GB2284043A

GB2284043A - Combined hot water dispensing and sterilising apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2284043A
Application number: GB9324068A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Hung Yi Yang
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1993-11-23
Filing date: 1993-11-23
Publication date: 1995-05-24
Also published as: GB9324068D0

Abstract

A hot water dispenser includes a lower body portion 10 provided with a water level window at the front side, a water tray 12 at the bottom and partitioned into a front chamber 13 for receiving fresh water and a rear chamber receiving two water heating flasks 40 connected with said front chamber, a disinfecting chamber including a steam chamber 25, said steam chamber having a plurality of perforations 251 on the top and being connected with the top of said flasks 40 via flexible pipes 70, and an upper body portion 20 pivotally connected with said lower body portion 10, whereby nursing bottles, cups, or the like can be sterilized in the disinfecting chamber. Hot water is dispensed from flasks 40 via pumps 50. A flask heater may be activated for a predetermined time period to produce the sterilising steam. In an alternative construction, two sterilising chambers are provided at the sides of body portion 10 beneath flasks 40. A condensate collecting tray 24 is provided. <IMAGE>

Description

TITLE: A HOT DRINKING WATER DISPENSER This invention relates to a hot drinking water dispenser.

Manufacture and sale of hot drinking water delivery system for residential and commercial use is a large worldwide industry. Most prior delivery systems are "open" systems in which water is poured into an open reservoir from the inverted delivery bottle. An electrical heating unit typically is utilized to heat water delivered to a hot water spigot with a depressible control valve. However, such systems do not have any other function than providing hot drinking water and the steam produced thereby is not collected and is directly exhausted into the air hence wasting much energy.

Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which can be used for disinfecting nursing bottles, cups, or the like.

This invention relates to a hot drinking water dispenser.

It is the primary object of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which can be used for disinfecting nursing bottles, cups, or the like.

It is another object -of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which is easy to operate.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which is simple in construction.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which is convenient to use.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a hot drinking water dispenser which is facile to manufacture.

The invention accordingly consists of features of constructions and method, combination of elements, arrangement of parts and steps of the method which will be exemplified in the constructions and method hereinafter disclosed, the scope of the application of which will be indicated in the claim following.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the present invention; FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the present invention; FIG. 3 shows the structure of the steam chamber and the water collecting tray; FIGS. 4A and 4B show the interior of the present invention; FIGS. 5A and 5B show a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and FIGS. 6 and 7 show a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Before explaining the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawings, since the invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also it is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

With reference to the drawings and in particular to FIGS. 1 and 2 thereof, the hot drinking water dispenser with disinfecting device according to the present invention mainly comprises a lower body portion 10, an upper body portion 20, and a top cover 30.

The lower body portion 10 is provided with a water level window 11 at the front side and a water tray 12 at the bottom. Further, the interior of the lower body portion 10 is partitioned into a front chamber 13 and a rear chamber 131. The front chamber 13 is designed to receive fresh water and has a lid 14 on the top thereof.

Within the rear chamber 131 there are two vacuum flasks 40. The vacuum flask 40 is connected with the front chamber 13 via a conduit at one side and with a pump motor 50 at the other side (see FIGS. 4A and 4B). The pump motor 50 is in turn connected to an water outlet via a flexible pipe 60. Further, the upper portion 20 is connected with the lower body portion 10 so that the upper body portion 20 can be lifted for filling fresh water into the front chamber 13.

The upper body portion 20 is provided with an electrical control means (not shown), a display 21 connected with the electrical control means, a plurality of buttons 221 connected with the display 21 and the electrical control means, and two control knobs 22 connected with the electrical control means. The electrical control means is well known in the art and has no need to be mentioned here in detail. One of the control knobs 22 is used to adjust the rotating rate of the pump motor 50 while the other for controlling the flow rate of the water through the outlet.

The upper body portion 20 has therein an disinfecting chamber 23 and a steam chamber 25 under the disinfecting chamber 23. The steam chamber 25 is formed with a plurality of perforations 251 on the top, an inclined inside bottom, and a drain hole 252 on the lowest portion of the inclined inside bottom (see FIG. 3). A water collecting tray 24 is inserted into the upper body portion 20 and is disposed under the drain hole 252 of the steam chamber 25. The top of the vacuum flask 40 is connected to the steam chamber 25 via a flexible steam pipe 70.

As the control knobs 22 are turned on, the pump motor 50 will pump hot water out of the outlet from the vacuum flask 40 through the flexible pipe 60. When desired to use the present invention as an disinfecting device, simply press the buttons 211 so as to set the working time of the heater (not shown) in the vacuum flask 40 thereby controlling the length of time for producing high temperature steam. Then, the steam will go into the steam chamber 25 from the top of the vacuum flask 40 via the flexible steam pipe 70. Thereafter, the steam will flow into the disinfecting chamber 23 through the perforations 251 of the steam chamber 25 so that the disinfecting chamber 23 can be conveniently used for disinfecting articles such as nursing bottles, cups, cutlery, and so on. The condensed water will drop down in the steam chamber 25 and will be collected in the water collecting tray 24.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show another preferred embodiment of the present invention wherein the disinfecting chamber 23 is provided with four protuberances 26 on its inner vertical walls so that a partition net (not shown) can be supported on the protuberances thereby dividing the disinfecting chamber 23 into an upper space and a lower space and therefore enabling it to receive more articles to be disinfected.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show a third preferred embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated, the hot drinking water dispenser according to the present invention is provided at both sides with a disinfecting chamber 23 having a transparent cover 80. Under the disinfecting chamber 23 there is a steam chamber 25 which has a drain hole at the bottom and is connected with the top of the vacuum flask 40 via a flexible steam pipe 70. A water collecting tray 24 is disposed under the drain hole 25 of the disinfecting chamber 23.

Although the present invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure is made by way of example only and that numerous changes in the detail of construction and the combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Claims

CLAIM:

1. A hot water dispenser comprising: a lower body portion provided with a water level window at the front side and a water tray at the bottom and partitioned into a front chamber for receiving fresh water and a rear chamber for receiving two vacuum flasks connected with said front chamber, said lower body portion further having therein an disinfecting chamber and a steam chamber under said disinfecting chamber, said steam chamber having a plurality of perforations on the top and connected with the top of said vacuum flasks via a flexible pipe; and an upper body portion pivotally connected with said lower body portion.

2. The hot water dispenser as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said steam chamber is formed with an inclined inside bottom and a drain hole on the lowest portion of the inclined inside bottom.

3. The hot water dispenser as claimed in Claim 1, further comprising a water collecting tray disposed under the drain hole of said steam chamber.