CN101128142A - equipment for preparing beverages - Google Patents

Abstract

Various forms of apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages, preferably based on coffee, can receive instructions from a customer and deliver the beverage automatically. The apparatus is preferably capable of fully automatic cleaning in a cleaning cycle in which a cleaning agent is flushed through the lines, and the apparatus is preferably arranged to ensure that not only are the lines cleaned properly but that no cleaning agent can be dispensed. The apparatus includes a brewer assembly having a chamber in which freshly ground coffee can be introduced and either espresso or filter coffee can be automatically prepared by passing hot water through the chamber and removing the spent coffee grounds . The coffee may be stored as coffee beans in sealed containers that can automatically be pierced to release the beans which are ground immediately before preparation of the beverage . The apparatus also includes a cup-size detector for ensuring that the customer offers a cup to the apparatus that is of a size appropriate to the beverage selected.

Description

equipment for preparing beverages

technical field

The present invention relates to apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages according to consumer demand. The invention particularly relates to apparatus for preparing and dispensing coffee beverages, however at least some aspects of the invention are applicable to other beverages.

Background technique

Coffee beverage vending equipment has been used for many years. However, many of these devices are only capable of providing a limited range of beverages of poor quality, eg, beverages formed by mixing instant coffee granules or other ingredients with hot water. In contrast, the present invention intends to provide a device for preparing coffee beverages using fresh ingredients, such as freshly ground coffee, fresh milk and the like. It is also desirable to provide the ability to produce espresso coffee and optionally other beverages with or with coffee added (such as drip coffee, americano, latte, cappuccino, cappuccino, etc.) and hot chocolate, etc.).

A further concern is to provide a coffee vending apparatus that is implemented with a minimum of human labor. The equipment is required to process ingredients such as fresh milk and it is therefore important to ensure regular and proper cleaning of all parts of the equipment that come into contact with the ingredients as even small amounts of stale milk remaining in the equipment can constitute a threat to health. However, cleaning and maintenance operations of equipment can be time consuming if properly performed, and it would be desirable if the amount of labor involved in these processes could be reduced. In addition to being able to dispense beverages automatically, it is desirable that the equipment is self-cleaning, or at least able to clean those parts that come into contact with the beverage or ingredients, especially milk, so that the manual labor required is focused on occasional replenishment of ingredient storage and Simple cleaning operations such as wiping the surface at the time are carried out, while the main scheduled cleaning operations are performed automatically.

Contents of the invention

According to one aspect, the present invention provides a device for preparing and dispensing beverages adapted to operate in an operating mode in which the device can receive instructions from a user to prepare and dispense beverages the device is also adapted to operate in a cleaning mode in which its components are automatically cleaned and the device cannot dispense beverages; wherein the device is operable to remove from the device in response to a predetermined event The working mode is automatically switched to the cleaning mode.

The predetermined event may be any of a variety of events, for example, when a sensor detects that a hazardous material has accumulated to a given level, or when it detects the absence of a potential consumer. However, the device typically performs the switchover from the working mode to the cleaning mode at a predetermined time, for example a predetermined number of days or a predetermined time after the last cleaning operation.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing a beverage comprising means for storing or preparing a beverage liquid component and transporting said component along a conduit to a beverage dispenser; said apparatus comprising : a storage unit for storing one or more cleaning agents for cleaning the pipeline, for introducing a predetermined amount of the cleaning agent or each of the cleaning agents into the pipeline, and for means for introducing a quantity of water into said conduit after said cleaning agent to flush said cleaning agent's conduit; said apparatus comprising control means for preventing said cleaning agent from being introduced into said conduit when preparing and dispensing in the pipe, and to prevent preparation and dispensing of beverages while the pipe is being cleaned.

In the broadest considerations it is necessary to ensure that, on the one hand, the milk ducts (and any other ducts) are thoroughly cleaned and, on the other hand, that no cleaning agent is present in the dispensed drink whenever the cleaning agent is cleaned. introduced into the pipeline, i.e. whether it is during a cleaning cycle or not. The device is preferably capable of ensuring this even if any part of the device fails. Thus, according to a further aspect, the present invention may provide an apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages comprising perishable ingredients, in particular for milk-containing beverages, comprising:

(1) piping for said perishable components, which require cleaning with cleaning agents;

(2) A perishable ingredient meter used to determine the amount of perishable ingredient dispensed into the beverage;

(3) means for introducing a quantity of cleaning agent into said conduit, conveying said cleaning agent through said conduit, and removing said cleaning agent from said conduit during a cleaning operation; and

(4) a detergent meter for determining the amount of detergent introduced into said pipeline;

wherein the amount of cleaning agent introduced into the conduit is also determined by the perishable component meter, and the apparatus is operable to use the determination of the perishable component meter during the cleaning operation In the event of a discrepancy from the result determined by the detergent meter, an alarm is generated and/or the dispensing of the beverage is prevented.

Thus, the fact that the amount of cleaning agent delivered through the pipes during the cleaning operation is determined by both meters ensures that not only the correct amount of cleaning agent is used, but that it is also possible to check that both meters are At the end of the cleaning operation all cleaning agent has been removed from the pipes. It is also important to ensure that no cleaning agent is introduced during the beverage dispensing operation due to failure of components such as the cleaning agent pump. This can be avoided, for example, by having the apparatus comprise a number of components connected in series along said conduit, all of which must operate correctly for the introduction of cleaning agent. For example, a pump may be provided for introducing detergent into said detergent meter, a second pump may be provided for pumping detergent from said detergent meter to said perishable ingredient conduit, And a valve may be provided between said second pump and said perishable component conduit. In such a configuration, cleaning agent would not be introduced into the conduit until all three components fail during the beverage dispensing operation.

The apparatus may be arranged to provide one-way delivery of cleaning agent from the cold room or other point of introduction to the dispenser through the conduit, or it may be configured to include a loop from the dispenser to the conduit for This enables the cleaning agent to be recirculated in a closed loop before being discarded or returned to the reservoir for next use. In this form of device, the beverage dispenser is movable between a dispensing position, in which the device can dispense beverages, and a cleaning position, in which the device enables the pipes to The cleaning agent in the beverage dispenser is recirculated, and/or the exterior surface of the beverage dispenser is cleaned by the cleaning agent. Thus, the appliance may comprise a container, such as a splash tray of the usual form below the dispenser, which collects beverage spills during normal operation of the appliance, but which will remain in place during cleaning operations. An amount of cleaning fluid such that the dispenser is lowered into the cleaning fluid as it travels to its cleaning position. The advantage of the dispenser being moved to a position directly above the splash tray during cleaning is that it is not possible for the consumer to put the cup in place during the cleaning operation, thus preventing the consumer from inadvertently receiving the cleanser instead of the desired beverage possibility.

Regardless of whether the cleaning agent is conveyed through the pipeline in a unidirectional or recirculating manner, it is preferable to check the amount of cleaning agent conveyed through the pipeline with two gauges as described above in order to use up all the cleaning agent and ensure that after the cleaning operation is completed No cleaning agent is left in the pipes. Therefore, if the cleaning agent is continuously circulated for a period of time, the cleaning operation should end with the end of metering of cleaning agent so that all cleaning agent is used up at the end of the cleaning operation.

Thus, the device can be cleaned by a fully automatic cleaning operation controlled by a controller and performed at regular intervals, for example, every few hours to once a day, without the need for human intervention. The cleaning operation can be controlled so that it occurs during periods of infrequent use of the equipment. Additionally or alternatively, the device may include a proximity sensor to detect the presence of a potential customer in the area of the device, for example to prevent initiation of a cleaning operation when a potential customer is detected.

Since such beverages usually contain milk that needs to be refrigerated, the present invention also provides a device for preparing and dispensing a milk-containing beverage comprising: a refrigerated compartment for storing at least one container of milk for making the milk removing from said container and conveying it to a milk circuit of a dispensing device, and means for cleaning said milk circuit along at least a portion of said apparatus which is not refrigerated; wherein said milk circuit comprises: A partition in which the parts that can be cleaned and the parts that cannot be cleaned by cleaning means are separated from each other to allow cleaning of the milk circuit while allowing the milk to remain in the container.

In said apparatus, the part of the milk circuit adjacent to said partition preferably comprises means for allowing cleaning fluid to be introduced thereinto. Thus, it is possible in an easy manner to enable automatic and periodic introduction of cleaning fluid into the milk circuit in order to clean the milk circuit.

Depending on the type of equipment and the operating environment, it is possible for the milk container located in the refrigerated compartment to be cleaned and reused if required. However, for fully automatic operation it is advantageous if all parts of the milk circuit which cannot be cleaned by the cleaning device are disposable with the container. In this way, parts of the milk circuit which cannot be cleaned automatically can be easily replaced together with the milk container when replenishing the milk supply.

In addition to the means for handling milk in beverages and cleaning the apparatus, the apparatus is preferably capable of preparing high quality beverages such as espresso and filter coffee. This would require a brewer assembly where freshly ground coffee is introduced and pressed while hot water is injected into the coffee at high pressure typically 6-12 bar, ideally around 9 bar. The time it takes for the water to pass through the coffee is ideally about 12 seconds to 45 seconds, and the solution can be dispensed directly. Depending on consumer choice, regular drip coffee may have to be prepared as an alternative to espresso. This has a significantly greater amount of water in the drink, whereas hot water is often simply added to espresso and served as drip coffee. However, such a drink is an Americano rather than a drip coffee. It has been proposed to use the same brewer assembly for preparing espresso and filter coffee, but the difficulty is that these two beverages require significantly different amounts of water, coffee and brewing pressure.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides a brewer assembly capable of brewing both espresso and filter coffee beverages, the assembly having a cavity defined by a cavity and movable within the cavity to change the At least one piston of the volume of the cavity, the piston is movable between a position allowing the introduction of ground coffee and expulsion of coffee residues and a still brewing position allowing water to be poured into the ground coffee to prepare an espresso beverage, so The piston is also movable to a drip coffee brewing position for preparing a drip coffee beverage, the chamber volume in the drip coffee brewing position being greater than the chamber volume in the distillation brewing position, the assembly comprising Means for introducing a quantity of water into the chamber during preparation of the filter coffee beverage, which causes the beverage in the chamber to be dispensed. The assembly also preferably includes means for moving the piston to reduce the volume of the chamber when the filter coffee has been brewed, to dispense a remaining quantity of the filter coffee beverage and/or to dispense the remaining The coffee grounds are pressed into, for example, a round cake for easy expulsion of the coffee grounds.

While it is theoretically possible to use piston-style brewers for brewing espresso and filter coffee, in which piston-style brewers all cups of liquid used for filter coffee are contained in the brewing process brewing chamber, but if the length of the brewer cylinder and the stroke of the piston are to be increased, the disadvantage is that the size of the assembly increases significantly, so that the assembly immediately becomes too large to fit in the device housing middle. According to the present invention, a still brewer can be used for brewing filter coffee, wherein the volume of drip coffee dispensed per beverage is essentially unlimited, or limited only by the volume of filtered coffee that can be introduced into the cylinder. The volume of ground coffee.

The assembly may be configured to introduce discrete quantities of water, for example, introducing a first quantity of water for dry ground coffee and introducing a second quantity of water after the coffee has been brewed with the first quantity of water. In this case, the piston can be moved to a position substantially defining the maximum volume of the chamber, and after the coffee liquid has been brewed, a second quantity of water can be introduced to replace the coffee liquid and to be dispensed. Finally, the piston is movable to reduce the volume of the chamber and thus dispense a second (or final) amount of coffee liquid. Alternatively, a continuous flow of water can be introduced. For example, in one form of assembly, a device is provided to meter the amount of ground coffee into the brewing chamber, and a drip coffee brewing position to which the piston is movable can provide the brewing chamber for brewing. The volume of the coffee is slightly larger than that of unpressed coffee, for example 5-50% larger, preferably 7-20% larger. Water can then be continuously pumped through the brewing chamber, for example until the required amount of water for a cup of coffee has been supplied, or until almost all of the required amount of water has been supplied. For a cup capacity of 340ml, and 15-30g of ground coffee, brewing times in the range of 30-90 seconds and especially 40-60 seconds are typical. After the pumping of the water through the brew chamber is complete, the piston can be moved towards the coffee to expel the remaining water, and the used coffee patties can be expelled as previously described.

Thus, rather than simply adding hot water to the espresso, the brew chamber can be used multiple times or continuously to brew filter coffee, with all the water used to submerge the coffee.

A brewer assembly according to this aspect can accordingly be used to prepare coffee beverages, the process comprising:

(1) Grinding a certain amount of coffee and introducing the ground coffee into the brewing chamber defined by the chamber and at least one piston;

(2) moving the piston towards the ground coffee until the coffee is enclosed in a cavity volume that is at least 5% greater than the volume of the ground coffee;

(3) pump hot water into the chamber to allow coffee to be poured, and pump the resulting coffee liquid out of the chamber;

(4) causing the piston to depress the coffee after stopping the pumping of the water and coffee liquid; and

(5) Expelling the pressed coffee from the cavity.

If desired, the piston can be moved to a position allowing the air in the chamber to escape, said air being replaced by the water introduced for the brewing step, the piston can then be moved to a position to seal the chamber before further water is introduced, Or the piston could seal the chamber throughout, and the air could be vented by other means if required, for example, by allowing the air to escape through a duct such as a beverage dispensing duct located above the liquid level in the brewing chamber. The brewer may contain only a single piston, or may have two pistons, each movable between different positions at different times during the brewing cycle. In this way, a piston, the upper piston, if arranged on a vertical axis, can be moved to a position completely outside the brewing chamber and allow coffee to be introduced therein and used coffee to be removed therefrom, the piston also Move to position in the brewing chamber ready to prepare espresso. The lower piston is movable between a lowermost position in which the cavity is allowed to hold ground coffee which has been introduced therein, and an uppermost position in which the upper surface of the piston is substantially flush with The top surface of the chamber for the action of the lower piston to remove the used coffee. The assembly may include an element arranged to move across the surface of the lower piston to remove used coffee therefrom.

The brewer assembly may include drive means for the pistons arranged to move each piston between a topmost position and a bottommost position during the brewing cycle, and may exhibit a degree of hysteresis in movement of the pistons such that The spacing between the pistons will vary at different times during the brewing cycle, eg when coffee is introduced into the chamber, and when coffee is pressed to infuse water during espresso brewing.

The piston can be connected to multiple rods that can be moved up and down during the brew cycle to move the piston between different positions, and the rods can all be driven by a single motor. The rod may, for example, be threaded over a substantial portion of its length, and preferably substantially its entire length, and may be mounted on a cavity by a bearing engaging the rod such that rotation of the bearing will cause the shaft of the rod to to move. The piston, or the piston shaft on which the piston is mounted, may be connected to the rod by a mounting rod. If one of the mounting rods is fixed to the rod, the piston associated with it will follow the movement of the rod, while if the other mounting rod can slide axially along the rod to a limited extent, then the piston associated with the rod will The associated piston will only follow the movement of the rod during part of the cycle, allowing the spacing between the pistons to vary.

Water may be introduced into the chamber and coffee liquid removed therefrom using any suitable structure, preferably with an inlet and an outlet on opposite sides of the chamber so that water may flow through the chamber during brewing. cavity. The inlet and outlet can be located in the chamber wall or in the piston.

When two pistons are used, hot water can be introduced into the cylinder by one piston, and coffee liquid can be expelled from said cylinder by the other piston, so that the water passes axially through the thickness of the coffee in a generally disc-shaped volume . If the brewer unit is arranged around a vertical axis, water can be introduced through the upper or lower piston when preparing espresso. When preparing drip coffee, it is preferred, though not necessary, to introduce water through the lower plunger. The reason for this is that the air present in the brewing chamber before it is filled with hot water can be expelled through the upper piston. Also, a fine drip filter will usually be placed at the coffee liquid outlet, while a relatively coarse drip filter will usually be placed at the water inlet. If coffee liquid leaves the chamber through the lower piston, the fine drip filter on it can become clogged with fine coffee solids. On the other hand, if the coffee liquid leaves the brew chamber through the upper piston, the coffee solids will drip back into the chamber without clogging the drip filter. A further advantage of introducing water through the bottom piston is that the upward flow of water through the cylinder will stop the ground coffee from falling and keep it in suspension when drip coffee is being prepared.

The milk may be supplied by an alternative milk supply unit, for example, a milk supply unit having an extended tube through which the milk may be dispensed, and a device such as a peristaltic pump may be provided to cooperate with the milk supply unit to allow and prevent milk dispensing. flow. Preferably, the milk is supplied in a so-called "bag-in-box", wherein a sealed soft plastic bag is contained in a relatively rigid box formed, for example, of cardboard, which bag may be provided with a length of hose extending therefrom. The tube can be sealed prior to use and the end can be cut when the bag-in-box is installed in the device. The replaceable part of the milk duct connected to the milk container may be flexible and the apparatus may include clamps for clamping the duct to hold the milk in the container and to loosen it on the duct Means to allow milk to be transferred from said refrigerated compartment, such as a pinch valve. The means for pinching the tubing or the pinch valve is preferably electrically operable so that it can be remotely actuated by control means in the apparatus. This form of pinch valve can be used to allow milk to be dispensed from one container to a beverage while preventing milk from being dispensed from another container, for example because one of the containers has been used up because it has exceeded its use-by date, or for Turn the milk reserve in the refrigerated compartment. The electric pinch valve is novel in itself and therefore, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing a milk-containing beverage comprising: a refrigerated compartment for containing one or more milk containers, said containers or each said container has a flexible duct allowing milk to be supplied from said compartment, said apparatus comprising means associated to each flexible duct for clamping said duct to retain milk in said compartment and for The or each said device is electrically operated so that it can be remotely actuated by releasing its clip on the tube to allow milk transfer from the compartment.

Such containers may be relatively large, for example having volumes of the order of 5-25 liters, with a typical standard size being 13.6 liters. Also, if there is a need to reduce the frequency with which milk containers need to be replaced for equipment used in busy locations, several containers need to be replaced at the same time, in which case the total weight of the milk is important.

Therefore, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing a milk-containing beverage comprising a refrigerated compartment with a removable panel having structure for holding one or more milk containers and Structure for engaging a device that enables the panel and milk container to be removed from the compartment and transferred remotely, and also enables the panel and milk container to be moved remotely to the compartment and is connected thereto such that the or each said container is located in said compartment. Thus, when the milk is to be replenished, the panel can be connected to the device, for example in the form of a trolley, moved to a place where the old container is removed and replaced with a new one, moved back to the device and reinstalled in the in the refrigerator compartment. If the refrigerated compartment is in the lower part of the appliance, it is possible and desirable that the panels be moved and reattached without changing the height of the container so that it does not need to be raised.

The apparatus may include means for determining whether the or any container is empty and a controller which activates the clamping device or pinch valve to permanently clamp the container associated therewith when the container is empty. pipeline (that is, until the associated container is replaced), thereby preventing any possibility of dispensing old milk.

The device may for example comprise a dosing device associated with the milk duct and which will administer a predetermined amount of milk when the drink is dispensed. Therefore, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing a milk-containing beverage, the apparatus comprising: a milk duct extending from a milk storage location to a dispensing location for milk dispensing, and a milk duct associated with said milk duct An associated dosing device operable to detect the weight or volume of milk received from said storage location and to allow a quantity of milk to be dispensed in accordance with the amount of milk received from said storage location.

Such a dosing device can be used to determine whether any milk containers are empty and thus whether one of the dispensing lines needs to be closed and the other container be used for feeding milk. The dosing device preferably comprises a reservoir for the milk coming from the duct, means for determining the volume of milk or the weight of the reservoir and the milk contained therein, and when the amount of milk and usually the reservoir and the milk Close the valve of the pipeline upstream of the reservoir when the weight exceeds a predetermined value. In this case, the receptacle can be separated from its upstream and/or downstream milk ducts and can be moved vertically up to a certain limit to allow determination of the weight of the milk in it, for example by means of springs or any other means for determining the load The determination is made, for example by means of an arm capable of detecting strain therein. By separating the milk reservoir from the milk duct, the cleaning of the reservoir can be considerably simplified, and by separating the reservoir from the measuring device, only said reservoir, which is easier to clean than the measuring device, comes into contact with the milk.

When the compartment accommodates more than one container, the dosing device or other device for determining whether the container is empty, together with a pinch valve, enables quick and simple switching when one of the milk containers is empty or when the milk in the container has exceeded its use-by date milk container, and said switching can even be carried out during the dispensing operation of the beverage. Accordingly, the device preferably comprises a valve associated to each container for opening and closing the conduit of said container, said valve being arranged to open said conduit to allow a quantity of milk to be dispensed to the beverage and to close the duct to stop the dispensing of milk, the sensor monitors the amount of milk dispensed into each beverage, the sensor being operable during a dispensing operation when it detects that no milk has been supplied from the duct Such that the valve permanently closes the conduit (ie until the container is replaced). By monitoring the amount of milk dispensed into each drink rather than the total amount dispensed or remaining in the container, and by switching containers if necessary, it is possible to ensure that consumers do not receive insufficient milk while at the same time The amount of unused milk remaining in the container is reduced. Additionally, retail personnel can track the amount of milk remaining through the device.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages, the apparatus comprising: means for enabling a consumer to select a beverage; a dispensing head for dispensing the beverage to a in the cup on the cup support below the hair head; and a structure for vertically moving the dispense head and/or the cup support according to the beverage selected so that the dispense head is supported relative to the cup The position of the pieces is suitable for the cup size of the beverage selected. The ability of the dispenser or dispensing head to move vertically has the advantage that it is possible to adjust its position according to the size of the cup placed in the dispensing position.

Such a device has the advantage that it is possible to set the maximum size cup that can be used in the beverage selection process, thereby preventing the consumer from selecting multiple low-volume beverages such as espresso and dispensing them into large cups, thereby inadvertently Or avoid payment intentionally and depending on the payment method selected. The device has the further advantage that, since the dispensing head can be positioned relatively close to the surface of the beverage in the cup, the gap between the dispensing head and the surface is reduced, thereby significantly reducing and soil the device.

This form of dispensing head may preferably be combined with one or more sensors for detecting the presence and optionally the size of a cup which has been placed under said dispensing head; and with the control In combination with the dispenser, if the cup that has been placed under the dispensing head is not the correct size, the controller will prevent the beverage from being dispensed. Thus, it is possible to prevent the selection of a cup that is too small for the selected beverage, which would lead to spillage of the beverage and soiling of the device. According to this aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages, wherein said beverages are selected from a range of beverages of different quantities and dispensed into cups provided by a customer, said apparatus Including: a detector for detecting the size of the cup provided by the consumer; a memory containing various information to be displayed; a controller for selecting the selected beverage according to the detector and the beverage selected by the consumer; operating and/or selecting information or alerts for said device; and a display for displaying information in said memory.

In some cases, the controller is operable to cause the device to display information in addition to dispensing a beverage, while in other cases, such as when the device displays an alert or an incorrect selection has been made, the controller is operable to to cease operation of the device until the cause of the alarm has been eliminated.

The information display and the input means for receiving user commands are preferably combined in a single device, for example in the form of a touch screen. Therefore, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing and dispensing beverages, the apparatus comprising: one or more sensors for detecting the physical condition of said apparatus; a touch screen for displaying information and for receiving instructions from a user; a memory for storing data related to the beverage and/or operation of the device; and a controller for controlling the operation of the touch screen or device such that only The device will only dispense a beverage if the instruction matches the physical condition of the device detected by the sensor. According to this aspect, in the event of an incompatibility between the instruction and the physical condition, the controller is operable to cause information related to the physical condition to be displayed via the touch screen.

The physical condition may relate to the presence or absence of ingredients, the presence or absence of a corresponding change in the range of beverages offered by the device, or the presence or absence of the type of beverage selected by the consumer. Alternatively, the physical condition may be related to the size of the cup provided by the user, such that the device will indicate the wrong size cup and prevent the beverage from being dispensed. Furthermore, the physical condition may be the fact that the device has entered a cleaning cycle and thus cannot dispense a beverage.

In order to prepare beverages containing foamed milk, the milk needs to be mixed with steam to heat it and with air to give the foamed milk the proper body. This has traditionally been accomplished in a number of ways, for example by using a wand to introduce steam into the milk container and allowing air to enter the milk, or by passing steam through the venturi and allowing the milk to be drawn into the venturi throat . However, such methods have the disadvantage that there is no control over the resulting foamed milk.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing a foamed milk drink, the apparatus comprising: a structure for foaming milk by introducing milk, air and steam into a mixing chamber, said apparatus having a function for independently changing A device for the relative flow rates of the milk, air and steam. According to this aspect, where the flow rates of milk, air and each fluid are adjustable, or where the flow rates of two fluids are adjustable relative to a third fluid, the air, milk and steam are all under positive pressure Feed down, for example, via a pump, to ensure the desired product. For example, the adjustment can be made when the device is being commissioned, or electrically adjusted whenever a different beverage is required.

This aspect of the invention has the advantage that the apparatus can be used reliably to form a foamed milk product of desired consistency, since the amount of any ingredient does not depend on the amount of any other ingredient being fed. For example, the steam flow rate can be set as a constant and determined by the power input to the steam burner and the design of the equipment, while the air and milk flow rates can be controlled by pumps and varied by the controls according to the selected product.

It would also be desirable to provide a fully automated method of storing coffee beans and dispensing them to a bean grinder in such a way that there is less oxidation of the coffee between opening the coffee bean container and using the coffee, while at the same time operating The system allows for relatively long periods of time between operations requiring human intervention, such as refilling the coffee reserve. Thus, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for preparing and dispensing coffee beverages comprising: a coffee brewer, a coffee bean grinder and a coffee bean reservoir located above said coffee bean grinder , the apparatus is configured to accommodate a plurality of coffee bean containers in a plurality of positions, the coffee bean storage comprising a piercing device positioned below at least one of the positions, the piercing device being arranged vertically Move up to pierce one of the containers so that coffee beans are poured from the container into the bean grinder.

The apparatus preferably includes a sensor for detecting the amount of coffee beans in the bean grinder; and a controller for activating the piercing device, so that said piercing device can continue to open further containers.

It is possible for the coffee bean container to be stationary while the piercing device is moved to each different coffee bean container, or the container is moved to the position of the piercing device. In the latter case, it is convenient that said containers are located on a movable holder arranged to advance said containers when one of said containers has been pierced or is about to be pierced, The complete container is positioned above the piercing device. Thus, a plurality of containers may be placed on the step-rotating carousel to align the containers with the piercing device. The piercing means may for example comprise a generally cylindrical cutter, the upper end of which forms one or more sharpened cutting edges which can pierce and cut the foil seal of the bean container. Once pierced, the beans can be poured through the cutter into the bean grinder hopper located directly below. Such a structure can hold 2-10 containers, usually 4 containers, so that the coffee bean containers only need to be replenished occasionally, such as once a week, but the coffee beans are exposed to the air for a much shorter time to reduce oxidation.

Thus, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for automatically preparing and dispensing coffee beverages, the apparatus comprising: a coffee bean reservoir for accommodating a plurality of sealed coffee bean containers; A device for said container; a coffee bean grinder for receiving and grinding coffee beans from the container; a coffee brewer for brewing ground coffee; and a coffee brewer for storing coffee beans to be dispensed into a coffee beverage A refrigerated compartment of one or more milk containers, wherein the coffee bean reservoir is capable of holding a plurality of coffee bean containers such that the coffee can be kept until it needs to be replenished according to a period of time corresponding to the available time period of the milk in the refrigerated compartment In a coffee bean container that is sealed to the atmosphere, but will be exposed to the atmosphere for only a fraction of that period of time.

The ratio of coffee to milk used will depend on a number of factors, in particular how different types of beverages are consumed, e.g. milky beverages such as flat coffee, latte are consumed differently than non-dairy ones such as espresso. consumption of coffee, but it has been established that approximately 8-20 liters of milk and in particular 10-15 liters of milk are consumed corresponding to the consumption per kg of coffee beans, so that a device containing 50-60 liters of milk should be suitable for In four 1kg coffee bean containers. Furthermore, the amount of coffee beans stored in each container will generally depend on the rate at which the coffee is consumed, and the container is chosen such that the coffee beans are not exposed to the atmosphere for too long after opening the container, that is, the rate at which the coffee is consumed faster than coffee decays. The coffee container is preferably left for no more than 7 days after opening and before its contents are used, more preferably no more than 4 days, especially no more than 3 days.

The coffee container itself is novel, therefore, according to another aspect, the present invention provides a container containing 0.7 to 1.5 kg of roasted and unground coffee beans, and more preferably 0.8-1.2 kg of coffee beans, and especially containing about 1 kg of coffee beans, said container has an airtight liner and contains an inert gas to prevent oxidation of the coffee beans. The container will typically have a volume of 2.5-4 liters, preferably 3.0-3.5 liters (which will deliver about 3 liters with about 10% headroom or capacity loss) and may have a metal foil such as aluminum foil The liner, which will keep air out and can be pierced to allow opening of the container. The container will usually contain an inert gas in addition to the coffee beans to prevent oxidation of the coffee. Thus, the container may be filled with nitrogen or carbon dioxide from a gas source, or it may contain carbon dioxide formed by the beans after they have been introduced into the container.

The container is preferably substantially cylindrical, closed at one end by an end cap of metal, such as steel, and having a peripheral annular rim closed at the other end by a foil. The container, although generally cylindrical, is preferably not symmetrical about its axis, the container having structures that prevent it from being positioned in the apparatus in the wrong orientation.

Said device according to the invention is thus capable of preparing a wide variety of coffee beverages with significantly reduced manual effort, the preparation method of which comprises:

1) Provide a certain amount of coffee beans;

2) selection of the milk to be introduced into the beverage based on the age of the milk;

3) adjusting the relative amounts of coffee, milk and air to form a coffee beverage;

4) Controlling the operation of the process according to the cup size selected by the consumer.

Thus, according to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatus for automatically preparing a plurality of coffee beverages, the apparatus comprising:

1) a bean reservoir to hold a sufficient amount of beans for multiple cups of coffee;

2) a refrigerated milk reservoir to hold sufficient milk for multiple cups of milky coffee;

3) means for receiving consumer requests for a single coffee drink;

4) means for detecting the size of the cup selected by the consumer;

5) means for grinding a sufficient quantity of beans for said single coffee beverage;

6) means for brewing a coffee beverage using a ground quantity of said coffee beans;

7) means for selecting an amount of milk for said coffee beverage from said milk reservoir such that the selected milk for the beverage is within the age of the milk in said milk reservoir;

8) means for adjusting the amount of brewed coffee and milk according to the recipe for the coffee beverage stored in the device;

9) means for dispensing said coffee beverage; and

10) A controller for controlling the dispensing of the coffee beverage based on the cup size selected by the consumer such that the amount of the coffee beverage dispensed is suitable for the cup size.

The apparatus is thus capable of preparing and dispensing coffee beverages by a method using a coffee maker operable to prepare and dispense cups of coffee in response to user input commands, the method comprising :

a) providing a plurality of sealed containers in the coffee maker, each of the containers containing a sufficient quantity of coffee beans to prepare a plurality of cups of coffee, the coffee beans in each container having a Fresh-keeping life of not more than two days;

b) causing the coffee maker to open the containers sequentially so that only one of the containers is opened at a time;

c) causing said coffee maker to prepare and dispense a plurality of cups of coffee using coffee beans from said opened coffee container in response to input of a plurality of said commands within a period not exceeding said freshness life, causing substantially all coffee beans in said open container to be used up within said shelf life;

d) causing said coffee maker to automatically open the additional said coffee container thereafter, and to use the input from the additional said coffee container in response to the input of additional said commands within an additional period not exceeding said freshness life. coffee beans in the coffee container to prepare and dispense additional cups of coffee such that substantially all of the coffee beans in the additional coffee container are used up within the shelf life; and

e) Manually replacing the coffee container in which the coffee beans have been used up with a new sealed container each time.

Preferably, said coffee maker contains at least four of said containers, and said step of manual replacement is performed at most once every two days. Alternatively or additionally, the coffee maker sends a coffee refill signal in response to a predetermined number of said coffee containers that have been opened or have been depleted of coffee to indicate that said manual replacement of coffee containers is required. Additionally, the method may include providing a plurality of milk containers in the coffee maker, wherein each of the milk containers has a lifespan, and causing the coffee maker to only Milk is selected from said milk containers within their useful life. The coffee maker may send a milk replenishment signal in response to a predetermined number of the milk containers being depleted or selected and/or having reached the age of the milk contained therein. Also, the coffee maker may perform a cleaning cycle at least once a day to clean milk residues in the coffee maker.

Description of drawings

A form of beverage apparatus according to the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing an environment in which the device can be employed;

Figure 2 is a schematic plan view of the device showing its main elements;

Figure 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a coffee device;

Figures 4 and 5 are schematic cross-sectional views of the brewing device taken at two different positions;

Figures 6-9 are perspective views showing the main elements of the brewing device during a brewing cycle;

10 and 11 are perspective views of the coffee bean container reservoir and piercing device;

Figures 12 and 13 are side views of the refrigerated compartment employed in the device;

Figure 14 is a schematic side view of a loading unit for metering milk;

Figure 15 is a schematic layout of the fluid system of the device;

Figure 16 is a cross-sectional view through the steam, air and milk mixing unit;

Figure 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view through the fill head and drip pan during the dispensing of a beverage;

Figure 18 is a schematic cross-sectional view through the fill head and drip pan during a cleaning operation;

Figure 19 is a schematic diagram of the main electronic components;

Figure 20 is a schematic diagram showing the main components and data storage of the main controller in Figure 19;

Figure 21 is a state transition diagram of the operation of the main controller;

Figure 22 is a schematic diagram of the main elements of the operational logic database; and

Fig. 23 is a flowchart showing the main steps of the low-level software.

Detailed ways

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows an environment in which the device may be employed. The device 1 is typically located in a retail outlet 2 controlled by a third party retailer. The apparatus is used to dispense beverages 6 to consumers who pay for the beverages at the retail outlet 2 using the retail outlet's cash collection facility. Alternative payment methods are available if required. For example, the device may be arranged to enable a customer to pay for a beverage at the machine, for example using cash or a payment card, as an additional or alternative payment method.

Depending on the specific operating plan, the consumer may be provided with a loyalty card 10 for use with the device 1, which may, for example, determine the price of a drink, allow the device to dispense a free drink or provide the consumer with some other benefit as a shopping rebate. The loyalty card may be administered as part of a loyalty program run by the owner of the device, a retailer, or some other organization. Typically, the membership program is administered through a computer 12 connected to the device using a network 4, such as the Internet.

The device 1 may be provided with means for communicating with a computer 14 located at the owner's facility for sending and receiving information. Such information may include, for example, details of the sale of each drink for determining what revenue for the sale of the drink comes from whom, and an order management computer system for automatically informing the supplier, for example, directly or via a network 4 Beverage sales details while reordering toppings and other consumables. The information may also be linked to a computer 13 located at the retailer's premises for invoicing and receiving payment from the respective parties. Information or instructions may be sent to a short message service (SMS) server 17 for delivery via pager or wireless telephone 18 to employees at the retail exit, and/or pager 16 to technicians as appropriate. If desired, a helpline desk 20 may be provided to assist retail outlet employees with any tasks required.

Additionally, the information may include data 22 related to equipment routine servicing, refrigeration temperature logs, and the like. The information may include data or software downloadable into the device for altering its operation after downloading. Such data may include beverage recipe changes, advertising information or information displayed on any screen of the device.

Said apparatus for preparing coffee and other beverages is shown schematically in FIG. 2 , while its mechanism is shown in FIG. 3 . The device comprises a chassis and an enclosure in which a plurality of modules 21-26 are arranged for preparing coffee drinks, dairy drinks, iced drinks and chocolate drinks, respectively. Each module is connected to pipes or other means for supplying ingredients such as water, milk, coffee, etc., and to pipes 28-36 for supplying a prepared beverage to a filling head 38 for dispensing a specific beverage to cup 6 middle. The operation of the device is controlled by a main controller 42, for example in the form of a personal computer, which controls a low-level electronic module 44 for operating switches, valves, etc. of the milk module, brewing module, etc. The main controller 42 is typically programmed in a high-level language using application logic such as Windows (RTM) or Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), while the electronics module 44 is typically written in a low-level language such as C. The master controller is also connected to a communication module 46 for allowing it to communicate with the computer 14 located at the owner's premises, eg, using landlines, the Internet, a dedicated wireless communication system, or any other means. Data lines 48, 50 and 52 are provided to allow data to be transmitted from various input devices such as buttons or a touch screen 54 enabling the customer to select a beverage, from a credit card that the customer uses for payment or from a membership card. A card reader for reading data from the card, or a receipt printer 58 for printing a receipt for each drink. The master controller 42 can also communicate with an MDB interface connected to a change dispenser 60 that provides the necessary change for effecting transactions when purchasing beverages by cash.

In addition to the means for supplying the ingredients to the different modules and the ducts for dispensing the beverage to the filling head 38, the milk module 23 and the brewing module 30 may be provided with ducts 62 for rinsing said modules with a cleaning solution, while The brewing module may be provided with a discharge conduit 64 for discharging used coffee grounds into a discharge conduit or container. A water supply and conditioning arrangement 66 may be provided to handle the supply of water from a mains water source, and a further supply and conditioning arrangement 68 may be provided for supplying mains electricity, typically of a 13, 16 or 30 ampere rating.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the physical layout of the main components of the device. In this configuration, the coffee bean reservoir and piercing device 200 are located at the uppermost part of the apparatus so that coffee beans can be removed from a container 208 on a carousel and conveyed by gravity to the coffee bean grinder 930 in. The grinder 930 has an inlet funnel capable of holding an amount of coffee beans equivalent to one container, and is configured to grind the amount of coffee required for a single beverage. The grinder is a conventional grinder having a pair of co-located grinding plates, one of which rotates. Located below the grinder is the brewer assembly 78 so that ground coffee can be fed from the grinder to the brewer's funnel using the chute 130, still under the force of gravity. After coffee has been prepared by the brewer assembly 78, the coffee liquid is conveyed to the dispensing head 38 for dispensing into the cup 6 through a conduit (not shown).

The milk required for a particular drink such as cappuccino is stored in a container 502 or so-called "bag in a box" located in a refrigerated compartment 500 on the floor of the device, so that the milk container does not have to be lifted to replenish the milk reserve. In the illustrated embodiment, the refrigerated compartment 500 is capable of holding four such containers, and the milk in the containers is conveyed to a pair of refrigerator funnels 512 and on to a loading unit 700 in the form of a further funnel, so that the The amount of milk measured for each beverage dispenser.

At half height on the front of the structure there is a user interface screen 54 to enable the customer to select a drink and make any other choices. Also, at the front of the device at one side of the dispensing head there is a "storage cabinet" comprising a plurality of alcoves 160 for storing consumables such as sugar, spoons, etc., and provided for disposal of used Box 162 of consumables. Additionally, the coin changer 60, receipt printer 58, and cup and lid reservoir 932 are also located on the front of the device. Behind the structure, enclosures for the main controller 42, low level electronics 44, boiler 400 and other devices are provided. The cup reservoir may take the form of a metal box provided at its front end (facing the user) with an annular flexible seal, preferably a resilient seal, for example formed from an elastomer, which allows the reservoir to accommodate a Stacking the cups so that the inside of the cup at the end faces the inside of the metal box will prevent dust from getting into the cup. The cups can be removed individually, which requires bending the ring seal which will then seal the rest of the cups.

The device also houses other components such as a water boiler 400, a steam burner 600, a container 402 for storing the cleaning fluid, a discharge channel 404 for allowing the flushing liquid during the cleaning process. A chocolate container 874 containing liquid chocolate can be located in the device, preferably in its upper part, so as to enable the chocolate to be conveyed by means of a peristaltic pump 878 through a conduit 872 to the dispensing head. The chocolate container may be mounted on a spring provided base to enable detection of an empty container.

Brewing module:

The brewing module 21 includes: a coffee brewer assembly 78, a coffee pod reservoir and piercing device 200, one or more coffee grinders, a boiler 400, and a pump.

Brewing device:

The brewing unit is shown in more detail in Figures 4 and 5. The device comprises a substantially cylindrical hollow body 80 arranged with its axis vertical and forming a chamber 81 for brewing espresso and filter coffee. Said chamber is defined by a hollow body and a pair of pistons 82 and 84 slidable within body 80 along their vertical axes. The body has a hole at its top end that is large enough for the top piston to slide through it and out of the chamber, and a hole at its lower end that is too small for the lower piston to move out so that the downward movement of the lower piston The downward movement stops as the piston hits the lowermost part of the body. Each piston 82 and 84 is supported on a shaft 86 and 88 respectively, each shaft itself supported on one of a pair of horizontally disposed mounting bars 90 and 92 . Mounting rods 90 and 92 are joined together at each end by a pair of parallel elongated threaded rods or guide screws 94 and 96 which, together with mounting rods 90 and 92, form a substantially Rectangular component 100 . Each guide screw 94, 96 extends through a hole in the base 98 of the brewing module so that it can move vertically through the base and thereby cause the rectangular assembly 100 to move up or down.

Each lead screw 94 , 96 engages a bearing 102 , 104 located in a bearing housing 106 , 108 as it passes through the base 98 . Each bearing has an internal thread, in this example formed by a nut, such that rotation of the bearing will cause the guide screw to move axially through the base 98 in a vertical direction. The bearings 102, 104 are driven by a DC motor 110 and a belt 112 which causes the nuts to turn in the same manner so that the rectangular assembly as a whole will move up or down depending on the polarity of the electrical supply to the motor.

Mounting rod 92 at the tips of guide screws 94 and 96 is rigidly connected to the guide screws so that the mounting rod and top piston will follow the movement of the guide screws. However, the lower mounting rod 90 is axially slidable along the lead screw and is biased downward by a pair of pneumatic struts 114 and 116 mounted on the base and connected to the lower mounting rod. Each guide screw 94 and 96 is provided with a head 118 and 120 at its lower end which is engageable with the mounting rod 90 so that the lower mounting rod 90 and lower piston 82 remain in position as the guide screw moves upward from the lower position. The fixed position relative to the main body 80 until the heads 118 and 120 of the guide screws engage the lower mounting rod 90 , thus causing the lower piston 82 to move upward.

The base 98 has a lower extension 122 with three position sensors (not shown), such as Hall sensors, for detecting the position of one of the heads 118 and 120 at the bottom of the lead screw.

A combined ground coffee chute 130 and coffee puck sweeper 132 is also mounted on the assembly and is movable laterally between a retracted position and an extended position, the retracted position of which is shown in FIGS. 6A, 6B. , 8A and 8B, where the hole in the top of the main body 80 is exposed so that the top piston 84 can move in and out of the main body; the extended position is shown in FIGS. above the hole so that ground coffee can be introduced into the cavity. The coffee chute and tortilla sweeper structure is moved using a DC motor (not shown) and a reverse slider crank mechanism (or Whitworth thread quick return mechanism) 136 . A pair of microswitches are provided to position the motor and coffee chute and cake sweeper structure during its cycle and stop it in the correct position.

As shown in FIG. 4 , the chamber of the brewing module comprises a cylindrical aluminum body having a flange 152 at its top end and surrounded by a stainless steel sheath 154 . The brewing module has a stainless steel liner within the aluminum body to form the inner surface of the cavity and a resistive heater in the form of an annular band is positioned around the aluminum body to keep the brewing module body at the correct temperature And prevent the water from getting cold when poured into said body. A thermistor (not shown) may be provided to provide temperature feedback to the brew chamber.

The top piston 84 is provided with a water inlet tube 150 extending through the shaft 88 and a coarse wire mesh 151 on its lower surface, while the lower piston has a fine wire mesh on its upper surface and for making the brewed coffee liquid accessible. Tube 153 being drawn and dispensed. Alternatively, the coarse drip filter may be located in the lower piston 82 and the fine drip filter may be located in the upper piston 84, and the water flow may be arranged so that it flows from the tube 153 and the lower piston 82 up to the upper piston 84 for dispensing through the tube 150.

In said rest position, the top piston is normally located in the brew chamber to ensure that the temperature of the brewer is suitable for making the beverage. To prepare a steamed beverage, the guide screw is raised to its uppermost position, as shown in Figures 5, 9A and 9B, where the head 118 of the guide screw 94 is adjacent the upper position sensor and the coffee chute 130 is located in the top of the brewer body. above the hole. Motor 110 is activated to drive lead screws 94 and 96 downward, causing top piston 84 to move downward through its rigid connection to the lead screws and allowing lower piston to move downward under the bias of pneumatic struts 114 and 116 until A position sensor confirms that the lower piston is in the coffee loading position. In this position, as shown in Figures 7A and 7B, the lower piston 82 may be in its lowermost position in the cavity by design, while the top piston is still located a few centimeters above the top of the body. At this point, the coffee bean grinder described below is activated to grind the coffee, and a single dose of ground coffee, typically about 11 g, is dispensed through the chute 130 into the brewing chamber, as shown in FIG. 7B. The coffee chute and tortilla sweeper mechanism is then moved sideways to its fully retracted position and the motor 110 is activated to move the top piston 84 down into the cavity until the sensor in the lowermost position confirms the movement of the lead screw. Head 118 or 120, the configuration shown in Figures 8A and 8B, wherein the volume of the space between the pistons is reduced so that the coffee grounds are compacted. The upper piston can be set to tamp down coffee grounds if desired. Alternatively, the motor 110 may continue to operate until the top piston 84 is prevented from further movement by coffee grounds in the cavity.

A small amount of hot water, for example about 5ml, is pressed into the cavity between the pistons to pre-wet the coffee grounds, preferably after which it stays for a period of time, usually 1 to 5 seconds, then will be at 5-15bar and preferably The coffee grounds are infused with a relatively large amount of water, for example 30-100 ml, at a pressure of 9 bar. Filling usually takes at least 10 seconds, and usually 12-25 seconds, to pass the coffee grounds from one of the pistons 82 and 84 to the other, however it can sometimes take longer, such as up to a minute, depending on Bean grinding and formulation. The coffee liquid thus formed is then sent via conduit 30 to filling head 38 for dispensing.

After dispensing the coffee liquid, the polarity of the power supply to the motor 110 is reversed so that the motor runs in the opposite direction causing the lead screws 94 and 96 and the piston 84 to rise. As the piston 84 rises, it moves out of the cavity through the hole in the top of the hollow body. At the same time, the heads 118 and 120 at the bottom of the guide screws will engage the lower mounting bar 90 and cause it to rise against the bias of the pneumatic struts 114 and 116 . As the lower mounting rod 90 is raised, the lower piston 82 is also raised until the uppermost sensor 124 detects the proximity of the head 118 of the lead screw 94 . At this point in the cycle, the upper surface 140 of the lower piston will be substantially flush with the top surface defining the hollow body, and spent coffee grounds in the form of a disc will protrude above the surface. In this case, the motor 134 is activated and rotates approximately 180° until one of the microswitches 137 and 138 stops it from rotating so that the disc sweeper 132 knocks the discs open to storage as shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B . container with the coffee chute 130 parked over the hole in the hollow cavity. Typically, the brewer assembly will then continue its cycle, causing the chute and puck sweeper mechanism to retract, and causing the upper piston to park in the brew chamber to maintain its heat. The brewing module is thus ready to start the next cycle. Although not preferred, it is entirely possible that the brewer assembly remains in a different position during its cycle after it has finished brewing and dispensing coffee, such as with the lower piston 90 in its top and bottom positions A position in between enables the hollow body to receive an additional quantity of ground coffee.

One of the pistons, typically the piston provided with a tube from which coffee liquid is dispensed, may be provided with a second tube 160, preferably leading directly to the discharge channel. In such a configuration, the system may be provided with valves, such as solenoid valves, to allow communication between the tube 160 and the brewing chamber and isolation of said tube from the brewing chamber. A pump (not shown), in this case a diaphragm pump, may also be provided to empty the brewing chamber of any remaining liquid therefrom during the brewing process (whether used to prepare espresso or hereinafter described drip coffee), the valve is closed. At the end of the brewing cycle, after the beverage has been dispensed but before the used coffee discs are removed, the valve can be opened and the pump can be activated to draw water from the brew chamber before the discs are removed. This operation usually takes a short time, for example a few seconds. This operation has the benefit that any remaining coffee liquid will be drawn off and not re-absorbed into the disc due to the drop in pressure in the brew chamber as the piston separates. If the coffee liquid is not removed from the used coffee grounds, the cake may be wet and soggy and leave a trail of wet coffee as it travels down the chute. Furthermore, drawing coffee liquid out of the brew chamber will cause the liquid to flow back along the coffee conduit 30 to clear the liquid conduit and thus ensure that no coffee drips out of the dispensing nozzle after the beverage has been dispensed.

The brewer assembly is also capable of brewing filter coffee, that is, brewing at substantially atmospheric pressure and using a greater amount of water than espresso coffee. If the consumer selects a filter coffee beverage instead of espresso, the motor 110 is activated to lower the lower piston 82 to its lowest position in the chamber as described above. In this operation, the main controller 42 and lower level electronics module 44 operate to grind and dispense a relatively large amount of coffee, for example in the range of 10-30 g, into the cavity using the chute 130 . The coffee chute and tortilla sweeper assembly is then retracted and the motor 110 is then activated to lower the top piston 84 off the top of the brew chamber 81 . For example, when water is pumped from the lower piston to the top piston, the top piston can properly seal the brewing chamber 81 so that when water is pumped into the brewing chamber, the air in the brewing chamber can pass through the tube 150 and the pipe 30 And discharge. If water is pumped from the top piston 84 to the lower piston 82, the top piston should not initially enter the brew chamber, but should stop at a position that leaves a gap between the piston and the top of the cylindrical body. A small gap to allow air to escape from the top of the brew chamber. A certain amount of hot water, for example 50-100 ml, depending on the volume of the chamber, is then injected into the chamber through the water pipe and one of the pistons, while the air expelled by the water in the chamber can leave the cavity. After allowing the coffee to brew for a period of time depending on taste and coffee, for example, 10-30 seconds or 30-60 seconds after brewing, the top piston is lowered a few millimeters as needed to form a seal with its inner surface. An additional quantity of hot water is then injected into the cavity through the water conduit and the upper or lower piston, causing the brewed coffee liquid in the cavity to be expelled and dispensed through the coffee conduit 30 and filling head 38 . This can be achieved by tap water pressure (approximately 3 bar) or preferably by a high pressure pump for espresso beverages, increasing the flow rate of the coffee liquid. If a high pressure pump is used, it is preferred that after injecting the second quantity of water into the cavity there is a short dwell time, for example 5-10 seconds, before the high pressure pump is activated so that the coffee is first dispensed at low pressure to the empty cup Medium to prevent foam. The exact amount of water injected into the cavity can vary as desired, but will typically be around 150-250ml. After a few seconds, the motor 110 is activated to lower the top piston to its lowest position (or as low as the amount of coffee grounds in the chamber allows) so that the remaining coffee liquid in the brew chamber is dispensed And the coffee grounds in the cavity are pressed into a round cake.

After the coffee liquid is dispensed, the upper and lower pistons are raised to their top positions and the spent coffee grounds discs are removed by the disc sweeper as described above.

In an alternative configuration of the brew chamber, if filter coffee is selected, then when ground coffee is metered into the cylinder such that the volume in the cylinder enclosed by the piston is approximately 10 more than the volume of coffee % thereafter, the pistons may be arranged to move together and preferably inject water from the lower piston 82 into the chamber. Coffee liquid is preferably removed through the upper piston according to this configuration, while allowing coffee to be brewed, and said configuration is adjustable so that the brewing time is approximately 30-60 seconds. After the coffee is brewed, the upper piston 84 is lowered to compress the coffee grounds and the coffee grounds disc is removed as described above.

If desired, the disc sweeper 132 can be deflected downwardly toward the brewing chamber 81 as it moves from its retracted position (as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B ) to its extended position (as shown in FIGS. 7A and 7B ). position (FIG. 4) and is unbiased or upwardly biased as it returns from its extended position to its retracted position. Such an offset can help prevent or reduce the likelihood of any used coffee grounds falling into the brew chamber when sweeping the used coffee burr, and reduce or prevent its retraction when the burr sweeper is returned. Any spent coffee grounds that stick to the bottom of the cake sweeper 132 while in position are drawn back into the brew chamber. This is conveniently accomplished by providing horizontal leaf springs (not shown) on either side of the brew chamber and a pair of disc sweepers supported on the lower surface of the leaf springs. protrusion so that the sweeper is biased downward as it moves from the retracted position to its extended position. If the protrusion is beyond the end of the leaf spring in the fully extended position of the pie sweeper, the protrusion will bear on the upper surface of the leaf spring as the pie sweeper returns to its retracted position, thereby allowing it to move from the impact. The cavity rises slightly.

As can be seen in Figures 4 and 5, the size of the brewing chamber 80 is only a fraction of the overall size of the brewer assembly because the height of the brewer assembly must accommodate the lengths of the guide screws 94 and 96 and the The length of its travel depends on the length of the piston shafts 86 and 88 and the stroke of the piston. Thus, the brewer assembly may have a height on the order of ten times the height of the brewer cylinder. If the height of the brewer cylinder were simply increased to accommodate the cup volume for drip coffee, the overall size of the brewer assembly would immediately become too large for the device housing.

While it is desirable for the brewer assembly to remain in its parked position in which the upper piston 84 is located in the brew chamber when not in use, this can mean that it takes some time for the brewer assembly to move to the point where it can begin brewing. The coffee brewing location. In a preferred embodiment, the device may include a detector for detecting the presence or absence of persons in its vicinity and be arranged to retract the top piston 84 to a position above the brewing chamber and move the The chute 130 to its position above the brew chamber as shown in Figure 7B, where the brewer is ready to receive ground coffee. Such a configuration can reduce the time spent between selecting a beverage and dispensing it by 6-7 seconds. If no more people are detected, or a beverage that does not require a brewer is selected, or a predetermined time has elapsed, the assembly may be moved back to its parked position. If desired, it is possible to arrange the assembly so that it does not move back to its parked position but maintains its position in which it is ready to receive ground coffee if the detector detects that there is a constant presence, thus enabling continuous dispensing. The time it takes to dispense a drink is reduced, for example by about 10 seconds.

Coffee container piercing device:

The coffee is preferably supplied in a container in the form of a cylinder containing 500-2000 g of coffee beans, in particular about 1 kg of beans, so that the entire content of the container is consumed before the coffee beans become rancid. The container may be symmetrical along its length eg when cylindrical, or may be asymmetrical along its length so that it can only be placed in the device in the correct orientation. The container is usually formed from an aluminum foil lined cardboard tube closed at each end by a sheet of metal foil. The foil has a one-way valve structure so that carbon dioxide released by freshly brewed beans can be extracted.

The container is loaded onto the piercing device as shown in Figures 10 and 11, which show a configuration with a single coffee container therein. The structure includes a frame 200 supporting a carousel 202 having a plurality of recesses 204 for receiving one of the containers, each recess having a hole 206 so that once the container is pierced Allows beans to fall into the hopper of the bean grinder. The carousel is designed to accommodate four bean containers 208, although other numbers of containers may be accommodated. The carousel is provided with uprights 210 having cross-shaped means 212 at their top ends for holding containers 208 in place. The cross-shaped device has four elastically deformable arms 214 which can be bent slightly upwards so that the coffee container 208 can be positioned in the recess 204 of the carousel.

Beneath the carousel 202, a generally cylindrical foil cutter 220 is disposed within the guide box such that the foil cutter can be moved vertically between a retracted position such that it is completely below the carousel 202 and Slide it into the bean container 208 between extended positions where the beans can be discharged. The foil cutter 220 is moved between its two positions by a motor 224 driving a gear 226 . The gear 226 has a slot 228 that cams to engage a cam follower pin attached to the lower end of the foil cutter. The foil cutter can be configured so that it has a single point 232 in its cutting edge for piercing the foil of the bean container, or the foil cutter can have multiple points along its perimeter to enable increased slope of the cutting edge .

The carousel 202 is driven by a motor, which drives a gear that is fixed to the lower surface of the carousel, and the carousel 202 is also provided with a position sensor, such as a Hall sensor, to determine whether it is in the correct position, The contents of container 208 are thereby made available for dispensing.

The frame 200 of the structure has a stiff bar 216 extending across two positions positioned across the coffee bean container, one of which corresponds to the position of the foil cutter 220 . The purpose of the stiff rod 216 is to provide a counter force to resist upward movement of the coffee bean container 208 when pierced by the foil cutter 220 . Since the arms 214 of the cruciform device are bendable so that the container can be positioned in the recess 204 of the carousel, they themselves will not provide sufficient force to stop the container when it is pierced. sports.

In operation, a bean container 208 is manually loaded onto the carousel so that the metal foil sealing the container is facing down and positioned in the recess 204 in the carousel. When the master controller 22 receives a signal that the hopper of the bean grinder is empty, the motor 224 is activated causing the foil cutter to move up and pierce the foil so that the contents of the container can fall through the hole 206. One of the foil cutters 220 enters the funnel of the bean grinder. The foil cutter is then retracted to its parked position below the carousel, which is then rotated 90° and one of the full bean containers is moved into position above the foil cutter. The drive mechanism for the foil cutter includes a position sensor (not shown) to ensure that the foil cutter is retracted before the carousel moves. Furthermore, the carousel is provided with position sensors, for example in the form of Hall sensors and magnets, to make sure that it has been turned into the correct position to ensure that the coffee container is positioned over the foil cutter. A further position sensor can detect rotation of the carousel along 360° to indicate that the device needs to be fed with new coffee containers. If the container cannot be opened, a message can be sent to call a technician.

The carousel 202 is located above the plate 201 in the frame 200 of the piercing device with insufficient clearance for coffee beans to be placed therebetween, with the result that, as the carousel rotates, the Any coffee beans will be swept into the holes 206 by the rotation of the carousel. In one rotated position of the carousel, holes are formed in the plate, while below the plate there is a disc 230 for collecting any coffee beans.

With the coffee container piercing device, the device can be provided with coffee beans in a plurality of sealed containers that can be opened automatically, allowing the time period between manual operations to be increased without damaging the coffee. If required, it is possible to record by software when the mold funnel is filled and to issue a service alarm if the funnel is not refilled within a predetermined time.

Although the arrangement has been described in terms of a single foil cutter, it is also possible to use multiple foil cutters at different positions below the carousel so that different types of coffee can be loaded onto the carousel simultaneously.

Boiler:

Boiler 400 comprises a generally cylindrical box with mounting bars for attachment to the frame of the appliance. The water boiler has: a set of three mutually independent 800W heating elements, a water inlet from a water source provided with a check valve, an electronic isolation valve, and a water treatment device. The water boiler has three outlets: a main outlet for supplying hot water to the brewing unit, a second hot water outlet for supplying additional hot water when required, such as when making Americano coffee, and a water outlet for supplying water to the Outlet for the steam box. Alternatively, it is possible to introduce cold water into the steam box. In addition, the boiler is provided with a high pressure relief valve set at approximately 1 MPa to allow pressure to be relieved for safety purposes; a thermal cutout circuit switch for controlling the heating element and a temperature control feedback probe. The boiler also includes a water level sensor to ensure that there is a minimum amount of water in the boiler.

The boiler is usually filled almost to its maximum capacity so that there is no air gap above the water. Set up a rotary vane pump to increase the water pressure to the desired value, e.g. in the 500kPa-2MPa range, especially 900kPa (9bar), and set up a flow meter to measure the amount of water consumed downstream of the boiler, e.g. for a single espresso The amount of water is 45ml. The flow meter is located adjacent to the water inlet so that it does not act as a heat sink cooling the water supplied to the brewing unit, and any water hoses used to supply water from the boiler to the brewing unit are usually relatively small. Small, with a diameter of not more than 5mm and preferably not more than 2mm, so as not to cool the water between the boiler and the brewing unit, because any water in the pipes between the different beverage preparation units It will all be cold.

The expansion valve is placed in the water inlet pipe and its pressure level is set slightly higher than the water pressure that will be raised by the swing pump. The purpose of the expansion valve is to allow expansion and discharge of water in the boiler that expands due to increased temperature.

The boiler has a maximum power rating of 2.4kW through three 800W elements. The number of components employed at a given time depends on the power budget of the device in terms of its maximum power supply of 13A, 16A or 30A, and in terms of the number and power consumption of other components at work available at the time power. For example, for a lower rated power circuit, the three elements may be used to heat water from cold when the appliance is initially started, but priority may be given to other devices when the appliance is in use , such as a pump or bean grinder.

milk module:

The milk module includes: a refrigerated storage compartment 500, as shown in Figures 12 and 13, in which a plurality of milk containers 502 in a form known as a "bag in a box" are held; Feeds to a mixing chamber where the milk can be mixed with steam to heat it up for white drip coffee or latte or alternatively the milk can be mixed with steam and air to create foam or, alternatively, the milk may remain unmixed prior to delivery to the filling head 38, for example for dispensing chilled milk such as white drip coffee.

Refrigerated compartment:

Milk is supplied in the form of a standard bag-in-box 502 of approximately 13.6 liter capacity, consisting of a rectangular cardboard box filled with milk plastic bags and having a seal extending from one side to the cardboard distal end. A length of flexible plastic tubing 504 . The storage compartment 500 is generally rectangular and can hold a number of containers 502, in this case four containers, although more or fewer containers can be held in the compartment, depending on the rate at which the milk is consumed . One surface of the compartment takes the form of a removable panel 506 with a shelf 508 to support the milk container when the compartment is in use. The plate can be designed so that it can be supported on a wheeled cart when removed from the rest of the compartment 500, so that all the milk containers can be handled together and moved to and from the coffee appliance, while It is not necessary to lift the container. Four electrically operated pinch valves 510 are arranged below the shelf 508 of the plate, each pinch valve 510 clamps one of the plastic tubes 504 to prevent the milk in the container from flowing out, and can be electrically actuated to loosen its grip on the plastic tube. Clamp on tube to allow milk to flow. At the bottom of the compartment 500, there are provided two funnels 512, referred to herein as "refrigerator funnels", which are located directly below the length of plastic tubing when the plate is above the compartment, This allows the milk to flow from the container into the refrigerator funnel under gravity. The containers 502 are positioned in the compartment such that when the pinch valve 510 is activated, a pair of plastic tubing segments 504 from two of the containers discharge milk into each of the two refrigerator funnels 512 . Each pinch valve 510 is actuatable to permanently stop the milk from flowing out when its associated milk container is emptied, or when the milk has exceeded its use-by date, or when the milk has been outside the refrigerated compartment for more than a predetermined length of time, and/or Or a service alert can be fired.

Each refrigerator funnel 512 has an inlet to allow cleaning fluid to be automatically introduced therein, as will be explained below, so that components of the plumbing downstream of the funnel can be cleaned periodically without requiring any personnel to spend time on the operation. In this way, the milk duct extending beyond the refrigerated compartment can be cleaned automatically, while the plastic tube associated with each milk container and forming a passage for the milk in the refrigerated compartment, whenever a new milk container is loaded will be replaced and therefore do not require cleaning.

In order to replace the milk in the compartment, the plate is connected to the trolley and removed from the compartment by pushing the wheels, the plate is then replaced after loading four new containers, the A section of plastic tubing is inserted into the pinch valve and blocks the sealed end of the tubing.

Whether or not the refrigerated compartment of the device is designed to be operated with a trolley as described above, the use of multi-milk containers has the advantage that one or more containers can be removed and replaced at any convenient time, e.g. Replace empty containers or replace containers where the milk has passed its useful life, even though the compartment may still contain usable milk. According to this construction, the device may comprise means with a memory and a controller which store data relating to the age of milk in any container and prevent dispensing of the milk once the age has been exceeded. Any milk beyond the use-by date may remain in the container or be dumped to a drain. The structure can also indicate which container is empty to assist in its replacement. When the operator replenishes the milk in the refrigerated compartment, he can simply read which containers need to be replaced, replace them, and enter the lifespan of the new containers into the device, e.g. Touch screen for input. The device preferably dispenses new milk after an input use period. The device may also indicate a limited range of age of milk, for example up to 7 days, to simplify data entry. Once the data has been entered and the refrigerated compartment is closed, the device can automatically select from which container to get the milk first, preferably the container with the latest age. Thus, the operator does not need to do any mental work other than entering the usage period on the milk container into the device. It is even possible to do this automatically if required, for example by radio frequency identification (RFID) tags or barcodes and scanners.

It is necessary for the compartment to accommodate four milk containers; more or fewer containers may be employed depending on the expected milk consumption of the appliance. Also, it is not necessary to have a pair of milk containers drain into each refrigerator hopper 510 . In alternative configurations, a single container tube may be used for each funnel, or, if space available or geometry permits, more than two containers may be connected to one funnel.

Steam burner:

The steam burner 600 is of substantially the same construction as the water boiler for the brewing module and includes a generally cylindrical box with mounting bars for attachment to the frame of the device. The steam burner also has a separate set of heating elements when used with the steam burner, a water inlet for hot water from the boiler, and a pressure relief valve, as well as a thermal cutout. However, the steam burner has only a single steam inlet for supplying steam to the mixing chamber which will be described below. The steam burner has two water level sensors, one positioned above the other at about half the height of the burner, ensuring that the burner is always half full. If the water level drops below said level, the lower water level sensor 610 will cut power to the burner to prevent exposing the elements when the water level drops, while the upper water level sensor will Prevent further water ingress.

Load cell components:

The loading unit assembly meters a predetermined amount of milk supplied from a container in the refrigerated compartment to the mixing module for mixing it with steam or with steam and air for each drink. The assembly includes a funnel assembly 700, shown schematically in FIG. It is connected to a device (not shown) for weighing the funnel assembly, such as a spring balance, a strain gauge, or a device for measuring the strain on the mounting device caused by the weight of the funnel assembly. Milk inlet conduits 708 and 710 extend from refrigerator funnel 512 to allow milk to drain by gravity into funnel 702 and to allow the funnel to fill when valve 712 is closed. As the funnel is filled with milk, its gravity will increase until the weighing device indicates that the correct amount of milk has been introduced, whereupon the weighing device causes the pinch valve 510 to block further milk supply. After the milk supply has been blocked, valve 712 is opened so that milk can be discharged from the hopper to a mixing unit downstream thereof where it is mixed with steam or with steam and air as desired by the consumer. The amount of milk that will be dosed by the loading unit assembly will depend on the type of beverage selected and whether the milk is mixed with air before it is dispensed, but the loading unit assembly will typically deliver 100-300ml of milk. It is possible for the device to be arranged such that the funnel 702 of the loading unit assembly is filled more than once for each portion of milk dispensed. Furthermore, by measuring the weight of the milk remaining in the funnel 700, it is possible to monitor the amount of milk passing through the duct by the device, and also to determine the point at which the flow of milk ends. This configuration enables the system to check for blockages in any milk ducts or malfunctions of the milk pump.

The gutter 704 is provided to clean the funnel assembly, which is necessary periodically since the loading unit assembly is not refrigerated. During cleaning, valve 712 is opened and cleaning solution is introduced into funnel 702 through milk ducts 708 and 710 until the fluid overflows into gutter 704 to ensure that the entire funnel 702 is cleaned. Overflow line 718 drains any excess cleaning solution into reservoir 720 for disposal. The gutter drain line 722 has a valve 724 disposed therein and is connected to the milk line downstream of the valve 712 to enable draining of the gutter. After the loading unit components are cleaned and rinsed, the valve 724 is closed to ensure that no residual cleaning solution contaminates the milk ducts.

The splash guard 726 is provided to limit the amount of milk that splashes into the gutter 704 during dispensing, but also protects the milk from falling foreign particles. In addition, the rim of the funnel 702 extends a few millimeters above the lower portion of the gutter 704, thereby providing a clear demarcation between the surface of the funnel 702 that will remain hygienic at all times and the gutter 704, which would necessarily include surfaces that cannot ensure cleanliness. surface, such as the portion of the trench above the overflow conduit 718.

Fluid pipeline:

Figure 15 is a schematic layout of the fluid conduits of the device. The cold water pipeline 801 takes water from the water source 66 to the boiler 400, and passes through the manual isolation valve 804, double check valve 806, automatic isolation valve 808, water treatment chamber 810, rotary vane pump 812 and flow meter 814 to the cold water distribution nozzle 802 . If cold water is dispensed, it is sent directly from the flow meter 814 to the dispensing nozzle 802 through a further valve 816 . After the water sent to the boiler 400 is heated, if American coffee is selected, it can be sent to the hot water dispensing nozzle 818 of the filling head 38 from the outlet 410 along the pipeline 820 through the valve 822, or the water can be sent from the Outlet 408 is routed along conduit 826 to brewer assembly 824 through a further valve 828 . After the brewer assembly is operated as previously described, brewed coffee liquid is routed along conduit 30 and dispensed to brew nozzle 830 . In addition, hot water supplied from the outlet 412 of the boiler is sent to the steam tank 600 along the pipe 832 through the steam filling valve 834 . Additional piping 836 is provided to allow the boiler 400 to be drained manually.

The steam generated in the steam burner 600 is sent along the steam line 838 to the mixing unit 840 where it can be mixed with the air filtered by the trickling filter 860 from the air line 859 when needed. Steam is normally supplied at a constant flow rate during operation of the plant, but the steam flow rate can be varied by a technician, for example during commissioning or maintenance. Compressor 864 provides a fixed flow rate of air at positive pressure for mixing with steam, which can be routed through a pressure reducer and automatically controlled by a software controller depending on the beverage selected. The mixing unit is shown in more detail in Figure 16 and includes: a steam restrictor 842, a steam/air tee 844 for making steam mixable with air, a steam check valve 846, an air check valve 848 and milk Tee 850 where steam and optionally air is mixed with milk supplied from milk duct 852 pumping milk received from loading unit arrangement 700 using gear pump 866 . The end of the milk conduit 852 extends into the bore of the steam and air conduit 854, at which point the fluids mix to create the necessary turbulence in the fluid mixture to foam the milk. After the milk has been mixed with steam, it is sent along conduit 868 to a milk nozzle 870 in the filling head. Depending on the consumer's choice, the mixing unit can mix milk with steam to serve hot milk, mix milk with steam and air to serve frothed hot milk, or just cold milk. It is also possible to vary the temperature of the milk by adjusting the milk and steam flow rates. Ideally, a temperature of 50°C-80°C and especially 60°C-70°C is obtained depending on the type of beverage desired. Typically, foamed milk will have a proportion of 30%-50% air and a temperature of 55°C-65°C, while steamed milk will generally have a proportion of 10%-30% air and a temperature of 65°C-75°C. Thus, while the absolute flow rate of steam is fixed, it is possible to vary the relative flow rates of all three components by varying the flow rates of air and milk relative to the steam. The flow rate can be varied by adjusting the pressure of the steam burner, the speed of the milk pump and the speed of the air pump, and/or by changing any restrictors (both of which will affect the flow rate). This system has the advantage that all fluids (air, milk and steam) are introduced under positive pressure, ie greater than atmospheric pressure. Thus, unlike foam generating systems that utilize a venturi to expel or inhale one ingredient, it is possible to adjust the ratio of the ingredients to optimize the foamed milk, rather than setting the ratio by the geometry and physical properties of the system. In addition, it is possible to vary the amount of air in the foamed milk by varying the time the air valve is open. For example, if the air valve is open during the entire milk dispensing phase, it is possible to obtain approximately equal parts of a mixture of foamed and non-foamed hot milk, while at the same time, if the air valve is open for half of the milk dispensing phase On, a mixture of approximately 75% non-foamed hot milk and 25% foamed milk is obtained.

The apparatus is further provided with a chocolate line 872 which supplies liquid chocolate from a bag-in-box container 874 to a chocolate dispensing nozzle 876 using a peristaltic pump 878 . In this way, the device is capable of supplying hot or cold water, hot or cold milk, frothed milk, espresso or drip coffee, and combinations thereof, such as latte, cappuccino, Americano, etc., as desired.

In addition to dispensing different beverages, it is desirable to automatically clean the corresponding fluid channels, especially those containing milk, at regular intervals. To this end, containers 880 and 882 of cleaning chemicals are provided, generally in concentric form, so as to be stored in the apparatus. Typically, two different chemicals will be used, for example one that includes a descaling agent to remove dirt from the pipes and another that includes an alkaline cleaner containing antimicrobials, biocides, etc. to sanitize the pipes . Of course, different chemicals and different amounts of chemicals can be used depending on the situation, for example different chemicals can be used for cleaning milk ducts and coffee ducts. Peristaltic pumps 890 and 892 may be used to engage dip tubes inserted into containers of cleaning chemicals to retrieve the chemicals from the containers and pump the chemicals along lines 884 and 886 to chemical mixing Tank 888 , where the chemicals are mixed together or separately with water from line 894 . The design of the chemical mixing tank is roughly the same as that of the funnel assembly 700 for the loading unit, although in this case four inlet pipes will be used, two for the chemicals and one for the water, and one for recirculating the cleaning fluid. Cleaning operations are usually clocked so that they are performed during periods of low usage. During a cleaning cycle, a defined amount of water, such as measured by a flow meter, is mixed with a defined amount of cleaning concentrate as measured by a mixing tank 888 . Alternatively, the amount of cleaning fluid so formed may be determined by measuring the weight of the cleaning fluid in the chemical mixing tank 888 . After the cleaning chemical is weighed and mixed with water, it is pumped by pump 896 along one of the pipes 898 or 900 leading to refrigerator funnel 512 or brewer 824, respectively. Valves 902 and 904 located in lines 900 and 898 respectively are automatically activated to direct the appropriate amount of cleaning fluid to the brewer or milk lines.

Cleaning fluid for cleaning the milk ducts is supplied to the refrigerator funnel 512 and from there flows along ducts 708 and 710 to the funnel assembly 700 of the loading unit. The cleaning fluid can fill the funnel assembly and groove 704, preferably until the liquid level is higher than that of the milk during the dispensing of the beverage, especially the overflow pipe 718, to ensure that all surfaces in contact with the milk are cleaned and cleaned. disinfect. During this operation, the amount of cleaning fluid that has passed through the funnel 700 is accurately determined using the loading unit, and, for the amount of cleaning agent (or cleaning concentrate and water) determined using the chemical mixing tank 888 and its associated weight sensor ), check the obtained value. If, there is a significant difference between the amount of cleaning fluid (or the total weight of water and concentrate) determined by the mixing tank 888 and the amount of cleaning fluid determined by the loading unit, this indicates a leak in one of the pipes or indicates mixing The box 888 or loading unit fails and the device is taken out of service. If desired, if not preferred, it is possible, if not preferred, to use the device only when the quantity determined by the mixing box 888 is greater than the quantity determined by the funnel 700, or only when the quantity determined by the funnel 700 is greater than the quantity determined by the mixing box 888. Sound the alarm or prevent any further beverage dispensing. Since the system is cleaned daily, the loading unit of the mixing box 888 and the funnel 700 are checked with respect to each other at the same frequency. The cleaning fluid is then pumped by pump 866 to mixing unit 840 and thereafter along milk duct 868 to milk dispensing nozzle 870 in the fill head. Cleaning fluid cannot flow up the steam line or air line because its flow in the mixing unit is blocked by the one-way valve 846 . During this cleaning cycle, the total amount of cleaning fluid is calculated using the mixing tank and loading unit to ensure that there is no cleaning agent in the subsequently dispensed beverage.

It is possible that the cleaning fluid flushes the tubing in a single path and exits the system at the dispensing nozzle to be collected in a waste receptacle. However, the cleaning fluid can be recirculated, allowing it to flush the pipe multiple times. To achieve the above, the nozzles in the filling head unit 38 may be provided in a movable nozzle unit 906, as shown schematically in FIG. 15 and in more detail in FIG. 19 . Figure 19 schematically shows the filling head in its normal working position, with the cup 6 resting on the perforated platform 907 . The fill head may be automatically lowered into the container 908 prior to cleaning. The container may also conveniently provide the function of a splash tray for receiving spills from the beverage as it is dispensed. The nozzle unit 906 has a seal 910 which blocks the outflow tube 912 of the container when the nozzle unit is lowered into the container 908 during cleaning, as shown in Figure 19c, thereby preventing loss of cleaning fluid; and a second Outflow tube 914 , which creates a constant depth of fluid in container 908 before recirculating the cleaning fluid along conduit 916 to chemical mix tank 888 . When cleaning is complete, container 908 can be raised to the position shown in FIG. 19b so that cleaning fluid can be drained through tube 912 . The above operations can be repeated with different cleaning fluids and water to flush the pipes. This form of nozzle unit and container has the advantage that the nozzles are submerged in the cleaning fluid so that the outer surfaces of the nozzles, which may be soiled by milk residues due to splashing when dispensing beverages, can also be cleaned .

If the cleaning fluid is recirculated through the pipes, it is possible for it to be continuously recirculated, but the cleaning operation should end according to the amount of cleaning fluid determined by the mixing tank 888 and the loading unit, so as to ensure that at the end of the cleaning cycle all cleaning fluid has been removed from the removed from the above system.

To clean the coffee line, valve 904 is closed and valve 902 in the line 900 from the chemical mixing tank to the brewing unit is opened, and the cleaning operation is repeated as needed with different cleaning chemicals. Different methods can be used to determine that the cleaning fluid has in fact cleaned all relevant pipes. For example, a flow meter or positive plunger pump can be used to ensure that chemical cleaning liquid has been removed from containers 880 and 882 , while a flow meter can be used to ensure that water has been introduced into tank 888 . A loading unit may be provided on the chemical mixing tank 888 to confirm that the chemical has been pumped from the container into the mixing tank 888 . Alternatively or additionally, a loading unit arrangement 700 in the milk duct may be used to confirm or check that cleaning liquid has been supplied to the duct. If the brewer assembly includes a valve, a pump connected to one of the pistons and a separate conduit 160 to drain excess coffee liquid after the coffee has been dispensed as previously described, it is preferred that during the cleaning process the valve is open and the pump is activated for a short period of time , to prevent coffee residues from accumulating in the pump, valves and piping. After the final flush with water, the filling head automatically rises to its normal position and the device is ready to dispense further beverages.

In addition to cleaning the system with a cleaning fluid, the device can flush the milk ducts with clean water after a period of inactivity to prevent any milk from drying out and sticking to surfaces. Fill head 906 is lowered to the flush position shown in FIG. 18 and water is introduced into chemical mixing tank 888 by opening clean water pinch valve 895 . The water is pumped by the clean pump to the refrigerator funnel 512 where it is drained to the funnel assembly 700 and from there by the breast pump 866 to the fill head, container 908 and drain channel.

In an alternative construction, instead of using a seal on the nozzle unit 906 to block the discharge outlet of the container 908, the container could be provided with an electric valve blocking unit at its discharge outlet which enables the Liquid can be drained through one of two outlets, one of which leads directly to a waste receptacle, while the other outlet is connected to conduit 916 so that cleaning fluid can be recirculated to mixing tank 888 . In this configuration, the outlet path connected to the conduit 916 may be raised a small distance, for example 1 cm or 2 cm, to ensure the correct depth of cleaning fluid in the container during the cleaning process. Other configurations are also possible. For example, the splash pan or container 908 may have two outlets, a lower outlet to allow for normal drainage and an upper outlet to ensure the correct depth of cleaning fluid in the pan during cleaning of the fill head, the lower outlet being passed through for example The electric valve of the pinch valve is closed. The depth of cleaning fluid can be set by the height of the upper discharge outlet and/or by the amount of cleaning fluid used.

Filling head:

The filling head is shown in more detail in FIGS. 17 and 18 . The assembly has an opening for receiving a beverage cup 6 placed in place by the consumer prior to receiving the beverage, the opening being defined by the nozzle unit 906; and a cup placement station (which also provides a splash tray or receptacle 908 for receiving beverage spills and cleaning fluids). Nozzle assembly 906 is supported by a hollow shaft 926 which allows the various fluid conduits to extend to its nozzles 818 , 838 , etc., and supports itself by struts 930 . The nozzle unit 906 can be raised and lowered using a low voltage motor with a pinion 934 meshing with a rack 936 on the strut, which has power so that the user's fingers cannot be injured if they are in the wrong position. The structure may include a tension spring for providing a compensating force against the weight of the filling head. The motor may be provided with a shaft encoder to ensure that the system always knows the current height of the nozzle unit 906 . A micro switch may be provided to indicate when the nozzle unit is in its lowest position and a further sensor may be provided to indicate when the nozzle unit is in its uppermost position.

The nozzle unit 906 is movable vertically so that it can be lowered into the container 908 for cleaning purposes as previously described and moved to a position slightly above the positioned cup where the nozzle unit is in the Prevents beverages from splashing out of the cup during dispensing. For example, different beverages require different sized cups, ranging from small cups for espresso to large cups for cappuccino or drip coffee. The master controller 42 will know what beverage the customer has ordered and can lower the nozzle unit to a position that allows an appropriately sized cup to be positioned in the opening. Furthermore, when the cup is placed in place, a plurality of light or infrared emitters or detectors 921 (as shown in FIG. 3 ) already positioned in a vertical arrangement in the recess next to the cup will be able to determine insertion into the opening shown. the size of the cup and prevent the beverage from being dispensed when the cup is too small, thereby avoiding any spillage due to incorrect cup size. If desired, the software may return to the selection menu on user interface screen 54, and/or may display an alert if the selected cup size is incorrect.

In one embodiment, the coffee conduit 30 terminating at the nozzle 818 (as shown in FIGS. 3 and 15 ) can increase in diameter, for example, by a factor of about 2-3 in the region of the nozzle, allowing for any given flow rate to flow through The flow rate of the coffee in the duct is reduced at the spout and reduces the tendency of the coffee beverage to form bubbles when dispensed.

Electronics:

Figure 19 shows a general layout of the electronics. These devices include a main controller 1000, which takes the form of a standard personal computer and runs an operating system such as Windows (trademark); and a low-level controller 1002, which controls the operation of mechanical devices 1003, such as brewer assembly, transmitters, switches, valves, etc. The main power supply 1004 is supplied to the main controller 1000, the lower level controller 1002 and any other devices requiring power such as brewer, water heater, and also to the 24 volt DC power supply unit 1006 for powering the lower level controller 1002. The low level controller has a processor printed circuit board 1008 that provides 24V DC power to devices such as actuators and small motors, and 5V DC power to components such as sensors and any processors. The low-level controller also has a power supply printed circuit board 1010 that can provide mains power to the devices in addition to the 24V and 5V supplies. The main controller 1000 and the lower controller 1002 can communicate with each other using an RS232 serial cable 1012 . All components are encapsulated so that it is not necessary to provide interlocks for different components.

High-level software:

FIG. 20 shows a layout of the main controller 1000 . The main controller includes: a CPU 1200, an internal data bus 1202 connecting the CPU to memory 1204 and an interface including a communication interface 1206, a touch screen 54, a card reader 56, a receipt printer 58, and an interface for connecting the main controller to the lower level controller 1002. Interface 1214 to the connected RS232 line 1012.

The software running the master controller is based on a master/slave architecture. The main controller 1000 performs all high-level logic and coordinates the activities of all devices, while specific operations such as making and dispensing beverages are left to the low-level controller 1002 . The high-level software is designed in three layers and has a clear interface between layers, as shown in Figure 20. The user interface layer 1020 includes all human interaction with the device, whether it be a consumer, retailer, or technician. Most of the user interface will interface with the main controller through the touch screen 54 .

The user interface is hosted by a standard-specific form of application 1221 that presents content on the touch screen, such as Macromedia Flash (RTM) content, through a built-in Flash player controller that hosts control, and run in full-screen mode set to run at startup. The content or "Flash Movie" is a series of interactive multimedia images that can be played on a standard personal computer using the Windows (RTM) operating system and a Flash player via a touch screen.

"Flash" enables visual dynamics and an interactive experience for online users, while keeping files very small for fast downloads. This enables the device to be updated via the Internet.

The software may, for example, take the common ".NET" form that enables Flash content to be rendered in windows within the Microsoft Windows (RTM) operating system. Different user interfaces are required depending on the model of the device. Each mode of operation has its own Flash movie and its own dedicated plug-in form.

The vending operation when the device is working normally can serve the customer or wait for the customer to approach the device. In "Out of Service" mode, information about machine failures is displayed on a separate screen. Replenishment mode is used by retail personnel when stocking the equipment with consumables, and service mode is used by trained technicians when servicing, diagnosing, or repairing the equipment. When an automatic cleaning cycle is initiated, a cleaning mode is entered, during which the touchscreen displays appropriate information and overrides user input.

The next layer is the operational logic layer 1022, which contains the software that encodes the rules that the device follows, such as: definition of beverage serving and recipes, functionality to contact retail personnel and technicians, software upgrades, sales Data management, loyalty programs, payments, ingredient freshness monitoring, and deciding when said equipment performs automated cleaning operations.

The operation logic layer has the following specific procedures:

(1) Beverage distribution. This is to determine when the device is ready to dispense a beverage, eg when it has finished initializing such that sufficient ingredients are available, the water is hot enough and the device has not gone through a cleaning cycle.

(2) Automatic cleaning. This will typically be based on time input, for example, when estimated infrequent use.

(3) Send retail alerts to personnel at retail exits to take any action, such as refilling any ingredient containers.

(4) Record the sales situation. Sales logs will be sent to operations headquarters on a regular basis.

(5) The equipment shuts down when a fault occurs.

A vending application programming interface (vending API) is an interface that defines which commands and data structures should be employed to interact with the software libraries that comprise the operation of the system. It enables low-level software and high-level software to be developed and tested independently of each other.

Fig. 21 is a state transition diagram of the operation of the main controller. All detailed operations are performed by the low-level controller. On start-up, the device proceeds to an initialization step S10, after which the system proceeds to S20 where it waits for the customer to be present. When an instruction is received from the customer, the device dispenses a suitable beverage in S30 and then returns to standby mode. The system will periodically move to step S40 to perform a self-cleaning operation before returning to standby mode. This operation may be stopped when a detector located on said device detects the presence of a customer in the vicinity of the device, so that the device can serve the customer. In the case of service to the customer or failure at initialization, the system will move to step S50 so that the system displays an "out of service" message and will contact a retail assistant (S60) or a technician ( S70).

Below the operational logic layer is an abstraction layer 1024 that presents a generic interface to higher layers to make changes without having to modify the business logic or user interface. This enables the database engine or other devices such as receipt printers to be changed when they are discarded. The main area of the abstraction layer is: the data extraction part 1026 that enables the storage engine to be changed later, the configuration extraction part 1028 that enables the data storage method to be changed, the hardware extraction part 1030 that enables the peripheral selection to be changed, and the different communication The communication extraction part 1032 where the policy can be adopted.

Remote access to all devices in an area is provided through standard proprietary software packages such as Windows Desktop(TM), while upgrades thereof can be deployed and performed using the remote access feature. The management facilities of the software can be used to automatically maintain the database configured on each device. Jobs can be scheduled to run on a regular basis to ensure that records that are no longer needed are deleted.

The database summary and main relationships are shown in Figure 22. Each entity referenced by other entities has a unique primary key (PK) field, and may have one or more foreign key (FK) fields as a reference to another entity's primary key.

Log table 1100 is a system-wide log of large events that captures software events ranging from debug messages to hardware failures and unexpected software exceptions, and indicates the time of occurrence (TS). The logs are regularly copied to HQ14.

The product table 1102 is a read-only product supply table, in which each beverage is represented by a record. Variations of beverages such as "a shot of espresso" are not separated into separate product entities, but may be included as options.

Sales table 1104 records all completed beverage sales, and the sales data is periodically copied to HQ. Each record represents sales of a single beverage.

The options table lists all possible options for all beverage offerings, with each record representing the options available to the customer.

The product options table 1108 details the available choices for each option on a per beverage basis. For example, the table may record the details that espresso is only available in small cups and filter coffee is only available in standard or large cups.

The sale options table 1110 records which option the customer selected for each sale completed. This enables data mining of sales data.

Low-level software:

Like high-level software, low-level software also has an abstraction layer whose main purpose is to abstract away the details of hardware such as sensors and actuators so that the hardware can be changed and upgraded with minimal impact on the software. Additionally, the low-level software has a control logic layer that provides low-level control over hardware such as valves, pumps, and motors.

The hardware abstraction layer handles all ties to the hardware, namely the different peripherals on the microprocessor directly connected to the sensors or actuators, e.g. digital I/O controllers, A/D converters, for PWM controllers to drive actuators such as motors at different speeds, and counters/timers such as for shaft encoders.

The control layer is responsible for performing periodic operations such as PID (Proportional Integral, Derivative) control of heating elements, and calculation of derived parameters such as position based on encoder counts and previous information. These operations use the information of the current sensor/actuator value obtained/set by the hardware abstraction layer to derive an output for the value/setting of other devices. Other operations include filtering the analog sensor values to reduce electrical interference noise generated between the sensor and the microprocessor, and ramping up or down the PWM output to minimize power fluctuations in the system. Each process will set the desired PWM level as a set point, while the actual PWM will be changed under closed loop control. Another operation is to derive parameters that have no direct physical meaning, eg the fact that the brewing module is ready, which is a combination of the fact that the different devices are in the correct position or at the correct temperature. Other physical parameters such as velocity, although not directly readable, can be calculated. Some derived parameters will be used to update actuator values, especially in case of plausibility checks (e.g. detecting and correcting incorrect settings of actuators).

Sequencing is about the execution of the sequencing of the different modules in the device. The sequencing will typically, but not necessarily, be performed by a finite state machine (FSM) directly associated with the mechanical module. The FSMs will control the mechanical and electrical components of each module under the control of a sequencer responsible for ensuring that: each event is routed to the appropriate FSM, that each FSM's periodic processing and commands to and from higher-level software are routed to the appropriate module.

The flow of the low-level software is shown in Figure 23. The main loop from the "Wait Actuator" to the "Write Actuator" runs at 10 ms intervals called frames. This provides a rate of 100Hz for reading, updating sensors and performing state machine transitions.

Necessary initialization is performed in step S1, including: stopping the watchdog timer (not reset until ready); setting up the microprocessor, system clock, etc.; setting up the communication channel; setting up external devices, such as plugs in I/O , correct the device, initialize the state machine, and start the watchdog timer.

The software then waits (step S2) for a message from the higher level software, at which point, depending on the content of the message, it will either: wait for more commands, start running the device, or enter a code update routine before loading new software . This effectively allows higher-level software to "ping" the lower layers, wait for a response, and when a response is received it can provide a periodic heartbeat signal and set it up to run if needed. Once operational, periodic messages should be received from the master controller, and in the absence of messages, the low-level software will wait for a scheduled downtime before setting the actuator to a senseable position, and enter a wait state.

The main loop proceeds along the steps of reading the information of all sensors and checking their consistency (steps S4 and S5). The sensor can then be cycled before processing the FSM. Then, the state machine is sequenced (step S8), ie all states are evaluated and any transitions are performed. This could be the result of higher-level commands or sensor values. Updates to the output value are written to a copy of the currently valid settings. In the next step, if allowed to continue, the actuator settings from the FSM sequence are checked for consistency (step S10) before they are copied to the current actuator settings and written to the actuator itself (step S12). . This process ensures that all inputs/outputs are deterministic while allowing consistency/sanity checks on all incoming and outgoing values.

The idle state (S14) is the same as the initialization position, in which heaters and the like work, but the mechanical parts do not move. This ensures that the device is in the correct state to start executing commands when needed.

If a code update is required (S16), the software may require an update program. Said software copies itself into RAM and starts the update process. This includes downloading the update code from the main controller, confirming its integrity, moving it to flash memory, and confirming its integrity again. In the event of data corruption in the flash memory, or when the code is not available after manufacture, the microprocessor's built-in self-help routines can be used. For normal code updates, no operator intervention is required in the operation of the machine. For repairs due to memory corruption or during manufacturing, the code can be loaded into the flash memory via the serial interface.

Claims (71)

1. equipment that is used to prepare and allot beverage, this equipment is suitable for operating in mode of operation, and in this mode of operation, this equipment can receive the indication from the user, with preparation with allot beverage; Described equipment also is suitable for operating in cleaning mode, and in this cleaning mode, the parts of this equipment are by automated cleaning, and this equipment can not be allotted beverage; Wherein said equipment can be operated to automatically switch to described cleaning mode in response to scheduled event from described mode of operation.

2. equipment according to claim 1, this equipment can be operated to switch to described cleaning mode at predetermined instant from described mode of operation.

3. equipment that is used to prepare beverage, this equipment comprise be used to store or prepare the liquid component of beverage and with described composition along the device of a pipeline transmission to a beverage dispenser, described equipment comprises: the storage unit that is used to store one or more cleaning agents that clean described pipeline, be used for described cleaning agent or each described cleaning agent of scheduled volume are incorporated into described pipeline, and after introducing described cleaning agent, a certain amount of water be incorporated into the device that the pipeline of described cleaning agent is arranged with flushed zone in the described pipeline; Described equipment comprises controlling organization, is used for preventing from described cleaning agent is incorporated into described pipeline when preparation and allocation beverage, and prevents preparation and allot beverage when the described pipeline of cleaning.

4. one kind is used to prepare and allots the equipment of the beverage that comprises perishable composition from dispenser, and described equipment comprises:

1) be used for the pipeline of described perishable composition, this pipeline need use cleaning agent to clean;

2) perishable composition meter is used for determining being dispensed into the amount of the perishable composition of beverage;

3) be used for a certain amount of cleaning agent being incorporated in the described pipeline, and described cleaning agent is transmitted by described pipeline in the clean operation process, and the device that described cleaning agent is removed from described pipeline; With

4) cleaning agent meter is used to determine to be incorporated into the amount of described ducted cleaning agent;

Wherein, the amount that is incorporated into described ducted cleaning agent is also determined by described perishable composition meter, described equipment can be operated with in described clean operation process, produces alarm and/or prevents to allot beverage under the situation that occurs contradiction between definite result of definite result of described perishable composition meter and described cleaning agent meter.

5. equipment according to claim 4, this equipment comprises: the pump that is used for cleaning agent is incorporated into described cleaning agent meter, be used for cleaning agent from the pumping of described cleaning agent meter to ducted second pump of described perishable composition, at described cleaning agent meter and the described perishable valve that becomes between the subtube, with the controller that is used for described pump and described valve, this controller makes cleaning agent only be sent in the clean operation process in the perishable one-tenth subtube.

6. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 3-5, this equipment can be operated to guarantee that all cleaning agents removed from described pipeline before beverage is subsequently allotted operation.

7. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 3-6, this equipment can be operated to determine the one-tenth component of described beverage and the amount of described cleaning agent by weight.

8. equipment according to claim 4, wherein said perishable composition meter and described cleaning agent meter comprise separately: be used for the storage of receiving fluids, with the sensor that separates with described storage.

9. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 3-8, this equipment comprises the return path from described dispenser to described pipeline, is used to make described cleaning agent to recycle.

10. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 3-9, this equipment comprises beverage dispenser and/or is allotting between position and the cleaning position movably cup support member that wherein, in described allocation position, described equipment can be operated and can allot beverage; At described cleaning position, the relative position of described dispenser and described cup support member prevents from cup is offered described equipment.

11. equipment according to claim 10, wherein said beverage dispenser and/or described cup support member can move between allocation position and cleaning position, and wherein, in described allocation position, described equipment can be operated and can allot beverage; And at described cleaning position, described equipment makes at described ducted cleaning agent and can recycle.

12. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 3-11, wherein said beverage dispenser can move between allocation position and cleaning position, wherein, in described allocation position, described equipment can be operated and can allot beverage; At described cleaning position, the outer surface of described dispenser can use described cleaning agent to clean.

13. equipment that is used to prepare and allot milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises: the refrigerating chamber that is used to store at least one newborn container, be used for making breast can take out and be transferred into the latex dust road of allocation device from described container, with the device that is used for cleaning described newborn loop along at least a portion of the non-refrigeration of described equipment, wherein said latex dust road comprises: the refrigeration pipeline that is arranged in described refrigerating chamber, with second pipeline that cleans that is positioned at outside the described refrigerating chamber, described refrigeration pipeline and described second pipeline are separated from each other, to allow the described newborn loop of cleaning, allow breast to retain in the described container simultaneously.

14. equipment according to claim 13, the part that is adjacent to described refrigerating chamber of wherein said second pipeline comprises: allow cleaning fluid introducing structure wherein.

15. according to claim 13 or 14 described equipment, this equipment comprises and is used for cleaning fluid automatically and periodically is incorporated into the ducted structure of described breast.

16. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 13-15, wherein said refrigeration pipeline and described container are can be disposable.

17. equipment that is used to prepare milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises: refrigerating chamber, at least one the newborn container in described refrigerating chamber, at described container and allot the latex dust road that extends between the zone, and the device that is used for cleaning along at least a portion of the non-refrigeration in described latex dust road described latex dust road, but all parts except cleaning part in wherein said latex dust road and described container are can be disposable.

18. according to claim 16 or 17 described equipment, wherein said latex dust road can disposable parts be compliant member, described equipment comprises and is used for clamping described pipeline breast being remained on described container and its folder on described pipeline to be unclamped so that the device that breast can discharge from described compartment, but described device or each described device make it can be by long-range driving with the electricity mode of operation.

19. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 16-18, wherein said chamber is suitable for storing a plurality of containers.

20. one kind can be dashed to make espresso or drip dashing of filter coffee beverage and make the device assembly, this assembly has: the cavity that is limited by cavity and removable at least one piston with the volume that changes described chamber in described cavity, described piston can the position of allow introducing coffee and discharging spent coffee through grinding with allow with water inject through grinding coffee with the espresso of preparation espresso beverage dash make between the position mobile, described piston also is movable to a filter coffee and is used for a preparation filter coffee beverage towards making the position, chamber volume when described filter coffee dash to be made the position dashes chamber volume when making the position greater than being in described espresso, described assembly comprises that the process that is used at described filter of preparation coffee beverage introduces device in the described chamber with a certain amount of water, the amount of described water is greater than the volume in described chamber, make that the beverage in described chamber is allotted, described assembly also comprises be used for moving the device of described piston with the volume that reduces described chamber when described filter coffee dash have been made.

21. according to claim 20 dashing made the device assembly, this assembly comprises a plurality of rods, is used for described piston is moved between diverse location, and described rod drives by single motor.

22. make the device assembly according to claim 20 or 21 described dashing, this assembly comprises two pistons, so that water can be introduced by a piston, coffee liquid can be discharged by another piston.

23. the device assembly of dash making according to claim 22, one of them piston is positioned at the top of another piston, and the described device that is used for introducing water can be operated with the piston by described below water is incorporated into described chamber.

24. according to claim 23 dashing made the device assembly, one of them described piston be movable to make its surface and roughly concordant position, the end of described cavity, be used to discharge spent coffee, described assembly comprises and is set to cross the element that move on its surface, is used for from wherein removing spent coffee.

25. make the device assembly according to claim 23 or 24 described dashing, this assembly comprises: the driving mechanism that is used for described piston, this mechanism is set to moving each piston towards wine in the cycle between uppermost position in fig-ure and upper/lower positions, the motion of described piston presents hysteresis to a certain degree, makes the volume in described chamber different in the different moment in the cycle towards wine.

26. make the device assembly according to described the dashing of arbitrary claim among the claim 22-25, wherein water is introduced into cylinder body via a piston, and coffee liquid is discharged from described cylinder body via another piston.

27. according to the described device assembly of dash making of arbitrary claim among the claim 20-26, wherein, dash when making the device assembly and not using when described, the piston of described piston or described top is parked in the described cylinder body.

28. equipment that is used to prepare and allot coffee beverage, this equipment comprises: dashing described in the claim 20 made the device assembly, and be used to survey the detector whether people is arranged near described equipment, when detecting near described equipment man-hour is arranged, this equipment can be operated to move described piston to permission and introduce the position of the coffee through grinding, and keeps a period of time at least.

29. equipment according to claim 28, described dash to make EO after through the scheduled time after, described equipment can be operated with the piston that moves described piston or described top to its stand.

30. equipment that is used to prepare milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises the refrigeration compartment with removable panel, described panel has the structure and the structure that is used for engaging with a device that is used to support one or more newborn containers, described device can make described panel and newborn container be removed and be transported at a distance from described compartment, but also can make described panel and newborn container be transported to described compartment from afar and be connected on this compartment so that described container or each described container are arranged in described compartment.

31. it is described to equipment according to claim 30, this equipment comprises can make described panel and newborn container be removed and be transported to device at a distance, this device can be removed described panel and is connected, and need not change the height of described container or each described container basically.

32. equipment that is used to prepare milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises: the refrigeration compartment that is used to hold one or more newborn containers, described container or each described container are provided with the flexible duct that is used to allow to supply with from described compartment breast, described equipment comprises the device that is associated with each flexible duct, be used for clamping described pipeline breast being remained on described compartment and its folder on described pipeline is unclamped allowing discharging breast from described compartment, but described device or each described device make it can be by long-range driving with the electricity mode of operation.

33. equipment according to claim 32, this equipment comprises: be used for the device whether definite described or arbitrary container empties, and controller, this controller startup is described to be used to clamp the device of described pipeline so that this device lasting pipeline that is associated with it that clamps when the container related with it is confirmed as emptying.

34. equipment according to claim 33, wherein saidly be used for determining that the device whether described or arbitrary container empties comprises: proportioner, this device is associated with described latex dust road, and can operate when batching breast to beverage to detect from the amount of the breast of described storage unit reception.

35. equipment that is used to prepare milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises: the latex dust road that extends to the allocation unit of allotting breast from the storage unit of breast, and the proportioner that is associated with described latex dust road, this proportioner can be operated with the amount of detection from the breast of described storage unit reception, and allows to allot a certain amount of breast according to the amount of the breast that receives from described storage unit.

36. equipment according to claim 35, this equipment comprises: be used to receive the storage from the breast of described pipeline, be used for device of determining described storage and wherein holding newborn weight and the valve of when the weight of described storage and breast surpasses predetermined value, closing described storage upstream line.

37. equipment according to claim 36, the latex dust road of wherein said storage and its upstream is separated, and can vertically move limited degree to allow to determine the wherein weight of breast.

38. equipment that is used to prepare milk-contained drink, this equipment comprises: the refrigeration compartment that is used to hold a plurality of newborn containers, each described container is provided with the pipeline of permission from described supply for receptacles breast, described equipment comprises the result that is used to monitor the sensor supplied with from the breast of described compartment and supplies with in response to the monitoring breast and the valve of the arbitrary pipeline of opening and closing.

39. according to the described equipment of claim 38, this equipment comprises: the valve that is associated with each container, be used for the pipeline that opening and closing are associated with corresponding container, described valve is set to open described pipeline and is allotted to beverage to allow a certain amount of breast, described valve is set to cut out described pipeline to stop to allot breast, described sensor is set to monitor the amount that is allotted to the breast in each beverage, in allotting operating process, described sensor does not have breast can operate so that described valve cuts out described pipeline lastingly when described pipeline is supplied with when detecting.

40. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 35-39, this equipment comprises: steam generator and being used for steam and the newborn device that mixes; Described equipment comprises controller, and when described proportioner allowed to allot breast, this controller can be operated with along described latex dust road eruption steam, and can operate to stop to supply with steam when allotting the basic end of breast.

41. an equipment that is used to prepare and allot beverage, this equipment comprises: be used to make the consumer can select the device of beverage; Allot head, be used for beverage be dispensed on the cup support member that is placed on this allocations head below glass; Vertically move the described structure of allotting head or described support member with being used for according to selected beverage, thereby make described head is adapted to the cup of selected beverage with respect to the position of described support member the size of allotting.

42. according to the described equipment of claim 41, this equipment comprises: one or more sensors are used to detect and have been placed on the described size of allotting the cup of head below; And controller, if it is incorrect to be placed on the size of the described cup of allotting the head below, then described controller will stop the allocation beverage.

43. equipment that is used to prepare and allot beverage, described beverage is selected and is dispensed in a series of beverages of difference amount by the consumer and provides to the cup of described equipment, described equipment comprises: detector is used to survey the size that provides to the cup of described equipment; Memory, it comprises many information that will be shown; Controller is used for size and operation and/or selection information or the alarm of being selected described equipment by combining of the selected beverage of consumer according to the cup that is detected by described detector; And display, be used for being presented at the information of described memory.

44. according to the described equipment of claim 43, this equipment comprises: touch-screen is used to show that described information also receives the instruction from the user.

45. an equipment that is used to prepare and allot beverage, this equipment comprises: one or more sensors are used to detect the physical state of described equipment; Touch-screen is used for demonstration information and the reception instruction from the user; Memory is used to store the data relevant with the operation of beverage and/or described equipment; And controller, be used to control the operation of described touch-screen, only make that described equipment just can be allotted beverage when adapting when the instruction that is received by described touch-screen and by the physical state of the detected described equipment of described sensor.

46. according to the described equipment of claim 45, wherein under situation incompatible between described instruction and the described physical state, described controller can be operated so that the information relevant with described physical state shows by described touch-screen.

47. according to claim 45 or 46 described equipment, wherein said physical state is relevant to: whether any composition of described beverage exists, the cup that the user provides for described beverage whether exist or the size of the cup that the user provides for selected beverage whether suitable, or whether described equipment is in the cleaning mode that can not allot beverage.

48. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 45-47, wherein said controller can be operated so that the information relevant with beverage that is provided by described equipment is provided described touch-screen.

49. an equipment that is used to prepare the foamed milk beverage, this equipment comprises: by breast, air and steam are introduced the structure that makes newborn foamed in the mixing chamber, described equipment has the device of the relative velocity that is used for independent change described breast, air and steam.

50. according to the described equipment of claim 49, this equipment is provided so that the flow velocity of described steam keeps constant in any foamed operation, and the flow velocity of described breast and air is regulated with respect to the flow velocity of described steam.

51. according to claim 49 or 50 described equipment, this equipment can be operated the flow velocity that breast is set with the flow velocity with respect to steam, makes the temperature of described foamed breast in 60 ℃ to 80 ℃ scope.

52. according to the described equipment of arbitrary claim among the claim 49-51, this equipment comprises: under greater than atmospheric pressure, described air, breast and steam is incorporated into separately the device in the described chamber.

53. equipment that is used to prepare and allot coffee beverage, this equipment comprises: coffee dashes the coffee bean reservoir of making device, coffee bean grinding tool and being positioned at described coffee bean grinding tool top, described equipment is set to hold in a plurality of therein positions a plurality of coffee bean containers, described coffee bean reservoir comprises piercing device, described equipment is provided so that described piercing device and described coffee bean reservoir move towards each other piercing through one of them described container, thereby coffee bean is injected into from described container in the described beans grinding tool.

54. according to the described equipment of claim 53, this equipment comprises: sensor is used for detecting the amount at described beans grinding tool coffee bean; And controller, the amount when the coffee of described grinding tool of being used for is lower than scheduled volume and starts described piercing device when following.

55. according to claim 53 or 54 described equipment, wherein said container is positioned at movably on the retainer, this retainer is set to advance described container when one of them described container has been pierced, and makes complete container be positioned at described piercing device top.

56. an equipment that is used for preparation automatically and allots coffee beverage, this equipment comprises: the coffee bean reservoir that is used to hold a plurality of coffee bean containers; Be used for opening automatically the device of described container; Be used to receive from the coffee bean of container and with its coffee bean grinding tool that grinds; Be used for dashing the coffee of making coffee and dash the wine device through grinding; With the control device of the operation that is used to control described equipment, make that the beans from described container are sequentially ground and dash wine.

57. according to the described equipment of claim 56, wherein said coffee bean reservoir can hold at least four coffee bean containers, makes the time of replenishing between the coffee bean deposit be four times in the time that described coffee bean container is opened.

58. a container, this container comprise 0.7 kilogram to 1.5 kilograms through baking and without the coffee bean that grinds, described container has the air-tightness lining and holds inert gas.

59. according to the described container of claim 58, this container is roughly cylindrical shape, but has not the external structure along its axis symmetry.

60. according to claim 58 or 59 described containers, this container comprises a sealing one terminal seal dissepiment that pierces through.

61. a method that is used to prepare coffee beverage, this method comprises:

1) supplies with a certain amount of coffee bean;

2) select to be introduced into breast in the described beverage based on operating period of breast;

3) regulate the relative quantity of coffee, breast and air to form coffee beverage;

4) according to the operation of controlling described method by the size of the selected cup of consumer.

62. an equipment that is used for preparing automatically multiple coffee beverage, this equipment comprises:

1) beans reservoir is used to hold the beans of the capacity that is used for many cups of coffees;

2) through refrigerating the reservoir of breast, be used to hold the many glasss of breasts that contain the capacity of newborn coffee;

3) be used to receive device about the requirement of single coffee beverage from the consumer;

4) be used to detect device by the size of the selected cup of consumer;

5) be used to grind the beans of capacity to be used for the device of described single coffee beverage;

6) be used to use described a certain amount of beans to dash the device of making coffee beverage through grinding;

7) be used for selecting to be used for the device of amount of the breast of coffee beverage, make to be within the operating period of the breast in the described newborn reservoir for the selected breast of described beverage from described newborn reservoir;

8) regulate the described device that dashes the amount of making coffee and breast according to the prescription that is used for selected coffee beverage that is kept in the described equipment;

9) be used to allot the device of coffee beverage; With

10) controller is used for based on the allocation of being controlled described coffee beverage by the size of the selected cup of consumer, and the amount of the feasible described coffee beverage of allotting is suitable for the size of described cup.

63. the method using coffee machine to prepare and allot many cups of coffees, described coffee machine can be in response to working with preparation by the order of user's input and allotting many cups of coffees, and described method comprises:

A) a plurality of airtight containers are set in described coffee machine, each described container comprises the coffee bean of the capacity that is used to prepare many cups of coffees, and the described coffee bean in each container has the predetermined fresh-keeping life-span after opening cell therefor;

B) make described coffee machine open described container successively, make only has a described container to open at every turn;

C) make described coffee machine prepare and allot many cups of coffees being no more than within the period in described fresh-keeping life-span to adopt in response to the input of a plurality of described orders, make that the nearly all coffee bean in the described container of opening is used up in the described fresh-keeping life-span from the coffee bean in the described coffee container of opening;

D) make described coffee machine after this open other described coffee container automatically, and prepare and allot many cups of other coffees being no more than within other period of two days to adopt in response to the input of other a plurality of described orders, make that the nearly all coffee bean in described other coffee container is used up in the described fresh-keeping life-span from the coffee of described other container from the coffee bean in the other described coffee container; With

E) the described coffee container of at every turn wherein said coffee bean having been used up manually is replaced by new described airtight container.

64. the method using coffee machine to prepare and allot many cups of coffees, described coffee machine can be in response to working with preparation by the order of user's input and allotting many cups of coffees, and described method comprises:

A) be provided with a plurality of airtight containers in described coffee machine, each described container comprises the coffee bean of the capacity that is used to prepare many cups of coffees;

B) make described coffee machine open described container successively, make only has a described container to open at every turn;

C) described coffee machine is adopted from the coffee bean in the described coffee container of opening within period of two days only in response to the input of a plurality of described orders and prepare and allot many cups of coffees, make that the nearly all coffee bean in the described container of opening is only being used up within two days;

D) make described coffee machine after this open other described coffee container automatically, and in the input that is no more than within other period of two days in response to other a plurality of described orders, employing prepares from the coffee bean in the described other coffee container and allots many cups of other coffees, makes nearly all coffee bean in described other coffee container be no more than within two days and uses up; With

E) the described coffee container of at every turn wherein said coffee bean having been used up manually is replaced by new described airtight container.

65. according to the described method of claim 64, this method makes within just for one day only from each container preparation and allot described many cups of coffees.

66. according to the described method of arbitrary claim among the claim 63-65, wherein said coffee machine comprises at least four described coffee containers, and the step of described manual replacing was carried out once at most in per two days.

67. according to the described method of arbitrary claim among the claim 63-66, this method comprises: make described coffee machine in response to be opened or wherein the described coffee container used up of coffee predetermined number and send the coffee supplementary signal, the step that need carry out described manual replacing with expression.

68. according to the described method of arbitrary claim among the claim 63-67, this method comprises: be provided with a plurality of newborn containers in described coffee machine, wherein each container all has the operating period, makes described coffee machine only select breast when many glasss of preparations need the coffee of breast from be in the described newborn container within its operating period.

69. according to the described method of claim 68, this method comprises: make described coffee machine in response to that used up or that selected and/or reached the described breast that wherein holds operating period described newborn container predetermined number and send newborn supplementary signal.

70. according to the described method of arbitrary claim among the claim 63-69, this method comprises: make described coffee machine at least once automatically perform clean cycle every day, be used for from the newborn residue of described coffee machine cleaning.

71. equipment that is used to prepare and allot beverage, described beverage comprises perishable composition, described equipment comprises: the refrigeration compartment that is suitable for preserving a plurality of perishable one-tenth capacitance dividers, described equipment is suitable for being stored in the operating period of the described perishable composition in each described container, and described equipment also comprises in case the stock in the described container surpasses described storage is used for preventing allotting the stock of any container during the operating period device.

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