Cold plate prechill circuit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing beverage dispensers struggle to maintain consistent temperature control between carbonated and plain water outputs, leading to perceived quality differences and suboptimal cooling efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A cold plate with a prechill and postchill circuit configuration, including a prechill circuit for plain water, a coplanar plain water postchill circuit, and a carbonated water postchill circuit, with varying switchback lengths to enhance cooling efficiency and temperature consistency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a single cold plate circuit is used for both carbonated and plain water, then device complexity is reduced, but temperature consistency between the two outputs deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The cold plate circuit is segmented into three distinct circuits: a prechill circuit that serves both carbonated and plain water, and separate postchill circuits for each water type. This segmentation allows independent temperature control for carbonated and plain water outputs while sharing common cooling infrastructure, thereby achieving temperature consistency without excessive complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The prechill circuit performs preliminary cooling of both carbonated and plain water before they enter their respective postchill circuits. This preliminary action ensures that both water types start at a similar baseline temperature, making it easier to achieve consistent final temperatures after the separate postchilling stages.
2Measurement precision
If separate postchill circuits are used for carbonated and plain water, then temperature control precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The prechill circuit merges the cooling paths for carbonated and plain water into a single common circuit before they diverge into separate postchill circuits. This merging reduces the total number of components and simplifies the overall system architecture while still allowing for precise independent control in the postchill stage.
Solution Approach 2:
The postchill circuits are designed with different lengths and configurations tailored to the specific cooling requirements of carbonated versus plain water. The plain water postchill circuit is longer to provide additional cooling for plain water, while the carbonated water postchill circuit is shorter since carbonation provides additional cooling effect. This local customization achieves precise temperature control without requiring completely separate systems.
3Ease of operation
If the cold plate cools both carbonated and plain water equally, then ease of operation is improved, but cooling efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The postchill circuits are designed with different lengths based on the specific cooling needs of each water type. The plain water postchill circuit is longer to provide adequate cooling for plain water, while the carbonated water postchill circuit is shorter because carbonation itself provides a cooling effect. This differentiated design optimizes cooling efficiency for each stream while maintaining simple operation through automated flow control.
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 solution achieves more consistent temperature performance between carbonated and plain water outputs, improving customer perception of quality and extending ice longevity in beverages.
Implementation Method 1
A tubing system is embedded within the cold plate body. The tubing system includes a prechill circuit, a plain water postchill circuit fluidly connected to the prechill circuit, and a carbonated water postchill circuit fluidly connected to the prechill circuit
Implementation Method 2
The cold plate is typically made of copper or aluminum and contains a series of lines run through the cold plate. The cold plate is positioned at the bottom of a hopper of the ice dispensing system. The ice for the ice dispensing system cools the cold plate.
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A cold plate (26) includes a cold plate body (27). A tubing system (100) is embedded within the cold plate body (27). The tubing system includes a prechill circuit (100A), a plain water postchill circuit (100B) fluidly connected to the prechill circuit, and a carbonated water postchill circuit (100C) fluidly connected to the prechill circuit.