CN216854443U - Flow control mechanism and beverage machine - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a flow control mechanism for a beverage preparation device, comprising: a support; the joint is connected to one side of the support and comprises a liquid inlet channel and a liquid outlet channel, an adjusting hole is formed between the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel, and the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel are communicated through the adjusting hole; actuating mechanism, including the motor and by the regulating spindle that the motor drove, the motor connect in the opposite side of support, the motor drives the regulating spindle and inserts the regulation hole is in order to adjust the aperture of regulation hole between inlet channel and liquid outlet channel. Drive the regulating spindle through the motor and insert the regulating orifice is in order to adjust the aperture of regulating orifice between inlet channel and liquid outlet channel, the control of feed liquor volume is more accurate, has guaranteed the temperature and the effect of drink, has satisfied user's demand.

Description

Flow control mechanism and beverage machine

Technical Field

The utility model relates to the technical field of beverage preparation, in particular to a flow control mechanism and a beverage machine.

Background

In recent years, with the improvement of living standard and the adjustment of eating habits, the number of people drinking tea and coffee is increasing, and the market demand of the beverage preparation machine is increasing, when a user uses the beverage preparation machine, only tea leaves, coffee beans or bean powder packets need to be put into the beverage preparation machine, and the machine automatically completes the brewing process, so that the beverage is more convenient to prepare, and fresh beverages can be provided for the user.

In order to prepare beverages of different flavors, the beverage preparation machine can also prepare drinks such as milk, milk coffee, milk tea, milk foam, etc., for example, a milk foam machine can be provided on the beverage preparation machine. The milk foam device is used for fully mixing three substances of air, steam and milk in a mixing cavity according to a certain proportion through respective pipelines to form milk foam, and the milk foam is mixed with coffee to generate milk coffee for a user. The existing full-automatic coffee machine on the market at present can be used for making Italian concentrated coffee and milk coffee (latte, macchiato, etc.), and basically comprises an emulsifying device for making milk coffee, wherein the emulsifying device is generally provided with a Venturi device, and the Venturi device is used for mixing sucked milk and steam, so that hot milk or milk foam can be obtained.

Because the restriction of venturi device, different milk is behind getting into the venturi device, and the temperature of final milk/milk foam can't be guaranteed, in order to guarantee the quality of finished product milk coffee, can only control into the milk volume, but uses the mode of extrudeing the milk pipe for a long time to control the back, milk pipe probably does not kick-back, and the mode precision of extruding the milk pipe is not high moreover, uses for a long time, inhales the milk pipe and is broken by the pressure easily.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The utility model aims to provide a flow control mechanism which is reliable in structure and can accurately control flow.

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a flow control mechanism connected between a liquid supply container and a target producing device, comprising:

a support;

the joint is connected to one side of the support and comprises a liquid inlet channel and a liquid outlet channel, an adjusting hole is formed between the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel, and the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel are communicated through the adjusting hole;

actuating mechanism, including the motor and by the regulating spindle that the motor drove, the motor connect in the opposite side of support, the motor drives the regulating spindle and inserts the regulation hole is in order to adjust the aperture of regulation hole between inlet channel and liquid outlet channel.

As a further improvement of one embodiment of the present invention, the liquid inlet channel is provided with a temperature sensor, and the motor controls the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole according to a signal fed back by the temperature sensor.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the liquid inlet channel includes an inlet connection end connected to the adjusting hole, and the liquid outlet channel includes an outlet connection end connected to the adjusting hole, and a horizontal position of the inlet connection end is higher than a horizontal position of the outlet connection end.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the liquid inlet channel includes an inlet end disposed opposite to the inlet connection end, and a horizontal position of the inlet end is higher than a horizontal position of the inlet connection end.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the liquid inlet passage and the liquid outlet passage are located at the same level, and an end portion of the regulating shaft is configured to be cylindrical and has a diameter equal to that of the regulating hole.

As a further improvement to an embodiment of the present invention, the joint is operable to rotate between a locked position in which the joint is restricted from being separated from the holder and a released position; in the release position, the joint is allowed to disengage from the support.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, a clamping groove is formed on the support, the clamping groove includes a first clamping portion and a second clamping portion, a clamping hook is provided on the joint, the clamping hook cooperates with the first clamping portion to allow the joint to be separated from the support, and the clamping hook cooperates with the second clamping portion to limit the joint to be separated from the support.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, a positioning element is disposed on the support, a first groove and a second groove are disposed adjacent to each other on the joint, the joint is in a release position, and the positioning element is located in the first groove; when the connector is in a locking position, the positioning piece is positioned in the second groove.

As a further improvement of the embodiment of the present invention, along the rotation direction of the joint, the length of the first groove is greater than the length of the second groove, and the length of the first engaging portion is greater than the length of the second engaging portion.

The utility model also aims to provide a beverage machine which is reliable in structure and can accurately control the flow.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention further provides a beverage machine, which includes a milk supply container and a milk frother, wherein the flow control mechanism is disposed between the milk supply container and the milk frother.

As a further improvement of an embodiment of the present invention, the present invention further includes a controller, the motor and the temperature sensor are both connected to the controller, the motor is configured as a stepping motor, and the controller controls the number of steps of the stepping motor based on a signal fed back from the temperature sensor.

Compared with the prior art, the utility model has the beneficial effects that: drive the regulating spindle through the motor and insert the regulating spindle is in order to adjust the aperture of regulating spindle between inlet channel and liquid outlet channel to control liquid outlet channel's feed liquor volume, when making milk coffee, can carry out effectual control to advancing milk volume, thereby it is more accurate to advance milk volume, has guaranteed the temperature and the effect of finished product milk coffee, has satisfied the user demand and has protected the milk pipe.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a flow control mechanism according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the flow control mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional schematic view of the flow control mechanism of FIG. 1 taken along line A-A with the flow control mechanism in an initial position;

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of a fitting of the flow control mechanism of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3 with the flow control mechanism in the operating position;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 3 with the flow control mechanism in a final position;

FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a flow control mechanism in another embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a flow control mechanism in yet another embodiment of the present invention.

Wherein the reference numerals are as follows:

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 present invention, and structural, methodological, or functional changes made by those skilled in the art according to these embodiments are included in the scope of the present invention.

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

The flow rate control mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described by taking a flow rate control mechanism used in a coffee maker as an example. Referring to fig. 1 to 3, in the present embodiment, the flow control mechanism 10 is connected between a liquid supply container, such as a milk container, and an object maker, such as a milk frother, to which milk is supplied through the flow control mechanism 10 to make hot milk or milk frother. Of course, the liquid supply container may also be a water container and the target maker may be a brewer to which water is supplied through the flow control mechanism 10 to make a brewed beverage.

The flow control mechanism 10 includes a support 30, a connector 20 mounted on the support 30, and a driving mechanism. The joint 20 is connected to one side of the support 30, and the driving mechanism is connected to the other side of the support 30. The joint 20 comprises a liquid inlet channel 21 and a liquid outlet channel 22, an adjusting hole 23 is arranged between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22, and the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 are communicated through the adjusting hole 23. The driving mechanism comprises a motor 40 and an adjusting shaft 41 driven by the motor 40, the motor 40 can be connected to the support 30 through a fixing member such as a screw, and the motor 40 drives the adjusting shaft 41 to be inserted into the adjusting hole 23 so as to adjust the opening degree of the adjusting hole 23 between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22.

Through the volume of intaking of control liquid outlet channel 22 based on the feedback of milk temperature, when making milk coffee, can carry out effectual control to the volume of intaking to it is more accurate to advance the volume of suckleing, has guaranteed the temperature and the effect of finished product milk coffee, has satisfied the user's demand and has protected the milk pipe.

In this embodiment, the liquid inlet channel 21 is provided with a temperature sensor 50, and the motor 40 controls the depth of the adjusting shaft 41 inserted into the adjusting hole 23 according to a signal fed back by the temperature sensor 50, so as to adjust the opening degree of the adjusting hole 23 between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22. Set up temperature sensor 50 in inlet channel 21, the temperature detects more accurately to can further guarantee the effect of preparation milk coffee. Of course, the temperature sensor may be disposed at other positions, such as on the milk container, a pipeline from the milk container to the liquid inlet channel, or be combined into the control program based on the temperature of the milk in common use, and the user executes the corresponding program to control the operation of the motor when selecting the drink.

Referring to fig. 3, the liquid inlet channel 21 includes an inlet connection end 211 connected to the adjusting hole 23, the liquid outlet channel 22 includes an outlet connection end 221 connected to the adjusting hole 23, and the horizontal position of the inlet connection end 211 is higher than that of the outlet connection end 221. Because the liquid inlet channel 21 is connected with the milk container, the liquid outlet channel 22 is connected with the venturi device serving as a milk foam device, when the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 connected with the venturi device are higher and lower, preferably, two channels are perpendicular to the vertical direction at 90 degrees, namely, the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 are arranged in parallel, a height drop is formed between the milk inlet direction and the milk outlet direction, the milk can only be discharged along the vertical drop direction due to the gravity of the milk, the adjusting shaft 41 just aligns to the vertical drop direction, the up-and-down movement of the adjusting shaft 41 is controlled by the motor 40 at the moment, and the milk inlet amount is controlled most accurately.

In this embodiment, the adjusting shaft 41 includes an end portion 411 and a rod portion 412, the end portion 411 is configured as a conical body with a maximum diameter smaller than that of the rod portion 412, and the conical body is matched with the adjusting hole 23 to change the size of a gap communicated between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22, so as to change the flow rate from the liquid inlet channel 21 to the liquid outlet channel 22. The rod part 412 is sleeved with the sealing ring 43 and the pressing sleeve 45, the support 30 is provided with a through hole 31 for the adjusting shaft 41 to pass through, the joint is provided with an installation cavity 25 communicated with the adjusting hole 23, the adjusting shaft 41 passes through the through hole 31 and extends into the installation cavity 25, a first step part 251 and a second step part 252 are arranged in the installation cavity 25 from top to bottom, the inner diameters of the first step part 251 and the second step part 252 are sequentially increased, the sealing ring 43 is fixed on the first step part 251, and the pressing sleeve 45 is fixed on the second step part 252. Thus, the sealing between the adjusting hole 23 and the adjusting shaft 41 can be reliably realized, and the work of the flow control mechanism is ensured to be more reliable.

Further, referring to FIG. 4, the adapter 20 of the present embodiment is operable to rotate between a locked position, in which the adapter 20 is restrained from disengagement with the support 30, and a released position; in the release position, the adapter 20 is allowed to be separated from the holder 30. Thus, the quick disassembly of the joint without tools can be realized, thereby facilitating the regular cleaning of the joint 20 to avoid bacterial growth. Specifically, a clamping groove 33 is formed in the support 30, the clamping groove 33 includes a first clamping portion 331 and a second clamping portion 332, a clamping hook 27 is disposed on the connector 20, the clamping hook 27 is matched with the first clamping portion 331 to allow the connector 20 to be separated from the support 30, and the clamping hook 27 is matched with the second clamping portion 332 to limit the separation of the connector 20 from the support 30. The joint 20 can be detached from the support 30 by rotating the joint 20, and the operation is very convenient.

In addition, a positioning member 35 is arranged on the support 30, a first groove 291 and a second groove 292 which are adjacent to each other are arranged on the joint 20, the joint 20 is in the release position, and the positioning member 35 is located in the first groove 291; with the connector 20 in the locked position, the positioning member 35 is located in the second recess 292. That is, the positioning member 35 cooperates with one of the first and second grooves 291 and 292 to achieve positioning of the joint 20 relative to the holder 30 in the circumferential direction. The mounting hole 351 is formed on the support 30, the positioning member 35 can be partially accommodated in the mounting hole 351 and elastically pressed, and when the joint 20 rotates to make the positioning member 35 match with the first groove 291 or the second groove 292, a sound can be generated to prompt a user, so that the user experience is better. In the present embodiment, it is preferable that the length of the first groove 291 is greater than that of the second groove 292, where the length may be a distance from one end of the groove to the other end along the rotation direction of the connector 20, and correspondingly, the length of the first engaging portion 331 is also greater than that of the second engaging portion 332, and the second groove 292 is configured as a hemispherical concave portion, so that the locking position of the connector 20 is more certain and the user operation is more reliable.

The operation state and the corresponding position of the adjustment shaft 41 will be described below by taking fig. 3 as an example. The position in fig. 3 is the flow control mechanism 10 in the initial position, the end 411 of the adjustment shaft 41 not yet entering the adjustment aperture 23, and no flow restriction is effected for the milk flowing through the milk passage. The position in fig. 5 is such that the flow control mechanism 10 is in the working position for adjusting the milk volume, the adjusting shaft 41 gradually enters the adjusting hole 23, the milk can only flow out from the radial gap between the adjusting shaft and the adjusting hole, and the milk volume flowing through the milk channel is correspondingly reduced as the end 411 of the adjusting shaft 41 enters the adjusting hole 23 to an increasing extent. The position in fig. 6 is the final position of the flow control mechanism 10 for adjusting the milk amount, in which the adjusting hole 23 is completely blocked by the end of the adjusting shaft 41, the outlet passage 22 is blocked, and the milk amount is 0.

In the following embodiments, the components with the same reference numerals have similar structures and functions, and are not described in detail below.

Referring to fig. 7, in another embodiment, the liquid inlet passage 21a is disposed to be inclined, the liquid inlet passage 21a includes an inlet end 212a disposed opposite to the inlet connection end 211a, and the inlet end 212a has a horizontal position higher than that of the inlet connection end 211a based on that the inlet connection end 211a has a horizontal position higher than that of the outlet connection end 221, so that the milk inlet and outlet directions have a drop height and are also directed toward the milk outlet direction. When the height difference exists between the milk inlet direction and the milk outlet direction, and the inclined arrangement is equivalent to that a guide pipe is arranged for the flow direction of the milk, so that the milk can only flow out in the same direction, and the motor 40 can more accurately control the milk inlet amount.

Referring to fig. 8, in another embodiment, when the inlet channel 21b is parallel to and at the same height as the outlet channel 22 connected to the venturi device, or the inlet channel 21b is at the same horizontal height and at an angle with the outlet channel 22, the milk intake amount can be adjusted by the adjusting shaft 41 b. At this time, since the milk may have a circulation phenomenon during the flowing process (i.e. there are a plurality of flowing directions relative to the adjusting shaft 41 b), the milk intake amount can be controlled by controlling the adjusting shaft 41 b. Wherein the end 411b of the adjusting shaft 41b may be provided in a cylindrical shape and have a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the adjusting hole 23, and the end 411b is axially moved across the liquid inlet passage or the liquid outlet passage to disconnect the liquid inlet passage from the liquid outlet passage, wherein the crossing includes reaching and exceeding the highest point of the liquid inlet passage or the liquid outlet passage. Therefore, the inlet connection end 211b of the inlet channel 21b and the outlet connection end 221 of the outlet channel 22 are opposite at the same height, and the movement of the adjusting shaft 41b can change the size of the gap communicated between the inlet channel 21b and the outlet channel 22 through the end 411b, so as to change the flow rate from the inlet channel 21b to the outlet channel 22.

Of course, the flow control mechanism 10 described above is not limited to use in a coffee maker, but may be used in other beverage brewing machines, such as a tea maker or other device for brewing a beverage.

The utility model also relates to a beverage machine comprising a milk supply container and a milk frother, between which a flow control mechanism 10 as in the above described embodiment is arranged.

Wherein, the beverage machine still includes the controller, and motor and temperature sensor all connect in the controller, and the motor constructs for step motor, and the controller is based on the step number of the signal control step motor of temperature sensor feedback. Specifically, when the temperature of the milk detected by the temperature sensor is low (generally about 4-6 ℃), the controller controls the step number of the motor to increase or work in high step number, the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole is increased, and the section of the communication between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 is reduced, so that the amount of the passing milk is reduced; when the temperature of the milk detected by the temperature sensor is normal temperature (generally about 20 ℃), the controller controls the step number of the motor to be reduced or work in low step number, the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole is reduced, and the section communicated between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 is increased, so that the passing milk quantity is increased, namely, the higher the temperature of the milk entering the liquid inlet channel 21 is, the smaller the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole is, the lower the temperature of the milk entering the liquid inlet channel 21 is, the greater the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole is, the smaller the section communicated between the liquid inlet channel 21 and the liquid outlet channel 22 is, so that the temperature of the final outlet milk is guaranteed, and the temperature and the taste which a cup of normal milk should have can be achieved.

The operation of the beverage machine may be regulated by a controller that is operatively communicatively connected to a user panel or various other components. The user panel provides options for the user to manipulate the preparation of the beverage, for example, between making different flavors of coffee, or other various options. The controller is capable of operating the various components of the beverage preparation device in response to user manipulation of the user panel or one or more sensor signals. The controller may comprise a memory and one or more microprocessors, CPUs, etc., such as a general or special purpose microprocessor operable to execute programmed instructions or microcontrol code associated with the operation of the beverage preparation device. The memory may represent random access memory, such as DRAM, or read only memory, such as ROM or FLASH. In one embodiment, the processor executes programming instructions stored in the memory. The memory may be a separate component from the processor or may be on board the processor. Alternatively, the controller may be configured to perform control functions without the use of a microprocessor (e.g., using a combination of discrete analog or digital logic circuits; such as switches, amplifiers, integrators, comparators, flip-flops, gates, etc.) instead of relying on software.

In the above embodiment, through the feedback based on milk temperature and the volume of milk that goes out of control liquid outlet channel, when making milk coffee, can carry out effectual control to advancing milk volume to it is more accurate to advance milk volume, has guaranteed the temperature and the effect of finished product milk coffee, has satisfied the user's demand and has protected the milk pipe. And the joint is convenient to disassemble and assemble, so that the milk conveying pipeline is convenient to clean at regular time, and the output beverage is more sanitary.

It should be understood that although the present description refers to embodiments, not every embodiment contains only a single technical solution, and such description is for clarity only, and those skilled in the art should make the description as a whole, and the technical solutions in the embodiments can also be combined appropriately to form other embodiments understood by those skilled in the art.

The above-listed detailed description is only a specific description of a possible embodiment of the present invention, and they are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, and equivalent embodiments or modifications made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention should be included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A flow control mechanism for connection between a liquid supply vessel and an object maker, comprising:

a support;

the joint is connected to one side of the support and comprises a liquid inlet channel and a liquid outlet channel, an adjusting hole is formed between the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel, and the liquid inlet channel and the liquid outlet channel are communicated through the adjusting hole;

actuating mechanism, including motor and the regulating spindle that is driven by the motor, the motor connect in the opposite side of support, the motor drives the regulating spindle and inserts the regulating hole is in order to adjust the aperture of regulating hole between inlet channel and play liquid passageway.

2. The flow control mechanism of claim 1, wherein the liquid inlet channel is provided with a temperature sensor, and the motor controls the depth of the adjusting shaft inserted into the adjusting hole according to a signal fed back by the temperature sensor.

3. The flow control mechanism of claim 1, wherein the inlet channel comprises an inlet connecting end connected with the adjusting hole, the outlet channel comprises an outlet connecting end connected with the adjusting hole, and the horizontal position of the inlet connecting end is higher than that of the outlet connecting end.

4. The flow control mechanism of claim 3, wherein the inlet channel comprises an inlet end disposed opposite the inlet connection end, the inlet end having a horizontal position that is higher than a horizontal position of the inlet connection end.

5. The flow control mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the liquid inlet passage and the liquid outlet passage are located at the same level, and the end of the regulating shaft is configured in a cylindrical shape and has a diameter equal to that of the regulating hole.

6. The flow control mechanism of claim 1, wherein the adapter is operable to rotate between a locked position in which the adapter is restrained from disengagement from the seat and a released position; in the release position, the joint is allowed to separate from the support.

7. The flow control mechanism according to claim 6, wherein the support has a slot formed thereon, the slot includes a first engaging portion and a second engaging portion, the connector has a hook thereon, the hook cooperates with the first engaging portion to allow the connector to be separated from the support, and the hook cooperates with the second engaging portion to restrict the connector from being separated from the support.

8. The flow control mechanism of claim 7, wherein the support is provided with a positioning member, the adapter is provided with a first groove and a second groove which are adjacent to each other, the adapter is in the release position, and the positioning member is located in the first groove; the connector is in latched position, and the setting element is located the second recess, along the direction of rotation that connects, the length of first recess is greater than the length of second recess, the length of first joint portion is greater than the length of second joint portion.

9. A beverage machine comprising a milk supply container and a milk frother, characterized in that a flow control mechanism according to one of claims 1 to 8 is arranged between the milk supply container and the milk frother.

10. The beverage maker of claim 9, further comprising a controller, wherein the motor and the temperature sensor are both connected to the controller, the motor is configured as a stepper motor, and the controller controls the number of steps of the stepper motor based on a signal fed back by the temperature sensor.

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