Brewing module and cleaning method therefor, residual liquid removal method, device, and storage medium

Abstract

A brewing module and a cleaning method therefor, a residual liquid removal method, a device, and a storage medium. The residual brewing liquid removal method comprises: controlling two piston members to move into a brewing cavity (1110) (A2); and controlling at least one piston member to move toward or away from the other piston member, so as to drive residual brewing liquid to be discharged from a liquid passing pipe (A3). By means of operating the at least one piston member to move toward or away from the other piston member, the residual brewing liquid remaining in the brewing cavity (1110) and / or the liquid passing pipe can be collectively suctioned into the brewing cavity (1110), or collectively pushed to an outlet end of the liquid passing pipe, which facilitates prompt recovery and handling of the residual brewing liquid, thereby effectively preventing abnormalities such as deterioration, contamination, and pipe blockage caused by prolonged retention of residual brewing liquid, and the method has the characteristic of simple operations.

Description

Brewing module and its cleaning method, residual liquid cleaning method, equipment and storage medium Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of brewing equipment technology, specifically to a brewing module and its cleaning method, residual liquid cleaning method, equipment and storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] After each brewing cycle, the brewing cylinder in a brewing device pumps the beverage out of the chamber via a pump and a discharge pipe, while any residual brewing liquid remaining is discharged via a waste drain pipe. Alternatively, it can be rinsed with water and drained from the beverage outlet. This process can affect brewing efficiency and may result in residual liquid flowing into the beverage if it's not removed promptly after brewing. Over time, the brewing cylinder's interior and piston components are cleaned periodically, but residual brewing liquid can easily accumulate in the discharge and waste drain pipes, leading to spoilage, off-flavors, and negatively impacting the quality of subsequent beverage preparations. This is especially true for the section of pipe between the brewing cylinder and the beverage outlet. Technical issues

[0003] The main purpose of this application is to propose a brewing module and its cleaning method, residual liquid cleaning method, equipment and storage medium, which aims to solve the problem that the brewing quality is reduced due to the failure to clean the residual liquid in the liquid passage connected to the brewing chamber in traditional brewing equipment. Technical solutions

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, this application proposes a method for cleaning residual brewing liquid, which is applied to a brewing device. The brewing device includes a brewing cylinder with a brewing chamber, two pistons that are movable relative to each other and disposed in the brewing chamber, and a liquid passage that is configurably connected to the brewing chamber.

[0005] The method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes:

[0006] Control the movement of the two piston components into the brewing chamber;

[0007] Control at least one of the piston components to move closer to or further away from the other piston component, so as to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage. Beneficial effects

[0008] In the technical solution provided in this application, the outer peripheral sidewall of the piston and the sidewall of the brewing chamber are sealed together. This allows the brewing chamber and the liquid passage connecting the two pistons to the brewing chamber to be jointly enclosed and defined when both pistons are moved to the position within the brewing chamber. Then, by operating at least one piston to move closer to or further away from the other piston, the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber and / or the liquid passage can be drawn into the brewing chamber or pushed to the outlet end of the liquid passage. This facilitates the timely recovery and treatment of the residual brewing liquid, effectively preventing abnormalities such as deterioration, pollution, and blockage of the pipeline due to long-term residue of the residual brewing liquid. It also features simple operation.

[0009] In addition, when the brewing module is used in brewing equipment, there is no need to install an additional pump or bypass branch in the pipeline between the brewing tank and the beverage outlet. Only a complete liquid passage is needed, which helps to simplify the pipeline layout of the whole machine, avoid the accumulation of beverages in the pipeline, and make cleaning convenient. Attached Figure Description

[0010] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings without creative effort.

[0011] Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of the first embodiment of the brewing module provided in this application;

[0012] Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a second embodiment of the brewing module provided in this application;

[0013] Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the third embodiment of the brewing module provided in this application;

[0014] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the initial state of the brewing module provided in this application when performing the top slag discharge operation;

[0015] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the second piston component in Figure 4 after it has moved upwards;

[0016] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the upward movement of the first piston in Figure 4;

[0017] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the first piston component in Figure 4 after it has moved upwards;

[0018] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of the initial state of the brewing module provided in this application when performing the slag discharge operation;

[0019] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the downward movement of the first piston in Figure 8;

[0020] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of the first piston in Figure 8 after it has been removed from the brewing tank;

[0021] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of the second piston component after it has been moved down in Figure 8;

[0022] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the control device for the hardware operating environment involved in the embodiments of this application in the first embodiment;

[0023] Figure 13 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of the method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid provided in this application;

[0024] Figure 14 is a perspective view of the fourth embodiment of the brewing module provided in this application;

[0025] Figure 15 is a longitudinal sectional view of the first embodiment of the brewing tank and two piston components in Figure 14 in the rinsing state.

[0026] Figure 16 is a longitudinal sectional view of the second embodiment of the brewing tank and two piston components in Figure 14 in the rinsing state;

[0027] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the control device for the hardware operating environment involved in the embodiment of this application in a second embodiment;

[0028] Figure 18 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of the cleaning method for the brewing module provided in this application.

[0029] Explanation of icon numbers:

[0030] First application example: 1100 Brewing tank; 1110 Brewing chamber; 1210 First piston; 1220 Second piston; 1310 Waste discharge pipe; 1320 Water injection pipe; 1330 Three-way valve; 1340 Liquid outlet pipe; 1350 Switch valve; 1400 Control device; 1410 Processor; 1420 Communication bus; 1430 User interface; 1440 Network interface; 1450 Memory.

[0031] Second application example: 2100 Brewing tank; 2110 Channel; 2111 First port; 2112 Second port; 2210 First piston; 2211 Water supply hole; 2220 Second piston; 2221 Suction hole; 2310 First drive mechanism; 2320 Second drive mechanism; 2400 Control device; 2410 Processor; 2420 Communication bus; 2430 User interface; 2440 Network interface; 2450 Memory.

[0032] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of this application will be further explained in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments of the present invention

[0033] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0034] It should be noted that if the embodiments of this application involve directional indicators (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.), the directional indicators are only used to explain the relative positional relationship and movement of each component in a certain specific posture (as shown in the figure). If the specific posture changes, the directional indicators will also change accordingly.

[0035] Furthermore, if the embodiments of this application involve descriptions such as "first" or "second," these descriptions are for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, a feature defined with "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of those features. Additionally, the meaning of "and / or" throughout the text includes three parallel solutions; for example, "A and / or B" includes solution A, solution B, or a solution where both A and B are satisfied simultaneously. Furthermore, the technical solutions of the various embodiments can be combined with each other, but this must be based on the ability of those skilled in the art to implement them. When the combination of technical solutions is contradictory or impossible to implement, it should be considered that such a combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection claimed in this application.

[0036] First application example:

[0037] Please refer to Figures 1 to 12. This application provides a brewing device, which includes a brewing module and a control device 1400. The brewing module includes a brewing cylinder 1100 with a brewing chamber 1110, two pistons detachably disposed within the brewing chamber 1110 and movable relative to the brewing cylinder 1100, a liquid-passing pipeline connected to the brewing chamber 1110 via a valve body, and a drive mechanism for driving the pistons. The liquid-passing pipeline can be one or at least two. When at least two liquid-passing pipelines are provided, each liquid-passing pipeline is a first pipeline and the remaining second pipeline. The control device 1400 is electrically connected to the drive mechanism and the valve body.

[0038] The brewing module is mainly used to brew and extract powders such as coffee powder, soybean powder, and tea leaves, ultimately obtaining coffee, soy milk, and tea beverages. The brewing cylinder 1100 has a brewing chamber 1110 extending along a first direction. This design does not limit the first direction; it can be set to any direction according to actual needs. Specifically, the brewing cylinder 1110 can be arranged vertically, horizontally, or inclined relative to vertically / horizontally, all within the scope of protection defined in this application. However, for ease of understanding, in the following embodiments, the first direction is taken as the direction of gravity, i.e., the vertical direction, with the brewing cylinder 1100 having a brewing chamber 1110 extending vertically as an example. In this case, the brewing chamber 1110 has two openings: an upper opening and a lower opening. Correspondingly, at least in the brewing chamber 1110, two pistons are arranged sequentially vertically, and at least one of them has a vertical travel stroke. For ease of understanding, the two piston components are defined below as a first piston component 1210 and a second piston component 1220 arranged sequentially from bottom to top (at least at the brewing chamber 1110). The first piston component 1210 can selectively move out of the brewing chamber 1110 and can enter the brewing chamber 1110 through its lower opening; the first piston component 1210 can have a first vertical movement stroke within the brewing chamber 1110. And / or, the second piston component 1220 can selectively move out of the brewing chamber 1110 and can enter the brewing chamber 1110 through its upper opening; the second piston component 1220 can have a second vertical movement stroke within the brewing chamber 1110.

[0039] The brewing module may also include at least one drive mechanism. The drive mechanism is drivably connected to the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 to move the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220. The drive mechanism is also electrically connected to the control device 1400 to enable intelligent automatic driving of the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 under the control of the control device 1400.

[0040] The brewing module may also include multiple liquid-passing pipes that are responsively connected to the brewing chamber 1110. These liquid-passing pipes are pipes that allow liquid to flow through them. For example, a water injection pipe 1320 may be used to connect an external water source to the brewing chamber 1110. The water injection pipe 1320 is connected to an external water source or a hot water boiler for brewing, and when connected to the brewing chamber 1110, it allows water from the external source to flow into the brewing chamber 1110. The water source may be, but is not limited to, clean water at room temperature, high temperature, or low temperature, or high-temperature steam. The liquid-passing pipes may also be used to discharge liquid from the brewing chamber 1110 to the outside, such as an outlet pipe 1340 or a waste discharge pipe 1310. When connected to the brewing chamber 1110, the outlet pipe 1340 may discharge the beverage prepared in the brewing chamber 1110 to, for example, a beverage outlet. When the waste discharge pipe 1310 is connected to the brewing chamber 1110, it can discharge the waste liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 to, for example, a waste liquid tank.

[0041] The liquid flow line and the brewing chamber 1110 are connected in a switchable manner via, for example, a valve body. Various types of valve bodies are available, including, specifically, a three-way valve 1330, a switching valve, etc. The driving force for the liquid flow between the liquid flow line and the brewing chamber 1110 can originate from, for example, a pump body. In practical applications, for example, the outlet line 1340 can be connected to the brewing chamber 1110 via a second piston member 1220; for example, both the waste discharge line 1310 and the water injection line 1320 can be connected to a main line via a three-way valve 1330, and then the main line is connected to the brewing chamber 1110 via a first piston member 1210. The three-way valve 1330 can be selectively opened and closed to allow for the connection or disconnection of each pair of the waste discharge line 1310, the water injection line 1320, and the brewing chamber 1110.

[0042] In other embodiments, a normally closed structure may not be required, and a separate switching valve 1350 may be used to cut off the pipeline entering the brewing chamber 1110.

[0043] As can be seen from the above, during long-term use, certain sections of the liquid-passing pipeline, such as the section between the valve body and the brewing chamber 1110, may easily retain residual brewing liquid. Therefore, this application defines each liquid-passing pipeline as a first pipeline and the remaining second pipelines. Taking the liquid-passing pipelines as an example, when the first pipeline is the waste discharge pipeline 1310, the second pipelines are the liquid outlet pipeline 1340 and the water injection pipeline 1320. When the first pipeline is the liquid outlet pipeline 1340, the second pipelines are the waste discharge pipeline 1310 and the water injection pipeline 1320. Of course, there can be one first pipeline, or specifically at least two.

[0044] It should be noted that the brewing equipment in this design can be a device solely used for brewing and extracting powdered materials. Alternatively, depending on actual needs, the brewing equipment can selectively integrate one or more of the following: a grinding module, a milk supply module, etc., to form a fully automated beverage preparation device.

[0045] In addition, in one embodiment, the brewing device may further include an input module. This input module may be, but is not limited to, a touch panel or similar component. The input interface of the input module has at least one preset parameter pre-set. When the user operates based on the input module, they can input the corresponding values ​​for each preset parameter. The preset parameters may be, but are not limited to, the specifications of at least one liquid-passing pipe and / or the motion parameters of the two piston components. The specifications of the liquid-passing pipe may include, but are not limited to, the pipe diameter, volume, length, and material of the liquid-passing pipe; the motion parameters of the two piston components may include, but are not limited to, the distance between the two piston components, the direction of movement of any piston component, the speed of movement, and the distance of movement.

[0046] Referring to Figure 12, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the control device 1400 of the hardware operating environment involved in the embodiment of this application.

[0047] As shown in Figure 12, the control device 1400 may include: a processor 1410, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a communication bus 1420, a user interface 1430, a network interface 1440, and a memory 1450. The communication bus 1420 is used to enable communication between these components. The user interface 1430 may include a display screen and an input unit such as a keyboard; optionally, the user interface 1430 may also include a standard wired interface or a wireless interface. The network interface 1440 may optionally include a standard wired interface or a wireless interface (such as a Wi-Fi interface). The memory 1450 may be high-speed random access memory (RAM) or stable non-volatile memory (NVM), such as a disk storage device. Optionally, the memory 1450 may also be a storage device independent of the aforementioned processor 1410.

[0048] Those skilled in the art will understand that the structure shown in FIG12 does not constitute a limitation on the control device 1400, and may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements.

[0049] As shown in Figure 12, the memory 1450, which serves as a storage medium, may include an operating system, a network communication module, a user interface 1430 module, and a program for cleaning up residual brewing liquid.

[0050] In the control device 1400 shown in Figure 12, the network interface 1440 is mainly used for data communication with the network server; the user interface 1430 is mainly used for data interaction with the user; the processor 1410 and the memory 1450 in the control device 1400 of this application can be set in the brewing equipment. The control device 1400 calls the cleaning program for brewing residue stored in the memory 1450 through the processor 1410 and executes the cleaning method for brewing residue provided in the embodiment of this application.

[0051] This application provides a method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid. Referring to FIG13, FIG13 is a flowchart of the first embodiment of the method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid according to this application.

[0052] In this embodiment, the method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes the following steps:

[0053] Step A2: Control the movement of the two piston components into the brewing chamber 1110;

[0054] In this embodiment, before cleaning the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the liquid transfer line, it is necessary to first ensure that both pistons are located within the brewing chamber 1110. It should be noted that controlling the movement of the two pistons into the brewing chamber 1110 includes, but is not limited to, at least one piston being located inside the brewing chamber 1110. This can mean that both pistons are fully movable inside the brewing chamber 1110; or that one piston is movable inside the brewing chamber 1110 while the other piston is movable to be flush with the corresponding upper or lower opening.

[0055] This design does not restrict the timing of cleaning the brewing residue. Depending on actual needs, the cleaning operation can be performed after one or at least two slag removal operations or after cleaning the entire brewing pipeline. The slag removal operation can be performed after one or at least two beverage preparation operations. Preferably, after each beverage preparation, at least one slag removal operation is performed from the brewing tank 1100, followed by at least one cleaning operation of the brewing residue. The beverage preparation operation is the process of brewing and extracting the powder to obtain the beverage. Specifically, the beverage preparation operation includes: controlling the first piston 1210 to be positioned inside the brewing chamber 1110, covering the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110, and reserving sufficient space for receiving powder within the brewing chamber 1110. The second piston 1220 is discharged from the brewing chamber 1110 outwards, opening the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110 to allow powder to enter the brewing chamber 1110. Then, the second piston 1220 moves from its upper opening into the brewing chamber 1110. The first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 move toward each other, thus pressing the powder into a cake. Finally, the water supply pipe 1320 is connected to the brewing chamber 1110, and high-temperature hot water is introduced into the brewing chamber 1110 to brew and extract the powder cake to obtain a beverage.

[0056] It is understandable that the residue to be discharged during the slag removal operation can generally be the residue cake remaining after brewing and extraction, or the residue remaining in the brewing chamber 1110 after brewing. The slag removal operation can specifically include, but is not limited to:

[0057] In one embodiment, at least one of the two piston members is disengaged outward from the brewing chamber 1110 to form an opening at the brewing tank 1100. Based on this, step A2 may further include:

[0058] Step A11: Control at least one piston to detach from the brewing chamber 1110;

[0059] Step A12: Control another piston to move toward the opening so that the residue in the brewing chamber 1110 is discharged outward through the opening.

[0060] Referring to Figures 4 to 7, in one specific embodiment, when the two piston components are the first piston component 1210 and the second piston component 1220 as described above, an upper slag discharge operation can be optionally performed, that is:

[0061] Control the second piston 1220 to discharge upwards from inside the brewing chamber 1110 to outside the brewing chamber 1110; and,

[0062] The first piston 1210 is controlled to move upward at least until it is flush with the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, so as to discharge the residue in the brewing chamber 1110 upward.

[0063] It is understood that the first piston 1210's first movement stroke within the brewing cylinder is greater than the movement stroke of the second piston 1220. Firstly, based on the aforementioned beverage preparation operation, the second piston 1220 is moved upwards until it is discharged outwards through the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, thus opening the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110. Then, the first piston 1210 is controlled to move upwards within the brewing chamber 1110. Since the outer peripheral wall of the first piston 1210 and the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110 maintain a sealed contact, during the movement, the residue received at the upper end of the first piston 1210, as well as the residue remaining on the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110, can be moved upwards by the first piston 1210. The first piston 1210 can be moved upwards at least to be flush with the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, or it can be moved further upwards to extend upwards from the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, so that subsequent scrapers can scrape off the residue cake on the first piston 1210. The residue cake can be pushed out laterally by rotating the brewing cylinder 1100 or other means, including but not limited to mechanical active pushing; or it can be used for subsequent cleaning of the residue on the first piston 1210 by water.

[0064] The distance H1 by which the second piston 1220 moves upward away from the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is greater than the thickness H0 of the residue cake, so that the residue cake can be completely pushed out of the brewing chamber 1110 without being blocked by the second piston 1220.

[0065] Referring to Figures 8 to 11, in another embodiment, when the two pistons are respectively the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 as described above, a downward slag discharge operation can be optionally performed, that is:

[0066] Control the first piston 1210 to be discharged downward from inside the brewing chamber 1110 to outside the brewing chamber 1110;

[0067] The second piston 1220 is controlled to move downwards at least until it is flush with the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110, so as to discharge the residue in the brewing chamber 1110 downwards.

[0068] It is understood that the first piston 1210's first movement stroke within the brewing chamber is less than the movement stroke of the second piston 1220. Following the aforementioned beverage preparation operation, the first piston 1210 is moved downwards until it is discharged outwards through the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110, thus opening the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110. During this process, some of the residue collected at the upper end of the first piston 1210 is carried away from the brewing chamber 1110 by the first piston 1210, and can then be scraped off by a tool such as a scraper, or cleaned by water. Next, the second piston 1220 is controlled to move downwards within the brewing chamber 1110. Because the outer peripheral wall of the second piston 1220 and the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110 remain in sealed contact, during the translation process, the residue cake remaining on the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110 can be moved downwards by the second piston 1220 and finally discharged outwards through the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110. The second piston 1220 is translated downwards at least to be flush with the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110, or it can be further moved downwards to extend downwards from the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110, to ensure that the residue remaining on the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110 can be completely scraped off.

[0069] In a preferred embodiment, the distance H2 by which the first piston 1210 moves downward away from the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is less than the thickness H0 of the slag cake. This prevents the slag cake from adhering to the upper surface of the first piston 1210 due to gravity and becoming unremovable as the first piston 1210 moves. In the above embodiment, the upper slag discharge operation can control the first piston 1210 to move upward until it is fully extended from the upper opening, or to move upward until it is flush with the upper opening; the lower slag discharge operation can control the second piston 1220 to move downward until it is fully extended from the lower opening, or to move downward until it is flush with the lower opening. The specific settings can be configured according to actual needs. When the first piston 1210 moves to be flush with the upper opening and the second piston 1220 moves to be flush with the lower opening, it helps to minimize the stroke of the first piston 1210 / second piston 1220 while still achieving the purpose of slag discharge.

[0070] It should be noted that in both of the preferred embodiments described above, whether it is the upper or lower slag discharge operation, a relative displacement needs to occur between at least one piston and the brewing cylinder 1100. This relative displacement can be achieved by keeping the brewing cylinder 1100 stationary and directly driving the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 to translate, driven by the drive mechanism; or it can be achieved by keeping the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 stationary and moving the brewing cylinder 1100 by, for example, rotating, translating, or otherwise. In other embodiments, such as the upper slag discharge operation, the piston and the brewing cylinder 1100 can be controlled to not have a relative displacement, and a robotic arm can be used to scrape off the slag cake.

[0071] Of course, the cleaning of residual brewing liquid can also be automatically executed by the program in conjunction with other working modes. For example, it can be set to perform one or more cleaning operations when the machine is turned on or restarted after a preset interval. Or it can be set to perform one or more cleaning operations after a preset working time, and so on.

[0072] The cleaning of residual brewing liquid can also be triggered directly by the user's manual operation. For example, a trigger can be preset on the display and control panel of the machine. When the user triggers the trigger, the machine will automatically perform the cleaning operation of residual brewing liquid.

[0073] Before executing step A2, if the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 are outside the brewing chamber 1110, then the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 need to be moved into the brewing chamber 1110. If the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 are already inside the brewing chamber 1110, then this step is assumed to have been completed.

[0074] Furthermore, in step A2, both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move into the brewing chamber 1110, but the distance between them is not limited and can be specifically set according to subsequent operations (e.g., step A3). The first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 can be completely abutted, or they can be spaced apart by a preset distance, thus defining a first chamber between the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220.

[0075] Step A3: Control at least one piston to move closer to or further away from another piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage.

[0076] In this embodiment, the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is closed by the second piston 1220, and the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is closed by the first piston 1210. A first chamber is defined between the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220. The liquid passage can be connected to the first chamber by, for example, controlling the valve body to be in an open state. At this time, when at least one piston moves closer to or away from the other piston, the internal and external pressure difference between the first chamber and the liquid passage can be changed, thereby driving the brewing residual liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the liquid passage to move towards the target area.

[0077] It is important to emphasize that in a brewing module or brewing device, there can be only one liquid-passing pipeline, or several as needed. Each liquid-passing pipeline can be connected by a separate valve body, or at least two liquid-passing pipelines can share a valve body, to achieve conduction and cut-off control between the liquid-passing pipeline and the first chamber. In this case, one of the liquid-passing pipelines is the first pipeline, and the remainder is the second pipeline. Therefore, step A3 can specifically include:

[0078] Step A34: Control the first pipeline to be connected to the brewing chamber 1110 and disconnect each of the second pipelines from the brewing chamber 1110;

[0079] It is understood that the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is closed by the second piston 1220, and the lower opening of the brewing chamber 1110 is closed by the first piston 1210. Therefore, in this step, it is necessary to ensure that only the first pipe is connected to the brewing chamber 1110, while the remaining second pipes are isolated from the brewing chamber 1110. The first pipe that is simultaneously connected to the brewing chamber 1110 can be one or at least two. The other end of the first pipe that is not connected to the brewing chamber 1110 remains open.

[0080] Step A35: Control at least one piston to move closer to or further away from another piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the first pipeline.

[0081] It is understood that by manipulating at least one piston to move closer to or further away from another piston, the pressure difference inside and outside the first pipeline can be changed, thereby driving the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the brewing residue in the first pipeline to move towards the target area. Specifically, the first pipeline can be the waste discharge pipeline 1310.

[0082] To ensure complete transfer of residual brewing liquid from the liquid-transferring pipeline to the target area, in a specific application, the volume change caused by the translational movement of the piston is set to be no less than the volume of the liquid-transferring pipeline. Taking the first pipeline as an example, the volume change caused by the translational movement of the piston is no less than the volume of the first pipeline. Specifically, the product of the translational distance of the piston and the maximum end area of ​​its piston head is R1, and the total volume of the section of the first pipeline connected to the brewing chamber 1110 is R2. Therefore, R1 is no less than R2. Since R2 and the maximum end area of ​​the piston head in R1 are fixed, the translational distance of the piston can be adjusted.

[0083] The parameters such as the volume of the first pipeline and the volume change caused by the translational movement of the piston can be determined by directly calling the system default values, or by user input. Therefore, in one embodiment, the brewing module and / or brewing device further includes the input module as described above. The input module displays one or at least two preset parameters that can be operated by the user. The method for cleaning up the brewing residue specifically includes:

[0084] Step C2: Control the movement of the two piston components into the brewing chamber;

[0085] Step C3: Obtain the input value from the input module, and based on the input value, control at least one of the piston components to move closer to or further away from the other piston component, so as to drive the residual brewing liquid in the liquid passage to be discharged from the liquid passage.

[0086] It is understood that the preset parameters include the specifications of the liquid-passing pipeline and / or the movement parameters of the two piston components. The specifications of the liquid-passing pipeline can help determine, for example, the volume of the first pipeline, and may include, but are not limited to, the diameter, length, and material of the liquid-passing pipeline; the movement parameters of the two piston components are used to help determine, for example, the volume change caused by the translational movement of the piston components, and may include, but are not limited to, the translational distance of at least one piston component. The maximum end area of ​​the piston component, as mentioned above, can be obtained by calling the system default parameters.

[0087] In the above steps, specifically, only the first piston 1210 may be translated, only the second piston 1220 may be translated, or both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 may be translated.

[0088] Specifically, in one embodiment, step A3 includes:

[0089] Step A31: Control at least one piston to move closer to another piston so that the residual brewing liquid is pushed outward from the liquid passage.

[0090] Taking the first pipeline as an example, in this step, the target area refers to components such as a slag collection box or a water collection tank that are connected to the other end of the first pipeline. By operating the first piston 1210 to move upward and / or the second piston 1220 to move downward, the residual brewing liquid in the first chamber between them can be pushed towards the first pipeline, and the residual brewing liquid in the first pipeline can be pushed towards the slag collection box, water collection tank, etc., to achieve the purpose of discharging the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the first pipeline. If this step is specifically adopted to discharge the residual brewing liquid, then in step A2 above, a sufficient translational distance needs to be reserved between the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 so that the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the first pipeline can be completely pushed out.

[0091] Alternatively, in another embodiment, step A3 may also include:

[0092] Step A32: Control at least one piston to move away from the other piston so that the brewing residue is drawn from the liquid passage into the brewing chamber 1110;

[0093] Step A33: Discharge the remaining brewing liquid in the brewing chamber 1110.

[0094] Taking the liquid-passing pipeline as the first pipeline as an example, that is, in this embodiment, the target area is first inside the brewing chamber 1110. Then, by discharging the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 outward, the purpose of discharging the residual brewing liquid from the whole machine is achieved.

[0095] Specifically, when at least one of the two piston components can detach from the brewing chamber 1110 to form an opening at the brewing tank 1100, step A33 may include:

[0096] Step A331: Control at least one of the piston components to disengage from the brewing chamber 1110 outwards;

[0097] Step A332: Control another piston to move toward the opening so that the brewing residue in the brewing chamber 1110 is discharged outward through the opening.

[0098] Specifically, when the first piston 1210 can detach from the brewing chamber 1110, the above step A331 can be specifically as follows:

[0099] Step A333: Control the first piston 1210 to move downward within the brewing chamber 1110 until it is disengaged from the brewing chamber 1110.

[0100] At this time, since the lower opening of the brewing tank 1100 is open, and the brewing residue generally does not adhere too much to the inner wall of the brewing chamber 1110, it will be discharged outward through the lower opening under the action of gravity.

[0101] Alternatively, when the second piston 1220 can detach from the brewing chamber 1110, step A331 above can specifically include:

[0102] Step A334: Control the second piston 1220 to move upward within the brewing chamber 1110 until it disengages outside the brewing chamber 1110;

[0103] Step A335: Control the first piston 1210 to move towards the upper opening so as to discharge the brewing residue in the brewing chamber 1110 outward through the upper opening.

[0104] Specifically, firstly, the second piston 1220 is moved upward within the brewing chamber 1110 until it disengages from the brewing chamber 1110, opening the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110. Then, the first piston 1210 is controlled to move upward horizontally. During the upward movement of the first piston 1210, the residual brewing liquid collected within the brewing chamber 1110 moves upward synchronously. The first piston 1210 moves upward at least until it is flush with the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, or it can move further upward until it extends upward from the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110, completely expelling the residual brewing liquid.

[0105] It should be noted that when the same brewing module / brewing equipment can independently and separately perform the slag discharge operation and the cleaning operation of the brewing residue according to a preset program, the slag discharge direction and the discharge direction of the brewing residue should ideally be consistent, and the movement direction of each piston component should be controlled to be as similar as possible. Specifically, for example, when the first movement stroke of the first piston component 1210 in a brewing equipment is greater than the second movement stroke of the second piston component 1220, then step A3 in the above-mentioned operation related to cleaning the brewing residue can specifically be configured such that the second piston component 1220 is fixed, and the first piston component 1210 is moved closer to or further away from the second piston component 1220. The slag discharge method can specifically be top slag discharge. Furthermore, step A3 can specifically include steps A334 to A335.

[0106] Conversely, when the first travel of the first piston 1210 in a brewing device is less than the second travel of the second piston 1220, then in the aforementioned operation related to cleaning residual brewing liquid, the first piston 1210 can be fixed, and the second piston 1220 can be moved closer to or further away from the first piston 1210. The slag discharge method can specifically be bottom discharge. And step A3 can specifically include step A333.

[0107] In view of the above, after performing one or more cleaning operations on the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the liquid transfer line to remove residual brewing liquid (for example, step A35 can be performed), the following can also be selectively performed:

[0108] Step A37: Connect the water injection pipe 1320 to the brewing chamber 1110 and inject clean water into the brewing chamber 1110;

[0109] Step A38: Discharge the remaining brewing liquid in the brewing chamber 1110.

[0110] In this embodiment, by controlling the water injection pipe 1320 to be connected to the brewing chamber 1110, external clean water, high-temperature steam, etc., can be injected into the brewing chamber 1110, thereby achieving the rinsing of the brewing chamber 1110. In this process, taking the liquid passage including the first pipe as an example, the first pipe can be kept connected to the brewing chamber 1110, so that the first pipe can also be rinsed; of course, the first pipe can also be kept isolated from the brewing chamber 1110, so that only the brewing chamber 1110 is rinsed.

[0111] During the process of injecting external clean water or high-temperature steam into the brewing chamber 1110, the first piston 1210 and / or the second piston 1220 may be discharged outside the brewing chamber 1110, thus opening the upper and / or lower openings of the brewing chamber 1110. At this time, by injecting water into the brewing chamber 1110 with a volume not less than the current empty space of the brewing chamber 1110, the entire empty space of the brewing chamber 1110 can be flushed. During the flushing process, wastewater is continuously discharged. Specifically, if the first piston 1210 moves into the brewing chamber 1110 and the second piston 1220 moves outside the brewing chamber 1110, then the current empty space volume of the brewing chamber 1110 is also the volume of the chamber between the upper surface of the first piston 1210 and the upper opening of the brewing chamber 1110. If the second piston 1220 moves into the brewing chamber 1110 and the first piston 1210 moves out of the brewing chamber 1110, then the volume of the currently empty space in the brewing chamber 1110 is also the volume of the chamber between the lower end surface of the second piston 1220 and the lower end opening of the brewing chamber 1110. If both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move out of the brewing chamber 1110, then the volume of the currently empty space in the brewing chamber 1110 is also the total volume of the brewing chamber 1110.

[0112] Alternatively, step A37 may include:

[0113] Step A36: Control the movement of the two pistons until they are both located within the brewing chamber 1110 and are spaced at a preset distance.

[0114] That is, during the process of injecting external clean water or high-temperature steam into the brewing chamber 1110, both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move into the brewing chamber 1110, keeping both the upper and lower openings of the brewing chamber 1110 closed. At this time, by injecting water into the brewing chamber 1110 with a volume not less than the current empty space of the brewing chamber 1110, the entire empty space of the brewing chamber 1110 can be rinsed. Furthermore, during the rinsing process, the upper surface of the first piston 1210 and the lower surface of the second piston 1220 can also be rinsed simultaneously. The current empty space of the brewing chamber 1110 is the volume of the chamber between the upper surface of the first piston 1210 and the lower surface of the second piston 1220.

[0115] Then, step A38 can be referred to step A33 above. That is, it can be specifically step A333; or it can include steps A334 to A335.

[0116] In the technical solution provided in this application, the outer peripheral sidewall of the piston and the sidewall of the brewing chamber 1110 are sealed together. This allows the two pistons to jointly enclose and define the brewing chamber 1110 and the liquid passage connecting the brewing chamber 1110 when both pistons are moved to the position within the brewing chamber 1110. Then, by operating at least one piston to move closer to or further away from the other piston, the residual brewing liquid remaining in the brewing chamber 1110 and / or the liquid passage can be drawn into the brewing chamber 1110 or pushed to the outlet end of the liquid passage. This facilitates the timely recovery and treatment of the residual brewing liquid, effectively preventing abnormalities such as deterioration, pollution, and blockage of the pipeline due to long-term residue of the residual brewing liquid, and is characterized by simple operation.

[0117] Based on one or more of the above embodiments, it can be understood that a more preferred solution in this application is to use a suction method to draw the residual brewing liquid into the brewing tank 1100. Therefore, specifically in one application, the method for cleaning the residual brewing liquid includes:

[0118] Step B2: Place two pistons inside the brewing tank 1100 and move them away in opposite directions to form a sealed enlarged space inside the brewing tank 1100. The enlarged space draws the brewing residue in the liquid passage into the brewing tank 1100.

[0119] Step B3: Control at least one piston to disengage from the brewing tank 1100 so that the brewing residue in the brewing chamber 1110 can be discharged outward through the opening.

[0120] In this embodiment, the residual brewing liquid is drawn into the brewing tank 1100 using a suction method. This provides a simple, efficient, and convenient way to clean residual brewing liquid from the liquid passage, minimizing the impact on the efficiency of continuously cyclical brewing operations (such as beverage preparation). Especially in practical use, during the intervals between preset brewing operations, this method of cleaning residual brewing liquid can empty the liquid passage between the brewing tank 1100 and the beverage outlet, ensuring the quality of each cup of beverage prepared in subsequent brewing operations.

[0121] Specifically, the brewing tank 1100 is generally cylindrical and has a brewing center axis X0. The brewing center axis X0 can be vertically arranged along the direction of gravity (i.e., the up and down direction mentioned above), or horizontally arranged perpendicular to the direction of gravity, or inclined at any angle between the direction of gravity and the horizontal direction, all of which can achieve the technical effect of this application.

[0122] The first piston 1210 has a first central axis X1, and the second piston 1220 has a second central axis X2. When both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 are disposed within the brewing cylinder 1100, the first central axis X1, the second central axis X2, and the brewing central axis X0 are collinear and overlap. At least one of the first piston 1210 or the second piston 1220 can disengage from the brewing cylinder 1100, creating an exposed opening (e.g., a lower or upper opening) to discharge residual brewing liquid.

[0123] Specifically, as the first piston 1210 moves downward within the brewing chamber 1110 until it is outside the brewing chamber 1110, the second central axis X2 and the brewing central axis X0 remain collinear and overlapped, while the first central axis X1 deviates from the brewing central axis X0 to make way for the second piston 1220 to move towards the first piston 1210 within the brewing chamber 1110, thereby causing the residual liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 to be discharged.

[0124] It should be noted that during the movement of the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220, it is not required that the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 necessarily move synchronously. For example, the step of the first central axis X1 deviating from the brewing central axis X0 must be completed at least before the step of the second piston 1220 moving towards the first piston 1210 within the brewing chamber 1110, thereby ensuring that the first piston 1210 does not cause any interference or obstruction during the entire process of discharging the brewing residue.

[0125] Of course, the deviation between the first central axis X1 and the brewing central axis X0 is achieved by the relative displacement between the first piston 1210 and the brewing cylinder 1100. In this case, the first piston 1210 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move directly along the first direction, making the first central axis X1 collinear with the brewing central axis X0, but the lower openings of the first piston 1210 and the brewing cylinder 1100 are spaced apart along the first direction. Alternatively, the first piston 1210 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move laterally perpendicular to the first direction, causing the first central axis X1 to deviate laterally from the brewing central axis X0, and the first central axis X1 and the brewing central axis X0 to be approximately parallel. Alternatively, the first piston 1210 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move in any direction relative to the first direction and / or laterally inclined, such that the first central axis X1 deviates obliquely from the brewing central axis X0, and the first central axis X1 intersects the brewing central axis X0 to form an angle greater than 0° and less than 180°.

[0126] Then, as the second piston 1220 moves upward within the brewing chamber 1110 until it leaves the brewing chamber 1110, the first central axis X1 is collinear with the brewing central axis X0, and the second central axis X2 is collinear with or deviates from the brewing central axis X0, so as to make way for the first piston 1210 to move towards the second piston 1220 within the brewing chamber 1110, thereby driving the residual liquid in the brewing chamber 1110 to be discharged.

[0127] Similarly, during the movement of the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220, it is not required that the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 necessarily move synchronously. For example, the step of selectively collinearizing or deviating between the second central axis X2 and the brewing central axis X0 must be completed at least before the step of the first piston 1210 moving towards the second piston 1220 within the brewing chamber 1110, thereby ensuring that the second piston 1220 does not cause interference or obstruction during the entire process of discharging the brewing residue.

[0128] Of course, the deviation of the second central axis X2 from the brewing central axis X0 is achieved by the relative displacement between the second piston 1220 and the brewing cylinder 1100. In this case, the second piston 1220 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move directly along the first direction, making the second central axis X2 collinear with the brewing central axis X0, but the upper openings of the second piston 1220 and the brewing cylinder 1100 are spaced apart along the first direction. Alternatively, the second piston 1220 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move laterally perpendicular to the first direction, causing the second central axis X2 to deviate laterally from the brewing central axis X0, and the second central axis X2 to be approximately parallel to the brewing central axis X0. Alternatively, the second piston 1220 and the brewing cylinder 1100 can move in any direction relative to the first direction and / or laterally inclined, such that the second central axis X2 deviates obliquely from the brewing central axis X0, and the second central axis X2 intersects the brewing central axis X0 to form an angle greater than 0° and less than 180°.

[0129] Based on one or more of the above embodiments, in a practical application scenario, the method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes:

[0130] Step S1: After confirming that the brewing is complete, control at least one piston to move outward from the brewing cylinder 1100 in the first direction;

[0131] Step S2: Control another piston to move along the first direction and push the residue in the brewing tank 1100 out of the brewing tank 1100;

[0132] Step S3: Control the piston located in the brewing tank 1100 to reciprocate in the direction of approaching and moving away from the opening;

[0133] Step S4: Control the piston, which is detached from the brewing tank 1100, to reciprocate in the direction of approaching and moving away from the opening;

[0134] Step S5: After controlling the two pistons to move into the brewing tank 1100, move them away in opposite directions;

[0135] Steps S1 and S2 are executed at least once in a loop.

[0136] In one specific embodiment of this application, a first piston 1210 and a second piston 1220 are movably disposed within a brewing cylinder 1100 along the brewing central axis X0. The second piston 1220 is positioned above the first piston 1210 in a first direction. The second piston 1220 can disengage upward from the brewing cylinder 1100 to provide an upper opening for the first piston 1210 to push out residual brewing liquid from the brewing cylinder 1100. After the beverage is brewed, the second piston 1220 moves upward along the brewing central axis X0 and opens the upper opening of the brewing cylinder 1100. The first piston 1210 moves towards the second piston 1220 (upward) to at least the edge of the brewing cylinder 1100 and pushes out the waste residue from the brewing cylinder 1100. Subsequently, the brewing cylinder 1100 is rotated to scrape off the waste residue using an external baffle or an active method. After the waste residue is scraped off, the brewing cylinder 1100 returns to its original position, and the second piston 1220 moves a distance K1 in the opposite direction into the brewing cylinder 1100. The distance K1 must be sufficient for the second piston 1220 to re-enter the brewing cylinder 1100 and form a seal on the inner diameter of the brewing cylinder 1100. Then, the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move coaxially and in opposite directions away from each other within the brewing cylinder 1100 by a stroke distance K2. Specifically, one of the first piston 1210 or the second piston 1220 may remain fixed while the other moves away from the fixed piston, or both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 may move away from each other. Preferably, the second piston 1220 covers and fixes the upper opening of the brewing cylinder 1100, and the first piston 1210 moves downwards to form a stroke distance K2 and moves away from the second piston 1220.

[0137] In another specific embodiment of this application, the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 are movably disposed within the brewing cylinder 1100 along the brewing center axis X0. The second piston 1220 is positioned above the first piston 1210 in a first direction. The first piston 1210 can move downward to disengage from the brewing cylinder 1100, providing a lower opening for the second piston 1220 to push the brewing residue in the brewing cylinder 1100 downward. After the beverage is brewed, the first piston 1210 moves downward along the brewing center axis X0 and opens the lower opening of the brewing cylinder 1100. The second piston 1220 moves towards the first piston 1210 (downward) to at least the edge of the brewing cylinder 1100 and pushes the waste residue outward from the brewing cylinder 1100. Subsequently, the brewing cylinder 1100 is rotated to scrape off the waste residue using an external baffle or an active method. After the waste residue is scraped off, the brewing cylinder 1100 returns to its original position, and the first piston 1210 moves a distance K1 in the opposite direction into the brewing cylinder 1100. The distance K1 must be sufficient to ensure that the first piston 1210 moves back into the brewing cylinder 1100 and forms a seal on the inner diameter of the brewing cylinder 1100. Then, the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move coaxially and in opposite directions away from each other within the brewing cylinder 1100 by a stroke distance K2. Specifically, one of the first piston 1210 or the second piston 1220 may remain fixed while the other moves away from the fixed piston, or both the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 may move away from each other. Preferably, the first piston 1210 covers and fixes the lower opening of the brewing cylinder 1100, and the second piston 1220 moves upward to form a stroke distance K2 and moves away from the first piston 1210.

[0138] In the above embodiment, the liquid passage includes a first passage and a second passage. The first passage is the liquid outlet passage 1340, which connects the beverage outlet and the second piston. The liquid outlet passage 1340 has a length of L and an inner diameter of r. The brewing tank 1100 is preferably cylindrical with an inner diameter of R, where πr²L ≤ πR²K². This allows for the calculation of the minimum distance K² that the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 can travel, preventing excessive strokes that could reduce efficiency.

[0139] Preferably, during the travel stroke K2 of the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220, the first pipe is open and the second pipe is closed, causing the residual liquid in the first pipe to be drawn into the brewing tank 1100. After the second piston 1220 moves upward away from the brewing tank 1100, the first piston 1210 moves upward to a position not lower than the upper surface of the brewing tank 1100, pushing the waste liquid drawn into the brewing tank 1100 outward. Subsequently, optionally, the brewing tank 1100 and the first piston 1210 move together, relying on a baffle for cleaning waste residue or an active method to clean the residual liquid.

[0140] As can be seen from the above, in practical applications:

[0141] When the liquid passage includes a waste discharge pipe connected to the first piston 1210 and a liquid outlet pipe 1340 connected to the second piston 1220, as described above, the liquid outlet pipe 1340 connects the brewing chamber 1110 and the beverage outlet of the whole machine. The first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 are located within the brewing chamber 1110 and form a sealed space with the brewing cylinder 1100. Residual liquid in the liquid outlet pipe 1340 can be drawn back into the brewing chamber 1110 when the first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 are far apart and a negative pressure is formed within the brewing chamber 1110.

[0142] Specifically, the second piston 1220 is located vertically above the first piston 1210 within the brewing tank 1100, and the residual liquid drawn into the brewing chamber 1110 accumulates above the first piston 1210. At this time, the residual liquid accumulated at the first piston 1210 within the brewing chamber 1110 can be discharged by at least one of the following methods:

[0143] The first piston 1210 disengages downward from the brewing tank 1100, forming an opening at the lower end of the brewing tank 1100, from which residual liquid is discharged; or,

[0144] The second piston 1220 disengages upward from the brewing tank 1100, forming an opening at the upper end of the brewing tank 1100. The first piston 1210 then pushes the remaining liquid outward from the opening at the upper end of the brewing tank 1100; or...

[0145] The first piston 1210 is connected to the waste discharge pipe 1310, and the residual brewing liquid is discharged from the first piston 1210 and the waste discharge pipe 1310.

[0146] In addition, when the residual brewing liquid is discharged through the waste drain pipe 1310, one of the following methods can be selected:

[0147] The first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 move closer to each other, and a closable valve body is provided on the liquid outlet pipe 1340 connected to the second piston 1220; or,

[0148] A suction pump is installed from the first piston 1210 to the waste discharge pipe 1310, wherein the channels from the waste discharge pipe 1310 to the liquid outlet pipe 1340 are all connected.

[0149] The first piston 1210 and the waste discharge pipe 1310 mentioned above are equipped with valves for connecting to the hot water boiler and are designed to be connected in pairs or closed completely.

[0150] The first piston 1210 and the second piston 1220 clamp the powder cake in the brewing chamber 1110 of the brewing tank 1100 for extraction. The direction in which the residue cake after extraction is discharged from the brewing chamber 1110 is the same as the direction in which the brewing residue is discharged.

[0151] It should be noted that the workflow described above is merely illustrative and does not limit the scope of protection of this application. In practical applications, those skilled in the art can select some or all of it to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs, and no restrictions are imposed here.

[0152] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms. Of course, they can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as a read-only memory 1450 (ROM) / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk), and includes several instructions to cause a terminal device (which may be a mobile phone, computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0153] Second application example:

[0154] Furthermore, when residual brewing liquid is drawn into the brewing tank as described above, or when beverage preparation operations are required, the two pistons approach each other within the channel and jointly press the powder to obtain a powder cake. After prolonged use, residue may remain inside the brewing tank and on the piston surfaces of the two pistons. Existing technology generally uses a scraper plate located outside the brewing tank to scrape away the residue at the piston head, but this method is prone to incomplete scraping, reducing the cleaning effect on the upper and lower pistons.

[0155] Therefore, referring to Figures 14 to 18, this application also provides a brewing module and its cleaning method, a food processor, and a storage medium.

[0156] Please refer to Figures 13 to 17. This application provides a brewing module and a blender in which it is applied. The blender may also include a control device 2400.

[0157] In practical applications, the specific form of a blender is not limited. Taking coffee beverage blending equipment as an example: in practical applications, a blender can be directly set as a brewing machine, that is, a device that basically only performs the function of brewing, capable of tamping and brewing existing coffee powder. Alternatively, a blender can be set as a fully automatic or semi-automatic coffee machine. Depending on actual needs, the coffee machine also includes a grinding mechanism that can grind coffee beans into coffee powder, and then transfer the coffee powder to the brewing module for tamping and brewing.

[0158] The brewing module includes a brewing cylinder 2100, two pistons, a drive mechanism, and a water supply assembly. The brewing cylinder 2100 has a channel 2110. At least one of the two pistons is movably disposed along the channel 2110, allowing the two pistons to move close together and form a gap between them. When the gap meets a preset condition, the two pistons are in a rinsing state. The drive mechanism is driven by the movably disposed piston. The water supply assembly is used to introduce liquid into the gap simultaneously with or after the two pistons are in the rinsing state. The preset condition includes that the width of the gap is not greater than a preset threshold.

[0159] In the technical solution provided in this application, when the drive mechanism drives the two pistons to be in the flushing state, there is a gap between the two pistons but they are close enough. At this time, liquid is introduced into the gap between the two pistons through the water supply assembly, and the liquid can be used to flush at least the piston head of the two pistons, thereby ensuring that the residue at least the piston head of the two pistons is cleaned in a timely and thorough manner, and optimizing the cleaning effect on the pistons.

[0160] It should be noted that this design does not restrict the specific installation position of the brewing module. However, for ease of understanding, in the following embodiments, the brewing tank 2100 is generally cylindrical, and its channel 2110 extends generally in the vertical direction. The channel 2110 has a first port 2111 and a second port 2112 arranged opposite to each other. The relative direction of the first port 2111 and the second port 2112 is not limited. Specifically, for example, in the structures shown in Figures 14 to 16, the first port 2111 can be located vertically below the second port 2112.

[0161] The two pistons can be a first piston 2210 and a second piston 2220, respectively. The first piston 2210 can be a piston that extends into the channel 2110 from the first port 2111; the second piston 2220 can be a piston that extends into the channel 2110 from the second port 2112.

[0162] In this design, one of the first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 can be fixed relative to the brewing cylinder 2100, while the other can reciprocate along the channel 2110. For example, the first piston member 2210 can extend into the channel 2110 from the first port 2111, or remain flush with the first port 2111, so that the bottom of the brewing cylinder 2100 is blocked by the first piston member 2210. The second piston member 2220 can move outside the channel 2110, so that the second port 2112 is open, and coffee powder can be introduced into the channel 2110 through the second port 2112; then the second piston member 2220 can extend into the channel 2110 from the second port 2112, and can move toward the first port 2111, moving closer to the first piston member 2210, to compress the coffee powder into a cake, and finally to brew and extract the coffee cake.

[0163] Alternatively, both the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 may be movably disposed relative to the brewing cylinder 2100. For example, the first piston 2210 may extend from outside the channel 2110 into the channel 2110 via the first port 2111 and may move toward the second port 2112; the second piston 2220 may extend from outside the channel 2110 into the channel 2110 via the second port 2112 and may move toward the first port 2111.

[0164] To drive the movement of the first piston 2210 and / or the second piston 2220, the brewing module also includes a drive mechanism, which can be a first drive mechanism 2310 for driving the first piston 2210 and / or a second drive mechanism 2320 for driving the second piston 2220. The specific form of the first drive mechanism 2310 and / or the second drive mechanism 2320 is not limited; it can be a linear cylinder or other actuator, or a combination of a linear cylinder, motor, or other actuator with a transmission component. The transmission component can be configured as a reversing transmission component, such as a rack and pinion mechanism or a lead screw and nut mechanism, depending on actual needs; it can also be configured as a speed-regulating or position-regulating transmission component, such as a gear set.

[0165] In the above embodiment, a piston member has a water supply hole 2211 extending through its piston head, and a water supply assembly is connected to the water supply hole 2211. Specifically, for example, a first piston member 2210 extends from bottom to top through its piston head to form the water supply hole 2211. The water supply assembly includes, for example, a water tank, a pump body, and a connecting pipe, with the connecting pipe connecting the water supply hole 2211 and the water tank. Driven by the pump body, the liquid stored in the water tank enters the water supply hole 2211 through the connecting pipe and finally enters the gap. It should be noted that, in this process, the liquid can be directly room temperature water, such as tap water; it can also be hot water obtained after heating by the heating module, steam obtained after heating and pressurizing by the heating module, cleaning liquid obtained after adding chemicals or cleaning agents, etc. Specifically, the first piston member 2210 described above may have a water supply hole 2211 extending through it.

[0166] In practical applications, when the two piston components, as described above, are arranged sequentially from bottom to top as the first piston component 2210 and the second piston component 2220, the end face of the piston head of the first piston component 2210 faces upward, and the end face of the piston head of the second piston component 2220 faces downward. Specifically, the brewing module is provided with a water supply hole 2211, and the water supply component is connected to the water supply hole 2211. The opening of the water supply hole 2211 is set upward, so that the liquid provided by the water supply component enters the channel 2110 through the water supply hole 2211 and first shoots against the direction of gravity towards the second piston component 2220, cleaning the end face of the piston head of the second piston component 2220. Then, the liquid falls with the direction of gravity to the first piston component 2210, cleaning the end face of the piston head of the second piston component 2210, which further facilitates the efficient cleaning of the first piston component 2210 and the second piston component 2220. The water supply hole 2211 can be directly opened at the first piston member 2210 and pass through the end face of the piston head of the first piston member 2210. Alternatively, the water supply hole 2211 can be opened at the brewing tank 2100 and pass through the side wall of the brewing tank 2100.

[0167] A piston member 2220 has a suction hole 2221 extending through its piston head. The brewing module also includes a suction assembly connected to the suction hole 2221. Specifically, for example, a second piston member 2220 extends from top to bottom through its piston head to form the suction hole 2221. The suction assembly includes, for example, another pump body and another connecting pipe, which connects to the suction hole 2221. Driven by the pump body, liquid in the gap can be drawn through the connecting pipe into the suction hole 2221, and finally discharged into, for example, a water tank in front of a blender, or a residue container built into the blender. Specifically, the second piston member 2220 may have the suction hole 2221 extending through it.

[0168] In view of the above, the brewing module has a preset brewing mode. When the control device 2400 controls the operation of the brewing mode, firstly, the second piston 2220 is controlled to extend into the channel 2110, and the first piston 2210 extends out of the channel 2110. The brewing cylinder 2100, together with the second piston 2220, moves to the powder receiving position to receive the powder discharged from, for example, the grinding module or the powder supply module of the powder hopper. Then, the brewing cylinder 2100, together with the second piston 2220, moves to the brewing position (wherein, the powder receiving position and the brewing position can be two independently spaced positions, or they can be the same position). The first piston 2210 extends into the channel 2110 and moves closer to the second piston 2220 to press the powder received by the second piston 2220 into a powder cake. The water supply component then introduces liquid through the water supply hole 2211 into the gap between the first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 to brew and extract the powder cake to finally obtain a beverage. The suction component dispenses the beverage outward through the suction hole 2221.

[0169] The brewing module also has a preset slag discharge mode. Understandably, the slag discharge mode is typically activated after each brewing cycle. Therefore, one port of channel 2110 is the slag discharge port. The two pistons are a proximal piston located near the slag discharge port and a distal piston located away from it. Driven by the drive mechanism, the proximal piston can disengage from the slag discharge port and exit channel 2110, while the distal piston can move towards the slag discharge port until it is exposed outside the port, thus scraping the slag from channel 2110 outwards through the slag discharge port.

[0170] The brewing module also has a preset slag scraping mode. It is understood that the slag scraping mode is generally activated after each slag discharge mode. Based on this, the brewing module also includes a slag scraper, which is located outside the channel 2110 and adjacent to the slag discharge port. When the distal piston is exposed outside the slag discharge port, at least one of the slag scraper and the brewing cylinder 2100 is movably positioned relative to the other, so as to drive the slag scraper to remove the slag from the distal piston.

[0171] Specifically, when the first port 2111 is the slag discharge port, the first piston 2210 constitutes the proximal piston 2210, and the second piston 2220 constitutes the distal piston 2220. The first drive mechanism 2310 drives the first piston 2210 to move upward until it disengages from the first port 2111 and exits the channel 2110. The second drive mechanism 2320 drives the second piston 2220 to move upward until it is flush with the first port 2111 or extends upward beyond the first port 2111. During this process, the second piston 2220 scrapes the slag remaining on the inner wall of the channel 2110 upward, achieving upward slag discharge. For ease of understanding, the current position of the second piston 2220 is defined below as the upward slag discharge position.

[0172] Next, the scraper is positioned above the first port 2111, and when the second piston 2220 is in the upper slag discharge position, the scraper comes into contact with the second piston 2220. Specifically, the positions of the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 can be fixed while the scraper can move laterally; or the position of the scraper can be fixed while the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 can move laterally; or both the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 and the scraper can move laterally, creating a relative lateral movement between the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 and the scraper. During this relative movement, the scraper can remove the residue remaining at the second piston 2220.

[0173] When the second port 2112 is the slag discharge port, the second piston 2220 constitutes the proximal piston 2220, and the first piston 2210 constitutes the distal piston 2210. The second drive mechanism 2320 drives the second piston 2220 downward to move outward through the second port 2112 and outside the channel 2110. The first drive mechanism 2310 drives the first piston 2210 downward to move flush with the second port 2112 or to extend downward beyond the second port 2112. During this process, the first piston 2210 scrapes the slag remaining on the inner wall of the channel 2110 downward, achieving downward slag discharge. For ease of understanding, the current position of the first piston 2210 is defined below as the downward slag discharge position.

[0174] Next, the scraper is positioned below the second port 2112, and when the first piston 2210 is in the lower slag discharge position, the scraper comes into contact with the first piston 2210. Specifically, the positions of the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 can be fixed while the scraper can move laterally; or the positions of the scraper can be fixed while the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 can move laterally; or both the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 and the scraper can move laterally, creating a relative lateral movement between the brewing cylinder 2100 / second piston 2220 and the scraper. During this relative movement, the scraper can remove the residue remaining at the first piston 2210.

[0175] Of course, the brewing module can also be preset with a cleaning mode in response to a cleaning command:

[0176] Specifically, when the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 move to form a gap between them, and the gap meets the preset conditions, the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 are in a flushing state.

[0177] The preset conditions include that the width of the gap is not greater than a preset threshold. The width of the gap refers to the distance between the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220. In order to clean the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220, the width of the gap must be at least greater than zero and not greater than the preset threshold. The preset threshold can be specifically set according to actual needs. For example, the preset threshold can be automatically set by the food processor before leaving the factory; it can also be manually set by the user based on the input module such as the touch panel fixed to the food processor. In a specific application, the preset threshold can be set to 10mm, that is, when the distance between the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 is not greater than 10mm, they are in a rinsing state.

[0178] And / or, the preset conditions may also include the gap being connected to the outside of the channel 2110. That is, the gap formed between the first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 will not remain a closed gap. When the gap is connected to the outside of the channel 2110, on the one hand, the cleaned first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 can be discharged outward from the gap, avoiding the residue of dirty liquid in the gap; on the other hand, the structure outside the brewing tank 2100 can be cleaned with the outward discharged liquid, which will be described below with reference to specific embodiments.

[0179] To achieve external communication between the gap and channel 2110:

[0180] In one embodiment, a connecting hole may be provided on the cylinder body of the brewing tank 2100, at the first piston member 2210 and / or the second piston member 2220. In this case, both the first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 can extend into the channel 2110, forming a gap within the channel 2110. The connecting hole can be controlled, for example, by a valve body structure, to be both open and closed. When the connecting hole is closed, the gap is sealed by the inner wall of the channel 2110, forming a sealed space. The water supply assembly introduces liquid into the gap, and cleaning of at least the piston heads of the first piston member 2210 and the second piston member 2220 can be achieved through liquid flushing, soaking, or other methods. After the cleaning operation is completed, the connection gap and the external environment of the channel 2110 can be controlled to discharge the liquid from the gap.

[0181] Alternatively, in one embodiment, when in the flushing state, at least one piston member may be positioned outside the channel 2110, such that the gap is at least partially exposed outside the channel 2110. Specifically:

[0182] For example, a first piston 2210 can be configured to extend into the channel 2110 via a first port 2111, while a second piston 2220 is located outside the channel 2110. In this case, a portion of the gap defined by the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 is located inside the channel 2110, and a portion is located outside the channel 2110.

[0183] Alternatively, for example, a second piston 2220 can be configured to extend into the channel 2110 via a second port 2112, while the first piston 2210 is located outside the channel 2110. In this case, a portion of the gap defined by the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 is located inside the channel 2110, and a portion is located outside the channel 2110.

[0184] Alternatively, as shown in Figure 15, taking the first port 2111 being vertically below the second port 2112 as an example, the first piston 2210 can be moved downwards from the first port 2111 out of the channel 2110, and the second piston 2220 can be moved along the channel 2110 from the second port 2112 towards the first port 2111 until it is flush with the first port 2111. During this process, the second piston 2220 can also remove slag from the brewing tank 2100, that is, scrape the slag remaining on the inner wall of the brewing tank 2100 downwards. When the second piston 2220 is flush with the first port 2111, and the distance between the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 meets the above conditions, the water supply assembly can be operated to fill the gap with water.

[0185] Alternatively, as shown in Figure 16, taking the example of the first port 2111 being vertically below the second port 2112, the first piston 2210 can be operated to move from the first port 2111 along the channel 2110 towards the second port 2112 until it is flush with the second port 2112. During this process, the first piston 2210 can also remove slag from the brewing tank 2100, that is, scrape the slag remaining on the inner wall of the brewing tank 2100 upwards. Then, the second piston 2220 is operated to move to a position outside the second port 2112, and is positioned opposite the first piston 2210 at a distance. When the distance between the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 meets the above conditions, the water supply assembly can be operated to fill the gap with water. In this embodiment, the liquid entering the gap through the water supply assembly can, on the one hand, flush at least the piston heads of the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220, and on the other hand, the liquid discharged outward through the gap can flush the outer wall of the brewing tank 2100 under the action of gravity.

[0186] It should be noted that in the above embodiments, the first piston 2210 may be moved to be flush with the second port 2112 first, and then the second piston 2220 may be moved closer to the first piston 2210 to form a gap between them that meets the preset conditions; or the second piston 2220 may be moved to be flush with the first port 2111 first, and then the first piston 2210 may be moved closer to the second piston 2220 to form a gap between them that meets the preset conditions. During this process, the upper or lower slag discharge is completed before the cleaning operation of the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220.

[0187] Alternatively, in one application, the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 can be driven to form a gap within the channel 2110 that meets preset conditions. Then, the water supply assembly introduces liquid into the gap to clean the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220. Simultaneously or subsequently, the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 can be driven to move synchronously toward the first port 2111 or the second port 2112 until the gap communicates with the external environment of the channel 2110. Furthermore, they can be moved further until the first piston 2210 is flush with the second port 2112, or until the second piston 2220 is flush with the first port 2111. During this synchronous activity, the distance between the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 remains unchanged, which means that it does not significantly affect the cleaning of the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220 by the liquid. In addition, the first piston 2210 and / or the second piston 2220 can also scrape off the residue remaining in the channel 2110 and clean the inner wall of the channel 2110 with the help of the liquid in the gap, thus completing the slag discharge and cleaning of the brewing tank 2100.

[0188] Referring to Figure 17, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the control device 2400 of the hardware operating environment involved in the embodiment of this application.

[0189] As shown in Figure 17, the control device 2400 may include: a processor 2410, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a communication bus 2420, a user interface 2430, a network interface 2440, and a memory 2450. The communication bus 2420 is used to enable communication between these components. The user interface 2430 may include a display screen and an input unit such as a keyboard; optionally, the user interface 2430 may also include a standard wired interface or a wireless interface. The network interface 2440 may optionally include a standard wired interface or a wireless interface (such as a Wi-Fi interface). The memory 2450 may be high-speed random access memory (RAM) or stable non-volatile memory (NVM), such as a disk storage device. Optionally, the memory 2450 may also be a storage device independent of the aforementioned processor 2410.

[0190] Those skilled in the art will understand that the structure shown in FIG17 does not constitute a limitation on the control device 2400, and may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements.

[0191] As shown in Figure 17, the memory 2450, which serves as a storage medium, may include an operating system, a network communication module, a user interface 2430 module, and a cleaning program for the brewing module.

[0192] In the control device 2400 shown in Figure 17, the network interface 2440 is mainly used for data communication with the network server; the user interface 2430 is mainly used for data interaction with the user; the processor 2410 and the memory 2450 in the control device 2400 of this application can be installed in the food processor. The control device 2400 calls the cleaning program of the brewing module stored in the memory 2450 through the processor 2410 and executes the cleaning method of the brewing module provided in the embodiment of this application.

[0193] Referring to Figure 18, this application provides a first embodiment of a cleaning method for a brewing module. Specifically, the cleaning method for the brewing module includes:

[0194] Step S100: Upon receiving a cleaning command, the control drive mechanism moves the two piston components closer together;

[0195] Step S200: When it is determined that the two pistons are in the flushing state, control the water supply assembly to introduce liquid into the gap.

[0196] In this embodiment, the method of generating the cleaning command is not limited: specifically, the cleaning command can be generated directly by the user manually. The brewing module / food processor may have a pre-installed input module. The input module can be electrically connected to the control device 2400 and directly fixed to the food processor. Alternatively, the input module can be wirelessly connected to the control device 2400 and separately located from the food processor, such as a mobile terminal like a smartphone or tablet. The input module can specifically take the form of, for example, virtual buttons, physical buttons, a voice recognition module, or a motion recognition module.

[0197] Of course, the cleaning command can also be generated by associating one or more preset modes of the brewing module. The preset modes include at least one of the following: brewing mode, debugging mode, power-on mode, and power-off mode. Alternatively, the preset mode can be other operating modes besides those mentioned above. In practical applications, when a preset mode completes its operation or is in the process of operating, one or more cleaning commands can be generated, thereby allowing the cleaning mode to run under the control of the control device 2400.

[0198] Taking the generation of a cleaning instruction linked to a brewing mode as an example, the cleaning instruction can be configured to include a first cleaning instruction and / or a second cleaning instruction, depending on actual needs. The first cleaning instruction is generated after each execution of a brewing mode. That is, a cleaning mode is run once after each beverage is brewed and prepared. The second cleaning instruction is generated after a set number of brewing modes are executed. That is, a cleaning mode is run once after a set number of cups of beverage are brewed and prepared.

[0199] If the brewing module is defined to generate a first cleaning intensity when executing the first cleaning command and a second cleaning intensity when executing the second cleaning command, then when a blender only has one or the other preset, the relationship between the first and second cleaning intensities can be arbitrarily set according to actual needs, for example, the first cleaning intensity can be equal to, greater than, or less than the second cleaning intensity. However, when a blender has both the first and second cleaning commands preset, the first and second cleaning intensities can generally be differentiated, for example, the second cleaning intensity can be greater than the first cleaning intensity. A shallow cleaning is performed after each brewing cycle, and a deep cleaning is performed after a set number of brewing cycles.

[0200] It should be noted that the cleaning intensity can be reflected in several aspects, such as the water supply volume, water pressure, and spray height provided by the water supply component; the type of liquid; the cleaning performance of the liquid; the temperature of the liquid; the water supply frequency of the water supply component; and the number of times steps S100 to S200 are run. Similarly, the set number of times can be manually determined by the user based on the above input module, or it can be generated by default by a pre-set program, or it can be generated in association with a set mode, etc.

[0201] If the water supply component is defined as providing a first water pressure when the brewing module is running in brewing mode, and a second water pressure when executing the cleaning command, then in practical applications, the second water pressure can be set to be lower than the first water pressure. It can be understood that when running brewing mode, the water supply component needs to brew and extract the pressed powder, and the magnitude of the first water pressure affects the final brewing quality. When running cleaning mode, the purpose is to rinse the inner wall of channel 2110, the piston heads of the first piston 2210 and the second piston 2220. Therefore, it only needs to meet the target cleaning requirements, and can be combined with factors such as the type of liquid, liquid temperature, and number of cleaning cycles. There is no restriction that the second water pressure needs to be excessively high, which helps to achieve energy saving and consumption reduction.

[0202] Specifically, when a piston component (e.g., the second piston component 2220) as described above has a water supply hole 2211 extending through its piston head, and the water supply assembly is connected to the water supply hole 2211, in the step of controlling the water supply assembly to introduce liquid into the gap, the ejection height of the water supply assembly is not less than the width of the gap, and / or the water supply volume of the water supply assembly is not less than the volume of the gap. The ejection height ensures that the ejected water column can powerfully flush the other piston component (e.g., the first piston component 2210); the water supply volume ensures that both the first piston component 2210 and the second piston component 2220 are immersed in the liquid, thereby contributing to the thorough cleaning of both the first piston component 2210 and the second piston component 2220.

[0203] Furthermore, this application also provides a second embodiment of a cleaning method for a brewing module. The second embodiment can be based on the first embodiment or can be set independently of the first embodiment. In this embodiment, the brewing module can be preset with a slag discharge mode (upper slag discharge and / or lower slag discharge) as described above, and can be further preset with a slag scraping mode.

[0204] Specifically, the cleaning method for the brewing module includes:

[0205] Step A100: Upon receiving a cleaning command, the control drive mechanism drives the proximal piston to disengage from the slag discharge port to outside the channel 2110, and drives the distal piston to move toward the slag discharge port until it is exposed outside the slag discharge port.

[0206] Step A200: Remove the debris received by the distal piston component;

[0207] Step A300: Control the drive mechanism to drive the two pistons to move closer together;

[0208] Step A400: When it is determined that the two pistons are in the flushing state, control the water supply assembly to introduce liquid into the gap.

[0209] It is understood that the cleaning mode, slag discharge mode, and slag scraping mode of the brewing module can be operated in conjunction. Among them, steps A300 to A400 in the cleaning mode can refer to the first embodiment above, and will not be described in detail.

[0210] When the cleaning command is triggered as described above, the slag discharge mode can be run first, specifically the upper or lower slag discharge mentioned above.

[0211] After completing one slag discharge cycle, the slag scraping cycle can then be run. Specifically, step A200 may include:

[0212] Step A210: Control the scraper and / or the brewing cylinder 2100 to move relative to each other, so as to drive the scraper to scrape off the slag received by the distal piston.

[0213] The residue remaining at the distal piston is removed by the relative movement between the scraper and the brewing tank 2100 / distal piston.

[0214] It should be noted that the aforementioned slag discharge mode and slag scraping mode can be performed once or at least twice. For example, the single slag discharge mode can be operated in conjunction with the single slag scraping mode, or the single slag discharge mode can be operated in conjunction with the multiple slag scraping mode, or the multiple slag discharge mode can be operated in conjunction with the single slag scraping mode, or the multiple slag discharge mode can be operated in conjunction with the multiple slag scraping mode, in order to achieve the purpose of thoroughly removing slag from the inner wall of the channel 2110, the first piston member 2210, and the second piston member 2220.

[0215] Before or after one or more slag-scraping modes, or between multiple slag-scraping modes, the following steps can be performed:

[0216] Step A510: Control the drive mechanism to drive the distal piston to move into the channel 2110;

[0217] Step A520: Control the water supply assembly to introduce liquid into the channel 2110;

[0218] Step A530: Control the drive mechanism to drive the distal piston to translate within the channel 2110;

[0219] Step A540: Discharge the wastewater in the channel 2110 outward.

[0220] Specifically, for example, after the slag discharge is completed, the first piston 2210 disengages from the channel 2110, and the second piston 2220 moves to the first port 2111. At this point, the second piston 2220 needs to be moved downwards a certain distance. It must be moved at least to a position sufficient to expose the section of channel 2110 where slag may remain. For example, when the cleaning mode is associated with the brewing mode, the second piston 2220 is moved downwards to a position no higher than its lowest position in the brewing mode. Alternatively, the second piston 2220 can be moved downwards directly to a position sufficiently close to the first port 2111.

[0221] Then, the water supply assembly is operated to introduce liquid into channel 2110. This step can be specifically referred to step S200 above. However, it can be understood that since the first port 2111 of the brewing tank 2100 is currently open, and the second piston 2220 is spaced a certain distance from the first port 2111, an empty segment of channel 2110 is formed. Therefore, the amount of water introduced into channel 2110 by the water supply assembly can either exactly fill the empty segment of channel 2110, or it can only be poured into a part of the empty segment of channel 2110.

[0222] Then, the second piston 2220 is moved towards the first port 2111. During this process, the second piston 2220 can move directly to the first port 2111 and stop, pushing the remaining sludge-liquid mixture in the channel 2110 outwards through the first port 2111. Alternatively, the second piston 2220 can move to a certain distance (either to the first port 2111 or not) and then return to its original position, repeating this process once or several times. During this reciprocating process, some or all of the water in the channel 2110 may be pushed out. In this case, a water supply assembly can be set to replenish liquid into the channel 2110 once or multiple times until the second piston 2220 finally moves to the first port 2111 and stops, completely pushing out the sludge-liquid mixture in the channel 2110.

[0223] It should be noted that step A200 can be executed before step A510 or after step A540. Specifically, when steps A510 to A540 are repeated at least twice, step A200 can be executed after each step A540, after a certain number of steps A540, or after the last step A540.

[0224] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and does not limit the patent scope of this application. Any equivalent structural transformations made based on the content of this application's specification and drawings under the concept of this application, or direct / indirect applications in other related technical fields, are included within the patent protection scope of this application.

[0225] Type the free content description paragraph for the sequence list here.

Claims

1. A method for cleaning residual brewing liquid, applied to brewing equipment, characterized in that, The brewing device includes a brewing cylinder having a brewing chamber, two pistons that are movable relative to each other and disposed within the brewing chamber, and a liquid passage that is connectable to and disconnectable from the brewing chamber. The method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes: Control the movement of the two piston components into the brewing chamber; Control at least one of the piston components to move closer to or further away from the other piston component, so as to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage.

2. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 1, characterized in that, In the step of controlling at least one of the pistons to move closer to or further away from the other piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage, the volume change caused by the movement of the piston is not less than the volume of the liquid passage.

3. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The step of controlling at least one of the pistons to move closer to or further away from the other piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage includes: Control at least one of the piston components to move closer to the other piston component, so as to push the residual brewing liquid outward from the liquid passage.

4. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The step of controlling at least one of the pistons to move closer to or further away from the other piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage includes: Control at least one of the piston components away from the other piston component to drive the brewing residual liquid from the liquid passage into the brewing chamber; The residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber is removed from the liquid passage.

5. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The liquid passage is provided in multiple parts, which are a first passage and the remaining second passages; The step of controlling at least one of the pistons to move closer to or further away from the other piston to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the liquid passage includes: The first pipeline is connected to the brewing chamber while each of the second pipelines is isolated from the brewing chamber. Control at least one of the piston components to move closer to or further away from the other piston component, so as to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the first pipeline.

6. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The first pipeline is a waste discharge pipeline.

7. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 5, characterized in that, One of the second pipelines is a water injection pipeline; After the step of controlling at least one of the piston members to move closer to or further away from the other piston member to drive the residual brewing liquid out of the first pipeline, the following steps are included: Control the water injection pipeline to connect with the brewing chamber, and inject clean water into the brewing chamber; The residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber is discharged outwards.

8. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 7, characterized in that, Before the step of controlling the water injection pipeline to connect with the brewing chamber and injecting clean water into the brewing chamber, the method further includes: The two piston components are positioned within the brewing chamber and spaced at a preset distance.

9. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The amount of clean water injected is not less than the volume of the currently empty space in the brewing chamber.

10. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 4 or 7 to 9, characterized in that, At least one of the two piston members can be disengaged from the brewing chamber to form an opening at the brewing cylinder; The step of discharging the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber includes: Control at least one of the piston components to disengage outward from the brewing chamber; Control another piston to move toward the opening so that the brewing residue in the brewing chamber is discharged outward through the opening.

11. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 4 or 7 to 9, characterized in that, The brewing chamber extends vertically through the brewing cylinder. The two pistons are a first piston and a second piston arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The first piston can detach from the brewing chamber to form an opening at the brewing cylinder. The step of discharging the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber includes: The first piston is controlled to move downward within the brewing chamber until it disengages outside the brewing chamber.

12. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 4 or 7 to 9, characterized in that, The brewing chamber extends vertically through the brewing cylinder. The two pistons are a first piston and a second piston arranged sequentially from bottom to top. The second piston can detach from the brewing chamber to form an opening at the brewing cylinder. The step of discharging the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber includes: The second piston is controlled to move upward within the brewing chamber until it disengages outside the brewing chamber; The first piston is controlled to move toward the opening so that the residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber is discharged outward through the opening.

13. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 1, characterized in that, At least one of the two piston members can be disengaged from the brewing chamber to form an opening at the brewing cylinder; Before the step of controlling the two piston components to be positioned within the brewing chamber, the method further includes: Control at least one of the piston components to disengage outward from the brewing chamber; Control another piston to move toward the opening so as to discharge the residue in the brewing chamber outward through the opening.

14. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 13, characterized in that, In the step of controlling another piston to move toward the opening, the piston moves until it is flush with the opening.

15. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 13 to 14, characterized in that, During the steps of discharging the slag and discharging the residual brewing liquid, the movement positions of each piston component are controlled to be the same, and the discharge directions are the same.

16. A method for cleaning residual brewing liquid, applied to brewing equipment, characterized in that, The brewing device includes a brewing cylinder with a brewing chamber, two pistons that are movable relative to each other and connected to the pistons in the brewing cylinder, and a liquid passage that can be switched on and off. At least one of the two pistons can be disengaged from the brewing cylinder to form an opening in the brewing cylinder. The method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes: Two pistons are placed inside the brewing tank and moved away in opposite directions to form a sealed enlarged space inside the brewing tank, which draws the brewing residue in the liquid passage into the brewing tank. Control at least one of the piston components to disengage from the brewing cylinder so that residual brewing liquid in the brewing chamber can be discharged outward through the opening.

17. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 16, characterized in that, The liquid passage is provided in multiple ways, including a first passage and the remaining second passages. The first passage is connected between a piston and the beverage outlet of the brewing device. At least one second passage is connected to another piston, and a valve body is provided at the connection between the two. When the step of the method for cleaning the brewing residue is performed, the valve body is in a closed state.

18. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 16, characterized in that, The two piston components are a first piston component and a second piston component, the brewing cylinder has a brewing center axis X0, and the first piston component and the second piston component have a first center axis X1 and a second center axis X2, respectively; When the first piston and the second piston are disposed in the brewing cylinder, the first central axis X1, the second central axis X2 and the brewing central axis X0 coincide.

19. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 18, characterized in that, The first piston can move away from the second piston to disengage outward from the brewing cylinder and form the opening; During the movement, the second central axis X2 remains collinear with the brewing central axis X0, and the first central axis X1 deviates from the brewing central axis X0 to make way for the second piston to move in the direction of the first piston in the brewing chamber, thereby driving the residual liquid in the brewing chamber to be discharged.

20. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 18, characterized in that, Before the second piston moves toward the first piston within the brewing chamber, the first central axis X1 is offset from the brewing central axis X0.

21. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 18, characterized in that, The second piston can move away from the first piston to disengage outward from the brewing cylinder and form the opening; The first central axis X1 is collinear with the brewing central axis X0, and the second central axis X2 is collinear with or deviates from the brewing central axis X0, so as to make way for the first piston to move in the direction of the second piston in the brewing chamber, thereby driving the residual liquid in the brewing chamber to be discharged.

22. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 21, characterized in that, Before the first piston moves toward the second piston within the brewing chamber, the second central axis X2 may be selectively deviated from the brewing central axis X0.

23. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 21, characterized in that, After the deviation, the second central axis X2 is parallel to or intersects the brewing central axis X0, forming an angle.

24. A method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 16 to 23, characterized in that, The two pistons move asynchronously during movement.

25. A method for cleaning residual brewing liquid, applied to brewing equipment, characterized in that, The brewing device includes a brewing cylinder and at least one piston member detachably disposed in the brewing cylinder. The two piston members can approach each other in the brewing cylinder to press the powder for brewing the beverage, and the brewing cylinder forms an open opening after at least one piston member is detached. The method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes: S1: After confirming that the brewing is complete, control at least one of the piston components to disengage from the brewing cylinder outward in a first direction; S2: Control the other piston to move along the first direction and push the residue in the brewing tank out of the brewing tank; S3: Control the piston located in the brewing cylinder to reciprocate in the direction of approaching and moving away from the opening; S4: Control the piston, which has disengaged from the brewing tank, to reciprocate in the direction of approaching and moving away from the opening; S5: After the two pistons are moved into the brewing tank, they move away in opposite directions; S1 and S2 are executed at least once in a loop.

26. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 25, characterized in that, The two piston components are a first piston component and a second piston component, the brewing cylinder has a brewing center axis X0, and the first piston component and the second piston component have a first center axis X1 and a second center axis X2, respectively; When both pistons are disposed in the brewing tank, the first central axis X1, the second central axis X2, and the brewing central axis X0 are collinear; At least after S2 is executed and before S3 is executed, the first central axis X1 or the second central axis X2 corresponding to the piston that has disengaged from the brewing cylinder is deviated from the brewing central axis X0.

27. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 26, characterized in that, After deviating, the first central axis X1 or the second central axis X2 corresponding to the piston component that has detached from the brewing cylinder is parallel to or intersects the brewing central axis X0, forming an angle.

28. A method for cleaning residual brewing liquid, applied to brewing equipment, characterized in that, The brewing device includes a brewing cylinder with a brewing chamber, two pistons that can move relative to each other in the brewing chamber, a liquid passage that can be switched on and off with the brewing chamber, and an input module for inputting preset parameter values. The method for cleaning up residual brewing liquid includes: Control the movement of the two piston components into the brewing chamber; The input value of the input module is obtained, and according to the input value, at least one of the piston components is controlled to move closer to or further away from the other piston component, so as to drive the residual brewing liquid in the liquid passage to be discharged from the liquid passage.

29. The method for cleaning residual brewing liquid as described in claim 28, characterized in that, The preset parameters include the specifications of the liquid-passing pipeline and / or the movement parameters of the two piston components.

30. A brewing device, characterized in that, include: The brewing module includes a brewing cylinder having a brewing chamber, two pistons movably disposed relative to the brewing cylinder, a liquid passage connected to the brewing chamber via a valve body, and a drive mechanism for driving the pistons to move. as well as, A control device electrically connected to the drive mechanism and the valve body, the control device including a memory, a processor, and a cleaning program for residual brewing liquid stored in the memory and executable on the processor, the cleaning program for residual brewing liquid being configured to implement the steps of the cleaning method for residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 1 to 29.

31. The brewing device as described in claim 30, characterized in that, The brewing device also includes an input module for inputting preset parameter values.

32. A storage medium, characterized in that, The storage medium stores a cleaning program for residual brewing liquid, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the cleaning method for residual brewing liquid as described in any one of claims 1 to 29.

33. A brewing device, characterized in that, include: A brewing tank having a brewing chamber and two pistons disposed within the brewing chamber and capable of approaching or moving away from each other, the two pistons including a first piston and a second piston; The liquid passage is connected to the two piston components and connected to allow liquid to flow through. The liquid passage includes a waste discharge pipe connected to the first piston component and a liquid outlet pipe connected to the second piston component. The liquid outlet pipe connects the brewing chamber and the beverage outlet. The first piston and the second piston are located in the brewing chamber and form a sealed space with the brewing cylinder. When the first piston and the second piston are far apart and a negative pressure is formed in the brewing chamber, the residual liquid in the outlet pipe can be drawn back into the brewing chamber from the outlet pipe.

34. The brewing device as described in claim 33, characterized in that, The second piston is located above the first piston in the vertical direction within the brewing cylinder, and the residual liquid drawn into the brewing chamber accumulates above the first piston.

35. The brewing device as described in claim 34, characterized in that, The residual liquid accumulated in the brewing chamber at the first piston can be discharged by at least one of the following methods: The first piston disengages downward from the brewing cylinder, forming an opening at the lower end of the brewing cylinder, from which residual liquid is discharged; or, The second piston disengages upward from the brewing cylinder, forming an opening at the upper end of the brewing cylinder. The first piston then pushes the remaining liquid outward from the opening at the upper end of the brewing cylinder; or... The first piston is connected to the waste discharge pipe, and the residual brewing liquid is discharged from the first piston and the waste discharge pipe.

36. The brewing device as described in claim 35, characterized in that, When the residual brewing liquid is discharged from the waste discharge pipe, one of the following methods may be selected: The first piston and the second piston move closer to each other, and a closable valve body is provided on the liquid outlet pipe connected to the second piston; or, A suction pump is installed from the first piston to the waste discharge pipeline, wherein the channels from the waste discharge pipeline to the liquid outlet pipeline are all connected.

37. The brewing device as described in claim 33, characterized in that, The first piston and the waste discharge pipe are equipped with valves that can be connected to the hot water boiler and can be selectively connected in pairs or completely disconnected and closed.

38. The brewing device as described in claim 33, characterized in that, The first piston and the second piston clamp the powder cake in the brewing chamber of the brewing tank for extraction. The direction in which the residue cake after extraction is discharged from the brewing chamber is the same as the direction in which the brewing residue is discharged.

39. A brewing module, characterized in that, include: The brewing tank has a through passageway; Two piston components are movably disposed relative to the brewing cylinder, and have a rinsing state in which the gap between the two piston components meets a preset condition; The drive mechanism is drivably connected to the piston element that is movably configured; as well as, A water supply assembly is used to supply liquid into the gap after the two pistons are in the flushing state; The preset condition includes that the width of the gap is not greater than a preset threshold.

40. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, The preset threshold is 390mm.

41. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, The preset conditions also include maintaining communication between the gap and the outside of the channel.

42. The brewing module as described in claim 41, characterized in that, When in the flushing state, at least one of the piston members is located outside the channel, such that the gap is at least partially exposed outside the channel.

43. The brewing module as described in claim 41, characterized in that, When in the flushing state, one of the pistons is flush with one end of the channel, and the other piston is located outside the channel, with the two pistons facing each other.

44. The brewing module as described in claim 43, characterized in that, The channel extends vertically and has a first port and a second port arranged opposite to each other from bottom to top. When in the flushing state, one of the piston members is flush with the second port, and the other piston member is located vertically above the second port; or, When in the flushing state, one of the piston members is flush with the first port, and the other piston member is located vertically below the first port.

45. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, After the driving mechanism drives one of the piston components to a preset position, it drives the other piston component to move closer to the flushing state. The preset position is located either inside or outside the channel.

46. ​​The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, After the driving mechanism drives the two pistons to move closer together to the flushing state, it drives the two pistons to move synchronously so that the gap communicates with the outside of the channel.

47. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, A piston member is provided with a water supply hole extending through its piston head, and the water supply assembly is connected in communication with the water supply hole; and / or, The piston component has a suction hole extending through its piston head, and the brewing module also includes a suction assembly, which is connected to the suction hole.

48. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, The two piston components are a first piston component and a second piston component arranged sequentially from bottom to top; The brewing module is provided with a water supply hole, and the water supply component is connected to the water supply hole. The opening of the water supply hole is set upward so that the liquid flows against the direction of gravity to the second piston and then falls to the first piston in the direction of gravity.

49. The brewing module as described in claim 39, characterized in that, One end of the channel is a slag discharge port, and the two pistons are a proximal piston located near the slag discharge port and a distal piston located away from the slag discharge port. Driven by the driving mechanism, the proximal piston can disengage from the channel through the slag discharge port, and the distal piston can move toward the slag discharge port until it is exposed outside the slag discharge port, so as to scrape the slag in the channel outward through the slag discharge port.

50. The brewing module as described in claim 49, characterized in that, The brewing module also includes a slag scraper, which is located outside the channel and adjacent to the slag discharge port. When the distal piston is exposed outside the slag discharge port, at least one of the slag scraper and the brewing tank is movably arranged relative to the other to drive the slag scraper to scrape off the slag at the distal piston.

51. A method for cleaning a brewing module, characterized in that, The brewing module is the brewing module as described in any one of claims 39 to 50, and the cleaning method of the brewing module includes: Upon receiving a cleaning command, the control drive mechanism moves the two piston components closer together; When the two pistons are moved to the flushing state, the water supply assembly is controlled to supply liquid into the gap.

52. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 51, characterized in that, The water supply component provides a first water pressure when the brewing module is running in brewing mode, and a second water pressure when the cleaning command is executed, wherein the second water pressure is less than the first water pressure.

53. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 51, characterized in that, A piston component is provided with a water supply hole through its piston head, and the water supply assembly is connected to the water supply hole; In the step of controlling the water supply component to introduce liquid into the gap, the ejection height of the water supply component is not less than the width of the gap, and / or the water supply volume of the water supply component is not less than the volume of the gap.

54. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 51, characterized in that, The cleaning command is generated manually by the user; or, The cleaning command is generated by association with a preset mode, wherein the preset mode includes at least one of brewing mode, debugging mode, power-on mode, and power-off mode.

55. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 51, characterized in that, The cleaning instructions include: The first cleaning instruction is generated after each brewing mode is executed; or... The second cleaning instruction is generated after each set number of brewing modes are executed.

56. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 55, characterized in that, The brewing module generates a first cleaning intensity when executing the first cleaning command and a second cleaning intensity when executing the second cleaning command, wherein the second cleaning intensity is greater than the first cleaning intensity.

57. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 55, characterized in that, The set number of times is determined manually by the user.

58. A method for cleaning a brewing module, characterized in that, The brewing module is the brewing module as described in claim 48, and the cleaning method of the brewing module includes: Upon receiving a cleaning command, the control drive mechanism drives the proximal piston to disengage from the channel through the slag discharge port, and drives the distal piston to move toward the slag discharge port until it is exposed outside the slag discharge port. Remove the debris that was caught by the distal piston component; The drive mechanism is controlled to drive the two piston components to move closer together; When the two pistons are moved to the flushing state, the water supply assembly is controlled to supply liquid into the gap.

59. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 58, characterized in that, The brewing module also includes a slag scraper; The step of removing the debris received by the distal piston includes: The scraper and / or the brewing cylinder are controlled to move relative to each other, so as to drive the scraper to scrape off the slag received by the distal piston.

60. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 58, characterized in that, The step of removing the slag received by the distal piston is performed once or repeated at least twice.

61. The cleaning method for the brewing module as described in claim 58, characterized in that, Before and / or after the step of removing the debris received by the distal piston, the method further includes: The drive mechanism is controlled to move the distal piston into the channel; Control the water supply component to introduce liquid into the channel; The drive mechanism is controlled to drive the distal piston to translate within the channel; The wastewater in the channel is discharged outwards.

62. A food processor, characterized in that, include: The brewing module as described in any one of claims 39 to 50; as well as, A control device includes a memory, a processor, and a cleaning program for a brewing module stored in the memory and executable on the processor, the cleaning program for the brewing module being configured to implement the steps of the cleaning method for the brewing module as described in any one of claims 51 to 61.

63. A storage medium, characterized in that, The storage medium stores a cleaning program for the brewing module, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the cleaning method for the brewing module as described in any one of claims 51 to 61.

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