Abstract:
The pre-mix beverage dispensing apparatus ( 10 ) includes an ice bank assembly ( 12 ) connected to a remote system of potable water at line pressure for the chilling of the potable water. The chilled water is carried at a regulated line pressure from the ice bank assembly ( 12 ) to a mixing valve/dispensing assembly ( 18 ) where the chilled water is metered into a prescribed amount and mixed with a proportionate amount of syrup metered from a syrup holding tank ( 64 ). The syrup tank ( 64 ) is provided with an agitating element ( 66 ) that periodicially agitates the syrup to prevent syrup constituents from precipitating out of solution or stratification of the syrup into various concentration levels. In one embodiment, the apparatus is provided with a hopper assembly ( 14 ) that stores and meters a powder flavorant to the syrup tank and components that deliver chilled water to the tank proportional to the powder flavorant metered into the tank ( 64 ).

Description:
This application claims benefit to provisional application 60/030,273 filed Nov. 1, 1996. This is a national stage application filed under 35 USC 371 of Application No. PCT/US 97/19903, filed Oct. 31, 1997. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is related to beverage dispensers and more particularly to beverage dispensers that dispense beverages made from a syrup concentrate. 
     The numbers of beverage dispensers used in restaurants are significant and growing steadily, particularly with the increase of rapid food industries. Beverage dispensers are intended to facilitate the expeditious service required in the restaurant industry. Indeed, the customer is often invited to dispense directly his or her own drink into a container placed under the spout or nozzle of the dispenser. Such beverage dispensers can be categorized into two types: carbonated and non-carbonated beverage dispensers. 
     Carbonated drink beverage dispensers typically are formulated from a syrup which is mixed with a chilled carbonated water held under pressure. The non-refrigerated syrup is pumped from a location outside of the dispenser housing to a mixing and dispensing nozzle to be mixed with a predetermined quantity of chilled carbonated water. Some of the mixing occurs as the two liquids are actually discharged into a container. The syrup itself is frequently contained in a flexible bag and placed in a rigid container where the liquid is metered out of the bag by a pump upon demand. No mixing of the syrup and water occurs unless a drink is required and the amount mixed is only that required to satisfy the immediate need. 
     Non-carbonated dispensers are frequently characterized as “juice” dispensers and pre-mix dispensers. The former dispenses a beverage formulated from a thick, viscous concentrate and water under significant pressure and mixed thoroughly in a mixing chamber before being dispensed. The latter uses a refrigerated tank for holding the ready-to-drink beverage that is to be directly dispensed without further mixing. The pre-mix dispensers typically handle the popular beverages that are made from a powder and mixed with a requisite amount of water to form the beverage. It is the pre-mix dispenser that is the focus of the ensuing discussion. 
     Non-carbonated beverages may be formulated at the manufacturer, shipped directly to the serving establishment in large containers, and then distributed as needed directly into the into the individual dispenser holding containers. However, the large costs resulting from such shipments, primarily due to the weight of the water constituent of the beverage, have caused the beverage manufacturers to transfer the responsibility of adding water to complete the formulation of water to the employees of the beverage dispensing establishment. This permits the manufacturer to ship a syrup concentrate or powder to the establishments, avoiding the weight of the water. While this procedure does reduce shipping costs, it does expand the employee work load and, more importantly, increases the handling of the beverage constituents by employees on premise. The employees must measure, pour and transfer the formulated beverage to the dispenser. The added handling by the employees clearly increases the probability for errors to occur in the formulation of the beverage, distorting taste, or for adulteration of the beverage itself from contaminants or bacteria. 
     Non-carbonated pre-mix beverage dispensers located in restaurants require frequent replenishment during heavy use hours, posing a problem to management since the work required to replenish the dispenser is at the expense of other needed services of the employees. Hastily formulated beverages made by harried employees are more likely to have been formulated improperly or to have created hygiene problems. Moreover, the dispenser may also be rendered unusable for a period of time since the beverage added to the tank is initially at room temperature. Cooling of a large beverage holding tank often requires up to two hours or more of down time for that dispenser until the beverage is cooled to a desired serving temperature. The length of down time is exacerbated if the ambient temperature is high, for example in summer or tropical/desert regions. 
     It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide for a drink dispensing system having a housed syrup container and a chilled water supply from which a chilled beverage can be obtained upon demand. It is another object of the present invention to provide for a drink dispensing system that largely avoids the hygiene problems associated with the pre-mix beverage dispensing systems of the prior art. It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a drink dispensing system in which the down time frequently experienced in pre-mix drinking systems is substantially reduced or eliminated. It is still a further object of the present invention to provide for a drink dispensing system that occupies less space in establishments than the pre-mix drink dispensing systems of the prior art. These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those with ordinary skill in the art upon reading of this description accompanied by the appended drawings. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The objects above are addressed by an beverage dispenser system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention that prepares and dispenses a selected beverage of a predetermined volume from a housed syrup container. The system includes an ice bank assembly connected to a remote system of potable water at line pressure for the chilling of said potable water. The chilled water is carried at a regulated line pressure from the ice bank assembly to a mixing valve dispensing assembly where the chilled liquid is metered into a prescribed amount and mixed with a proportionate amount of syrup received from a syrup holding tank. The syrup tank is provided with an agitating element that periodically agitates the syrup to prevent syrup constituents from precipitating out of solution or stratification of the syrup into various concentration levels. In one embodiment, the apparatus is provided with a hopper assembly that stores and meters a powder flavorant to the syrup tank and components that deliver chilled water to the tank proportional to the powder flavorant metered into the tank. The apparatus also provides for periodic flushing of the surfaces of the apparatus coming into contact with the syrup to promote hygiene. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a side schematic of a beverage dispensing apparatus made in accordance with the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a side schematic of a beverage dispensing apparatus made in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 is a side schematic of a beverage dispensing apparatus still another embodiment made in accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 4 is a front schematic of a beverage dispensing apparatus depicted in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ice bank used in the embodiment of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 6 is a front schematic of the ice bank of FIG. 5, partially broken away; 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view of four-way solenoid manifold used in the present invention; 
     FIG. 8 is a side view of the four-way solenoid valve manifold of FIG. 7; 
     FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a mixer used in the present invention illustrating the internal components thereof; 
     FIG. 10 is a side section view of the mixer of FIG. 9; 
     FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a static mixing element positioned within a chamber of the mixer of FIG. 9; 
     FIG. 12 is a control flow diagram of the ice bank assembly of the present invention; 
     FIG. 13 is a control flow diagram showing the relationship of the controller and four units of a dispenser apparatus in accordance with the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 14 is a control flow diagram showing the liquid flow in a four unit dispenser apparatus in accordance with the embodiment of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 15 is a control flow diagram showing the liquid flow with respect to a single unit of a dispenser apparatus in accordance with the embodiment of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 16 is a control flow diagram showing the liquid flow with respect to a single unit in accordance with the embodiment of FIG.  2 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     It should be understood that the preferred embodiment of the present invention pertains to a multi-unit dispenser, each unit being capable of delivering on demand a beverage of a particular flavor. This is best illustrated in the front schematic view of a four unit apparatus that allows an operator to select from one of four beverages. For the sake of clarity, however, the majority of the discussion is limited to the components of one unit With the side schematics of FIGS. 1,  2  and  3  illustrating a single dispensing unit and the major components thereof. 
     Reference is first made to the schematic of FIG. 1 depicting a first embodiment of the present invention. The dispenser shown generally by character numeral  10  is comprised of four major assemblies: an ice bank assembly  12 ; a powder hopper assembly  14 ; a syrup tank assembly  16 ; a mixing valve/dispensing assembly  18 ; and a compressor/fan assembly  20 . Generally, as described in more detail below, the ice bank assembly  12  functions to cool water entering the assembly through line  22  connected to a remote source of potable water, typically the local water supply. Compressor assembly  20  circulates a coolant within assembly  12  to chill the potable water also circulating therethrough. Assembly  12  then supplies water under regulated line pressure through a water line indicated by dashed line  24  ultimately to the syrup tank assembly  16  and mixing valve/dispensing nozzle assembly  18  as required by the control circuitry of the dispenser  10 . Powder hopper assembly  14  functions to hold the flavorant powder used to form the syrup concentrate and meter the powder in required amounts into the syrup tank assembly  16  which also receives water cooled by the ice bank assembly  12  in a corresponding ratio to form the syrup concentrate. Syrup tank assembly  16  provides syrup in a predetermined amount as needed to form a beverage within the mixing valve/dispensing assembly  18  and into a waiting container  26 . 
     FIGS. 5 and 6 supply more detailed views of the ice bank assembly  12  that includes a housing  28  enclosing a first set of coils  30  that circulate a coolant fluid and a second set of coils  32  that circulate the potable water. A heat exchanging medium such as water fills the interior of housing  28  and is preferably circulated by a rotating impeller or agitator blade  34  positioned midway within the housing  28  to ensure more equal heat transfer from the potable water to the water heat exchange medium to the coolant. Agitator blade  34  is driven by motor  36  positioned on the top cover of housing  28 . The coolant coils  30  are directly connected to a compressor  40  of the compressor assembly  20  by lines  38  (only one of which is shown). The compressor  40  is air cooled by circulating fan  42 . 
     It is preferably for the temperature of the potable water ultimately used to form the beverage be maintained at between about 34° F. to 36° F. for the greatest efficiency of preparation of the beverage and to ensure acceptable taste to the consumer. The potable water, of course, enters into the coils  32  at a much higher temperature than desired for the beverage and thus must be rapidly chilled to and maintained at the preferred temperature. While there are many techniques of accomplishing this, it is preferable to use sensor electrodes that monitor the thickness of the ice formed about coolant coils  30 . This is an indirect measurement of the potable water temperature. The schematic for the control circuitry for the ice bank assembly  12  is shown in FIG.  12 . Simply stated, when sensor electrodes  44  determine that the ice build up is too great as measured by a change in the current flow, a controller  46  will turn off the compressor  40  thereby ceasing to cool the coolant flowing along lines  40   a  and  40   b  to and from coils  32  and thus controlling the amount of ice formed in the ice bank. Conversely, when the sensors  44  detect the ice thickness to be less than predetermined thickness, controller  46  turns the compressor  40  on. 
     The portion of the apparatus  10  occupied by the powder hopper assembly, syrup assembly and mixer valve/dispenser assembly is preferably refrigerated to maintain the powder and syrup below about 40° F. to maintain the powder and syrup in a fresh state and to avoid the buildup of undesired bacteria in the syrup and mixer valve assemblies. This additional cooling can be accomplished through the use of a separate cooling circuit (not shown) as desired or through the local effect of the ice bank assembly itself. 
     From FIG. 1, it may be noticed that the powder hopper assembly  14  includes a removable hopper  48  for storing the powdered flavorant, a rotatable pin wheel  50  used to prevent bridging and agglomeration of the powdered flavorant, and a metering screw or auger  52  that moves the powdered flavorant to a metering elbow  54 . Auger  52  is driven by a gear box  56  and motor  58 . Auger  52  can be coupled to and used to drive the pin wheel  50 . The auger motor may be, for example, a 24 VDC motor. The gear box  56  preferably provides a constant RPM output irrespective of the torque requirements caused by changing powder loads above the auger  52  and/or types of powders placed in the hopper. Augers provide an especially accurate throw of transported material and thus are ideally suited to a task of metering those amounts needed to ensure proper syrup concentration. 
     To indicate when the powdered flavorant needs to be replenished in hoppers  48 , sensors  60  (as shown in FIG. 13) may be employed within the hopper to interact with the dispenser controller  46  and, for example, illuminate a small indicator light  62  when the powdered flavorant level of the hopper associated with the sensor  60  is low. Sensors  60  could take the form of paired sensors, for example, that comprise a capacitor, the capacitance of which changes with the presence or absence of the powdered flavorant between them. The sensors  60  may be located a level within the hopper  48  indicative of the minimum permissible powder level. 
     As again illustrated in FIG. 1, the syrup tank container assembly  16  is positioned immediately below the powder hopper assembly  14  and includes the syrup tank  64  and an auger  66  with a vane pump  66   a  mounted on the end thereof. Auger  66  serves the purpose of moving and otherwise agitating the syrup, an important feature since many syrup concentrates have sugars or the like that tend to precipitate out of solution, particularly at low temperatures. The vane pump  66   a  is a typical rotary pump having flexible members that push the liquid in pulses to an opening such as outlet  68  (seen in FIG. 15 only) and serves the function of metering precise amounts of the syrup upon drink demand. The pump  66   a  is driven at an RPM determined to provide the proper syrup to water ratio for the particular beverage to be formulated during mixing. It may be desirable to reverse the rotation of the auger when solely being used for agitation to avoid pumping the syrup by the vane pump  66   a . The potable water to be mixed with the powdered flavorant is provided in the proper amount, preferably from the ice bank assembly  12 , but alternatively could be provided from a separate remote water supply, if desired. 
     As best seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, a water manifold  72 , serving to distribute the potable water to both the syrup assembly  16  and the mixer valve/dispenser assembly  18 , includes four solenoid valves  74 . Each valve  74  is connected by a water line  75  to an associated syrup assembly  16  of each dispensing unit of the beverage apparatus  10 , thereby permitting water to be distributed to an individual syrup assembly as selected. The manifold  72  also has a direct water line  90  to each mixing assembly  18 . Because water pressure varies depending upon the remote water source selected, it is preferable that a water regulator  70  be placed in line  24  to regulate the line pressure of the cooled water to a predetermined pressure such as, for example, about 20 psi. 
     Reference is now made to FIGS. 9,  10 ,  11  and  15  to illustrate the component make of assembly  18 . When a beverage has been demanded by a consumer water and syrup are supplied in the requisite amounts to mixer valve/dispenser assembly  18 . Water moves along line  90  from manifold  72  to an open valve  114  in assembly  18  and into a cavity  92  circumscribing a cylindrically shaped interior member  94 . A plurality of apertures  96  place the cavity  92  in communication with an interior mixing volume  98 . At least a pair of the apertures  96  are essentially tangential to the wall in the interior volume but oriented 180° with respect to each while others are perpendicular to the walls. This causes the chilled water entering the volume under line pressure to swirl around the wall of the interior volume  98  impacting and causing the water to swirl within the volume  98 . The syrup in tank  64  being under continuous agitation by vane pump  66  is gently moved into the tank opening communicating with line  100 , and, when solenoid valve  116  is opened, moved mainly by gravity into the swirl of chilled water in the volume  98 . To further ensure mixing, a static mixer column  102  maybe placed within the volume  98 . As illustrated, column  102  extends upwardly from a plurality of feet  103  spacing the column above the base forming the bottom wall of mixing volume  98 . Attached to column  102  are a plurality of spaced half circle stages  104  each oriented to be 180° out of phase with an adjacent stage  104 . A conically shaped top member  106  is attached to the top of column  102 . As the syrup enters mixing volume  98  above top member  106 , it impacts the top member and is forced outwardly and encounters the swirling water. The syrup and water are further mixed due to the cascading action of the stages  104  where the mixed beverage then exits the mixing volume  98  through opening  99  into nozzle  108 . 
     Reference is now made specifically to FIGS. 13,  14 , and  15 . FIG. 13 which shows a general schematic of the relationship an apparatus controller  46  and four units  10   a ,  10   b ,  10   c , and  10   d  of an multi-beverage dispensing apparatus  10  of the present invention. FIG. 14 depicts the flow the water of water to the various units  10   a ,  10   b ,  10   c , and  10   d . For clarity, the dashed line  77  shows potential water flow from an associated valve  74   a  to the syrup tank of unit  10   a  while dashed line  79  represents potential water flow to the assembly  18  of unit  10   a . FIG. 15 illustrates the water flow from the manifold shows the water flow to the mixing valve/dispensing assembly  18  of the selected unit. When a select button  11  is depressed on the front of the unit indicating a particular beverage selection, controller  46  starts the beverage sequence in the selected unit. An appropriate valve  114  of the mixer valve/dispensing assembly  18  is opened by controller  46  and cooled potable water from the ice bank assembly  12  moves under line pressure through line  24  and the water regulator  70  to the manifold  72 . Water then flows directly into the assembly  18 . Valve  114  remains open for a predetermined time period so that the precise volume of the water to be used to form the beverage moves into the mixing chamber  98 . Similarly, valve  116  in the syrup line  100  is opened allowing syrup to be pumped and metered by vane pump  67  directly into chamber  98  for mixing with the water. As stated above, the water regulator  70  is important to ensure that the pressure is essentially the same from apparatus to apparatus, allowing the various settings and time durations imposed by the controller to be essentially constant. 
     Each unit of the apparatus  10  may be set to accommodate syrup either in one-half or full capacity. Full capacity is indicated schematically by level line  63  while half capacity is shown by level line  67 . When the syrup level falls below the selected capacity level to a predetermined low level shown by level line  65 , sensors  61   a ,  61   b , and  61   c  cooperating with controller  46  act to bring the syrup back to the selected capacity. While the sensors may be of various types, a preferred arrangement is the use of paired high and low sensors such as described in commonly assigned U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,422 incorporated by way of reference herein. Basically when low probe  61   b  senses syrup level has dropped to or below level  65 , controller  46  responds by opening valve  74  until the syrup level reaches the selected capacity level line at which point the valve  74  is closed. During this time period, powder auger  52  is rotated to meter a predetermined amount of powder into syrup tank  64  proportional to the amount of water added to the tank  64 . 
     The syrup is then allowed to sit undisturbed except for agitation for a period of time in order that proper pH level is reached in the syrup before being used to form a beverage hereinafter called the “resident” time. As stated above, reaching the proper pH level is an important consideration as it affects the ‘taste’ quality of the resulting beverage. Dispensing a beverage using a syrup or powder directly that has not reach the proper pH level often results in the drink being described as watery or tasteless. The controller  46  is set to prevent dispensing when water is being added to a tank  64  and for a predetermined time period thereafter. That is, controller  46  disable the dispensing sequence for the predetermined resident time for the particular unit undergoing syrup replacement. The precise resident time of a syrup depends upon the type of beverage with some requiring longer resident periods than others, but generally requires a minute or more. 
     Agitation of the syrup in tank  64  is preferably done at set time periods. For example, the controller  46  may count for a certain time interval between periods of agitation and then cause the motor to rotate the auger  66  (in a direction opposite the direction needed by vane pump  66   a ) for agitation of the syrup. Of course, agitation also occurs during metering since the auger  66  is also mounted on the same shaft as the vane pump  66   a.    
     The apparatus of the present invention also permits the periodic flushing of the various components coming in contact with syrup and the beverage. This is accomplished by opening all valves ( 74 ,  114 ,  116 ) of the apparatus for a predetermined time period allowing water to move through and flush all lines ( 24 ,  75 ,  90 ,  100 ), the surfaces of the components such as tank  74 , vane pump  66 , the internal components of the mixer member  94 , and nozzle  108 . Schematically shown in FIG. 15, a switch  73  for each unit is preferably positioned out of reach of individuals operating the front panel of the apparatus  10  and, when closed, causes the controller  46  to place the selected unit in a flush mode for the predetermined flush time period. 
     FIG. 2 represents a second embodiment of the present invention in which the powder hopper assembly is not used to make the syrup. Instead, in this embodiment, the syrup is may be made by manually feeding a predetermined amount of powder flavorant into the container tank  264  and then mixed with an appropriate amount of chilled water agitated by agitator  282 . Alternatively, tank  264  may be removed and syrup made in the container at position remote from the dispesner and replaced. Except for flushing, there may be no feed of chilled potable water into the container tank  264  as the container is filled externally. The chilled water from ice bank assembly  212  moves through regulator  270  to the mixer valve/dispensing assembly  218 . In multi-unit beverage dispensers the water line may first proceed to a water line splitter  272  and then be directed to individual assemblies  218 . The syrup from the tank  264  is delivered to the mixer/dispenser assembly  218  by a pump  280 , preferably a peristaltic type pump. As in the previous embodiment, however, the syrup in the tank  264  is periodically agitated by an rotating agitator  282  magnetically coupled to a shaft of a motor  284 . The control schematic of FIG. 16 illustrates the relationship between the controller  46 , the syrup tank assembly  216 , and mixing valve/dispensing assembly  218 . When selector switch  211  is depressed or closed, controller  46  energizes pump  210  and opens the associated valve  274  for a predetermined amount of time or as long as switch  211  is depressed and cooled potable water flows to the associated mixer valve/dispensing assembly  218  thorough now opened solenoid valve  214 . Simultaneously, pump  280  pumps in a precisely metered amount syrup in a proportional ratio from tank  264  through line  220  to the mixer  218 . Water and syrup are mixed as before and the beverage dispensed into a container. 
     To provide for flushing, the tank  264  may be connected to a remote source of water through line  290  and valve  292 . For clarity, water line  290  is shown broken. As with the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 14, a switch  273 , when closed, opens all valves ( 214 ,  290 ) and energizes pump  280  to permit the flushing of all surfaces coming into contact with the syrup. 
     FIG. 3 represents still another embodiment in which a powder hopper apparatus  314  is employed with a syrup assembly  316  that uses a peristaltic type pump  380  instead of a vane pump. Thus, the operation of the syrup flow is essentially the same as in the FIG. 2 embodiment with the syrup being metered directly to mixing assembly  318 . Water flow is essentially the same as the flow described for the FIG. 1 embodiment with the water flowing through a water regulator (not shown) to a water splitter  372  to mixer assembly incorporating a valve (not shown). As before a controller operates to open the valve in the mixer assembly while energizing the pump  380  upon demand to provide for the beverage. Flushing can be accomplished similar to the FIG. 1 embodiment as desired. 
     From the description above, those with ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains will be able to modify and change the apparatus and components thereof without departing from the spirit and scope of the attached claims.