Mineral water generating machine
By employing time-sharing control and a single-solute liquid fluid design, the problems of reagent mixing and crystallization in hot spring generators have been solved, achieving stable generation and output of mineral water, suitable for personal, household, and industrial applications.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- TAIWANTAIPEI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
- Filing Date
- 2022-07-25
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-09
Smart Images

Figure CN117486343B_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to a device for altering water quality; more particularly to a mineral spring generator. Background Technology
[0002] The depletion of existing hot spring veins and the difficulty of developing natural hot springs, coupled with the high demand for hot springs in hotels and bathhouses for relaxation and recuperation, have led to the availability of hot spring-effect medications on the market. These medications can be added to pools for users to soak in. Alternatively, there are devices for preparing hot spring medications and adding them to the water source. For example, Taiwan Patent No. 097133523, "Hot Spring Generator," divides the input hot water into two streams. One stream enters the first to fourth co-solvent tanks to generate a saturated co-solvent solution. The co-solvent liquids generated in the first and second co-solvent tanks are then mixed with the other stream of hot water and enter the spring quality generator. The natural minerals inside the spring quality generator are dissolved, and then the mixture is mixed with the co-solvent liquids generated in the third and fourth co-solvent tanks to form hot spring water before being output.
[0003] The aforementioned hot spring generator works by using a saturated solution flowing through pipes to dissolve natural minerals in the spring water generator. This causes various minerals and chemicals to interact within the pipes, converging and mixing before being output as hot spring water. Consequently, at multiple points along the pipes, crystals formed from the precipitation of minerals and chemical substances adhere to the inner walls of the pipes, obstructing water flow and potentially causing the generator to malfunction. Alternatively, chemical reactions between the chemicals mixed in one location can produce unexpected compounds, leading to the deterioration or ineffectiveness of the output hot spring water. Summary of the Invention
[0004] In view of this, the object of the present invention is to provide a device that can produce mineral water suitable for drinking, showering or industrial use, the structure of which can avoid unexpected external changes caused by the mixing of solutes of multiple agents in one place, and the pipes are not prone to crystallization and adhering to the pipe walls, thus avoiding pipe blockage.
[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a mineral water generator, comprising a body, a pipeline structure, two or more mineral water raw material bottles, and a programmable controller. The pipeline structure includes a pipe disposed within the body and two or more injection pipes. Each pipe has an inlet and an outlet at both ends, and a solenoid valve is disposed in the middle of the pipe. Each injection pipe has inner and outer ends and a micro-motor connected in series in the middle. The inner ends of the two or more injection pipes are connected to the pipe at intervals along the flow direction of the water within the pipe. The two or more mineral water raw material bottles are disposed within the body and each is connected to the outer end of an injection pipe. Each mineral water raw material bottle is filled with a mineral water reagent. The programmable controller is disposed within the body and electrically controls the solenoid valve and each micro-motor to add the mineral water reagent from each mineral water raw material bottle to different points in the pipeline.
[0006] When using this invention, water is introduced into the pipeline through the inlet. Then, the programmable controller opens the solenoid valve, allowing water to flow from the front end of the pipeline to the rear. During this process, the programmable controller controls the operation of these micro motors to add the mineral reagents from each of the mineral raw material bottles to different parts of the pipeline in a timed or simultaneous manner, at a set dosage. Finally, the user obtains the desired mineral, cold, or hot spring water for drinking or use through the outlet. The structure of this invention can transform water sources into mineral springs, cold springs, or hot springs, meeting the mineral, cold, or hot spring needs of individuals, families, institutions, facilities, or industries.
[0007] The advantage of this invention is that these mineral water agents are added from different points before and after the pipeline and mixed with the water flow, avoiding chemical reactions or the precipitation of new compounds caused by mixing between the mineral water agents, and avoiding problems such as blockage or deterioration within the pipeline structure.
[0008] This invention further specifies that each mineral agent is a liquid fluid containing a single solute, which avoids chemical changes caused by pre-mixing two or more solutes in the mineral raw material bottle, preventing crystal precipitation and pipe blockage. Alternatively, the mineral agents in each mineral raw material bottle used in the mineral generator are configured with a saturation concentration that will not become supersaturated at the ambient temperature. This not only prevents the mineral agents in the bottles from naturally crystallizing during storage, but also, because higher temperatures result in higher saturation concentrations and less crystallization, when these mineral agents are used in the mineral generator, crystallization is even less likely to occur since the input water source is primarily ambient temperature water or hot water. This further helps to prevent pipe wall blockage within the pipe structure. Attached Figure Description
[0009] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0010] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A three-dimensional view showing the separation of the front cap and two mineral water bottles.
[0011] Figure 3 This is a perspective view of the pipeline structure and programmable controller of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0012] Figure 4 This is a partially cut-away top view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0013] Figure 5 This is an enlarged perspective view of the bottom shell portion of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0014] Figure 6 for Figure 4 A partially enlarged sectional view along the 6-6 direction.
[0015] Figure 7 This is an exploded view of the bottle connection structure of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] Figure 8A This is a perspective view of the bottle body connection structure portion of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0017] Figure 8B for Figure 8A The diagram shows the lifting action of the lifting seat and the sleeve. Detailed Implementation
[0018] To more clearly illustrate the present invention, preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Please refer to... Figures 1 to 4 As shown, a mineral water generator 100 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a body 10, a pipeline structure 20, several mineral water raw material bottles 30, and a programmable controller 40, wherein:
[0019] Please refer to Figure 2 and Figure 4 As shown, the body 10 has a pipe installation section 121 and a bottle receiving chamber 122. In this preferred embodiment, the pipe installation section 121 and the bottle receiving chamber 122 are located inside the body 10. In other preferred embodiments, the pipe installation section 121 and the bottle receiving chamber 122 may also be hollow or at least partially exposed on the surface of the body 10. For example, the bottle receiving chamber 122 may be an outwardly open groove.
[0020] The pipeline structure 20 is provided in the pipeline mounting section 121 of the body 10 and includes a pipeline 22 and two or more injection pipes 24. The pipeline 22 has an inlet 221 and an outlet 222 at its two ends in opposite directions. A solenoid valve 26 is connected in series in the middle of the pipeline 22. The solenoid valve 26 divides the two sides of the pipeline 22 near the inlet 221 and near the outlet 222 into a front section A and a rear section B. Each injection pipe 24 has inner and outer ends and a micro motor 241 is connected in series in the middle. In this preferred embodiment, the inner ends of these injection pipes 24 are connected to the rear section B of the pipeline 22 at intervals along the flow direction of the water in the pipeline 22. In other preferred embodiments, the inner ends of these injection pipes 24 may be connected to the front section A of the pipeline 22; or the inner ends of some injection pipes 24 may be connected to the front section A of the pipeline 22 at intervals, and the inner ends of other injection pipes 24 may be connected to the rear section B of the pipeline 22 at intervals.
[0021] Please refer to Figure 3 and Figure 6 As shown, these mineral water bottles 30 are disposed within the bottle housing chamber 122 of the machine body 10 and include any number of two or more mineral water bottles 30. For example, in this preferred embodiment, four mineral water bottles 30 are provided. Each of these mineral water bottles 30 is connected to the outer end of the infusion pipe 24. Each mineral water bottle 30 is filled with a mineral agent 31, and each mineral agent 31 is a liquid fluid. In this preferred embodiment, each mineral water bottle 30 is detachably connected to the outer end of each infusion pipe 24, so that each mineral water bottle 30 that has consumed the mineral agent 31 can be removed from the bottle housing chamber 122 for replacement, or the original mineral water bottle 30 can be replaced with a mineral water bottle 30 with a different mineral agent 31, thus changing the formula combination of the mineral agent 31 that can be added to the downstream section B.
[0022] Please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 4 and Figure 6 As shown, the programmable controller 40 is disposed on the body 10. The programmable controller 40 is electrically connected to the solenoid valve 26 and each of the micro motors 241, thereby electrically controlling the solenoid valve 26 and each of the micro motors 241. The programmable controller 40 starts these micro motors 241 to add the mineral agent 31 in each of the mineral raw material bottles 30 to different points of the pipeline 22. Since the time for starting each micro motor 241 is proportional to the flow rate through each injection pipe 24, the dosage of each mineral agent 31 added to the pipeline 22 can be precisely controlled according to the length of time the programmable controller 40 starts each micro motor 241.
[0023] When using the mineral water generator 100 described above, please refer to... Figure 2 and Figure 3 In the preferred embodiment shown, water of the desired temperature, such as ambient temperature water or hot water, is input from the inlet 221 according to usage requirements. After the water flows into the pipe 22, the programmable controller 40 activates the solenoid valve 26, allowing the water to flow from the front section A to the rear section B. As the water flows through the rear section B, the programmable controller 40 controls the micro-motors 241 to operate, adding the mineral water reagent 31 from each of the mineral water raw material bottles 30 to different points in the rear section B of the pipe 22. Finally, the user can obtain the desired mineral water for drinking or cold spring / hot spring use at the outlet 222, satisfying the needs of families, individuals, or industries for mineral water, cold spring, or hot spring use.
[0024] Since these mineral agents 31 are added from different parts of the pipe 22 and mixed with the water flowing through the pipe 22, it is difficult for two or more mineral agents 31 to mix and produce an unexpected chemical reaction. This makes it less likely for crystals to precipitate inside the pipe 22, thus avoiding blockage or deterioration within the pipe structure 20.
[0025] Further explanation of the technical features of the above-mentioned preferred embodiment of the present invention is to avoid the crystallization and precipitation of mineral agent 31, which would hinder the flow of water within the pipeline structure 20. The mineral agent 31 in each mineral raw material bottle 30 used in the mineral water generator 100 is set to a concentration that will not become oversaturated at the actual ambient temperature of the mineral water generator 100. Specifically, the saturation concentration of each mineral agent 31 can be adjusted according to the relative relationship between the saturation concentration of each agent and temperature, taking advantage of the fact that different solutes have different solubilities at different temperatures; the higher the temperature, the higher the solubility, and vice versa.
[0026] When the temperature is below the saturation solubility, the solubility of the solution decreases, and solute will precipitate and crystallize. This invention utilizes the temperature relationship between solubility and ambient room temperature to control the rise and fall of solubility and the precipitation of crystals to avoid crystallization blocking the pipeline structure 20. This prevents the mineral agent 31 inside each mineral raw material bottle 30 from naturally precipitating and crystallizing when stored. Furthermore, when mixed with water or hot water at the ambient temperature to increase the saturation concentration, no crystallization will occur.
[0027] To avoid potential chemical reactions caused by the various mineral spring agents 31 added to pipeline 22 being mixed in the same mineral raw material bottle 30 or pipeline 22, each mineral spring agent 31 is designed as a liquid fluid containing a single solute. The solute can be common substances dissolved in hot springs or mineral springs, such as sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, magnesium, zinc, or sodium bicarbonate. This designation of each mineral spring agent 31 as a liquid fluid containing a single solute avoids the chemical changes that would result from pre-mixing two or more solutes. A programmable controller 40 is then set to a fixed cycle and time, and micro-motors 241 add the mineral spring agent 31 to pipeline 22, for example, to the latter part B of pipeline 22.
[0028] The programmable controller 40 can also be configured to control the micro-motors 241 to add the mineral agents 31 from the mineral raw material bottles 30 to the downstream section B in a time-sharing manner as a certain amount of water flows through the pipeline 22. This avoids the possibility of mixing of the mineral agents 31 and controls the formula of the mineral water, cooling water, or hot spring water output from the outlet 222 to remain constant. Specifically, since the water flow through the pipeline 22 is proportional to time, the programmable controller 40 can adjust the proportion of the mineral agents 31 output to the downstream section B to the outlet 222 during a dosage period by controlling the time length and proportion of the micro-motors 241 operating in a time-sharing manner within a dosage period, and determine the concentration of the mineral water, cold spring, or hot spring water output from the outlet 222 containing the aforementioned proportion of mineral agents 31.
[0029] Please refer to Figure 3 As shown, a water flow detection switch A1 can also be connected in series at the front section A of the pipeline 22. The water flow detection switch A1 is electrically connected to the programmable controller 40. When the water inlet 221 is connected to a pipeline or hot water pipeline with a fixed ambient temperature, if water flows into the front section A and triggers the water flow detection switch A1, the programmable controller 40 will control the solenoid valve 26 to open and simultaneously control the operation of these micro motors 241. This achieves the effect of controlling the mineral spring generator 100 to start and operate by means of water flow input through the water inlet 221, so that the mineral spring generator 100 can be used continuously to produce hot springs or mineral water without the need for personnel to operate the mineral spring generator 100.
[0030] To further illustrate, the above-mentioned preferred embodiment of the present invention provides an integrated, sustainably operating mineral water generator 100, which supplements or changes the mineral water reagent 31 by replacing the mineral water raw material bottle 30.
[0031] Please refer to Figures 5 to 7As shown, each of the mineral water bottles 30 includes a bottle body 32 and a straw element 34. The bottle body 32 has a bottle body 321 and a bottle neck 322 connected to the upper end of the bottle body 321. The straw element 34 has a basin-shaped grooved cap 341 and a straw 343. The inner side of the grooved cap 341 has a recess 342, and the periphery of the upper end of the grooved cap 341 has a flange 3411. The grooved cap 341 is embedded in the bottle neck 322 and abuts against the bottle neck 322 with the flange 3411. The upper edge is positioned, and the straw 343 is vertically attached to the middle of the grooved cover 341. The straw 343 is at least partially located in the recess 342 and its lower end communicates with the inside of the bottle body 32. Each of the injection pipes 24 cooperates with each straw 343 by attaching a sleeve 242 to its outer end. The sleeve 242 has a funnel-shaped opening 2421, which fits onto the top of the straw 343. Each of the injection pipes 24 draws mineral medicine 31 from the inside of each bottle body 32 through the straw 343.
[0032] The present invention benefits from the design that the straw element 34 can be separated from the neck 322, so that each straw element 34 can be assembled into a bottle body 32 with the same neck 322 structure. This allows the present invention to use commercially available standard bottles as the required bottle body 32 without the need for additional mold making, thus saving the mold cost of the bottle body.
[0033] Please refer to Figure 2 , Figures 3 to 4 As shown in Figure 7, the body 10 includes a bottom shell 12 and a front cover 14 detachably attached to the front of the bottom shell 12. The pipe installation part 121 is disposed inside the bottom shell 12, such that the pipe structure 20 disposed in the pipe installation part 121 is also located inside the bottom shell 12. The water inlet 221 and the water outlet 222 are disposed on the surface of the bottom shell 12. The bottle body receiving chamber 122 is recessed on the front surface of the bottom shell 12. The front cover 14 closes the front of the bottle body receiving chamber 122. Several bottle grooves 123 are formed on the rear side of the bottle body receiving chamber 122 to match the shape of the mineral raw material bottles 30. Each bottle groove 123 is a groove on one side of the outer peripheral surface of each mineral raw material bottle 30. Each bottle groove 123 has an upper and lower end. The upper end of each bottle groove 123 has a filling pipe hole 124. A pipe seat 125 is formed around the filling pipe hole 124. The top end of the filling pipe hole 124 leads to the interior of the bottom shell 12. Each filling pipe 24 is a flexible tube and its outer end passes through the filling pipe hole 124 from the interior of the bottom shell 12 and extends into the bottle groove 123.
[0034] Each mineral water bottle 30 is positioned within the aforementioned bottle slots 123, with its rear portion abutting against the back of each bottle slot 123 for fixation. When the suction tube 343 at the upper end of each mineral water bottle 30 is fitted with the sleeve opening 2421 of each of the aforementioned sleeves 242, the aforementioned filling pipes 24 are connected to each of the aforementioned mineral water bottles 30, drawing mineral water agent 31 from the bottle body 32 of each of the aforementioned mineral water bottles 30.
[0035] Each of the aforementioned bottle slots 123 is fitted with a bottle body connection structure 50 on its upper side, please refer to... Figures 4 to 8A As shown, the bottle body connection structure 50 is a connecting seat 52 fixed around the tube seat 125. The connecting seat 52 is a frame with left and right sides. A forward-protruding snap fastener 54 is pivotally connected to the front side of the left and right sides of the connecting seat 52. A lifting seat 56 is provided inside the connecting seat 52. The lifting seat 56 is located directly below the tube seat 125 and has a bottom frame 561. The bottom frame 561 has a recessed hole 5611 in the middle. The sleeve 242 is an elastic and deformable plastic hose with a small-diameter neck 2424 around it. The sleeve 242 is inserted into the recess 5611 and the neck 2424 is fixed in a fixed position within the recess 5611. The outer diameter of the neck 2424 is smaller than the diameter of the recess 5611, so that the sleeve 242 can move back and forth relative to the bottom frame 561 within the recess 5611. A guide frame 2422 is attached around the sleeve 242. The guide frame 2422 has two guide rods 2423 on its left and right sides. The two guide rods 2423 are rods extending in the vertical direction. The two guide rods 2423 can slide up and down through the left and right sides of the injection pipe hole 124, thereby restricting the movement of the lifting seat 56 sleeved around the sleeve 242 to move in the vertical and back and forth directions within the connecting seat 52.
[0036] Two extension arms 562 extend forward from the left and right sides of the front end of the base frame 561, and two rearwardly extending swing arms 563 are pivotally connected to the left and right sides of the base frame 561. The rear ends of the two swing arms 563 are pivotally connected to the rear sides of the left and right sides of the connecting seat 52, and the front ends of the two extension arms 562 are pivotally connected to the front side of the snap-fit element 54. A micro switch 58 is provided on the connecting seat 52. The micro switch 58 is electrically connected to the programmable controller 40, and the micro switch 58 is located on the front side of the lifting seat 56. When the lifting seat 56 rises or falls, the front end of the lifting seat 56 will trigger the micro switch 58, so that the programmable controller 40 can know whether the connecting seat 52 is in the rising or falling position by the triggered state of the micro switch 58.
[0037] Please refer to Figures 8A to 8BAs shown, when the snap fastening element 54 pivots downwards or upwards, its rotation causes the lifting seat 56 and its base frame 561 to move up and down within the connecting seat 52. When the snap fastening element 54 pivots downwards to its bottom dead center, the sleeve 242 descends with the base frame 561 to a position where the sleeve opening 2421 can fit around the straw 343. At this time, the bottom end of the sleeve 242 presses against the grooved cap 341, fixing the mineral water bottle 30 within its bottle slot 123. When the user rotates the snap fastening element 54 upwards, causing the lifting seat 56 and its base frame 561 to rise, the sleeve 242 disengages from the straw element 34 of the mineral water bottle 30, allowing the mineral water bottle 30 to be removed from the bottle slot 123 for replacement.
[0038] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Any equivalent changes made by applying the present invention specification and the claims should be included within the patent scope of the present invention.
[0039] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures
[0040] [This invention]
[0041] 100: Mineral Water Generator
[0042] 10: Body
[0043] 12: Bottom shell
[0044] 121: Piping Installation Department
[0045] 122: Bottle containment chamber
[0046] 123: Bottle trough
[0047] 124: Injection pipe hole
[0048] 125: Tube seat
[0049] 14: Front Cover
[0050] 20: Piping Construction
[0051] 22: Piping
[0052] 221: Water inlet
[0053] 222: Water outlet
[0054] 24: Injection Pipeline
[0055] 241: Micro Motor
[0056] 242: Sleeve
[0057] 2421: Set mouth
[0058] 2422: Guide frame
[0059] 2423: Guide rod
[0060] 2424: Neck
[0061] 26: Solenoid valve
[0062] 30: Mineral water raw material bottles
[0063] 31: Mineral Spring Medicine
[0064] 32: Bottle body
[0065] 321: Bottle body
[0066] 322: Bottleneck
[0067] 34: Straw component
[0068] 341: Groove cover
[0069] 3411: Flange
[0070] 342: concave part
[0071] 343: Straw
[0072] 40: Programmable Logic Controller
[0073] 50: Bottle connection structure
[0074] 52: Connector
[0075] 54: Press-fit element
[0076] 56: Adjustable seat
[0077] 561: Bottom frame
[0078] 5611: Embedded Hole
[0079] 562: Extending Arm
[0080] 563: Swing Arm
[0081] 58: Micro switch
[0082] A: Front section
[0083] A1: Water Flow Detection Switch
[0084] B: Later section
Claims
1. A mineral spring generator, comprising: One body, with a bottle-shaped containing chamber; A pipeline structure includes a pipeline installed in the machine body and two or more injection pipes. The pipeline has an inlet and an outlet at both ends. A solenoid valve is installed in the middle of the pipeline. Each injection pipe has inner and outer ends and a micro motor is connected in series in the middle. The inner ends of the two or more injection pipes are connected to the pipeline at intervals along the flow direction of the water in the pipeline. Two or more mineral water bottles are disposed on the machine body and each is connected to the outer end of the filling pipe, and each mineral water bottle is filled with a mineral water reagent; and A programmable controller is installed on the machine body and electrically controls the solenoid valve and each of the micro motors to add the mineral reagent from each of the mineral raw material bottles to different points in the pipeline; The bottle housing has two or more bottle slots. Each mineral water bottle is placed in its respective bottle slot and has a straw at its upper end. Each bottle slot has a filling pipe hole. The outer end of each filling pipe passes through the filling pipe hole and is connected to a sleeve. Each sleeve is fitted onto the straw. A connecting seat is fixed on the upper side of each bottle slot. A forward-protruding snap fastener is pivotally connected to the front side of the connecting seat. A lifting seat is provided inside each connecting seat. The lifting seat is restricted from rotating relative to the connecting seat. The lifting seat has a base frame. Two extension arms extend forward from the left and right sides of the front end of the base frame. Two rearward-extending swing arms are pivotally connected to the left and right sides of the base frame. The rear ends of the two swing arms are pivotally connected to the connecting seat, and the front ends of the two extension arms are pivotally connected to the front side of the snap fastener. Each sleeve is connected to the base frame.
2. The mineral water generator as described in claim 1, wherein, The saturation concentration of each of the mineral spring agents is a concentration that will not become supersaturated at the ambient temperature, thereby reducing or avoiding crystallization.
3. The mineral spring generator as described in claim 2, wherein, Each of the mineral spring agents is a liquid fluid with a single solute, wherein the solute is sodium chloride, calcium carbonate, magnesium, zinc or sodium bicarbonate.
4. The mineral water generator as described in claim 1, wherein, The programmable controller controls the micro motor to add the mineral reagent from the two or more mineral raw material bottles to the pipeline in a timed manner.
5. The mineral spring generator as described in claim 4, wherein, The programmable controller controls the time ratio of the micro motor to operate within a dosage period, and adjusts the proportion of mineral water medicine output to the pipeline and the outlet within the dosage period.
6. The mineral spring generator as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein, The body includes a bottom shell, and the bottom shell has a recessed front surface to form the bottle housing chamber, in which two or more mineral water bottles are disposed.
7. The mineral water generator as described in claim 6, wherein, Each of the mineral water raw material bottles includes a bottle body and a straw element. The bottle body has a bottle neck, and the straw element has a grooved cap. The upper periphery of the grooved cap has a flange. The grooved cap is embedded in the bottle neck and positioned against the upper edge of the bottle neck by the flange. The straw is attached to the middle of the grooved cap, and the lower end of the straw communicates with the inside of the bottle body. The outer end of each of the filling pipes is attached to each of the sleeves.
8. The mineral water generator as described in claim 6, wherein, The pipeline structure is located inside the bottom shell; the top of each of the injection pipe holes leads to the interior of the bottom shell.
9. The mineral water generator as described in claim 8, wherein, Each of the mineral water bottles includes a bottle body and a straw element. The bottle body has a bottle frame and a bottleneck connected to the upper end of the bottle frame. The straw element has a grooved cap with a flange on the periphery of the upper end of the grooved cap. The grooved cap is embedded in the bottleneck and positioned by the flange against the upper edge of the bottleneck. The straw is attached to the middle of the grooved cap and is at least partially located inside the grooved cap, with its lower end communicating with the inside of the bottle body.