Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47J—KITCHEN EQUIPMENT; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; APPARATUS FOR MAKING BEVERAGES
  • A47J31/00—Apparatus for making beverages
  • A47J31/40—Beverage-making apparatus with dispensing means for adding a measured quantity of ingredients, e.g. coffee, water, sugar, cocoa, milk, tea
  • A47J31/401—Beverage-making apparatus with dispensing means for adding a measured quantity of ingredients, e.g. coffee, water, sugar, cocoa, milk, tea whereby the powder ingredients and the water are delivered to a mixing bowl

Definitions

• vapour is a drawback since moisture may settle in particular around the means for discharging the coffee powder so that these means will be clogged.
• US patent specification discloses a method for venting the mixing chamber so that the moist air is sucked out through the bottom of the mixing chamber and does not get near the moisture- sensitive parts of the apparatus.
• the invention is thus based partly on the finding that venting can be made so effective that the necessary large water surface in connection with the process does not involve any drawbacks, but solely the advantage known per se from the Norwegian patent specification, and partly that the dispensing technique disclosed by the Norwegian patent specification cannot be made to operate in practice when small powder portions are to be dissolved individually. More particularly, it is not possible in the prior art to spread a small portion of powder both rapidly and uniformly because normally spreading has a non-reproducible initial course.
• the invention also relates to an apparatus for perform ⁇ ing the process and of the type stated in the intro ⁇ ductory portion of claim 4.
• the apparatus is characterized by the features defined i n the characterizing portion of claim 4, which combined bring about the surprising effect explained in the fore ⁇ going.
• the mixing chamber is in the form of a flat-bottomed vessel, which will be described later, but may also be shaped as a trough so that the bottom of the mixing chamber is cylindrical or spherical.
• the configuration of the mixing chamber bottom is in prin ⁇ ciple limited only by the possibilities of feeding liquid such that a relatively thin liquid layer is provided for a moment covering the bottom of the mixing chamber, and is limited by the possibility of spreading the powder evenly over the liquid surface by means of the distributing effect of the air flow on the powder.
• one or more cavities may be present in a single cylinder, and that even two or more cylinders may be used at the same time when the area of the mixing bowl bottom is increased correspondingly and when the inlet openings for the ' air flow through the mixing chamber are widened to ensure the uniform, instantaneous distribution of the powder.
• figs. 4 and 5 are corresponding sections to facilitate the understanding of the mode of operation of ' the apparatus.
• the coffee vending machine comprises a cabinet 1 having on the exterior a coin insert 2 and an opening 3 for a mug 4 to receive hot coffee from the machine.
• a door allowing the mixing chamber of the machine to be withdrawn from the machine; this mixing chamber will be described later.
• Pig. 1 moreover shows the fundamentally important components inside the cabinet 1. These components com ⁇ prise a water container 6 and a container 7 for coffee powder. The water and the coffee powder are mixed in an assembly 8 which can be withdrawn from the door 5 and which rearwardly communicates with an exhaust manifold 9 connected with a fan 11 through a hose 10. The purpose of the fan is to draw water vapour out of the assembly 8, air being drawn in through the grid 12 shown in- fig. 1. This air is utilized according to the invention to affect the spreading of powder from a powder magazine and is drawn through the assembly 8, where the air is mixed with water vapour, and then the mixture is blown out through a hose 13. Finally, at 14 there is indicated a box containing the electric con- trol circuitry for the machine.
• the invention concerns the mixing assembly 8, and the invention is thus not dependent upon the example of a coffee vending machine shown in fig. 1.
• the coin insert 2 will be replaced by a button i.a. for selection of the desired number of cups of coffee, the opening ' 3 being sufficiently large to receive a coffeepot.
• certain parts e.g. the water container, the fan and the electric control cir- cui ry may be shared by several mixing assemblies 8, which will be understood from the following explanation of a preferred embodiment of the mixing assembly 8 with associated coffee container 7.
• the mixing chamber 17 is in the form of a vessel having at the top an annular flange 19, which is horizontal in the position of use and whose outer edge- rests on a bent edge of the upper rim of the housing 15.
• the mentioned edges fit in a passageway in a pair of rails 20, 21 which are secured to the underside of the container 7 so that the mixing assembly 8 can be with ⁇ drawn as a drawer, e.g. when the mixing assembly is to be cleaned.
• the mixing chamber 17 is contiguous with an intermediate chamber 22, which has an upwardly directed . opening 23 and communicates with the mixing chamber 17 through a narrow slit 23. In the position of use the opening 23 is flush with a branch 25 com ⁇ municating with the water container 6 through a hose 26 and a magnet valve 27.
• the air flows through a slot 37 in the bottom of the mixing chamber 17 and out through the filter 32, there being an air gap between the mixing chamber 17 and the collection funnel 16.
• the air can advantageously be sucked in through hoses 42, which are connected with a jacket 43 in direct heat- conductive contact with the water container 6, allowing the inlet air to be preheated by the passage through the chamber 43 so that the air flow through the slit 36, in addition to having the powder guiding effect described later, provides a safeguard against deposit of condensation on the dispensing cylinder 30.
• the magnet valve 27 opens for a predetermined period of time so that the intermediate chamber 22 is rapidly filled with hot water at e.g. 95°C.
• the water will flow from the intermediate chamber 22 through the slit 24 and into the bottom of the mixing chamber 17 so inclined as to have a downgrade away from the slit 24 and a downgrade toward the slot 37.
• the slit 24 is defined by means of a height-adjustable angle bar 44, so that the entire bottom of the mixing chamber is filled with a thin layer of water for a moment.
• Figs. 4 and 5 show the situation where all the water still has not left the intermediate chamber 22.
• the drive mechanism 40 When all the water has left the intermediate chamber and, as previously mentioned, covers the entire bottom of the mixing chamber for a moment, the drive mechanism 40 is activated so that the dispensing cylinder 30 is rapidly rotated half a revolution to the position shown in fig. 4, thus dis ⁇ charging a predetermined amount of coffee powder which is indicated at 47 and is distributed uniformly under the action of the air flow through the mixing chamber in •the form of a thin layer across the water surface which covers the entire bottom of the mixing chamber.
• the plane of the slot 37 is inclined with respect to the bottom of the mixing chamber 17, which thus exhibits a lip 46.
• the air flow will thus be deflected through the slot 37 to the side (to the left in figs. 2 and 4), which has the effect that the water leaving the lower edge of the lip 46 is initially relatively unaffected by the air flow and drops as a "water curtain" at any rate so far as -to effectively prevent coffee powder from being discharged from the dispensing cylinder 30 directly through the slot 37, without this coffee powder having been in contact with the water.
• the embodiment described in the foregoing has an addi ⁇ tional advantage, viz. that the mixing chamber is very easy to remove from the apparatus in case of cleaning or replacement.
• the housing 15, the collection funnel 16 and the mixing bowl 17 are removably disposed in the rails 20, 21, and it is therefore essential that the intermediate chamber 22 (fig. 3) is disposed below the water branch 25, which, in the position of use, is disposed vertically above the opening 23 in the intermediate chamber.
• the exhaust manifold 9 is arranged to receive the rear open end of the housing 15, which, in the position of use, is hermetically enclosed by an annular collar 48 on the exhaust manifold 9.
• the filter 32 may be mounted in the mentioned open end of the housing 15, which involves the advantage that also the filter can be cleaned or replaced when the housing 15 is removed from the appara- tus.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Apparatus For Making Beverages (AREA)
• Beverage Vending Machines With Cups, And Gas Or Electricity Vending Machines (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=8090588

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (4)

Families Citing this family (2)

Family Cites Families (3)

• 1984
  • 1984-01-16 DK DK17284A patent/DK151175C/da active
• 1985
  • 1985-01-15 WO PCT/DK1985/000002 patent/WO1985002989A1/en unknown
  • 1985-01-15 EP EP19850900654 patent/EP0168449A1/de not_active Withdrawn
  • 1985-01-15 AU AU38392/85A patent/AU3839285A/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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