EP1970658A1

EP1970658A1 - Drink container froster

Info

Publication number: EP1970658A1
Application number: EP06841671A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Manuel Distribuciones Exclusivas Recor Sur S.L. Estrada Amo
Original assignee: Distribuciones Exclusivas Recor Sur SL
Current assignee: Distribuciones Exclusivas Recor Sur SL
Priority date: 2005-10-27
Filing date: 2006-10-27
Publication date: 2008-09-17
Also published as: ES1061436U; WO2007048865A1; ES1061436Y

Abstract

The invention relates to a drink container froster comprising: a body or casing (1) having a built-in refrigerating unit, and a main sealed compartment (3) which is refrigerated by the refrigerating unit and which is equipped with housings (4) for the containers (5) to be frosted. The inventive froster is characterized in that it comprises: an auxiliary compartment (11) which is thermally insulated from the main compartment (3) and which contains at least one container; water vapor generating means which are connected to the auxiliary compartment (11) using means for conveying and releasing the vapor into the auxiliary compartment (11); and means for controlling the quantity of vapor released, which are configured to supply a certain quantity of vapor for a limited period of time, such that vapor is deposited on the surface of the container without being condensed thereon.

Description

Object of the Invention

The present invention relates to frosting equipment which has been specially designed to enable producing a uniform layer of frost while cooling containers commonly used for consuming drinks, such as for example glasses, stem glasses, or the like, so that said containers do not contribute to increasing the low temperature of the drink contained therein and even collaborate in a greater cooling of such drink, as is the case of beer and other drinks which are consumed very cold.
According to the above, the froster can be applied in bars, cafeterias and similar establishments.

Background of the Invention

In the aforementioned practical scope of application of the invention and as is known, when consuming certain types of drinks as is the case of beer, such drinks are frequently served in cold glasses or stem glasses in order to maintain or improve the thermal conditions of the drink.
In this sense, the staff of bars and other similar public establishments frequently introduce said glasses or stem glasses in the cooler chests of the establishment, initially intended for different purposes, specifically for housing drinks and other products.
Special coolers intended for cooling stem glasses, glasses, steins and the like are known, which do not differ from a conventional cooler other than in their size and in the fact that they are provided to be located in a directly visible and accessible place, therefore their front door is usually transparent, but these coolers work like any conventional chamber by means of cold equipment lowering the temperature inside the cooler, which in turn subsequently makes the temperature of the containers introduced therein decrease.
This type of cooler has two problems or limitations, on one hand the cold transmission between the refrigerating unit and the containers is slow, such that the availability of cold containers can be reduced or even be nil, and on the other hand the glass or the ceramic of the container is cooled, causing a certain accumulation of frigories, part of which are lost when removing the container from the cooler due to the effect of environmental water vapor condensation occurring on its surface.
In an attempt to avoid this second problem, in practice before introducing the containers in the cooler, such containers are frequently submersed in water, such that frosting occurs on the wall of the containers inside said cooler, which increases the frigorie storage capacity, but evidently wetting the glasses or stem glasses entails a completely irregular distribution on the surface of the container, with areas in which frost accumulations occur and areas in which there is minimal frost, which very negatively affects the appearance of the stem glass, glass or vessel in question.

Description of the Invention

The froster proposed by the invention fully and satisfactorily solves the drawbacks discussed above in the different mentioned aspects, allowing cooling the containers in a virtually instantaneous manner, and in parallel, frosting them in a perfectly uniform manner.
To that end and more specifically, the drink container froster object of the present invention comprises:

a body or casing having a built-in refrigerating unit,
a main sealed compartment, refrigerated by the refrigerating unit, in which there is arranged a plurality of housings for the different containers to be frosted.

Said froster is specifically characterized in that it comprises:

an auxiliary compartment which is thermally insulated from the main compartment for containing at least one container,
water vapor generating means connected to the auxiliary compartment through
means for conveying and releasing the vapor into the auxiliary compartment and
means for controlling the quantity of vapor released, configured to provide a certain quantity of vapor for a limited period of time, such that the vapor is deposited on the surface of the container without being condensed thereon.

Thus, as a result of the application of a uniform layer of vapor on the surface of the container, the container is introduced in the main compartment, in which the micro-droplets forming the vapor are frozen at high speed, the surface being frosted with uniform thickness and physical characteristics for the entire surface of the container.
The vapor generating means of the froster object of the present invention can comprise

a hermetic tank for containing a certain quantity of water,
a plurality of heating elements for heating the water until boiling point, and
at least a thermostat and a pressostat for controlling the temperature and pressure of the boiling vapor, the vapor production being continuous over time.

There will thus be a vapor supply at all times in the auxiliary compartment, being able to introduce as many containers as required for their subsequent frosting in the main compartment.
The means for conveying and releasing the vapor can comprise a connecting tube between the hermetic tank and the auxiliary compartment and a release valve located at the end of the tube and included inside the auxiliary compartment, said valve being located in the lower base of the auxiliary compartment such that vapor is projected on the inner surface of the container.
The means for controlling the quantity of vapor can comprise at least one push-button located in the lower base of the auxiliary compartment configured to act when the container is placed thereon, said push-button acting on the release valve to allow projecting vapor into the auxiliary compartment for a period of between 2 and 10 seconds. The optimal time of application of vapor on the surface of the container will be 5 seconds.
Thus, when the container is introduced in the auxiliary receptacle in an inverted position, the opening of the container will act on the push-button which will open up the passage of vapor coming from the tank or drum, said vapor coming out through the valve and striking directly and mainly on the inner surface of the container.
The body or casing can be divided by means of an intermediate partition into two independent compartmentalizations, a first compartmentalization corresponding to the main sealed compartment, housing therein the evaporator of the refrigerating unit, said main compartment being filled with a heat transmission fluid with a low freezing point, and a second compartmentalization housing the remaining components of the refrigerating unit, the vapor generating means and the auxiliary compartment.
The second compartmentalization can in turn comprise ventilation grills facilitating the elimination of heat produced by the vapor generating means therein.

Description of the Drawings

To complement the description which is being made and with the aim of aiding to better understand the features of the invention according to a preferred practical embodiment thereof, a set of drawings is attached as an integral part of said description in which the following has been shown with an illustrative and non-limiting character:

Figure 1 shows a schematic plan depiction of a container froster made according to the object of the present invention.
Figure 2 shows another plan view of the froster of the previous figure, sectioned to show its inner structure.
Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional detail of the froster according to section line A-B of Figure 2.
Figures 4 and 5 show another two cross-sections of the froster, respectively and according to section lines C-D and E-F of Figure 2.
Figure 6 shows a front-rear sectional view of the froster according to section line G-H of Figure 2.
Figure 7 finally shows another section parallel to that of the previous figure, in this case according to section line I-J of Figure 2.

Preferred Embodiment of the Invention

As can be seen in the attached figures, the drink container froster of the present invention is formed from a body or casing (1) with a relatively small height which can be easily placed on a counter or any type of suitable worktop.
The mentioned body or casing (1) can adopt the prismatic-rectangular configuration shown in the figures or any other configuration considered to be suitable, preferably with its vertices and edges being rounded to optimize its ergonomics; said body (1) can be provided with small support legs (2) which facilitate placing it on a worktop or any other flat surface.
The body (1) has a first compartmentalization (21) comprising a main sealed compartment (3) in which there is arranged a series of housings (4) that can vary in number and are suitable in size and shape to receive therein as many other containers as needed.
The mentioned housings (4) are five in number in the practical embodiment shown in the figures, but obviously said number can vary positively and negatively without this affecting the essence of the invention
The evaporator (22) of the refrigerating unit in the form of a coil (6) is arranged in the walls of the main compartment (3), which evaporator can supply a very low temperature to the heat transmission fluid that completely fills the mentioned main compartment (3), a quick heat transmission from the evaporator (22) to the wall of the housings (4) being achieved.
The remaining components of the refrigerating unit are housed in a second compartmentalization (7) independent of the first compartmentalization located laterally adjacent to the main compartment (3). Said components will consist of a compressor (8) with its corresponding motor (9) and cold unit (10) opposite to a ventilation grill (23) of the body or casing (1).
The main compartment (3) is completely occupied by a heat transmission fluid, based on a solution with a very low freezing point, such as for example a monopropylene glycol or another substance which can reach -45°C without freezing, the compressor equipment obviously being able to supply to the heat transmission fluid the mentioned temperature or a considerably low temperature, preferably less than -30°C.
As a complement of the described structure and according to an essential feature of the invention, an auxiliary compartment (11) which is similar in size and shape to the aforementioned housings (4) is arranged on the upper base of the body (1).
Vapor generating means formed as a hermetic tank (12) containing a certain quantity of water and a plurality of heating elements (13) are associated to said auxiliary compartment (11), such that prior to the introduction of the containers (5) in housings (4) of the main compartment (3) responsible for cooling, said containers (5) are introduced in the mentioned auxiliary compartment where they undergo a vapor bath uniformly affecting their entire surface, which ensures that the subsequent frosting inside any of the cooling housings (4) will also be uniform, a uniform layer of frost therefore being created on the surface of the container which has been bathed by the water vapor when a temperature of less than of 0°C is reached.
To achieve optimal operation of the froster, means for conveying and releasing the vapor from the tank (12) into the auxiliary compartment (11) will be arranged; said means are formed as a connecting tube (17) the end of which is located inside said auxiliary compartment and at such end a release valve (18) is arranged, which release valve is located in the lower base of the compartment, and given that the container is introduced in an inverted position in said compartment the vapor will strike directly on the inner surface of the container (5).
Means can additionally be arranged so that the vapor can also strike on the outer surface of the container (5) if necessary, by way of example such means could consist of a grill (not shown in the figure) located a small distance above the valve (18), so that part of the vapor comes out into the auxiliary compartment (11) in the space that is not occupied by the container (5) in order to be thus also deposited on the outer surface thereof.
It will be possible to fill the tank (12), for which it can have a nozzle provided with a hermetic closure. In the same way, the vapor generating means can have warning devices for when the volume of water contained in the tank (12) is used up; said means can consist of a level detector to which there is associated a visual signal such as for example an indicator light located near the tank (12) on the outer part of the body or casing (1).
The froster can be completed with means for controlling the quantity of vapor released from the tank (12), formed as a push-button (19) located in the lower base of the auxiliary compartment (11), said push-button can, for example, be ring-shaped and be arranged around the release valve (18) so that when the container (5) is introduced in the auxiliary compartment (11) its opening rests directly on the push-button (19) and due to the weight of the container or due to a slight pressure, the push-button is actuated so that the necessary quantity of vapor to create a uniform film of vapor on the surface of the container (5) is released.
Another important factor is the time of vapor projection on the container (5), normally and depending on the nature of the container (glass, clay) and on its size, a variable time between 2 and 10 seconds will be necessary, 5 seconds of vapor projection being used as the standard and optimal time for a normal-sized container, such as for example a glass for beer, a stem glass or a stein.

Claims

A drink container froster comprising:
- a body or casing (1) having a built-in refrigerating unit,

- a main sealed compartment (3), refrigerated by the refrigerating unit, in which there is arranged a plurality of housings (4) for receiving the different containers (5) to be frosted,
characterized in that the froster comprises:
- an auxiliary compartment (11) which is thermally insulated from the main compartment (3), said compartment (11) containing at least one container,

- water vapor generating means connected to the auxiliary compartment (11) through

- means for conveying and releasing the vapor into the auxiliary compartment (11) and

- means for controlling the quantity of vapor released, configured to provide a certain quantity of vapor for a limited period of time, such that the vapor is deposited on the surface of the container without being condensed thereon.
A froster according to claim 1, characterized in that the vapor generating means comprise
- a hermetic tank (12) for containing a certain quantity of water,

- a plurality of heating elements (13) for heating the water until boiling point, and

- at least a thermostat (15) and a pressostat (16) for controlling the temperature and pressure of the boiling vapor, the vapor production being continuous over time.
A froster according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the means for conveying and releasing the vapor comprise a connecting tube (17) between the hermetic tank (12) and the auxiliary compartment (11) and a release valve (18) located at the end of the tube and included inside the auxiliary compartment (11), said valve (18) being located in the lower base of the auxiliary compartment (11) such that it projects the vapor on the inner surface of the container (5).
A froster according to claim 3, characterized in that the hermetic tank (12) has a water replacement warning device.
A froster according to claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the means for regulating the quantity of vapor comprise at least one push-button (19) located in the lower base of the auxiliary compartment (11) configured to act when the container (5) is placed thereon, said push-button (19) acting on the release valve (18) to allow projecting vapor into the auxiliary compartment (11) for a period of between 2 and 10 seconds.
A froster according to claim 5, characterized in that vapor is projected into the auxiliary compartment (11) for a period of 5 seconds.
A froster according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that the mentioned body or casing (1) is divided by means of an intermediate partition (20) into two independent compartmentalizations, a first compartmentalization (21) corresponding to the main sealed compartment (3), housing therein the evaporator (22) of the refrigerating unit, said main compartment (3) being filled with a heat transmission fluid with a low freezing point, and a second compartmentalization (7) housing the remaining components (8-9-10) of the refrigerating unit, the vapor generating means and the auxiliary compartment (11)
A froster according to claim 7, characterized in that the second compartmentalization is provided with ventilation grills (23) facilitating the elimination of heat produced by the vapor generating means therein.