Hot beverage dispensing system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing coffee machines struggle to rapidly adjust water temperature for different types of beverages, such as coffee and tea, requiring significant time to change temperature settings and failing to maintain accurate temperature control for diverse beverage extraction needs.
Innovation Solution
A hot beverage dispensing system with a diverter mechanism and dual conduit system, allowing rapid temperature adjustment between hotter and less hot circuits, controlled by a control unit to manage water flow through resistances and sensors for precise temperature management.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single water circuit with a heated metal dispensing unit is used to maintain stable beverage temperature, then temperature repeatability is excellent, but the time required to change temperature between different beverages is several minutes
Solution Approach 1:
The single water circuit is segmented into two separate circuits: a first water circuit for delivering water at a first temperature and a second water circuit for delivering water at a second temperature. This segmentation allows the system to maintain stable temperature repeatability for each beverage type while enabling rapid temperature changes by simply switching between circuits rather than heating or cooling the entire dispensing unit.
Solution Approach 2:
Water is pre-heated or pre-cooled in separate circuits before reaching the dispensing unit. The first water circuit prepares water at the first temperature and the second water circuit prepares water at the second temperature in advance, so when a temperature change is needed, the system can immediately switch to the pre-prepared circuit without waiting for thermal adjustment of the dispensing unit.
2Productivity
If the water temperature is rapidly changed for different beverage types, then versatility and productivity are improved, but temperature control precision and stability become more difficult to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the water circuit into temperature-specific pathways, each circuit can be optimized for its designated temperature range with dedicated heating or cooling elements, maintaining precise temperature control while enabling rapid switching between different temperature requirements for different beverages.
Solution Approach 2:
Temperature sensors are implemented in each water circuit to provide feedback control, ensuring that the first water circuit maintains the first temperature and the second water circuit maintains the second temperature with high precision, allowing rapid temperature changes without sacrificing control accuracy.
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 rapid temperature changes of up to 10°C within 5 seconds, ensuring accurate and efficient temperature control for various beverages, integrating seamlessly into conventional coffee machines.
Implementation Method 1
a first resistance arranged in the first water circuit to heat water to a first temperature
Implementation Method 2
a second resistance arranged in the second water circuit to heat water to a second temperature
Implementation Method 3
The control unit (U) is operatively connected to the diverter (5) to control the diverter (5) so as to enable the first conduit (6) of the hotter circuit (A) or the second conduit (7) of the less hot circuit (B)
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 1A
Figure 2
AI summary
A hot beverage dispensing system (100) comprises a diverter (5) that can switch between a first conduit (6) of a hotter water circuit (A) and a second conduit (7) of a less hot water circuit (B) in such a way to vary a dispensing temperature (To) of the hot water to extract the beverage in a shortest time possible.