powerful gear motor is used for the peristaltic pump instead of a stepper motor; a means whereby the major components are accessible from the front of the dispenser; and a dispenser, the structural assembly comprising a water tank, a bag-in-box chamber, a plurality of water conduits, an insulating layer surrounding the water conduits, and methods of making such structural assemblies.

The present invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description given below, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like elements, and in which,

FIG. 1 is a front, right side perspective view of the dispenser of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is the view of FIG. 1 but with the device door open;

FIG. 3 is the view as in FIG. 2, but with a bag-in-box package inserted into the bag-in-box chamber and a ratio card inserted into the slot;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional left side view through the dispenser of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the top, front and right side of the pumping device of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a rear exploded perspective view of the tube guide;

FIG. 7 is a top plan view of the spout of the present invention with the cover 77 removed;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the refrigeration cover plate;

FIG. 11 is a partial side view of the agitator shaft 49;

FIG. 12 is a front cross-sectional view through a structural assembly of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a side sectional view through the structural assembly of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a partial rear perspective view of a Printed Circuit (PC) board of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a partial side sectional view through a lower portion of the door;

FIG. 16 is an exploded perspective view of the ratio card of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view of the door; and

fig. 18 (fig. 18A and 18B) is a block diagram of the electronic control system.

Referring now to the drawings, the post-mix beverage dispenser 10 of the present invention includes a housing 12, a water storage tank 13, a refrigeration system 14 for forming an ice bank within the water tank 13, a drinking water circuit 16, a chamber 18 for holding a plurality of concentrate packages 20, a plurality of concentrate pumping devices 22, a control system 24, and a cooling system 26 for the chamber.

Referring to fig. 1, the housing 12 includes a front door 30 hinged to the left to provide access to the concentrate compartment. The housing includes a drip tray 32 and preferably three sets of dispense buttons 34, each set including, for example, small, medium, large and dispense/cancel buttons. The front of the door includes a back-lit removable graphics panel 36.

Referring to fig. 4, the storage tank 13 is substantially filled with water, and the refrigeration system 14 includes a conventional evaporator coil 40, a compressor 42, a condenser 44, and a fan-motor 46, as is well known in the art, for making ice cubes around the evaporator coil. A top cover or lid 47 is secured to the top of the tank and supports a stirrer motor 48. A mixing shaft 49 extends from the motor down into the tank to the mixing blades 45. A pump 104 for cooling the coil 100 within the chamber 18 is also on the shaft 49. The cover plate 47 can be lifted up straight together with the motor 48, the shaft 49, and the like.

Referring primarily to fig. 4, the potable water circuit 16 includes a cooling coil 50 located within the tank 13 above the evaporator coil 40. The inlet end of the coil 50 is connected to a local water supply via a pipe 51 through a pipe connection 146. The water circuit 16 includes cooling water tubes 52 extending from connections 148 at the outlet of the coil 50 to a manifold 54. Three separate tubes 56 corresponding to three concentrate package stations 58 within the chamber 18 extend from the manifold. Each tube 56 first leads to a solenoid valve coil water meter assembly 60 (see fig. 2 and 4) and then to an internal bore fitting 62 adjacent a corresponding one of the pumping units. The coil 50 can be pulled up out of the tank 13 by removing the fittings 146 and 148 without removing the evaporator coil.

A removable nozzle 64 (see again fig. 5, 7, 8 and 9) is inserted into female connector 62. The nozzle splits the water stream into a plurality of discrete water streams that are inclined inwardly toward the central concentrate stream. Nozzle 64 includes a passage 66 and a plurality of circumferentially equally spaced holes 68. The nozzle has a central bore 70 and an inlet slot 72 for a tube 74 of the concentrate package 20. The nozzle 64 has a pair of flexible arms 76 each with a locking shoulder on its outer surface, each flexible arm being flexed inwardly upon insertion and sprung apart upon release to lock the nozzle in place. The nozzle 64 includes a cap 77 attached in place. FIG. 7 shows nozzle 64 with cap 77 removed to better illustrate orifice 68

Referring primarily to fig. 2-4, the chamber 18 is accessed by opening the door 30. The chamber 18 is cooled by a cooling system 26. The package 20 is put in place and the dispensing tube is passed through a pumping device 22 as described below. A ratio card 78 is inserted into a slot 79 in the back of the door 30 to inform the control system 24 what ratio of water to concentrate is for the product in the package. As can be seen in fig. 2, the solenoid/water meter assembly 60 is accessible from the front of the dispenser due to its mounting at the rear of the chamber 18.

The concentrate package 20 is preferably a disposable bag-in-box package comprising a flexible plastic bag that can be telescoped within a bellows box. The bag has a nipple on which is mounted a dispensing hose 74 having a closed end. After the tube 74 passes through the pumping means and the shut off valve 80, its closed end is cut away so that the concentrate can be dispensed as desired.

Referring to fig. 4, the housing 12 includes a removable splash plate 11, behind which is mounted a control box that contains many of the electronics for the control system 24.

Referring primarily to FIG. 5, the pumping unit 22 includes a peristaltic pump 82 driven by a gear motor 84 having an encoder 86. In the upper portion of the pumping unit is a known tube guide 88 (see fig. 2 and 6) having a spring biased swingable front plate 90. At the lower portion of the pumping unit 22 is a known pinch solenoid valve with a solenoid operated tube shut off valve 80. the shut off valve 80 has a front door 92 with a rotatable locking latch 94.

As best seen in FIG. 4, the room-cooling system 26 includes a room-cooling coil 100 located at the top of the room 18, a fan/motor assembly 102 for circulating air through the coil 100 and around the room, a pump 104 located within the tank and driven by the shaft 49, an inlet pipe 106 from the pump 104 to the coil 100, and a return pipe 108 from the coil to the tank. Tubes 106 and 108 are either insulated or within tank 13 at all times so that there is no water or water drip anywhere except back into tank 13. In previous dispensers, these tubes were in the air above the cover plate 110 and created unwanted seepage and dripping.

Fig. 10 is an exploded view of the refrigeration cover, showing the cover 47, the motor 48, the shaft 49, and the pump 104.

Fig. 11 shows the shaft 49 connected to the stirring blade 45 and the pump 104.

Fig. 12 is a front cross-sectional view taken along line 12-12 of fig. 13. Fig. 12 shows the chamber 18, the water inlet pipe 51, the manifold 54, three pipes 56 from the manifold to three pipe connections 62. Portions of each tube 56 include a solenoid/water meter assembly, not shown.

Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional side view taken along line 13-13 of fig. 12. Fig. 13 shows the chamber 18, the water tank 13, the water inlet pipe 51, the water outlet pipe 56 and the pipe joints 146 and 148 connected to the water inlet pipe 51 and the water outlet pipe 52, respectively.

One aspect of the present invention is the structural assembly 134 shown in fig. 12 and 13 and a method of making the same. It comprises two separately made parts: tank 13 and chamber 18, which are then welded together at 130 and connected to various pipes. The insulation layer 132 is then foamed in place. This, among other advantages, achieves that only a single unit need be handled during assembly of the dispenser 10, rather than each of its individual components individually, and also provides excellent ready-to-drink performance because the water conduit from the cooling coil 50 to the pipe joint 62 is insulated along its entire length or within the cooled chamber 18.

FIGS. 14-17 show the door 30, the back lit illustration panel 36 and three slots 79 for receiving the ratio cards 78. Each slot 79 is provided in a card receiver 126 secured to the inside of the door. A printed circuit board 112 is mounted on each pin 128 adjacent the card receiver on the inboard side of the door. The printed circuit board includes three sets of 5 pairs of emitter pins 120 and receiver pins 122 that project from the printed circuit board and into slots 123 at the end of the card receiver. The ratio card 78 includes a card holder 114 and a flexible removable card 116. The flexible cards are slightly bent and then inserted into the card holder and can spring back flat when placed in slots on either side of the card holder to hold them in place. Each card has one or more holes 124 corresponding to a certain article. When the card is inserted, the infrared radiation will only be received by certain ones of the receiver pins (corresponding to the holes on the card 116) and inform the control system why the ratio for that product should be. That is, when the control circuit receives information from the flow meter regarding how much water is flowing, the control circuit will adjust the speed of the peristaltic pump motor 84 to provide the desired water to product ratio.

The card holder 114 includes a pair of flexible arms 140 and 142 for holding the ratio card in place. Card holder 114 has 5 apertures and card 116 may have any number and arrangement of apertures up to five. Preferably, each card 116 can be used for two different product rates, one on each side. That is, a different arrangement of apertures is provided when the card is turned over.

In use, door 30 is opened and a package 20 is placed into chamber 18. The package is positioned such that the tube 74 sags. The plate 90 is opened, the tube is brought into position and the plate is closed. The tube is then routed to the pump 82 by pulling out the lock knob 150 and turning the arcuate plate 152 to the right about the hinge 154. And then return the arcuate plate and relock the locking knob. The tube then leads back to the shut-off valve 80 and the nozzle 70 and its closed end can be cut off, for example with scissors. The shut off valve is opened by rotating the latch 94 and opening the door 92. as is known, a pin (not shown) on the back of the door 92 abuts a second pin operated by a solenoid to squeeze the tube closed. A solenoid (not shown) pulls the second pin back to open the tube when a beverage is dispensed into the cup 8.

Fig. 18 (fig. 18A and 18B) is a block diagram of the control system 24. The electronic circuitry comprises four interconnected Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs):

1) control panel 160-is located within housing 12 above splash plate 11.

2) Door panel 112-is secured to the inside of door 30.

3) Relay board-is fixed in the transformer box.

4) The ice bin control panel 162-is secured to the refrigeration cover plate 47.

The control board 160 has an onboard microprocessor (uP) with resident memory connected to a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), a continuous Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM) that loads the FPGA program when powered on, a non-volatile semi-random access memory (SRAM) that stores system operating variables, and various peripheral circuits; each peripheral circuit is used to control the pump motor 84, the pinch solenoid at the rear of the shut-off valve 80, the water pump, the water solenoid in the solenoid/water flow meter assembly 60, and the door annunciator. Inputs to the control board are from the door membrane switches (front and rear), the ratio card 78, the low bath signal, the water flow meter in the solenoid/water flow meter assembly 60 and the encoder 86 of the pump motor. In addition, three serial communication ports (one for each valve) are provided on the control panel to enable a hand-held programmer to interface with the uP to modify characteristics such as dispense rate, low product parameters, dispense volume, etc. The control board is wired via hard-wired cabling to all other printed circuit boards in the system, the pump motor/encoder, the water flow meter and the water electromagnetic coils.

The control board 160 includes a +5VDC regulator circuit that converts the 7.5VAC voltage from the relay board. A green Light Emitting Diode (LED) on the front of the control board indicates whether +5VDC is currently available. In addition, the 24VAC from the relay board is converted into direct current through two bridge diode modules; a red Light Emitting Diode (LED) indicates the presence of a +24VDC (unregulated) voltage, which drives the pump motor 84 and water solenoid.

Door chassis 112 includes an FPGA, a small 8-bit uP (to monitor the FPGA), a continuous EEPROM (which loads the FPGA program when powered on), and various peripheral circuits such as infrared rate card readers, electronic circuitry for the drive of fluorescent lights (for display panel 36), Light (LED) annunciators, and related push button switch circuitry. All communication between door panel 112 and control board 160 is via a two-wire serial connection.

The relay board is used as a high-voltage change-over switch for the belt-pressing electromagnetic coil and the water pump. In addition, the relay board delivers power from the primary AC voltage power input to the power transformer and compressor cover within the transformer box. The relay board also connects the low voltage end of the AC power transformer to the control board 160.

The ice bin control board 162 is a separate control board that turns the refrigeration compressor on/off in a well known manner based on the electrically sensed size of the ice bin in the tank. Only one signal is sent to the main control board from the outside, i.e. the low water bath signal.

It will be appreciated from the above description that the present invention eliminates the need for a refractometer and a Brix measuring cup. The present invention provides more accurate ratio control. The present dispenser can also dispense two beverages simultaneously as is not possible with previous dispensers which did not employ a flow meter with feedback to the motor speed controller.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, it should be understood that various modifications and variations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims (17)

1. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within said housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within said housing for forming an ice bank within said housing;

(d) a potable water circuit within said housing including a cooling coil located within said tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within said housing comprising a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within said housing;

(g) each of said concentrate pumping means comprising a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within said housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio;

(j) an input device for inputting into said control system a desired ratio of water to concentrate for a product located in any concentrate package in said chamber; and

(k) wherein the input means comprise a removable ratio card for each concentrate package, a separate slot in the housing corresponding to each of the concentrate package stations, and the control system comprises reading means for reading the ratio stored on the ratio card.

2. The dispenser of claim 1, wherein: the housing includes a front door hinged thereto and providing access to the chamber; each of the slots is provided on the back of the door in front of a corresponding one of the stations.

3. The dispenser of claim 2, wherein each of said ratio cards includes a card holder and a removable flexible card having ratio information.

4. A dispenser according to claim 3, wherein said ratio information is stored on said card in the form of a hole.

5. The dispenser of claim 4, wherein said control system includes a printed circuit board mounted on said door, said means for reading the ratio including a series of pairs of spaced apart infrared emitter-receiver pins mounted on and extending from said printed circuit board, and said slots being positioned such that the holes on said ratio card are located at positions between said pairs of emitter-receiver pins.

6. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within said housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within said housing for forming an ice bank within said water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within said housing including a cooling coil located within said tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within said housing comprising a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within said housing;

(g) each of said concentrate pumping means comprising a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within said housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio;

(j) a system for cooling said chamber, said system comprising a chamber-cooling coil located within said chamber, a fan/motor for circulating air within said chamber through said chamber-cooling coil, a pump within said tank, an inlet duct extending from said pump to said chamber-cooling coil, and an outlet duct extending from said chamber-cooling coil to said tank; and

(k) the two pipes are either below the refrigeration cover or embedded in insulation, so that none of the water pipes can seep and drip condensate anywhere except back to the water tank.

7. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within said housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within said housing for forming an ice bank within said water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within the housing including a potable water cooling coil located within the tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within the housing including a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within the housing;

(g) each of the concentrate pumping units comprises a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within the housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio;

(j) the refrigeration system comprises an evaporator coil positioned at the lower part of the water tank; and

(k) the potable water cooling coil is located entirely above the evaporator coil so that the potable water cooling coil can be removed vertically upward from the tank without having to do anything with the evaporator coil.

8. The dispenser of claim 7, wherein said refrigeration system includes a cover plate at the top of said tank and a stirrer motor mounted on said cover plate and a stirrer shaft extending downwardly from said stirrer motor into said tank, with stirrer blades at the distal end of said shaft.

9. The dispenser of claim 8, wherein said potable water circuit includes a nipple arrangement at each end of said potable water cooling coil, whereby upon removal of the nipple arrangement, said coil may be lifted upwardly out of said tank after said cover plate has been removed.

10. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within the housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within the housing for forming an ice bank within the water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within the housing including a potable water cooling coil located within the tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within the housing including a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within the housing;

(g) each of the concentrate pumping units comprises a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within the housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio;

(j) a plurality of potable water outlet pipes extending from said potable water cooling coil to the end thereof adjacent each said concentrate pumping means, each said potable water outlet pipe extending along its entire length or into said tank, said chamber or being embedded in insulation so that its entire length remains cool to provide excellent ready-to-drink performance of said dispenser.

11. Post-mix beverage dispenser comprising

(a) A housing;

(b) a water tank within the housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within the housing for forming an ice bank within the water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within the housing including a potable water cooling coil located within the tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within the housing including a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within the housing;

(g) each of the concentrate pumping units comprises a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within the housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio; and

(j) said potable water circuit including a plurality of removable nozzles connected to said housing adjacent to each of said pumping means, the water circuit including a manifold, a water conduit connecting said potable water cooling coils to the manifold, and a plurality of water conduits connecting the manifold to each respective pipe fitting, and said nozzles being removably connected to each of said pipe fittings, each of said nozzles including a central bore for receiving said pipe and a plurality of circumferentially spaced drain holes, each drain hole leading inwardly toward the axis of the central bore.

12. The dispenser of claim 11, wherein each of said nozzles includes a slot opening into said central bore.

13. A dispenser according to claim 12, wherein each said nozzle comprises a pair of flexible arms, one on each side thereof, and locking means on the arms for securing the nozzle in position.

14. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within the housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within the housing for forming an ice bank within the water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within the housing including a potable water cooling coil located within the tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within the housing including a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within the housing;

(g) each of the concentrate pumping units comprises a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within the housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio; and

(j) means for inputting into said control system a desired ratio of water to concentrate for a product located in any concentrate package in said chamber.

15. A post-mix beverage dispenser comprising:

(a) a housing;

(b) a water tank within the housing for holding an ice-water bath;

(c) a refrigeration system within the housing for forming an ice bank within the water tank;

(d) a potable water circuit within the housing including a potable water cooling coil located within the tank;

(e) a concentrate compartment within the housing including a plurality of concentrate package stations, each station adapted to hold a removable concentrate package having a dispensing hose;

(f) a plurality of concentrate pumping means within the housing;

(g) each of the concentrate pumping units comprises a peristaltic pump driven by a variable speed gear motor with an encoder;

(h) the potable water circuit includes a solenoid/water meter assembly;

(i) a control system within the housing receiving signals from said water meter for varying the speed of said motor to provide a desired water to concentrate ratio;

(j) means for inputting into said control system a desired ratio of water to concentrate for a product located in any concentrate package in said chamber; and

(k) the housing includes a removable splash guard and the control system includes a control box behind the splash guard, the solenoid/water meter assembly is located at the rear of the chamber, and the pumping means is accessible from the front of the dispenser, so that the major components of the dispenser are readily accessible either from the front of the housing or from the top thereof.

16. A method of making a main subassembly of a post-mix beverage dispenser, the subassembly including a water tank, a single concentrate package compartment, a plurality of water conduits external to the water tank and the chamber, and an insulating layer surrounding the water tank, the compartment, and the conduits, the method comprising the steps of:

(a) making the water tank;

(b) forming the chamber;

(c) connecting the water tank to the chamber;

(d) securing the conduits in place; and

(e) the insulation layer is foamed in situ around the tank, chamber and pipes to form an integral structural assembly.

17. An integrated structural assembly for a post-mix beverage dispenser, comprising:

(a) a water tank;

(b) a concentrate package chamber;

(c) connecting the tank and the chamber together;

(d) a plurality of water pipes outside the water tank and the outdoor; and

(e) a layer of insulation foamed in situ around the tank, chamber and pipes.