JP2588495Y2 - Beverage dispensing machine - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a beverage dispensing machine for mixing a concentrated undiluted solution such as a concentrated juice and a diluting beverage such as water to dispense the beverage.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A beverage dispensing machine of this type includes a concentrated raw material tank storing a concentrated concentrated liquid in a main body thereof, and a cold water tank storing a diluted beverage liquid, for example, cold water, and a dispensing switch is operated. Then, the pump and the solenoid valve operate to simultaneously supply each ingredient into the bowl-shaped mixer, where the two ingredients are mixed and poured out into a cup or the like as a drink from the liquid supply port of the mixer. ing.

[0003]

[0007] Concentrated stock solutions such as concentrated juices have a considerably high viscosity and tend to stick to the vessel wall. For this reason, in the above-mentioned configuration, the concentrated stock solution and the cold water are simultaneously supplied into the mixer,
The concentrated stock solution having high viscosity sometimes adhered to the wall of the mixer particularly immediately below the supply port. In this case, even if the cold water or the diluted beverage fills the mixer and flows, it is not washed away, and the concentrated stock solution remains as a thin film on the wall of the container. When this process is repeated, there is a problem that the concentrated undiluted solution that has adhered to the vessel wall gradually grows and becomes thicker, and finally, it is necessary to disassemble the mixer and remove the concentrated undiluted solution with a brush or the like.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a beverage dispensing machine which can prevent the concentrated undiluted solution from sticking to the vessel wall.

[0005]

As a means for achieving the above object, the beverage dispensing machine of the present invention supplies a concentrated undiluted solution and a beverage solution for dilution into a mixer and mixes them as a beverage. In the apparatus for discharging the concentrate, a concentrate supply means for controlling supply of the concentrate to the mixer from the tank for the concentrate, and dilution from the tank for the beverage for dilution to the mixer. Diluent supply means for controlling the supply of the beverage, a dispensing switch for dispensing the beverage, and a free amount dispensing operation and dispensing for dispensing the beverage only while the dispensing switch is operated. When the switch is operated, a selection switch for selecting a fixed amount dispensing operation for dispensing by a predetermined amount is provided, and material supply control means including a microcomputer is provided. , The dispensing switch is When made, the diluent supply means is operated to supply the beverage for dilution, and thereafter, the supply of the concentrated undiluted solution is started by operating the undiluted liquid supply means on condition that a predetermined time has elapsed, When a predetermined time has elapsed from the operation of the dispensing switch, or when the dispensing switch is operated again, the operation of the undiluted solution supply unit is stopped to stop the supply of the concentrated undiluted solution. It is characterized in that the operation of the diluting liquid supply means is stopped and the supply of the beverage for dilution is stopped on the condition that the time has elapsed.

[0006]

According to the above-mentioned means, at the time of producing a beverage, the beverage liquid for dilution is first supplied into the mixer. For this reason, the vessel wall in the mixer is first covered with the beverage for dilution. Next, since the concentrated stock solution is supplied into the mixer, the concentrated stock solution having a high viscosity is hindered by the beverage solution for dilution, and thus hardly adheres directly to the vessel wall. In this state, the two materials are mixed, and at the end of the pouring, the supply of the concentrated stock solution is stopped first, and then the supply of the beverage solution for dilution is stopped. There is no direct contact with the wall, and less sticking to it.

[0007]

As described above, according to the beverage dispenser of the present invention, since there is no opportunity for the highly viscous concentrated stock solution to directly touch the wall of the mixer, it can be prevented from sticking to the wall of the mixer. It has an excellent effect that maintenance is easy. In addition, by operating the selection switch, it is possible to freely select "quantitative dispensing operation" or "free amount dispensing operation", and any of the dispensing operations causes the concentrated undiluted solution to stick to the vessel wall. Can be reliably prevented.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the beverage supply machine of this embodiment, three types of beverages can be supplied, and the supply form can be selected from “quantitative dispensing operation” and “free amount dispensing operation”. ”, The size of the cup (S,
(M, L) can be selected.

The overall configuration is as shown in FIG. The lower part of the front surface of the beverage dispenser is further retracted to the rear to form a space for a beverage pouring part 11, and a receiving part 12 for placing a cup 10 (not shown) is provided at the bottom. A door 13 is provided in the upper part of the front surface of the main body so as to be openable and closable. By opening the door 13, three undiluted liquid tanks (not shown) provided in the main body can be individually taken out. In addition, concentrated stock solutions of each beverage are stored in these stock solution tanks. In addition, an operation panel 14 is provided below the door 13, and three display panels 15 indicating types of beverages are provided on the operation panel 14.
Are mounted, and three pouring switches 16 are provided below each display board 15. In addition,
The pouring switch 16 can select three kinds of supply amounts according to the size (S, M, L) of the cup 10 for the three kinds of beverages. It is provided in.

Next, a pouring mechanism for supplying a beverage to the pouring section 11 is as shown in FIG. That is, one cold water tank (not shown) is provided in the main body in addition to the three raw liquid tanks described above, and the cold water tank stores therein cold water as a beverage for dilution. Has become.
Each of the cold water tanks has a cold water valve (shown only in FIG. 5).
Are connected to three mixers 21 via a cold water supply pipe 19 having These mixers 21 serve for the beverage pouring section 11.
The drinks flowing down from here are received by the cup 10 placed on the receiving part 12.

Under the above-mentioned stock solution tanks, there are provided couplers 22A, 22B, 22C (generally indicated by reference numeral 22), respectively. When the stock solution tank is set in the main body, an opening at the bottom thereof is provided. Are connected to each coupler 22. Each of the couplers 22 is connected to a liquid supply pump 23A,
Each of the mixers 21 is connected to each of the mixers 21 via 23B and 23C (generally indicated by reference numeral "23"). The above mixer 2
1 is a bowl-like shape having a liquid passage hole 21a at the bottom as shown in FIG. 3 and a distal end of the cold water supply pipe 19 and a distal end of the discharge pipe 24 of the liquid supply pump 23 on the upper surface of the opening. And are arranged side by side.

FIG. 4 shows an electrical configuration of the present embodiment, which is mainly composed of a control circuit 30 including a microcomputer (not shown). That is, the input ports of the control circuit 30 have a total of nine of the above-described ejection switches 1
Six groups are connected, and three chilled water valves 20A, 2 are provided in the output circuit.
0B, 20C (generally indicated by reference numeral "20");
Similarly, three feed pumps 23A, 23B, and 23C are connected to constitute a raw material supply control means for controlling the supply amounts of the concentrated stock solution and the cold water into the mixer 21. FIGS. 5 and 6 show control modes of parts directly related to the present invention.
It becomes as shown in. FIG. 5 shows a control mode when performing the “free amount dispensing operation”, and FIG. 6 shows a control mode when performing the “quantitative dispensing operation”. Note that the user can freely select both control modes by switching the selection switch 31 shown only in FIG. 4 in advance.

In the free amount dispensing routine shown in FIG. 5, it is first determined in step A1 whether the dispensing switch 16 has been turned on. When performing the “free amount dispensing operation”, it is set so that the same operation is performed even when any of the three dispensing switches provided according to the three types of cup sizes is turned on. ing. When the user turns on (presses) the desired beverage dispensing switch 16 to dispense the beverage, the process proceeds to the next step A2, where the desired beverage is selected from the three chilled water valves 20A, 20B, and 20C. Is released. As a result, first, the cold water in the cold water tank is supplied into the mixer 21.

Thereafter, only the cold water is continuously supplied into the mixer 21 for a predetermined time (for example, 0.2 seconds) (step A).
3) Then, the desired beverage of the liquid supply pumps 23A, 23B, 23C is driven (step A).
4). As a result, the concentrated undiluted solution in the undiluted solution tank is supplied into the mixer 21 by the liquid supply pump 23 and mixes with the already supplied cold water. When the supply of the concentrated undiluted solution into the mixer 21 starts in this way, the discharge amount counter starts counting (step A5) and step A
The program proceeds to 6 to monitor whether or not the dispensing switch 16 has been turned off. Until this is turned off, the drive of the liquid supply pump and the timer count are continued. At this time, the chilled water valve 20 is also open, and the chilled water continues to be supplied into the mixer 21. Accordingly, while the discharging switch 16 is kept on, the concentrated stock solution and the cold water are supplied into the mixer 21 and mixed there. The mixed liquid is mixed in the mixer 2
The liquid flows down from one liquid passage hole 21 a and is supplied into the cup 10 placed on the receiving part 12.

When the finger is released from the dispensing switch 16 and turned off, the process proceeds to step A7, where the liquid supply pump 23 is stopped. As a result, first, the supply of the concentrated stock solution is stopped. Then, the value of the remaining amount counter is subtracted according to the dispensed amount measured in step A5 (step A8), and after confirming the value in step A9, it waits for a predetermined time (for example, 0.2 seconds). Close the cold water valve 20 (Step A)
10, A11). Thus, the supply of the cold water is stopped following the stop of the supply of the concentrated stock solution, and the dispensing of the beverage is completed. When the value of the remaining amount counter becomes less than the predetermined value (step A11), a process of turning on the alarm lamp (step A12) is performed to notify the user that the concentrated undiluted solution is low.

The "quantitative dispensing operation" is executed as follows. First, at step B1, it is determined whether or not the dispensing switch 16 has been turned on. When performing the “dispensing operation”, a dispensing time TM, which will be described later, depends on which of three dispensing switches provided according to the three sizes of cups is turned on. It is set to be different. The user turns on (presses) the dispensing switch 16 for the desired type of beverage to dispense the beverage.
Then, the process proceeds to the next step B2, where the three cold water valves 20
Of the beverages A, 20B, and 20C, the beverages requested are released. As a result, the cold water in the cold water tank is first supplied into the mixer 21 as in the case of the above-mentioned "free amount injection operation".

Thereafter, only cold water is continuously supplied into the mixer 21 for a predetermined time (for example, 0.2 seconds) (step B).
3) Then, the desired beverage of the liquid supply pumps 23A, 23B and 23C is opened (step B).
4). As a result, similarly to the case of the above-mentioned "free amount discharging operation", the concentrated undiluted solution in the undiluted solution tank is supplied into the mixer 21 by the liquid supply pump 23, and is mixed with the already supplied chilled water. Become. Thus, the concentrated raw solution mixer 21
When the supply into the inside is started, the dispensing time counter starts counting, and it is determined whether or not the fixed amount dispensing time TM corresponding to the cup size of the dispensing switch 16 that has been turned on has elapsed (step B6). The driving of the liquid supply pump is continued until the time TM elapses. Thus, the concentrated undiluted solution and the cold water are continuously supplied and mixed into the mixer 21, and the mixed solution flows down from the liquid passage hole 21 a of the mixer 21 into the cup 10 placed on the receiving portion 12.

After the elapse of the fixed amount dispensing time TM, the process proceeds to step B7, and the liquid supply pump 23 is stopped. Therefore,
As in the case of the above-mentioned "free amount dispensing operation", the supply of the concentrated stock solution is first stopped. Then, a value corresponding to the quantitative dispensing time TM is subtracted by the remaining amount counter (step B8), and after confirming the value in step B9,
After waiting for a predetermined time (for example, 0.2 seconds), the chilled water valve 20 is closed (steps B10 and B11). Thus, the supply of the cold water is stopped following the stop of the supply of the concentrated stock solution, and the dispensing of the beverage is completed. When the value of the remaining amount counter becomes less than the predetermined value (step B11), a process of turning on the alarm lamp (step A12) is performed to notify the user that the concentrated undiluted solution is low. Further, if the dispensing switch 16 is turned on again at a stage where the fixed amount dispensing time TM has not elapsed since the supply of the concentrated stock solution has been started, "YES" is obtained in step B5, and the process proceeds to step B13. Then, the liquid supply pump 23 is stopped, the operation time up to that time is calculated (step B14), and a value corresponding to the time is subtracted from the remaining amount counter (step B15).
Therefore, if the dispensing switch 16 is pressed again during the fixed amount dispensing operation, the dispensing of the beverage is interrupted.

As described above, according to the beverage dispenser of the present embodiment, the supply of the cold water to the mixer 21 is first started regardless of the "free amount dispensing operation" or the "quantitative dispensing supply operation". Then, the concentrated stock solution is supplied, and after the supply of the concentrated stock solution is stopped, the supply of the cold water is stopped. Here, the supply timing of both raw materials is shown in FIG. 7 so as to be easily understood, and cold water is always supplied to the mixer 2 before the concentrated stock solution is supplied.
1, and it is clearly shown that the supply of the concentrated stock solution is stopped before the supply of the cold water is stopped. Therefore, in the initial stage of the pour of the beverage, the container wall in the mixer 21 is covered with the cold water supplied first, and the concentrated stock solution is supplied thereon. It is difficult to adhere directly to the vessel wall. At the end of beverage dispensing, the supply of the concentrated stock solution is first stopped, and then the supply of cold water is stopped. No more clinging. For this reason, even if there is a situation where the concentrated stock solution has a high viscosity and easily adheres to the vessel wall, according to the present embodiment, the opportunity for the concentrated stock solution having a high viscosity to directly touch the vessel wall of the mixer 21 is reduced. This can prevent sticking to the container wall, and thus has the effect of reducing the frequency of cleaning and stably dispensing beverages for a long period of time.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawings, but can be applied to a beverage dispensing machine of a type in which a concentrated stock solution and carbonated water are mixed. Various changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall front view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing an internal structure with a part removed.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of a mixer.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a raw material supply control unit.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a free amount dispensing operation.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a quantitative dispensing operation.

FIG. 7 is a time chart showing the supply timing of each raw material.

[Explanation of symbols]

 16 ... Discharge switch 20A, 20B, 20C ... Chilled water valve 21 ... Mixer 23 ... Supply pump

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) G07F 13/00-13/10 B67D 1/12

Claims (1)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A concentrated undiluted solution and a beverage for dilution are supplied into a mixer and mixed and poured as a beverage, and the concentrated undiluted solution is supplied from a tank for the concentrated undiluted solution into the mixer. Undiluted liquid supply means for controlling the supply of the liquid, diluent liquid supply means for controlling the supply of the diluted beverage liquid from the tank for the diluted beverage liquid into the mixer, and a dispensing switch for dispensing the beverage And a free quantity dispensing operation for dispensing the beverage only while the dispensing switch is operated, and a fixed quantity dispensing operation for dispensing a predetermined amount when the dispensing switch is operated. And a material supply control means comprising a microcomputer. The material supply control means operates the diluting liquid supply means when the discharging switch is operated, thereby causing the dilution liquid to be diluted. And supply Further, thereafter, on condition that a predetermined time has elapsed, the undiluted solution supply means is operated to start supplying the concentrated undiluted solution, and when a predetermined time has elapsed since the operation of the dispensing switch, or When the switch is operated again, the operation of the undiluted liquid supply means is stopped to stop the supply of the concentrated undiluted liquid, and thereafter, the operation of the dilute liquid supply means is stopped on condition that a predetermined time has elapsed. A beverage dispensing machine characterized in that the supply of beverage liquid for dilution is stopped.