GB2301580A - Beverage dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

A post-mix beverage dispenser, typically for chilled drinks, which is capable of dispensing a drink which incorporates either carbonated water or still water. A valve housing 15 within the dispenser incorporates an externally operable shuttle valve 20. Valve 20 has spaced passageways or orifices (21, 22) capable of alignment with either a still water inlet 17a or a carbonated water inlet 16a.

Description

BEVERAGE DISPENSER This invention relates to a beverage dispenser. It is particularly but not exclusively concerned with a means of mixing a concentrate (syrup) and water to make a ready to drink beverage at a post-mix dispense tower.

Post-mix beverage dispensing systems are well known.

Essentially, such a system comprises a source of water, which is usually carbonated but may be still water, an ice bank cooling system through which the water is piped, a source of a plurality of concentrates or syrups and one or more dispensing valves on the downstream side of the ice bank where the concentrate and water are mixed and dispensed.

It will be appreciated that the concentrate flows have to be isolated from each other to avoid drink contamination. However, water is common to all the drinks to be dispensed so each dispense valve can be fed from a common water manifold reducing piping problems about the dispense valves. A suitable manifold is described for example, in UK Patent Application No. 2271619 A. However, it will be appreciated that use of such a manifold is not essential and separate piping may, if desired, be provided to each dispense valve.

Currently, if it is desired to have the option of changing from dispensing a chilled beverage with carbonated water to dispensing still water with or without a syrup or vice versa, the changeover is complicated and time-consuming. It requires removal of insulation from the equipment in order to obtain access and then, of course, after the physical disconnection of one supply and connection of the other, reinstatement of that insulation. Moreover, such an arrangement necessitates a "dead leg" for the system not currently in use and that supply line may deteriorate in quality from continuous cooling while not in use.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simplified and improved means of changing from a carbonated water supply to a still water supply and vice versa.

Accordingly, the invention provides a beverage dispenser which comprises a source of carbonated water and a source of uncarbonated still water, a cooling system through which the water can be passed, a source of one or more concentrates, and one or more dispense valves where the desired beverage is mixed from the desired concentrate and cooled water and then dispensed, in which the carbonated water and still water supply lines pass through a valve housing downstream of the cooling system but upstream of the dispenser valve, which valve housing contains a valve to allow through-flow of one only of the water supply lines at any one time, the valve being actuable to change from one water supply line to the other.

Preferably the valve is actuable from outside the housing and may be actuable from outside the dispenser, e.g. by means of a projection of the valve body through the valve housing.

The valve housing may comprise a one-piece moulding or casting having two inlets and one outlet, the inlets joining downstream of an externally actuable valve which valve closes the first inlet and opens the second inlet and is actuable to change to open the first and close the second inlet and vice versa.

In another aspect the invention provides a valve housing as aforesaid for use in a beverage dispenser.

The valve housing is preferably a stainless investment casting and may have banjo-type fittings which may be attached to, preferably stainless, supply line tubes by welding or adhesive whereby a modular system may be provided.

As indicated above, a common manifold may be used to supply each dispense valve with chilled water and in such an instance the manifold can conveniently be positioned between the cooling system and the valve housing.

The valve housing to control the water supply lines preferably contains a spool or shuttle valve having two orifices, one for each water supply line but only one orifice of which can be open to its supply line at one time. The valve body can extend through the housing wall so as to be manually actuable from one position in which, say, the carbonated supply line is open and the still water supply line closed, to the alternative position in which the still water supply line is open and the carbonated water supply line closed.

A specific embodiment of the invention is now described by way of example only in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of a conventional post-mix beverage dispenser; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic illustration similar to Figure 1 but showing a dispenser according to the invention; Figure 3 is an elevation of a conventional multi-dispense valve tower; Figure 4 is a perspective view of a valve housing according to the invention connected to a manifold; and Figure 5 is a sectional view through the valve housing of Figure 4.

In Figure 1 a still water supply line 1 a supplies water to a filter 1.

The filtered water passes to a remote carbonator 2 connected to a supply 4a of carbon dioxide by a regulator 4. After carbonation, the water is passed through a conventional ice bank cooling system 3 to dispense valve 7. Carbon dioxide from supply 4a controlled by regulator 4 is also connected to a plurality of concentrate syrup tanks 5 whereby syrup may be propelled via flow controls 6 to a dispense valve 7 where it may be mixed with chilled carbonated water and the desired beverage dispensed.

In Figure 2, the same reference numerals are used as in Figure 1 for the same components. However, it will be seen that a connection 14 is provided from still water supply line la such that it passes through the cooling system to a valve housing 15 upstream of the dispense valve 7.

Valve housing 15 is set to supply cooled carbonated or still water, as required, to the valve 7. Valve housing 1 5 is described in greater detail with respect to Figures 4 and 5 below.

Figure 3 illustrates a typical arrangement of dispensing valves 7 at the front of the dispenser, each valve corresponding to a specific concentrate supply tank 5. If desired one valve may dispense water only.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, a one piece investment casting valve housing 15 is connected to a manifold 16 such as that described in UK Patent Application No. 2271619 A which is hereby incorporated by reference. Carbonated water circulates within the manifold 16 and feeds inlet passageway 16a of the housing 15. Housing 15 has a supply line 17 for still water and has a single outlet 18 for water to pass via inlet passageways 1 6a and 1 7a to a dispensing valve 7 (not shown in Figures 4 and 5) mounted on connector 40.

A shuttle valve 20 in valve housing 15 is moveable in the directions indicated by the arrows and has two orifices 21 and 22. As shown, orifices 21 and 22 are spaced apart by a distance greater than the distance between the inlet passageways whereby when one orifice is in correspondence with one inlet passageway, putting that passageway in correspondence with outlet 18, the other orifice is out of correspondence with the other inlet passageway, closing that passageway off from the outlet.

The body of shuttle valve 20 has a portion 20a which projects downwardly from housing 15, through a necked opening 23 when upper passageway 1 6a is open and lower passageway 1 7a is closed as shown in Figure 4. Pushing this projection 20a upwardly allows orifice 22 to be aligned with passageway 17a, thereby opening that passageway and closing passageway 16a as orifice 21 moves out of correspondence with it. Portion 20b of the shuttle valve then projects through necked opening 24 in the valve housing as shown in Figure 5.

Thus moving the shuttle valve upwardly or downwardly as shown by the arrows in Figure 5 changes one inlet passageway from being open to being closed and vice versa for the other inlet. This change over can be effected in seconds by an externally actuable mechanism for the shuttle valve in comparison to the several hours currently required for a changeover in a conventional system.

A manifold 16 may have one or more housings 15 connected with it, any additional outlets from manifold 16 being simply a stem such as that shown at 30 in Figure 4 which conveys chilled carbonated water to a dispense valve 7 (seen in Figures 1 to 3).

Claims (5)

1. A beverage dispenser which comprises a source of carbonated water and a source of uncarbonated still water, a cooling system through which the water can be passed, a source of one or more concentrates, and one or more dispense valves where the desired beverage is mixed from the desired concentrate and cooled water and then dispensed, in which the carbonated water and still water supply lines pass through a valve housing downstream of the cooling system but upstream of the dispenser valve, which valve housing contains a valve to allow throughflow of one only of the water supply lines at any one time, the valve being actuable to change from one water supply line to the other.

2. A beverage dispenser as claimed in claim 1 in which the valve is actuable from outside the dispenser.

3. A beverage dispenser as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 in which the valve housing comprises a one-piece moulding or casting having two inlets and one outlet, the inlets joining downstream of an externally actuable valve which valve closes the first inlet and opens the second inlet and is actuable to change to open the first and close the second inlet and vice versa.

4. A beverage dispenser as hereinbefore described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying Figures 2, 4 and

5.