JP2010151535A - Sampling apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sampling apparatus for alleviating a burden on an operator. <P>SOLUTION: The sampling apparatus 10 is applied to a beverage production apparatus 100 for producing a beverage from a sweet wort, extracts a sample as a portion of the sweet wort when an oat cooling process for cooling the sweet wort by a cooler 104 and transporting it to a fermentation tank 102 is implemented comprises: a sampling path 12 branched from a transportation path 106; a sampling valve 13 provided in the sampling path 12; a first control valve 17 for switching an introduction of the sweet wort to the sampling path 12 and an inhibition of its introduction; and a sampling pump 18. When the oat cooling process is initiated, the extraction of the sample from the transportation path 106 to a sampling vessel 14 is initiated. When the oat cooling process is completed, operations of the first control valve 17, the sampling pump 18 and the sampling valve 13 are controlled so as to complete the extraction of the sample. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sampling device provided in a beverage production apparatus for producing a beverage by cooling wort heated in a preparation process with a cooler and feeding it to a tank, and fermenting and aging wort in the tank.

  There is known a beverage production apparatus for producing a beverage by producing wort from malt in a preparation process and fermenting and aging the wort in a tank. In such a beverage control apparatus, since wort is heated in the preparation process, the wort is sent to the tank after the wort cooling process in which the wort is cooled by a cooler. At this time, in order to manage the quality of the wort sent to the tank, a part of the wort cooled by the cooler is taken out as a sample and inspected. As a sampling method for taking out such a sample, there is known a method for taking out a sample by an operator operating a valve provided in a passage connecting a cooler and a tank in accordance with the start and end of a wheat cooling process. .

  In the sampling method in which a sample is taken out by operating the valve by the operator, the operator is restrained by the work, and thus the burden on the operator is large.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a sampling device that can reduce the burden on an operator.

  The sampling apparatus of this invention cools the wort heated at the preparation process with a cooler (104), sends it to a tank (102), ferments the wort in the tank and produces a beverage (100 ), Connected to the cooler and the tank, provided in the transfer passage (106) through which the wort cooled by the cooler flows, and heated in the preparation process in the beverage production apparatus In the sampling device (10) for taking out a part of wort sent from the cooler to the tank as a sample when a wheat cooling process is performed in which the juice is cooled by the cooler and sent to the tank, A sampling passage (12) branched from the transfer passage, a sampling valve (13) for taking out the sample from the sampling passage to a container (14), and the support from the transfer passage. An on-off valve (17) for switching between introduction of wort into the pulling passage and prohibition of the introduction, and pump means provided in the sampling passage between the on-off valve and the sampling valve to take out wort from the transfer passage (18) and the sampling process (S16-S20) which takes out the sample from the transfer passage to the container with the start of the wheat cooling process is started, and the sampling process is completed with the end of the wheat cooling process. Thus, the above-described problem is solved by including control means (30) for controlling the operations of the on-off valve, the pump means, and the sampling valve.

  According to the sampling apparatus of the present invention, since the start of the sampling process accompanying the start of the wheat cooling process and the end of the sampling process accompanying the end of the wheat cooling process can be respectively automated, the burden on the operator can be reduced.

  In one embodiment of the sampling device of the present invention, the sampling device further comprises a discharge passage (23) connected to the sampling passage on the downstream side of the sampling valve, and a discharge valve (24) for opening and closing the discharge passage, In the sampling step, the control means first closes the sampling valve and opens the discharge valve, then opens the on-off valve and activates the pump means, and then opens the sampling valve and closes the discharge valve. May be. In this case, the sampling passage is replaced with wort taken out from the transfer passage, and then the sample is taken out from the container. Therefore, it can prevent that things other than wort taken out from the transfer path | route mix in a container.

  In one form of the sampling device of the present invention, the apparatus further comprises container discriminating means (30) for discriminating whether or not the container is present below the sampling valve, wherein the control means is arranged such that the container discriminating means When it is determined that there is no container below, the beverage production apparatus may be controlled so that the start of the wheat cooling process is prohibited. In this case, the wheat cooling process cannot be started unless the preparation of the container is completed. Therefore, a sample can be reliably taken out every time the wheat cooling step is performed.

  In one form of the sampling device of the present invention, in the beverage production device, a plurality of types of beverages are produced, and the length of time required for the wheat cooling process differs according to the type of beverage, and the control means Controls the operation of the pump means so that the flow rate of wort taken out from the transfer passage per unit time during the sampling process is changed according to the type of beverage produced by the beverage production device. May be. In this case, even when beverages of different types are produced in the beverage production apparatus, the same amount of sample can be taken out for each type.

  In addition, in the above description, in order to make an understanding of this invention easy, the reference sign of the accompanying drawing was attached in parenthesis, but this invention is not limited to the form of illustration by it.

  As described above, according to the sampling device of the present invention, it is possible to automate the extraction of the sample from the beverage production device, so that the burden on the operator can be reduced.

  FIG. 1 schematically shows a part of a beverage production apparatus in which a sampling device according to one embodiment of the present invention is incorporated. The beverage production apparatus 100 is an apparatus that produces alcoholic beverages such as beer and sparkling liquor. In such a beverage production apparatus 100, first, wort is produced from raw materials in a preparation step, then fermented in the fermentation step, and then matured in the ripening step. . In this figure, a part of the beverage manufacturing apparatus 100 used in the preparation process and a part used in the fermentation process are shown. Moreover, although the drink manufacturing apparatus 100 is provided with multiple manufacturing lines which manufacture a drink, this figure has shown one of those manufacturing lines. Furthermore, in this beverage manufacturing apparatus 100, a plurality of types of alcoholic beverages are manufactured.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the beverage production apparatus 100 includes a wort boiling pot 101 for boiling wort with other raw materials at the end of the preparation process, and a fermentation tank 102 for fermenting the wort. Yes. In order to ferment wort, it is necessary to cool the heated wort to a predetermined temperature (for example, 20 ° C.) or less. Therefore, the beverage manufacturing apparatus 100 includes a cooling device 103 for performing a wheat cooling process for cooling and sending the wort from the wort boiling pot 101 to the fermentation tank 102. In addition, the length of time spent for this wheat cooling process changes according to the kind of drink manufactured. The cooling device 103 includes a heat exchanger 104 as a cooler, and a valve 105 for switching connection and disconnection between the wort boiling pot 101 and the heat exchanger 104. The cooling device 103 and the fermentation tank 102 are connected by a transfer passage 106. In addition, since these parts may be the structure similar to the well-known drink manufacturing apparatus which manufactures beer and sparkling liquor, detailed description is abbreviate | omitted. As shown in FIG. 1, the transfer passage 106 is provided with a sampling device 10 for taking out a part of wort sent to the fermentation tank 102 as a sample. This sampling apparatus 10 is shared by a plurality of production lines.

  FIG. 2 shows a schematic configuration of the sampling apparatus 10. The sampling apparatus 10 is shared by two production lines, and includes a sampling unit 11A for one production line and a sampling unit 11B for the other production line. In addition, when it is not necessary to distinguish these, it shows as the sampling part 11. The sampling unit 11 </ b> A includes a sampling passage 12 that branches from the transfer passage 106. Two sampling valves 13 are provided in the sampling passage 12. The sampling valve 13 includes an inlet portion 13a, an outlet portion 13b, and a dispensing portion 13c. In the sampling valve 13, the inlet portion 13a and the outlet portion 13b are connected in the closed state, and the inlet portion 13a and the extraction portion 13c are connected in the opened state. That is, in the closed state, the liquid passes through the sampling valve 13, and in the open state, the liquid is poured out from the spout 13 c of the sampling valve 13. These sampling valves 13 are control valves whose operations can be controlled by external signals. Each sampling valve 13 is provided with a manual shut-off valve 13d capable of opening and closing its spout 13c. Below each sampling valve 13, a stand 15 for placing the sampling container 14 is provided. The bottom surface of the gantry 15 is connected to the discharge passage 23 so that the liquid on the gantry 15 can be discharged. Each base 15 is provided with a proximity sensor 16 that outputs a signal when the sampling container 14 is placed on the base 15.

  The sampling passage 12 is provided with a first control valve 17 as an on-off valve that switches between introduction of wort from the transfer passage 106 to the sampling valve 13 and prohibition of the introduction. The first control valve 17 is a valve capable of controlling the opening and closing of the valve body by a signal from the outside. The sampling passage 12 is provided with a sampling pump 18 as a pump means between the sampling valve 13 and the first control valve 17 and a bypass passage 19 connecting the upstream side and the downstream side of the sampling pump 18. It has been. Manual butterfly valves 20 and 21 for opening and closing the sampling passage 13 are provided on the inlet side and the outlet side of the sampling pump 18. The bypass passage 19 is provided so as to bypass the sampling pump 18 and the two butterfly valves 20 and 21 upstream and downstream. The sampling pump 18 is a metering pump capable of maintaining a constant flow rate of the liquid transferred per unit time. In the sampling pump 18, the flow rate of the liquid transferred per unit time can be set as appropriate. As such a metering pump, for example, a tube pump that transfers liquid by squeezing an elastic tube with a roller and moving the roller is used. The bypass passage 19 is provided with a second control valve 22 for opening and closing the bypass passage 19. The second control valve 22 is a valve that can similarly control the opening and closing of the valve body by an external signal.

  A discharge passage 23 for discharging the liquid in the sampling passage 12 to the outside is connected to the sampling passage 12 downstream of the two sampling valves 13. The discharge passage 23 is connected to a drain pipe (not shown) provided in the beverage manufacturing apparatus 100. The discharge passage 23 is provided with a third control valve 24 as a discharge valve for opening and closing the discharge passage 23 and a manual butterfly valve 25. The 3rd control valve 24 is a valve which can control opening and closing of a valve element with the signal from the outside. The sampling passage 12 is provided with a manual sampling valve 26 closer to the transfer passage 106 than the first control valve 17 so that a sample can be collected manually. Note that the sampling unit 11B has the same configuration as the above-described sampling unit 11A, and a description thereof will be omitted.

  The operations of the sampling valve 13, the sampling pump 18, the first control valve 17, the second control valve 22, and the third control valve 24 are controlled by a control device 30 as control means. The control device 30 includes an arithmetic processing unit 31 as a computer unit, and a sampling valve 13, a sampling pump 18, a first control valve 17, a second control valve 22, and a third control valve 24 in accordance with instructions from the arithmetic processing unit 31. An operation control unit 32 that controls the operation, a signal processing unit 33 that executes predetermined processing on output signals from the various sensors provided in the sampling device 10 and the beverage production device 100 such as the proximity sensor 16, and arithmetic processing An input unit 34 for an operator to input an instruction to the unit 31, an output unit 35 for presenting inspection results and the like processed by the arithmetic processing unit 31 to the operator, and a computer to be executed by the arithmetic processing unit 31 And a storage unit 36 for storing data used in the computer program and the computer program. The storage unit 36 is a hard disk storage device or a storage device such as a semiconductor storage element capable of storing data. The operation control unit 32 and the signal processing unit 33 may be realized by a hardware control circuit or may be realized by a computer unit. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the control device 30 also controls the operation of the valve 105 of the cooling device 103.

  Next, a method for sampling wort by the sampling apparatus 10 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows a sampling control routine executed by the control device 30 to control the operations of the sampling valve 13, the sampling pump 18, the first control valve 17, the second control valve 22, and the third control valve 24 of the sampling device 10. Show. This control routine is executed in parallel with other routines executed by the control device 30 so that part of the wort is collected as a sample during the wheat cooling process. The control device 30 executes a wheat cooling process control routine for controlling the operation of the valve 105 in addition to this control routine. Note that the sampling container 14 is placed on the gantry 15 by an operator as a preparation before sampling by the sampling device 10. Further, the manual sampling valve 26 is closed by the operator, and the other manual shut-off valves 13d and the butterfly valves 20, 21, 25 are opened. Information necessary for sampling is input from the input unit 34. As this information, for example, the type of beverage produced from the collected wort, the production line sequence number, and the like are input. The control routine is started by inputting from the input unit 34 that these preparations have been completed.

  In the control routine of FIG. 3, the control device 30 first determines whether or not a predetermined sampling condition is satisfied in step S11. The predetermined sampling condition is determined to be satisfied when, for example, information necessary for sampling is input to the control device 30 and a signal is output from the proximity sensor 16. By executing this process, the control device 30 functions as a container determination unit. When it is determined that the predetermined sampling condition is not satisfied, the process proceeds to step S12, and the control device 30 executes warning processing for outputting an error warning from the output unit 35 according to the cause determined that the sampling condition is not satisfied. For example, when it is determined that the sampling condition is not satisfied because the signal is not output from the proximity sensor 16, the control device 30 outputs an error warning that the sampling container 14 is not placed on the gantry 15. Thereafter, the process returns to step S11.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the predetermined sampling condition is satisfied, the process proceeds to step S13, and the control device 30 switches on a valve opening permission flag that permits the valve 105 of the cooling device 103 to open. This valve opening permission flag is referred to in the wheat cooling process control routine that is executed in parallel with this control routine. When this flag is off, the valve 105 is prohibited from being opened. Therefore, the start of the wheat cooling process is permitted by switching the valve opening permission flag on. The valve opening permission flag is switched off in the wheat cooling process control routine when the wheat cooling process is completed. In subsequent step S14, the control device 30 sets the flow rate of wort to be transferred per unit time by the sampling pump 18 based on the input beverage type. As described above, the length subjected to the wheat cooling process varies depending on the beverage to be produced. Therefore, the flow rate of wort is set so that the flow rate of wort to be transferred per unit time decreases as the wort cooling process is longer. In the next step S15, the control device 30 determines whether or not the wheat cooling process has been started. This determination may be made with reference to, for example, the processing executed in the wheat cooling process control routine, or may be made based on the opened state of the valve 105 of the cooling device 103. Thereafter, the control device 30 repeatedly executes step S15 until the wheat cooling process is started.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the wheat cooling process has been started, the process proceeds to step S16, and the control device 30 executes blow control. In this blow control, each sampling valve 13 is first switched to a closed state and the third control valve 24 is switched to an open state. Further, the second control valve 22 is switched to the closed state. Thereafter, the first control valve 17 is switched to the open state and the sampling pump 18 is activated. At this time, the operation of the sampling pump 18 is controlled so that the flow rate of the set wort is transferred. In subsequent step S <b> 17, control device 30 determines whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed since the start of blow control. As the predetermined time, for example, a time required for replacing the sampling passage 12 with wort taken out from the transfer passage 106 is set, for example, 10 minutes. Thereafter, control device 30 repeatedly executes step S17 until a predetermined time has elapsed.

  On the other hand, if it is determined that the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to step S18, and the control device 30 executes sampling control. In this sampling control, one of the two sampling valves 13 is switched to the open state and the third control valve 24 is switched to the closed state. Thereby, sampling of wort to the sampling container 14 is started. In the next step S19, the control device 30 determines whether or not the wheat cooling process has been completed. Similar to the above-described determination of the start of the wheat cooling process, this determination may be performed with reference to, for example, the processing executed in the wheat cooling process control routine, or the valve 105 of the cooling device 103 is in the open state. May be based on. Then, the control apparatus 30 repeatedly performs step S19 until the wheat cooling process is complete | finished.

  On the other hand, when it is determined that the wheat cooling process has ended, the process proceeds to step S20, and the control device 30 executes sampling end control. In this sampling end control, each sampling valve 13 is switched to the closed state and the third control valve 24 is switched to the open state. Further, the sampling pump 18 is stopped and the first control valve 17 is switched to the closed state. Then, the second control valve 22 is switched to the open state. Thereby, collection of wort into the sampling container 14 is completed. Therefore, steps S16 to S20 correspond to the sampling process of the present invention. Generally, at the end of the wheat cooling process, hot water is poured into the transfer passage 106 in order to remove wort remaining in the transfer passage 106. Therefore, in this sampling end control, the first control valve 17 is switched to the open state while hot water is flowing in the transfer passage 106 in this way. Thereby, the inside of the sampling channel | path 12 can be wash | cleaned with hot water. Thereafter, the current control routine is terminated.

  As described above, according to the sampling device 10 of the present invention, the start of sampling of wort accompanying the start of the wheat cooling process and the end of sampling accompanying the end of the wheat cooling process can be respectively automated. Therefore, the burden on the operator can be reduced. The operator can perform work other than the sampling work after the work of installing the sampling container 14 on the gantry 15 and the work of inputting information necessary for sampling from the input unit 34 are completed. Therefore, work efficiency can be improved.

  In the sampling device 10, blow control is performed to replace the inside of the sampling passage 12 with wort before collecting a sample in the sampling container 14, so that something other than the wort taken out from the transfer passage 106 is in the sampling container 14. Mixing can be prevented. Further, when the output signal of the proximity sensor 16 is off, the execution of the wheat cooling process is prohibited, so that the sample can be reliably taken out every time the wheat cooling process is performed. In the sampling device 10, the flow rate of wort to be transferred per unit time is changed by the sampling pump 18 during sampling according to the length of time required for the wheat cooling process. Therefore, even when beverages of different types are manufactured by the beverage manufacturing apparatus 100, the same amount of sample can be taken out for each type.

  The present invention may be implemented in various forms without being limited to the form described above. For example, the sampling pump is not limited to a tube pump, and various metering pumps may be used. The number of sampling valves provided in one sampling passage is not limited to two and may be three or more.

The figure which shows schematically a part of drink manufacturing apparatus with which the sampling device which concerns on one form of this invention was integrated. The figure which shows schematic structure of a sampling apparatus. The flowchart which shows the sampling control routine which a control apparatus performs.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Sampling device 12 Sampling passage 13 Sampling valve 14 Sampling container 17 1st control valve (open-close valve)
18 Sampling pump (pump means)
23 discharge passage 24 third control valve (discharge valve)
30 Control device (control means, container discrimination means)
100 Beverage production equipment 102 Fermentation tank 104 Heat exchanger (cooler)
106 Transfer path S16 to S20 Sampling process

Claims (4)

The wort heated in the preparation process is cooled by a cooler and sent to a tank, applied to a beverage production apparatus that ferments the wort in the tank to produce a beverage, and connects the cooler and the tank. A wort cooling step is provided in a transfer passage through which wort cooled by the cooler flows, and the wort heated in the charging step in the beverage manufacturing apparatus is cooled by the cooler and sent to the tank. In a sampling device for taking out a part of wort sent from the cooler to the tank as a sample,
A sampling passage branched from the transfer passage, a sampling valve for taking out the sample from the sampling passage into a container, an open / close valve for switching the introduction of wort from the transfer passage into the sampling passage and the prohibition of the introduction, Pump means provided in the sampling passage between the open / close valve and the sampling valve to take out the wort from the transfer passage, and sampling to take out the sample from the transfer passage to the container at the start of the wheat cooling process And a control means for controlling the operation of the on-off valve, the pump means, and the sampling valve so that the sampling process is completed with the completion of the wheat cooling process. Characteristic sampling device. A discharge passage connected to the sampling passage downstream from the sampling valve; and a discharge valve for opening and closing the discharge passage;
In the sampling step, the control means first closes the sampling valve and opens the discharge valve, then opens the on-off valve and activates the pump means, and then opens the sampling valve and closes the discharge valve. The sampling apparatus according to claim 1. Further comprising container discriminating means for discriminating whether or not the container is present below the sampling valve;
The said control means controls the said drink manufacturing apparatus so that the start of the said wheat cooling process is prohibited when the said container discrimination means judges that the said container does not exist under the said sampling valve. Item 3. The sampling device according to Item 1 or 2. In the beverage production apparatus, a plurality of types of beverages are manufactured and the length of time required for the wheat cooling process varies depending on the type of beverage,
The control means operates the pump means so that the flow rate of wort taken out from the transfer passage per unit time during the sampling step is changed according to the type of beverage produced by the beverage production apparatus. The sampling device according to claim 1, wherein the sampling device is controlled.

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