KR101672966B1 - Beverage injection system and beverage injection method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a beverage injecting system and a beverage injecting method and, more specifically, to a beverage injecting system including: a gas storing tank wherein a gas is stored; a beverage storing tank wherein beverage is stored, and the gas is injected from the gas storing tank; a cooling device cooling the beverage transferred from the beverage storing tank by a pressure of the gas; a beverage supply unit from which the beverage cooled by the cooling device is discharged to the outside; a solenoid valve installed between the cooling device and the beverage supply unit and opened and closed by a control unit; and a flowmeter installed between the cooling device and the solenoid valve, detecting an amount of the beverage cooled by the cooling device, and transmitting the detected amount value to the control unit. The solenoid valve is closed by the control unit if the beverage amount is at a standard value or higher. The beverage injecting system and the beverage injecting method are capable of preventing bubbles of the beverage discharged to the outside of the beverage supply unit excessively generated by a shortage of the beverage stored inside the beverage storing tank from being sprinkled or scattered in all directions.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a beverage injection system and a beverage injection method,

The present invention relates to a beverage injection system and a beverage injection method.

And more particularly to a beverage injection system and a beverage injection method capable of preventing bubbles of beverage discharged to the outside of a beverage supply part from being excessively generated due to insufficient beverage stored in a beverage storage tank, .

Generally, a beverage injection system is applied to inject a beverage containing carbon dioxide, especially draft beer into a container.

An example of such a conventional beverage injection system is disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 1333154.

Conventional beverage injection systems include smart dispensers, draft beers, refrigerators, carbon dioxide cylinders and coolers.

The smart dispenser is a device for feeding a draft beer stored in the draft beer container through the cooler and dispensing the draft beer into a draft beer cup. The smart dispenser is configured to automatically follow only the draft beer brews of the amount set by the user before the draft beer is introduced, automatically generating a uniform amount of bubbles each time the draft beer is followed, .

However, when the conventional beverage injection system lacks the beer stored in the draft beer can, excessive carbon dioxide gas is injected into the beer can, resulting in excessive bubbles of the beer discharged to the outside of the smart dispenser, .

Further, in the conventional beverage injection system, the remaining amount of beer in the draft beer barrel must be constantly checked to prevent the above phenomenon, and the beer barrels that have not been used must be replaced.

In addition, the conventional beverage injection system is hygienically defective due to the above-described phenomenon, and there is a problem in that it is necessary to clean and clean the beer bubbles splashed or scattered in all directions.

KR 1333154 B1

The solenoid valve is closed by the control unit when the flow rate detected by the flowmeter is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value. The solenoid valve is closed by the control unit, And it is an object of the present invention to provide a beverage injection system and a beverage injection method capable of preventing bubbles of excess beverage from being generated excessively and splashing or scattering in all directions.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a beverage injection system comprising: a gas storage tank for storing a gas; a beverage storage tank for storing a beverage and for injecting the gas from the gas storage tank; A cooler for cooling the beverage delivered from the storage tank; a beverage supply unit for discharging the beverage cooled by the cooler to the outside; a solenoid valve installed between the cooler and the beverage supply unit and opened and closed by the control unit; And a flow meter installed between the cooler and the solenoid valve for detecting a flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler and transmitting the detected flow rate to the control unit, wherein the solenoid valve is closed by the control unit when the flow rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value .

Further, the reference value is a value obtained by multiplying the discharge capacity per unit time of the beverage by the coefficient for the discharge capacity per unit time.

Further, the discharge capacity per unit time and the coefficient for the discharge capacity per unit time can be changed through an operation unit provided in the beverage supply unit.

Further, the operation of closing the solenoid valve by the control unit when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the predetermined reference value can be turned on / off via the operation unit.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a beverage injection method including: a gas injection step of injecting a gas in a gas storage tank into a beverage storage tank; A beverage transporting step of transporting the beverage to a cooler; a beverage cooling step of cooling the beverage transferred by the cooler; a flow rate detecting step of detecting the flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler and transmitting the beverage to the control unit; A control step of determining whether the flow rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value and a valve control step of causing the control unit to close the solenoid valve when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the reference value and maintain the opening of the solenoid valve when the flow rate is less than the reference value .

The method may further include, after the valve controlling step, a beverage supplying step of discharging the beverage to the outside only when the opening of the solenoid valve is maintained.

The beverage injection system and the beverage injection method according to the present invention have the following advantages.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The beverage injection system and beverage injection method according to the present invention can prevent the beverage bubbles discharged to the outside of the beverage supply part from being excessively generated due to the lack of beverage stored in the beverage storage tank, There are advantages.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The beverage injection system and the beverage injection method according to the present invention can easily recognize the exhaustion of the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank.

The beverage injection system and the beverage injection method according to the present invention can easily grasp the replacement timing of the beverage storage tank.

The beverage injection system and the beverage injection method according to the present invention can minimize the loss of beverage.

The beverage injection system and the beverage injection method according to the present invention are advantageous in that there is no need for unnecessary cleaning and cleaning since the foam of the beverage does not bounce or scatter in all directions.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The beverage injection system and beverage injection method according to the present invention can be applied to various kinds of beverage injection since the coefficients of the beverage dispense capacity per unit time and the discharge capacity per unit time can be changed through the operation unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a beverage injection system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001] The present invention relates to a drink dispensing system,
3 is a flow chart illustrating a beverage injection method in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

For reference, the same components as those of the prior art of the present invention will be described with reference to the above-mentioned prior arts, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

2 is a front view showing a part of a manipulation part of a beverage supply part of a beverage injection system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a front view to be.

1 and 2, a beverage injection system according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a gas storage tank 100 in which a gas is stored, a gas storage tank 100 in which beverage is stored, A cooler 300 for cooling the beverage transferred from the beverage storage tank 200 by the pressure of the gas, and a cooler 300 for cooling the beverage cooled by the cooler 300 to the outside A solenoid valve 520 installed between the cooler 300 and the drink supply unit 400 and opened and closed by the control unit 530 and a solenoid valve 520 installed between the cooler 300 and the solenoid valve 520 And a flow meter 510 for detecting the flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 and transmitting the detected flow rate to the control unit 530. When the flow rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value, the control unit 530 closes the solenoid valve 520 .

The gas storage tank 100 is a tank in which gas is stored. The gas stored in the gas storage tank 100 is preferably carbon dioxide (carbon dioxide). The gas storage tank 100 is connected to the beverage storage tank 200 through a first transfer line 150 to inject the gas into the beverage storage tank 200. It is preferable that the cross-sectional area of the internal flow path is uniformly formed in the first transfer line 150.

The beverage storage tank 200 is a tank in which drinks are stored. The beverage is preferably a beer, but may be a soft drink. The beverage storage tank 200 is connected to the cooler 300 by a second transfer line 250. In the beverage storage tank 200, the gas injected from the gas storage tank 100 through the first transfer line 150 is contained in the beverage, and the beverage is introduced into the second transfer line 250 by the pressure of the gas. To the cooler (300). The second transfer line 250 preferably has a uniform cross-sectional area of the internal flow path.

The cooler 300 is connected to the beverage supply unit 400 and the third transfer line 350. The third transfer line 350 preferably has a uniform cross-sectional area of the internal flow path. The cooler 300 serves to rapidly cool the beverage transferred from the beverage storage tank 200 through the second transfer line 250 to cool the beverage.

In the beverage supply unit 400, the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 is discharged to the outside through the third transfer line 350. That is, the beverage rapidly cooled in the cooler 300 is discharged to the outside through the beverage supply part 400 and injected into the container. More specifically, an opening portion through which the beverage is injected is formed in a bottom portion of the container, and the container is attached to the beverage supply portion 400 so that the opening and the nozzle (not shown) of the beverage supply portion 400 can be connected to each other And the beverage is injected into the container. The related art will be referred to and a description thereof will be omitted. The beverage supply unit 400 is provided with an operation unit 410. The operation unit 410 includes a display unit 411 for displaying various information such as a discharge capacity B per unit time of the beverage, a coefficient C for the discharge capacity per unit time, and operation buttons (not shown) . The user can manipulate the operation button (not shown) to change the discharge capacity B per unit time and the coefficient C for the discharge capacity per unit time. The value obtained by multiplying the discharge capacity B per unit time by the coefficient C for the discharge capacity per unit time is a reference value. Here, the reference value is a reference value that may cause a phenomenon that bubbles of the beverage, which is discharged to the outside of the beverage supply unit 400 and injected into the beverage container, are excessively generated and which may be splashed or scattered in all directions. The reference value can be set in advance by the user and can be set by operating buttons (not shown) for the discharge capacity B per unit time and the coefficient C for the discharge capacity per unit time in accordance with the type of the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200, To be different.

A first transfer line 150 is provided between the gas storage tank 100 and the beverage storage tank 200 to connect the gas storage tank 100 and the beverage storage tank 200, A third transfer line 350 is provided between the cooler 300 and the beverage supply unit 400. The second transfer line 250 is connected to the beverage storage tank 200 and the cooler 300, And connects the cooler 300 and the beverage supply unit 400.

The third transfer line 350 is provided with a flow meter 510 and a solenoid valve 520. The solenoid valve 520 is installed between the cooler 300 and the beverage supply 400 and the flow meter 510 is installed between the cooler 300 and the solenoid valve 520. The flow meter 510 detects the flow rate of the beverage that is cooled in the cooler 300 and is conveyed to the beverage supply unit 400 through the third conveyance line 350 and transmits the detected flow rate to the control unit 530. The solenoid valve 520 is opened and closed by the control unit 530. More specifically, the solenoid valve 520 is automatically closed by the control unit 530 when the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is equal to or greater than a preset reference value, so that the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 is supplied to the beverage supply unit 400 When the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is less than the preset reference value, the solenoid valve 520 is maintained in an open state, so that the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 is supplied to the beverage supply unit 400 And is normally injected into the container. This operation of the solenoid valve 520 is performed when the use item A displayed on the display unit 411 of the operation unit 410 is ON.

The reason why the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is equal to or greater than the preset reference value is that the gas in the gas storage tank 100 is not stored in the beverage storage tank 200 due to the lack of the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200 And the volume of the beverage to be cooled, which is transferred to the cooler 300 by being excessively injected, is increased, and the flow rate excessively rises above the reference value. Therefore, the fact that the flow rate of the beverage in the third conveyance line 350 having the same cross-sectional area rises above the predetermined reference value means that the flow rate of the beverage in the third conveyance line 350 is abnormally increased do.

For example, as shown in FIG. 2, when the discharge capacity B per unit time shown in the display unit 411 is 6 cc per 0.1 second and the coefficient C for the discharge capacity per unit time is 1.3, the reference value is 7.8 cc * 1.3), and when it is expressed in ml / sec, 78 ml / sec is the reference value. Therefore, the solenoid valve 520 is kept open when the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is less than the reference value of 78 ml / sec. When the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is 78 ml / sec, the control unit 530 closes the beverage to be delivered to the beverage supply unit 400, so that the beverage is discharged to the outside of the beverage supply unit 400 and the beverage is excessively bubbled into the container, It is possible to prevent the phenomenon of splashing or scattering. In addition, when the solenoid valve 520 is closed and the beverage is not discharged through the beverage supply unit 400, the user can easily recognize that the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200 is exhausted, Can be replaced.

The operation in which the solenoid valve 520 is closed by the control unit 530 when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the preset reference value can be turned on / off via the operation unit 410. That is, when the operation is ON in the use item A, the solenoid valve 520 is closed by the control unit 530 when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the predetermined reference value, The solenoid valve 520 is maintained in the open state when the flow rate is less than or equal to the predetermined reference value.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a beverage injection method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, in describing the beverage injection method according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, substantially the same configurations as those of the above-described configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals as in FIGS. 1 and 2, and description thereof is omitted.

3, a beverage injection method according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a gas injection step (S10) of injecting gas of a gas storage tank 100 into a beverage storage tank 200, (S20) for transferring the beverage of the beverage storage tank (200) to the cooler (300) by the pressure of the gas injected into the beverage container (200) A flow rate detecting step S40 of detecting the flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 by the flow meter 510 and transmitting the detected flow rate to the control unit 530; The control unit 530 closes the solenoid valve 520 in step S61 when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the reference value and opens the solenoid valve 520 when the flow rate is less than the reference value And a valve control step (S60) of holding (S62).

A gas injection step of injecting the gas of the gas storage tank 100 into the beverage storage tank 200 is performed (S10).

At this time, the gas injected into the beverage storage tank 200 is contained in the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200.

Next, a beverage transfer step is performed to transfer the beverage of the beverage storage tank 200 to the cooler 300 by the pressure of the gas injected into the beverage storage tank 200 (S20).

Next, a beverage cooling step is performed in which the cooled beverage is cooled by the cooler 300 (S30).

At this time, the beverage is preferably rapidly cooled, so that the user can drink the cool beverage.

Next, a flow rate detecting step of detecting the flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 by the flow meter 510 and transmitting the detected flow rate to the control unit 530 is performed (S40).

At this time, the flow rate is preferably the flow rate of the beverage delivered from the cooler 300 to the beverage supply part 400.

Then, the control unit 530 determines whether the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is equal to or greater than a preset reference value (S50).

The user may change the reference value according to the type and characteristics of the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200.

When the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is equal to or greater than the reference value, the control unit 530 closes the solenoid valve 520 (S61). When the flow rate detected by the flow meter 510 is less than the reference value, A valve control step of holding the opening of the valve 520 (S62) is performed (S60).

At this time, when the solenoid valve 520 is closed (S61), the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 is not transferred to the beverage supply part 400, and the user recognizes that the beverage stored in the beverage storage tank 200 is exhausted And the beverage storage tank 200 can be replaced.

When the solenoid valve 520 is opened (S62), the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 is transferred to the beverage supply unit 400. [

After the valve control step S60, a beverage supply step of discharging the beverage cooled in the cooler 300 to the outside and injecting the beverage into the container is performed only when the solenoid valve 520 is kept open (S70).

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. can do.

100: gas storage tank 150: first transfer line
200: Beverage storage tank 250: Second transfer line
300: cooler 350: third transfer line
400: beverage supply unit 410:
411: Display unit 510: Flow meter
520: Solenoid valve 530:
A: Use item B: Discharge capacity per unit time
C: Coefficient for discharge capacity per unit time

Claims (6)

A gas storage tank in which gas is stored;
A beverage storage tank in which a beverage is stored and from which gas is injected from the gas storage tank;
A cooler for cooling the beverage delivered from the beverage storage tank by the pressure of the gas;
A beverage supply portion through which the beverage cooled by the cooler is discharged to the outside;
A solenoid valve installed between the cooler and the beverage supply unit and opened / closed by a control unit;
A flow meter installed between the cooler and the solenoid valve for detecting a flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler and transmitting the detected flow rate to the controller; And
And closing the solenoid valve by the control unit when the flow rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value,
Wherein the reference value is a product of a discharge capacity per unit time of the beverage and a coefficient for the discharge capacity per unit time.
delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the discharge capacity per unit time and the coefficient for the discharge capacity per unit time are changeable through an operation unit provided in the drink supply unit.
The method of claim 3,
Wherein an operation of closing the solenoid valve by the control unit when the flow rate is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference value is enabled / disabled via the operation unit.
A gas injection step of injecting the gas of the gas storage tank into the beverage storage tank;
A beverage transfer step of transferring the beverage in the beverage storage tank to the cooler by the pressure of the gas injected into the beverage storage tank;
A beverage cooling step of cooling the transferred beverage by the cooler;
A flow rate detecting step of detecting a flow rate of the beverage cooled in the cooler and transmitting the detected flow rate to the control unit;
Determining whether the flow rate is equal to or greater than a preset reference value; And
And a valve control step of controlling the solenoid valve to close the solenoid valve when the flow rate is equal to or greater than the reference value and maintaining the solenoid valve open when the flow rate is less than the reference value,
Wherein the reference value is a value obtained by multiplying a discharge capacity per unit time of the beverage by a coefficient for the discharge capacity per unit time.
6. The method of claim 5,
Further comprising a beverage supply step of discharging the beverage to the outside only when the opening of the solenoid valve is maintained after the valve control step.

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