Automatic lifting device for beverage outlet

By introducing beverage outlet movable rack, lifting drive assembly and elastic contact induction mechanism into the beverage machine, real-time detection and automatic lifting of cup height are achieved, solving the impact and maintenance problems of beverage machine, and improving safety and reliability.

CN223232547UActive Publication Date: 2025-08-19SUZHOU DR COFFEE SYST TECH CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202421696754.0
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Utility models(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-07-18
Publication Date
2025-08-19
Estimated Expiration
2034-07-18

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

The automatic lifting device of existing beverage machines lacks a cup height detection structure, which makes the beverage outlet easily impact the cup and the structure is complex and difficult to maintain.

Method used

The beverage outlet movable rack, lifting drive components, elastic contacts and contacts are used to realize real-time detection and automatic lifting of the cup height, and the trigger signal of contacting the cup is paused or adjusted.

Benefits of technology

It improves the working safety and reliability of the beverage machine, avoids the problem of the beverage outlet structure being blocked by foreign objects, and has a simple and convenient maintenance structure.

✦ Generated by Eureka AI based on patent content.

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Abstract

The utility model discloses an automatic lifting device of a beverage outlet, which comprises a beverage outlet assembly, a lifting driving assembly, an elastic contact piece and a contact piece sensing or triggering mechanism, the beverage outlet assembly comprises a beverage outlet movable frame, the lifting driving assembly is directly or indirectly connected with the beverage outlet movable frame, and the elastic contact piece is connected with the beverage outlet movable frame. The beverage outlet movable frame is driven to ascend and descend, the elastic contact piece is directly or indirectly arranged on the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame and ascends and descends along with the beverage outlet movable frame, and the contact piece sensing or triggering mechanism senses the action of the elastic contact piece or is triggered by the action of the elastic contact piece. And the action of the lifting driving assembly is paused or a lifting driving assembly in-place signal is sent out. By means of the mode, the automatic lifting device of the beverage outlet achieves automatic lifting of the beverage outlet movable frame, achieves real-time detection of the height of a cup, improves working safety and reliability of a beverage machine, and is simple in structure and convenient to disassemble and maintain.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the field of beverage machines, in particular to an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet. Background Art

[0002] When using a beverage machine, the beverage needs to flow out through the beverage outlet into the container below. For example, a coffee machine needs to flow coffee into the user's coffee cup through the beverage outlet. Due to the different heights of coffee cups, the distance between the beverage outlet and the cup mouth needs to be adjusted.

[0003] With the rapid development of fully automatic coffee machines, their functions are becoming more and more powerful. There are generally three ways to adjust the distance from the drink outlet to the cup mouth on the market:

[0004] 1. Manual adjustment to control the height of the beverage outlet assembly;

[0005] 2. Fixed beverage outlet group with cup holders of different heights;

[0006] 3. Use motor transmission to control the rise and fall of the beverage outlet group to achieve automatic lifting. For example, the utility model patent with application number 2019201141518 discloses an automatically lifting coffee outlet structure.

[0007] Regarding the third adjustment method, the investigation found that fully automatic coffee machines equipped with automatic lifting devices had several types of problems:

[0008] 1. It supports electric lifting, but lacks a structure to detect the height of the cup, which makes it easy to cause collisions;

[0009] 2. There is a structure to detect the height of the cup, but the beverage outlet structure is difficult to disassemble and maintain. The infrared distance measuring mechanism for detecting the height of the cup is easily blocked by foreign objects, and the cup cannot be detected frequently.

[0010] 3. The beverage outlet can be removed without the help of tools, but the structural parts are complex and the integration is poor, which needs to be improved. Utility Model Content

[0011] The main technical problem solved by the utility model is to provide an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet, which simplifies the structure, improves working reliability, and realizes the detection of cup height and the automatic lifting of the beverage outlet.

[0012] In order to solve the above technical problems, a technical solution adopted by the present invention is to provide an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet, comprising:

[0013] A beverage outlet assembly 1, wherein the beverage outlet assembly 1 comprises a beverage outlet movable frame 101;

[0014] A lifting drive assembly 2, which is directly or indirectly connected to the beverage outlet movable frame 101 to drive the beverage outlet movable frame 101 to rise and fall;

[0015] An elastic contact member 7, which is directly or indirectly disposed at the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 and rises and falls along with the beverage outlet movable frame 101;

[0016] The contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 senses the movement of the elastic contact 7 or is triggered by the movement of the elastic contact 7 to pause the movement of the lifting drive component 2 or send a lifting drive component arrival signal.

[0017] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the beverage outlet assembly 1 further includes a guide rail bracket 102, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 can be raised and lowered on the guide rail bracket 102. A guide hole is provided in the guide rail bracket 102, and a guide rail 104 connected to the beverage outlet movable frame 101 is vertically provided in the guide hole.

[0018] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the lifting drive assembly 2 includes a nut 201, a screw rod 202 and a stepper motor (203), wherein the stepper motor (203) is arranged on the guide rail bracket 102, the nut 201 is arranged on the beverage outlet movable frame 101, and the screw rod 202 is vertically arranged on the rotating shaft of the stepper motor (203) and passes through the nut 201.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 is a micro switch, a reed switch, an optical sensor, a magnetic induction or a distance sensor.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a mounting bracket 5 corresponding to the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 is provided on one side or both sides of the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 .

[0021] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a side cover 4 is provided on the outside of the mounting bracket 5 .

[0022] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the elastic contact member 7 is a contact spring or a metal spring.

[0023] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the contact spring includes a connecting portion 71, a flip portion 72 and an elastic portion 73. The mounting bracket 5 is provided with a first pin shaft 51 and a second pin shaft 52. The connecting portion 71 is sleeved on the first pin shaft 51. The flip portion 72 is provided on one side of the connecting portion 71 and extends above the second pin shaft 52. The contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 is located above the flip portion 72. The elastic portion 73 is provided at the bottom of the flip portion 72 and extends downward.

[0024] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mounting bracket 5 is located on both sides of the lower part of the beverage outlet movable frame 101, and the connecting portion 71 is respectively arranged on the first pin shaft 51 of the mounting bracket 5 on both sides. The contact spring also includes a contact portion 74 connected between the bottoms of the elastic portions 73 on both sides. The connecting portion 71, the flip portion 72, the elastic portion 73 and the contact portion 74 adopt an integrated elastic metal structure.

[0025] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the beverage outlet assembly 1 further includes a coffee buffer 103 , which is disposed at the bottom of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 .

[0026] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: the present invention provides an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet, in which the elastic contact member 7 contacts the mouth of the cup as the beverage outlet movable frame 101 descends, triggering the contact member sensing or triggering mechanism 6, pausing the continued descending drive of the lifting drive assembly 2, and realizing real-time detection of the cup height during the descent process, thereby greatly improving the safety and reliability of the beverage machine, avoiding the problem that the infrared ranging mechanism of the existing beverage machine is easily blocked by foreign objects and cannot detect the height of the cup, realizing the automatic lifting of the beverage outlet movable frame 101, and having a simple structure and convenient disassembly and maintenance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for describing the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. Among them:

[0028] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of a preferred embodiment of an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet of the present utility model;

[0029] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Exploded diagram;

[0030] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the structure of the beverage outlet component;

[0031] Figure 4 yes Figure 2 A schematic structural diagram of the elastic contact member 7;

[0032] Figure 5 yes Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the structure of the lifting drive assembly;

[0033] Figure 6yes Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the installation structure of the middle contact sensing or triggering mechanism and the inductive elastic contact;

[0034] Figure 7 This is a structural diagram of the beverage outlet assembly installed on the beverage machine;

[0035] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the working state of an automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet on a beverage machine according to the utility model. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The following is a clear and complete description of the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the embodiments described are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of them. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative efforts are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0037] See also Figures 1 to 8 , the embodiments of the present utility model include:

[0038] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 The automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet comprises: a beverage outlet assembly 1, a lifting drive assembly 2, an elastic contact member 7 and a contact member sensing or triggering mechanism 6, such as Figure 3 As shown, the beverage outlet assembly 1 includes a beverage outlet movable frame 101, a guide rail bracket 102 and a coffee buffer 103. The guide rail bracket 102 can be fixed to the beverage machine by bolts, buckles or plug-ins, as shown in FIG. Figure 7 As shown, disassembly is convenient.

[0039] The beverage outlet movable frame 101 is escalably mounted on a guide rail bracket 102. A guide hole is provided in the guide rail bracket 102. A guide rail 104 connected to the beverage outlet movable frame 101 is vertically provided in the guide hole. The guide rail 104 guides the elevating and lowering of the beverage outlet movable frame 101. The elevating drive assembly 2 is directly or indirectly connected to the beverage outlet movable frame 101 to drive the elevating and lowering of the beverage outlet movable frame 101. Figure 5 As shown, the lifting drive assembly 2 includes a nut 201, a screw rod 202 and a stepper motor (203). The stepper motor (203) is fixed on the guide rail bracket 102 and has a stable structure.

[0040] The nut 201 is set on the beverage outlet movable frame 101. In this embodiment, the nut 201 is fixed to the top of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 by screws 3. The screw rod 202 is vertically set on the rotating shaft of the stepping motor (203) and passes through the nut 201. The stepping motor (203) drives the screw rod 202 to rotate, thereby realizing the lifting and lowering of the nut 201 and driving the lifting and lowering of the beverage outlet movable frame 101. The coffee buffer 103 is set at the bottom of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 and is lifted and lowered along with the beverage outlet movable frame 101. Figure 8 As shown, it is convenient to pour coffee into the cup below. The stepper motor (203) can be rotated and controlled by the controller of the beverage machine to drive the automatic lifting of the beverage outlet movable frame 101.

[0041] The elastic contact member 7 is directly or indirectly arranged at the lower part of the beverage outlet movable frame 101, and moves up and down with the beverage outlet movable frame 101. During the descent process, it contacts the mouth of the cup and is activated or triggered. The contact member sensing or triggering mechanism 6 senses the movement of the elastic contact member 7 or is triggered by the movement of the elastic contact member 7, and pauses the movement of the lifting drive component 2 or sends a lifting drive component arrival signal. The controller of the beverage machine receives the signal and pauses or reverses the stepper motor (203) for several turns, pouring the beverage into the cup. The stepper motor (203) continues to reverse and rises and resets the beverage outlet movable frame 101. In addition, the operator can select the descent stroke of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 according to the height of the known cup through the beverage machine. Under normal stroke conditions, the elastic contact member 7 does not contact the cup. If the wrong cup is taken, for example, the cup is too high, the elastic contact member 7 contacts the cup mouth to trigger the protection mechanism.

[0042] The contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 can be a microswitch, reed switch, optical sensor, magnetic sensor, or distance sensor, offering flexible options. Mounting brackets 5 corresponding to the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 are provided on one or both sides of the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame 101 for mounting the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6. Side covers 4 are provided on the outside of the mounting brackets 5. These side covers 4 are fastened to the beverage outlet movable frame 101 via snap-fits, making disassembly and maintenance easy. The side covers 4 cover and protect the outside of the mounting brackets 5, enhancing the aesthetics.

[0043] The elastic contact member 7 can be a contact spring or a metal spring. Figure 4 As shown, the contact spring includes a connecting portion 71, a turning portion 72 and an elastic portion 73. Figure 6As shown, the mounting bracket 5 is provided with a first pin shaft 51 and a second pin shaft 52, the connecting portion 71 is sleeved on the first pin shaft 51, the flip portion 72 is provided on one side of the connecting portion 71 and extends above the second pin shaft 52, the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6 is located above the flip portion 72, and the elastic portion 73 is provided at the bottom of the flip portion 72 and extends downward. During the descending process, the elastic portion 73 contacts the cup mouth and is elastically deformed, and transmits the force to the flip portion 72, forcing the flip portion 72 to flip up and trigger the contact sensing or triggering mechanism 6.

[0044] To ensure reliable cup height monitoring, in this embodiment, mounting brackets 5 are located on either side of the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame 101. Connecting portions 71 are mounted on the first pins 51 of each mounting bracket 5. The contact spring also includes a contact portion 74 connected between the bottoms of the two elastic portions 73. This contact portion 74 is positioned horizontally between the bottoms of the two elastic portions 73, providing a wide coverage area and ensuring contact with the cup opening below during descent. In this embodiment, the connecting portion 71, tilting portion 72, elastic portion 73, and contact portion 74 utilize an integrated elastic metal structure, which can be bent from spring steel. This provides a reliable structure and sufficient elasticity, preventing the problem of impact with the cup.

[0045] Working principle:

[0046] Taking a coffee machine as an example, when the coffee machine starts to make coffee, the bean grinding mechanism starts to grind the beans, and at the same time the stepper motor 203 starts, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 moves downward until the elastic contact member 7 contacts the cup mouth, and the elastic contact member 7 is forced to touch the contact member sensing or triggering mechanism 6 (the contact member sensing or triggering mechanism 6 takes a micro switch as an example, and the spring of the micro switch changes from the Free state to the Operating state). After the stepper motor 203 pauses, it immediately reverses several times, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 moves upward to a certain distance and then stops. At this time, the elastic contact member 7 returns to its initial position by its own gravity, waiting for the coffee machine to start dispensing beverages. After the beverage is dispensed, the stepper motor 203 starts and continues to reverse, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 moves upward to its original state position.

[0047] In addition, for types of coffee such as espresso, the cups used are smaller and relatively lower in height, and the elastic contact member 7 cannot touch the cup mouth. In this case, when the coffee machine starts to make coffee, the bean grinding mechanism starts to grind the beans, and the stepper motor 203 is started at the same time. When the elastic contact member 7 does not contact the cup mouth, the coffee machine controller controls the stepper motor 203 to move to the maximum number of steps, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 moves downward to the closest distance to the cup mouth and stops, waiting for the coffee machine to start dispensing beverages. After the beverage is dispensed, the stepper motor 203 starts to reverse, and the beverage outlet movable frame 101 moves upward to its original position.

[0048] In summary, the automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet pointed out in the present invention can realize the automatic lifting of the beverage outlet and monitor the mouth of the cup during the descent process to avoid hitting the cup. It has good adaptability to the height of the cup, a simple structure, and is easy to maintain.

[0049] The above are merely embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present invention. Any equivalent structure or equivalent process transformation made using the contents of the present invention specification, or directly or indirectly applied in other related technical fields, are also included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automatic lifting device for a beverage outlet, characterized in that: include: A beverage outlet assembly (1), the beverage outlet assembly (1) comprising a beverage outlet movable frame (101); A lifting drive assembly (2), the lifting drive assembly (2) being directly or indirectly connected to the beverage outlet movable frame (101) to drive the lifting of the beverage outlet movable frame (101); an elastic contact member (7), the elastic contact member (7) being directly or indirectly arranged at the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame (101) and being raised and lowered along with the beverage outlet movable frame (101); A contact sensing or triggering mechanism (6) senses the movement of the elastic contact member (7) or is triggered by the movement of the elastic contact member (7) to pause the movement of the lifting drive component (2) or to send a lifting drive component arrival signal.

2. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beverage outlet assembly (1) further comprises a guide rail bracket (102), the beverage outlet movable frame (101) being movably arranged on the guide rail bracket (102), a guide hole being provided in the guide rail bracket (102), and a guide rail (104) connected to the beverage outlet movable frame (101) being vertically provided in the guide hole.

3. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 2, characterized in that: The lifting drive assembly (2) comprises a nut (201), a screw rod (202) and a stepping motor (203); the stepping motor (203) is arranged on the guide rail bracket (102); the nut (201) is arranged on the beverage outlet movable frame (101); and the screw rod (202) is vertically arranged on the rotating shaft of the stepping motor (203) and passes through the nut (201).

4. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 1, characterized in that: The contact sensing or triggering mechanism (6) adopts a micro switch, a reed switch, an optical sensor, a magnetic induction or a distance sensor.

5. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 4, characterized in that: One side or both sides of the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame (101) are provided with mounting brackets (5) corresponding to the contact piece sensing or triggering mechanism (6).

6. The automatic lifting device for the beverage outlet according to claim 5, characterized in that: A side cover (4) is provided on the outside of the mounting bracket (5).

7. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 4, characterized in that: The elastic contact piece (7) is a contact spring or a metal spring.

8. The automatic lifting device for the beverage outlet according to claim 7, characterized in that: The contact spring comprises a connecting portion (71), a flip portion (72) and an elastic portion (73); a first pin shaft (51) and a second pin shaft (52) are provided on the mounting bracket (5); the connecting portion (71) is sleeved on the first pin shaft (51); the flip portion (72) is provided on one side of the connecting portion (71) and extends above the second pin shaft (52); the contact sensing or triggering mechanism (6) is located above the flip portion (72); and the elastic portion (73) is provided at the bottom of the flip portion (72) and extends downward.

9. The automatic lifting device for the beverage outlet according to claim 8, characterized in that: The mounting bracket (5) is located on both sides of the lower portion of the beverage outlet movable frame (101), the connecting portion (71) is respectively arranged on the first pin shafts (51) of the mounting brackets (5) on both sides, the contact spring further includes a contact portion (74) connected between the bottoms of the elastic portions (73) on both sides, and the connecting portion (71), the flip portion (72), the elastic portion (73) and the contact portion (74) adopt an integrated elastic metal structure.

10. The automatic lifting device for beverage outlet according to claim 1, characterized in that: The beverage outlet assembly (1) further comprises a coffee buffer (103), wherein the coffee buffer (103) is arranged at the bottom of the beverage outlet movable frame (101).