Drinking system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing drinking systems using fragrance pods for retronasal olfaction suffer from inconsistent fragrance release, limited taste experience due to low aroma concentration, excessive plastic use, and inefficient mixing of aromas with water, leading to a cumbersome replacement process and limited taste sensation.
Innovation Solution
A drinking system with a liquid aroma medium containing dissolved or emulsified fragrances and flavorings, utilizing a two-step mixing process to achieve a higher dilution ratio and consistent aroma delivery, allowing for both retronasal olfaction and conventional taste experience, with a refillable container design to reduce plastic waste.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a fragrance pod with storage medium is used for retronasal olfaction, then the drinking water acquires a perceived taste through smell, but the fragrance release decreases continuously over time leading to inconsistent taste experience
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state of the fragrance from solid storage medium to liquid form. This parameter change enables consistent fragrance release through dissolution in the drinking water, maintaining constant concentration and taste perception throughout the container's usage period, thereby resolving the inconsistency and duration limitations of fragrance pods
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses the liquid fragrance directly in contact with the drinking water through hydraulic interaction. The liquid fragrance dissolves in the water as it passes through the container, providing consistent aromatic enrichment without the degradation issues of solid storage media, thus improving reliability and extending effective duration
2Quantity of substance
If air is sucked into the drinking straw to carry fragrance, then retronasal olfaction occurs, but the amount of fragrance absorbed is limited due to bubble formation reducing drinking experience
Solution Approach 1:
The patent eliminates the need for air suction by using direct liquid-liquid contact between the fragrance and drinking water. The liquid fragrance dissolves in the water through hydraulic interaction as it flows through the container, delivering sufficient fragrance quantity without creating bubbles that would degrade the drinking experience
Solution Approach 2:
The drinking water itself acts as an intermediary medium that carries the liquid fragrance directly to the user. This eliminates the need for air as a carrier gas, allowing for more efficient fragrance delivery without bubble formation, thus resolving the contradiction between fragrance quantity and drinking experience
3Quantity of substance
If a fragrance pod with storage medium is used, then fragrance can be contained and released, but excessive plastic packaging is required leading to high plastic usage
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the fragrance from its enclosed plastic pod format and places it in an open liquid state within the drinking water container. This eliminates the need for additional plastic packaging while maintaining effective fragrance containment through direct dissolution in the water, thereby reducing plastic waste without compromising fragrance delivery
4Quantity of substance
If concentrated fragrance is used in the drinking water, then intense taste experience is achieved, but the mixing ratio becomes extremely high requiring precise control
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid fragrance performs self-dilution by automatically dissolving in the drinking water as it flows through the container. This self-regulating dissolution process achieves the desired mixing ratio without requiring complex external mixing mechanisms, thereby maintaining high aroma concentration while minimizing device complexity
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 provides a more intense and consistent taste experience, reduces plastic usage, and allows users to clearly recognize when the aroma medium needs refilling, enhancing user convenience and taste perception through both retronasal olfaction and tongue receptors.
Implementation Method 1
a liquid aroma medium which contains fragrances and/or flavorings in dissolved or emulsified and thus diluted form
Implementation Method 2
is mixed there with the liquid sucked into the drinking straw from the drinking vessel
Implementation Method 3
The suction flow mixes the liquid aroma medium with the drinking liquid
Implementation Method 4
air can be sucked into the liquid-to-be-drunk
Implementation Method 5
the water seems to have a taste different from the taste of pure water due to the sensory phenomenon known as retronasal olfaction, whereby fragrances carried in the air via the mouth and throat are perceived by the sense of smell
Implementation Method 6
fragrances and/or flavorings in dissolved or emulsified form
Implementation Method 7
fragrances and/or flavorings in dissolved or emulsified and thus diluted form
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a drinking system (1) witha drinking vessel (2) defining a receiving chamber (3) for a liquid,a drinking straw (4) arranged on the drinking vessel (2), projecting from the drinking vessel (2) and guided into the receiving chamber (3), with a first end having an inlet opening (5) which projects towards a base of the receiving chamber (3), and with a second end having a drinking opening (6), and with a suction channel (7) between the inlet opening (5) and the drinking opening (6), andan aroma reservoir (8) connected with the drinking straw (4) via an inflow channel (9).According to the invention, the drinking system is characterized in that the aroma reservoir (8) contains a liquid aroma medium which contains fragrances and/or flavorings in dissolved or emulsified and thus diluted form and which, when liquid is sucked from the drinking vessel (2) through the drinking straw (4), is sucked through the inflow channel (9) into the drinking straw (4) and is mixed there with the liquid sucked into the drinking straw (4) from the drinking vessel (3).