JP4506649B2 - Sparkling beverage sales equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a sparkling beverage sales apparatus that discharges sparkling beverage by applying carbon dioxide gas pressure to the container while detecting the temperature of the sparkling beverage accommodated in the container.

  For example, as a sparkling beverage sales device for pouring sparkling beverages such as draft beer, carbon dioxide gas of a predetermined pressure is supplied from a cylinder into a container containing sparkling beverages, and this sparkling beverage is pressurized and poured out of the container. Things are known. In such a sparkling beverage sales apparatus, as a specific configuration, one end can be connected to a container and a discharge pipe for discharging the sparkling beverage in the container from the other end is provided in the middle of the discharge pipe. Some include at least a temperature sensor that indirectly detects the temperature of a beverage and a supply pipe that supplies carbon dioxide gas from a cylinder to the inside of the container (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  Generally, at the time of pouring out the sparkling beverage, it is necessary to uniquely set the carbon dioxide gas pressure with respect to the temperature of the sparkling beverage so that the sparkling beverage and the carbon dioxide gas come into contact with each other in an equilibrium state inside the container. . That is, the specified value of the carbon dioxide pressure according to the temperature of the sparkling beverage is predetermined. If the carbon dioxide pressure is lower than the specified value, the content of carbon dioxide in the sparkling beverage is insufficient, so that a so-called outgassing beverage is obtained. On the other hand, when the carbon dioxide pressure is higher than the specified value, the content of carbon dioxide in the sparkling beverage becomes excessive, and the sparkling beverage is excessively foamed. In any case, if the carbon dioxide pressure deviates from the specified value, the quality of the sparkling beverage at the time of sale will be reduced.

Therefore, for example, in the sparkling beverage sales apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the carbon dioxide pressure corresponding to the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is obtained, and this carbon dioxide pressure is introduced into the container through the pressure regulator provided in the cylinder. Is automatically applied.
Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-2885

  By the way, in the above-mentioned sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor provided in the middle of the discharge pipe is set as the temperature of the sparkling beverage stored in the container. For this reason, for example, when the sparkling beverage is not sold, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is not actually the temperature of the sparkling beverage but the ambient temperature around the temperature sensor. Since this atmospheric temperature is higher than the temperature of the sparkling beverage accommodated in the container, the sparkling beverage sales apparatus applies a carbon dioxide gas pressure higher than the specified value to the inside of the container according to this high temperature. If the sparkling beverage is, for example, draft beer, the draft beer is excessively foamed as described above, so that the so-called “prilled taste” and the pressure once excessively applied to the container does not immediately drop. Taste may continue. That is, the quality of the taste at the time of selling sparkling beverages may be reduced.

  On the other hand, when the sparkling beverage is, for example, draft beer, a container (beer barrel) for storing the draft beer is generally owned by, for example, a beer company. In addition, there is a problem that it is costly to change the temperature sensor provided in the middle of the discharge pipe in the above-described sparkling beverage sales apparatus to a configuration that can be installed in the container.

  This invention is made | formed in view of this subject, The place made into the objective provides the low-cost sparkling beverage sales apparatus which can adjust the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas with respect to the sparkling beverage in a container to a regulation value. There is.

The invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a supply pipe for discharging the sparkling beverage from the inside of the container for storing the sparkling beverage, and supplying carbon dioxide for discharging the sparkling beverage to the inside of the container. Supply of the carbon dioxide gas to the container based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting element when the sparkling beverage flows through the pipe for piping, the temperature detecting element provided in the vicinity of the pipe for discharging, and the sparkling beverage A sparkling beverage sales apparatus comprising: a control unit that adjusts pressure.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the control unit is configured to generate a carbonic acid based on the detected temperature detected by the temperature detecting element when there is at least the sparkling beverage inside the discharge pipe near the position where the temperature detecting element is provided. The gas supply pressure can be adjusted. Generally, a predetermined correlation between the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the container and the specified value of the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas to be applied to the inside of the container is predetermined. Therefore, if the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the discharge pipe near the position where the temperature detection element is provided and the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the container are in a certain relationship (for example, approximately equal), the control is performed. The unit can obtain the specified value of the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas based on the detected temperature detected by the temperature detecting element using the predetermined correlation and the constant relationship. Therefore, the control part can adjust the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas with respect to the sparkling beverage in the container to a specified value.

Further, in the sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the control unit controls the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container based on the detected temperature of the temperature detecting element when the sparkling beverage is filled in the discharge pipe. It is preferable to adjust.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, for example, when the sparkling beverage is filled into the discharge pipe before selling the sparkling beverage in a new container for the first time, the detected temperature detected by the temperature detecting element is the same as that of the sparkling beverage inside the container. Since it is in a constant relationship (for example, approximately equal) to the temperature, it is useful for setting the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas to be applied to the inside of the container, for example, when the sparkling beverage is subsequently sold.

In the sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the control unit may control the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting element when the sparkling beverage is sold from the discharge pipe. It is preferable to adjust.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the detected temperature detected by the temperature detection element when the sparkling beverage passes through the discharge pipe at the time of sales has a certain relationship with the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the container (for example, approximately equal). Therefore, for example, it is useful for setting the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas to be applied to the inside of the container at the time of the sale or the next sale.

Further, in the sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the control unit detects the temperature detection element during a period from the start of sales of the sparkling beverage to the end of sales, excluding a predetermined period from the start of sales. It is preferable to adjust the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container based on the temperature.
It takes a certain period of time for the sparkling beverage to reach the inside of the discharge pipe in the vicinity of the position where the temperature detection element is provided after the sales start. In addition, in order for the temperature detection element to detect the temperature of the detection target, a certain period peculiar to the temperature detection element is required. Therefore, if these predetermined periods are set as the predetermined period, the detected temperature detected by the temperature detecting element becomes closer to the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the container. As a result, a more optimal carbon dioxide supply pressure can be applied to the inside of the container.

Moreover, in this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, it is preferable that the said control part invalidates the detection temperature of the said temperature detection element when the said piping for discharge is wash | cleaned.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, for example, the detection temperature detected by the temperature detection element when the cleaning liquid passes through the discharge pipe can be prevented from being erroneously detected as the detected temperature at the time of filling or selling the sparkling beverage described above. .

The sparkling beverage sales apparatus further includes a storage unit that stores a relationship between the detected temperature for discharging the sparkling beverage and a supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas, and the control unit is configured to store the carbonic acid in the container. It is preferable to refer to the storage unit when adjusting the gas supply pressure.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, for example, if a plurality of prescribed values of the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas are associated in advance and stored in the storage unit for a plurality of detected temperatures, the control unit refers to the storage unit By doing so, the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to be applied to the inside of the container can be obtained efficiently.

In addition, the sparkling beverage sales apparatus includes a detection unit that detects the sold-out of the sparkling beverage, and the control unit, when the detection output of the detection unit indicates the sold-out of the sparkling beverage, It is preferable to reset the adjustment of the gas supply pressure.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, when the sold-out sparkling beverage is detected by the detection unit, the control unit resets the adjustment of the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas, for example, immediately after replacement with a new sparkling beverage container. It is possible to prevent an erroneous setting in which the supply pressure of carbon dioxide to be applied is set to a value set in an old container.

Further, in the sparkling beverage sales apparatus, when the control unit resets the adjustment of the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container, a warning is issued that the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container is not adjusted. An adjustment warning unit is preferably provided.
According to this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the unadjusted warning section, for example, confirms that the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas to be applied immediately after replacement with a new sparkling beverage container is not set to a specified value, for example, selling sparkling beverages. Can warn employees. Thereby, for example, this salesperson can be urged to perform the above-described filling operation of the sparkling beverage correctly until the detected temperature is determined and the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas is adjusted.

Moreover, in this sparkling beverage sales apparatus, when the timekeeping section that measures the most recent sales interval of the sparkling beverage and the timekeeping section counts a predetermined period or more, the most recent sales interval of the sparkling beverage is not less than the predetermined period. It is preferable to include a sales interval warning unit that warns that.
According to the sparkling beverage sales apparatus, the sales interval warning unit can warn the sales staff, for example, when the latest sales interval of the sparkling beverage has been timed by the time measuring unit to be equal to or longer than a predetermined period. For example, when the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas at a certain sale is set based on the detected temperature at the previous sale, the temperature of the sparkling beverage inside the container changes at two sale intervals. When the temperature changes, the supply pressure of carbon dioxide to be applied to the sparkling beverage at this temperature also changes. Therefore, if a predetermined period that can cause a pressure difference that affects the quality of sparkling beverages is set in advance, and the salesperson is warned that the sales interval has passed, the salesperson can fill, for example, It is possible to determine the temperature of the sparkling beverage at the time of the current sale by performing the operations such as again.

  A low-cost sparkling beverage sales apparatus that can adjust the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas to sparkling beverages in a container to a specified value can be provided.

=== Configuration of sparkling beverage sales apparatus ===
Hereinafter, a configuration example of the beer dispenser (foamed beverage sales apparatus) 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an external configuration example of a beer dispenser 1, a beer barrel (container) 70, and a gas cylinder 80 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a chart showing a carbon dioxide pressure table in which a standard value of carbon dioxide pressure applied to the inside of the beer barrel 70 is associated with the temperature of draft beer.

  As illustrated in FIG. 1, the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment mainly includes a conduit (pipe for discharge) 10 that guides draft beer from the inside of the beer barrel 70 and a temperature sensor (temperature detection) that detects the temperature of draft beer. An element) 40 and a carbon dioxide gas pipe (supply pipe) 50 are provided. Moreover, the beer dispenser 1 of this Embodiment is provided with the extraction valve | bulb 20 which pours draft beer guided by the conduit | pipe 10 to glass, and the adjustment valve 60 which adjusts a carbon dioxide gas pressure. A part of the conduit 10, the dispensing valve 20, and the temperature sensor 40 are mounted on the main body 2 of the beverage dispenser 1.

  The conduit 10 according to the present embodiment mainly includes a straight pipe 10 a provided with a pouring valve 20 at an end, a spiral pipe 10 b that is spirally supported inside the cooling water tank 101, and a beer barrel 70. A pipe 10c that guides draft beer to the cooling water tank 101 and an insertion pipe 10d that is inserted into the beer barrel 70 are provided. These straight pipe 10a, spiral pipe 10b, pipe 10c, and insertion pipe 10d are connected with a predetermined airtightness. In the present embodiment, draft beer passing through the inside of the metal spiral tube 10b is subjected to heat exchange with the cooling water via the metal wall of the spiral tube 10b, thereby being discharged before being poured out from the dispensing valve 20. It is cooled to the temperature. In the present embodiment, the cooling water tank 101 is provided with a cooling device 102 to constitute the cooling unit 100. In addition, the structure of the cooling unit 100 is not limited to this, What kind of thing may be used as long as it has a function which cools the draft beer inside the helical tube 10b. In the present embodiment, a sold-out sensor (detection unit) 30 is provided in the main body 2 in the middle of the pipe 10c. The sold-out sensor 30 is composed of, for example, two electrodes (not shown) provided in the pipe 10c, and a control unit 200 (FIG. 2) described later has a resistance value between the two electrodes. Based on the above, the sales of draft beer are detected. In addition, the structure of the sold-out sensor 30 is not limited to this.

  The extraction valve 20 of the present embodiment is a valve that switches between the extraction of draft beer from the beer nozzle 20a, the extraction of foam from the foam nozzle 20b, and the stop of the extraction of beer and foam, respectively. The dispensing valve 20 is opened and closed by a driving force transmitted from the valve driving unit 25 (FIG. 2). The pouring valve 20 is provided in front of the main body 2 (left side in FIG. 1), and a person operating the beer dispenser 1 (for example, a draft beer salesperson) holds the glass under the pouring valve 20, The draft beer can be poured into the glass by depressing the dispensing button 5 while confirming the display of the display unit 6 (described later) provided on the front surface of the main body 2.

  The temperature sensor 40 of the present embodiment is provided in the middle of the pipe 10 c inside the main body 2 and is configured from a thermistor (not shown). Based on the resistance value of the thermistor that changes in accordance with the change in temperature, the control unit 200 (FIG. 2) described later detects the temperature of draft beer that passes through the inside of the pipe 10c.

  In addition, the installation position of the temperature sensor is not limited to the above, and it is installed in any position as long as it is in the vicinity of the conduit 10 and can detect the temperature of the draft beer inside the conduit 10. Also good. The thermistor of the temperature sensor 40 may be directly connected to the metal pipe 10c, for example, or may be connected via a material having good thermal conductivity. Or this thermistor may be arrange | positioned so that the flow of draft beer may not be prevented inside the metal piping 10c perforated, for example. In this case, the thermistor needs to have water resistance. The gap between the perforated portion and the thermistor may be sealed with an adhesive having good airtightness, or may be sealed by welding or brazing.

  The carbon dioxide gas pipe 50 of the present embodiment is a flexible pipe that connects between the adjustment valve 60 provided at the supply port (not shown) of the gas cylinder 80 and the beer barrel 70. The beer dispenser 1 according to the present embodiment is configured to pressure-pour out draft beer inside the beer barrel 70 with a carbon dioxide gas pressure from a gas cylinder 80. In the present embodiment, it is assumed that the insertion pipe 10d described above is provided together with the carbon dioxide gas pipe 50 with respect to the cap 15 that can be connected to a supply port (not shown) of the beer barrel 70. Thereby, the salesperson can connect the insertion pipe 10 d and the carbon dioxide gas pipe 50 to the beer barrel 70 at the same time by connecting the cap 15 to the supply port of the beer barrel 70.

  The adjustment valve 60 of the present embodiment adjusts the carbon dioxide gas pressure applied to the beer barrel 70 through the carbon dioxide gas pipe 50 by changing the opening degree by the driving force transmitted from the valve driving unit 65 (FIG. 2). is there.

  In addition, the beer dispenser 1 of this Embodiment may be a set of apparatuses further including the gas cylinder 80 filled with the carbon dioxide gas described above. The beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment further includes a predetermined cleaning mechanism (not shown) for cleaning the conduit 10 and the like described above inside the main body 2. For example, a branch pipe (not shown) is provided in the main body 2 via a switching valve (not shown) for the pipe c, and a cleaning mechanism is connected to the branch pipe. At the time of cleaning, the passage to the beer barrel 70 in the pipe c is closed by a switching valve, and the cleaning water cleans the straight pipe 10a, the spiral pipe 10b, a part of the pipe 10c, and the like.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, the beer dispenser 1 according to the present embodiment includes the above-described dispensing button 5, display unit 6, dispensing valve 20, sold-out sensor 30, temperature sensor 40, adjustment valve 60, and cooling device. It further includes a control unit 200 that performs overall control of 102 and the like. The control unit 200 is a microcomputer that includes a CPU and is provided inside the main body 2. The CPU operates based on a procedure of a predetermined program stored in a ROM (storage unit) 203.

  The control unit 200 according to the present embodiment receives the signal of the thermistor resistance value in the temperature sensor 40 via the A / D converter 45, and obtains the temperature near the temperature sensor 40 based on this signal. The main control unit 200 of the present embodiment controls the opening and closing of the dispensing valve 20 via the valve drive unit 25, and controls the opening of the adjustment valve 60 via the valve drive unit 65. To do. As will be described later, the opening time of the dispensing valve 20 is timed by the first timer 201, and the time during which draft beer is not sold (sales interval) is timed by the second timer (timer) 202. And In the present embodiment, the first timer 201 measures a relatively short time (opening time of the dispensing valve 20) from, for example, several seconds to several tens of seconds with high accuracy, and the second timer 202, for example, A relatively long time (sales interval) of several hours is accurately measured. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the first timer 201 and the second timer 202 may be shared by one timer.

The ROM 203 of the present embodiment stores a carbon dioxide pressure table (FIG. 3) in which a prescribed value of the carbon dioxide pressure to be applied to the draft beer temperature is associated with the draft beer in addition to the predetermined program described above. . The carbon dioxide pressure table illustrated in FIG. 3 associates a predetermined value (kgf / cm ² ) of a predetermined carbon dioxide pressure with the temperature of draft beer from 5 ° C. to 35 ° C. in increments of 1 ° C. It is. The higher the draft beer temperature, the higher the specified value of carbon dioxide pressure. Since these specified values may differ depending on the brand of draft beer, the ROM 203 may further store a different carbon dioxide pressure table for each brand. Each time the brand of draft beer to be handled is changed, for example, the control unit 200 reads out the carbon dioxide pressure table corresponding to this brand by switching with a predetermined switching button (not shown) provided inside the main body 2. A predetermined program may be constructed.

  The temperature in the carbon dioxide pressure table illustrated in FIG. 3 is the temperature of draft beer at the installation position of the temperature sensor 40, and tends to be slightly higher than the temperature of draft beer inside the beer barrel 70. Therefore, it is assumed that the temperature corresponding to the specified value of the carbon dioxide pressure to be applied to the inside of the beer barrel 70 is set to a value calibrated to be higher in advance based on this difference.

  The RAM 204 of the present embodiment stores, for example, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40. The RAM 204 also stores a predetermined time tA, a sales time tB, a sales interval tC, and the like, which will be described later.

=== Adjustment of carbon dioxide supply pressure ===
With reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, the operation of adjusting the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas by the beer dispenser 1 having the above-described configuration will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure of the control unit 200 when the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment detects the temperature of draft beer and adjusts the supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas. Fig.5 (a) is a time diagram which shows the opening / closing operation | movement of the extraction valve | bulb 20 of this Embodiment, FIG.5 (b) is a schematic diagram which shows the example of a display in the display part 6 of this Embodiment. .

For example, the control unit 200 always determines whether or not the dispensing button 5 has been pressed by the salesperson described above (S100).
If it is determined that the dispensing button 5 has been pressed (S100: YES), the control unit 200 reads the temperature determined in the previous dispensing operation described later from the RAM 204, and refers to the carbon dioxide pressure table in the ROM 203 (FIG. 3). Then, the carbon dioxide pressure corresponding to the read temperature is obtained, and the valve driving unit 65 is controlled so that the adjustment valve 60 takes an opening corresponding to this pressure (S101).
Next, the control unit 200 controls the valve driving unit 25 to open the dispensing valve 20 and resets the first timer 201 to start measuring time (S102).
As described above, by the processing of steps S100 to S102, a predetermined value of carbon dioxide gas pressure is applied from the gas cylinder 80 to the inside of the beer barrel 70, and the draft beer inside is pressurized and starts passing through the conduit 10c.

Next, the control unit 200 determines whether or not the time t1 counted by the first timer 201 has reached a predetermined time (predetermined period) tA (S103).
When it is determined that t1 has reached tA (S103: YES), the control unit 200 stores the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40 in the RAM 204 (S104).
Next, the control unit 200 determines whether or not the time t1 counted by the first timer has reached the sales time tB (S105).
When it is determined that t1 has not reached tB (S105: NO), the control unit 200 performs the operation of step S104 again, and when it is determined that t1 has reached tB (S105: YES), the control unit 200 closes the dispensing valve 20.

  As described above, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40 is written into the RAM 204 at a predetermined frequency after the time tA has elapsed after the dispensing valve 20 is opened by the processing of steps S103 to S106, and this writing operation is performed for a time (tB -TA) (see FIG. 5A). In this writing operation, the detected temperature may be accumulated in time series or may be updated. In addition, the present invention is not limited to this. In short, it may be written once at an arbitrary time between time (tB-tA). Generally, it takes a certain time for draft beer to reach the installation position of the temperature detection sensor 40 from the beer barrel 70 after the sales start. In addition, in order for the temperature sensor 40 constituted by the thermistor (not shown) described above to detect the temperature of the detection target, it takes a certain amount of time due to the time constant of the thermistor. Therefore, if these fixed times are set as tA, the detected temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40 becomes closer to the temperature of the draft beer inside the beer barrel 70. Thereby, the more optimal supply pressure of carbon dioxide gas can be applied to the inside of the beer barrel 70.

  Further, the operation of the beer dispenser 1 in steps S100 to S106 described above may be a filling operation in which draft beer is filled into the conduit 10 up to the front of the pouring valve 20, and draft beer is filled with the beer nozzle 20a or the foam nozzle 20b. It may be a selling operation that is poured out from. It is assumed that the predetermined time tA and the sales time tB illustrated in FIG. 5A have different values determined in advance according to the filling operation, the sales operation by the beer nozzle 20a, and the sales operation by the foam nozzle 20b. In the present embodiment, a plurality of dispensing buttons 5 are provided according to these operations, and when any one of them is pressed in step S100, tA and tB corresponding to the button are read from the RAM 204. And

  In the present embodiment, the timing for writing the detected temperature and closing the dispensing valve 20 is determined based on the time (tA, tB). However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a flow rate sensor (not shown) that detects the flow rate of draft beer may be provided in the middle of the straight pipe 10a, and the amount of draft beer dispensed may be used as a reference instead of the opening time of the dispensing valve 20. Examples of the flow sensor include various types such as a non-contact type such as an ultrasonic type, an electromagnetic type, and a Coriolis type, and a non-contact type using an impeller that rotates by the flow of draft beer. For example, in the case of an impeller, the number of pulses is counted by a predetermined counter (not shown) through a predetermined pulse encoder (not shown) that generates a number of pulse signals corresponding to the number of rotations, and this number of pulses is calculated as time Instead of (tA, tB).

Next, the control part 200 discriminate | determines the presence or absence of the detection signal from the sold-out sensor 30 (S107).
When it is determined that there is a detection signal (S107: YES), the control unit 200 resets the temperature stored in the RAM 204 and the adjustment valve 60 takes an opening corresponding to the pressure corresponding to the reset temperature. Thus, the valve drive unit 65 is controlled (S200). This pressure is, for example, atmospheric pressure. In addition, when the display unit 6 is a liquid crystal display or the like capable of displaying numbers, for example, a symbol illustrated in FIG. 5B is set in advance as the reset temperature, instead of a specific number. Also good. If the atmospheric pressure is associated with such symbol information in advance, the operation of step S200 is executed.

  Next, the control unit 201 displays a predetermined symbol illustrated in FIG. 5B on the display unit 6 (S201). This symbol is predetermined to mean that the temperature has not been determined, and therefore the carbon dioxide pressure has not been adjusted (unadjusted warning). Thereby, the salesperson can confirm by this warning that the carbon dioxide pressure to be applied immediately after the replacement is not set to the specified value when the beer barrel 70 is replaced with a new one. Also, even if a little draft beer remains in the conduit 10 when sold out, this temperature is reset, so the salesperson will determine the draft beer temperature without re-filling the new beer barrel. Can not. Therefore, this warning is intended to encourage the salesperson to perform the filling operation correctly in order to apply an appropriate carbon dioxide pressure to the inside of the new beer barrel.

  When it is determined that there is no detection signal (S107: NO), the control unit 200 obtains an average value of a plurality of temperatures stored in the RAM 204, and updates the RAM 204 with the average value (S108). Note that the statistical processing of a plurality of temperatures is not limited to averaging. Further, as described above, when only one temperature is written in the RAM 204 during the time (tB-tA), there is no need for statistical processing.

  Next, the control unit 200 starts measuring time after resetting the second timer 202 (S109). Thereafter, the control unit 200 executes the determination operation of step S100 described above again, but each time it is determined that the dispensing button 5 is not pressed (S100: NO), the time is counted by the second timer 202. It is determined whether or not the time t2 has passed the aforementioned sales interval (predetermined period) tC (S300). When it is determined that t2 has passed tC (S300: YES), the control unit 200 displays a predetermined symbol on the display unit 6 indicating that the time during which draft beer is not sold exceeds a predetermined time tC. (Sales interval warning) (S301). In the present embodiment, for example, the carbon dioxide gas pressure at a certain sale is set based on the detected temperature at the previous sale (or at the time of filling), so that draft beer inside the beer barrel 70 at two sale intervals. Temperature rises. If the temperature rises, the carbon dioxide pressure to be applied to draft beer at this temperature must be set higher. Therefore, if a predetermined time tC that can cause a pressure difference that affects the quality of draft beer is set in advance and the salesperson is warned that the sales interval has passed, the salesperson By appropriately performing the above, it becomes possible to determine the temperature of the draft beer at the current sale.

  The beer dispenser 1 according to the present embodiment further includes the above-described predetermined cleaning mechanism (not shown) inside the main body 2, and the salesperson presses down a predetermined button (not shown). The cleaning mechanism performs a predetermined cleaning operation. Specifically, when a cleaning command signal is received by pressing a predetermined button, the control unit 200 controls the cleaning mechanism to cause the cleaning water to flow through the conduit 10 or the like. The control unit 200 of the present embodiment is configured not to perform the above-described steps S100 to S109 even if the water injection valve 20 is opened or closed during cleaning. Specifically, the above-described predetermined program stored in the ROM 203 is constructed so as not to execute the temperature detection operation when a cleaning command signal is received.

  According to the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment, the temperature for setting the carbon dioxide gas pressure is the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40 when draft beer is passing through the installation position of the temperature sensor 40. For example, the ambient temperature around the temperature sensor 40 when the conduit 10 is empty is not used. Thereby, the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 40 is equal to or close to the temperature of the draft beer inside the beer barrel 70. Therefore, since the carbon dioxide pressure of a specified value according to the temperature of the draft beer is applied to the inside of the beer barrel 70, the quality of the draft beer taste is maintained.

  Further, according to the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment, even when the beer barrel 70 is replaced with a new one because it is sold out, or when the sales interval has passed, the temperature of the draft beer is detected for the salesperson. In order to warn that the beer will be repaired, the quality of the draft beer is maintained for a long time.

  Furthermore, according to the beer dispenser 1 of the present embodiment, for example, the temperature sensor 40 is not installed inside the beer barrel 70 owned by the beer company, but the temperature sensor 40 provided in the middle of the pipe 10 c in the main body 2. Is not changed to a configuration that can be installed inside the beer barrel 70, so that the equipment cost can be reduced.

  In the present embodiment, the CPU (not shown) of the control unit 200 and the predetermined program that causes the CPU to execute the operations of steps S200 and S201 described above correspond to the unadjusted warning unit. In the present embodiment, the CPU and the predetermined program that causes the CPU to execute the operation of step S301 described above correspond to the sales interval warning unit.

  In the above-described embodiment, the adjustment of the carbon dioxide gas pressure is automatically reset in step S200. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, only the detected temperature may be reset, and only a warning that the temperature is uncertain may be issued.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, the control unit 200 sets the carbon dioxide pressure with reference to the carbon dioxide pressure table (FIG. 3) stored in the ROM 203. However, the present invention is not limited to this. is not. For example, the relationship between the detected temperature and the carbon dioxide pressure may be defined in the above-described predetermined program stored in the ROM 203.

=== Other Embodiments ===
The above-described embodiments of the present invention are intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention can be changed and improved without departing from the gist thereof, and equivalents thereof are also included in the present invention.

  In the above-described embodiment, the carbon dioxide pressure in the current sale is set based on the temperature determined in the previous sale (or filling) in step S101. However, the present invention is not limited to this. . For example, the carbon dioxide pressure based on the determined temperature may be set in advance for the next sale immediately after the temperature is decided in the previous sale (or filling) and the sale ends. Alternatively, for example, the carbon dioxide pressure may be set based on the determined temperature during one sale. In this case, the carbon dioxide pressure most suitable for the temperature of draft beer can be set.

  In the embodiment described above, the sparkling beverage was draft beer, but is not limited to this, and any sparkling beverage that needs to adjust the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas into the container to a specified value. It may be a thing.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the external appearance structural example of the beer dispenser of this Embodiment, a beer barrel, and a gas cylinder. It is a block diagram which shows the structural example of the beer dispenser of this Embodiment. It is a graph which shows the carbon dioxide pressure table which matched the regulation value of the carbon dioxide pressure applied to the inside of a beer barrel with respect to the temperature of draft beer. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process of the control part when the beer dispenser of this Embodiment detects the temperature of draft beer, and adjusts the supply pressure of a carbon dioxide gas. (A) is a time diagram which shows the opening / closing operation | movement of the extraction valve | bulb of this Embodiment, (b) is a schematic diagram which shows the example of a display in the display part of this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Beer dispenser 2 Main body 5 Injection | pouring button 6 Display part 10 Conduit 10a Straight pipe 10b Spiral pipe 10c Piping 10d Insertion pipe 15 Cap 20 Pouring valve 20a Beer nozzle 20b Foam nozzle 25 Valve drive part 65 Valve drive part 30 Sold out sensor 40 Temperature Sensor 45 A / D converter 50 Carbon dioxide pipe 60 Adjustment valve 70 Beer barrel 80 Gas cylinder 100 Cooling unit 101 Cooling water tank 102 Cooling device 200 Control unit 201 First timer 202 Second timer 203 ROM 204 RAM

Claims (7)

A discharge pipe for discharging the sparkling beverage from the inside of a container containing the sparkling beverage;
A supply pipe for supplying carbon dioxide gas for discharging the sparkling beverage into the container;
A temperature detection element provided in the vicinity of the discharge pipe;
A first control unit for obtaining an average value of a plurality of detection temperatures detected by the temperature detection element when the sparkling beverage flows through the discharge pipe each time the sparkling beverage is poured;
A first storage unit that updates and stores the average value as the detection temperature of the temperature detection element each time the sparkling beverage is poured out;
A second control unit that adjusts the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container based on the average value when the sparkling beverage read out from the first storage unit was previously poured ;
An apparatus for selling sparkling beverages. The first control unit includes a plurality of detection temperatures detected by the temperature detection element during a period excluding a predetermined period from the start of sales in a period from the start of sales of the sparkling beverage to the end of sales. The average value is calculated | required, The sparkling beverage sales apparatus of Claim 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The said 1st control part invalidates the detection temperature of the said temperature detection element when the said piping for discharge is wash | cleaned , The sparkling beverage sales apparatus of Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. A second storage unit that stores the relationship between the detected temperature for discharging the sparkling beverage and the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas,
The said 2nd control part refers to the said 2nd memory | storage part, when adjusting the supply pressure of the said carbon dioxide gas to the said container, The sparkling beverage sales apparatus in any one of Claim 1 thru | or 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. . A detection unit for detecting sold-out of the sparkling beverage,
The said 2nd control part resets the adjustment of the supply pressure of the said carbon dioxide gas to the said container, when the detection output of the said detection part shows sold out of the said sparkling drinks , Any one of Claim 1 thru | or 4 characterized by the above-mentioned. The sparkling beverage sales apparatus according to claim 1. An unadjusted warning unit that warns that the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container is not adjusted when the second control unit resets the adjustment of the supply pressure of the carbon dioxide gas to the container; The sparkling beverage sales apparatus according to claim 5 . A timekeeping unit for timing the most recent sales interval of the sparkling beverage ;
A sales interval warning unit that warns that the most recent sales interval of the sparkling beverage is not less than a predetermined period when the timing unit has timed a predetermined period or more;
Foamed beverage dispensing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a.

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