Patent Publication Number: US-11034567-B2

Title: Portable spirit dispenser

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present application is a divisional under 37 C.F.R. § 1.53(b) of prior U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/355,627, filed Nov. 18, 2016, which claims priority to Aruban Patent Application No. OCT-02/160330, filed Mar. 30, 2016 and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/279,196, filed Jan. 15, 2016, the entire disclosure of each of these applications is incorporated by reference herein. 
    
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The apparatus and the method disclosed herein relate to serving of spirits and in particular to portable spirit dispensers and a method of dispensing spirits from a portable dispenser. 
     BACKGROUND 
     It is well-known that spirits may be served from a bottle at, for example, a bar or a restaurant. This method lacks security and precise accountability as it leaves the bottles with the spirits accessible to not only the bartender but to others. In a large-scale setting such as a cruise ship or a resort more security and accountability is desired to prevent losses due, for example, to pilfering, or imprecise and irregular serving practices by the staff. 
     Automated spirit delivery systems have been proposed. 
     A well-known automated spirit delivery system for serving spirits includes a storage room that stores spirits in individual bottles. In this system, each bottle stored in the storage room is connected via a fluid line to a dispenser located, for example, at a bartender&#39;s station elsewhere. A pump or the like supplies the spirit to a dispenser located at a bar or bartender&#39;s station. The dispenser may be equipped with a device that controls the amount (shots) of spirit that is poured. The system may also be equipped with a device that tracks the amount of spirit poured. 
     Since the storage room can be secured and the supply of spirit can be controlled this system is desirable for settings such as resorts, hotels and cruise ships. However, this system has a number of drawbacks. Significantly, the system is not portable from one location to another location in that the storage room, which is integral to the operation of the system, cannot be moved. Thus, this system cannot, for example, be used when the location of the event needing service is not near the bar or the bartender&#39;s station that is connected to the storage room. In addition, the storage room in such a system is often large in order to accommodate the large number of bottles needed to provide service to the patrons. In relatively small places such as cruise ships, such a system presents problems. For example, the storage room would occupy much needed space. 
     Furthermore, the empty spirit bottles would have to be stored somewhere, which is yet another problem for a cruise ship in particular. 
     Moreover, spirit bottles whether filled with spirits or empty are valuable, which means some security would have to be provided for the spirits in the bottle and the empty bottles to prevent pilfering. 
     In addition, the distance between the storage room and the point of delivery of the spirit (the bar or the bartender&#39;s station) is long, which means that a lot of spirit is stored in the lines from the storage room to the point of delivery. It is needless to say that in this configuration much of the stock of spirit always remains in the fluid lines, which means that a significant volume of stock must be invested merely to render the system operational. When the system is serviced, the spirit in the lines must be emptied out and discarded, which clearly leads to a significant loss of product. Thus, when the lines are in need of disinfecting (which is relatively often), much product is discarded and then replaced with an equivalent replacement volume. Naturally, one can easily see that the maintenance of such a system is costly. 
     SUMMARY 
     In view the mentioned problems, there is a need for a secure, efficient and portable apparatus that can be used for serving spirits. 
     An objective of the present invention is to provide a spirit dispenser that stores the spirit in a container other than a bottle to reduce the problems associated with systems that rely on bottle-stored spirits. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to provide a secure dispenser to reduce the likelihood of pilfering of the spirits. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to provide a portable apparatus that can dispense different kinds of spirits. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus that can store and supply different types of spirits for a large crowd, which does not occupy a large foot print or a large volume of space. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to shorten the fluid line from the spirit container to the point of delivery. 
     Another objective of the present invention is to provide a portable spirit dispenser that can be moved from one location to another. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  shows a front view of a dispenser according to the present invention with the doors of its cabinet closed. 
         FIG. 2  shows another front view of a dispenser according to the present invention with the doors of its cabinet open. 
         FIG. 3  shows a portion of the bottom of the cabinet of a dispenser according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  shows a perspective top view of a dispenser according to the present invention with its cabinet doors open and its first shelf drawn out. 
         FIG. 5  shows the interior of the cabinet of the dispenser according to the present invention with the spirit boxes removed to show the pumps residing on the back panel of the cabinet and the fluid lines connected to the pumps detached from the spirit boxes. 
         FIG. 6  shows a back view of a dispenser according to the present invention with the dispensing regulators installed on the exterior surface of the back panel and each regulator receiving spirit via a respective tube from a respective pump inside of the cabinet. 
         FIG. 7  shows a spirit box with a tap connected to the spirit bag therein detached from a tap connector that is connected to a fluid line connected to a pump. 
         FIG. 8  shows another view of the back of the cabinet of the dispenser according to the present invention in which each spirit regulator is connected to a dispenser/beverage gun with a respective tube to dispense spirit from the spirit bags inside of the cabinet to the gun under the control of a portion control unit residing inside of the cabinet of a dispenser system according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  shows a selection interface for a dispenser gun of a portion control system used in a dispenser according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 10  shows the interior of a regulator of a portion control system used in a dispenser according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 11  illustrates a bin for use in a second configuration of a spirit dispenser according to the present invention. 
         FIGS. 12A-12D  show respectively a perspective view of a cabinet for the second configuration, a disassembled view thereof without interior parts, a front elevation thereof, and a side elevation thereof. 
         FIG. 12E  shows another perspective view of a cabinet according to the second configuration with certain parts removed from view to illustrate the interior and the exterior protection panels. 
         FIGS. 13A-13D  illustrate a cabinet according to the second configuration with the pumps installed therein. 
         FIGS. 14A and 14B  front and tope views of the doors for a cabinet in a dispenser according to the present invention. 
         FIG. 15  shows a countertop that can be placed atop of a cabinet for a dispenser according to the present invention, the counter top including recesses to receive the cradles for the guns. 
         FIG. 16  illustrates the arrangement of the top shelf above an additional shelf inside of a cabinet according to the second configuration. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Spirit or liquor as used herein means a distilled or spirituous alcoholic beverage as distinguished from a fermented alcoholic beverage such as wine or beer. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the present disclosure is concerned with a portable spirit dispenser  10 . Portable dispenser  10  includes a cabinet  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , cabinet  12  preferably includes two doors  14  with hidden hinges  17  (hinges disposed interiorly of the cabinet). Doors  14  may be secured with a lock to prevent access to the interior of the cabinet. The hidden hinges  17  also prevent access to the interior of cabinet  12 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , cabinet  12  includes a plurality of casters  13  (for example, four casters) connected to its base panel  15 , whereby dispenser  10  may be easily pushed or pulled from one place to another without the need for, for example, a motorized vehicle to transport dispenser  10 . Thus, preferably, dispenser  10  when storing spirits (fully loaded) will not weigh more than 400 pounds, which is considerably less than the weight that can be a) supported by casters  13  (e.g. 800 pounds) without suffering failure when stationary, b) transported without suffering failure while supported by casters  13 . 
     It has been found that a swivel caster with a polyurethane wheel with a maximum load capacity of 220 pounds and a wheel diameter of 35 mm works well for a caster  13 . An example of such a caster is a Blickle caster, a description of which is included in the Appendix. The polyurethane wheel produces less noise, and, while robust, it does not cause damage to, for example, tile, stone, or wood flooring. Thus, an apparatus according to the invention can be safely transported over unprotected, hard surfaces, without causing damage to the surface. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , a first, upper shelf  16  may be slideably arranged inside cabinet  12  to slide in and out of the interior space of cabinet  12 . 
     At least a second shelf  18  may be installed inside cabinet  12 . Second shelf  18  may also be slideably arranged to slide into and out of the interior space of cabinet  12 . 
     Second shelf  18  and first shelf  16  define a first compartment  20  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     Second shelf  18  and base panel  15  of cabinet  12  may define a second compartment  22  ( FIG. 2 ). 
     According to one aspect of the present invention, a spirit, stored in a container other than a bottle, is stored in either first compartment  20  or second compartment  22 . Preferably, the spirit is stored inside of a flexible oxygen-impermeable bag residing in a spirit box  21 , which may be a cardboard box with the dimensions 7″ wide×12″ deep×10″ high (standing upright). The bag may be capable of storing at least five liters of spirit resides. Preferably, the bag may be capable of storing up to ten liters of spirit, with nine liters being a preferred volume. The flexible bag may be at least oxygen impermeable, and may also be made of a material that does not permit the spirit to escape if evaporated thereby preventing loss and also preventing odors from escaping. A suitable material may be a metal coated plastic bag or another type of plastic (polymer-based) bag typically used in a bag-in-box products that are used for packaging wine or other beverages, for example. 
     In the preferred embodiment, each compartment  20 ,  22  is sized to receive three spirit boxes  21  containing a spirit stored in a bag. Each compartment  20 ,  22  could store a plurality of spirit boxes  21  (e.g. more than three spirit boxes  21 )) side by side. Each spirit box  21  may be storing a different kind of spirit or at least two different kinds of spirits may be stored in cabinet  12  in the various boxes  21 . Thus, for example, at least one box  21  could contain whiskey while another box  21  could contain vodka, and yet another box  21  could contain rum. 
     A portable spirit dispenser  10  according to the present invention further includes at least one portion control fluid dispenser system. The preferred embodiment includes two fluid dispenser systems. Referring to  FIGS. 2, 4, 5, and 6 , each fluid dispenser system in the preferred embodiment is a digital portion control beverage gun system that includes a beverage gun  24 , a portion control unit  26 , and a dispensing regulator  28 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the two digital portion control beverage gun systems may be used to permit service by two service persons, or simultaneous pouring of spirits into two glasses by one service personnel. 
     Each portion control beverage gun system is in fluid connection with the bags in all boxes  21  stored in cabinet  12 . Thus, spirits from all the boxes  21  may be supplied through the two systems. It should be noted that while a portion control system is preferred, a fluid dispenser without portion control may be used as well in another embodiment of the present invention. A suitable dispenser could be the type used for dispensing soft drinks, which allow the operator to control the volume of liquid that is poured (i.e. does not have preset control of the amount of fluid that is poured). 
     Furthermore, each beverage control system may be provided with a printer as well to provide a hard copy of the data stored in its memory. The printer may be stored on first shelf  16 . 
     The spirit bag in each box  21  may be connected via a respective tube  32  to a respective pump  30 . Thus, a pump  30  may be provided for each box  21 . Tube  32  may be a flexible, transparent plastic beverage tube with a small diameter (e.g. ⅜″) in order to reduce the amount of spirit stored in the fluid delivery line. 
     Preferably, a self-priming electric (low pressure) diaphragm pump with a built-in ON/OFF switch may be used for a pump  30 . If necessary, a transformer may be provided to supply power to each pump  30 . Pumps  30  may supply fluid at different pressures. That is, pumps  30  may be a variable pressure pump that can supply spirit at a pressure in the range 15 to 45 Psi, but at least in the range 15 to 20 Psi. Thus, the operator may adjust the supply pressure of each pump as needed. A suitable pump may be a water pump such as a two chamber positive displacement diaphragm pump, which is self-priming, and capable of being run dry. It has been found that a 24V diaphragm water pump with a variable regulator that is sold by SeaFlow works well. A description of the SeaFlow pump is included in the Appendix. A single transformer may be used to convert the line voltage (110V or 220V) to a suitable voltage and supply power to all pumps at the suitable voltage. If needed, the transformer may convert the AC line power to DC. The transformer may be located inside or outside of the cabinet. 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , each spirit bag preferably includes a tap  36 . The spirit contained in the bag is accessed via tap  36  of the spirit bag. A tap connector  34  may be used to connect to tap  36  of box  21 . Each tap connector  34  is disengageable from the tap to which it is connected to permit removal of an empty box. The disengaged tap connector  34  can then engage the tap of another box. The tap  36  used may be any conventional tap used, for example, in bag-in-box products which have wine therein. The tap connector  34  may be any suitable connector that can selectively engage and disengage from a tap  36  in order to permit the functions described herein. 
     Preferably, each pump  30  is arranged (connected or attached) on a back panel  40  of cabinet  12  behind a box  21  inside of cabinet  12 . 
     Tube  32  is preferably at least long enough to reach a pump  30  located behind a box  21  from the front of box  21 . Thus, advantageously, a box  21  may be disconnected from a tube  32  and removed from cabinet  21  without reaching behind box  21 , or sliding out the shelf to access its tap  36 . 
     Portion control unit  26  of each portion control system is disposed on first shelf  16 . Each portion control unit  26  includes at least a microcontroller and an electronic memory to store data. 
     Preferably, each portion control unit  26  can be locked with a lock  27  and rendered inoperative as an extra measure against pilfering or theft. 
     Referring to  FIG. 8 , each dispensing regulator  28  is connected to a respective portion control unit  26 . Each dispensing regulator  28  may be attached to the exterior surface of the back panel  40  of cabinet  12 . Each regulator  28  may be 9″ wide×3″ high×6″ deep. Advantageously, a compact configuration is realized for pumps  30  as well as the components of the portion control system, whereby the footprint of the dispenser is kept small, which is important for portability, storage and so on. 
     A supply tube  31  is connected from each pump  30  to a dispensing regulator  28 . Each supply tube  31  passes through a passage defined in the back panel of cabinet  12  (the panel directly facing the doors) to the exterior surface thereof where regulators  28  are installed. The passage is preferably defined below the location of regulators  28 . When a second portion control system is used, as is the case in the preferred embodiment, a splitter  42  may be used to split the supply line  31  from a pump  30  and to provide spirit to the other dispensing regulator  28  via a respective tube  44 . Tube  31  may be a flexible, transparent, plastic beverage tube with a small diameter (e.g. ⅜″) to minimize the amount of spirit stored therein. 
     A main spirit supply tube  52  supplies spirit from a dispensing regulator  28  to a beverage gun  24 . The amount of spirit supplied from beverage gun  24  is controlled by portion control unit  26 . That is, unit  26  controls regulator  28  in order to limit the amount of spirit supplied by the gun to a specified amount, which may be stored in the memory of unit  26  and changed as needed. 
     Beverage gun  24  includes an interface  25 .  FIG. 9  shows a typical selection interface  25  for the gun  24  part of the portion control fluid dispenser system. Interface  25  may include ten spirit selection buttons  29 . Each spirit selection button  29  permits the operator to select a type of spirit that is stored in the boxes  21  stored in the dispenser  10 . Also, interface  25  includes a portion selection button  33 . Portion selection button  33  permits the operator to select a preset portion from among, for example, three preset portions. The preset portions may be one shot (one fluid ounce), and more than one shot of spirit. 
     Referring to  FIG. 10 , regulator  28  may include a plurality of solenoids  35 . Each solenoid  35  is connected to a respective supply tube  31  at its input. At its output, each solenoid is connected to a respective gun supply tube  37 . All gun supply tubes  37  are received in tube  52  and connected to gun  24 . Each gun supply tube  37  may be a flexible, transparent and plastic beverage tube with an inner diameter of ⅜″.  FIG. 10  also shows the control and power cables for operating each solenoid  35 . Based on the instruction received from interface  25 , a portion control unit  26  controls the amount of spirit supplied by an associated (controlled) dispensing regulator  28  by controlling regulator  28 . 
     It should be noted that a manager, for example, could set the amount that is to be poured, and because the cabinet can be locked, this amount cannot be changed by the service personnel. 
     Alternatively, interface  25  could allow the operator to set the amount of spirit that is supplied. 
     A printer may be connected to unit  26  to print every shot that is poured. 
     Alternatively, or in addition, a computer (e.g. a PC or a tablet) could be connected to unit  26  to record every shot. 
     Spirit dispenser  10  may further include a beverage gun cradle  46  to support beverage gun  24  atop cabinet  12 . A countertop  50  may also be disposed atop cabinet  12  for decorative purposes. 
     Countertop  12  may include an opening therein to receive the base of a gun cradle  46 . When two cradles  46  are provided, two openings may be defined in the countertop  50  or a large opening to accommodate two gun cradles. 
     Preferably, countertop  50  is not attached to cabinet  12 , whereby it can be removed to permit cabinet  12  to be installed under an existing countertop, for example, at a bar. Thus, for example, a dispenser  10  according to the present invention may be no taller than 36.5 inches, which is a conventional counter top height. 
     Furthermore, it is preferred that the footprint of a dispenser according to the present invention will be kept to 24″×24″, which is a standard under counter equipment footprint, and convenient for storage under an existing counter. 
     Preferably, in a dispenser  10  according to the present invention, all electrical devices receive electrical power from a single power line that is pluggable into a wall outlet. Thus, as seen in  FIG. 8 , a power strip  51  or the like may be used to distribute power to all electrical components (six outlets for the six pumps and two outlets to supply power to the portion control fluid dispenser systems) of dispenser  10  from a single power line  53 . The electrical devices are selected so that, in operation, the current drawn will not cause the breaker to trip open. Thus, for example, the maximum current drawn will be below 15 Amps, and preferably below 10 Amps. In the preferred embodiment, all electrical components are selected to draw about 7.2 Amps. This feature also ensures that dispenser  10  is portable from one location to another location as it would not require a special electrical outlet since dispenser  10  could be operated from any location with an outlet that includes a 10 Amp breaker. 
     In use, several different spirit types may be dispensed from a spirit dispenser  10  according to the present invention. Thus, in a method according to the present invention, spirit or liquor is provided in a bag residing in a box  21  as previously described, and a portable dispenser as described is used to dispense the spirits of different kinds from the bags, thereby alleviating the problems associated with the conventional automated liquor dispensers, which are not portable and suffer from other drawbacks. 
     A suitable portion control fluid dispenser system for integration in a dispenser  10  is a portion control liquor and soda dispenser sold by Griffin Industries under the Model No. GCS/9210, a description of which is included in the Appendix. The system allows for serving up to ten flavors or liquor and up to three different portion sizes. 
     It should be noted that the distance between the tap of each spirit box and the gun may be ten feet or less. Given that the tubes  31 ,  32 ,  37  may have small inner diameters, compared to the known systems described in the background, very little spirit is stored in the fluid lines, which means that servicing will not result in as much loss of product. Thus, by keeping the distance between a spirit box and the dispenser gun to 10 feet or less no more than 8 fluid ounces (7.6 Oz or 225 ml) of spirit will be stored in each line when ⅜″ diameter tubes are used. As a result, only about eight shots of spirit is lost when a line is emptied for disinfection and servicing. 
     It is also possible to increase the amount of spirit served from a spirit dispenser according to the present invention without increasing the foot print of the cabinet  12 . To do so, the bag containing spirit is removed from its box and stored in a bin. An example, of such a bin  48  is shown in  FIG. 11 . A suitable bin  48  has an open top and a partially open front to permit access to the tap part of the removed bag. The partially open front may include a bottom wall  49  that only partially closes the front part of bin  48 . The bottom wall  49  at the front of bin  48  may extend forwardly and upwardly at an angle other than ninety degrees (preferably 45 degrees). The preferred dimension (in inches) for bin  48  are indicated in  FIG. 11 . 
     By removing the box and using bins, more space is available in cabinet  12 . Thus, for example, three bins  48  may fit side-by-side on a shelf inside of cabinet  12  as shown in  FIG. 12A . Furthermore, the height of each bin  48  permits installation of another shelf  19  inside of cabinet  12 . Consequently, nine bins  48  can be stored inside cabinet  12  and thus nine spirit bags thereby allowing for storage and service of more varieties of spirit from a dispenser according to the present invention without increasing its interior volume or footprint. 
     Referring to  FIG. 12E , an interior protection panel  51  may be installed inside cabinet  12  to prevent access to the pumps  30 , thereby reducing chances of accidental damage or tampering. An exterior protection panel  54  may also be provided opposite the back panel of cabinet  12  to prevent access to the regulators  28 , tubes  44 ,  52 , thereby reducing chances of accidental damage or tampering. 
     Referring to  FIG. 13A-C , a pump  30  may be installed on the interior surface of the back panel of cabinet  12  behind each bin  48  residing on a shelf or the bottom of cabinet  12 . This figure also shows holes in the back panel for the tubes from the pumps to the regulators  28  and the power lines for powering the pumps  30 . 
       FIGS. 11-16  demonstrate a cabinet  12  that is configured to accommodate nine bins  48 . These figures show dimensions for the cabinet  12  and the bins  48  to demonstrate the compactness of the design. Thus, as shown, a cabinet with a conventional footprint of 24″ inches by 24″, and a conventional height for under-the-counter storage, may be configured to store nine spirit bags. 
     Although not shown, it should be understood that the remaining features of a spirit dispenser according to the invention will be integrated with the cabinet as described here except that the system will be configured to serve spirit from nine bags not six. 
     Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.