A method for macerating cold coffee and a device for the implementation thereof
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for producing cold coffee are either expensive or unreliable due to the use of high-pressure or negative pressure systems with moving parts, which increase costs and reduce device reliability, and often require additives to achieve optimal production time within 1-2 hours.
Innovation Solution
A flow-through maceration device with a motionless maceration basket and recirculating hydrating head under increased pressure, using a mesh-lined container and hydrating head to efficiently extract coffee components without additives, with adjustable flow rates and controlled operation parameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high-pressure or negative pressure systems with moving parts are used to reduce maceration time, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases and reliability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates all moving parts (motors, pumps, rotating mechanisms) from the maceration device, retaining only the static mesh container and flow distribution system. This extraction of moving components directly resolves the contradiction by maintaining high productivity through pressure-driven flow while eliminating the reliability issues associated with mechanical failure points.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces mechanical mixing systems (motors with rotating baskets or stirrers) with a pressure-driven fluid flow system. Water is pumped through a static mesh container holding coffee grounds, and the pressurized flow naturally circulates and extracts coffee components without requiring moving parts. This substitution maintains extraction efficiency while eliminating mechanical complexity and improving reliability.
2Productivity
If high-pressure systems are used to reduce maceration time, then productivity is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes complex mechanical subsystems (motors, rotating mechanisms, control systems for moving parts) and retains only the essential pressure-driven flow system with a static mesh container. This simplification directly reduces device complexity while maintaining the productivity benefits of pressurized extraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention employs a simple, inexpensive mesh container that can be easily replaced or cleaned, rather than investing in complex, expensive mechanical systems. The mesh structure is straightforward to manufacture and replace, reducing overall device complexity and manufacturing cost while achieving the same productivity goals.
3Reliability
If conventional maceration methods are used without additives, then product purity is improved, but productivity deteriorates due to long maceration times
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the physical parameters of the extraction process by applying increased pressure (1-20 bar) to the water flow through the coffee grounds in the mesh container. This parameter change accelerates the extraction kinetics, reducing maceration time from many hours to minutes or seconds, while maintaining product purity by avoiding chemical additives and using only pressurized water.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention implements continuous flow of pressurized water through the coffee grounds in the mesh container, ensuring constant extraction action without interruption. This continuous flow regime maintains high extraction efficiency and shortens total processing time compared to batch maceration methods, while the use of pure water maintains product quality without additives.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device achieves high-quality cold coffee production within 1-2 hours without additives, is cost-effective, and has a low failure rate due to the absence of moving parts, making it suitable for cafés and the food industry with adjustable production quantities.
Implementation Method 1
ground coffee is placed in a maceration basket, which is motionlessly arranged in the maceration tank and is subjected to maceration by the flow of water pumped into the hydrating head centrally mounted inside the maceration basket
Implementation Method 2
The efficiency of the macerating process can be increased for example by grinding the solids from which the extract is to be macerated and by stirring during maceration
Implementation Method 3
during the maceration the maceration fluid is recirculated from the maceration tank to the hydrating head
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
AI summary
The method for preparing cold coffee involves ground coffee being placed in the maceration basket 1, which is motionlessly arranged in the maceration tank 4 and subjected to maceration by the flow of water pumped by means of the pump 9 to the hydrating head 3 mounted centrally inside the maceration basket 1, wherein during the maceration the maceration fluid is recirculated from the maceration tank 4 to maceration basket 1. The maceration basket 1 is completely immersed in the maceration fluid. A device for preparing cold coffee has a maceration tank 4, in which a maceration basket 1 for ground coffee is motionlessly arranged, consisting of an external support portion 2 and an internal portion made of rigid mesh, wherein the feeding means is a hydrating head 3 placed centrally inside the maceration basket 4. The device is adapted to operate under increased pressure inside the maceration basket 1. In a preferable embodiment for use in a café, for example, the maximum pressure inside the maceration basket is 23 bars.