Patent Description:
In general, a blender is an electric device including a container (cup) into which an object to be blended is inserted and a body in which an electric motor is accommodated.

Here, the container is formed of hard heat-resistant glass, a synthetic resin, or stainless steel, and a grinding blade formed of stainless steel is mounted at a lower portion of the container while being engaged with a driving unit.

In addition, as the electric motor accommodated in the body rotates at a high speed, the blender has been widely used in the home for the purpose of extracting juice from the object to be blended as well as the purpose of cutting and grinding the object to be blended including fruits and vegetables.

<CIT> discloses a blender according to the preamble of claim <NUM>. However, as disclosed in <CIT>, the blender has a limitation that a protrusion part is formed on an inner container of the blender, and an object to be blended accommodated in the inner container is caught by the protrusion part while rotating by rotation of a grinding blade, and thus, reverse rotation of the inner container in an opposite direction to a rotation direction of the grinding blade is not smoothly performed, and in particular, when an output of an inner container driving motor is low, the reverse rotation of the inner container is not performed at all.

Furthermore, even though the object to be blended is ground, in order to extract and eat juice, juice extraction needs to be performed using a separate juicer, which is inconvenient.

An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a vacuum blender capable of improving grinding performance of an object to be blended.

The present invention provides a vacuum blender according to claim <NUM>. According to the invention, the vacuum blender includes: a blender body including a container support case, an outer container seated on the container support case, a grinding blade, and a blade driving unit rotating the grinding blade; an inner container unit including an inner container which is disposed in the outer container and in which the grinding blade is positioned, and an inner container driving unit rotating the inner container; and a vacuum unit installed in the container support case and configured so that a blending operation for an object to be blended accommodated in the inner container is performed in a vacuum state, wherein the outer container is opened and closed by an outer container cover, the inner container is opened and closed by an inner container cover, and the inner container cover is rotatably assembled to the outer container cover, a blade rotation shaft of the blade driving unit is installed to be axially rotated in a hollow formed in an inner container rotation shaft of the inner container driving unit, such that the blade rotation shaft and the inner container rotation shaft are axially rotated independently of each other, and an intermediate rotation shaft unit connecting the blade driving unit and the grinding blade to each other and connecting the inner container driving unit and the inner container to each other is installed in the outer container.

Here, the blade driving unit and the inner container driving unit may be mounted in the container support case, and the outer container may be detachably connected to the container support case, the intermediate rotation shaft unit may include : a first intermediate rotation shaft connecting the blade rotation shaft of the blade driving unit and the grinding blade to engage with each other; and a second intermediate rotation shaft connecting the inner container rotation shaft of the inner container driving unit and the inner container to engage with each other, and the second intermediate rotation shaft and the first intermediate rotation shaft may axially rotate independently of each other while the second intermediate rotation shaft surrounds the first intermediate rotation shaft.

In this case, the first intermediate rotation shaft may have an upper portion key-fastened to the grinding blade and a lower portion key-fastened to the blade rotation shaft, and the second intermediate rotation shaft may have an upper portion key-fastened to the inner container and a lower portion key-fastened to the inner container rotation shaft.

Specifically, the first intermediate rotation shaft may have first keyways formed in an upper portion thereof, and the grinding blade may have lower keys protruding on inner side surfaces of a lower groove formed in the grinding blade and key-fastened to the first keyways, and the first keyway may extend downward from an upper end of a side surface of the first intermediate rotation shaft and extend in both side directions at a lower portion thereof.

in addition, a shaft magnet may be embedded in an upper portion of the first intermediate rotation shaft, and a body magnet may be embedded in the grinding blade, such that the first intermediate rotation shaft and the grinding blade are attached to each other by magnetic forces of the shaft magnet and the body magnet together with the key fastening.

In addition, a lower hole through which the first intermediate rotation shaft penetrates may be formed in the inner container, and a support jaw may be formed on an upper edge of the lower hole, and an upper portion of the second intermediate rotation shaft may be inserted into the lower hole of the inner container to be assembled while supporting the support jaw of the inner container upward and be key-fastened to inner side surfaces of the lower hole, and a lower portion of the second intermediate rotation shaft may be inserted into and assembled to an upper groove of the inner container rotation shaft and be key-fastened to inner side surfaces of the upper groove.

Meanwhile, the blade driving unit and the inner container driving unit may be configured to rotate the grinding blade and the inner container in opposite directions.

Here, the inner container may have a protrusion part formed on an inner side surface thereof so that the object to be blended rotationally flowing while being ground by the grinding blade is caught, and the protrusion part may have a shape of a screw protrusion line inducing a downward spiral flow of the object to be blended so that the object to be blended flows downward while rotating in an opposite direction to the rotation of the grinding blade.

Meanwhile, the inner container may have a plurality of dehydration holes formed in side portions thereof so that the object to be blended is dehydrated when being rotated.

In this case, a discharge pipe protruding outwardly may be formed at a lower portion of the outer container so that juice dehydrated from the object to be blended is discharged outwardly of the outer container, and a guide protrusion jaw may be formed to protrude on one side of a lead portion of the discharge pipe at a lower portion of an inner surface of the outer container so as to block a rotational flow of the juice generated from the object to be blended to allow the juice to be guided to and introduced into the lead portion of the discharge pipe.

As set forth above, in the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure, the blade rotation shaft and the inner container rotation shaft axially rotate independently of each other, the intermediate rotation shaft unit connecting the blade driving unit and the grinding blade to each other and connecting the inner container driving unit and the inner container to each other is installed in the outer container, such that the inner container and the grinding blade may rotate in opposite directions in a stable and balanced manner, and the outer container is attached to and detached from the container support case, such that driving connection and driving disconnection between the grinding blade and the blade driving unit and between the inner container and the inner container driving unit may be smoothly and easily performed.

In addition, in the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure, the guide protrusion jaw may be formed to protrude on one side of a lead portion of the discharge pipe at a lower portion of an inner surface of the outer container to guide and introduce the dehydrated juice to the lead portion of the discharge pipe, such that the juice may be smoothly and easily discharged through the discharge pipe.

Furthermore, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure has a structure in which a gear fastening structure of an inner container driving connection part varies or a plurality of inner container driving motors are configured so that the inner container has different rotation speeds when grinding the obj ect to be blended and when dehydrating the obj ect to be blended, and thus, the vacuum blender may smoothly reversely rotate objects to be blended close to inner side surfaces of the inner container among objects to be blended rotating forward by forward rotation of the grinding blade by decreasing a rotation speed of reverse rotation of the inner container and increasing a torque when grinding the object to be blended, and may maximize a dehydration effect by increasing a rotation speed of the inner container as much as possible when dehydrating the ground object to be blended as compared with when grinding the object to be blended.

It is noted that in giving reference numerals to components of the respective drawings, the same components will be denoted by the same reference numerals even though they are illustrated in different drawings. Further, in describing exemplary embodiments in the present disclosure, when it is determined that a detailed description of a related known configuration or function may obscure the gist of the present disclosure, the detailed description will be omitted.

<FIG> and <FIG> are perspective views illustrating a vacuum blender according to the present disclosure, <FIG> is a view illustrating an inner portion of a vacuum blender according to an exemplary embodiment in the present disclosure, and <FIG> and <FIG> are views illustrating an operation state of an inner container driving unit in the vacuum blender of <FIG>.

Referring to the drawings, a vacuum blender according to an exemplary embodiment in the present disclosure includes a blender body and an inner container unit.

Here, the blender body <NUM> includes an outer container <NUM>, a grinding blade <NUM>, and a blade driving unit <NUM>.

Specifically, the outer container <NUM> has an upper opened structure in which a lower surface thereof is closed and an upper portion thereof is opened so that an object to be blended may be accommodated therein, and is covered by a blender cover <NUM> pivotable mounted on a container support case <NUM> to be described later.

In addition, the outer container <NUM> is opened and closed by an outer container cover <NUM>, and may be closed by the outer container cover <NUM> covering an upper portion thereof before being seated on the container support case <NUM>.

In this case, the object to be blended refers to food ground by an operation of a vacuum blender.

In addition, the grinding blade <NUM> is disposed in an inner container <NUM>, and serves to grind and liquefy the object to be blended in the inner container <NUM> when being rotated.

In addition, the blade driving unit <NUM> is configured to rotate the grinding blade <NUM>.

In addition, the outer container <NUM> is a structure seated on the container support case <NUM>. That is, the outer container <NUM> is supported by the container support case <NUM>, and such a container support case <NUM> has an L-shape as a whole as illustrated in the drawings.

The container support case <NUM> includes a lower casing part <NUM> positioned below the outer container <NUM> and a side casing part <NUM> extending upward from the lower casing part <NUM> and connected to the blender cover <NUM>.

Specifically, in the container support case <NUM>, the outer container <NUM> is seated on an upper surface of the lower casing part <NUM> disposed in a transverse direction, and the blender cover <NUM> is hinge-coupled to an upper end of the side casing part <NUM> extending upward from the lower casing part <NUM> and disposed in a longitudinal direction so as to be pivotable in an up and down direction.

Such a container support case <NUM> has the blade driving unit <NUM> and an inner container driving unit <NUM> to be described later installed therein. When the outer container <NUM> in which the inner container <NUM> is embedded is seated on the container support case <NUM>, the grinding blade <NUM> positioned in the inner container <NUM> and the blade driving unit <NUM> installed in the container support case <NUM> are connected to each other so that a driving force is transferred, and the inner container <NUM> installed in the outer container <NUM> and the inner container driving unit <NUM> installed in the container support case <NUM> are connected to each other so that a driving force is transferred.

More specifically, the outer container <NUM> is detachably connected to the container support case <NUM>. For example, a spiral projection to be fitted into the container support case <NUM> is formed on an outer peripheral surface of a lower protrusion part of the outer container <NUM>, a spiral groove is formed in an inner peripheral surface of a seating groove of container support case <NUM> on which the lower protrusion part is seated, and the projection is fitted into the spiral groove, such that the outer container may be mounted on the container support case <NUM>, and the projection is released from the spiral groove, such that the outer case may be separated from the container support case <NUM>.

Meanwhile, an inner container unit <NUM> includes the inner container <NUM> and the inner container driving unit <NUM>.

Here, the inner container <NUM> is installed in the outer container <NUM>, is opened and closed by an inner container cover <NUM>, and may be closed by the inner container cover <NUM> covering an upper portion thereof before being seated on the container support case <NUM>.

In addition, the inner container cover <NUM> may be rotatably assembled to the outer container cover <NUM>. As an example, a central projection 211a may be formed at an upper portion of the inner container cover <NUM>, and a projection support groove 111a into which the central projection 211a of the inner container cover <NUM> is inserted and rotationally supported may be formed at a lower portion of the outer container cover <NUM>.

In addition, in order to form a vacuum of the inner container <NUM> by a vacuum unit <NUM> to be described later, a suction hole may be formed in the central projection 211a, and a suction hole may be formed in an upper portion of the projection support groove 111a.

In addition, such an inner container <NUM> may have one or more protrusion parts <NUM> formed on inner side surfaces thereof so that the object to be blended rotationally flowing while being ground by the grinding blade <NUM> is caught.

In the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure, the blade driving unit <NUM> and the inner container driving unit <NUM> are configured to rotate the grinding blade <NUM> and the inner container <NUM> in opposite directions, and when the grinding blade <NUM> is rotated in a state in which the object to be blended is accommodated in the inner container <NUM>, if the object to be blended collides with the protrusion parts <NUM> formed on the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM> rotating in an opposite direction, large turbulence of the object to be blended is generated to increase a grinding effect of the object to be blended.

In addition, the obj ect to be blended flows upward while being radially pushed out by a centrifugal force by the rotation of the grinding blade <NUM>, and the protrusion parts <NUM> inducing a downward spiral flow of the object to be blended and having a screw protrusion part shape are formed on the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM> to allow the object to be blended to flow toward the grinding blade <NUM> disposed on the lower side of the inner container <NUM>, such that the grinding effect of the vacuum blender may be further increased.

In addition, for an irregular flow of the object to be blended of the inner container <NUM>, a controller (not illustrated) may control an inner container driving motor <NUM> of the inner container driving unit <NUM> to be described later to reversely rotate the inner container <NUM> in an opposite direction to the grinding blade <NUM> to perform repeated operations of reversely rotating and stopping the inner container <NUM>.

In addition, the inner container <NUM> may have a plurality of dehydration holes 210a formed in side portions thereof so that the object to be blended is dehydrated when being rotated in order to extract only juice from the object to be blended ground by the grinding blade <NUM>.

In this case, the dehydration holes 210a are illustrated to be large in the drawings, but the dehydration holes 210a are actually very small holes through which only the juice of the object to be blended may pass, and a plurality of holes may be formed as a mesh structure in the side portions of the inner container <NUM>. Furthermore, the dehydration holes 210a may be directly formed in the side portions of the inner container <NUM> as illustrated in the drawings, and as another example, although not illustrated in the drawings, a structure in which mesh members formed as a separate member are mounted to be portions of the side portions of the inner container <NUM> may be used.

In addition, the dehydration holes 210a may be formed in a lower portion or the side portions of the inner container <NUM>. In this case, it is preferable that the dehydration holes 210a are not formed in the lower portion of the inner container <NUM>, and are formed in the side portions of the inner container <NUM>, and it is more preferable that the dehydration holes 210a are formed from a predetermined height or more of the side portions of the inner container <NUM>, which is to maintain a state in which a predetermined amount of liquid is accommodated because a blending effect is increased when there is a predetermined amount of liquid (e.g., separate water or juice generated when blending the obj ect to be blended) when blending the object to be blended.

Even though the dehydration holes 210a are formed from a predetermined height or more of the side portions of the inner container <NUM>, since the inner container <NUM> rotates at a much faster speed when the object to be blended is dehydrated than when the object to be blended is ground, the juice easily moves upward along the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM>, such that the juice may sufficiently come out of the inner container <NUM> through the dehydration holes 210a.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in <FIG> and <FIG>, a discharge pipe 110a protruding outward may be formed at a lower portion of the outer container <NUM> so that the juice dehydrated from the object to be blended is discharged outwardlly of the outer container <NUM>. For reference, as for reference numerals in a description to be described later related to the discharge pipe 110a, refer to <FIG>.

That is, when the juice of the object to be blended comes out through the dehydration holes 210a of the inner container <NUM> by a dehydration process of the object to be blended, the discharge pipe 110a that is downward inclined may be formed at a lower end portion of a side portion of the outer container <NUM> so that the juice may be extracted without separating the outer container <NUM> from the container support case <NUM>.

Furthermore, a guide protrusion jaw 110c may be formed on one side of a lead portion of the discharge pipe 110a at a lower portion inside the outer container <NUM>.

In order to grind the object to be blended and then dehydrate the ground object to be blended, that is, in order to extract the juice from the object to be blended, the inner container <NUM> rotates at a high speed. However, the juice coming out of the inner container <NUM> through the dehydration holes 210a is affected by the high-speed rotation of the inner container <NUM> to continuously rotationally flow between the inner container <NUM> and the outer container <NUM>, and thus, does not come out of the outer container well through the discharge pipe 110a.

In other words, the rotational flow of the juice is continuously maintained between the inner container <NUM> and the outer container <NUM> by the high-speed rotation of the inner container <NUM>, such that the juice is not easily introduced into the lead portion of the discharge pipe 110a.

Accordingly, the guide protrusion jaw 110c is formed to protrude on one side of the lead portion of the discharge pipe at a lower portion of an inner surface of the outer container <NUM>, and serves to block the rotational flow of the juice generated from the object to be blended to guide the juice so that the juice is introduced into the lead portion of the discharge pipe 110a.

In addition, the inner container driving unit <NUM> is configured to rotate the inner container <NUM>.

Specifically, the inner container driving unit <NUM> includes an inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, an inner container driving motor <NUM>, and an inner container driving connection part <NUM>.

In addition, the above-described blade driving unit <NUM> includes a blade rotation shaft <NUM>, a blade driving motor <NUM>, and a blade driving connection part <NUM>.

Here, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is connected to the lower portion of the inner container <NUM> embedded in the outer container <NUM> so that a rotational driving force is transferred to the lower portion of the inner container <NUM> when the outer container <NUM> is seated on the container support case <NUM>, and the blade rotation shaft <NUM> is connected to the lower portion of the grinding blade <NUM> embedded in the inner container <NUM> so that a rotational driving force is transferred to the lower portion of the grinding blade <NUM> when the outer container <NUM> is seated on the container support case <NUM>.

In this case, the blade rotation shaft <NUM> is installed to be axially rotated in a hollow formed in the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, and the blade rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> have a structure in which they are axially rotated independently of each other.

That is, the hollow of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is provided with a bearing so that the blade rotation shaft <NUM> may be installed in the hollow while penetrating through the hollow, such that the blade rotation shaft <NUM> may rotate independently of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> inside the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

Meanwhile, an intermediate rotation shaft unit <NUM> connecting the blade driving unit <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> to each other and connecting the inner container driving unit <NUM> and the inner container <NUM> to each other is installed in the outer container <NUM>.

Specifically, the intermediate rotation shaft unit <NUM> may include a first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and a second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>.

Here, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has a structure in which it connects the blade rotation shaft <NUM> of the blade driving unit <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> to engage with each other.

In addition, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has a structure in which it connects the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> of the inner container driving unit <NUM> and the inner container <NUM> to engage with each other.

In this case, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> axially rotate independently of each other while the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> surrounds the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>. That is, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is disposed in a hollow of the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>, and a bearing is mounted between the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>, such that the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> have a structure in which they are axially rotated independently of each other while stably and firmly maintaining a spaced distance therebetween.

In addition, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has an upper portion key-fastened to the grinding blade <NUM> and a lower portion key-fastened to the blade rotation shaft <NUM>, and the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has an upper portion key-fastened to the inner container <NUM> and a lower portion key-fastened to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

Specifically, as illustrated in <FIG>, the upper portion of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is inserted into and assembled to a lower groove 120a of the grinding blade <NUM>, and is key-fastened to an inner side surface of the lower groove 120a, such that the grinding blade <NUM> has a structure in which it rotates in conjunction with the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> while being in a firm position fixed state in which it does not move in a lateral direction.

More specifically, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has first keyways 191a formed in side surfaces of an upper portion thereof, the grinding blade <NUM> has lower keys <NUM> formed to protrude on inner side surfaces of the lower groove 120a, and when the lower keys <NUM> are inserted into the first keyways 191a, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> are key-fastened to each other.

Here, the grinding blade <NUM> tends to float upward when it is stopped after being rotated within the inner container <NUM>. In order to prevent such a problem, the first keyway 191a may have a structure in which it extends downward from an upper end of a side surface of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and extends in both side directions at a lower portion thereof, that is, a ┴-shape.

Due to such a shape structure, after the lower keys <NUM> of the grinding blade <NUM> are vertically inserted downward into the first keyways 191a, the lower keys <NUM> are horizontally moved to one side portions 191a at lower portions of the first keyways 191a when the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> rotates, and are horizontally moved to the other side portions 191ab at the lower portions of the first keyways 191a when the rotation of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is stopped.

As such, movement of the lower keys <NUM> in an upward direction is blocked when the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> rotates and the rotation of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is stopped, such that the grinding blade <NUM> is not separated from the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>. According to such a structure, the grinding blade <NUM> and the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> are maintained in a state in which they are stably assembled (fastened) to each other.

Meanwhile, the grinding blade <NUM> may be separated in the upward direction at an intermediate point of a process in which the lower keys <NUM> are horizontally moved to the other side portion 191ab in a state in which the lower keys <NUM> are horizontally moved to one side portions 191aa at the lower portions of the first keyways 191a. In order to prevent such a problem, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> may be provided with magnetic materials attracting the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM>, respectively, in addition to the assembly structure of the grinding blade <NUM> to the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> described above.

That is, in order to prevent from the grinding blade <NUM> frombeing separated in the upward direction, a shaft magnet SM is embedded in an upper portion of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>, and a body magnet BM is embedded in the grinding blade <NUM>, such that the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> may have a structure in which they are attached to each other by magnetic forces of the shaft magnet SM and the body magnet BM together with the above-described key fastening.

As an example, components illustrated in <FIG> and <FIG> will be described. the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> may include a lower nut N, a bearing part BE, a shaft member S, a shaft cap SC, the shaft magnet SM, and a shaft magnet cap SMC assembled from the lower side, and the grinding blade <NUM> may include a blade body KB, a body cover BC, the body magnet BM, an O-ring O, and a body magnet cap BMC in portions other than a blade.

In addition, as illustrated in <FIG>, the lower portion of the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is inserted into and assembled to an upper groove 131a of the blade rotation shaft <NUM>, and is key-fastened to inner side surfaces of the upper groove 131a, such that the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is in a firm position fixed state in which it does not move in the lateral direction, and has a structure in which it rotates in conjunction with the blade rotation shaft <NUM>.

Specifically, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has first keys 191b formed on side surfaces of the lower portion thereof, the blade rotation shaft <NUM> has upper keyways <NUM> formed in an upper portion thereof, and when the first keys 191b are inserted into the upper keyways <NUM>, the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the blade rotation shaft <NUM> are key-fastened to each other.

In addition, as illustrated in <FIG>, a lower hole 210b through which the first intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> penetrates is formed in the inner container <NUM>, and a support jaw 210c is formed on an upper edge of the lower hole 210b.

Meanwhile, an upper portion of the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is inserted into the lower hole 210b of the inner container <NUM> to be assembled while supporting the support jaw 210c of the inner container <NUM> upward, and is key-fastened to inner side surfaces of the lower hole 210b, such that the inner container <NUM> is in a firm position fixed state in which it does not move in the lateral direction, and has a structure in which it rotates in conjunction with the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM>.

Specifically, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has second keyways 192a formed in side surfaces of an upper portion thereof, the inner container <NUM> has lower keys <NUM> formed at the lower portion thereof, and when the lower keys <NUM> are inserted into the second keyways 192a, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container <NUM> are key-fastened to each other.

In addition, as illustrated in <FIG>, a lower portion of the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is key-fastened and assembled to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, such that the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> is in a firm position fixed state in which it does not move in the lateral direction, has a structure in which it rotates in conjunction with the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

Specifically, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> has second keys 192b formed on side surfaces of the lower portion thereof, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> has upper keyways <NUM> formed in an upper portion thereof, and when the second keys 192b are inserted into the upper keyways <NUM>, the second intermediate rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> are key-fastened to each other.

In this case, the second keys 192b may have a structure in which they are inclined upward toward a rotation direction (counterclockwise direction in the drawing) of the inner container <NUM> so that they are smoothly guided and led into the upper keyways <NUM> when being inserted into the upper keyways <NUM>, and are firmly caught by the upper keyways <NUM> when being rotated in the rotation direction of the inner container <NUM>, that is, an opposite direction of a rotation direction of the grinding blade <NUM>.

As described above, in the present disclosure, the blade rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> axially rotate independently of each other, the intermediate rotation shaft unit <NUM> connecting the blade driving unit <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> to each other and connecting the inner container driving unit <NUM> and the inner container <NUM> to each other is installed in the outer container <NUM>, such that the inner container <NUM> and the grinding blade <NUM> may rotate in opposite directions in a stable and balanced manner, and the outer container <NUM> is attached to and detached from the container support case <NUM>, such that driving connection and driving disconnection between the grinding blade <NUM> and the blade driving unit <NUM> and between the inner container <NUM> and the inner container driving unit <NUM> may be smoothly and easily performed.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in <FIG>, the inner container driving unit <NUM> has a structure in which a gear fastening structure of the inner container driving connection part <NUM> is variable so that the inner container <NUM> has different rotation speeds when the obj ect to be blended is ground and dehydrated.

That is, when the object to be blended is ground and then dehydrated with the vacuum blender, the inner container <NUM> is rotated faster than when grinding the object to be blended because the juice needs to be extracted (dehydrated) from the object to be blended. To this end, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> has a gear fastening structure in which the inner container <NUM> has a slower rotation speed when the obj ect to be blended is ground than when the obj ect to be blended is dehydrated, and has a gear fastening structure in which the inner container <NUM> has a faster rotation speed when the object to be blended is dehydrated than when the object to be blended is ground.

Accordingly, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure may smoothly reversely rotate objects to be blended close to the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM> among objects to be blended rotating forward by a forward rotation of the grinding blade by decreasing a rotation speed of reverse rotation of the inner container <NUM> and increasing a torque when grinding the object to be blended, and may maximize a dehydration effect by increasing a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> as much as possible when dehydrating the ground object to be blended as compared with when grinding the object to be blended.

Specifically, in the inner container driving connection part <NUM>, a driving small gear 223b and a driving large gear 223c are installed on an inner container driving shaft 223a connected to the inner container driving motor <NUM>, and a driven large gear 223e and a driven small gear 223f are installed on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> or an intermediate rotation shaft 223d rotating in conjunction with the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

Here, the inner container driving shaft 223a and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> may be disposed in parallel with each other, and as an example, the intermediate rotation shaft 223d may be disposed in parallel with the inner container driving shaft 223a and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> as an additional driving force transfer medium when transferring a driving force from the inner container driving shaft 223a to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

In this case, the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f may be installed directly on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> or may be installed on the intermediate rotation shaft 223d as illustrated in the drawings, and a case where the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are installed on the intermediate rotation shaft 223d will be described by way of example in the present specification.

Accordingly, an arrangement of the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f to be described later may be applied to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> when the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are directly installed on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

The driving small gear 223b and the driving large gear 223c are disposed on the inner container driving shaft 223a so as to be spaced apart from each other along an axial direction, and the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are disposed on the intermediate rotation shaft 223d so as to be spaced apart from each other long the axial direction.

In this case, the driving small gear 223b and the driving large gear 223c are sequentially disposed on the inner container driving shaft 223a and the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are sequentially disposed on intermediate rotation shaft 223d so that the driving small gear 223b of the inner container driving shaft 223a corresponds to the driven large gear 223e of the intermediate rotation shaft 223d and the driving large gear 223c of the inner container driving shaft 223a corresponds to the driven small gear 223f of the intermediate rotation shaft 223d.

As an example, as illustrated in the drawings, the driving small gear 223b and the driving large gear 223c are sequentially disposed in the upward direction on the inner container driving shaft 223a, and the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are sequentially disposed in the upward direction on the intermediate rotation shaft 223d.

For reference, as implied by names of respective components, the driving small gear 223b has a relatively smaller diameter than the driving large gear 223c, and the driven large gear 223e has a relatively larger diameter than the driven small gear 223f.

The inner container driving connection part <NUM> configured as described above may have a structure in which the driving large gear 223c and the driven small gear 223f are not gear-fastened to each other when the driving small gear 223b and the driven large gear 223e are gear-fastened to each other and the driving small gear 223b and the driven large gear 223e are not gear-fastened to each other when the driving large gear 223c and the driven small gear 223f are gear-fastened to each other, while the inner container driving shaft 223a reciprocates in the axial direction.

That is, when the object to be blended is ground, as illustrated in <FIG>, the inner container driving shaft 223a moves downward in the axial direction, and thus, the driving large gear 223c and the driven small gear 223f are gear-fastened to each other, such that the inner container <NUM> is decelerated, but rotates with a large torque, and may thus rotate smoothly in an opposite direction to the grinding blade.

In addition, when the object to be blended is dehydrated, as illustrated in <FIG>, the inner container driving shaft 223a moves upward in the axial direction, and thus, the driving small gear 223b and the driven large gear 223e are gear-fastened to each other, such that the inner container <NUM> rotates at a relatively faster speed than when the object to be blended is ground, and thus, a dehydration action of extracting the juice from the object to be blended may be effectively performed.

Furthermore, although not illustrated in the drawings, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> may also have a structure in which the driving large gear 223c and the driven small gear 223f are not gear-fastened to each other when the driving small gear 223b and the driven large gear 223e are gear-fastened to each other and the driving small gear 223b and the driven large gear 223e are not gear-fastened to each other when the driving large gear 223c and the driven small gear 223f are gear-fastened to each other, while the intermediate rotation shaft 223d reciprocates in the axial direction, rather than the reciprocation of the inner container driving shaft 223a in the axial direction.

In addition, although not illustrated in the drawings, when the driven large gear 223e and the driven small gear 223f are directly installed on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is axially moved.

Meanwhile, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> may include a shaft moving member <NUM> moving the inner container driving shaft 223a in the axial direction. In this case, any driving member according to the related art such as a solenoid cylinder may be used as the shaft moving member <NUM>.

Here, the inner container driving shaft 223a may have one end portion axially movably slidably fastened to while being key-fastened to a motor shaft 222a of the inner container driving motor <NUM> so as to axially rotate in conjunction with the motor shaft 222a, and the other end portion axially rotatably connected to the shaft moving member <NUM>.

That is, the inner container driving shaft 223a has one end portion key-fastened to the motor shaft 222a of the inner container driving motor <NUM> so as to axially rotate in conjunction with the motor shaft 222a, such that when the motor shaft 222a axially rotates by an operation of the inner container driving motor <NUM>, the inner container driving shaft 223a axially rotates in conjunction with the motor shaft 222a, and thus, receives a rotational driving force transferred from the inner container driving motor <NUM>.

In addition, the inner container driving shaft 223a has one end portion axially movably slidably fastened to the motor shaft 222a of the inner container driving motor <NUM>, such that even when the inner container driving shaft 223a moves in the axial direction by the shaft moving member <NUM>, the inner container driving shaft 223a may be maintained in a state in which it is key-fastened to the motor shaft 222a.

As an example, a cross section of a hollow 222b of the motor shaft 222a has a square shape, a cross section of one end portion of the inner container driving shaft 223a is matched to the cross section of a hollow 222b of the motor shaft 222a in terms of shape, such that one end portion of the inner container driving shaft 223a may be axially movably slidably fastened to the motor shaft 222a while being key-fastened to the motor shaft 222a so as to axially rotate in conjunction with the motor shaft 222a.

In addition, the other end portion of the inner container driving shaft 223a is connected to the shaft moving member <NUM>, such that the inner container driving shaft 223a may axially rotate in a state in which it is connected to the shaft moving member <NUM> when it moves in the axial direction by the shaft moving member <NUM>.

As an example, the other end portion of the inner container driving shaft 223a maybe connected to the shaft moving member <NUM> by a shaft rotation bearing <NUM>.

Meanwhile, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> has a gear structure configured so that a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the object to be blended is dehydrated is <NUM> times or more faster than a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the object to be blended is ground.

As a specific example, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> has a gear structure configured so that a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the inner container <NUM> grinds the object to be blended is <NUM> rpm to <NUM> rpm and a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the inner container <NUM> dehydrates the object to be blended is <NUM> rpm to <NUM> rpm.

By such a configuration of the inner container driving connection part <NUM>, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure may increase a torque as much as possible by decreasing the rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when grinding the object to be blended, and maximize a dehydration effect by increasing the rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> as much as possible when dehydrating the object to be blended.

<FIG> is a view illustrating an inner portion of a vacuum blender according to another exemplary embodiment in the present disclosure, and <FIG> and <FIG> are views illustrating an operation state of an inner container driving unit in the vacuum blender of <FIG>.

Referring to the drawings, the blender body according to another exemplary embodiment in the present disclosure includes a blender body <NUM>, an inner container unit <NUM>, and a vacuum unit <NUM>, and components other than an inner container driving unit <NUM> of the inner container unit <NUM> have the same structures as those of the vacuum blender illustrated in <FIG>, and a detailed description thereof will thus be omitted.

In addition, a structure in which the blade rotation shaft <NUM> of the blade driving unit <NUM> is axially rotatably installed in a hollow formed in the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> of the inner container driving unit <NUM>, such that the blade rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> axially rotate independently of each other is also the same as the structure described above.

Meanwhile, the inner container driving unit <NUM> includes the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, an inner container driving motor <NUM>, and an inner container driving connection part <NUM> connecting the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> and the inner container driving motor <NUM> to each other.

Here, a plurality of inner container driving motors <NUM> are provided so that the inner container <NUM> has different rotation speeds when grinding the object to be blended and when dehydrating the object to be blended.

Accordingly, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure may smoothly reversely rotate objects to be blended close to the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM> among objects to be blended rotating forward by a forward rotation of the grinding blade by decreasing a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> using one inner container driving motors <NUM> to increase a torque when grinding the obj ect to be blended, and may maximize a dehydration effect by increasing a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> as much as possible using another inner container driving motors <NUM> when dehydrating the ground object to be blended as compared with when grinding the object to be blended.

Specifically, one inner container driving motor <NUM> is a first motor M1 supplying a rotational driving force to the inner container <NUM> when grinding the object to be blended, and another inner container driving motor <NUM> is a second motor M2 supplying a rotational driving force to the inner container <NUM> in an opposite direction to the first motor M1 when dehydrating the ground object to be blended.

In this case, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> has a structure in which each of the first motor M1 and the second motor M2 and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> are connected to each other by a one-way bearing structure.

That is, the first motor M1 and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> may be connected to each other by one one-way bearing structure, and the second motor M2 and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> may be connected to each other by another one-way bearing structure.

That is, when the object to be blended is ground, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is rotationally driven only by the first motor M1 as illustrated in <FIG>, and when the object to be blended is dehydrated, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is rotationally driven only by the second motor M2, as illustrated in <FIG>.

More specifically, the inner container driving connection part <NUM> has the following structure.

A first driving gear 229a is installed on a first motor shaft M1a of the first motor M1, and a first driven gear 229c gear-fastened to the first driving gear 229a or connected to the first driving gear 229a by a first belt 229b or a first chain is installed on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

That is, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is installed with the first driven gear 229c driving-connected to the first driving gear 229a, and such a first driven gear 229c may be directly gear-fastened to the first driving gear 229a or be connected to the first driving gear 229a by a driving connecting member such as the first belt 229b or the first chain.

Furthermore, although not illustrated in the drawings, a separate intermediate connection shaft may be further installed in a driving connection structure between the first motor shaft M1a and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, and a rotation speed and a torque of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> may be adjusted through an intermediate connection gear mounted on such an intermediate connection shaft and driving-connected to the first driving gear 229a and the first driven gear 229c.

In addition, a second driving gear 229e is installed on a second motor shaft M2a of the second motor M2, and a second driven gear <NUM> gear-fastened to the second driving gear 229e or connected to the second driving gear 229e by a second belt 229f or a second chain is installed on the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>.

That is, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> is installed with the second driven gear <NUM> driving-connected to the second driving gear 229e, and such a second driven gear <NUM> may be directly gear-fastened to the second driving gear 229e or be connected to the second driving gear 229e by a driving connecting member such as the second belt 229f or the second chain.

Furthermore, although not illustrated in the drawings, an intermediate rotation shaft may be further installed as a separate driving transfer medium in a driving connection structure between the second motor shaft M2a and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM>, and a rotation speed and a torque of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> may be adjusted through an intermediate connection gear installed on such an intermediate rotation shaft and driving-connected to the second driving gear 229e and the second driven gear <NUM>.

In addition, a first one-way bearing 229d is mounted between the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> and the first driven gear 229c.

That is, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> penetrates through the first driven gear 229c, and the first one-way bearing 229d has an inner race fixedly fastened to a circumference of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> between the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> and the first driven gear 229c and an outer race fixedly fastened to an inner portion of the first driven gear 229c.

Such a first one-way bearing 229d serves to allow a driving force to be transferred from the first driven gear 229c to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> in only one axial rotation direction, and simply axially rotatably fasten the first driven gear 229c and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> to each other in an opposite direction so that a driving force is not transferred in the opposite direction.

That is, the first one-way bearing 229d allows the driving force to be transferred from the first driven gear 229c to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> so that the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> also axially rotates in one direction in conjunction with the first driven gear 229c when the first driven gear 229c axially rotates in one direction, and allows the driving force not to be transferred from the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> to the first driven gear 229c so that the first driven gear 229c does not axially rotate in an opposite direction in conjunction with the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> when the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> rotates in the opposite direction.

In addition, a second one-way bearing <NUM> is mounted between the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> and the second driven gear <NUM>.

That is, the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> penetrates through the second driven gear <NUM>, and the second one-way bearing <NUM> has an inner race fixedly fastened to the circumference of the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> between the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> and the second driven gear <NUM> and an outer race fixedly fastened to an inner portion of the second driven gear <NUM>.

Such a second one-way bearing <NUM> serves to allow a driving force to be transferred from the second driven gear <NUM> to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> in only one axial rotation direction, and simply axially rotatably fasten the second driven gear <NUM> and the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> to each other in an opposite direction so that a driving force is not transferred in the opposite direction.

That is, the second one-way bearing <NUM> allows the driving force to be transferred from the second driven gear <NUM> to the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> so that the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> also axially rotates in the other direction in conjunction with the second driven gear <NUM> when the second driven gear <NUM> axially rotates in the other direction, and allows the driving force not to be transferred from the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> to the second driven gear <NUM> so that the second driven gear <NUM> does not axially rotate in an opposite direction in conjunction with the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> when the inner container rotation shaft <NUM> rotates in the opposite direction.

Here, the first one-way bearing 229d and the second one-way bearing <NUM> have structures in which the driving forces are transferred only in opposite rotation directions.

Accordingly, even though the first driven gear 229c rotates through the first driving gear 229a when only the first motor M1 operates, the second driven gear <NUM> does not rotate, and ultimately, does not affect the second motor M2, and even though the second driven gear <NUM> rotates through the second driving gear 229e when only the second motor M2 operates, the first driven gear 229c does not rotate, and ultimately, does not affect the first motor M1.

Meanwhile, the first motor M1, the second motor M2, and the inner container driving connection part <NUM> may be configured so that a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the object to be blended is dehydrated is <NUM> times or more faster than a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the object to be blended is ground.

As a specific example, the firstmotorM1, the second motor M2, and the inner container driving connection part <NUM> are configured so that a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the inner container <NUM> grinds the obj ect to be blended is <NUM> rpm to <NUM> rpm and a rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when the inner container <NUM> dehydrates the object to be blended is <NUM> rpm to <NUM> rpm.

By such configurations of the first motor M1, the second motor M2, and the inner container driving connection part <NUM>, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure may increase a torque as much as possible by decreasing the rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> when grinding the object to be blended, and maximize a dehydration effect by increasing the rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> as much as possible when dehydrating the object to be blended.

Meanwhile, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure may further include a vacuum unit <NUM> installed in the container support case <NUM> so as to form a vacuum in the inner container <NUM>, as illustrated in <FIG> and <FIG>.

The vacuum unit <NUM> may include a suction pipe <NUM> and a vacuum driving unit <NUM>.

Here, the suction pipe <NUM> may have a structure in which it extends from the vacuum driving unit <NUM> embedded in the container support case <NUM> upward of the outer container <NUM> through an inner portion of the blender cover <NUM>, and communicates with the inner container <NUM> disposed in the outer container <NUM> while communicating with the outer container <NUM> when the blender cover <NUM> pivots downward to cover the outer container <NUM>.

In addition, the vacuum driving unit <NUM> may be connected to the suction pipe <NUM>, and may be formed of a vacuum motor and a vacuum pump.

The vacuum blender of the present disclosure allows a blending operation including the grinding and the dehydration for the obj ect to be blended accommodated in the inner container to be performed under the vacuum by the vacuum unit <NUM> configured as described above, such that the obj ect to be blended including a fruit or a vegetable is blended in a state in which it is not oxidized, and juice which is fresh and of which a nutritive substance is not destroyed may be obtained.

As described above, the vacuum blender according to the present disclosure has a structure in which the gear fastening structure of the inner container driving connection part <NUM> varies or the plurality of inner container driving motors <NUM> are configured so that the inner container <NUM> has different rotation speeds when grinding the object to be blended and when dehydrating the object to be blended, and thus, the vacuum blender may smoothly reversely rotate the objects to be blended close to the inner side surfaces of the inner container <NUM> among the objects to be blended rotating forward by the forward rotation of the grinding blade by decreasing the rotation speed of the reverse rotation of the inner container <NUM> and increasing the torque when grinding the object to be blended, and may maximize the dehydration effect by increasing the rotation speed of the inner container <NUM> as much as possible when dehydrating the ground object to be blended as compared with when grinding the object to be blended. with when grinding the object to be blended.

Claim 1:
A vacuum blender comprising:
a blender body (<NUM>) including a container support case (<NUM>), an outer container (<NUM>) seated on the container support case (<NUM>), a grinding blade (<NUM>), and a blade driving unit (<NUM>) rotating the grinding blade (<NUM>) ;
an inner container unit (<NUM>) including an inner container (<NUM>) which is disposed in the outer container (<NUM>) and in which the grinding blade (<NUM>) is positioned, and an inner container driving unit (<NUM>) rotating the inner container (<NUM>); and
a vacuum unit (<NUM>) installed in the container support case (<NUM>) and configured so that a blending operation for an object to be blended accommodated in the inner container (<NUM>) is performed in a vacuum state,
wherein the outer container (<NUM>) is opened and closed by an outer container cover (<NUM>), the inner container (<NUM>) is opened and closed by an inner container cover (<NUM>), and the inner container cover (<NUM>) is rotatably assembled to the outer container cover (<NUM>), and
a blade rotation shaft (<NUM>) of the blade driving unit (<NUM>) is installed to be axially rotated in a hollow formed in an inner container rotation shaft (<NUM>) of the inner container driving unit (<NUM>), such that the blade rotation shaft (<NUM>) and the inner container rotation shaft (<NUM>) are axially rotated independently of each other,
characterized in that an intermediate rotation shaft unit (<NUM>) connecting the blade driving unit (<NUM>) and the grinding blade (<NUM>) to each other and connecting the inner container driving unit (<NUM>) and the inner container (<NUM>) to each other is installed in the outer container (<NUM>).