JP2003097876A - Control device for refrigerator in dispenser for soft drink - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To effectively prevent occurrence of insufficient cooling of a soft drink to be delivered in spite of no abnormality existing in a refrigerator or an ice sensor controlling the refrigerator in a dispenser for the soft drinks. SOLUTION: In this control device for a dispenser for a soft drink, actuation of the refrigerator 3 is on/off-controlled based on a detection signal of the ice sensor S disposed in a water tank 1 to detect thickness of ice k generated from cooling water w around a cooling medium coil 3d. In cooling water in the water tank 1, a water quality sensor 7 to detect electric conductivity of the cooling water is provided. On an outer surface of a machine body a, a display device 8 to display result detected by the water quality sensor 7 is provided.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a soft drink such as beer or carbonated water, which is passed through a flexible pipe installed in a water tank installed inside a fuselage in combination with a refrigerator to lower the temperature near a freezing point. In a dispenser that is cooled and then distributed from a draft cock provided on the outer surface of the machine to a container such as a jug and poured out, operate the refrigerator so that a predetermined amount of ice is always present in the cooling water stuck in the water tank. The present invention relates to improvements in control means for controlling.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The above-mentioned soft drink dispenser A is
Usually, as shown in FIG. 1, the inside of the box-shaped machine body a is
For example, it is divided into upper and lower parts, which is divided into two parts, and a water tank 1 in which cooling water w is put is installed on the upper half side which is one half side thereof, and a snake tube 2 through which a soft drink such as beer is passed through is provided therein The lower half, which is the other half, is a compressor 3a of the refrigerator 3 for forming ice in the cooling water w that is formed in the machine room 30 and filled in the water tank 1 therewith. A radiator 3b for radiating the compressed refrigerant, a cooling fan 3c for supplying the radiator 3b with outside air taken in through a vent 31 provided on the peripheral wall of the machine room 30 as cooling air, and a fan motor M1 for driving the cooling fan 3c. Install.

A refrigerant pipe 3d, which serves as a refrigerant evaporation pipe for evaporating the refrigerant left to cool by the radiator 3b of the refrigerator 3, surrounds the outside of the pipe 2 arranged in the water tank 1 in an outer cylinder shape. Is arranged in such a way that the start end side of the radiator 3b of the refrigerator 3
To the compressor 3a of the refrigerator 3 via the refrigerant pipe 3e, and the refrigerant compressed by the compressor 3a is sent to the radiator 3b via the refrigerant pipe 3e. It is allowed to cool, and then the refrigerant corrugated pipe 3d
Is supplied to the inside and is vaporized there, and the heat of vaporization cools the refrigerant corrugated pipe 3d to generate ice k in the cooling water around it, and the vaporized refrigerant returns to the compressor 3a and is compressed again to dissipate the heat. The cooling water is circulated so as to be supplied to the refrigerant corrugated pipe 3d via 3b so that ice k is generated in the cooling water in the water tank 1.

The operation of the refrigerator 3 is controlled by a pair of electrodes S1 and S2, which are arranged in the water tank 1 and are opposed to each other by a pair of electrodes S1 and S2, which face each other at a predetermined interval. The ice k having a predetermined thickness is present around the circumference.

This ice sensor S utilizes the fact that there is a difference between the electrical conductivity of cooling water (normal tap water) and the electrical conductivity of ice k, and the amount of ice k produced is large. Then, when the thickness of the ice k becomes larger than that of the pair of electrodes S1 and S2 which are placed in parallel and face each other in the direction in which the ice k thickens, the electric conductivity of the ice k is low. Electrode S
Since it becomes difficult for electricity to flow between 1 and S2, this is detected, and the drive motor of the compressor 3a is turned off at this time, whereby the ice k gradually melts and the electrodes S1 and S2
When electricity starts to flow through the cooling water between them, the electric flow of electricity is improved due to good electric conductivity of the water, so this is detected, the drive motor of the compressor 3a is turned on, and the refrigerator 3 is turned on again. It is operated and controlled so that a predetermined amount of ice is always present in the cooling water.

As a result, as shown in FIG.
For example, a draft beer barrel 4 is connected to a starting end side 2a of the flexible pipe 2 via a conduit 40, and an end side 2b of the flexible pipe 2 is connected to a draft cock 5 provided on the front surface of the machine body a, thereby drafting the draft beer. By operating the cock 5, the draft beer can be used as a pipe 2 in the cooling water in the water tank 1 in which a predetermined amount of ice is present.
To be poured out from the draft cock 5 after being cooled to near the freezing point (about 3 ° C.).

[0007]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The dispenser A described above is constantly operated in the cooling water in the water tank 1 in which the flexible pipe 2 is arranged by turning on / off the refrigerator 3 controlled by the ice sensor S. Since there is a fixed amount of ice k, even if the soft drink is pumped out from the draft cock 5 at a frequency that is normally performed, the soft drink to be taken out should be cooled to a low temperature near the freezing point, Even if there is no abnormality in the functions of the refrigerator 3 and the ice sensor S, there is a problem that the refrigerator 3 does not operate and cooling may not be performed sufficiently.

The present invention has been made in order to solve this problem. The refrigerator and the ice sensor for controlling the refrigerator have no abnormality, and the soft drink to be pumped out may be insufficiently cooled. Before, it aims at being able to prevent such a situation effectively, and provides a new means for achieving this objective.

[0009]

The present invention has been made on the basis of the findings obtained through various studies for solving the above-mentioned problems.

That is, when there is no particular malfunction in the function of the refrigerator and the ice sensor, but the ice making operation of the refrigerator is insufficient and the soft drink to be poured out is insufficiently cooled. , Most of them have been used for a long time and there is no replacement of cooling water during that time, and if the cooling water in the water tank is replaced with new tap water, the specified operation is performed. As the cooling water in the water tank changes over time, the chlorine ions in the disinfectant that have been added to the tap water disappear, and the electrical conductivity due to the chlorine ions has decreased. It has been found that this causes malfunction of the ice sensor, and from this, the electric conductivity of the cooling water is detected in the cooling water stuck in the water tank to detect the water quality. By providing the quality sensor, when the electric conductivity of the cooling water has been reduced, and detects it,
If it is possible to judge, by replacing the cooling water in the water tank with new tap water when this happens, the ice sensor will not have ice between the pair of electrodes due to the decrease in electrical conductivity. However, it has been found that the cooling water that has reached the same electrical conductivity as ice can eliminate the inconvenience of keeping the refrigerator off by operating as if ice was present. This is due to the fact.

From this, in the present invention,
As a means for achieving the above-mentioned purpose, a water tank 1 for injecting cooling water w is provided in a box-shaped machine body a, and the draft cock 5 on the front surface of the machine body a is installed in the water tank 1. The flexible pipe 2 for flowing and cooling the soft drink to be pumped out is provided with the flexible pipe 3d for compressing the compressor 3a of the refrigerator 3 and evaporating the refrigerant radiated by the radiator 3b.
On / off control of the operation of the refrigerator 3 is performed by a detection signal detected by an ice sensor S arranged in the water tank 1 so as to detect the thickness of the ice k generated from the cooling water w around the refrigerant corrugated pipe 3d. In a controller of a refrigerator for a soft drink dispenser, a cooling water in a water tank 1 is provided with a water quality sensor 7 for detecting the electric conductivity of the cooling water, and the water quality sensor 7 detects it on the outer surface of the machine body a. The present invention provides a control device for a refrigerator in a soft drink dispenser, which is provided with a display device 8 for displaying a result.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The control device for a refrigerator using a dispenser of a soft drink according to the present invention may basically have the same body structure as the dispenser A as a conventional dispenser.

More specifically, referring to the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, a is a box-shaped machine body, 1 is a water tank installed on the upper half side of the machine body a, and 2 is a water tank inside the water tank 1. A flexible pipe for cooling a soft drink, which is formed in a cylindrical shape at a portion near the center, 3 is a refrigerator incorporated in a machine room 30 formed in the lower half side of the machine body a, and 3a is the refrigerator 3 thereof. A compressor for compressing the refrigerant, 3b is a radiator of the refrigerator 3 for radiating the compressed refrigerant, and 3c is a cooling fan for bathing the outside air taken in from a vent 31 provided in the peripheral wall of the machine room 30 as cooling air in the radiator 3b. , M1 is a motor for driving it, and 3d is arranged in the water tank 1 so as to surround the outer circumference of the flexible tube 2 in the water tank 1 and is connected to the radiator 3b and the compressor 3a via a refrigerant conduit 3e. Refrigerant evaporation pipes 4 are the start of the soft pipe 2 for cooling soft drinks. Raw barrel beer connected via a conduit 40 to the side 2a, 5 draft cock was So設 by connecting the end side of the flexible tube 2 to the front side of the machine body a, w is the water tank 1
Cooling water that has spread inside, k is ice generated from the cooling water w around the refrigerant pipe 3c by the operation of the refrigerator 3, and S is in the water tank 1 that detects the thickness of the generated ice k. The ice sensor 6 provided is provided in the machine body a to control the operation of the refrigerator 3 on / off based on the thickness of the ice k detected by the current flowing between the pair of electrodes S1 and S2 of the ice sensor S. It is a controller.

The controller 6 is installed in a control box 6a which is formed in a box-like shape and is attached to the inner surface of the machine body a,
The control box 6a includes a stay 6 that supports the ice sensor S.
Also serves as a support for b.

Reference numeral 7 is a water quality sensor for detecting the water quality of the cooling water in the water tank 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the above-mentioned ice sensor S for detecting the electric conductivity of the cooling water between the pair of electrodes 70 and 71.
It has the same structure as the above, but is supported by the stay 72 supported by the control box 6a described above, and is arranged at a position near the center of the water tank 1 apart from the refrigerant corrugated pipe 3d in which the ice k is generated. .

Then, the signal value of the current detected by the water quality sensor 7 is input to a control circuit in the control box 6a in which a CPU is incorporated, and it is determined whether the water quality is normal or the electrical conductivity is lowered. And the result is provided at an appropriate position such as the front surface of the outer surface of the machine body a.
It is designed to be displayed in.

As shown in FIG. 4, this display device 8 uses a lamp L, and when the electric conductivity of the cooling water w detected by the water quality sensor 7 is normal, the lamp L continues to light up, When the electric conductivity becomes lower than the specified value, the blinking may be repeated to display an abnormality in the water quality. However, using the display of the liquid crystal panel, it is possible to display the water quality on the display surface 80 thereof. In addition to the indication that the temperature has deteriorated, a sentence instructing that the cooling water needs to be replaced may be displayed, and at this time, an intermittent buzzer may be used together.

Further, the water quality sensor 7 utilizes the pair of electrodes S1 and S2 of the ice sensor S to detect the electric conduction value of the current flowing between the electrodes S1 and S2 of the ice sensor S. Then, it can be configured to be incorporated in the ice sensor S, and it may be so.

In the illustrated embodiment, 9 is an agitator for agitating the cooling water w to be poured into the water tank 1 in the machine body a, M
Reference numeral 2 is a motor for driving it, 10 is a power cord for electric equipment such as a refrigerator 3 attached to the machine body a, B is a cylinder of carbon dioxide gas for supplying pressure into a raw barrel 4 filled with beer, which is a soft drink. Is.

[0020]

As described above, the means of the present invention is provided with the water quality sensor for detecting the water quality of the cooling water in the water tank, and displaying the state of the water quality of the cooling water detected by the water quality sensor on the outer surface of the machine body. When the cooling water displayed on the device is of a water quality that has deteriorated electrical conductivity, the cooling water in the water tank is replaced with new tap water from the display on this display device. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the cooling water in the water tank from being inadequate in controlling the refrigerator by the ice sensor due to deterioration of electric conductivity due to a change with time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional front view of a soft drink dispenser.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional front view of a soft drink dispenser according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of the above.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the entire same as above.

[Explanation of symbols]

A ... Dispenser, B ... Cylinder, a ... Airframe, w ... Cooling water, k ... Ice, S ... Ice sensor, S1, S2 ... Electrode, L ...
Lamp, M1 ... Motor, M2 ... Drive motor, 1 ... Water tank,
10 ... Power cord, 2 ... Snake pipe, 2a ... Start end side, 2b ... End end side, 3 ... Refrigerator, 30 ... Machine room, 3a ... Compressor, 3b ... Radiator, 3c ... Cooling fan, 3d ... Refrigerant serpentine pipe, 3e ... Refrigerant pipeline, 4 ... Raw barrel, 40 ... Conduit, 5 ... Draft cock, 6 ... Controller, 6a ... Control box,
6b ... Stay, 7 ... Water quality sensor, 70.71 ... Electrode, 7
2 ... Stay, 8 ... Display device, 80 ... Display surface, 9 ... Agitator.

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Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A box-shaped machine body (a) is provided with a water tank (1) for pouring cooling water (w) therein, and a soft drink pumped out from a draft cock (5) on the front surface of the machine body (A) is flowed into the water tank (1). A cooling medium coil 3d that compresses the cooling coil 3 by the compressor 3a of the refrigerator 3 and evaporates the refrigerant that has radiated heat by the radiator 3b is provided, and the operation of the cooling valve 3 is performed around the cooling coil 3d. In a controller for a refrigerator of a soft drink dispenser, which is on / off controlled by a detection signal detected by an ice sensor S arranged in the water tank 1 so as to detect the thickness of ice k generated from the cooling water w, A water quality sensor 7 for detecting the electrical conductivity of the cooling water is provided in the cooling water in the water tank 1, and a display device 8 for displaying the result detected by the water quality sensor 7 is provided on the outer surface of the machine body a. Soft drink di Refrigerator control device in Spencer. 2. The control device for a refrigerator in a soft drink dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the water quality sensor 7 is incorporated into the ice sensor S by utilizing a pair of electrodes S1 and S2 thereof.