WO2010091920A1

WO2010091920A1 - Beverage vending method and device

Info

Publication number: WO2010091920A1
Application number: PCT/EP2010/050661
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ashok Kumar Naik
Original assignee: Unilever Nv; Unilever Plc; Hindustan Unilever Limited
Priority date: 2009-02-10
Filing date: 2010-01-21
Publication date: 2010-08-19
Also published as: CN102307502A

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of vending a hot beverage and to a portable beverage vending device. The method of vending a hot beverage from a portable vending device comprises the steps of (i) feeding a beverage into an insulated pressure vessel through a liquid port; (ii) heating the beverage in the pressure vessel to a temperature higher than 100° C at a predetermined heating station; (iii) dispensing the hot beverage from said pressure vessel through said liquid port into desired receptacles, wherein when the pressure inside the vessel is less than atmospheric pressure, the hot beverage is dispensed through said liquid port by pneumatically pressurizing said vessel through a pneumatic port.

Description

BEVERAGE VENDING METHOD AND DEVICE

Field of the Invention The invention relates to a method of vending a hot beverage and to a portable beverage vending device. The invention is particularly suitable for dispensing and vending a hot beverage like water, milk, tea, coffee, soups or health drinks in public places.

Background and Prior art

People around the world consume a large number of beverages. Popular beverages include water, milk, juices, tea, coffee, soups, health drinks, energy drinks, carbonated drinks and beer and other alcoholic drinks. Depending on individual tastes and the beverage being consumed, the beverage may be consumed cold or consumed hot. Usually cold beverages include water, milk, tea, coffee, juices, health drinks, energy drinks, carbonated drinks and beer and other alcoholic drinks. By cold beverage is meant that the beverage is consumed at temperatures in the range of 0 to 20 ⁰C. Beverages which are preferred to be consumed hot include water, milk, tea, coffee, health drinks and soups. By hot beverage is meant that the drink is consumed at temperatures in the range of about 60 to 85⁰C.

Hot beverages are prepared in many ways. The beverages may be prepared in the kitchen in homes in a kettle where the beverages are heated on a stove where water and other ingredients if any are heated to desired temperature, filtered if required and then consumed in individual cups. Alternately hot water may be prepared in the kitchen and this hot water may be added to individual cups that contain premixed ingredients as powder/granules or as beverage concentrate powders encased in teabags. This method of preparing hot beverages is usually practiced in homes, hotels, restaurants and road side vending stalls.

Another popular format of preparing and vending hot beverages are through what are known as vending machines. These machines usually comprise both mechanical parts to store, mix and dispense the beverage and electronic parts to control the operation of the machine. These vending machines are usually installed in fixed locations e.g. in office corridors, airports and railway stations etc. The vending machines are either operated by a vendor or the beverage may be dispensed from these machines on input of a coin / token by a consumer.

The above formats of preparing and vending hot beverages suffice for consumers who have time and motivation to go to these fixed vending machines for procuring their beverage. There are situations and places like stadiums, bus stops, railway stations and other public places like streets where a person may desire to have a hot beverage but may not have the time or may have to search in order to find the location of the nearest beverage vending machine/shop. In such situations, he is often deprived of the beverage that he desires to consume. This has been overcome, to some extent, by vendors who walk around such places carrying hot kettles containing the beverages in their hands or backpacks and dispense the beverage into individual cups for such consumers.

It has been found that hot beverages stored in such kettles, even if insulated, have limited application. The beverages tend to cool in about less than one hour and if all of the beverage is not sold in that time, the beverage is usually wasted and has to be thrown away. Further, in tropical countries, where the average ambient temperature is usually high, although the rate of cooling is thereby slower, it has been found from extensive consumer studies that hot beverage consumers prefer their beverage to be hotter than those beverages prepared by consumers in cooler climates. Thus, there is a need for providing a portable hot beverage portable vending device that maintains the temperature of the hot beverage for much longer times as compared to such vending devices presently available.

GB2442066 A (Baxi Heating UK Limited, 2008) discloses a water heater comprising a container provided with an inlet and an outlet, a heater element activated by a control device and a temperature measuring device characterized in that the heater includes a pressure sensor to measure the atmospheric pressure, said sensor communicating the measured atmospheric pressure to calculation means to calculate the boiling point of water, a data linkage for transmission of the calculated boiling point to the control element maintaining the water temperature at a preset temperature difference below the determined boiling point. By maintaining the temperature below the boiling point, water temperature remains below boiling point and does not result into dangerous situation due to excess pressure from steam and helps in reducing wastage of 5 energy. The device taught by this document does not solve the problem of keeping the beverage hot for a longer time. Furthermore, the specific embodiments disclosed in this document require the device to be connected to the domestic water supply line to be able to discharge the hot water from the device, making the device unsuitable for mobile vending. There is no teaching of use of a pressure vessel in a portable 10 vending machine which generates super heated water above 100 C for preparing a hot beverage.

One such vending device is described in UK patent application GB2367550 (Smith, 15 2002). This patent application discloses a portable water dispenser comprising a reservoir for storing water, a pressure pump for pressurising the water supply to make the beverage and a primer pump for pumping water from the reservoir to the pressure pump. Preferably the dispenser is provided with a heat exchanger to heat the water supply before it is used and this forms part of a cappuccino/espresso coffee machine. 20 Although the aim of the this invention is similar to the present invention i.e. to provide hot beverage by a vendor who walks around with the device in outdoor locations where people who desire to have such beverage, the present inventors have found that the heat provided to the hot beverage and the way the heat is retained is insufficient to keep the beverage hot for the desired long period of time. 25

The present invention comprises preparing hot beverage at greater than 100 ⁰C in a pressure vessel which can be carried around by a person to dispense the beverage 30 as and when required. Portable boilers where steam is generated for bottle sterilization purposes are also known. US2002/0029775 (Sabin, 2002) claims a method of sanitizing a bottle water dispenser, the method comprising transporting a portable boiler to a location of a bottled water dispenser; generating steam in the portable boiler at the location of the bottled water dispenser; flow coupling an outlet of the portable boiler with an opening of the bottled water dispenser, the opening leading to a fluid flow path of the bottled water dispenser; flowing steam through the outlet of the portable boiler; flowing steam into the fluid flow path through the opening of the bottled water dispenser; and maintaining steam flow through at least a portion of the fluid flow path for a time period sufficient to sanitise the reservoir. Thus, although steam is generated in the apparatus of the above US patent application, there is no teaching of use of a pressure vessel in a portable vending machine which generates super heated water above 100 ⁰C for preparing a hot beverage.

It is thus an object of the present invention to provide for a method of vending a hot beverage from a portable vending device where the beverage remains hot for much longer time as compared to similar methods employed in the past.

It is another object of the present invention to provide for a portable beverage vending device which can be carried around by a person for dispensing for much longer time as compared to similar devices of the past thereby ensuring minimum wastage.

Summary of the invention

According to an aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of vending a hot beverage from a portable vending device comprising the steps of (i) feeding a beverage into an insulated pressure vessel through a liquid port; (ii) heating the beverage in the pressure vessel to a temperature higher than 100

⁰C at a predetermined heating station; (iii) dispensing the hot beverage from said pressure vessel through said liquid port into desired receptacles. wherein when the pressure inside the vessel is less than atmospheric pressure, the hot beverage is dispensed through said liquid port by pneumatically pressurizing said vessel through a pneumatic port.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable beverage vending device comprising (i) an insulated pressure vessel, including a liquid port;

(ii) said pressure vessel provided with means for heating of the beverage to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C; such that beverage fed into said pressure vessel through said liquid port is heated to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C by said heating means, and is capable of being dispensed through said liquid port into desired receptacles at any desired location, wherein said pressure vessel comprises a pneumatic port for inlet of pressurized gas into the vessel to enable convenient discharge of the hot beverage from said vessel through said liquid port.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Figure - 1 is a schematic of an embodiment of a beverage vending machine as per the present invention.

Detailed description of the invention The invention relates to a method of vending a hot beverage. The hot beverage is prepared in a pressure vessel where it is heated to a controlled temperature which is higher than 100 ⁰C. The contents of the pressure vessel may be heated at a predetermined heating station. By predetermined heating station is meant a location where the contents of the pressure vessel are heated. The heating may be by way of placing the pressure vessel on a flame or through use of electrical energy. The beverage is preferably heated using electrical coils provided in said pressure vessel, through which current is passed to generate heat.

The pressure vessel is provided with a liquid port for feeding and discharging the liquid contents viz. the beverage. The liquid port is preferably provided on the top surface of the pressure vessel. The pressure vessel is encased within an insulating bag so that heat losses are minimized. It is preferred that the insulating bag is so configured that it that is capable of being carried around by a person e.g. the bag may be a backpack.

Hot beverages which may be prepared for vending by the method of the invention include water, milk, tea, coffee, soup or health drinks. Health drinks include beverages which have specific health benefit ingredients. These drinks may or may not have flavours included. Popular health drinks are usually sold in malted, chocolate or vanilla flavours as powders. These powders may be added to milk or hot water to prepare the hot beverage. Especially preferred hot beverage which may be prepared by the present invention is hot water. When the beverage is hot water, then the hot water thus prepared may then be dispensed into individual cups to which another beverage concentrate may be present or may be post-dosed. Such beverage concentrate may be tea, coffee, soup or health drinks. Alternatively, any of the above hot beverage may be directly prepared in the pressure vessel for dispensing into individual cups. The beverage in a pressure vessel is configured so as to be heated to a controlled temperature higher than 100 ⁰C. The beverage is preferably heated to a temperature in the range of 105 to 120 ⁰C, more preferably in the range of 107 to 1 15⁰C. The pressure in the vessel is preferably in the range of 0.5 to 0.75 bar gauge. Preferably the beverage is heated to a temperature higher than the boiling point of the beverage corresponding to the pressure inside the pressure vessel during the step (ii).

The pressure vessel has a liquid port which is used for both feeding the beverage and for discharge of the hot beverage. The liquid port may be provided with a valve, preferably a non-return valve to ensure the desired pressure in the pressure vessel and to aid in controlled dispensing of the hot beverage from the vessel. The liquid port is preferably operatively connected to and in fluid communication with a downcomer. The downcomer, when present, is a tube that extents from the liquid port on the inside of the pressure vessel to a position close to the bottom of the pressure vessel. The downcomer ensures that the beverage fed to the vessel flows through the downcomer to collect at the bottom of the vessel. For discharge of the hot beverage, the downcomer acts as the conduit for passage of the hot beverage from the bottom of the pressure vessel to the liquid port for discharge out of the pressure vessel.

When the beverage is fresher and the temperature is higher than 100 ⁰C, the pressure inside the pressure vessel is above atmospheric pressure. In such cases, there is no need of external pressure to aid dispensing of the beverage from the pressure vessel. The beverage may be dispensed by simply opening the valve provided on the liquid port and the higher pressure in the pressure vessel ensures discharge of the hot beverage into desired receptacles.

When the pressure inside the vessel drops to atmospheric pressure i.e when the temperature drops to 100 ⁰C and below, the hot beverage inside the pressure vessel has to be discharged by applying an external pressure into the vessel. This may be achieved by pumping air into the pressure through a pneumatic port that may be provided on the pressure vessel. The pneumatic port is preferably provided on the top surface of the pressure vessel. The hot beverage, in such cases, is pneumatically dispensed from the pressure vessel. A simple hand pump with a cylinder and piston- and-rod arrangement suffices to discharge the hot beverage from the pressure vessel.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable beverage vending device comprising (i) an insulated pressure vessel, including a liquid port; (ii) said pressure vessel provided with means for heating of the beverage to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C; such that beverage fed into said pressure vessel through said liquid port is heated to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C by said heating means, and is capable of being dispensed through said liquid port into desired receptacles at any desired location.

The pressure vessel may be carried in any insulating bag but an insulating backpack is most preferred. The backpack option allows the vendor to keep his hands free for holding a cup in one hand and for operating the hand pump with the other hand, if necessary. The pressure vessel preferably has a volume from 2 to 10 liters, more preferably from 3 to 7 liters.

The means for heating preferably are electrical heating coils in said pressure vessel which is capable of being heated using power supply through a temperature controller. Alternate but less preferred means for heating include jackets on the pressure vessel through which hot air or oil at the desired temperature is passed so as to increase the temperature of the contents in the pressure vessel to the desired temperature higher than 100 ⁰C. The means for controlling the temperature of the contents in the pressure vessel is preferably a temperature controller. Temperature controllers are well known and any suitable controller available in the market may be used. A temperature controller has the usual parts viz. a detector for measuring the temperature e.g. a thermocouple or a bimetallic strip and an electronic controller which controls the current leading to the heating coils for increasing the temperature of the contents of the pressure vessel.

The portable beverage vending device preferably comprises a pneumatic port for inlet of pressurized gas into the vessel to enable convenient discharge of the hot beverage from the vessel through the liquid port when the pressure in the vessel is close to atmospheric pressure.

The beverage vending device preferably has a non-return valve on the liquid port. When a pneumatic port is present on the pressure vessel, it preferably comprises a non-return valve. These valves help maintain the pressure inside the pressure vessel. The liquid port is preferably connected to a hand held trigger gun which may be manually actuated to discharge the desired amount of hot beverage. When the pressure inside the pressure vessel falls to atmospheric pressure the contents inside the vessel may be discharged through use of a suitable pneumatic system. A suitable pneumatic system is a hand pump operatively connected to the pressure vessel through a pneumatic port. The hand pump is preferably a cylinder and piston-and-rod assembly where the pressurization of the volume of air in the cylinder by hand activation of the piston may be routed through a suitable port on the hand pump to the pneumatic port of the pressure vessel for pressurising the vessel for easy and convenient discharge of the hot beverage from the vessel.

Figure -1 is a schematic view of a beverage vending device as per a preferred embodiment of the invention. The device comprises a pressure vessel (V) of 5 liter capacity which is provided with a liquid port (LP) and a pneumatic port (PP) on the upper surface of the vessel. The pressure vessel has a safety valve (SV) that is made of a low melting material that melts when the temperature of the safety valve exceeds a preset value. An overflow tube (OT) is provided on the side surface of the vessel near the upper end which comprises a valve (VL). The contents of the pressure vessel are heated using an electrical heater (H) that is controlled using a temperature controller (not shown). The pneumatic port (PP) is connected to a hand pump (HP) through an air line (AL). The liquid port is connectable to a trigger gun (TG) through an insulated hot beverage tube (HT). The pressure vessel (V) is capable of being kept in an insulating backpack (BP).

When in use, the pressure vessel (V) is taken out of the backpack (BP) and taken to a predetermined filling and heating station. As per the present embodiment, the hot beverage is hot water and therefore water is fed into the pressure vessel at the filling station. The liquid port (LP) is connected to a water line (WL) through a water softener system (S) and a water filter (F) using a tube (CT). The water at room temperature is softened and filtered to be free of any impurities and is filled in the pressure vessel. The valve (VL) is kept open as the water in the vessel (V) is filled. The air in the vessel is displaced out of the vessel through the overflow tube (OT) as the water fills up in the vessel (V). After the vessel is filled with the water to the desired level, the valve (VL) provided on the overflow tube is closed. Thereafter the tube (CT) is disconnected and the water is heated using the heater (H) by connecting it to a source of power (PS). The water is heated to a temperature higher then 100 ⁰C and this temperature is controlled using a temperature controller (not shown) that controls the current input to the heater (H). At a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C, the water is in a state that is in equilibrium with superheated steam. The safety valve (SV) is provided in case of any failure on the part of the temperature controller. When the temperature goes above a preset value e.g. 120 ⁰C, the low melting material on the safety valve melts thereby releasing the pressure inside the vessel. Once the water is heated to a predetermined value above 100 ⁰C, the power supply is disconnected and the pressure vessel is placed in the backpack (BP) which may be carried around by a vendor to any desired location for vending the hot beverage. A hot beverage discharge tube (HT) is then connected at one end to the liquid port (LP) and this tube (HT) has a trigger gun (TG) at the other end.

When the temperature of the hot beverage is above 100 ⁰C, the pressure inside the vessel is above atmospheric. At this condition, when the vendor desires to vend a cup of beverage, he manually actuates the trigger gun (TG) which discharges desired amount of hot water into the cup (C) which may contain a premix concentrate of the desired beverage to prepare a hot beverage which is ready to drink. When the temperature inside the pressure vessel falls to 100 ⁰C, the pressure in the vessel become equal to atmospheric pressure. At this condition, the hot water in the vessel is discharged by actuating the hand pump (HP) back and forth to pressurize the air in the air line (AL) and thereby increase the pressure in the pressure vessel. On actuation of the trigger gun (TG), the increased pressure in the pressure vessel causes the hot water in the vessel to traverse up the downcomer (DC) out through the liquid port (LP) through tube (HT) into the cup (C) in desired amount.

It has been observed that hot beverage at desired high temperature can be obtained by way of the present invention for up to 4 hours as compared to portable vending devices of the past where desired high temperature lasted for less than an hour.

Claims

1. A method of vending a hot beverage from a portable vending device comprising the steps of

(i) feeding a beverage into an insulated pressure vessel through a liquid port; (ii) heating the beverage in the pressure vessel to a temperature higher than 100 C at a predetermined heating station; (iii) dispensing the hot beverage from said pressure vessel through said liquid port into desired receptacles, wherein when the pressure inside the vessel is less than atmospheric pressure, the hot beverage is dispensed through said liquid port by pneumatically pressurizing said vessel through a pneumatic port.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the beverage is heated to a temperature higher than the boiling point of the beverage corresponding to the pressure inside the pressure vessel during the step (ii).

3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said beverage is water, milk, tea, coffee, soup or a health drink.

4. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the beverage is heated to a temperature in the range of 1 10 to 120 C

5. A method as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the beverage is heated using electrical coils provided in said pressure vessel.

6. A portable beverage vending device comprising

(i) an insulated pressure vessel, including a liquid port; (ii) said pressure vessel provided with means for heating of the beverage to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C; such that beverage fed into said pressure vessel through said liquid port is heated to a temperature higher than 100 ⁰C by said heating means, and is capable of being dispensed through said liquid port into desired receptacles at any desired location, wherein said pressure vessel comprises a pneumatic port for inlet of pressurized gas into the vessel to enable convenient discharge of the hot beverage from said vessel through said liquid port.

7. A beverage vending device as claimed in claim 6 wherein said pressure vessel is placed in an insulating backpack.

8. A beverage vending device as claimed in claim 6 or 7 wherein said means for heating comprises electrical heating coils in said pressure vessel which is capable of being heated using power supply through a temperature controller.

9. A beverage vending device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims 6-8 wherein said liquid port and said pneumatic port comprise non-return valves.

10. A beverage vending device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims 6-9 wherein said gas is pressurized using a hand pump.