Modular Dispensing Nozzle for Beverage Mixing and Cleaning
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current post-mix beverage dispenser nozzles face issues with flavor carryover, adaptability for different viscosities, flow rates, and temperatures, and are not easily modifiable for various beverages, leading to inefficiencies and maintenance challenges.
Innovation Solution
A modular dispensing nozzle design featuring a main body with replaceable water and syrup modules, each with customizable outlet holes and flow orientations to accommodate various beverages, ensuring effective mixing and easy modification for different fluid characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a water flush is used to clean the syrup chamber and prevent color carry over, then cleaning effectiveness is improved, but it may not be effective with all types of syrups and flavor carryover still occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the cleaning function from the main dispensing pathway by introducing a separate cleaning fluid pathway that delivers cleaning fluid directly to the syrup chamber through a dedicated cleaning fluid outlet. This separate pathway allows cleaning fluid to be introduced without interfering with the normal dispensing operation, enabling effective cleaning of syrups that resist conventional water flushing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a cleaning fluid as an intermediary substance that mediates the cleaning process. This cleaning fluid is delivered through a separate pathway and can be selected or formulated to be effective against specific syrup types, providing a more targeted and effective cleaning solution than universal water flushing.
2Device complexity
If a single nozzle design is used for multiple beverages, then device complexity is reduced, but adaptability for different viscosities, flow rates, and temperatures is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a universal nozzle body that can accommodate multiple different syrup modules, each designed for specific beverage types with different viscosities, flow rates, and temperatures. The standardized interface between the nozzle body and syrup modules allows a single nozzle design to serve multiple functions across different beverage applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the nozzle system into a reusable nozzle body and replaceable syrup modules. This segmentation allows the main structural components to remain simple and universal while the functional syrup modules can be optimized for specific beverage characteristics, enabling adaptability without increasing overall system complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the nozzle is hard-plumbed for different types of fluid flow, then adaptability for different beverages is improved, but modification of the beverage dispenser becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces hard-plumbed, fixed connections with a dynamic, interchangeable module system. The syrup modules can be easily attached and detached from the nozzle body through a standardized interface, allowing the system to adapt to different fluid flow requirements without permanent modifications to the dispenser infrastructure.
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 modular design allows for efficient mixing and reduced flavor carryover, accommodating a range of beverages with different viscosities and temperatures, and facilitates easy maintenance and modification, enhancing user experience and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The outlet holes may be angled to mix the second fluid into the first fluid
Implementation Method 2
A water module may include a stream director for the water stream. The stream director may include a number of ribs. The ribs may define a number of channels.
Implementation Method 3
A number of syrup modules surrounding the water module for directing one of the syrup streams towards the stream director and the water stream
Data Source
AI summary
A dispensing nozzle for mixing a first fluid and one or more second fluids to form a third fluid. The nozzle may include a first fluid pathway and a number of replaceable second fluid modules surrounding at least in part the first fluid pathway.