CN118258188A

CN118258188A - Beverage preparation device and refrigeration equipment

Info

Publication number: CN118258188A
Application number: CN202211674331.4A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 吴梦娇; 李敏; 王晓丽; 孙永升
Original assignee: Qingdao Haier Smart Technology R&D Co Ltd; Haier Smart Home Co Ltd
Current assignee: Qingdao Haier Smart Technology R&D Co Ltd; Haier Smart Home Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-12-26
Filing date: 2022-12-26
Publication date: 2024-06-28

Abstract

The invention discloses a drink preparation device and refrigeration equipment, wherein the drink preparation device comprises a shell, a water tank and a water supply valve body for controlling water outlet of the water tank, the water tank comprises a water outlet and a valve port, the water supply valve body comprises a valve block penetrating through the valve port and a driving part for controlling the movement of the valve block, the valve block is provided with a closed state for closing the water outlet and a water outlet state for opening the water outlet, the water tank is detachably connected to the shell, when the water tank is connected to the shell, the driving part is connected with the valve block, and when the water tank is detached from the shell, the driving part is separated from the valve block. The assembly mode of the water tank and the water supply valve body of the drink preparation device meets the requirement of normal use, when the drink preparation device is used, the driving part is connected with the valve block, the driving part controls the movement of the valve block, water can be discharged from the water outlet, when the water tank needs to be taken down, the driving part is separated from the valve block, the valve block and the water tank are taken down together, and the valve block and the water tank are integrated together, so that the drink preparation device is convenient to use.

Description

Beverage preparation device and refrigeration equipment

Technical Field

The invention relates to a beverage preparation device, in particular to refrigeration equipment with the beverage preparation device.

Background

At present, a refrigerator exists, cooling water cooled in the refrigerator can be taken out of the refrigerator, but along with the increasing requirements of people on good life, the pure cooling water cannot meet the requirements of various tastes of the masses, a user cannot put a drink machine for a shop at home, if the user wants to obtain a drink with unique flavor, the user needs to buy various materials, then the user can arrange the drink by himself, take out ice cubes and put the ice cubes in the drink machine, drink the drink after the drink is cooled for a period of time, and the drink machine is complicated in process and cannot meet the drinking requirements of the user more conveniently and rapidly.

In the process of implementing the invention, the inventor finds that the reason for the problem of misrecognition is as follows:

There are some problems in setting up the water tank that can add water in the refrigerator, but the water tank needs cyclic utilization, needs to keep inside clean, needs to install before the drink preparation device and after the installation remain sealed all the time, and normally go out water and be difficult for appearing the problem after the installation is put in place, this puts forward some demands to the valve body of control water tank, and if these demands can not be satisfied very well, has hindered the realization of the device that can go out multiple drink on the refrigerator.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to solve the problems in the prior art, the invention aims to provide a drink preparation device and refrigeration equipment which are kept clean and convenient to use _.

To achieve the above object, an embodiment of the present invention provides a beverage preparation device including a housing, a water tank, and a water supply valve body for controlling water from the water tank, the water tank including a water outlet and a valve port, the water supply valve body including a valve block passing through the valve port, and a driving part for controlling movement of the valve block, the valve block having a closed state for closing the water outlet and a water outlet state for opening the water outlet, the water tank being detachably connected to the housing, the driving part being engaged with the valve block when the water tank is connected to the housing, the driving part being separated from the valve block when the water tank is detached from the housing.

As a further improvement of the invention, the driving part comprises an electromagnet, the valve block is provided with a ferromagnetic piece towards one end of the driving part, and the driving part is controlled to be separated from or engaged with the valve block by the electromagnet.

As a further improvement of the invention, the driving part comprises a driving motor, a nut and a screw rod, wherein the nut and the screw rod are connected to the driving motor, the end part of the screw rod is connected with the electromagnet, the driving motor drives the nut to rotate, and the nut controls the electromagnet to be close to or far from the valve block.

As a further improvement of the invention, a sealing ring is arranged at the valve port, and the valve block penetrates through the sealing ring to be in waterproof contact with the valve port.

As a further improvement of the invention, the water outlet is arranged at the bottom of the water tank, the valve block seals the water outlet from top to bottom, and the valve port is arranged at the side surface of the water tank.

As a further improvement of the invention, a limit part for limiting the moving path of the valve block is arranged in the water tank; the water tank further includes a holding portion that always has a tendency to hold the valve block in a closed state.

As a further improvement of the invention, the drink preparation device further comprises a bracket, a water receiving port and a stirring cavity, wherein the water receiving port is communicated with the stirring cavity, the water tank comprises a bottom foot, and when the bottom foot is placed on the bracket, the water outlet is in butt joint with the water receiving port.

As a further improvement of the present invention, the water tank includes a stepped portion, and the driving portion is disposed in the stepped portion when the water tank is connected to the housing.

To achieve one of the above objects, an embodiment of the present invention provides a refrigeration apparatus including the beverage preparation device described above.

As a further improvement of the invention, the refrigeration equipment comprises a door body and a refrigeration compartment, the shell is connected with the door body, and the water tank is arranged towards the refrigeration compartment.

Compared with the prior art, the invention has the following beneficial effects: the assembly mode of the water tank and the water supply valve body of the drink preparation device meets the requirement of normal use, when the drink preparation device is used, the driving part is connected with the valve block, the driving part controls the movement of the valve block, water can be discharged from the water outlet, when the water tank needs to be taken down, the driving part is separated from the valve block, the valve block and the water tank are taken down together, and the valve block and the water tank are integrated together, so that the drink preparation device is convenient to use.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a refrigeration apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an angle of the beverage preparation device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a beverage preparation device according to an embodiment of the present invention at another angle;

Fig. 4 is a schematic view of the drink preparation device according to an embodiment of the present invention with the housing removed;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the beverage preparation device of the present invention in one direction with the housing removed;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view in another direction of the drink preparation device of an embodiment of the present invention with the housing removed;

1000 parts of a refrigerator; 100. a beverage preparation device; 10. a housing; 11. a liquid outlet; 12. a liquid filling port; 20. a water tank; 21. a water outlet; 22. a valve port; 23. a step portion; 24. a limit part; 30. a beverage box; 32. a feed opening; 40. a flavoring mechanism; 41. a moving mechanism; 411. a gear; 412. a rack; 42. a feed inlet; 50. a stirring mechanism; 51. a stirring cavity; 52. a stirring section; 521. a stirring motor; 522. stirring the leaves; 53. an ultraviolet light disinfection mechanism; 60. a liquid outlet mechanism; 61. a liquid outlet nozzle; 70. a valve mechanism; 71. a water supply valve body; 711. a driving motor; 712. an electromagnet; 713. a ferromagnetic member; 714. a valve block; 72. a liquid supply valve body; 73. a liquid outlet valve body; 200. a case; 300. a door body.

Detailed Description

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to specific embodiments shown in the drawings. These embodiments are not intended to limit the invention and structural, methodological, or functional modifications of these embodiments that may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art are included within the scope of the invention.

It will be appreciated that terms such as "upper," "above," "lower," "below," and the like, as used herein, refer to spatially relative positions and are used for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element or feature as illustrated in the figures. The term spatially relative position may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures.

An embodiment of the invention provides refrigeration equipment, wherein a drink preparation device is arranged on a door body of the refrigeration equipment, and a user can directly prepare cold drink in a cooling state on the door body of the refrigeration equipment.

The refrigerating apparatus of the present embodiment may be a refrigerator 1000, a freezer, a vertical freezer, a wine cabinet, etc., and the following embodiments will be described by taking the refrigerator 1000 as an example. As shown in fig. 1, the refrigerator 1000 includes a case 200 and a door 300, a refrigerating compartment is provided in the case 200, the door 300 is used for closing the refrigerating compartment, the refrigerating apparatus further includes a beverage preparation device 100 provided in the door 300, and the beverage preparation device 100 includes a housing 10, a water tank 20, a plurality of beverage tanks 30, a liquid outlet mechanism 60, a stirring mechanism 50, and a valve mechanism 70.

In order to clearly express the position and direction described in the present embodiment, the definition of the direction of the reference gravity is defined as the upward direction, and the liquid flows downward without applying an external force. The door 300 is located in front of the case 200, and the opposite direction is defined as the back, and when the refrigerator 1000 is viewed in front of the refrigerator 1000, the horizontal sides are left and right, respectively.

The housing 10 of the present embodiment is integrated with the door 300, and the housing 10 includes a liquid inlet 12 facing the refrigeration compartment, as shown in fig. 3, and a liquid outlet 11 facing the outside, as shown in fig. 2, the refrigeration compartment facing the liquid inlet 12 being a refrigerating compartment of the refrigerator 1000. The liquid outlet 11 is located in front of the liquid loading port 12, and when the user is in front of the refrigerator 1000, the user can directly operate the liquid outlet 11, and after opening the door 300, the user can operate the liquid loading port 12.

The water tank 20, the plurality of beverage tanks 30, the liquid outlet mechanism 60, the stirring mechanism 50 and the valve mechanism 70 may be all disposed in the housing 10, and the door 300 may be provided with a structure for fixing the housing 10, and each part in the housing 10 is assembled first, and then the housing 10 is mounted on the door 300, and then the door 300 is foamed together, thereby completing the mounting of the beverage preparation apparatus 100 on the refrigerator 1000.

The water tank 20 and the plurality of drink boxes 30 are arranged at the liquid filling port 12; the liquid outlet mechanism 60 comprises a liquid outlet nozzle 61 arranged at the liquid outlet 11. In this embodiment, the water tank 20 and the plurality of beverage tanks 30 are installed in a replaceable manner, that is, the water tank 20 can be removed for adding water and then replaced by the refrigerator 1000, the beverage tank 30 can be added with beverage or replaced by a new beverage tank 30, and both the water tank 20 and the beverage tank 30 are installed on the door body 300 from the liquid filling port 12, and when the door body 300 is not opened, the user can directly obtain beverage from the liquid outlet 61. The water tanks 20 may be provided in one or more than one beverage tank 30, and the beverage tanks 30 may store concentrated liquid, such as concentrated juice, soda, wine, milk, tea, etc., and the refrigerator 1000 may have a function of preparing beverage, such as juice, milk tea, soda, etc., by selecting different liquids in different beverage tanks 30.

According to the customer's demand, a unique liquid meeting the customer's demand is prepared by mixing with or not mixing with the water in the tank 20, and the process is similar to that of cocktail. In addition, both the drink box 30 and the water tank 20 are exposed to the refrigerating compartment, and the drink box 30 and the water tank 20 can directly obtain the cold from the refrigerating compartment, so that the liquid flowing out from the liquid outlet 61 is directly cooled liquid.

The stirring mechanism 50 is arranged in the shell 10, the stirring mechanism 50 comprises a stirring cavity 51 and a stirring part 52, the stirring part 52 is used for stirring liquid in the stirring cavity 51, the stirring part 52 comprises stirring blades 522 extending into the stirring cavity 51, the stirring cavity 51 comprises a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet 11, the liquid inlet is communicated with the water tank 20 and the drink tank 30 through pipelines, and the liquid outlet 11 is communicated with the liquid outlet mechanism 60 through pipelines.

Since the multiple beverages are mixed and blended into the beverage with unique flavor in the present embodiment, the raw materials are generally thick, so that the liquid and water flowing out from the multiple beverage boxes 30 are added into the stirring cavity 51 to be mixed uniformly, and the beverage with more suitable texture is obtained.

The valve mechanism 70 comprises a water supply valve body 71 for controlling the water tank 20 to be communicated with the stirring cavity 51, a liquid supply valve body 72 for controlling the drink tank 30 to be communicated with the stirring cavity 51, and a liquid outlet valve body 73 for controlling the liquid outlet of the liquid outlet nozzle 61, wherein each valve body can be provided as an electromagnetic valve, the opening or closing of the valve is controlled by electrifying, and the liquid outflow amount is controlled by controlling the opening time of the valve.

Further, the water tank 20 is detachably connected to the housing 10, and the water tank 20 is disposed above the stirring mechanism 50 and the beverage tank 30.

The water pipe is connected to the bottom of water tank 20, and the water pipe is embedded in casing 10, and fixed with the buckle, and water level sensor can be installed to the inside of water tank 20, and when the water yield was not enough, refrigerator 1000 was reminded the user to add water, and water tank 20 can dismantle and take out, the user of being convenient for adds water. The water tank 20 of the present embodiment is located at the uppermost portion of the refrigerating chamber door 300, and on one hand, it is convenient for cleaning the components below the water tank 20, and on the other hand, it reduces the occupation of the user's tentacle accessible area.

As shown in fig. 4 to 6, the water tank 20 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape, a stepped portion 23 is provided at the bottom, a motor is installed in the stepped portion 23 and connected to a valve, a water outlet 21 is provided at the bottom of the water tank 20, a valve port 22 is provided on the side surface, the water supply valve body 71 includes a valve block 714 penetrating the valve port 22 and a driving portion for controlling the movement of the valve block 714, the valve block 714 seals the water outlet 21 from top to bottom, the valve block 714 has a closed state for closing the water outlet 21 and a water outlet state for opening the water outlet 21, the water tank 20 is detachably connected to the housing 10, the driving portion is engaged with the valve block 714 when the water tank 20 is connected to the housing 10, and the driving portion is separated from the valve block 714 when the water tank 20 is detached from the housing 10.

A limit part 24 for limiting the moving path of the valve block 714 is arranged in the water tank 20; the limiting portion 24 limits on the one hand that the valve block 714 can move only linearly along a fixed path, and the limiting portion 24 can also define the nearest and farthest positions of the valve block 714.

The water tank 20 further includes a water filling port provided above the water tank 20, and a holding portion having a tendency to hold the valve block 714 in a closed state at all times. That is, after the water tank 20 is removed, the holding portion always drives the valve block 714 to seal the water outlet 21, so that water is not leaked from the water outlet 21 below after water is injected from the water injection port above, until the water tank 20 is mounted back to the housing 10, the driving portion is engaged with the valve block 714 again, and only the driving portion can control the valve block 714 to open the water outlet 21.

The holding part may be provided as an elastic member which always pushes the valve block 714 to move in a direction to close the water outlet 21, and the driving part should overcome the elastic force of the elastic member when pulling the valve block 714.

In this embodiment, the driving part includes an electromagnet 712, and the valve block 714 is provided with a ferromagnetic member 713 toward one end of the driving part, and the driving part controls the separation or engagement with the valve block 714 by the electromagnet 712. The ferromagnetic member 713 may be iron or a magnetic material. The electromagnet 712 may attract the ferromagnetic member 713 when energized, separate from the ferromagnetic member 713 when de-energized, or repel the magnetic ferromagnetic member 713 when de-energized, as desired.

In other embodiments, engagement or disengagement of the drive portion with the valve block 714 may take a configuration similar to mortise and tenon, such as disengagement when the drive portion is rotated to a position and engagement when again contacted and rotated to a position.

The driving part comprises a driving motor 711, a nut and a screw rod, wherein the nut and the screw rod are connected to the driving motor 711, the end part of the screw rod is connected with an electromagnet 712, the driving motor 711 drives the nut to rotate, and the nut controls the electromagnet 712 to be close to or far from the valve block 714.

The driving motor 711 may be a screw motor, and is meshed with a nut by using a screw rod, and a fixing method is adopted to prevent the screw rod and the nut from rotating relatively, so that the screw rod moves axially. The other end of the screw is provided with an electromagnet 712. When the driving motor 711 is electrified, the nut can be controlled to rotate forward or backward, the screw rod is driven to move forward or backward, when water is taken, the screw rod moves backward, the electromagnet 712 is electrified at the same time, the iron block is sucked to drive the valve to move backward and open the water taking, after the water taking is finished, the screw rod moves forward, the electromagnet 712 is powered off, the iron block is loosened, the screw rod pushes the electromagnet 712 to push the iron block and the valve to close, and the water taking is stopped. When the water tank 20 is taken down, the electromagnet 712 is powered off, the combination of the electromagnet 712 and the iron block is loosened, and the water tank 20 is lifted upwards to be taken down.

The valve port 22 is provided with a sealing ring, and the valve block 714 penetrates through the sealing ring to be in waterproof contact with the valve port 22. The sealing ring provides a seal and keeps the surface of the valve block 714 clean.

The beverage box 30 of this embodiment is detachably connected to the housing 10, taking fig. 4 as an example, the beverage boxes 30 are 3, the beverage boxes 30 are set to be replaced, beverage raw materials are filled in the beverage boxes 30, the empty beverage boxes 30 can be directly taken down after the beverage raw materials are used up, and new beverage boxes 30 can be replaced, or users can also replace when wanting to replace other tastes. The support is arranged below the drink box 30, when the drink box is replaced, the drink box 30 is directly and reversely buckled on the support, a pipe on a feed opening 32 on the support can directly puncture the box cover, and then whether liquid flows out or not is controlled through the liquid feeding valve body 72. The beverage box 30 adopts a replaceable structure, and the trouble of cleaning can be saved.

In addition, set up weight sensor on the support, weight sensor records the weight of empty drink case 30, when drink case 30 weight descends to empty box weight, reminds the user to need change drink case 30.

The water tank 20, the beverage tank 30, the stirring cavity 51 and the liquid outlet nozzle 61 are sequentially arranged from top to bottom, and water in the water tank 20 can flow downwards until flowing to the position of the liquid feeding valve body 72, so that the water cannot enter the beverage tank 30, but a pipeline for liquid outlet under the beverage tank 30 can be cleaned.

Further, as shown in fig. 4 to 6, each beverage container 30 is connected to the feed opening 32, the beverage preparation device 100 further comprises a seasoning mechanism 40 for selecting beverage containers 30, the seasoning mechanism 40 comprises a moving mechanism 41, and a feed opening 42 connected to the moving mechanism 41, and the moving mechanism 41 is used for driving the feed opening 42 to move between the feed openings 32 of the beverage containers 30.

When a user selects drinks with different proportions, the moving mechanism 41 drives the feed inlet 42 to move to the lower part of the corresponding feed outlet 32 of the corresponding drink box 30, then the liquid feeding valve body 72 corresponding to the drink box 30 is opened, and outflow liquid enters the stirring cavity 51 through the feed inlet 42. The flow of liquid can be realized by gravity, and a water pump can be arranged to pump water.

In this embodiment, the beverage boxes 30 are sequentially arranged in a linear direction, and the moving mechanism 41 drives the feed inlet 42 to move in a linear manner; the dispensing valve body 72 includes a valve body that controls whether the discharge opening 32 of each beverage tank 30 discharges liquid, respectively.

The moving mechanism 41 comprises a rack 412, a moving motor and a gear 411, the output end of the moving motor is connected with the gear 411, the gear 411 is meshed with the rack 412, the gear 411 is connected with the feed inlet 42 through a bearing, and the feed inlet 42 moves along the linear guide rail.

The gear 411 drives the moving motor to move on the rack 412 together, and in the process of rolling in the left-right direction, the gear 411 drives the feed inlet 42 to move left-right,

Further, the inlet 42 is provided as a funnel, the opening of the funnel faces the discharge opening 32, and the outlet of the funnel is communicated with the stirring cavity 51. The shape of the funnel can avoid splashing of liquid, and is convenient for converging and flowing out the liquid.

The outlet of the funnel communicates with both the stir chamber 51 and the tank 20. That is, the water flowing out of the water tank 20 can reach the position of the funnel, and the funnel can be cleaned while flowing down by controlling the flow rate of the water.

Further, the stirring chamber 51 is provided in a truncated cone shape or a conical shape, and the diameter of the upper portion of the stirring chamber 51 is larger than the diameter of the lower portion. The inverted truncated cone shape or cone shape can prevent the raw materials from hanging on the side wall of the stirring cavity 51, and facilitate the flowing down of the liquid.

The stirring section 52 includes a stirring motor 521 provided above the stirring chamber 51, and an output shaft of the stirring motor 521 is connected to a stirring blade 522. The stirring motor 521 drives the stirring blade 522 to rotate, and drives the liquid in the stirring cavity 51 to rotate, so that the liquid is uniformly mixed. In addition, after the beverage is prepared, water can be injected into the stirring cavity 51, then the stirring blade 522 is started to rotate, the stirring cavity 51 is cleaned, and then the waste water is discharged, so that the cleaning effect is achieved. In addition, the waste water from the washing can be discharged through the liquid outlet mechanism 60.

Further, an ultraviolet disinfection mechanism 53 is arranged in the stirring cavity 51, and the ultraviolet disinfection mechanism 53 comprises a lamp bead with a luminous direction facing the stirring cavity 51 and a lamp shade which is sealed on the surface of the lamp bead in a waterproof manner; the lamp beads are disposed on the top of the stirring chamber 51.

The stirring chamber 51 top can both sides set up the ultraviolet lamp pearl about for the beverage is from finishing the back disinfection of disinfecting, and the beverage takes out the back, and the lamp pearl opens a period for to the stirring chamber 51 disinfection, stirring chamber 51 material adopts food-grade stainless steel, and is stainless, has strengthened the reflection to the ultraviolet ray simultaneously, improves sterilization efficiency, and the lamp shade can protect with quartz material, neither influences ultraviolet luminousness, can waterproof again.

The whole device has the following process flow:

S1, firstly, taking a refrigerator 1000 with a display screen as an example, a user operates on the display screen, for example, after the user selects a beverage A, the system judges the ratio of the beverage A, and raw materials a10ml, b20ml, c30ml and water 50ml are needed;

S2, the moving mechanism 41 controls the feed inlet 42 to move below the three-bottle beverage boxes 30 of a, b and c respectively, controls the opening and closing of the liquid supply valve body 72, takes out a corresponding amount of concentrated raw material, and controls the water supply valve body 71 to work and take out a corresponding amount of water;

S3, stirring the raw materials uniformly by stirring blades 522 in the stirring cavity 51;

s4, after the stirring fan blade stops working, the liquid outlet valve body 73 is opened to flow out the beverage, so that a user is reminded to take out the beverage;

S5, closing a liquid outlet valve body 73, opening a water supply valve body 71, and flushing a water flow pipeline in the water tank 20 and the stirring cavity 51;

S6, rotating the stirring blade 522 to clean the stirring cavity 51, and reminding a user to put the waste water box below the liquid outlet 61 to discharge the waste water through the liquid outlet 61;

and S7, after the wastewater is discharged, the ultraviolet disinfection mechanism 53 is started, the operation is performed for a period of time for disinfection, and after the operation is finished, the ultraviolet lamp is closed.

Compared with the common technology, the embodiment has the following beneficial effects:

The assembly mode of the water tank and the water supply valve body of the drink preparation device meets the requirement of normal use, when the drink preparation device is used, the driving part is connected with the valve block, the driving part controls the movement of the valve block, water can be discharged from the water outlet, when the water tank needs to be taken down, the driving part is separated from the valve block, the valve block and the water tank are taken down together, and the valve block and the water tank are integrated together, so that the drink preparation device is convenient to use.

It should be understood that although the present disclosure describes embodiments, not every embodiment is provided with a separate embodiment, and that this description is for clarity only, and that the skilled artisan should recognize that the embodiments may be combined as appropriate to form other embodiments that will be understood by those skilled in the art.

The above list of detailed descriptions is only specific to practical embodiments of the present invention, and they are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and all equivalent embodiments or modifications that do not depart from the spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. The utility model provides a drink preparation device, its characterized in that includes casing, water tank and is used for controlling the water tank goes out the water valve body, the water tank includes delivery port and valve port, the water valve body includes the valve piece that passes the valve port, and control the drive division of valve piece motion, the valve piece has the closure state of closure the delivery port, and opens the play water state of delivery port, the water tank can dismantle connect in the casing, when the water tank is connected in the casing, drive division with the valve piece joint, when the water tank is dismantled from on the casing, drive division with the valve piece separation.

2. The beverage preparation device according to claim 1, wherein the drive part comprises an electromagnet, the valve block being provided with a ferromagnetic piece towards one end of the drive part, the drive part being controlled by the electromagnet to be separated from or engaged with the valve block.

3. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, wherein the drive portion comprises a drive motor, a nut coupled to the drive motor, and a screw having an end coupled to the electromagnet, the drive motor driving the nut in rotation, the nut controlling the electromagnet to move closer to or farther from the valve block.

4. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, wherein a sealing ring is provided at the valve port, and the valve block passes through the sealing ring to be in waterproof contact with the valve port.

5. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, wherein the water outlet is provided in a bottom of the water tank, the valve block seals the water outlet from top to bottom, and the valve port is provided in a side of the water tank.

6. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, wherein a limit for defining the valve block travel path is provided within the water tank;

The water tank further comprises a water filling port and a retaining portion, wherein the water filling port is arranged above the water tank, and the retaining portion always has a tendency of retaining the valve block in a closed state.

7. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, further comprising a bracket, a water receiving port and a stirring chamber, wherein the water receiving port is in communication with the stirring chamber, wherein the water tank comprises a foot, and wherein the water outlet is in abutting engagement with the water receiving port when the foot is placed on the bracket.

8. The beverage preparation device of claim 1, wherein the water tank comprises a stepped portion, the drive portion being disposed within the stepped portion when the water tank is connected to the housing.

9. A refrigeration device, characterized in that it comprises a beverage preparation apparatus according to claims 1 to 9.

10. The refrigeration unit as recited in claim 9 wherein said refrigeration unit includes a door and a refrigeration compartment, said housing being connected to said door, said water tank being disposed toward said refrigeration compartment.