JPH036268Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to a machine for producing extracted beverages such as coffee, black tea, and tiyocolate liquid, and particularly relates to a closed boiler tank in this extracted beverage production machine. This invention relates to improvements to water supply valves that adjust the amount of water supplied to the water supply system.

[Technical background and problems of the invention] The device is equipped with a water tank, a boiler tank, an extractor, a steam jetting means, etc. After supplying water to the water tank, the desired amount of water is released from the water tank by opening the exhaust valve or steam valve. The water in the boiler tank is supplied to a sealed boiler tank, the heating element is energized to heat the water in the boiler tank to the boiling point, the extraction valve is opened, and the hot water is sent to the extractor using steam pressure to extract roasted coffee bean powder. The so-called espresso coffee is extracted using high-temperature, high-pressure hot water and high-pressure steam, and the extracted roasted coffee liquid is then foamed with high-pressure steam to make Italian-style so-called cappuccino, which is enjoyed by pouring milk, etc. Regarding the so-called steam presser type beverage making machine, the applicant of the present invention has published a patent application in 1983-
Publication No. 134421 has been disclosed.

To explain this related idea with reference to FIG. 8, a boiler tank 1 is disposed on one side of a case (not shown), and a water tank 3 is disposed on the other side of the case. The boiler tank 1 is placed below the water tank 3, and the water contained in the water tank 3 is passed through the water supply pipe 5 provided in communication with the outlet 4 at the bottom of the water tank 3, using the pressure difference and head difference between the two. Water is fed into the boiler tank 1 from the inlet 6 of the boiler tank 1. A sub-tank 8 is provided in the water tank 3 through a partition plate 7 so as to communicate with the lower part of the water tank 3. Water tank 3 of the water supply pipe 5
A check valve 9 is installed directly below the water tank 3 to allow water to flow from the outlet 4 for the water tank 3 to the inlet 6 for the boiler tank 1.
will be established. Outlet 1 of top plate 11 of boiler tank 1
A valve 13 connected to the sub-tank 8 is connected to the sub-tank 8 by a steam exhaust pipe 12 for pressure reduction. This valve 1
A water supply push button 24 that is manually operated to open and close the steam discharge pipe 12 is attached to the steam discharge pipe 12. 14 is a heating element such as a sheathed heater housed inside the boiler tank 1; 15 is a hot water supply pipe inserted into the outlet 1a of the top plate 11 of the boiler tank 1; and its tip is connected to the inlet of an extractor 17 equipped with a filter 16 containing coffee powder c, which is placed near the tip of a projecting part (not shown) of the case. Extractor 1
An extraction port 18 for discharging the extract d is provided below the extraction port 7, and a container a such as a suitable cup is placed below this. A normally closed valve 19 for extraction is provided in the middle of the hot water supply pipe 15. A steam pipe 21 for heating and foaming is further connected to another outlet 20 of the top plate 11 of the boiler tank 1.
The distal end is bent into an inverted L shape and is horizontally rotatable. A normally closed valve 22 is provided in the middle of the steam pipe 21, and a normally closed switch 23 is provided below both push buttons (not shown) of this normally closed valve 22 and the normally closed valve 19.
will be established.

According to the embodiment of this related consideration configured as described above, after first supplying water to the water tank 3, when the push button of the normally closed valve 22 is pressed, the steam pipe 21 is opened and the air in the boiler tank 1 is released. is sent to the outside through the steam pipe 21. In this way, the air in the boiler tank 1 during water supply is discharged to the outside by the water supplied from the water tank 3 to the boiler tank 1, and in conjunction with the head difference between both tanks, it is possible to supply water to the boiler tank 1. Become.

Next, when the normally closed valve 22 is returned to its original position, the steam pipe 2
1 is closed. In this sealed state, the room temperature water in the boiler tank 1 is heated by starting the heating element 14 and reaches a temperature at which steam is generated, and the pressure in the boiler tank 1 is increased before the normally closed valve 19 for hot water supply is opened. The opening causes hot water and steam to be discharged from the water supply pipe 15 to the extractor 17 to form an extracted liquid (espresso coffee in the case of coffee). Furthermore, in order to further steam-foam the extract d, the normally closed steam valve 22 is opened, and the steam in the boiler tank 1 is ejected from the steam pipe 21 for heating and foaming to the extract d in the cup a to foam it. In the case of coffee, you can make what is called a cappuccino. To supply water again after extraction, press the water supply pushbutton 24 and open the valve 13 again as described above to exhaust the inside of the boiler tank 1 and lower the pressure inside the boiler tank 1 to atmospheric pressure, then water can be supplied from the water tank 3. is started, the temperature in the boiler tank 1 rapidly decreases and the pressure further decreases, making it possible to continuously supply water to the boiler tank 1.

By the way, in the above-mentioned related technology, when water is supplied from the water tank 3 to the boiler tank 1, the normally closed valve 22 must be kept pressed until the water becomes full, and the air inside the boiler tank 1 must be exhausted from the steam pipe 21. There is a problem that it is troublesome and troublesome. That is, the operator must continue to press the normally closed valve 22 to supply water, but it is unclear how long the operator must continue to press it. In other words, since the amount of water in the boiler tank 1 cannot be grasped, the operator feels anxious. As a result, handling of the beverage manufacturing machine becomes complicated. As a means to eliminate these drawbacks, boiler tank 1
It is conceivable to install a water level detector, such as a float switch, etc. in the boiler tank 1, but if such a water level detector is installed, not only will the cost increase, but also leakage may occur from the mounting point or the strength of the boiler tank 1 may be reduced. This is a concern.

Furthermore, if the user neglects the above-mentioned water supply operation and starts the heating element 14 with a small amount of water in the boiler tank 1, the heating element 14
This will overheat the boiler tank 1 and cause it to run dry, which is not desirable for quality control and may cause product trouble. Also, abnormal heating of the heating element 14 may deform the boiler tank 1, or cause fire, burns, etc. It can also be a cause.

[Purpose of the invention] The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and the purpose is to provide a machine for producing extracted beverages such as coffee that can automatically perform exhaust gas to promote water supply into a boiler tank without manual operation. shall be.

[Summary of the invention] In order to achieve the above object, the invention includes a boiler tank connected to a water tank via a water supply pipe, a heating element attached to the boiler tank,
In a coffee or other extracted beverage manufacturing machine comprising an extractor connected to the boiler tank via a hot water pipe and a steam pipe attached to the boiler tank, there is a space between the boiler tank and the steam pipe when the boiler tank is full of water. A normally open type valve with a check valve that floats up to close the tank is connected, and when the boiler tank is not full, the check valve lowers to open the boiler tank to the atmosphere. It is a beverage making machine.

[Embodiment of the invention] Figures 1 to 7 are below for an embodiment of the invention.
This will be explained with reference to the figures.

As shown in FIG. 1, a boiler tank 46 equipped with a heating element 57 is disposed on one side of a case 47, and a water tank 48 is disposed on the other side of the case 47. The water contained in the water tank 48 passes through a water supply pipe 50 which is disposed near the upper end of the boiler tank 46 and communicates with the outlet 49 at the bottom of the water tank 48 by utilizing the pressure difference and head difference between the two. Water is fed into the boiler tank 46 from the inlet of the boiler tank 46. A check valve 51 is provided in the water supply pipe 50. boiler tank 4
A valve 52 connected to the outlet of the top plate 46a of No. 6 and a sub-tank 53 are connected by a steam exhaust pipe 54 for depressurization.

As shown in FIG. 2, a normally open valve 55 is attached to one outlet of the top plate 46a of the boiler tank 46. This normally open valve 55 has a suction port 56a that is connected to the outlet of the boiler tank 46 at the lower end of the valve box 56, and a connecting portion 59 that is connected to the steam pipe 58 on one side of the valve box 56. A valve rod 6 is attached to a coiled spring 60 in the valve box 56.
1 is provided, and a truncated conical check valve 62 is recessed and recessedly fitted into the lower part of the valve stem 61 in a removable manner. This check valve 62 is made of a heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant material having a specific gravity of 1 or less, such as nylon. A valve seat 63 like rubber packing is installed in the valve box 56 corresponding to the check valve 62.
is installed. In the figure, 64 is a nut that covers the first flange 61a of the valve stem 61 and the upper end of the valve body 56, and 65 is a nut that covers the first flange 61a of the valve stem 61 and the second flange.
O-ring 6 fitted between the flanges 61b
Reference numeral 6 denotes a flange protruding within the valve box 56 located at the upper end of the valve seat 63, and the spring 60 is elastically attached between the flange and the second flange 61b of the valve stem 61. Reference numeral 61c denotes a guide groove formed at the lower end of the valve rod 61, into which an upper guide rod 62a formed at the upper part of the check valve 62 is loosely inserted. Reference numeral 56b denotes a guide stopper into which the lower guide rod 62b of the check valve 62 is fitted in the center so that it can move up and down.The guide stopper 56b has a through hole 56c on the outside and is fixed near the suction port 56a of the valve box 56.

Therefore, the boiler tank 4 is smaller than the water tank 48.
When water is supplied to 6, the check valve 62 guides the stopper 5.
The air in the boiler tank 46 placed on the boiler tank 6b passes through the normally open valve 55 from the suction port 56a, reaches the connecting portion 59, and is discharged to the outside through the steam pipe 58. As a result, the internal pressure of the boiler tank 46 becomes atmospheric pressure, and the water in the water tank 48 flows into the boiler tank 46 due to the head difference. When the inside of the boiler tank 46 is filled with water, the check valve 62 is guided by the upper guide rod 62a and the lower guide rod 62b and floats up to come into contact with the valve seat 63, since the specific gravity is less than 1. The valve 55 is closed, the boiler tank 46 is sealed, and the water is heated by energizing the heating element 57 disposed within the boiler tank 46. After being heated in this manner, when the extraction button 39a is pressed, the extraction valve 39 opens, and hot water with high temperature and pressure is supplied to the extractor A from the hot water pipe 39b through the hot water supply pipe 39c.

Also, when heating and pressurizing the inside of the boiler tank 46, that is, when the check valve 62 floats to the boiler tank 46 full of water and closes the valve seat 63, if you want to send foaming steam to the steam pipe 58, By pressing the steam exhaust button 61f and pushing down the valve stem 61, and pushing down the check valve 62 linked to the valve stem 61, the normally open valve 55 opens and steam can be spewed out.

As described above, by connecting the normally open valve 55 equipped with the float type check valve 62 to the steam pipe 58, the check valve 62 is lowered and normally opened when the boiler tank 46 is not full. The type valve 55 opens, the inside of the boiler tank 46 is opened to the atmosphere, and water can be automatically supplied from the water tank 48 due to the head difference. Therefore, when heating for extraction, water is always kept in the boiler tank 46, so abnormal heating of the heating element 57 can be prevented, and there is no need to press a push button to supply water. Furthermore, when the boiler tank 46 becomes full of water, the check valve 62 floats up and the normally open valve 55 automatically closes, so that the boiler tank 46 can be automatically sealed and the extraction operation becomes easy.

As shown in FIG. 3, the hot water supply pipe 39b communicating with the hot water supply pipe 39c is inserted through the outlet of the top plate 46a, and its base end reaches the middle of the boiler tank 46, while the tip of the hot water supply pipe 39c is inserted into the outlet of the top plate 46a. It is connected to an extractor A placed near the tip of the overhanging portion 47b of the case 47. This extractor A is composed of a filter basket 69 that engages a coffee filter 68 into which coffee powder c is placed, and a basket holder 70 that suspends the filter basket 69 in a detachable manner.

As shown in FIG. 4, the coffee filter 6
Two round or elliptical protrusions 71 are provided at symmetrical positions on the outer circumferential side of the 8, and a flange 72 that protrudes upward in an arc shape and is curled at the upper circumferential edge thereof.
is formed. The filter basket 69
Two vertical grooves 73 are provided at symmetrical positions on the inner peripheral side surface of the filter basket 6.
A locking convex portion 74 is provided on the outer peripheral side surface of each basket holder 9, and the locking convex portion 74 is respectively locked by a locking claw portion 75 vertically provided on the basket holder 70. As shown in FIG. 5, the locking convex portion 74 and the vertical groove 73 are formed thickly on the circumferential side of the filter basket 69, so that when molding the filter basket 69, defects caused by material flow can be reduced. There is.

The protrusion 71 of the coffee filter 68 is fitted into the vertical groove 73 to engage the coffee filter 68 with the filter basket 69. A second filter 77 is installed in the central window hole 76 of the basket holder 70 through a packing 78, and the coffee powder c.
The filter basket 69 containing the coffee filter 68 is attached to the basket holder 70, but when it is attached, the flange portion 72 of the coffee filter 68 protrudes upward in an arc shape and is in line contact with the packing 78, so that there is no contact. Since the area is small, it is easy to remove and has a high degree of adhesion.

As described above, by fitting the protrusion 71 of the coffee filter 68 and the vertical groove 73 of the filter basket 69, the coffee filter 68 is interlocked when the filter basket 69 is attached or detached, and the coffee filter 68 is prevented from adhering to the packing 78. In addition to being removed smoothly, the curled flange portion 72 of the coffee filter 68 comes into line contact with the packing 78, and even though the flatness is looser than that of a structure that makes surface contact, it still adheres tightly to the filter when tightened with the same force. will also be good.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 6A, and 7A, an extraction port 79 through which the extract d is discharged is provided at the lower center of the filter basket 69, and a carafe a is placed below this. A plate 80 is provided at the bottom on which the carafe a is placed via a spring 81, and the plate 80 is constantly pushed upward and locked to the case protrusion 47a. A switch lever 82 is integrally provided vertically at the center of the back surface of the plate 80, and has the function of holding the free end of a first contact spring 83, which has its base end fixed to an insulator 89 and is provided substantially horizontally. A second contact spring 8 whose base end is fixed to the insulator 89 is located above the first contact spring 83.
4 are provided substantially parallel to each other, and this second contact spring 84
An eccentric cam 85 is mounted on the tip, that is, the free end. These first and second contact springs 83, 8
Electrical contacts 87 and 88 provided at each of the heating element 57 electrically turn on and off the heating element 57 . The eccentric cam 85 is connected to a dial 86 so that it can be operated from the outside, and is interlocked so that the rotation of the dial 86 causes the eccentric cam 85 to rotate.

As mentioned above, the place where the carafe A that receives the extract d is equipped with a structure that detects the extraction amount by the weight of the extract d, so when the amount of the extract d poured into the carafe A reaches the appropriate amount, the weight will change. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 7A, the plate 80 moves downward against the spring 81, and the first contact spring 83 is pushed down by the switch lever 82. As a result, the electrical contacts 87 and 88 are separated. , heating element 5
7 is cut off, and the extraction ends. The appropriate level of extraction amount is determined by rotating the eccentric cam 85 mounted on the tip of the second contact spring 84 with the dial 86 as shown in FIG. 7B.
3, 84 to a predetermined position.

FIGS. 6A and 6B and FIGS. 7A and 7B show the settings for extracting 2 cups and 4 cups, for example. The eccentric cam 8 mounted on the tip of the second contact spring 84
5, the first and second contact springs 83, 84 are pressed down, and the stroke of the switch lever 82 formed on the back surface of the plate 80 is varied to increase or decrease the amount dispensed. A, as shown in FIG. 7A, the first contact spring 8
3 is pressed down to shut off the heater circuit (not shown) and terminate the extraction. Therefore,
Since it can automatically detect the appropriate amount of extraction for a given coffee powder c, the concentration of the extract liquid d can be optimized, and since it does not extract more coffee liquid than necessary, there is no waste. There is an effect that the extract d can be extracted at the same concentration and the amount of extraction can be adjusted.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and for example, the valve 52 used when manually supplying water.
Various modifications are possible, for example, it may be omitted.

[Effects of the invention] As mentioned above, this invention connects a normally open valve between the outlet of the boiler tank and the steam pipe, which is equipped with a check valve that floats up and closes when the boiler tank is full of water. Water is supplied while exhausting from the normally open valve, and the check valve automatically floats up when the water is filled, instead of manual operation such as holding down the push button for the normally open valve when water is being supplied. By closing the normally open valve, water flowing into the steam pipe can also be stopped.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figures 1 to 7 show an embodiment of the present invention, in which Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view from the front side, Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view of a normally open valve, and Figure 3 is a side view. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view, FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the main part, FIGS. Figures A and 7A are longitudinal sectional views of essential parts, Figures 6B and 7B are front views of the cam, and Figure 8 is an explanatory diagram of the conventional cam. 39c... Hot water pipe, 46... Boiler tank, 4
8... Water tank, 50... Water supply pipe, 55... Normally open valve, 56... Valve box, 57... Heating element, 58... Steam pipe, 61... Valve stem, 62... Check valve , 63...Valve seat, A...Extractor.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] (1) A boiler tank connected to a water tank via a water supply pipe, a heating element attached to the boiler tank, and a heating element connected to the boiler tank via a hot water supply pipe. In a machine for producing extracted beverages such as coffee, which comprises an extractor and a steam pipe attached to the boiler tank, the machine is equipped with a check valve that floats up and closes when the boiler tank is full of water between the boiler tank and the steam pipe. A machine for producing extracted beverages such as coffee, characterized by connecting an open valve. (2) In the normally open type valve, a valve stem is attached to the valve body so that it can be raised and lowered, and a check valve with a specific gravity of 1 or less is removably fitted in a concave and convex manner to the lower part of the valve stem, and the check valve is attached to the boiler. Utility model registration claim 1, characterized in that the valve is seated on a valve seat that communicates with the outlet of a tank so that it can be freely approached and separated.
Machine for producing extracted beverages such as coffee as described in Section 1.