RU2816912C1 - Bottom of filling chamber of aqua vending machine with climate control of this bottom - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: control devices.

SUBSTANCE: invention relates to aqua vending machines (water vending machines) intended for operation at negative ambient temperatures, and directly relates to the dispensing unit of the aqua vending machine, namely, a water filling chamber, the bottom of which is equipped with climate control to facilitate its (chamber) operation in conditions of negative ambient temperature. Technical problem consists in the need to provide for a long-term stable low value of resistance of heat transfer from the electric heating element to the bottom of the filling chamber. Bottom 1 of the filling chamber of the aqua vending machine is made with climate control 2, including substrate 3, made in the form of a plate of hard plastic with a plurality of holes 4, and electric heating element 5 located with fixation on substrate 3 from above uniformly distributed over the area of this substrate 3. At the same time this heating element 5 is laid so that it does not close holes 4. In addition, on bottom 1 from below by means of capacitor welding there are welded threaded pins, so that the number of these pins is equal to the number of holes 4, and wherein these holes are geometrically conjugated with these pins. In the assembled form of bottom 1 with climate control 2, substrate 3 of this climate control with heating element 5 is installed on bottom 1 from below with pressing to bottom 1 from below heating element 5, for this purpose, said pins are located in holes 4 and corresponding nuts are screwed on these pins.

EFFECT: creation of considerable force of electric heating element pressing to the chamber bottom by means of relevant set of screw-nut pairs is provided.

1 cl, 2 dwg

Description

Field of technology to which the invention relates

The invention relates to aqua-vending devices (water vending machines) designed to operate at sub-zero ambient temperatures, and directly concerns the dispensing unit of the aqua-vending device, namely, the water filling chamber, the bottom of which is equipped with climate control to facilitate its (the chamber’s) operation in conditions of negative ambient temperature.

State of the art

There is a known kiosk-machine for selling water, designed to operate at negative ambient temperatures and containing an appropriate climate control system (climate control of the kiosk-machine), including thermal insulation of the body, as well as a thermal control and heating unit (see, for example, the description of the useful models under patent RU No. 113043 U1, IPC G07F 13/00, published 01/27/2012 Bulletin No. 3, patent holder V.V. Bakaleyko; description of a utility model under patent RU No. 173506 U1, IPC G07F 13/00, published 08/29/2017 Bulletin No. 25, patent holder M.V. Reshetnikov)

The features of the known automatic kiosk, which are common to the features of the claimed technical solution, are the presence of a thermal control and heating unit.

The reason that prevents the known kiosk-machine from obtaining a technical result, which is ensured by the technical solution declared for patenting, is that the mentioned thermal control and heating unit carries out controlled heating of the entire internal cavity of the body of the kiosk-machine, including the dispensing unit (chamber) located in the body filling and associated pipelines), as a result of which there is a large consumption of electricity to maintain the operation of the dispensing unit at negative ambient temperatures.

The bottom of the loading chamber of an aquavending apparatus with climate control of this bottom (prototype) is known, including a piece of heating cable designed to heat the bottom of the filling chamber; Moreover, this segment is located on a heat-insulating substrate, which is a piece of self-adhesive roll energy flex (foamed polyethylene). The segment is laid on a snake-shaped substrate, and it is glued to the substrate from above using the sticky layer of the substrate itself, so that the snake shape makes it possible to heat the entire area of the bottom of the filling chamber. To do this, the substrate is glued to the bottom using the same adhesive layer so that a piece of the heating cable is directly pressed against this bottom. In addition, a heat-insulating trough-shaped cover is placed on the lower part of the loading chamber, made, for example, from a piece of self-adhesive rolled energyflex. The cover has the shape of a trough with its own bottom and side walls, designed to cover the chamber along its perimeter from the outside and below, so that with its side walls the cover is glued to the side wall of the chamber with corresponding pressing of the substrate with the cable to the bottom of the chamber (see the description of the invention according to the patent RU No. 2738208 C1, IPC G07F 13/00, published 12/09/2020 Bulletin No. 34, patent holder V.V. Vyatkin).

The features of the known bottom with climate control, common with the features of the claimed technical solution, are that the climate control is an electric heating element laid on a substrate and distributed over the area of the bottom, pressed with the help of this substrate to the bottom of the chamber from below.

The reason that prevents the known climate-controlled bottom from achieving the claimed technical result is that it uses a substrate that is a flexible self-adhesive form, which for this reason (i.e., due to flexibility and “self-adhesive”) does not provide thermally reliable long-term connection of a flexible long resistive heating element with the surface of the chamber bottom from its lower side.

The technical problem to be solved by the patented technical solution is the need to ensure, over the long term, a consistently low value of heat transfer resistance from the electric heating element to the bottom of the filling chamber.

Disclosure of the invention

The technical result that mediates the solution to this technical problem is to create a significant force of pressing the electric heating element to the bottom of the chamber, uniformly distributed over the area of the chamber bottom, by means of a relevant set of “screw-nut” pairs.

The technical result is achieved in that the bottom of the filling chamber of an aquavending apparatus has a climate control of this bottom, in which this climate control is an electric heating element laid on a substrate and distributed over the area of the bottom, pressed with the help of this substrate to the bottom of the chamber from below, according to the invention The bottom of the filling chamber has welded threaded rods installed at the bottom, and the substrate is a plate made of hard plastic, in which there are holes geometrically mated with the said welded threaded rods, so that on the upper side of this plate an electric heating element distributed over the area of this plate is located and secured to this plate. an element that does not cover the indicated holes, through which, with the help of the specified welded threaded rods located in these holes, and with the help of nuts screwed onto these studs, this plate is attached to the bottom of the filling chamber with this electric heating element pressed against it.

The technical result is also achieved by the fact that the specified electric heating element is either a flat silicone electric heater or a heating cable fixed to the surface of the plate using aluminum tape, and this heating cable in turn is either a resistive cable or a self-regulating cable.

Brief description of drawings

In fig. Figure 1 shows a schematic (in a vertical cross-section) image of a filling chamber with a water buyer’s container located in the chamber during the process of filling this container with water; in fig. Figure 2 shows a schematic cross-section of a substrate with an electric heating element.

Carrying out the invention

The bottom 1 of the filling chamber of the aqua-vending apparatus is made with a climate control 2, including a substrate 3 made in the form of a plate of hard plastic with many (through) holes 4, and located and fixed on the substrate 3 from above, evenly distributed over the area of this substrate 3 (i.e. e. plates 3) electric heating element 5. Moreover, this heating element 5 is laid so that it does not cover the holes 4. In addition, welded threaded rods are installed (targeted) on the bottom 1 using capacitor welding (in Fig. 1 the studs are shown , but not indicated by position), so that the number of these pins is equal to the number of holes 4, and at the same time these holes are geometrically conjugate with these pins. In the assembled form of the bottom 1 with climate control 2, the substrate 3 of this climate control with the heating element 5 is installed on the bottom 1 from below with the heating element 5 pressed against the bottom 1 from below, for which the specified studs are located in the holes 4 and are screwed onto these studs with a tightening corresponding nuts.

In this case, the electric heating element 5 can be made in the form of a flat silicone electric heater containing a resistive heating element made of a heat-resistant alloy embedded in a layer of silicone and located in it like a snake. In this case, a controller and a temperature sensor connected to the controller are used to regulate the temperature of the bottom. In addition, the electric heating element 5 can be made in the form of a heating cable, arranged like a snake and secured to the substrate 3 using aluminum tape. In this case, a resistive heating cable can be used as a heating cable. In this case, to regulate the temperature of the bottom, it is also necessary to use a controller and a temperature sensor connected to the controller. In addition, a self-regulating heating cable (for example, GWS24-2 2 m long) can be used as a heating cable. In this case, a controller and temperature sensor are not needed, since temperature control is carried out by the cable itself due to the dependence of the electrical resistance of its heating material on its temperature (resistance increases with increasing temperature).

The use of the filling chamber is as follows.

During the operation of an outdoor aquavending apparatus in winter conditions, the electric heating element 2 heats the bottom 1, thereby eliminating the possibility of icing of the upper (working) surface of this bottom. In this case, the temperature to which heating is carried out is determined either by the controller of the aquavending device, based on the information it (the controller) has about the temperature of the air surrounding the device, received from the corresponding temperature sensor, or is “determined” by the self-regulating cable itself due to the known physical properties of its material . Due to this, the outer (upper) side of the bottom 1 is not covered with ice, which is a necessary condition for the normal use of the aqua-vending apparatus

In the process of aquavending, the water buyer places an empty container in the filling chamber under the filling pipe and starts the process of filling the container with water (Fig. 1). After filling the container with water, the buyer closes the container with a lid and then with a sliding movement moves the container filled with water and closed with a lid along the bottom 1 of the filling chamber in the direction from the filling chamber.

Claims (2)

1. The bottom of the filling chamber of an aquavending apparatus with climate control of this bottom, in which this climate control is an electric heating element laid on a substrate and distributed over the area of the bottom, pressed with the help of this substrate to the bottom of the chamber from below, characterized in that on the bottom of the chamber When pouring from below, welded threaded rods are installed, and the substrate is a plate made of hard plastic, in which holes are made, geometrically mated with the specified welded threaded rods, so that on the upper side of this plate an electric heating element distributed over the area of this plate is located and secured to this plate, without covering the indicated holes, through which, using the specified welded threaded rods located in these holes, and with the help of nuts screwed onto these studs, this plate is attached to the bottom of the filling chamber with this electric heating element pressed against it. 2. The bottom according to claim 1, characterized in that the specified electric heating element is either a flat silicone electric heater or a heating cable fixed to the surface of the plate using aluminum tape, and this heating cable in turn is either a resistive cable or a self-regulating one cable.