Patent Application
20130025742
The present invention relates generally to an automatic dispensing machine for beverages, and more particularly to an automatic machine for dispensing coffee and other beverages in cups of various sizes according to a user's choice.
Prior art automatic dispensing machines are most often designed to provide the user with only a single-sized cup regardless of the type of beverage chosen. There are other automatic dispensing machines that utilize variously sized cups according to the beverage chosen but limited to large or medium sizes, but not as small as those usually used for espresso-type coffee. EP 1818881 discloses an automatic dispensing machine that provides a large or medium sized cup corresponding to the selected beverage. In such a vending machine the cup is delivered by dispensing towers through a dispensing cone that connects the exit paths of the cup dispensing towers. Once delivered, the cup is stopped in place upon a support placed towards the user and filled with the chosen beverage through a nozzle that is in a raised position with respect to the edge of the cup.
GB 1604306 discloses an automatic dispensing machine for beverages that is provided with two dispensing towers, in which variously sized cups can be used. The cup holder device is connected to a shaft by a system of cams and springs that allows movement towards either of the cup dispensing towers and the relative positioning of the holder device in correspondence to the exit paths of the cup dispenser. The shaft moves only in an orthogonal direction to the axis connecting the centers of the cup dispensing towers and the holding device can move only at a small angle, right and left in relation to the user, in the direction of the exit-paths of the cup dispensing of the two cup dispensing towers. This device does not allow calibration of the system in such a way to easily fill large, medium and also small sized cups. Moreover, the presence of cams and springs makes the device subject to wear and maintenance problems due to inevitable and frequent cleaning and disinfection of the dispensing machines.
As previously described, one of the main disadvantages of such known machines is that the applied configurations and operating systems do not allow the use of small sized cups, in addition to large and medium cups, in a single machine. The small sized cups, for example those used for espresso-type coffee, generally have a height and a diameter smaller than 60 mm. These cups require, besides supports adapted to receive such small cups, specifically sized nozzles arranged in the vicinity of the edge, or better, within the cups to ensure that sugar, a stir stick and coffee are dispensed properly into the cup. The automatic beverage dispensing machines of the prior art generally have a mounted nozzle system for dispensing various beverages, a sugar dispenser and a stir stick dispenser, each having a single product dispenser exit which appears to be well proportioned, if compared to the size of large and medium sized cups but not to smaller sized cups, such as espresso-type coffee cups. In the latter case it is necessary that the cup be positioned below and very close to the various dispensers so that the various products can be correctly served.
There is provided in accordance with the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages and a process to provide the dispensing of beverages into differently sized cups, especially the cups with a diameter less than 60 mm such as those used for espresso-type coffee.
There is further provided in accordance with the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages and a process that allows the machine to provide two different beverages in a space as small as possible.
There is further provided in accordance with the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages and a process that is able to guarantee perfect dispensing of espresso-type coffee in small sized cups without splashing or spillage of the product.
There is further provided in accordance with the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages and a process which are able to guarantee a high quality level of the beverages provided.
There is further provided in accordance with the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages that reduces maintenance time and that allows a simple and efficient replacement and cleaning of the cup holder device when needed.
According to the present invention an automatic machine for dispensing beverages has at least two rotatable cup dispensing towers each having a plurality of housings for variously sized stacked cups. The cup dispensing towers may be rotated in a selective manner about vertical axes. Cups are dispensed from the housings. A cup holder device includes cup holders that receive the dispensed cups. The cup holder device is rotatable about a vertical axis that is parallel to the axes of rotation of the rotatable cup dispensing towers. The cup holders of the cup holder device move along concentric circular trajectories with respect to the vertical axis of the cup holder device.
According to another aspect of the present invention a process for dispensing a beverage from an automatic machine of the type described in the immediately preceding paragraph comprises the steps of:
(a) supplying a cup exiting from one of the two cup dispensing towers to a cup holder of the cup holder device with the cup holder in a starting position;
(b) rotating the cup holder device until the cup reaches a dispensing position for sugar or other items such as stir sticks;
(c) dispensing of items other than a beverage such as sugar and/or a stir-stick if requested by a user;
(d) rotating the cup holder device until the cup is aligned with a beverage dispensing nozzle;
(e) dispensing a beverage into the cup;
(f) rotating the cup holder device until the cup is presented to the user and the machine is inactivated; and (g) only after the user removes the cup containing the beverage from the machine and the machine is reactivated rotating the cup holder device until the cup holder returns to the starting position.
More features and advantages of the present invention will be made clear by the following description, exemplifying but not limiting in reference to the attached drawings.
The cup dispensing towers dispense cups by dispensing means E. The dispensing means E comprises two ducts E1 and E2 having two cup dispensing openings A1, A2 that are best shown in
The cup dispensing towers T1, T2, respectively one with small cups and the other with medium or large stacked cups, each rotate about its own axis O, O′ in such a way as to always allow that there are cups in aligned with the associated cup dispensing opening A1, A2. Once the user has chosen a beverage, a cup corresponding to the chosen beverage, namely a small espresso-type coffee cup or a medium/large cup for other beverages, is dispensed from one of the two cup dispensing towers T1, T2 and stopped at the exit of the openings A1, A2 by a cup holder device 13 positioned below the dispensing openings A1, A2. The cup holder device 13 is placed between the two cup dispensing towers, preferably at the center, and is preferably equipped with two cup holders 11, 12. In particular the cup holders are arcuate housings similar to two pronged forks 11, 12 each able to support one cup having exterior dimensions that are complementary to an interior dimension of the cup holder. The descent of a dispensed cup is stopped by a cup of holder placed below the dispensing opening. In particular one cup holder is dimensioned to stop the descent of a medium or large sized cup from a cup dispensing opening A1, A2 and the other cup holder is dimensioned to stop the descent of a small sized cup from a cup dispensing opening A1, A2.
The cup holder device 13 is equipped with a shaft 14 oriented orthogonal to the plane of the cup holders. The shaft is placed between the two cup dispensing towers, preferably at the center. The shaft 14 is driven by a motor 40 that allows the rotation of the cup holder device by 360 degrees about its own axis O″ which is parallel to the axes of rotation O, O′ of the cup dispensing towers T1, T2.
As best shown in
According to the process of the exemplary embodiment of the invention the cup 38 is moved by the machine along at least part of a circumference, preferably upon a series of circumference arches. In particular, in the shown embodiment, the cup 38 placed on one of the smaller of the two cup holders 12 moves along a circular trajectory with respect to the vertical axis of rotation O″ of the shaft 14 of the cup holder device, stopping in the various dispensing positions of the various items. The movement of the cup holders 11, 12 along this circular trajectory is shown in this example as being in a counterclockwise direction in relation to the user U.
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
All positions occupied by the cup holders 11, 12 so far described are distributed along an ideal circumference having as a center the axis of rotation O″ of the cup holder device 10. Particularly since the cup holder device 13 equipped with two arcuate cup holders 11, 12 with different diameters to receive variously sized cups, the cups will occupy positions placed along concentric circular trajectories according to the size of the cup used.
Preferably a machine according to the invention preferably further comprises a control unit 42 that controls at least the selective rotation of the cup dispensing towers, the rotation of the cup holder device, the movements, timing and for the dispensing of items other than the beverage, the movements and timing for the dispensing of a beverage, as well as the movements and timing for the presentation of the beverage to the user and the return of the cup holder device to the starting position.
While turning on the automatic machine for dispensing beverages 100 the cup holder device 13 positions itself with the cup holders 11, 12 aligned with the cup dispensing openings A1, A2. According to the user's choice a medium/large cup is loaded on the larger cup holder 11 or a small cup is loaded on the smaller cup holder 12. The cup 38 placed on one of the two cup holders will move along a circular path with respect to the vertical axis of rotation O″ of the shaft 14 of the cup holder device and stopping at the different dispensing stations of the various products. As shown in the drawings of the exemplary machine the displacement along this circle path is counterclockwise in relation to the user U. After the possible dispensing of items other than a beverage, such as sugar and stir-stick if requested by the user, the cup holder 12 with the cup 38 moves in a counterclockwise direction until reaching the position of dispensing of the beverage in which the nozzle system is placed, sized and positioned so to perfectly dispense the beverage into the cup avoiding possible splashing.
Once the beverage has been dispensed, the cup 38 supported by the cup holder 12 moves counterclockwise along the above mentioned circular path until it is in front of the user U to present the ready beverage remaining in place until a new beverage is requested. The cup holder with the cup and the ready beverage stops in this position and does not return to the starting position of cup dispensing so as to allow the user to remove the beverage without haste. Once the beverage has been removed by the user, the cup holder device moves counterclockwise to the initial position after another beverage is requested, thus repositioning the two cup holder at the corresponding cup dispensing openings of the cup dispensing towers.
All positions in which the dispensed cups are located during the various operation steps of the machine are distributed along an ideal circumference having as a center the rotational axis O″ of the shaft 14 of the cup holder device. Since the cup-holder device 13 is equipped with at least two cup holders 11, 12 of different diameters to receive cups of different sizes, the cups will occupy positions placed along concentric circular trajectories according to the size of the cup used.
It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention and without diminishing its attendant advantages. It is, therefore, intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10425065.9 | Mar 2010 | EP | regional |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB11/00503 | 3/9/2011 | WO | 00 | 10/14/2012 |
