Claims
- 1. A beverage dispenser apparatus which mixes selected flavor concentrates and water together to produce post-mix beverages of desired flavors comprising:
- at least one container having flavor concentrate therein, said container having a predetermined shape and dimensions and a neck portion with an opening therein;
- a flavor concentrate supply compartment having at least one wall defined by a thermally conductive plate;
- a socket for each container in said flavor concentrate supply compartment for receiving the neck portion thereof;
- cooling fin means for each container extending from said plate and conformally shaped to receive and support the sidewalls of an associated container therein, each said cooling fin having a slightly smaller internal dimension than the conforming external sidewall dimension of said container to provide a snapfit between each fin and container;
- a water reservoir in direct thermal contact with said plate;
- means for cooling the water in said reservoir to a desired temperature;
- a source of water to be mixed with said flavor concentrate; and
- a dispensing nozzle associated with each container and socket through which post-mix beverages of desired flavors are dispensed.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said container is cylindrical and each said fin is semicircular in cross-section, forming a substantially U-shaped, container-receiving channel.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said semicircular cross-section of said fin scribes an arc in excess of 180 degrees, so that the ends of said U-shaped channel must be flexed outwardly to receive a container therein.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein each of said fins are provided with coupling means for removably attaching said fins to said thermally conductive plate.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said coupling means comprises a keyhole slot on said fin and a headed pin on said plate.
- 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said source of water is carbonated water comprising a carbonator tank disposed within said water reservoir.
- 7. The apparatus of claim 1, further including conformally spaced support surfaces on opposite sides of each socket for supporting said containers.
- 8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a water coil having an input end coupled to said source of water and an output end coupled to said carbonator, said water coil being immersed in the water in said water reservoir.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This application is a continuation-in-part of co-pending application Ser. No. 552,385, filed Nov. 16, 1983, now abandoned.
The present invention relates to a post-mix beverage dispenser; a syrup container supply system therefor of the gravity flow type; and an improved refrigeration system for both the syrup supply system and an associated carbonator.
An exemplary prior art post-mix beverage dispenser apparatus is described in co-pending U.S. Pat. Application Ser. No. 320,478, filed Nov. 12, 1981, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,441. In that apparatus, a plurality of disposable, plastic, flavor concentrate containers of about 1.5 liters in capacity are inverted and the neck portions thereof are plugged into sockets in dispenser nozzle assemblies for selective actuation to form post-mix carbonated beverages. These 1.5 liter containers are totally supported by the sockets which receive the container necks. These containers are cooled by a single heat transfer bracket in contact with the containers collectively. The heat transfer bracket is cooled by a cooling device within the refrigeration system.
The support structure and cooling system of the dispenser of the aforementioned co-pending U.S. patent application functions quite well for 1.5 liter containers. However, it is a discovery of the present invention that if larger flavor concentrate containers are to be used, on the order of 4 liters capacity, that an improved support structure and cooling system for the larger containers is desirable.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved refrigeration system for the flavor concentrate containers of a gravity-flow, post-mix beverage dispenser.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide an improved support structure for the flavor concentrate containers in a gravity-flow, post-mix beverage dispenser, which provides for lateral, as well as longitudinal, support.
The objects of the present invention are fulfilled by providing a beverage dispenser apparatus which mixes selected flavor concentrates and carbonated water together to produce post-mix beverages of desired flavors, comprising:
at least one container having flavor concentrate therein, said container having a predetermined shape and dimensions, and a neck portion with an opening therein;
a flavor concentrate supply compartment having at least one wall defined by a thermally conductive plate;
a socket for each container in said syrup supply compartment for receiving the neck portion thereof;
cooling fin means for each container extending from said plate and conformally shaped to receive and support the sidewalls of an associated container therein;
a water reservoir in direct contact with said plate;
means for cooling the water in said reservoir to a desired temperature;
a source of carbonated water; and
a dispensing nozzle associated with each container and socket through which carbonated postmix beverages of desired flavors are dispensed.
The cooling fins have a slightly smaller internal diameter than the conforming external diameter of the sidewalls of the container which it receives, to provide a snap-fit between the respective fins and containers. The fins are essentially semicircular in cross-section and scribe arcs in excess of 180 degrees, so that flexing of the fins outwardly is required as a container is inserted. The fins are also removably coupled to the thermally conductive plate by a keyhole slot and pin arrangement so that they may be easily replaced.
To provide increased cooling of the beverage, the carbonator tank is also thermally coupled to the water in the water reservoir by immersing the same therein.
Additional support surfaces for the container are provided on opposite sides of the container receiving sockets in the syrup compartment. These support surfaces are angled to conformally receive the container shape, and therefore provide additional longitudinal end lateral support of the container.
US Referenced Citations (8)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
| Number |
Date |
Country |
| 0080253 |
Jun 1983 |
EPX |
Patent Grant
4921139
