JP4188932B2 - Liquid cooling device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid cooling device that mainly cools beverages such as coffee and tea, and more particularly to a liquid cooling device that rapidly cools beverages by heat exchange with a coolant.

  Since beverages, particularly coffee and tea, are extracted with hot water, it is necessary to cool the beverage after extraction in order to provide iced coffee or iced tea. Conventionally, the following means have been used as means for cooling.

  The first means is to extract a beverage deeply, put ice therein, and cool it by its latent heat. This is widely used as a simple means. A 2nd means cools by extracting a drink with normal intensity | strength and storing it in the refrigerator for several hours in the state put into the container. This is also widely used because it is simple.

The third means cools the container in advance, puts the beverage extracted at a normal concentration therein, and cools it with the sensible heat of the container. If the container cannot be cooled sufficiently only by sensible heat, auxiliary means such as placing in a refrigerator can be added. The fourth means uses a device capable of cooling the periphery of the container with cooling water or the like. Examples of the apparatus used for the fourth means include those described in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2. Further, the fifth means is to provide a tube having high thermal conductivity in the container, the container is filled with a coolant having a low temperature such as ice water, and the tube is cooled by exchanging heat with the coolant through the beverage. .
JP 2003-319881 A JP 2004-267385 A

  However, with the first means, it is difficult to adjust the strength when the beverage is cooled, and it is also difficult to make the strength uniform when many beverages are provided at a store or the like. In the second means, the third means, and the fourth means, cooling takes time, so the scent of the beverage may be lost.

  In the case of the fifth means for performing heat exchange, a beverage having a uniform concentration can be cooled in a short time. However, there is a problem that it is difficult to perform cleaning and sterilization in order to pass the beverage through the tube.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid cooling device that can cool a liquid to be cooled in a short time and can easily clean the flow path of the liquid to be cooled. To do.

In order to solve the above problems, a liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention is a liquid cooling apparatus including a cooler body that cools a liquid to be cooled by exchanging heat with a coolant.
The cooler body includes an outer container formed by an outer wall part, and an inner container disposed inside the outer container and formed by an inner wall part opposed to the outer wall part by a predetermined distance,
The outer wall portion and the inner wall portion are formed in a hollow cross-section, and each has an inlet and an outlet for the coolant with respect to the hollow interior so that the coolant can circulate in the hollow interior.
A liquid inlet for injecting the liquid to be cooled is provided in a gap between the outer container and the inner container, and the gap is formed as a flow path for the liquid to be cooled. .

  In the liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention, the liquid inlet is provided at an upper portion of the gap portion, and a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid to be cooled is provided at a bottom portion of the outer container so that the gap portion is formed. It is configured as a flow path for a liquid to be cooled.

  Furthermore, the liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that a liquid inlet for introducing the liquid to be cooled in the gap portion into the inner container is formed at the bottom of the inner container.

  Furthermore, the liquid cooling device according to the present invention is characterized in that the outer container and the inner container are formed so as to be inclined downwardly toward the center.

  In the liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention, the inlet of the inner container is connected to the coolant supply device, the outlet of the inner container and the inlet of the outer container are connected, and the outer container The outlet is connected to the coolant supply device.

  Furthermore, in the liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention, the inlet of the outer container is connected to the coolant supply device, the outlet of the outer container and the inlet of the inner container are connected, and the inner container The outlet is connected to the coolant supply device.

  According to the liquid cooling apparatus of the present invention, the outer wall portion and the inner wall portion are formed in a hollow cross-section, and each has a coolant inlet and a discharge port for the hollow interior so that the coolant can circulate freely in the hollow interior. In addition, a liquid inlet for injecting a liquid to be cooled is provided in a gap between the outer container and the inner container, and the gap is formed as a flow path for the liquid to be cooled. Since the liquid to be cooled is cooled in the gap between the outer container and the inner container with the heat transfer surface as the heat transfer surface, the liquid can be cooled in a short time and the flow path of the liquid to be cooled can be removed by removing the inner container from the outer container. Can be easily washed.

  Further, according to the liquid cooling apparatus of the present invention, the liquid inlet is provided at the upper portion of the gap portion, and the liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid to be cooled is provided at the bottom portion of the outer container so that the gap portion is filled with the liquid to be cooled. By forming the flow path, the liquid to be cooled can flow from the upper part to the lower part of the gap part, and cooling can be performed efficiently.

  Furthermore, according to the liquid cooling apparatus according to the present invention, the bottom of the inner container is formed with a liquid inlet for introducing the liquid to be cooled in the gap into the inner container, so that the object cooled in the gap is formed. The cooling liquid can be introduced into the inner container, and the liquid after cooling can be stored.

  Furthermore, according to the liquid cooling apparatus of the present invention, the outer container and the inner container are formed so that the bottom part is inclined downward toward the center part, thereby discharging the liquid from the gap part or the inner container. It can be done efficiently.

  According to the liquid cooling device of the present invention, the coolant is circulated in the order from the coolant supply device to the inner container and the outer container, or from the supply device to the outer container and the inner container in this order. The piping can be simplified, and the size can be reduced and the cost can be reduced.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a liquid cooling device in the present embodiment. As shown in this figure, the liquid cooling device in the present embodiment includes a cooler body 1 that cools the liquid to be cooled by heat exchange between the liquid to be cooled having a high temperature and the coolant having a low temperature. The coolant is supplied from the coolant supply device 7.

  The liquid to be cooled is a beverage extracted at a high temperature such as coffee or tea. However, the tea is not limited to these, and may be other tea such as green tea or noodle soup. Moreover, although the cold water cooled with ice is used as a coolant, it is not restricted to this, For example, you may use a brine etc., for example.

  The coolant supply device 7 has a tank for storing ice water therein, and further has a pump for supplying cold water to the cooler body 1 therefrom. However, the cooling is not limited to ice water, and cold water may be supplied by a refrigerator, or cold water may be supplied using a Peltier element. Further, ice cooling and a Peltier element may be used in combination.

  The configuration of the cooler body 1 will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the cooler body 1 includes an outer container 2 formed by an outer wall portion 10 and an inner container 3 formed by an inner wall portion 12 that is slightly smaller than the outer container 2. The inner surface of the outer wall portion 10 and the outer surface of the inner wall portion 12 are arranged to face each other with a predetermined distance. Thereby, a gap portion 14 is formed between the outer container 2 and the inner container 3. Moreover, the outer container 2 and the inner container 3 are comprised from metals, such as stainless steel and aluminum with high heat conductivity.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing a combination of the outer container 2 and the inner container 3. As shown in this figure, the outer container 2 and the inner container 3 are formed in substantially the same shape, with the upper part being cylindrical and the lower part being conical, and the inner container 3 is sized to fit completely inside the outer container 2. Is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the outer wall portion 10 and the inner wall portion 12 are each formed in a hollow cross section, and constitute coolant channels 11 and 13 through which coolant can be circulated. As shown in FIG. 2, the outer wall 10 has an outer container inlet 20 for injecting a coolant into the coolant channel 11, and an outer container for discharging the coolant from the coolant channel 11. A discharge port 21 is formed on the upper surface. Further, the inner wall portion 12 has an inner container inlet 22 for injecting the coolant into the coolant channel 13 and an inner container outlet 23 for discharging the coolant from the coolant channel 13. Is formed.

  A coolant supply pipe 8 that receives supply of coolant from the coolant supply device 7 is connected to the inner container inlet 22 of the inner wall portion 12. Further, a coolant discharge pipe 9 for returning the coolant to the coolant supply device 7 is connected to the outer container discharge port 21 of the outer wall portion 10. Further, the inner container outlet 23 of the inner wall portion 12 and the outer container inlet 20 of the outer wall portion 10 are connected by the connecting pipe 4. Thus, the coolant supplied from the coolant supply device 7 is first guided and circulated to the coolant channel 13 of the inner wall portion 12, and then is guided and circulated to the coolant channel 11 of the outer wall portion 10. It is discharged from there and returned to the coolant supply device 7.

  The liquid to be cooled is guided to the gap portion 14 between the outer wall portion 10 and the inner wall portion 12 via the liquid injection portion 17. The liquid injection part 17 is formed in a tray shape and is formed so as to communicate with the gap part 14 so that the liquid to be cooled poured into the tray part is injected into the gap part 14. ing.

  Since the coolant is circulated in the coolant flow paths 11 and 13 of the outer wall portion 10 and the inner wall portion 12 as described above, the liquid to be cooled guided to the gap portion 14 is in the outer wall portion 10. Heat is exchanged with the coolant using both the inner surface and the outer surface of the inner wall portion 12 as a heat transfer surface, and then cooled. If the width of the gap portion 14 is reduced, heat exchange can be performed efficiently. However, if the gap portion 14 is too small, the flow resistance increases and the amount of injection cannot be increased too much. Therefore, the width of the gap 14 is appropriately set so that they are balanced. The outer container 2 and the inner container 3 are provided with ribs (not shown) in order to form the gap portion 14 so that the distance between the outer wall portion 10 and the inner wall portion 12 is maintained.

  A liquid discharge port 16 is formed at the center of the bottom of the outer container 2, and the liquid to be cooled that has passed through the gap 14 is discharged from the liquid discharge port 16 to the outside of the gap 14. Further, a tubular liquid discharge portion 5 is further connected to the liquid discharge port 16 so that the liquid to be cooled can be taken out from the opening / closing plug 6 provided at the tip portion thereof. Since the outer container 2 is formed so as to be inclined downward toward the center of the bottom, the liquid to be cooled in the gap 14 can be taken out smoothly.

  A liquid inlet 15 is formed at the bottom of the inner container 3 so that the liquid to be cooled in the gap 14 can be guided into the inner container 3. If the open / close stopper 6 is closed, the liquid to be cooled in the gap 14 is guided into the inner container 3 through the liquid inlet 15 and the cooled liquid to be cooled is stored in the inner container 3. be able to. The inner wall portion 12 is also a heat transfer surface, and the temperature of the liquid to be cooled stored in the inner container 3 can be maintained by the coolant in the coolant channel 13.

  By opening the opening / closing stopper 6, the liquid to be cooled stored in the inner container 3 can be taken out via the liquid outlet 16 and the liquid outlet 5. Moreover, since the bottom part of the inner container 3 is formed in a downwardly inclined shape toward the center as in the case of the outer container 2, the liquid to be cooled in the inner container 3 can be taken out smoothly.

  Cleaning of the gap 14 which is the flow path of the liquid to be cooled is performed as follows. The flow path for the liquid to be cooled is formed on the inner surface of the outer wall portion 10 and the outer surface of the inner wall portion 12. While removing the connecting pipe 4, the coolant supply pipe 8 and the coolant discharge pipe 9, and removing the inner container 3 from the outer container 2, those surfaces can be exposed and cleaning is performed in that state. Therefore, cleaning can be performed easily.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the entire cooler body 1. As shown in this figure, the outer container 2 and the inner container 3 are housed in a cylindrical outer shell 30. The outer shell portion 30 is configured to have a heat insulating material, and prevents heat from entering from the outside. Moreover, the cover part 31 is provided in the upper part of the outer container 2 and the inner container 3, and it prevents the penetration | invasion of the dust etc. from the outside, and the penetration | invasion of heat.

  The liquid injection part 17 is attached to the upper part of the lid part 31 and injects the liquid to be cooled into the gap part 14 from this part. Moreover, the liquid discharge part 5 is formed so that it may protrude outward from the outer shell part 30, and takes out the to-be-cooled liquid cooled from here. The liquid to be cooled injected from the liquid injection part 17 is cooled to a sufficient temperature in about 1-2 minutes in the gap part 14 and the inner container 3.

  The liquid cooling device according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, so that the liquid to be cooled is shortened by the gap portion 14 between the outer wall portion 10 and the inner wall portion 12 that circulates the coolant in the hollow interior. Since it can cool in time, it can cool without impairing the fragrance of a drink, and can wash | clean easily by isolate | separating the outer container 2 and the inner container 3. FIG. Moreover, even if hot water disinfection is performed, it can be restored immediately.

  Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the application of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and can be variously applied within the scope of the technical idea. For example, in the present embodiment, the coolant from the coolant supply device 7 is first guided to the coolant channel 13 of the inner wall portion 12 and then to the coolant channel 11 of the outer wall portion 10. However, conversely, the coolant may be guided from the coolant channel 11 of the outer wall 10 to the coolant channel 13 of the inner wall 12.

It is a schematic diagram of the liquid cooling device in this embodiment. It is the perspective view which showed schematically the combination of the outer container and the inner container. It is the perspective view which showed the whole cooler main body.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cooler main body 2 Outer container 3 Inner container 4 Connection pipe 5 Liquid discharge part 6 Opening and closing plug 7 Coolant supply device 8 Coolant supply pipe 9 Coolant discharge pipe 10 Outer wall part 11 Coolant flow path 12 Inner wall part 13 Cooling Agent flow path 14 Crevice part 15 Liquid inlet 16 Liquid outlet 16 Liquid inlet 20 Outer container inlet 21 Outer container outlet 22 Inner container inlet 23 Inner container outlet

Claims (6)

In a liquid cooling device comprising a cooler body that cools a liquid to be cooled by exchanging heat with a coolant,
The cooler body includes an outer container formed by an outer wall part, and an inner container disposed inside the outer container and formed by an inner wall part opposed to the outer wall part by a predetermined distance,
The outer wall portion and the inner wall portion are formed in a hollow cross-section, and each has an inlet and an outlet for the coolant with respect to the hollow interior so that the coolant can circulate in the hollow interior.
A liquid cooling apparatus, wherein a liquid inlet for injecting the liquid to be cooled is provided in a gap between the outer container and the inner container, and the gap is formed as a flow path for the liquid to be cooled. .   The liquid inlet is provided at an upper portion of the gap, and a liquid discharge port for discharging the liquid to be cooled is provided at the bottom of the outer container so that the gap serves as a flow path for the liquid to be cooled. The liquid cooling device according to claim 1.   3. The liquid cooling apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a liquid inlet for introducing the liquid to be cooled in the gap into the inner container is formed at the bottom of the inner container.   4. The liquid cooling apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the outer container and the inner container are formed so that the bottom part is inclined downward toward the center part.   The inlet of the inner container is connected to the coolant supply apparatus, the outlet of the inner container and the inlet of the outer container are connected, and the outlet of the outer container is connected to the coolant supply apparatus. It is connected, The liquid cooling device of any one of Claims 1-4 characterized by the above-mentioned.   The inlet of the outer container is connected to the coolant supply apparatus, the outlet of the outer container and the inlet of the inner container are connected, and the outlet of the inner container is connected to the coolant supply apparatus. It is connected, The liquid cooling device of any one of Claims 1-4 characterized by the above-mentioned.

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