TW201727585A - Drinks providing device - Google Patents

Abstract

A drinks providing device includes a control module and at least a drinks tube. The control module is configured to receive an opening signal or a closing signal from a counter device. An end of the drinks tube is connected to a drinks storage. The drinks tube includes a liquid switch, a solenoid valve and a flow meter. The liquid switch is disposed on another end of the drinks tube. The liquid switch is configured to open or close the exit of drinks tube. The solenoid valve is configured to receive the opening signal or the closing signal from control module. The solenoid valve is opened when the solenoid valve receive the opening signal. The solenoid valve is closed when the solenoid valve receive the closing signal. The flow meter is configured to calculate the volume of the drinks passed and produce a volume signal, and the volume signal would be transmitted to control module. The volume signal would be transmitted to counter device by control module.

Description

Beverage supply device

The present invention relates to a beverage supply device, and more particularly to a beverage supply device that is controllable via a network connection.

Drinks are an indispensable part of the table in today's society, and they are drinks that many people drink on a daily basis. There are many types of beverages, and common classifications are, for example, tea, alcohol, fruit juice, carbonated drinks, and the like. As a result, beverage stores can be found everywhere on the street, and most restaurants offer drinks. Especially in alcohol and wine, wine has a long history and has considerable social meaning. Alcoholic beverages will appear on many occasions. In practice, common methods of beverage supply can be divided into quantitative pricing or free access. Quantitative pricing is provided by the store's menu and is available to consumers at a fixed price and a fixed weight, usually ranging from 300cc to 700cc, depending on the store. However, some consumers prefer a small amount of variety, or do not like to drink too much beverage, pricing is not enough to satisfy these consumers. And the clerk also needs to prepare additional drinks, such as bottle opening, preparation, and dispensing. Free access is to place a beverage machine in the store, which is used by consumers. However, the cost is usually combined with meal calculations. Based on cost considerations, usually only cheap drinks are provided and no alcohol is provided. Moreover, the consumer must leave the location to hold the beverage, and the store needs to be replenished from time to time, which is not convenient overall. Therefore, how to improve the mechanism of beverage supply, so that the store can directly measure the price, convenient for consumers to access, the store can also more convenient management and provision mechanism, it is worthy of consideration in the field of ordinary knowledge.

In order to solve the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a beverage supply device having a flow meter that can be priced and can be installed at each table for free access by consumers. Based on the above and other objects, the present invention provides a beverage supply device comprising a control module and at least one beverage flow tube. The control module is adapted to receive an open signal or a close signal from a counter device. One end of the beverage flow tube is connected to a beverage storage tank. The beverage flow tube includes at least one liquid switch, a solenoid valve, and a flow meter. A liquid switch is disposed at the other end of the beverage flow tube and is adapted to open or close an outlet of the beverage flow tube. The solenoid valve is adapted to receive the opening signal and the closing signal from the control module. When the solenoid valve receives the opening signal, the solenoid valve is opened; when the solenoid valve receives the closing signal, the solenoid valve is closed. The flow meter is adapted to calculate the amount of beverage passing through and generate a flow signal that is transmitted to the control module. The control module transmits the flow signal to the counter device. In the above beverage supply device, the beverage supply device further includes a first display device, and the first display device is adapted to display the flow signal. In the above beverage supply device, the control module is also communicatively coupled to a network device. In the above beverage supply device, the control module further includes a storage unit, and the storage unit starts to store the change of the flow signal after the control module receives the open signal. In the above beverage supply device, the control module is connected to the one-time meal device via a network device communication. In the above beverage supply device, the control module is communicably connected to a second display device via a network device, and the second display device is adapted to display a flow signal. In the above beverage supply device, the control module is communicably connected to a servo host through the network device, and the control module uploads the traffic signal to the servo host. In the above beverage supply device, the counter device is adapted to download a flow signal from the other beverage supply device from the servo host. In the above beverage supply device, the control module is communicably connected to a servo host through the network device, and the control module uploads the traffic signal to the server. In the above beverage supply device, the counter device is adapted to download the flow signal from the other beverage supply device from the servo host.

Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 1 and the architecture diagram of the beverage supply device 100 of the present invention. The beverage supply device 100 includes a control module 110, a first display device 120 and at least one beverage flow tube 130. The control module 110 is the most important control component of the beverage supply device 100, and is connected to a counter device 220, a meal device 230, a second display device 240 and a servo host 250 via a network device 210. And the control module is adapted to receive an open signal or a turn-off signal from the counter device 220, which is described later on the external connection component. The beverage flow tube 130 is a pipeline for conveying beverages. One end of the beverage flow tube 130 is connected to the beverage storage tank 131, and the beverage storage tank 131 is suitable for storing various types of drinks, such as tea, juice, wine and the like. The beverage flow tube 130 includes at least one liquid switch 134, a solenoid valve 133, and a flow meter 132. The liquid switch 134 is disposed at the other end of the beverage flow tube 130. The liquid switch 134 is configured to open or close the outlet of the beverage flow tube, and the liquid switch 134 is opened to allow the beverage to flow out. The liquid switch 134 is, for example, a faucet, a pull-rod switch, or a push-button switch outlet. The solenoid valve 133 is an electromagnetic switch disposed between the liquid switch 134 and the beverage storage tank 131. The solenoid valve 133 is electrically connected to the control module 110 and receives an open signal or a shutdown signal from the control module 110. When the solenoid valve 133 receives the opening signal, the solenoid valve 133 will open to allow the beverage to flow; conversely, if the solenoid valve 133 receives the closing signal, the solenoid valve 133 will close, so that the beverage cannot flow. In other words, the solenoid valve 133 is controlled by the counter device 220, and the consumer can take the beverage from the beverage supply device 100 after the opening command is issued by the counter device 220. The flow meter 132 is disposed between the liquid switch 134 and the beverage storage tank 131, and is electrically connected to the control module 110, and is adapted to calculate the amount of the beverage passing through, and generate a flow signal according to the amount of the beverage passing. The traffic signal is transmitted to the control module 110. Therefore, the control module 110 further includes a storage unit 111. After the control module 110 receives the activation signal, the storage unit 111 starts to record the traffic signal from the flow meter 132, thereby monitoring how much beverage the consumer has taken. . At the same time, the traffic signal will be displayed on the first display device 120 to let the consumer know how much beverage has been taken. In some embodiments, the control module 110 converts the traffic signal into an amount and displays the amount on the first display device 120 for the consumer to refer to the beverage fee. After the control module 110 receives the traffic signal, the control device 110 transmits the traffic signal to the counter device 220, the one-point device 230, the second display device 240, and a server host 250 through the network device 210, and the network device 210 is, for example, a data modem or a wireless network device. The counter device 220 is a counter installed at the store, that is, a POS device (Point of service). Therefore, after receiving the traffic signal, the counter device 220 can convert the traffic signal into the consumption amount as the basis for the consumer checkout. In addition, the counter device 220 can be input with an opening signal or a closing signal, and the opening signal or the closing signal is transmitted to the corresponding beverage supply device 100, and the electromagnetic valve 133 in the beverage supply device 100 is turned off or on. The ordering device 230 is a mobile device used by a store clerk to order food, such as a tablet computer equipped with a ordering application. The ordering device 230 can receive the traffic signal from the control module 110 through the network device 210, so that the waiter can also view the beverage usage of the consumer and provide the necessary services. The second display device 240 is different from the first display device 120, which is a public display device such as a public display, a video wall, or the like. The second display device 240 can also receive the flow signal from the control module 110 and display the flow signals on the second display device 240, which can be used as an application in some special occasions, for example, as a scoreboard in a wine contest. use. The server host 250 is a remote server, such as a central server of a chain store. The control module 110 is connected to the server host 250 via the network device 210 in communication with the Internet. The flow signal received by the control module 110 from the flow meter 132 is transmitted to the servo host 250 for storage to subsequently check or count the supply of the beverage. At the same time, the store can also use the counter device 220 to download the traffic signals from the other beverage supply devices 100 from the server 200, and can display the traffic signals from the different beverage supply devices 100 on the second display device 240, which can also be used as a special The application of the occasion, such as the cross-storey wine contest scoreboard. Referring to FIG. 2A, FIG. 2A illustrates a beverage supply device 100 of one embodiment. The beverage flow tube 130 of the beverage supply device 100 can be adjusted according to different needs. In the embodiment of Figure 2A, the beverage supply device 100 has a single beverage flow tube 130 and a plurality of liquid switches 134 and is disposed at the edge of the table. The beverage supply device 100 is provided with a single beverage from a single beverage flow tube 130, but has a plurality of liquid switches 134 suitable for a plurality of same-table consumers to simultaneously hold a beverage. Referring to FIG. 2B, FIG. 2B illustrates a beverage supply device 100' of another embodiment. In this embodiment, the beverage supply device 100' has a plurality of beverage flow tubes 130' and a corresponding number of liquid switches 134'. This embodiment is suitable for providing a variety of beverages to the consumer, and each beverage is individually billed separately by the flow meter for the consumer to select the beverage according to his or her preference. Please refer to FIG. 3 , which is a block diagram of a plurality of beverage supply devices 100 . When the beverage supply device 100 is actually applied to a restaurant, in the preferred embodiment, a set of beverage supply devices 100 are installed at each table and controlled by the counter device 220. In other words, after the consumer enters the restaurant and confirms the seat of the consumer, the store can input an opening signal from the counter device 220 to the designated seat, and open the beverage supply device 100 on the consumer seat, so that the consumer can freely access and control at the same time. Module 110 will begin recording the flow signal of the beverage. On the contrary, after the consumer leaves the checkout, the store can input the shutdown signal from the counter device 240 to the designated seat, close the corresponding beverage supply device 100, and reset the data in the corresponding control module 110 to avoid cost repetition. Calculation. During the process from the entry of the consumer to the departure, the traffic signal of the beverage supply device 100 is uploaded to the servo host 250 for storage for subsequent check and statistical work. Please refer to FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B . FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B illustrate an application of the second display device 240 . When the wine contest is held, the counter device 220 can sort the flow signals of each of the beverage supply devices 100 and display them on the second display device 240. At this time, the second display device 240 is used as a scoreboard, and the amount of drinking for each table is clearly seen on the second display device 240. The counter device 220 can also read the flow signal of the beverage supply device 100 in the other storefront through the servo host 250 and display it on the second display device 240, thereby enabling the cross-storey wine contest. Compared with the conventional method of supplying beverages, the beverage providing device 100 of the present invention can be installed on a dining table so that the consumer can directly access the beverage without having to leave the location to order at the bar or to access the beverage in the self-service area. Moreover, it can be priced, allowing consumers to access beverages according to their own needs, preferences, and budgets, avoiding unnecessary waste and increasing consumer satisfaction. In addition, the beverage providing device 100 can be connected to a common POS device through a network function, which helps the store to improve the operation efficiency. And you can use the network function to develop more remote functions. The present invention has been described above, but it is not intended to limit the scope of patent rights claimed herein. The scope of patent protection is subject to the scope of the patent application and its equivalent fields. Any changes or modifications made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of this patent are subject to the equivalent changes or designs made in the spirit of the present disclosure and should be included in the scope of the patent application below. Inside.

100‧‧‧Beverage supply device
110‧‧‧Control Module
111‧‧‧ Storage Module
120, 120'‧‧‧ first display device
130, 131'‧‧‧ drink flow tube
131‧‧‧Beverage storage tank
132‧‧‧ flowmeter
133‧‧‧ solenoid valve
134, 134'‧‧‧ liquid switch
210‧‧‧Network devices
220‧‧‧ counter device
230‧‧‧ ordering device
240‧‧‧Second display device
250‧‧‧Servo host

1 is a block diagram of a beverage supply device of the present invention. FIG. 2A illustrates a beverage supply device of one of the embodiments. FIG. 2B illustrates a beverage supply device of another embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a plurality of beverage supply devices. 4A and 4B illustrate an application of the second display device.

100‧‧‧Beverage supply device

110‧‧‧Control Module

111‧‧‧ Storage Module

120‧‧‧First display device

130‧‧‧Beverage tube

131‧‧‧Beverage storage tank

132‧‧‧ flowmeter

133‧‧‧ solenoid valve

134‧‧‧Liquid switch

210‧‧‧Network devices

220‧‧‧ counter device

230‧‧‧ ordering device

240‧‧‧Second display device

250‧‧‧Servo host

Claims (8)

A beverage supply device comprising: a control module adapted to receive an opening signal or a closing signal from a counter device; and at least one beverage flow tube, one end of the beverage flow tube being connected to a beverage storage tank, the beverage stream The tube includes: at least one liquid switch disposed at the other end of the beverage flow tube, adapted to open or close an outlet of the beverage flow tube; a solenoid valve adapted to receive the opening signal and the closing signal from the control module, when When the solenoid valve receives the opening signal, the solenoid valve is opened; when the solenoid valve receives the closing signal, the solenoid valve is closed; and a flow meter is adapted to calculate the amount of beverage passing, and generate a flow signal, the flow rate The signal is transmitted to the control module; wherein the control module transmits the traffic signal to the counter device. The beverage supply device of claim 1, wherein the beverage supply device further comprises a first display device, the first display device being adapted to display the flow signal. The beverage supply device of claim 1, wherein the control module is further communicatively coupled to a network device. The beverage supply device of claim 1, wherein the control module further comprises a storage unit, and the storage unit starts to store the change of the flow signal after the control module receives the open signal. The beverage supply device of claim 4, wherein the control module is communicatively coupled to the one-off meal device via the network device. The beverage supply device of claim 4, wherein the control module is communicatively coupled to a second display device via the network device, the second display device being adapted to display the flow signal. The beverage supply device of claim 4, wherein the control module is communicatively coupled to a server via the network device, and the control module uploads the traffic signal to the server. The beverage supply device of claim 7, wherein the counter device is adapted to download the flow signal from the other beverage supply device from the servo host.