Patent ID: 9034183
Filing Date: 2015-05-19
Classification: B67D,C02F,Y10S

Abstract:
1. A method of sanitizing drinking water dispensed from a water dispenser having a water supply that includes an inverted bottle having a neck, wherein the neck is supported on and sealed to an anti-spill receiver formed on an upper end of a cabinet so that the neck extends downwardly, the neck defining a bottle opening that faces downwardly, wherein the anti-spill receiver has a bottom wall, a hollow probe including an upper end that is closed and a lower end that is open, wherein the lower end of the probe is fixed to the bottom wall of the receiver and includes first and second openings, wherein a sidewall of the probe includes a pair of second and third openings positioned between the upper and lower ends thereof, wherein the probe extends into the bottle opening, a reservoir below the anti-spill receiver, and wherein a hollow interior of the probe includes a vertical wall for defining a first flow passage into the bottle via the first and third openings and a second flow passage out of the bottle via the second and fourth openings, the method comprising the steps of: a) providing an ozone gas generator that generates a combination of air and ozone gas; b) providing a first flow line that carries said gas into the reservoir; c) transmitting said gas from the generator into the reservoir via the first flow line; d) forming a mixture of water and bubbles containing said gas at a location within the reservoir; e) providing a second flow line extending from the reservoir into the first opening of the hollow probe such that a discharge end of the second flow line is positioned within the hollow probe in the first flow passage; f) transmitting said mixture of water and bubbles from the reservoir into the first flow passage via the second flow line; g) transferring said mixture of water and bubbles from the first flow passage into an interior of the bottle via the third opening; and h) transferring water from the interior of the bottle to the reservoir via the fourth opening, second flow passage, and second opening.