Smart energy-saving device for automatic blending drinks
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional beverage automation equipment faces challenges such as high manufacturing and maintenance costs, high electricity consumption, low beverage preparation efficiency, and inaccurate beverage outflow due to complex structures involving conveyors and mechanical arms, which are inefficient and prone to errors like overflow or underflow.
Innovation Solution
A smart energy-saving device with a single station structure that uses bar code recognition, multiple sensors, and a feedback control system to accurately control beverage outflow, incorporating beverage barrels, manifolds, ice-storing devices, servomotors, and a control module to manage water and ice dispensing, and includes features like fault detection and automatic cleaning.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If conveyor or mechanical arm is adopted for beverage preparation, then automation level is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the conveyor and mechanical arm components from the beverage preparation system, retaining only the essential dispensing functionality. This extraction eliminates the complex moving parts while maintaining automated beverage delivery through a simplified stationary structure with multiple dispensing points.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical conveyor and arm system with a stationary dispensing structure that uses controlled fluid flow and gravity-based delivery. The mechanical movement system is substituted with a fixed architecture that achieves beverage preparation through controlled dispensing rather than physical transport.
2Extent of automation
If conveyor or mechanical arm is used for beverage preparation, then automation is improved, but electricity consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the energy-consuming mechanical movement components (conveyor and mechanical arm) from the system. The remaining stationary dispensing structure requires minimal electricity for control systems and sensors, dramatically reducing overall energy consumption while preserving automated beverage preparation capability.
3Extent of automation
If multiple stations with conveyor or mechanical arm are adopted, then beverage preparation automation is improved, but beverage preparation efficiency decreases due to speed limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple beverage dispensing functions into a single stationary station with multiple dispensing points. Instead of requiring sequential transport through multiple stations, the system provides simultaneous access to various beverages at one location, eliminating transport time and improving preparation speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a linear sequential arrangement (conveyor moving cups through multiple stations in one dimension) to a radial or multi-point dispensing configuration where multiple beverages are accessible simultaneously from a single station, adding spatial dimensionality to the dispensing process and eliminating sequential delays.
4Extent of automation
If flow meters and solenoid valves with power-on time control are used, then automation is improved, but beverage outflow accuracy deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates weight sensors that provide real-time feedback on beverage dispensing amounts. The system continuously monitors the weight of dispensed beverages and adjusts the solenoid valve operation accordingly, creating a closed-loop control system that ensures precise outflow accuracy rather than relying solely on predetermined power-on time settings.
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
This solution enhances efficiency and energy savings by allowing beverage preparation in a single station without conveyors or mechanical arms, achieving precise control of beverage output, fault detection, and automatic cleaning, making it suitable for beverage shops.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of flowmeters, each being disposed on the beverage tube and adopted to produce flow data
Implementation Method 2
a plurality of beverage-cup-weight sensors, each being disposed on the beverage station and adopted to produce a beverage-cup-weight datum
Implementation Method 3
a plurality of bar code readers, each being disposed on the U-shape structure and adopted to recognize the bar code for acquiring beverage data
Implementation Method 4
a plurality of pressure sensors, each being disposed in the manifold and adopted to produce a beverage pressure datum
Data Source
AI summary
A smart energy-saving device for automatic blending drinks, adopted to inject beverages into at least one beverage cup that comprises a bar code, comprises: beverage barrels; manifolds; at least one ice-storing device including at least one ice outlet, at least one servomotor, a stirring rod, and at least one thruster; beverage stations; collection mechanisms including ring structures, ice inlets, water inlets, and beverage tubes; and a control module including flowmeters, water valve switches, beverage-cup-weight sensors, beverage-barrel-weight sensors, at least one ice-beverage-barrel-weight sensor, pressure sensors, bar code readers, infrared scanners; and a controller.