HK1230898A - Beverage preparation machine - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to beverage machines for preparing beverages or similar products from a serving pack containing a serving pack (e.g. capsule) and an extraction product contained in the serving pack (e.g. coffee).

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The beverage machine of the type discussed herein has, in addition to a water tank and a pump, a water heater (permeable heater or possibly a boiler).

The quality of the brew produced in the brewing process depends critically on the brewing temperature. The temperature at the outlet of the water heater can be precisely regulated for this purpose. Nevertheless, in practice, fluctuating brewing temperatures are often observed and as a result a fluctuating quality of the brewing drink. An important reason for this may be the following problem: if the machine has not been used for a long time, the elements of the brewing chamber are cooled.

In this context, EP 0 935 938 teaches an espresso machine with an electric heating element and a control circuit to regulate the temperature in the heating element. To prevent the beverage from cooling below a desired temperature in the event of a first brew after the espresso machine is switched on, it is proposed to make the desired temperature of the heating element dependent on the output temperature of the heating element (thermoblock). For example, if the output temperature is the same as the room temperature, the desired temperature may be about 10° higher than if the heating element was hot, the beverage that is already brewed will ultimately vary in the same temperature.

The Court has consistently held that the application of the principle of proportionality is not contrary to the principle of proportionality.

The purpose of the invention is to provide a beverage machine which overcomes the disadvantages of the present state of the art and which, in particular, ensures the greatest possible consistency in the temperature of the brew and the beverage, regardless of the history.

According to one aspect of the invention, a beverage brewing machine is provided for the preparation of brewing beverages from a serving pack with extraction product contained in a serving pack. The beverage brewing machine has a water tank, a pump, a water heater and a brewing chamber for receiving the serving pack, whereby the pump is designed to pump water from the water tank via the water heater into the brewing chamber via a liquid path. It draws at least one temperature sensor to measure a temperature along the liquid path (at the start of the liquid heating heater or at the start of this heating) and to heat the water by setting it to a temperature at least one m before the start of the service (or after each operation, if any, and only after the start of the service and the temperature of the heating chamber is reached at the start of the service and the start of the service).

The condition which must be met by the starting temperature for a flushing operation to be carried out may be in particular that it is below a fixed threshold. It has been shown that a threshold of between 30° and 60°C, and in particular between 35° and 50°C, is suitable for this purpose. The optimal threshold depends on the circumstances, e.g. the total heat capacity of the water-filled water heater in relation to the total heat capacity of the brewing chamber parts, the corresponding thermal conductivity characteristics, etc. It can be determined for a particular beverage type brewer by numerical calculations and/or experimental benchmarks and then by the hardware or software (e.g. in the form of a bimetallic beverage machine) or by the type of brewer, which is not excluded from being affected by the flow of the beverage.

Other conditions are conceivable instead of a fixed threshold, e.g. a threshold dependent on circumstances (e.g. a preset liquid volume), whereby flushing is carried out at higher temperatures for small preset liquid volumes than at lower temperatures.

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A wake-up operation may include, in particular, a wake-up operation from a standby mode in which no energy is supplied to the water heater. The operation with a rinsing operation, whether or not performed depending on the measured initial temperature, may be provided only after a wake-up operation (from the standby mode) or both a start-up and a wake-up operation. In the first case (only after the start-up operation), for example, it may be provided that a rinsing operation is always carried out after a start-up operation, regardless of the starting temperature.

The method of the invention is linked, for example, to an automatic standby operation in which the beverage machine enters standby mode after a given condition is met, e.g. after a certain period of time without brewing, for example one minute or a few minutes. In the context of such automatic standby operation, the method of the invention is even particularly advantageous, since it can take advantage of the advantages of standby mode, especially when it is taken after a short time, in terms of energy saving without significantly affecting the ease of use and the quality of the beverage.

A further energy saving effect of the method of the invention is achieved by the fact that the rinsing process does not take place every time, but only when the specified condition is met, i.e. when it is estimated that the brewing chamber is not too hot.

The introduction of the portion packing into the brewing chamber may be effected, for example, by: in an intermediate position - e.g. capsule detection position - or possibly in a storage container, the serving pack is carried into the brewing chamber or a trap of the serving pack in the intermediate position is allowed into the brewing chamber;the user is asked to insert a serving pack now (if the measured initial temperature was below the threshold only after the flushing operation, otherwise e.g. immediately after the activation or activation or heating operation);inserting the serving pack is released, if necessary coupled with a corresponding signal to the user, after having been prevented before, until the flushing operation is terminated, if necessary, e.g. by opening a nozzle.

The invention is based on the understanding that the fluctuating brewing temperatures and the uneven temperatures of the finished brewing beverage depend in particular on whether the brewing chamber itself is still hot or not. If it has been some time since the last brewing process was performed, the brewing chamber may have already cooled and the first brewing will yield a satisfactory result. This could be met by the fact that the time to a switch to standby mode is chosen accordingly (i.e. it takes about as long to switch to standby mode as the cooling of the respective brewing chamber) and/or that the beverage brewing machine has been programmed to increase the temperature of a hot water brewing machine shortly before the first brewing.

The invention allows the initial temperature to be measured, possibly before heating, and the transition to standby mode to be carried out at any time, while the preheating of the brewing chamber by the scrubbing process can be carried out as required.

The temperature sensor is specifically installed in an element or elements along the liquid path, either in or near the water heater or an element connected to the water heater, e.g. the liquid line to the brewery or an element of the brewery itself. It has been shown to be particularly advantageous in some circumstances if the temperature sensor is installed in or near the water heater itself. Firstly, because in many cases there is already a temperature sensor there, which is used to control the water heater, and no additional hardware injection is required.

The invention also relates to a process for operating a beverage machine, in particular of the type described above, using the following steps: Following a wake-up signal from standby mode or the start of the beverage machine, in particular by pressing a corresponding control (button or similar) by the user, measure a temperature along the liquid path (in particular in or on the water heater) as the starting temperature,After measuring the temperature, heat the water in the water heater to an operating temperature;Then, and only when the starting temperature is below a certain threshold, rinse the brewing chamber with water from the water heated heater;Run the portion packing and brew the brewing beverage.

The following examples of the invention are described by means of figures. In the figures, the same reference marks denote the same or analogous elements. Figure 1 shows a view of a coffee machine as an example of a beverage machine of the invention;Figure 2-4 shows a diagram of the coffee machine; andFigure 5 shows a flow diagram of the process to which the beverage machine is programmed.

For example, the beverage machine 1 shown in Figure 1 is a serving capsule coffee machine of the familiar type with a horizontal brewing unit.

It has a storage area 3 for a drinking vessel, here with a drip grid and a receptacle for liquid drops (covered in the figure) below. Above the storage area there is a beverage outlet 5 through which a drink, for example coffee, enters the drinking vessel. A water tank 7 is retractable forward in the illustrated example for filling and cleaning. Next to it there is a receptacle 9 for used beverage capsules. In this one, after falling into the brewing process, a capsule enters the brewing machine inside the beverage preparation machine and reaches the bottom of the brewing chamber, which is known as the horizontal brewing machine module.

Figure 1 also shows a control lever 8 through which the brewing chamber can be opened, while in the folded state of the control lever shown in the figures an opening for the injection of the capsule into the brewing chamber or intermediate position is also covered.

Figure 2 shows a diagram of such a beverage machine. It has, in addition to the water tank 7, a pump 11 to supply brewing water to the brewing chamber and a water heater 12 (e.g. a space heater or boiler). A controller 13 is installed to control the pump 11 and the water heater 12 as required, and is connected to the user's input devices not shown. Furthermore, additional elements may be arranged in a well-known way along the liquid path, e.g. by a flow; one such is preferably pre-loaded to the water heater.

The water heater is fitted with a temperature sensor 15 (the temperature sensor may also have a sensor reaching inside the water heater, which comes in direct contact with the water). The control 13 is designed to read the temperature sensor. This is used, for example, to regulate the temperature of the water heater. In addition, the temperature sensor 15 is used for the procedure of the invention, as described below.

For normal operation, a portion capsule 10 according to the drawn embodiment WO 2010/118543 is inserted from above into the brewing chamber 16 without the design of the capsule affecting the operation of the invention. It may be provided that such an objection is first placed in an intermediate position outside the brewing chamber, for example as described in the unpublished European patent application 14 195 680.5. In an intermediate position an optional capsule detection step may be performed. In such a case, the passing of the capsule into the brewing chamber 16 is controlled by the machine. Additionally or alternatively, other means of influence at the time of the injection may be present in the capsule. A suitable agent may be used for the injection of the capsule and, if necessary, a color code.

In the brewing chamber 16 the capsule is passed through the heated brewing water supplied by the pump. A brewing beverage is produced by an extraction process, which is discharged by the beverage outlet into a drinking vessel 30 placed below it on the storage area.

Figure 3 shows a diagram of a beverage machine in which the temperature sensor used for the operation described here is not located on or in the water heater 12 but on or in the liquid line downstream of the water heater.

In beverage-making machines of the type described herein, at least one valve 18 is often located between the water heater 12 on the one hand and the brewing chamber 16 on the other, as shown schematically in Figure 4 below. e.g. such a valve 18 may be used, inter alia, to supply the heated water selectively to the brewing chamber or to another liquid path, e.g. a hot water connection of the beverage-making machine, a steam-flow outlet and/or a cleaning path, etc. for a milk module not described herein.

Such a valve 18 may have the effect of thermal decoupling or, by being able to dissipate heat, cooling, in which case it may be useful in some embodiments to have the temperature sensor 15 located downstream of the water heater, as also shown in Figure 4.

Of course, combinations are also possible. For example, a temperature sensor may be present in the water heater and/or on the water heater and a temperature sensor may be present on or in the liquid path behind the water heater, e.g. behind a valve, if necessary. The control may then be set to take into account the measured value of a particular temperature sensor, a value that depends on a user setting, or a value obtained by a calculation from a combination of the different measured values.

The beverage machine is set up to measure a temperature by the temperature sensor 15 after initialisation (in particular, when it is awakened from standby mode) to assess whether the brewing chamber is still warm enough for a brewing process. Figure 5 shows the sequence of steps schematically. After initialisation 21 (turning on or awakening the machine by the user), a measurement 22 of the initial temperature is made by the temperature 15. Then the heater is heated up to 12 TA. Subsequently, depending on the previous initial temperature, a 25 step flushing operation TA is performed or not, with the flushing operation being performed when the initial temperature TA is rated as a small step, for example, 40 °C. For example, the average value of the two steps in the comparison is indicated in Figure 22 (see Figure 29).

After rinsing, if one has been carried out, or after heating, the serving pack 26 is inserted, especially the capsule, e.g. the coffee capsule. If the initial temperature is above the threshold, the insertion of the serving pack can also be simultaneously induced to the heating process.

In addition, the beverage machine may be equipped to perform the described operation (measurement, depending on the measured value, to perform the rinsing) even before a brewing operation, if it has not been switched on or awakened beforehand.

Claims (9)

1. Beverage brewing machine for brewing beverages from a serving pack (10) with an extraction product, having a water tank (7), a pump (11), a water heater (12) and a brewing chamber (16) for receiving the serving pack, where the pump (11) is designed to deliver water from the water tank (7) via the water heater (12) to the brewing chamber (16) via a liquid path, characterised by at least one temperature (15) for measuring a temperature along the liquid path, and by being designed to operate at least in one state after an on/off heating operation and before a splash heating operation, to bring the water heater to a temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and, if necessary, to reach a temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and then, if necessary, to heat the water at the start of the heating operation (TA) and, if necessary, after the water heater has reached a temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and the water heater has reached a temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and only after the water heating has reached a certain temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and, and after the water heating has reached a certain temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating operation (TA) and, and if necessary, at the water heating (TA) of the water heating operation (TA) has reached a certain temperature (TA) at the start of the water heating (TA) and only after the start of the water heating operation (TA) and if necessary.
2. Beverage machine as claimed 1, the condition being a threshold (TS) falling below the starting temperature (TA).
3. Beverage machine according to claim 2, with a threshold (TS) of a specified value between 35°C and 50°C.
4. Beverage machine according to claim 2 or 3, with threshold (TS) dependent on operating condition.
5. beverage machine according to one of the preceding requirements, which is set to automatically switch to a standby mode after a specified or predefined time in which the water heater (12) is inactive, the wake-up operation being a wake-up operation from standby mode.
6. Beverage machine according to one of the above requirements, with the temperature sensor (15) mounted in or on the water heater (12).
7. Beverage machine according to one of the claims 1 to 5, with the temperature sensor (15) mounted on a liquid line downstream of the water heater (12).
8. Beverage machine with one of the above requirements, having a valve (18) located between the water heater (12) and the brewing chamber (16) with the temperature sensor (15) located downstream of the valve (18).
9. Method of operation of a beverage brewing machine, in particular according to one of the above claims, for the preparation of brewing beverages from a serving pack (10) with an extraction product, having a water tank (7), a water heater (12) and a brewing chamber (16) for the reception of the serving pack, with a pump equipped to carry water from the water tank (7) via the water heater (12) to the brewing chamber (16) via a liquid path, in particular according to one of the above claims, using the following steps: Other

   - after waking from standby or starting the beverage machine, measuring a temperature along the liquid path as the initial temperature,

   - after temperature measurement, heating the water in the water heater to an operating temperature;

   - then, and only when the initial temperature is below a threshold, rinse the brewing chamber with heated water from the water heater; and

   - Insertion of the serving pack (10) and brewing of the brew.