Patent Application
20120175010
This disclosure generally relates to a system and method for dispensing or distributing fountain beverages.
Beverage dispensers are currently used to offer a variety of beverages to consumers at restaurants, eateries, and other places of beverage sale and consumption. For example, carbonated fountain dispensers are commonly found at fast food restaurants to offer consumers a choice between carbonated cola, lemon-lime, orange, root beer, and diet cola beverages. These beverage dispensers offer consumers a limited variety of beverage products.
One such beverage dispenser is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,370, titled “Tri-Mix Sugar Based Dispensing System.” U.S. Pat. No. 4,753,370 is fully incorporated herein by reference.
The dispenser disclosed in the '370 permits a consumer to dispense a variety of beverages that may currently be available on the market, without the need for prepackaged bottles or cans. Due to space constraints within a restaurant, however, only a small handful of beverage options are generally offered. As a result, consumers are often left with dull and uninspired drink choices.
Due to these and other limitations of these beverage dispensers, there is a need for further innovation to drive increased consumer traffic to the restaurant or other place of beverage purchase. In particular, a dispenser that provides more beverage options to the consumer would drive beverage sales and increase the traffic of consumers purchasing products at the restaurant, eatery, or other place of beverage consumption. Further, any new beverage dispenser that requires a large capital investment is not desired as the fast-food restaurant may not be interested in investing in a costly high-tech dispenser, like the Coca-Cola Freestyle dispenser, disclosed in US Patent Publication Nos. 2007/0267441, 2007/0205221, 2007/0205220, all three of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Accordingly, the disclosure provides for an improved method and system for delivering increased beverage choices to consumers without requiring costly investment in a new high-tech dispenser.
Disclosed is a system and method for dispensing beverages.
In one particular embodiment, the system comprises: at least one cup, the cup having a first indicia for denoting a first volume and a second indicia for denoting a second volume; a dispenser, the dispenser having a first fountain and a second fountain; an instruction, the instruction providing a first drink recipe for mixing a first beverage with a second beverage; wherein the first fountain dispenses the first beverage; wherein the second fountain dispenses the second beverage; and wherein a user fills the at least one cup with a first beverage to about the first indicia and a second beverage to about the second indicia.
The system may be a carbonated beverage dispenser configured to dispense at least one carbonated beverage.
The system may also further comprise an ice dispenser.
The system may also have a cup with a third indicia, the third indicia denotes a third volume.
The system may also provide the instruction as a rotatable display.
The system may also provide the instruction as a printed instruction on the at least one cup.
In some embodiments, the instruction may be attached to the dispenser.
The system may also have cups with a third indicia that denotes a level for ice or a third beverage.
In some embodiments of this system, three level indicators may be provided, wherein the first indicia denotes 25% of the at least one cup volume, wherein the second indicia denotes 50% of the at least one cup volume, and wherein the third indicia denotes 75% of the at least one cup volume.
In some embodiments of this system, one indicia denotes 33% of the at least one cup volume, and wherein the second indicia denotes about 67% of the at least one cup volume.
In one particular embodiment, the system has eight fountains, wherein each fountain is configured to dispense a different beverage.
In yet another embodiment, the dispenser of the system mixes carbon dioxide gas, concentrated beverage syrup, and filtered water.
In another embodiment, the instruction comprises a second drink recipe for mixing at least two beverages.
In yet another embodiment, a method for providing a beverage is provided. The method comprises the steps of: selling a beverage to a consumer and providing a cup to the consumer. The cup comprises a first indicia that denotes a first volume of the cup and a second indicia that denotes a second volume of the cup. The method further comprises the steps of providing a drink instruction and providing a beverage dispenser. The drink instruction comprises at least one drink recipe for mixing a first beverage with a second beverage and the beverage dispenser is configured to dispense a first beverage from a first fountain and a second beverage from a second fountain. In this particular embodiment, a user fills the cup with the first beverage to about the first indicia and fills the cup with the second beverage to about the second indicia.
In another embodiment, the method may further comprise the step of filling the cup with a third beverage to a third indicia, the cup comprising a third indicia that denotes a third volume of the cup.
In even yet another embodiment, the drink instruction provides at least two drink recipes.
In another embodiment, a method for promoting beverage consumption is provided. The method comprises the steps of: selling a beverage to a consumer; providing the consumer with a cup; providing the consumer with access to a beverage dispenser, wherein the beverage dispenser dispenses at least two or more different beverages; allowing the consumer to mix at least two or more beverages together in the cup; providing a website; and providing the website information to the consumer. In this embodiment, the website is configured to receive the consumer's information about the consumer's mixed beverage.
In another embodiment, the method may further comprise the step of awarding a prize to the consumer for the consumer's mixed beverage combination.
In even yet another embodiment, the method may further comprise the step of publishing the consumer's mixed beverage combination on the website for public viewing
Referring now to the Figures, exemplary embodiments are illustrated, wherein the elements are numbered alike:
Referring to the particular embodiment shown in
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Drink recipes include the combination of two or more beverages. In some exemplary embodiments, the drink recipe may combine 50% grape soda with 50% orange soda. Other exemplary embodiments combine 50% lemon-lime soda with 50% grape soda and 50% Dr Pepper® with 50% orange soda.
Although the embodiment shown in
As shown in the particular embodiment of
In the particular embodiment of
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As disclosed and described in the embodiment of
Alternatively and in another exemplary embodiment of the disclosure, the consumer's drink recipe may later be published on the website for other consumers to consider.
The reader should understand that this method of creating a unique drink and submitting it to a website is only one embodiment and may not be part of other aspects of this disclosure.
While the disclosure has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the disclosure without departing from the essential scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this disclosure, but that the disclosure will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.
