JP2009163606A - Beverage extraction device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a beverage extraction device, capable of extracting a beverage of good quality while ensuring reduction in extraction time as much as possible. <P>SOLUTION: The device comprises: an extractor 4 opened at the bottom; a filter F disposed below the extractor; a cylinder 5 disposed below the filter, the cylinder being formed in a cylindrical shape with a coffee feed port 33 at a lower part of the circumferential wall, and receiving a beverage extracted within the extractor 4 and filtrated through the filter F; a piston 6 provided slidably within the cylinder 5, the piston being movable to an upper waiting position higher in level than the coffee feed port 33 of the cylinder 5, a lower waiting position lower in level than the upper waiting position at which the inside and outside of the cylinder 5 are mutually connected through the coffee feed port 33, and a beverage feeding position lower in level than the upper waiting position for feeding the beverage within the cylinder 5 to the outside through the coffee feed port 33; a piston drive part 7; and a piston control means which moves the piston 6 to the upper waiting position, the lower waiting position and the coffee feeding position. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a beverage extraction apparatus that is incorporated in a cup-type vending machine, a beverage dispenser, and the like and extracts coffee, tea-based beverages, and the like using raw materials such as coffee beans and tea leaves.

  As a conventional beverage extraction device, for example, a coffee extraction device disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known. This coffee brewing device is incorporated in a cup-type vending machine and extracts regular coffee (hereinafter simply referred to as “coffee”) one by one at the time of sale. A cylindrical cylinder disposed below the container and extending in the vertical direction, and a piston slidably provided inside the cylinder are provided. Powdered coffee beans and hot water as raw materials are supplied to the extractor. Specifically, a predetermined amount of coffee beans are ground by a mill, and the powdered coffee beans (hereinafter referred to as “raw material”) are supplied to an extractor. On the other hand, hot water is stored in a hot water tank, and when a solenoid valve provided in the hot water tank is opened for a predetermined time, a predetermined amount of hot water is supplied to the extractor. Further, a coffee delivery port for delivering coffee to the outside is provided at the lower part of the peripheral wall of the cylinder. A continuous paper filter for filtering coffee is passed between the extractor and the cylinder.

  In the coffee brewing device configured as described above, the piston is positioned at the upper part of the cylinder at the time of sales standby, and coffee is extracted at the time of sales as follows. First, a predetermined amount of raw material and hot water are supplied to the extractor, and both are mixed in the extractor. Next, the piston is slightly raised and then lowered. Thereby, the coffee extracted in the extractor moves to the lower cylinder. That is, the coffee in the extractor is sucked to the cylinder side by the lowering of the piston and moves into the cylinder while being filtered by the paper filter. When the piston further descends and reaches the coffee delivery port at the bottom of the cylinder, the coffee in the cylinder is delivered to the outside through the coffee delivery port. And this coffee is supplied to a cup via a conveyance tube etc. Note that the raw material in the extractor remains on the paper filter as an extractor, and is discarded to the outside as the paper filter is sent out for a predetermined length.

  In this coffee extraction device, hot water is supplied to the extractor by opening a solenoid valve that is normally closed as described above. Such a solenoid valve is originally closed in a watertight state when closed, but the watertightness may be gradually deteriorated by long-term use. In this case, a small amount of hot water leaking from the solenoid valve flows into the extractor, and particularly when such a water leak lasts for a long time, low temperature water accumulates in the cylinder. If coffee extraction is performed in such a state, the quality of the coffee sold will fall. That is, the low-temperature water accumulated in the cylinder is mixed with the coffee moved from the extractor to the cylinder, so that the temperature of the coffee sold is lowered, and the above-mentioned water and the extractor are supplied at the time of sale. Since the hot water is more than the amount required to extract a cup of coffee, the coffee becomes thin and, in addition, the coffee supplied to the cup may overflow.

  Of course, by always positioning the piston at the time of sale standby at the coffee delivery port at the bottom of the cylinder and always opening this coffee delivery port, the hot water flowing into the extractor and cylinder due to the malfunction of the solenoid valve, It can be discharged to the outside through the coffee delivery port, so that it is possible to avoid accumulation of water in the cylinder. However, in this case, in order to extract coffee, the piston located at the lower part of the cylinder at the time of sales standby is temporarily raised to the upper part of the cylinder at the start of extraction and then lowered to the lower part of the cylinder. As a result of the large increase, the extraction time as a whole becomes longer.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a beverage extraction device that can extract a high-quality beverage while ensuring the shortening of the extraction time as much as possible. And

Japanese Patent No. 3928942

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a beverage extraction apparatus for extracting a beverage using raw materials and water, and is configured such that the bottom surface is opened, and the raw materials and water are supplied. And an extractor disposed below the extractor for filtering the beverage extracted in the extractor, and disposed below the filter and formed in a cylindrical shape extending in the vertical direction A cylinder having an opening in the lower part of the peripheral wall and receiving a beverage extracted in the extractor and filtered by a filter; and a first standby position which is slidably provided in the cylinder and is higher than the opening of the cylinder A second standby position that is lower than the first standby position and communicates the inside and outside of the cylinder through the opening, and a beverage that is lower than the first standby position and sends the beverage in the cylinder from the opening to the outside. Send A piston that can move to a position, a piston drive that drives the piston, and a piston that controls the piston drive to move the piston to a first standby position, a second standby position, and a beverage delivery position And a control means.

  According to this structure, a filter is arrange | positioned under the extractor which a bottom face opens, and the cylindrical cylinder extended in an up-down direction is arrange | positioned under this filter. This cylinder has an opening in the lower part of the peripheral wall, and receives the beverage extracted in the extractor and filtered by the supply of raw materials and water. A piston is slidably provided in the cylinder. The piston is driven by a piston driving unit controlled by a piston control means, so that a first standby position higher than the opening of the cylinder, a lower position than the first standby position and through the opening of the cylinder. It moves to a second standby position that communicates the inside and the outside, and a beverage delivery position that is lower than the first standby position and that feeds the beverage in the cylinder from the opening to the outside.

  When the beverage extraction is started from the state where the piston is waiting at the first standby position, the beverage extracted in the extractor is moved to the lower cylinder side by lowering the piston toward the beverage delivery position. It is sucked and moved into the cylinder while being filtered by a filter. When the piston reaches the beverage delivery position, the beverage in the cylinder is delivered to the outside through the opening of the cylinder. Thus, when extracting the beverage from the state where the piston is waiting at the first standby position, it is only necessary to lower the piston to the beverage delivery position, and the beverage can be extracted in a relatively short time. it can.

  On the other hand, when the piston waits at the second standby position, the inside and the outside of the cylinder are communicated via the opening. Therefore, for example, when water should not be supplied to the extractor due to a failure of a water supply device that supplies water to the extractor, that is, when the extraction is not in a beverage extraction standby state, the extractor or the cylinder has water. Even if it flows in, the water can be discharged to the outside through the opening of the cylinder. Thereby, unlike the past, the water collected in the cylinder can be prevented from being mixed with the extracted beverage, and as a result, a high-quality beverage can be extracted.

  As described above, according to this beverage extraction device, since the piston can take two standby positions of the first and second standby positions, the piston is set to one of the first and second standby positions during the beverage extraction standby. By appropriately positioning, it is possible to extract a good quality beverage while ensuring a shortening of the extraction time as much as possible.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the beverage extraction apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a time measuring unit that measures an elapsed time from the end of the beverage extraction, and the piston control unit is configured to extract the piston at the time of beverage extraction. When the beverage is on standby for extraction, it is positioned at the first standby position when the measured elapsed time is less than or equal to a predetermined time, and at the second standby position when the elapsed time exceeds the predetermined time. It is characterized by being positioned.

  According to this configuration, the elapsed time from the end of the beverage extraction is measured by the time measuring means. When waiting for beverage extraction, the piston is made to wait at the first standby position when the elapsed time is equal to or shorter than the predetermined time. This means that if the elapsed time from the end of the previous beverage extraction is less than the predetermined time and not much time has passed, even if the water supply device is out of order, the extractor by the time of the current beverage extraction This is because the amount of water flowing into the cylinder is considered to be relatively small, and therefore, the extraction of the beverage at this time is started from a state where the piston is kept waiting at the first standby position so that the beverage can be extracted in a relatively short time.

  On the other hand, when the elapsed time exceeds a predetermined time, the piston is made to wait at the second standby position. This is because if the elapsed time from the end of the previous beverage extraction has exceeded a predetermined time and a relatively long time has passed, the water flowing into the extractor or cylinder will be lost if the water supply device has failed. This is because there is a possibility that water will accumulate in the cylinder if the piston is kept at the first standby position. Therefore, by making the piston stand by at the second standby position, the water flowing into the cylinder can be discharged to the outside through the opening of the cylinder, and the water can be reliably prevented from collecting. Further, when the piston is made to wait at the second standby position, the extraction time becomes longer by that amount because the piston is moved to the first standby position when the beverage is extracted. However, when the next beverage extraction is performed within the predetermined time after the end of the current beverage extraction, the extraction is shortened because the piston is started from the standby state at the first standby position. Can be secured.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the beverage extraction apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising extraction number measuring means for measuring the number of times the beverage is extracted per predetermined unit time, wherein the piston control means includes the piston, When the beverage is extracted, it is positioned at the first standby position. When the beverage is standby for extraction, it is positioned at the second standby position when the measured number of extractions is less than or equal to a predetermined value, and the first time when the number of extractions exceeds the predetermined value. It is characterized by being positioned at a standby position.

  According to this configuration, the number of extractions of the beverage per predetermined unit time is measured by the extraction number measuring means. Further, when waiting for beverage extraction, when the number of extractions is equal to or less than a predetermined value and the frequency of extraction is relatively low, the piston is made to wait at the second standby position, while the number of extractions exceeds the predetermined value, When the is relatively high, the piston is made to wait at the first standby position. Thus, when the frequency of extraction is comparatively high, priority is given to shortening of extraction time by making a piston stand by in a 1st standby position, and a drink can be rapidly provided to a user. Moreover, when the frequency of extraction is comparatively low, priority is given to the quality of a drink by making a piston stand by in a 2nd standby position, and a quality drink can be provided to a user.

  The invention according to claim 4 is the beverage extraction device according to claim 1, further comprising date and time measuring means for measuring the current date and time as the current date and current time, respectively, and the piston control means comprises a piston, When the beverage is extracted, it is positioned at the first standby position, and when the beverage is standby for extraction, when the measured current date corresponds to a predetermined date, or when the measured current time is included in a predetermined time zone, It is positioned at the second standby position, and is positioned at the first standby position when the current date does not correspond to the predetermined date and the current time is not included in the predetermined time zone.

  According to this configuration, the current date and the current time are measured by the date and time measuring means. In addition, when waiting for beverage extraction, the piston is caused to wait at the second standby position when the current day corresponds to a predetermined day or when the current time is included in a predetermined time zone. For example, when a holiday and a night time zone in which the frequency of use of the beverage extraction device is relatively low are set as the predetermined day and time zone, respectively, Quality can be prioritized and good quality beverages can be provided to users. On the other hand, when the current date does not correspond to the predetermined date and the current time is not included in the predetermined time zone, the piston is made to wait at the first standby position. For example, as in the above example, when a predetermined day and time zone are set, when the current day falls on a weekday other than a holiday, and the current time is included in a daytime zone other than night, The usage frequency of the beverage extraction device is relatively high. Therefore, by waiting the piston at the first standby position, priority can be given to shortening the extraction time, and the beverage can be quickly provided to the user.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the beverage extraction device according to the first aspect, the piston standby position designation means for designating whether the piston is positioned at either the first standby position or the second standby position when waiting for beverage extraction. The piston control means positions the piston at the first standby position when the beverage is extracted, and the first standby position or the second standby position specified by the piston standby position specifying means when waiting for the beverage to be extracted. It is located in.

  According to this configuration, when the piston standby position is designated by the piston standby position designating means, the piston stands by at the designated first standby position or the second standby position during the beverage extraction standby. For example, when the administrator of the beverage extraction device wants to always set the beverage extraction device so that the beverage can be quickly provided to the user, the operator operates a switch or button as a piston standby position designation means, The above setting of the beverage extraction device can be easily performed only by designating one standby position. On the other hand, when the administrator or the like wants to set the beverage extraction device so that a good quality beverage can be always provided to the user, the above setting of the beverage extraction device is simply performed by specifying the second standby position. be able to.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2 show a coffee extraction device to which a beverage extraction device according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. The coffee brewing apparatus 1 is built in a cup type vending machine (not shown), and extracts regular coffee one by one at the time of sale. Although not shown, the vending machine incorporates various devices such as a raw material supply device that supplies powdered coffee beans as a raw material and a hot water supply device that supplies hot water to the coffee extraction device 1, These devices and a control device (a time measuring means, a piston control means, an extraction number measuring means, a date and time measuring means) having a microcomputer for controlling the coffee extraction device 1 are incorporated.

  In addition, said raw material supply apparatus and said hot water supply apparatus are generally used for a cup-type vending machine. For example, the raw material supply device accommodates coffee beans, and at the time of sale, a canister that pays out a predetermined amount of coffee beans and crushes the discharged coffee beans to produce powdered coffee beans (hereinafter referred to as “raw material”). It is comprised with the mill for supplying to the coffee extraction apparatus 1, etc. On the other hand, the hot water supply device is provided in the hot water tank for storing hot water, and is provided in the hot water tank, which is normally closed and opened for a predetermined time at the time of sale, thereby supplying a predetermined amount of hot water to the coffee extraction device 1. It consists of a solenoid valve.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the coffee brewing apparatus 1 includes a frame 3 having a predetermined shape having a horizontal base portion 2, an extractor 4 provided on the upper side of the base portion 2, and a base portion 2. A cylinder 5 fixed to the lower side of the cylinder 5, a piston 6 slidably provided in the cylinder 5, and a drive unit 7 (piston drive unit) for driving the piston 6 and the like.

  The frame 3 is provided with a front support portion 8 and a rear support portion 9 that extend downward from the center portion and the rear portion of the base portion 2 in the front-rear direction and rotatably support a drive shaft 46 described later of the drive portion 7. Yes. The front support portion 8 has a U-shaped front shape so as to surround the cylinder 5. On the other hand, the rear support portion 9 is located immediately behind the cylinder 5 and a rod support portion 9a for supporting a drive rod 23 described later is provided at the center in the vertical direction. A pair of front and rear roller arm portions 10 and 10 are provided on the right side portion of the base portion 2 so as to be spaced apart from each other in the front-rear direction and protrude rightward to rotatably support a paper feed roller 54 described later. .

  The extractor 4 is formed in a cylindrical shape whose upper surface and bottom surface are open. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the extractor 4 is formed in a substantially funnel shape, and the raw materials supplied from the raw material supply device and the hot water supply device, respectively. And a raw material / hot water receiving portion 11 for receiving hot water, and an extraction portion 12 formed in a bell shape connected to the lower end of the raw material / hot water receiving portion 11 and extracting coffee by mixing the raw material and hot water. . The raw material / hot water inlet 13, which is a connecting portion between the raw material / hot water receiving part 11 and the extraction part 12, has a smaller cross-sectional area than the upper and lower parts thereof. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, the hot water supply part 14 for supplying hot water directly into the extraction part 12 is provided in the predetermined position of the surrounding wall of the extraction part 12 so that it may protrude outside. . The hot water supply unit 14 is connected to a transport tube (not shown) for transporting hot water from the hot water supply apparatus.

  The extractor 4 configured as described above is floated at a predetermined height from the base portion 2 (specifically, a filter block 32 described later) by an elevating mechanism 21 having arms 22 extending rearward from the left and right side portions. A paper release position (see FIGS. 1 to 3 and the like) for releasing the clamping of a paper filter F, which will be described later, with the filter block 32, and a paper clamping position for clamping the paper filter F with the filter block 32 (FIG. 4 (a)). Etc.) is supported so as to be able to move up and down. As shown in FIG. 2 (b), the elevating mechanism 21 includes the arm 22, a drive rod 23 that extends in the vertical direction and moves the extractor 4 up and down via the arm 22, and a lower end portion of the drive rod 23. And a rod drive unit 24 that slides the drive rod 23 in the vertical direction in conjunction with the rotation of a drive shaft 46 (to be described later) of the drive unit 7.

  The arm 22 has a planar shape formed in an H shape, and has two arm main body portions 22a and 22a whose front end portions are rotatably connected to the left and right side portions of the extractor 4, and these arm main body portions 22a, It is comprised with the connection part 22b which connects between the center parts of the length direction of 22a. Further, the rear end portions of both arm main body portions 22a and 22a are turnable to the left and right arm support portions 3a and 3a provided at the rear end portion of the base portion 2 via a support shaft 25 extending in the left-right direction. It is supported. A torsion coil spring 25a (shown only on the right side in FIG. 1) is provided at both ends of the support shaft 25 so as to urge the arm 22 to rotate clockwise about the support shaft 25 in FIG. ) Is provided. The extractor 4 is biased upward via the arm 22 by these torsion coil springs 25a.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, the drive rod 23 is located immediately behind the connecting portion 22b of the arm 22 and penetrates the base portion 2 of the frame 3 and the rod support portion 9a of the rear support portion 9 in the vertical direction. In this state, they are slidably supported in the vertical direction. A flange 26 having a predetermined diameter larger than the diameter of the drive rod 23 is fixed to the upper end portion of the drive rod 23, and this flange 26 is in contact with the connecting portion 22 b of the arm 22 from above. In addition, a coil spring 27 that urges the drive rod 23 upward is provided between the base portion 2 and the flange 26 at the upper portion of the drive rod 23. Further, the lower end portion of the drive rod 23 is fixed to the rod drive portion 24.

  The rod drive unit 24 is configured to be slidable in the vertical direction with respect to a drive shaft 46 (to be described later) of the drive unit 7, and is accommodated in the case 24a to which the lower end of the drive rod 23 is fixed, and the case 24a. And a cam (not shown) having a predetermined shape fixed to the drive shaft 46. The cam rotates with the drive shaft 46, and is configured to push down the case 24a within a predetermined angular range (for example, 240 degrees) during one rotation.

  In the elevating mechanism 21 configured as described above, the drive rod 23 is pulled down as the case 24a is pushed down by the cam, and the connecting portion 22b of the arm 22 is pushed down via the flange 26 at the upper end. . As a result, the arm 22 rotates about the support shaft 25 in the counterclockwise direction of FIG. 2B, and thereby the extractor 4 is lowered to the paper clamping position. On the other hand, when the pressing of the case 24a by the cam is released, the driving rod 23 and the case 24a are pulled upward by the biasing force of the coil spring 27 of the driving rod 23, and the arm 22 is moved to the timepiece of FIG. Rotate in the direction, whereby the extractor 4 rises to the paper release position.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the cylinder 5 is attached to a cylindrical cylinder body 31 extending in the vertical direction and having an upper surface and a lower surface open, and an upper end portion of the cylinder body 31 so as to cover the upper surface. And a filter block 32. The cylinder body 31 is formed with a coffee outlet 33 (opening) that opens to the outside at a predetermined position below the peripheral wall. Further, a connecting member 34 having a nozzle portion 34 a is attached to the coffee delivery port 33 in the cylinder body 31. A transport tube (not shown) is connected to the nozzle part 34a. Therefore, the coffee fed from the coffee delivery port 33 is transported to the product outlet of the vending machine via the transport tube. It is supplied to the cup supplied to the product outlet.

  The filter block 32 supports the paper filter F from below and sandwiches the paper filter F with the extractor 4 located at the paper clamping position. The filter block 32 includes a metal filter plate 35 having a large number of pores, a rubber seal portion 36 provided at the peripheral edge of the filter plate 35, and the like. The shape and size of the seal portion 36 are substantially the same as those of the bottom peripheral edge portion of the extractor 4. When the extractor 4 is located at the paper clamping position, the paper filter F is sandwiched between the cylinder 5 and the extractor 4. It communicates with water tight.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the piston 6 includes a piston main body 41 having an outer diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the cylinder main body 31 and a circular planar shape, and a piston ring 42 attached to the peripheral wall of the piston main body 41. It is configured. An upper end portion of a piston rod 43 extending in the vertical direction is rotatably connected to the piston body 41 via a connecting pin 44, and a lower end portion of the piston rod 43 is a tip portion of the drive shaft 46 of the drive unit 7. It is connected to a crank 45 fixed to it so as to be rotatable. Accordingly, the piston 6 moves up and down by one stroke while sliding in the cylinder body 31 as the drive shaft 46 makes one rotation.

  Moreover, in this coffee extraction device 1, as the standby position of the piston 6 at the time of coffee extraction standby, the upper standby position near the upper end of the cylinder 5 (first standby position, see FIGS. 4A and 6A). And a lower standby position (second standby position, see FIGS. 3 and 6B) that is lower than the upper standby position and that opens the upper half of the coffee delivery port 33. It is configured.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the drive unit 7 has a drive shaft 46 that extends horizontally in the front-rear direction, and is configured to rotate the drive shaft 46 once during the extraction of coffee. Although not shown, the drive unit 7 further includes a motor, a gear box that transmits the power of the motor to the drive shaft 46, a photoelectric rotary encoder for detecting the rotational angle position of the drive shaft 46, and the like. These are accommodated in the drive unit case 47. In the drive unit 7, the control device counts the pulse signal from the encoder by using the rotation angle position of the drive shaft 46 when the piston 6 is located at the lower standby position as a base point. 46 rotational angular positions are detected. Then, the position of the piston 6 is controlled based on the detected rotation angle position.

  Next, the paper filter F and a mechanism for sending it out will be described. The paper filter F is for filtering the coffee extracted in the extractor 4, has a width substantially the same as the length of the filter block 32 in the front-rear direction, and is configured in a continuous band shape. Further, the paper filter F has a roll part Fr wound in a roll shape, and this roll part Fr is rotatably supported by a paper holder 51 disposed below the cylinder 5. Note that the paper holder 51 has a paper cover 52 that covers the upper side and the right side of the roll part Fr. Therefore, when the used paper filter F comes into contact with the roll part Fr, the roll part Fr becomes wet. There is no end to it.

  Also, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the paper filter F is pulled out to the left from the paper holder 51 and passes through the left side of the frame 3, the upper side of the base portion 2, and the right side of the frame 3 in order. It is set. The paper filter F set in this way is fed out by a predetermined length for each coffee extraction by a paper feed mechanism 53 provided on the right side of the base portion 2.

  The paper feed mechanism 53 supports the paper filter F from below, and is disposed on the upper side of a rotatable paper feed roller 54. In cooperation with the paper feed roller 54, a pair of front and rear rubber rollers for feeding out the paper filter F. 55, 55 etc. are provided. The paper feed roller 54 extends in the front-rear direction and is formed in a cylindrical shape having a relatively large diameter. The paper feed roller 54 is rotatably supported between the roller arms 10 and 10 of the frame 3 via a support shaft 54a extending horizontally in the front-rear direction. The support shaft 54a protrudes rearward from the rear roller arm 10, and a driven pulley 54b is fixed to the end of the support shaft 54a. A belt 56 is wound around the driven pulley 54b between a driven pulley 46a fixed to the drive shaft 46 of the drive unit 7. Therefore, the paper feed roller 54 rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the drive shaft 46.

  The pair of front and rear rubber rollers 55, 55 are arranged at intervals in the front-rear direction, and are supported on a shaft 57 having a predetermined shape so as to be rotatable around a support shaft portion 57a extending horizontally in the front-rear direction. The shaft 57 is configured to be rotatable in the vertical direction. Near the pair of rubber rollers 55, 55 of the shaft 57, springs 58, 58 that urge the both rubber rollers 55, 55 against the peripheral surface of the paper feed roller 54 are attached. Therefore, when the paper feed roller 54 rotates clockwise in FIG. 2A with the paper filter F sandwiched between the rubber rollers 55 and 55 and the paper feed roller 54, the paper filter F is rotated during the rotation. Is continuously pulled out from the paper holder 51 side.

  The shaft 57 has a lever abutting portion 57b slightly extending horizontally behind the rubber roller 55 on the rear side. A push-up lever 59 for pushing up both the rubber rollers 55 and 55 so as to rotate upward in conjunction with the lowering of the extractor 4 is provided below the lever contact portion 57b. The push-up lever 59 extends in the left-right direction between the lever abutting portion 57b and the arm main body portion 22a on the right side of the arm 22, and via a support shaft 59a protruding forward from the central portion in the length direction. The frame 3 is supported by the lever support portion 3b of the frame 3 so as to be swingable. Therefore, when the extractor 4 is lowered to the paper clamping position by the rotation of the arm 22, the left end portion of the push-up lever 59 is pushed down by the right arm main body portion 22a, and thereby the right end portion of the push-up lever 59 is pushed down. The lever contact portion 57b of the shaft 57 is pushed up against the urging force of the springs 58, 58. As a result, both rubber rollers 55 and 55 are pushed up and separated from the paper feed roller 54. In this case, since the holding of the paper filter F by the rubber rollers 55 and 55 and the paper feed roller 54 is released, the paper filter F is not sent out even if the paper feed roller 54 rotates.

  Next, the extraction operation of the coffee extraction device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4A shows a state during standby for coffee extraction. Specifically, the extractor 4 is positioned at a paper clamping position where the paper filter F is clamped between the filter block 32 and the piston 6 in the cylinder 5 serves as a normal standby position, and the upper end of the cylinder 5 is It is located near the upper standby position. The upper standby position is a position before the piston 6 passes through the top dead center, which is the highest position.

  When the purchase of coffee is selected by the user of the vending machine, a predetermined amount of raw material and hot water are respectively supplied to the extractor 4 from the raw material supply device and the hot water supply device, as shown in FIG. . In this case, the raw material / hot water receiving unit 11 of the extractor 4 is supplied with a part of a predetermined amount of hot water required for extracting a cup of coffee after the raw material is supplied. It flows into the extraction unit 12 through the hot water inlet 13. Further, the remaining amount of the predetermined amount of hot water is directly supplied to the extraction unit 12 via the hot water supply unit 14. Thereafter, the motor of the drive unit 7 is operated and the drive shaft 46 makes one rotation, whereby the piston 6, the extractor 4 and the paper feed mechanism 53 operate as follows.

  First, after supplying the raw material and hot water to the extractor 4, as shown in FIG.4 (c), the piston 6 raises to a top dead center. In this case, the air in the cylinder 5 passes through the filter plate 35 and the paper filter F of the filter block 32 and flows into the extraction unit 12 of the extractor 4 as indicated by the arrows in FIG. The raw air and hot water in the extraction unit 12 are agitated by the inflowed air, and coffee extraction is promoted.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 5A, the piston 6 is lowered. Thereby, the coffee extracted in the extraction unit 12 is sucked to the cylinder 5 side and moves into the cylinder 5 while being filtered by the paper filter F. The piston 6 further descends to reach the coffee delivery port 33 of the cylinder 5, and the space above the piston 6 in the cylinder 5 communicates with the outside of the cylinder 5 through the coffee delivery port 33. Then, the coffee in the cylinder 5 is sent out to the outside.

  FIG. 5B shows a state in which the piston 6 is located at the coffee delivery position (beverage delivery position) at the lowest position, that is, the piston 6 is located at the bottom dead center. In this state, all of the coffee delivery port 33 is opened, and the coffee in the cylinder 5 is delivered to the outside from the coffee delivery port 33 as indicated by the arrow in FIG. The fed coffee is supplied to a mixing bowl mixed with sugar or cream via a transfer tube or directly to a cup of a product outlet. Further, in the above state, the extractor 4 slightly floats from the filter block 32, and the raw material extraction basket G remains on the paper filter F.

  Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5 (c), the piston 6 rises and the extractor 4 rises to the paper release position. In this case, in the paper feed mechanism 53, both rubber rollers 55, 55 are rotated toward the rotating paper feed roller 54, and the paper filter F is sandwiched between the both 55, 54. As a result, the paper filter F is sent out for a predetermined length, and at the same time, the extraction basket G is discharged to the outside. Then, the piston 6 is further raised and returned to the upper standby position, and the extractor 4 is lowered and returned to the paper clamping position. Thus, the extraction operation of the coffee brewing apparatus 1 is completed, and the piston 6 and the extractor 4 return to the standby state shown in FIG.

  Next, the extraction operation of the coffee extraction device 1 when the piston 6 stands by at the lower standby position during coffee extraction standby will be described. FIG. 6A is the same as FIG. 4A described above, and shows a standby state immediately after the end of coffee extraction. That is, the extractor 4 is located at the paper clamping position while the piston 6 is located at the upper standby position.

  When the elapsed time from immediately after the end of coffee extraction is measured by the control device as a time measuring means and the elapsed time exceeds a predetermined time (for example, 2 hours), the drive unit is the same as in the coffee extraction described above. 7 is operated, and the drive shaft 46 is rotated to a predetermined angular position which is the base point of the encoder. As a result, the piston 6 located at the upper standby position moves up and down in the same manner as in FIGS. 4B to 5C and stops at the lower standby position. On the other hand, the extractor 4 located at the paper clamping position moves up to the paper release position. FIG. 6B shows the piston 6 and the extractor 4 in the standby state.

  In this standby state, when purchase of coffee is selected by the user of the vending machine, the motor of the drive unit 7 is operated, and as shown in FIG. The extractor 4 is lowered. Then, as the piston 6 further rises, the extractor 4 further falls, and the piston 6 and the extractor 4 reach the upper standby position and the paper clamping position, respectively, as shown in FIG. . This state is the same as when the piston 6 is waiting at the upper standby position from the beginning. Therefore, in this state, as shown in FIG. 4 (c), the raw material and hot water are supplied to the extractor 4, and thereafter, the above-described FIG. 4 (c) to FIG. 5 (c) and FIG. 4 (a). The coffee extraction operation is executed in the same manner as the series of extraction operations.

  As described above in detail, according to the coffee extraction device 1 of the present embodiment, when the piston 6 is waiting at the upper standby position, the piston 6 is lowered to the coffee delivery position when coffee is extracted. The coffee can be extracted in a relatively short time. On the other hand, when the piston 6 is waiting at the lower standby position, the inside and outside of the cylinder 5 are communicated via the coffee delivery port 33. Therefore, even if hot water flows into the extractor 4 or the cylinder 5 during standby for coffee extraction due to a failure of the hot water supply device, for example, a decrease in the water tightness of the solenoid valve, the hot water flows through the coffee delivery port 33. Can be discharged to the outside. Thereby, unlike the conventional case, hot water accumulated in the cylinder can be prevented from being mixed with the extracted coffee, and as a result, good quality coffee can be extracted.

  Further, when the extraction of coffee is started from the state where the piston 6 is waiting at the lower standby position, the piston 6 is moved to the upper standby position as compared with the case where the piston 6 is initially waiting at the upper standby position. Therefore, the extraction time becomes longer accordingly. However, when the next coffee extraction is performed within the predetermined time after the end of the current coffee extraction, the piston 6 starts from the standby state at the upper standby position, so that the extraction time can be shortened. can do. As described above, according to the coffee extraction device 1 of the present embodiment, the piston 6 can take the two standby positions of the upper standby position and the lower standby position. On the other hand, by appropriately waiting, it is possible to extract high-quality coffee while ensuring the shortening of the extraction time as much as possible.

  In the above embodiment, the standby position of the piston 6 is determined on the basis of the elapsed time after the end of coffee extraction. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and based on other conditions as will be described later. Or may be determined forcibly.

  For example, the standby position of the piston 6 may be determined based on the number of coffee extractions per unit time. Specifically, when the number of coffee extractions per predetermined unit time (for example, 1 hour) is equal to or less than the predetermined number of times (for example, 1-2 times, a predetermined value), the piston 6 is made to wait at the lower standby position, When the number of extractions exceeds a predetermined number, the piston 6 is made to wait at the upper standby position.

  As mentioned above, when the number of coffee extractions per unit time exceeds a predetermined number and the frequency of extraction is relatively high, buyers often line up in front of vending machines trying to buy coffee, and therefore By making the piston 6 stand by at the upper standby position, priority is given to shortening the extraction time, and coffee can be quickly provided to the purchaser. On the other hand, when the number of extractions is equal to or less than the predetermined number and the extraction frequency is relatively low, unlike the above case, the purchaser is less likely to line up in front of the vending machine. By waiting at, the quality of the coffee is prioritized over the shortening of the extraction time, and a good quality coffee can be provided to the purchaser.

  Further, for example, the standby position of the piston 6 may be determined based on the current date (hereinafter referred to as “current date”) and time (hereinafter referred to as “current time”). Specifically, when the current day corresponds to a predetermined day, or when the current time is included in a predetermined time zone, the piston 6 is caused to wait at the lower standby position, while the current day corresponds to the predetermined day. When the current time is not included in the predetermined time zone, the piston 6 is made to wait at the upper standby position.

  In this case, as a predetermined day and time zone, for example, when holidays and night time zones where the usage frequency of the vending machine is relatively low are set, respectively, the number of extractions per unit time described above is small. For the same reason, the quality of the coffee can be prioritized by giving the piston 6 to the standby position at the lower standby position, and good quality coffee can be provided to the purchaser. On the other hand, when the current day falls on a weekday other than a holiday and the current time is included in a daytime time zone other than nighttime, the usage frequency of the vending machine is relatively high. For the same reason as when the number of extractions is large, the piston 6 is made to wait at the upper standby position, so that priority can be given to shortening the extraction time, and coffee can be quickly provided to the purchaser.

  Further, for example, the administrator of the vending machine may forcibly determine the standby position of the piston 6. Specifically, the administrator designates the standby position of the piston 6 by operating a predetermined switch (piston standby position designating means) for designating the standby position of the piston 6 as necessary. Based on this, the control device causes the piston 6 to wait at the upper standby position or the lower standby position.

  For example, when the administrator wants to set the coffee brewing apparatus 1 so that coffee can always be quickly provided to the purchaser, the operator only needs to operate the switch and specify the upper standby position. The above settings can be easily performed. On the other hand, when the manager wants to set the coffee brewing apparatus 1 so that good quality coffee can always be provided to the purchaser, the above setting can be performed simply by designating the lower standby position.

  In addition, this invention can be implemented in various aspects, without being limited to the said embodiment described. For example, in the embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a coffee extraction device has been described, but the present invention can also be applied to a beverage extraction device that extracts tea-based beverages using tea leaves as a raw material. In the embodiment, the lower standby position of the piston 6 is set to a position slightly higher than the coffee delivery position that is the lowest position, but the lower standby position may be set to be the same as the coffee delivery position. Furthermore, the upper standby position as the first standby position of the present invention is set to a position before passing the top dead center which is the highest position of the piston 6, for example, the position after passing the top dead center, It is also possible to set the position at the top dead center itself.

  In the embodiment, examples of conditions for automatically determining the standby position of the piston 6 include the number of coffee extractions per unit time, the current date, and the current time, in addition to the elapsed time after the end of coffee extraction. However, the standby position of the piston 6 may be determined based on other appropriate conditions. Furthermore, the detailed configuration of the coffee extraction device 1 shown in the embodiment is merely an example, and can be appropriately changed within the scope of the gist of the present invention.

It is a perspective view which shows the coffee extraction apparatus to which the drink extraction apparatus by one Embodiment of this invention is applied. It is a figure which shows the coffee extraction apparatus of FIG. 1, (a) is a front view, (b) is a right view. It is sectional drawing which shows an extractor, a cylinder, and a piston when cut | disconnecting along the III-III line of Fig.2 (a). It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the extraction operation | movement by a coffee extraction apparatus in order. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for sequentially explaining extraction operations subsequent to FIG. 4. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating two waiting positions of a piston. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating in order the extraction operation | movement by the coffee extraction apparatus in case a piston waits in a lower standby position.

Explanation of symbols

1 Coffee extraction device (beverage extraction device)
4 Extractor 5 Cylinder 6 Piston 7 Drive unit 33 Coffee outlet (opening)
41 Piston body 46 Drive shaft 53 Paper feed mechanism F Paper filter (filter)

Claims (5)

A beverage extraction device for extracting a beverage using raw materials and water,
An extractor configured to be open at the bottom and supplied with raw material and water;
A filter disposed below the extractor for filtering the beverage extracted in the extractor;
A cylinder disposed below the filter, formed in a cylindrical shape extending in the vertical direction, having an opening at a lower portion of the peripheral wall, and receiving a beverage extracted in the extractor and filtered by the filter;
A second standby position that is slidably provided in the cylinder and communicates with the inside and outside of the cylinder through the opening and a first standby position higher than the opening of the cylinder and lower than the first standby position. A piston movable to a standby position and a beverage delivery position lower than the first standby position and for delivering the beverage in the cylinder from the opening to the outside;
A piston drive unit for driving the piston;
Piston control means for moving the piston to the first standby position, the second standby position, and the beverage delivery position by controlling the piston drive unit;
A beverage extraction device comprising: It further comprises a time measuring means for measuring the elapsed time from the end of the beverage extraction,
The piston control means positions the piston at the first standby position when extracting a beverage, and is positioned at the first standby position when the measured elapsed time is less than or equal to a predetermined time when waiting for beverage extraction. The beverage extraction device according to claim 1, wherein the beverage extraction device is positioned at the second standby position when the elapsed time exceeds the predetermined time. An extraction number measuring means for measuring the number of beverage extractions per predetermined unit time, further comprising:
The piston control means positions the piston at the first standby position when the beverage is extracted, and at the second standby position when the measured number of extractions is equal to or less than a predetermined value when waiting for the beverage to be extracted. The beverage extraction device according to claim 1, wherein the beverage extraction device is positioned at the first standby position when the number of extractions exceeds the predetermined value. A date / time measuring means for measuring the current date and time as the current date and time, respectively,
The piston control means positions the piston at the first standby position at the time of beverage extraction, and at the time of beverage extraction standby, when the measured current date corresponds to a predetermined date, or the measured When the current time is included in a predetermined time zone, the current time is not located in the predetermined time zone, and the current date is not included in the predetermined time zone. The beverage extraction device according to claim 1, wherein the beverage extraction device is located at the first standby position. A piston standby position designating unit for designating whether to place the piston in the first standby position or the second standby position when waiting for beverage extraction;
The piston control means positions the piston at the first standby position at the time of beverage extraction, and at the time of beverage extraction standby, the first standby position or the second standby position designated by the piston standby position designation means. The beverage extraction device according to claim 1, wherein the beverage extraction device is located at a position.

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