Cold and hot dual-mode milk foam preparation device

Abstract

The invention discloses a cold and hot dual-mode milk foam preparation device, and relates to the field of milk foam preparation. The device comprises a foaming main body, a milk tank, an air pump, a steam generator and the like, a thin pipe section, a suction cavity, a mixing cavity, a bell-shaped foaming cavity and other structures are arranged in the foaming main body, a flexible air valve is assembled on an air inlet channel, and the milk tank is of a split type. By switching the air pump and the steam generator, cold / ice milk foam and hot milk foam can be prepared respectively, the flexible air valve adaptively adjusts the air inflow to guarantee stable foaming, the bell-shaped foaming cavity improves the fineness of the milk foam by means of vortex, and the split milk tank facilitates cleaning and refrigeration of residual milk. The device solves the problems that traditional equipment is single in function, poor in taste and difficult to clean, both convenience and quality are considered, and various requirements are met.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to a milk froth preparation device, in particular to a cold and hot dual-mode milk froth preparation device. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the field of coffee beverage making, the quality of milk froth directly affects the taste and quality of the beverage. The common milk froth preparation methods on the market are mainly divided into two types: household and commercial. However, both have obvious technical limitations.

[0003] Household coffee machines generally use steam whipping method, which generates high-temperature steam through a boiler and mixes milk with steam using the Venturi effect. Although this method has a lower cost, it has three major problems: first, continuous high temperature can denature milk protein, affecting the taste and possibly producing harmful substances; second, the water in the steam can dilute the milk froth, resulting in insufficient density of the milk froth; most importantly, this method can only produce hot milk froth, which cannot meet the needs of consumers for cold beverages such as iced milk froth.

[0004] Commercial equipment uses a gear pump mechanical stirring scheme, which can produce cold milk froth, but the entire system is complex and expensive. More troublesome is that this built-in design is difficult to clean thoroughly and can breed bacteria after long-term use. Many coffee shops have to disassemble the machine for deep cleaning regularly, which not only affects business but also increases maintenance costs.

[0005] Therefore, the skilled in the art is committed to developing a cold and hot dual-mode milk froth preparation device. SUMMARY

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application provides a cold and hot dual-mode milk froth preparation device, characterized in that it comprises a frothing body, a milk tank, an air pump, a steam generator, a three-way joint, a one-way valve and a solenoid valve; the frothing body is installed above the milk tank, and the frothing body is provided with an air inlet pipe, a milk suction hose and a milk froth outlet pipe, the milk suction hose extends into the interior of the milk tank; the air inlet pipe is in communication with the three-way joint, two inlets of the three-way joint are respectively in communication with the air pump through the one-way valve and in communication with the steam generator through the solenoid valve; the interior of the frothing body is provided with a first tube section, a second tube section, a suction chamber, a milk-air mixing chamber, a frothing chamber and an outlet chamber, the air inlet pipe is in communication with the first tube section and the second tube section in sequence, the second tube section is in communication with the suction chamber, the suction chamber forms a passage with the milk tank through the milk suction hose, and the suction chamber is in communication with the milk-air mixing chamber; the milk-air mixing chamber is connected with an air inlet channel, and the air inlet channel is equipped with an air valve; the milk-air mixing chamber is in communication with the suction chamber, the suction chamber is in communication with the frothing chamber, the frothing chamber is in communication with the outlet chamber, and the outlet chamber is in communication with the milk froth outlet pipe through an outlet pipeline.

[0007] Further, the air valve is a flexible air valve, an outlet of the flexible air valve is in a flat mouth shape, and the flexible air valve is made of silica gel or rubber material; the flexible air valve can automatically adjust the opening size of the flat mouth according to the fluctuation of the air pressure in the negative pressure area in the suction cavity, so as to adapt to the change of the air quantity entering the milk air mixing cavity with the fluctuation of the negative pressure.

[0008] Further, the foaming cavity is in a whole stepped bell shape structure, and the foaming cavity comprises a conical bottom, a conical middle part and a dome-shaped top part which are sequentially in a stepped reduction manner; a plurality of milk foam extrusion outlets are arranged at the skirt part of the conical bottom in a spaced manner, and the milk foam extrusion outlets are connected with the outlet chamber to guide the milk foam formed in the foaming cavity into the outlet chamber.

[0009] Further, a knob is arranged on the air inlet channel, the knob can change the flow cross-sectional size of the air inlet channel by adjusting the rotation angle of the knob, and then the opening degree of the air inlet channel is adjusted to control the air quantity entering the milk air mixing cavity.

[0010] Further, the milk tank is in a split structure, and the milk tank can be separated from the foaming main body; the separated milk tank can be placed in a refrigerator for cold storage to save residual milk, and the milk tank, the milk suction hose and the milk foam outlet pipe can be separately disassembled and directly cleaned under a tap.

[0011] Further, the air pump can generate and output a compressed air flow with a pressure of 0.6-0.8 bar and without water, and the compressed air flow is used to drive the preparation of cold milk foam or ice milk foam.

[0012] Further, the high-temperature hot steam generated by the steam generator can heat the milk foam to 55-70 DEG C while driving the foaming of the milk foam, and finally form hot milk foam.

[0013] Further, when the air pump works, ice milk foam can be prepared from ice milk with a temperature of 4-9 DEG C in the milk tank, or cold milk foam can be prepared from normal temperature milk with a temperature of 10-25 DEG C in the milk tank.

[0014] The cold and hot dual-mode milk foam preparation device provided by the application solves the problems of the traditional household equipment that can only prepare hot milk foam, the high temperature causes the denaturation of milk protein, and the steam dilutes the milk foam, and avoids the defects of the commercial equipment that the structure is complex, the cost is high and the cleaning is difficult; the flexible air valve can self-adaptively adjust the air inlet quantity to ensure that the low-pressure air flow can also stably foam, the foaming cavity in the bell shape structure realizes the full mixing of milk and air by means of the vortex effect to ensure that the milk foam is fine and uniform, the split milk tank is convenient for disassembly and cold storage of residual milk to avoid waste, and the cleaning process is simplified, finally, the efficient preparation of cold, ice and hot milk foam is realized, the taste quality, the use convenience and the maintenance convenience are considered, and the milk foam demand in different scenes is met.

[0015] The concept, specific structure and technical effects of the present application will be further described below in combination with the drawings, so as to fully understand the purpose, features and effects of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is the overall structure diagram of the cold and hot dual-mode milk froth preparation device of the present application; Figure 2 is the cross-sectional view of the frothing body of the present application; Figure 3 is the assembly schematic diagram of the main components of the present application; Figure 4 is the first state diagram of the flexible air valve of the present application; Figure 5 is the second state diagram of the flexible air valve of the present application; Figure 6 is the first perspective view of the vortex frothing cavity of the present application; Figure 7 is the second perspective view of the vortex frothing cavity of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] The following describes the preferred embodiments of the present application with reference to the drawings, so as to make the technical content of the present application more clear and easy to understand. The present application can be embodied in many different forms of embodiments, and the protection scope of the present application is not limited to the embodiments mentioned herein.

[0018] In the drawings, the components with the same structure are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the components with similar structure or function are denoted by similar reference numerals. The size and thickness of each component shown in the drawings are arbitrarily shown, and the present application does not limit the size and thickness of each component. In order to make the drawings clearer, the thickness of some components is appropriately exaggerated in some places in the drawings.

[0019] As shown in Figure 1 , the cold and hot dual-mode milk froth preparation device according to the present application comprises a frothing body 1. The frothing body 1 is installed on a milk tank 11. The frothing body 1 is provided with an air inlet pipe 101, a milk suction hose 12 and a milk froth outlet pipe 13. The milk suction hose 12 is inserted into the milk tank 11. The air inlet pipe 101 is connected with a three-way joint 14. Two inlets of the three-way joint 14 are respectively connected to an air pump 2 through a one-way valve 21 and to a steam generator 3 through an electromagnetic valve 31.

[0020] Meanwhile, reference is made to Figure 2 and Figure 3Air from air pump 2 or steam from steam generator 3 first enters the foaming body 1 through air inlet pipe 101. After being accelerated in stages through the first thin tube section 102 and the second thin tube section 103, a negative pressure zone is formed at the suction chamber 104. The suction chamber 104 is connected to the milk suction hose 12 inserted into the milk tank 11, so that the milk in the milk tank 11 is drawn into the milk-air mixing chamber 109 through the third thin tube section 108 under air pressure. The milk-air mixing chamber 109 is connected to the air inlet 100 through the air valve 106. Outside air also enters the milk-air mixing chamber 109 through the air inlet 100 under air pressure. The opening of the air inlet 100 can be adjusted by the knob 4. After the milk and air are mixed in the milk-air mixing chamber 109, they continue to enter the suction chamber 104, and are then immediately drawn into the foaming chamber 110 by the accelerated air or steam flow. The airflow velocity in the foaming chamber 110 decreases, and the pressure inside the chamber increases accordingly. The airflow or high-temperature steam flow and the milk-air mixture are fully stirred in the foaming chamber to form milk foam. Then, under the pressure inside the foaming chamber 110, the milk foam is squeezed out from the foaming chamber 110 to the oral cavity 111, and flows out from the milk foam outlet pipe 13 through the outlet pipe 112.

[0021] In such Figure 4 , 5 In the embodiment shown, the air valve 106 is a flexible valve. The outlet of the flexible air valve 106 is a flat opening and is made of a flexible material such as silicone or rubber. As the air pressure in the negative pressure zone of the suction chamber 104 fluctuates, the flexible air valve 106 can automatically adjust the size of the flat opening to ensure that the amount of air entering the milk-air mixing chamber 109 increases or decreases with the fluctuation of the air pressure in the negative pressure zone. This allows even a low-pressure airflow (0.6-0.8 bar) generated by a micro air pump to produce milk foam.

[0022] In such Figure 6 , 7 In the embodiments described herein, the foaming chamber 110 employs a special configuration to enhance the foaming effect through vortices. Specifically, the foaming chamber 110 is bell-shaped, comprising a cone-shaped bottom 1101, a cone-shaped middle 1102, and a cone-shaped top 1103 that taper in a stepped manner. Multiple milk foam extrusion ports 1104 are spaced apart on the skirt of the cone bottom 1102, thereby forming a vortex chamber within the foaming chamber 110. The chamber walls restrict the radial diffusion of the milk-air mixture, forcing the airflow to concentrate towards the center of the chamber, further accelerating the rotation speed and forming a stable vortex. Under the action of the vortex, milk droplets are continuously sheared and divided into smaller particles, while simultaneously fully entangled and fused with air (or hot steam), avoiding "milk and air separation," forming fine milk foam, which is then extruded into the outlet chamber 111 through the milk foam extrusion ports 1104.

[0023] Embodiment one: when making cold milk foam When cold milk foam is needed, first close the electromagnetic valve 31 to cut off the steam generator 3 from the three-way joint 14, so as to avoid the interference of hot steam on the preparation of cold milk foam; then start the air pump 2, so that the output pressure is 0.6-0.8bar of dry compressed air flow. The air flow enters the three-way joint 14 through the one-way valve 21 (to prevent the air flow from flowing back to the air pump 2 in the opposite direction, to ensure stable output of the air flow), and then enters the inside of the foaming main body 1 through the air inlet pipe 101.

[0024] After the air flow enters the foaming main body 1, it flows through the first and second tube sections 102 and 103 in turn, and the flow rate is increased by the step-by-step aperture design of the two tube sections. According to the Bernoulli fluid equation, the increase of flow rate forms a negative pressure area in the suction chamber 104, which acts on the milk in the milk tank 11 through the milk suction hose 12 (if the milk tank contains 4-9℃ ice milk, ice milk foam can be prepared; if it contains 10-25℃ normal temperature milk, cold milk foam can be prepared), and the milk is sucked along the third tube section 108 to the milk-air mixing chamber 109.

[0025] At the same time, the outside air is drawn into the milk-air mixing chamber 109 through the air inlet 100 under the negative pressure of the suction chamber 104, and the air inlet 100 can be adjusted by the knob 4 to control the air intake amount accurately to adapt to different milk foam fluffiness requirements. During this process, the flexible air valve 106 (made of silicone or rubber, with a flat mouth design) at the air inlet 100 will automatically adjust the opening size according to the negative pressure fluctuation in the suction chamber 104: when the negative pressure increases, the flat mouth opening expands to increase the air intake; when the negative pressure decreases, the flat mouth opening shrinks to reduce the air intake, so that the mixing ratio of milk and air can be stably maintained even under the low pressure air flow condition of the micro air pump.

[0026] After the milk and air are fully mixed in the mixing chamber, the mixture continues to flow upward into the suction chamber 104 and is then drawn into the stepped bell-shaped structure of the foaming chamber 110 by the accelerated compressed air flow. The foaming chamber 110 includes a conical bottom 1101, a conical middle 1102, and a dome-shaped top 1103, which are sequentially stepped down. The chamber wall limits the radial diffusion of the mixture, forcing the air flow to concentrate towards the center of the chamber, further increasing the rotational speed to form a stable vortex. Under the action of centrifugal force and shear force of the vortex, the milk droplets are continuously broken into small particles and fully wrapped with air, avoiding the separation of milk and air, and forming fine and uniform cold milk foam (or ice milk foam). Finally, the cold milk foam (or ice milk foam) is extruded out of the foaming chamber 110 through the multiple foam extrusion ports 1104 on the skirt of the conical bottom 1101, and then flows out of the foam outlet pipe 13 through the outlet pipe 112, completing the preparation of the cold milk foam.

[0027] Example Two: Making Hot Milk Foam When hot milk foam is needed, first close the air pump 2 to stop the supply of cold air flow, and then open the electromagnetic valve 31 to allow the high-temperature hot steam generated by the steam generator 3 (temperature meets the requirement of heating the milk foam to 55-70°C) to enter the three-way joint 14 through the electromagnetic valve 31, and then enter the inside of the foaming body 1 through the air inlet pipe 101.

[0028] The hot steam accelerates along the first and second tube sections 102 and 103 in the foaming body 1, forming a negative pressure area at the suction chamber 104, and the normal temperature milk (or cold milk) in the milk tank 11 is sucked into the milk-air mixing chamber 109 along the third tube section 108 through the milk suction hose 12. At the same time, the external air enters the mixing chamber through the air inlet 100 (the opening can be adjusted by the knob 4) under the action of negative pressure, and is preliminarily mixed with the milk to form a milk-air mixture; during this process, the flexible air valve 106 still adjusts the opening size according to the negative pressure fluctuation in the suction chamber 104 to ensure that the air intake and the hot steam flow are matched, avoiding the decline in milk foam quality due to unbalanced air intake.

[0029] The milk-air mixture flows upward into the suction chamber 104 and is then drawn into the bell-shaped foaming chamber 110 by the high-speed hot steam. Under the structure constraint of the conical bottom 1101, the conical middle 1102, and the dome-shaped top 1103 of the foaming chamber 110, the mixture forms a stable vortex, and the hot steam not only pushes the mixture to emulsify, but also quickly transfers heat to the mixture, gradually increasing the temperature of the milk foam to 55-70°C. The vortex action ensures that the overall temperature of the milk foam is uniform, avoiding local overheating that causes the milk protein to solidify and deteriorate.

[0030] Finally, the temperature qualified hot milk foam under the pressure in the foaming cavity 110, through the milk foam extrusion outlet 1104 of the skirt part of the conical bottom 1101, enters the outlet chamber 111, and then flows out from the milk foam outlet pipe 13 through the outlet pipe 112, to complete the preparation of the hot milk foam.

[0031] In addition, the split milk tank makes the operation simpler, and the cleaning and maintenance more convenient, and also solves the cleaning and sanitation problem caused by the non-detachable in the traditional gear pump milk foaming body. The residual milk in the milk tank can be pulled out from the coffee machine and stored in the refrigerator for a long time to avoid waste caused by milk deterioration. During the cleaning process of the milk tank, the milk tank is removed, the milk foam outlet pipe is pulled out, and the milk suction hose is washed under the faucet. The foaming body and the joint can be directly washed with water, and the milk stains on the surface of the foaming body can be directly washed off.

[0032] The above describes the preferred embodiments of the present application in detail. It should be understood that those skilled in the art can make many modifications and changes without creative labor according to the concept of the present application. Therefore, any technical solution obtained by logical analysis, reasoning or limited experiment on the basis of the prior art according to the concept of the present application shall be within the protection scope defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A dual-mode (hot and cold) milk foam preparation device, characterized in that, The system includes a foaming body, a milk tank, an air pump, a steam generator, a three-way connector, a one-way valve, and a solenoid valve. The foaming body is mounted on top of the milk tank and has an air inlet pipe, a milk suction hose, and a milk foam outlet pipe. The milk suction hose extends into the milk tank. The air inlet pipe is connected to the three-way connector, and the two inlets of the three-way connector are connected to the air pump via the one-way valve and to the steam generator via the solenoid valve, respectively. The foaming body contains a first thin tube section, a second thin tube section, a suction chamber, a milk-air mixing chamber, a foaming chamber, and an outlet chamber. The air inlet pipe is connected to the first thin tube section and the second thin tube section in sequence. The second thin tube section is connected to the suction chamber. The suction chamber is connected to the milk tank via the milk suction hose and is also connected to the milk-air mixing chamber. The milk-air mixing chamber is connected to an air inlet, which is equipped with an air valve. The milk-air mixing chamber is connected to the suction chamber, the suction chamber is connected to the foaming chamber, and the foaming chamber is connected to the outlet chamber. The outlet chamber is connected to the milk foam outlet pipe via an outlet pipe.

2. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The valve is a flexible valve with a flat outlet made of silicone or rubber. The flexible valve can automatically adjust the size of the flat opening according to the fluctuation of air pressure in the negative pressure zone of the suction chamber, so as to adapt to the change in the amount of air entering the milk-air mixing chamber as the negative pressure fluctuates.

3. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The foaming chamber has a stepped bell-shaped structure, including a cone bottom, a cone middle and a cone top that are stepped and gradually decrease in size. The skirt part of the cone bottom is provided with multiple milk foam extrusion outlets, which are connected to the oral cavity to guide the milk foam formed in the foaming chamber into the oral cavity.

4. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air intake is equipped with a knob, which can change the size of the air intake cross section by adjusting its rotation angle, thereby adjusting the opening of the air intake and controlling the amount of air entering the milk-air mixing chamber.

5. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The milk container has a split structure and can be disassembled from the foaming body. The disassembled milk container can be refrigerated to preserve residual milk. The milk container, milk suction tube and milk foam outlet tube can all be disassembled individually and rinsed directly under tap water.

6. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The air pump generates and outputs a moisture-free compressed airflow at a pressure of 0.6-0.8 bar, which is used to drive the preparation of cold or iced milk foam.

7. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, The high-temperature steam generated by the steam generator can heat the milk foam to 55-70°C while driving the milk foam to foam, ultimately forming hot milk foam.

8. The dual-mode hot and cold milk foam preparation device according to claim 1, characterized in that, When the air pump is working, it can turn iced milk at a temperature of 4-9℃ into iced milk foam, or room temperature milk at a temperature of 10-25℃ into cold milk foam.

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