WO2002021983A1

WO2002021983A1 - Discharge assembly for a beverage machine

Info

Publication number: WO2002021983A1
Application number: PCT/CH2001/000534
Authority: WO
Inventors: Kurt Rutz; Daniela Rutz; Giovanni Steiner
Original assignee: Rutz + Co Gastro Engineering
Priority date: 2000-09-08
Filing date: 2001-09-04
Publication date: 2002-03-21
Also published as: AU2001281659A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a discharge assembly (10) for a beverage machine for preparing various beverages on the basis of coffee and/or milk, in which coffee, milk and vapor are guided to a respective discharge element (34, 36) via separate supply lines. Said discharge elements (34, 36) are disposed on support arms (18, 20, 22, 24) that form an integral part of a retainer (16) with a central control disk (40) and that project radially outwards. The free face (42) of said control disk (40) rests against the face (92) of a stationary inlet disk (56), and the control disk (40) and the inlet disk (56) can be glidingly displaced relative to each other about their common disk axis (y). The control disk (40) and the inlet disk (56) are interspersed by channels that have two openings, the first openings being disposed on the opposite faces of the control disk (40) and the inlet disk (56), and the second openings lying outside said faces. The second opening of each channel in the control disk (40) communicates with at least one discharge element (34, 36) each via a tubular line (38) and the second opening of each channel in the inlet disk communicates with one of the supply lines for coffee, milk and vapor each. The openings on the faces of the control disk (40) and the inlet disk (56) are disposed in such a manner that for every support arm (18, 20, 22, 24) in its discharge position the channels in the inlet disk (56) are linked with the corresponding channels in the control disk (40) which communicate with the discharge elements (34, 36) of the support arm (18, 20, 22, 24) in its discharge position.

Description

Spout arrangement for a beverage preparation machine

The invention relates to a pouring arrangement for a beverage preparation machine for preparing different beverages based on coffee and / or milk, wherein coffee, milk and water vapor are fed to each pouring element via separate feed lines.

In conventional coffee machines, the different pouring elements for coffee, milk and milk foam are arranged in different areas of the machine, so that practically every time a beverage is prepared based on a coffee-milk mixture, e.g. Milk coffee and cappuccino each cup has to be moved to different pouring elements one after the other, which takes a considerable amount of time.

The invention is therefore based on the object of providing a pouring arrangement with which different beverages based on coffee and / or milk can be removed automatically at a predetermined position without shifting the cup or another beverage container.

In order to achieve the object according to the invention, the pouring elements are arranged on support arms which, as part of a holder with a central control disk, project radially outwards, the free end face of the control disk resting against the end face of a fixed inlet disk and the control disk and the inlet disk around their common Disk axis are slidable against each other, that the control disk and the inlet disk are penetrated by channels with two openings, the first openings of which are arranged on the opposing end faces of the control disk and the inlet disk and the second openings lie outside the end faces, the second opening of each channel in the control disk being connected via a tubular line to at least one pouring element and the second opening of each channel in the inlet disk being connected to one of the supply lines for coffee, milk and water vapor, and that the openings on the end face of the control disk and the inlet disk are arranged so that for each support arm in its pouring position the channels in the inlet disk are connected to the corresponding channels in the control disk which are connected to the pouring elements of the support arm in its pouring position ,

The individual pouring elements are expediently arranged in a block-like pouring unit at the free end of each support arm, the free ends of the support arms being able to be shaped into a cross-sectionally U-shaped profile part and the pouring units being overlapped by these U-shaped parts and fixed to them.

In a particularly preferred embodiment variant of the pouring arrangement according to the invention, the holder with the support arms is part of a rotating part detachably connected to a fixed drive unit.

In a preferred further development of the pouring arrangement according to the invention with a fixed drive unit and a removable rotating part, the drive unit comprises a program-controlled stepper motor and a shaft operatively connected to it, the shaft passing through the run-in disk fixed to the drive unit and the rotating part being placed on the free end of the shaft so that it cannot rotate ,

Because of its compact design, the pouring arrangement according to the invention requires only a small installation space and is characterized by a high degree of ease of maintenance. Further advantages, features and details of the invention result from the following description of a preferred exemplary embodiment and from the drawing; this shows in

1 shows an oblique view of a pouring arrangement;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the pouring arrangement of FIG. 1;

- Fig. 3 is a side view of the not reproduced in all details

Spout arrangement of Fig. 1;

4 shows a partial view of the rear of the rotating part of the pouring arrangement from FIG. 1 perpendicular to the disk axis;

5 shows a section through a control disk perpendicular to the disk axis;

6 shows a section through the control disk of FIG. 5 in the disk axis; 7 shows a section through an inlet disk perpendicular to the disk axis;

8 shows a section through the run-in disk from FIG. 7 in the disk axis;

9 shows a detail from FIG. 8.

According to FIG. 1, an arrangement 10 for a beverage preparation machine for preparing different beverages based on coffee and / or milk, which is not shown in the drawing for the sake of a better overview, has a rotating part 12 and a fixed drive unit 14 which interacts with it on. The rotating part 12 consists essentially of a star-shaped holder 16 with radially outwardly projecting support arms 18, 20, 22, 24, the free ends 18 ', 20', 22 ', 24' of which are U-shaped and one each Take up block-shaped pouring unit 26, 28, 30, 32. The angle between two neighboring support arms is 72 °, corresponding to a division of five in the 360 ° circle. Since only four out of five positions of five are occupied by support arms, the angle between the first bracket 18 and the last bracket 24 144 °. The position of the star-shaped holder 16 shown in FIG. 1 corresponds to the rest position in which there is a maximum of free space below the holder 16.

The star-shaped holder 16 is made in one piece from a sheet metal blank, the free ends 18 ', 20', 22 ', 24' of the support arms 18, 20, 22, 24 for forming the U-shaped receptacle for the pouring units 26, 28, 30 , 32 are bent at right angles. The pouring units 26, 28, 30, 32 releasably screwed to the support arms 18, 20, 22, 24 are equipped with various pouring elements for coffee, milk and milk foam. In the present exemplary embodiment, the first pouring unit 26 has a milk or milk foam nozzle 34 and two coffee pouring tubes 36. Two milk or milk foam nozzles 34 and two coffee pouring pipes 36 are attached to the second pouring unit 28. The third pouring unit 30 is equipped the same as the first pouring unit 26, i.e. with a milk or milk foam nozzle 34 and two coffee pouring tubes 36. Only one coffee pouring tube 36 is assigned to the fourth pouring unit 32.

As can be seen from FIG. 2, the milk or milk foam nozzle 34 is essentially composed of three parts 34a, b, c and functions as a jet mixer. In operation, the middle part 34b is supplied with milk and the adjacent part 34c with hot water vapor, so that milk foam forms in the part 34a near the spout. Without the supply of hot steam, only milk flows through the nozzle 34. The nozzles 34 are inserted into bores of the corresponding pouring unit. The coffee spouts 36 are also seated in bores in the corresponding pouring units, the coffee being supplied to the coffee spouts 36 via further channels or bores arranged within the spouts. The milk or milk foam nozzles 34 and the coffee pouring pipes 36 are connected via plastic hoses 38 with a likewise made of plastic, on the inside of the star-shaped shark ters 16 in its central area fixed control disk 40 connected from plastic. The inflow of coffee and milk to the pouring elements 34, 36 can be finely adjusted via cross-section-reducing squeeze or screw elements 35.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 in detail, ten front bores 44 arranged in a circle and running parallel to the disk axis y lead into the inside of the disk from the free end face 42 of the control disk 40. An equal number of circumferential bores 48 run from the circumference 46 of the control disc 40 radially and perpendicular to the disc axis y into the disc interior, so that each end bore 44 with the corresponding circumferential bore 48 form a channel 50 from the end face 42 of the control disc 40 to the circumference 46 thereof. Adjacent bores 44, 48 or channels 50 form an angle of 36 ° with one another, corresponding to a division of ten of the 360 ° circle.

The drive unit 14 has a holder 52, on which a stepper motor 54 and an inlet disk 56 are fixedly mounted. A shaft 58 is slidably seated in a central bore 60 of the inlet disk 56 and is supported on the rear side of the holder 52 in a shaft bearing 62 mounted on the holder 52. Between the input disk 56 and the shaft bearing 62, the shaft 58 is equipped with a toothed wheel 64, which is connected to a toothed belt 66 with a pinion 70 mounted on the motor shaft 68 of the stepping motor 54.

In operation, the rotary part 12 is placed on the shaft 58. The control disk 40, which is fixedly connected to the rotating part, likewise has a central bore 72, through which the shaft 58 passes. Since the rotating part 12 must not rotate on the shaft 58, the free end 74 of the shaft 58 has a cross-sectional shape 76 that deviates from the circular shape. With its free end 74, the shaft 58 penetrates the star-shaped holder 16, the central region of which has an extension corresponding to the cross-sectional shape 76 and acting in the manner of a driver. has 78. The free end of the shaft 58 is equipped with an axial threaded bore 80, into which a fixing screw 86 can be screwed with the interposition of a handwheel 82 and a spiral spring 84. As a result, the rotating part 12 can be quickly detached from the drive unit 14 and reassembled in a few simple steps. The contact pressure of the control disk 40 against the inlet disk 56 can also be reliably set via the spiral spring 84.

7 to 9, the outer dimensions of which correspond to those of the control disc 40, has end holes 88 and circumferential bores 90, which extend in the same way as the control disc 40 from the end face 92 to the circumferential surface 94 Form channels 96. The end bores 88 are arranged on a circle of the same size as the end bores 44 on the control disk 40. The total of four end and circumferential bores 88, 90 and the four channels 96 are arranged in positions of a ten division of the 360 ° circle in such a way that two channels are in two adjacent positions and the positions of the other two channels are each by two unused ones Positions are spaced apart. A feed line for coffee and milk and two feed lines for water vapor each lead to the peripheral bores 90 of the inlet disk 56. These supply lines, not shown in the drawing, are fed program-controlled by the beverage preparation machine.

For each of the support arms 18, 20, 22, 24 or for each pouring unit 26, 28, 30, 32, in the respective pouring position there is a defined assignment of the four end bores 88 on the end face 92 of the inlet disk 56 to four of the ten end bores 44 in the end face 42 of the control disk 40, which are connected via the channels 50 and plastic hoses 48 to corresponding connections on the milk or milk foam nozzles 34 and on the coffee discharge pipes 36 of the corresponding pouring units 26, 28, 30, 32. FIG. 4 shows the hose connections 38 of the control disk 40 to the milk or milk foam nozzles 34 and the coffee pouring pipes 36 of the pouring units 26, 28, 30, 32. In the illustration according to FIG. 4, the first support arm 18 is in its vertical pouring position. The position of the end bores 88 in the end face 92 of the inlet disk 56 is indicated by dashed lines. These are connected to the corresponding feed lines as follows:

K = coffee

M = milk D1 = hot steam from a first steam generator

D2 = hot steam from a second steam generator

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the pouring unit 26 is supplied with milk, steam and coffee. Correspondingly, the hose connections to the other pouring units are arranged such that milk, coffee and water vapor can also be fed to the second and third pouring unit, while the fourth pouring unit 32 is only supplied by coffee. Of course, the supply lines for coffee, milk and hot steam are only operated on the machine side if the supply to the corresponding pouring unit is also desired in its pouring position. For example, only the supply lines for milk and coffee are opened for milk coffee, but not the supply line for steam.

4, the individual end bores 44 of the control disk 40 are identified by A1 to A10. For the respective pouring position of each of the pouring units 26, 28, 30, 32, this results in a clearly defined assignment, namely

KA ₉ MA ₂ D2-A _δ for the first pouring unit 26

KA ₇ MA ₁₀ D2-A »for the second pouring unit 28 K-A5 M-Aβ D1-Aι for the third pouring unit 30

K-A3 for the fourth pouring unit 32

The precise position control of the support arms 18, 20, 22, 24 by means of the stepping motor 54 takes place with the aid of correspondingly positioned Hall magnets and associated sensors.

To form a fluid-tight transition between the end bores 44 in the end face 42 of the control disk 40 and the end bores 88 in the end face 92 of the inlet disk 56, circular undercut grooves 98 (FIG. 9) are provided around the end bores 88 in the end face 72 of the inlet disk 56 (FIG. 9) of O-ring seals 100 arranged.

Claims

claims

1. spout arrangement for a beverage preparation machine for the preparation of different beverages based on coffee and / or milk, coffee, milk and water vapor being fed to each pouring element (34, 36) via separate feed lines,

characterized in that

the pouring elements (34, 36) are arranged on support arms (18, 20, 22, 24) which, as part of a holder (16) with a central control disk (40), project radially outwards, the free end face (42) of the control disk (40) of the end face (92) of a fixed washer (56) and the control disk (40) and the washer (56) can be slid relative to one another about their common disk axis (y) such that the control disk (40) and the washer (56 ) of channels (50,96) with two openings (44,48; 88,90), the first openings (44,88) of which are located on the mutually opposite end faces (42,92) of the control disk (40) and the inlet disk ( 56) and the second openings (48, 90) of which lie outside the end faces (42, 92), the second opening (48) of each channel (50) in the control disk (40) via a tubular line (38) with at least one pouring element (34, 36) is connected and the second opening g (90) of each channel (96) in the inlet disk (56) is connected to one of the supply lines for coffee, milk and steam, and that the openings (44,88) on the end face (42,92) of the control disk (40 ) and the washer (56) are arranged so that for each support arm (18, 20, 22, 24) in its pouring position, the channels (96) in the washer (56) with the corresponding channels (50) in the control disk (40 ), which are connected to the pouring elements (34, 36) of the support arm (18, 20, 22, 24) in its pouring position.

2. pouring arrangement according to claim 1, characterized in that the pouring elements (34,36) at the free end (18 ', 20', 22 ', 24') of each support arm (18,20,22,24) in a block-like pouring unit ( 26,28,30,32) are arranged.

3. The pouring arrangement according to claim 2, characterized in that the block-like pouring units (26, 28, 30, 32) are overlapped by a cross-sectionally U-shaped part of the support arms (18, 20, 22, 24) and are fixed thereon.

4. Spout arrangement according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the holder (16) with the support arms (18, 20, 22, 24) is part of a rotating part (12) detachably connected to a fixed drive unit (14).

5. Spout arrangement according to claim 4, characterized in that the drive unit (14) comprises a program-controlled stepper motor (54) and a shaft (58) operatively connected to it, the shaft (58) being fixed to the drive unit (14) washer (56 ) passes through and the rotating part (12) is placed against rotation on the free end of the shaft (58).