Rotating Inlet Nozzle for Uniform Coffee Solute Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing beverage brewing systems often result in uneven extraction of solutes from slurries, leading to undesirable flavors and textures due to stationary inlet ports that fail to fully extract solutes from all portions of the slurry, causing bitter tastes and other unwanted properties in the brewed beverage.
Innovation Solution
A beverage brewing system that includes a rotating or spinning inlet nozzle within a beverage cartridge to deliver a stream of fluid that fluidizes the beverage medium, ensuring more thorough extraction of solutes and minimizing channeling and over-extraction, thereby enhancing the quality of the brewed beverage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If a stationary inlet port is used to deliver solvent to the slurry, then the device complexity is reduced, but the extraction uniformity deteriorates causing uneven solute extraction and bitter tastes
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet nozzle is made rotatable rather than stationary, allowing it to move dynamically within the slurry. This rotational movement enables the solvent stream to contact different portions of the slurry over time, achieving uniform extraction without requiring a complex multi-nozzle stationary system. The dynamic positioning resolves the contradiction by maintaining simplicity while improving extraction uniformity.
Solution Approach 2:
The solution transitions from a static single-point contact (stationary inlet port) to a time-based multi-point contact approach. By rotating the inlet nozzle, the system adds the time dimension to the extraction process, allowing one simple nozzle to effectively cover the entire slurry volume through sequential contact, thereby achieving uniform extraction without increasing device complexity.
2Device complexity
If a stationary inlet port is used, then the device structure is simplified, but the solute extraction completeness deteriorates leading to unwanted flavors
Solution Approach 1:
The rotatable inlet nozzle dynamically repositions the solvent delivery point throughout the slurry volume during the brewing process. This ensures that solvent contacts all portions of the slurry over time, achieving complete solute extraction and preventing unwanted flavors from incomplete extraction, while maintaining a simple single-nozzle structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The continuous rotation of the inlet nozzle during solvent delivery ensures uninterrupted and comprehensive contact between the solvent stream and all portions of the slurry. This continuous dynamic action guarantees complete extraction of desirable solutes while preventing the formation of unwanted flavors, all through a simple rotating mechanism.
3Ease of manufacture
If a stationary inlet port is used, then the manufacturing cost is reduced, but the beverage quality deteriorates due to over-extraction and channeling
Solution Approach 1:
The simple rotatable inlet nozzle design maintains low manufacturing costs while dramatically improving beverage quality. The rotation mechanism prevents channeling (where solvent takes paths of least resistance) and over-extraction of bitter compounds by evenly distributing solvent contact across the entire slurry volume, achieving uniform extraction without complex expensive systems.
Solution Approach 2:
By adding rotational movement to a simple nozzle, the system achieves uniform solvent distribution across the slurry without requiring a complex array of stationary nozzles. This time-based approach to spatial distribution maintains manufacturing simplicity while eliminating the channeling and over-extraction problems that degrade beverage quality.
4Manufacturing precision
If the inlet nozzle rotates during solvent delivery, then the extraction uniformity is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inlet nozzle is designed to rotate during solvent delivery, transforming from a static to a dynamic component. This single rotational degree of freedom provides comprehensive slurry coverage and uniform extraction without requiring multiple nozzles or complex positioning systems, thus improving extraction uniformity with minimal added complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds temporal dimension (rotation over time) to compensate for spatial limitation (single nozzle position). This allows one nozzle to effectively cover the entire three-dimensional slurry volume through sequential contact, achieving uniform extraction without the complexity of a multi-nozzle stationary system.
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 achieves a more uniform extraction of solutes, reducing bitter tastes and unwanted flavors, and produces a better-tasting beverage with improved crema formation, as the rotating nozzle ensures that the fluid interacts evenly with the beverage medium, resulting in a more consistent and desirable brewing outcome.
Implementation Method 1
deliver a stream or spray of fluid, e.g., water, that wets and fluidizes at least a portion of the beverage medium therein
Implementation Method 2
The solvent, and perhaps other fluids, infuse with the slurry (e.g., coffee grounds) in the cartridge, and the solute and solvent mixture (e.g., the beverage formed) is removed
Data Source
AI summary
The brewing system disclosed herein includes a moving inlet nozzle for use in intermixing hot water and coffee in a coffee cartridge. The inlet nozzle may include one or more flow ports that inject hot water into an inner chamber of the coffee cartridge at select angles, locations and pressures to create the desired fluidized mixture of hot water and beverage medium.