JP2009237699A - Beverage generation device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a beverage generation device for efficiently replacing dry heavy air and humid light air in a storage warehouse in which a powder container is stored. <P>SOLUTION: This beverage generation device 1 includes a powder container 1 in which powder raw materials are stored inside a device casing, and configured to generate beverage by using the powder raw materials ejected from the powder container 1. This beverage generation device 1 includes an intake tube 21 for supplying dry air from the outside to the lower part of the inside at the powder container storage warehouse 2 installed in such configurations that the periphery of the power container 1 is surrounded and an exhaust pipe 22 for ejecting air from the upper part of the inside to the outside at the upper part of the power container storage warehouse 2. Thus, heavy dry air stays at the lower part of the inside of the powder container storage warehouse 2, and humid light air is pushed up, and ejected from the exhaust pipe 22. Therefore, the inside of the powder container storage warehouse 2 can be efficiently dehumidified. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a beverage production device that produces a beverage using a powder raw material, and relates to a beverage production device incorporated in, for example, a cup-type beverage vending machine.

  Beverage production equipment stores powdered raw materials such as sugar, cream, instant coffee, cocoa, etc. inside the equipment casing. By mixing coffee drink extracted from coffee beans with sugar and cream, white hot water and instant coffee Or the powdered raw materials, such as cocoa, are mixed and the variation of the drink to provide is increased.

  By the way, when the powder raw material is stored in a high humidity condition, there is a possibility that the flavor may be lost due to moisture absorption, or that the powder material may become difficult to be discharged from the powder container due to solidification. For this reason, the bean container storage chamber is defined in such a manner as to surround all the bean containers, and the powder container storage chamber is defined in such a manner as to surround all the powder containers. And the air circulation means to circulate air between a bean container storage chamber and a powder container storage chamber, ie, the 1st communication path and the 2nd communication path, is provided.

  The first communication passage is for supplying the air in the bean container housing chamber to the powder container housing chamber, and is provided in such a manner as to communicate between the upper part of the bean container housing chamber and the air duct of the powder container housing chamber. is there. The blower duct extends along the juxtaposition direction of the plurality of powder containers in the upper part of the powder container storage chamber, and has a plurality of outlets on the bottom wall thereof.

  The second communication passage is for supplying air from the powder container housing chamber to the bean container housing chamber, and is provided in such a manner as to communicate between the blower fan of the powder container housing chamber and the cooling chamber of the bean container housing chamber. It is. The blower fan discharges the air in the powder container housing chamber to the second communication passage when it is rotationally driven, and has a built-in filter. The filter prevents passage of the powder raw material contained in the air discharged from the powder container housing chamber to the second communication passage.

  In the beverage production device configured as described above, the air in the low humidity state supplied to the powder container storage chamber through the first communication passage after the bean container storage chamber is cooled is the second internal air of the powder container storage chamber. The humidity of the powder container housing chamber is reduced by driving it out of the communication passage to the cooling chamber. As a result, the powder raw material stored in the powder container is maintained in a low humidity state, and solidification of the powder raw material due to moisture absorption is prevented (for example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2007-334518 A

  However, according to the beverage production apparatus described above, the dry heavy air is supplied from the air duct extending to the upper part of the powder container housing chamber, and the second light in which the wet light air is communicated with the air blowing fan of the powder container housing chamber. Because it was supposed to be expelled from the communication passage, it was not possible to efficiently replace dry heavy air and wet light air.

  In view of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to provide a beverage production device that can efficiently exchange dry heavy air and wet light air in a container that accommodates a powder container.

  In order to achieve the above object, a beverage production device according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a powder container for storing a powder raw material inside the device casing, and uses the powder raw material dispensed from the powder container. In a beverage production apparatus for producing beverages, an air intake portion to which dried air is supplied from the outside downward is provided in a storage provided in a manner surrounding the powder container, and an upper portion of the storage is provided. An exhaust part for exhausting air from the inside upward to the outside is provided.

  Moreover, the drink production | generation apparatus concerning Claim 2 of this invention is characterized by the temperature of the dry air supplied from the said intake part being lower than the temperature inside a storage in the said Claim 1.

  Moreover, the drink production | generation apparatus concerning Claim 3 of this invention is provided in the said storage in the said Claim 1 or 2, and is provided in the inside of the said storage with the heater which heats internal air, and inside. A temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the heater, and a temperature adjusting means for controlling on / off of the heater based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor.

  Moreover, the drink production | generation apparatus concerning Claim 4 of this invention is the door which obstruct | occludes the opening which is provided in the said storage and can supply a powder raw material to a powder container in any one of the said Claims 1-3. Body and the magnet that adsorbs the door body when the door body is closed, and the door body that keeps the closed state of the door body, and the door body that maintains the closed state, It is provided with a handle provided at a position separated from the magnet attracting position so that the position opposite to the attracting position becomes the fulcrum when the door body is opened. .

  Moreover, the drink production | generation apparatus concerning Claim 5 of this invention is a door body which maintains a closed state, when the said magnet is plurality in the said Claim 4, The adsorption | suction position of one magnet is opening of a door body. The handle is placed away from all the magnets so that the magnet attracting position on the opposite side of the one magnet attracting position becomes the fulcrum when opening the door body. It is provided.

  The beverage production device according to the present invention is provided with an intake part that supplies dry air from the outside downward to the inside of the container, and an exhaust part that discharges air from the upper part to the outside at the upper part of the container. Therefore, heavy dry air accumulates in the lower part of the container, and the moist and light air is pushed up and discharged from the exhaust part, so that the air inside the container is efficiently dehumidified.

  Further, in the beverage production device according to the present invention, in the door body that maintains the closed state, the magnet attracting position becomes the action point when the door body is opened, and the position on the opposite side of the attracting position is the door body. Since the handle is provided at a position separated from the magnet's attracting position so that it becomes a fulcrum at the time of opening operation, compared to the case where the handle that becomes the power point is provided between the attracting position and the fulcrum that becomes the action point, The door can be opened with a small force.

  Exemplary embodiments of a beverage production device according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a container that constitutes a beverage production apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an internal structure of the container shown in FIG. The beverage production apparatus exemplified here, after grinding coffee beans (raw beans), uses this to extract and produce a coffee drink called regular coffee, while powdering sugar, cream, instant coffee, cocoa, etc. A beverage is produced using raw materials, and a powder container 1 for storing powder raw materials such as sugar, cream, instant coffee, and cocoa is provided inside the apparatus casing.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the powder container 1 has a charging opening 11 for charging a powder raw material at the upper end portion, an auger screw (not shown) at the lower end portion, and a motor (not shown) of a drive unit. When the auger screw is rotated, a predetermined amount of powder raw material is dispensed from a nozzle (not shown) in front of the lower end. The charging opening 11 is provided with a lid 12 for opening and closing it. The powder raw material discharged from the nozzle of the powder container 1 is supplied to the temporary storage cylinder 13 (see FIG. 1) via a cap (not shown), and then the bottom of the temporary storage cylinder 13 is opened at an appropriate timing. By doing so, it is discharged into a cup and used for the production of a beverage. In the present embodiment, a large number of independent powder containers 1 having the same configuration are arranged in a manner arranged in parallel with each other inside the apparatus housing.

  Moreover, the said drink production | generation apparatus is provided with the powder container storage 2 (storage) in the site | part surrounding the powder container 1 in the inside of an apparatus housing | casing. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the powder container storage 2 is provided so as to surround all the powder containers 1 and has a box shape with an open front surface.

  Inside the powder container storage 2 is an entire portion of the powder container 1 including a drive unit for rotating an auger screw, a nozzle, and a cap, and an upper end portion of a temporary storage cylinder 13 that receives the powder raw material discharged from the nozzle. Is housed. Specifically, a support frame (not shown) is provided on the bottom wall of the powder container storage 2 and the entire part of the powder container including the drive unit, nozzle, and cap is supported via a load cell (not shown). It is attached to the upper surface of the frame. Moreover, the upper end part of the temporary storage cylinder 13 is attached to the bottom wall of the powder container storage 2 so that it does not contact the cap.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an intake pipe (intake part) 21 is provided below the left side wall of the powder container container 2, and an exhaust pipe (exhaust part) 22 is provided above the left side wall. The intake pipe 21 is for supplying dry air from the outside of the powder container storage 2 downward to the inside, and the dry air is supplied to the intake pipe 21 from a dry air supply source (not shown). . From this dry air supply source, air that is lower than the temperature inside the powder container storage 2 and heavier than the humid air inside the powder container storage 2 is supplied.

  The exhaust pipe 22 is for discharging moist air from the inside of the powder container storage 2 to the outside. When the blower fan 23 provided above the inside of the powder container storage 2 is operated, the powder container storage 2 Moist air is discharged from the upper part of the inside to the outside.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a heater 24 is provided in the powder container storage 2. The heater 24 is for heating the air in the container of the powder container container 2, and when energized (on), the air in the container of the powder container container 2 is warmed, and the relative humidity of the air in the container is lowered. .

  As shown in FIG. 2, a temperature sensor 25 is provided in the upper part of the powder container storage 2. The temperature sensor 25 measures the temperature inside the powder container storage 2 and is connected to temperature adjusting means (not shown). The temperature adjusting means turns on the heater 24 until the temperature in the cabinet measured by the temperature sensor 25 reaches a predetermined temperature, and turns off the heater 24 when the temperature reaches a predetermined temperature. It is designed to keep the temperature inside the cabinet constant.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a sealing member 26 (for example, urethane rubber sponge) having elasticity is stuck to the periphery of the front opening 2a. The substantially lower half of the front opening 2a is closed by a front wall plate 27 (see FIG. 1) attached in a manner to crush the seal member 26, and the remaining upper half is supported by the front wall plate 27 so as to be swingable. The door body 28 is closed. The door body 28 is configured to be able to handle the internal powder container 1 by swinging toward the front side and opening the powder container storage 2. Further, the front wall plate 27 can be removed, and by removing the front wall plate 27, the nozzle and the shooter can be handled.

  The door body 28 is composed of a metal plate-like body. When the door body 28 is closed, the door body 28 is attracted to the magnet 29 disposed on the upper edge of the front opening, and the door body 28 remains in the closed state. It is like that. In addition, the magnet 29 can adsorb | suck the door body 28 so that it may be in the state which crushed the sealing member 26, and can raise the airtightness in the store | warehouse | chamber of the powder container storage 2 now.

  By the way, as shown in FIG.3 and FIG.4, in the door body 28 attracted | sucked by one magnet 29 and maintaining the obstruction | occlusion state, the rocking | fluctuation axis | shaft (fulcrum) of the door body 28, the magnet | suction adsorption position (action point), and If a handle (power point) 3 is provided between the two, a large force is required to open the door body 28.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, in the door body 28 that is attracted to one magnet 29 and maintains the closed state, the attracting position M of the magnet 29 becomes an action point at the time of the door body opening operation, The handle 3 is provided at a position P separated from the attracting position M of the magnet 29 so that a position Q (right end edge in FIG. 6) Q on the opposite side of the attracting position M serves as a fulcrum when the door body 28 is opened. The grip 3 is a force point, the attracting position of the magnet 29 is the working point, and the position Q (the right edge in FIG. 6) opposite to the handle 3 is the fulcrum with the attracting position as a boundary. Will open (the principle of leverage is established).

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, in the door body 28 that is attracted to the two magnets 29 and maintains the closed state, the swinging axis (fulcrum) of the door body and the attracting position (action point) of the magnet 29 If the handle 3 is provided between the two, a large force is required to open the door body 28.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 9 to 11, in the door body 28 that is attracted to the two magnets 29 and maintains the closed state, the attracting position M1 of the one magnet 29 is the action point at the time of the door body opening operation. The grip 3 is provided at a position P separated from all the magnets 29 so that the attracting position M2 of the magnet 29 on the opposite side of the attracting position M1 of one magnet serves as a fulcrum when the door body is opened. The grip 3 is the power point, the attracting position M1 of the one magnet 29 is the working point, the attracting position M2 of the magnet 29 on the opposite side of the attracting position M1 of the one magnet is the fulcrum, It will gradually open (the “leverage principle” will be established).

  As shown in FIG. 11, when the door body 28 is separated from the one magnet 29, the handle 3 is a power point, and the attracting position M2 of the magnet 29 on the opposite side of the attracting position M1 of the one magnet is the working point. The right edge Q becomes a fulcrum, and the door body 28 continues to open even with a small force (the “leverage principle” is established).

  In the beverage production apparatus according to the present embodiment described above, when the blower fan 23 provided in the upper upper portion of the powder container storage 2 is operated, the beverage generation apparatus is wetted from the upper upper portion of the powder container storage 2 through the exhaust pipe 22. While discharging air, dry air from a dry air supply source (not shown) is supplied to the lower part of the powder container storage 2 via the intake pipe 21.

  Here, since the supplied dry air is drier than the damp air inside the powder container storage 2, the supplied dry air is more damp than the damp air inside the powder container storage 2. It will be light. This is because the dry air is composed of 79% nitrogen (N2) and 21% oxygen (O2) (ignored because carbon dioxide, argon, etc. are trace amounts). This is based on the replacement of nitrogen and oxygen constituting dry air with water vapor (H2O).

  This will be specifically described. The molecular weight of air is obtained by multiplying the molecular weight (28) of nitrogen (N2) by the composition ratio (79%) (28 × 0.79), and the molecular weight (32) of oxygen (02) and the composition ratio (21%). Can be set to 28.84 since the sum of (32 × 0.79) is added. On the other hand, the molecular weight of water vapor (H 2 O) is 18. Therefore, the replacement of nitrogen and oxygen constituting dry air with water vapor depending on the degree of wetness is synonymous with the replacement of a substance with a molecular weight of 28.84 with a substance with a molecular weight of 18. This proves that dry air becomes lighter when it gets wet.

  Moreover, since the temperature of the dry air supplied from the dry air supply source is lower than the temperature of the air inside the powder container storage 2, the supplied dry air is moistened inside the powder container storage 2. It will be heavier than the air. Therefore, in synergy with the fact that the dry air is heavier than the humid air, the weight difference between the supplied air and the air inside the powder container storage 2 becomes larger (the supplied air is accommodated in the powder container). Heavier than the air inside the cabinet).

  Further, the temperature adjusting means turns on the heater 24 until the temperature in the cabinet measured by the temperature sensor 25 reaches a predetermined temperature, and turns off the heater 24 when the temperature reaches a predetermined temperature. The interior of the powder container storage 2 is kept at a predetermined temperature.

  According to the beverage production apparatus according to the above-described embodiment, heavy air dried downward is supplied from the dry air supply source provided outside the powder container storage 2 via the intake pipe 21, and the exhaust pipe 22 is connected to the exhaust pipe 22. Accordingly, moist and light air is discharged from the inside upper part of the powder container storage 2 to the outside, so that heavy dry air accumulates in the lower part of the powder container storage 2 and the moist light air is pushed up to be exhaust pipe 22. Discharged from. As a result, the air inside the powder container storage 2 is efficiently replaced and efficiently dehumidified.

  Further, since the heater 24 is turned on so that the inside of the powder container storage 2 is maintained at a predetermined temperature, the relative humidity of the internal air of the powder container storage 2 is reduced, and the powder container storage 2 The operating rate of the dry air supply source provided outside can be reduced. Further, since the heater 24 warms the humid air inside the powder container storage 2, synergistically with the fact that the dry air is heavier than the humid air, the supplied air and the air inside the powder container storage 2 The difference in weight is large (the supplied air is heavier than the air inside the powder container storage).

  Furthermore, since the inside of the powder container storage 2 is monitored by the temperature sensor 25 and kept at a predetermined temperature, it is possible to prevent the flavor deterioration of the powder raw material due to excessive warming.

  In the beverage production device described above, the intake pipe 21 is provided in the lower part of the left side wall of the powder container container 2, but if dry air can be supplied to the lower part inside the powder container container 2, It is not restricted to the lower part of a left side wall, A various change can be added with the layout of a drink production | generation apparatus.

It is a perspective view which shows the storage which comprises the drink production | generation apparatus which is embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of the storage shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the powder container storage where the handle was attached to the position used as a comparison. It is a top view of the powder container storage shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the powder container storage where the handle was attached to the suitable position. It is a top view of the powder container storage shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the powder container storage where the handle was attached to the position used as a comparison. It is a top view of the powder container storage shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the powder container storage where the handle was attached to the suitable position. It is a top view of the powder container storage shown in FIG. 9, Comprising: The state immediately after opening operation of a door body is shown. It is a top view of the powder container storage shown in FIG. 9, Comprising: The door body shows the state opened a little.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Powder container 11 Opening for opening 12 Cover body 13 Temporary storage cylinder 2 Powder container storage (storage)
2a Front opening 21 Intake pipe (intake part)
22 Exhaust pipe (exhaust section)
23 Blower Fan 24 Heater 25 Temperature Sensor 26 Sealing Member 27 Front Wall Plate 28 Door Body 29 Magnet 3 Handle

Claims (5)

In a beverage production apparatus comprising a powder container for storing a powder raw material inside the apparatus housing and producing a beverage using the powder raw material dispensed from the powder container,
An exhaust that exhausts air from the upper part to the upper part of the container is provided at the upper part of the container with an intake part that is supplied with dry air from the outside to the lower part in the container provided in a manner surrounding the powder container. The drink production | generation apparatus characterized by providing the part.   2. The beverage production device according to claim 1, wherein the temperature of the dried air supplied from the intake section is lower than the temperature inside the container.   A heater that is provided inside the storage and warms the internal air, a temperature sensor that is provided inside the storage and detects the internal temperature, and the heater is turned on based on the temperature detected by the temperature sensor. The beverage production apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising a temperature adjusting unit that performs off control.   A door body that is provided in the housing and closes an opening that allows powder raw materials to be supplied to the powder container; and a magnet that adsorbs the door body when the door body is closed and maintains the closed state of the door body. In the door body that remains closed, the magnet attracting position becomes the point of action when the door body is opened, and the opposite side of the attracting position becomes the fulcrum when the door body is opened. The beverage production apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a handle provided at a position separated from a magnet adsorption position.   When there are a plurality of magnets, in the door body that remains closed, the attracting position of one magnet becomes the action point when the door body is opened, and the opposite side of the attracting position of the one magnet The beverage production device according to claim 4, wherein the grip is provided at a position separated from all the magnets so that the magnet attracting position becomes a fulcrum when the door is opened.

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