Beverage Dispenser Micro-Mixing Chamber Agitator
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional juice dispensers have limited capacity to offer a wide range of beverages due to the one-to-one correspondence between juice concentrate and products, leading to a large footprint and inadequate mixing of ingredients, resulting in an unpleasant taste from undiluted concentrate.
Innovation Solution
A beverage dispenser that combines micro-ingredients, macro-ingredients, and water streams using micro-mixing and macro-mixing chambers with agitators and pneumatic membranes to ensure thorough mixing, allowing for a variety of beverages within a compact footprint.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional juice dispenser uses a one-to-one correspondence between juice concentrate and products, then the storage space requirement is reduced, but the number of beverage options is limited and the footprint becomes large
Solution Approach 1:
The beverage formulation is segmented into three separate components: juice concentrate (macro-ingredient), sweetener (micro-ingredient), and diluent (water). This segmentation allows each component to be stored separately in compact quantities while enabling numerous beverage combinations through controlled mixing ratios, thereby increasing versatility without requiring large storage spaces for each complete beverage formula.
Solution Approach 2:
A single juice concentrate storage reservoir can serve multiple beverage functions by combining it with different micro-ingredient sweeteners and water diluents. The universal mixing system allows one concentrate to produce multiple beverage variants (e.g., orange juice with sugar, orange juice with artificial sweetener, diluted orange juice), eliminating the need for separate storage for each beverage type.
2Ease of operation
If the juice concentrate is not properly agitated during dispensing, then the mixing process is simplified, but the last mouthful of juice contains undiluted concentrate resulting in unpleasant taste
Solution Approach 1:
The mixing system employs periodic agitation cycles where the mixing chamber alternates between filling with concentrate, adding water diluent, and agitating. This periodic action ensures that the concentrate is continuously broken up and distributed throughout the chamber, preventing clumping and ensuring complete dilution even in the final portions dispensed, thereby eliminating unpleasant taste from undiluted concentrate.
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
Enables the creation of a wide range of beverages with proper mixing, reducing waste and storage needs, while maintaining a reasonable dispenser size and ensuring consistent taste.
Implementation Method 1
The agitator may spin at about 500 to about 1500 rpm so as to create a centrifugal force therein
Implementation Method 2
The pneumatic membrane expands so as to force the number of micro-ingredients through the valve and contracts so as to maintain the valve in a closed position
Data Source
AI summary
A beverage dispenser for combining a number of micro-ingredients, one or more macro-ingredients, and one or more water streams. The beverage dispenser may include a micro-mixing chamber for mixing a number of the micro-ingredients and the water into a micro-ingredient stream and a macro-mixing chamber for mixing the micro-ingredient stream, the macro-ingredients, and the water into a combined stream.