Beverage Machine Cooling Duct Design for Liquid Damage Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing beverage carbonation systems face challenges in efficiently and quickly producing highly carbonated beverages with high carbonation levels, often requiring high pressures and specialized components, and struggle to integrate a user-friendly and mess-free process for making carbonated or sparkling beverages at home.
Innovation Solution
A beverage making machine with a carbonation and chilling tank system that includes a thermoelectric cooling system, heat pipes, and a mixer, along with a cartridge-based system for gas and beverage medium, allowing for rapid carbonation of liquids to high levels (up to 3.5 volumes) in under 60 seconds using pressures under 80 psi, and enabling easy operation without the need for special activation substances or high-pressure components.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If high pressure is used to carbonate liquid, then carbonation level is improved, but device complexity and safety requirements worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the temperature parameter to achieve high carbonation levels without high pressure. By cooling the liquid to near-freezing temperatures (0-4°C), the solubility of CO2 increases dramatically, allowing 3+ volumes of carbonation at pressures under 80 psi, thus resolving the contradiction between carbonation level and device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary cooling of the liquid before carbonation. The thermoelectric cooler pre-cools the precursor liquid in the carbonation tank, creating optimal conditions for high CO2 dissolution at low pressure, which eliminates the need for complex high-pressure equipment
2Productivity
If cooling system is added to carbonation tank, then carbonation efficiency is improved, but device complexity worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical compression cooling systems with a thermoelectric cooler (Peltier device). This solid-state cooling mechanism uses electrical current to create a temperature differential, providing efficient cooling without moving parts, thus improving carbonation efficiency while minimizing the increase in device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The thermoelectric cooler exploits the Peltier effect, where electrical current causes one side of the device to become cold and the other hot. This phase transition capability allows precise temperature control of the liquid, enhancing CO2 dissolution rates and overall carbonation efficiency
3Temperature
If duct outlet is at top for cooling, then heat dissipation is improved, but risk of liquid damage to electronics worsens
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the expected liquid flow path by designing the duct so that liquid accidentally introduced at the top outlet naturally drains back down to the bottom of the housing through gravity. This reversal of the harmful effect transforms a potential damage scenario into a self-correcting system where liquid flows away from sensitive electronics
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the electronics from the potential liquid exposure zone by positioning them at the bottom of the housing, separated from the duct outlet area. This spatial separation ensures that even if liquid accumulates in the duct, it cannot reach the electronic components, thus eliminating the harmful effect
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 system effectively produces highly carbonated beverages in a short time with controlled carbonation levels, using a user-friendly cartridge-based system that isolates gas sources and integrates cooling and mixing to enhance gas dissolution, reducing the need for high pressures and specialized handling.
Implementation Method 1
a thermoelectric device thermally coupled to the tank to cool precursor liquid in the tank
Implementation Method 2
A heat pipe may have an evaporator section and a condenser section with the evaporator section thermally coupled to the thermoelectric device to receive heat from the thermoelectric device
Implementation Method 3
the heat sink may be thermally coupled to the condenser section of the heat pipe to receive heat from the heat pipe
Implementation Method 4
The heat sink being positioned in the flow channel for contact with air passing through the flow channel, e.g., to transfer heat to air in the duct
Implementation Method 5
a mixer to agitate liquid in the tank, e.g., to aid in dissolution of gas into the liquid
Implementation Method 6
The tank may be arranged to receive a gas, such as carbon dioxide, under pressure to carbonate liquid in the tank
Data Source
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AI summary
A beverage making machine having a tank (6) may be arranged to carbonate and/or chill liquid in the tank. A heat sink (77) used to transfer heat from the liquid may be positioned in a duct located in a housing of the machine. Air may flow through the duct from a duct inlet to a duct outlet to receive heat from the heat sink. A precursor liquid supply inlet, e.g., an opening of a water reservoir, may be located near the duct outlet, and the duct may be arranged to conduct any liquid mistakenly provided into the duct outlet to a bottom of the machine, avoiding contact with electronic components of the machine.