Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47J—KITCHEN EQUIPMENT; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; APPARATUS FOR MAKING BEVERAGES
  • A47J31/00—Apparatus for making beverages
  • A47J31/44—Parts or details or accessories of beverage-making apparatus
  • A47J31/46—Dispensing spouts, pumps, drain valves or like liquid transporting devices
  • A47J31/462—Dispensing spouts, pumps, drain valves or like liquid transporting devices with an intermediate liquid storage tank
  • A47J31/467—Dispensing spouts, pumps, drain valves or like liquid transporting devices with an intermediate liquid storage tank for the infusion
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
  • A47J—KITCHEN EQUIPMENT; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; APPARATUS FOR MAKING BEVERAGES
  • A47J31/00—Apparatus for making beverages
  • A47J31/40—Beverage-making apparatus with dispensing means for adding a measured quantity of ingredients, e.g. coffee, water, sugar, cocoa, milk, tea
  • A47J31/405—Beverage-making apparatus with dispensing means for adding a measured quantity of ingredients, e.g. coffee, water, sugar, cocoa, milk, tea with one or more infusion chambers moving successively between loading, infusing and dumping stations
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L37/00—Couplings of the quick-acting type
  • F16L37/26—Couplings of the quick-acting type in which the connection is made by transversely moving the parts together, with or without their subsequent rotation
• • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
  • F16—ENGINEERING ELEMENTS AND UNITS; GENERAL MEASURES FOR PRODUCING AND MAINTAINING EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF MACHINES OR INSTALLATIONS; THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L—PIPES; JOINTS OR FITTINGS FOR PIPES; SUPPORTS FOR PIPES, CABLES OR PROTECTIVE TUBING; MEANS FOR THERMAL INSULATION IN GENERAL
  • F16L37/00—Couplings of the quick-acting type
  • F16L37/58—Couplings of the quick-acting type the extremities of the two halves of the joint being pressed against each other without being locked in position

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a fast-connect hydraulic fitting for draining a beverage from a percolating cup of a coffee machine.
• the present invention may be used to advantage in coffee machines of the type in which the, or each, percolating cup is mounted to move through a percolating position, in which the outlet of a drain conduit of the cup is aligned with the inlet of a fixed intake conduit to feed the percolated beverage to an external nozzle or to another part of the machine, if the beverage is processed further.
• a fast-connect hydraulic fitting between the drain conduit of the cup and the fixed intake conduit is often extremely difficult to produce, mainly on account of the drain conduit normally being moved towards and into alignment with the intake conduit in a direction substantially crosswise to the intake conduit axis, thus precluding straightforward axial connection of the conduits .
• Figure 1 shows a detail in perspective of a coffee machine featuring a preferred embodiment of the hydraulic fitting according to the present invention and shown in an idle position;
• Figure 2 shows a partly sectioned side view of the Figure 1 detail, with the hydraulic fitting in a work position;
• Figure 3 shows a larger-scale view of the Figure 2 fitting
• Figure 4 shows a section along line IV-IV in Figure 3.
• BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Number 1 in Figure 1 indicates as a whole a fast- connect hydraulic fitting for fluidtight connecting a drain conduit 3 of a percolating cup 4 of a coffee machine 2 to an intake conduit 5, by which a percolated beverage is fed to a beverage dispensing nozzle (not shown) or to another part of the machine, if the beverage is processed further before being dispensed.
• cup 4 is mounted on a rotor ⁇ , which is preferably fitted with other cups 4 (identical or not to the one shown) equally spaced along the periphery of rotor 6.
• Rotor 6 is fitted to an end portion of a shaft 7, which is fitted through a fixed supporting wall 8 and rotates about a substantially horizontal axis 9 to feed cups 4 in steps along a circular path P coaxial with axis 9, and to selectively position each cup 4 in a percolating position ( Figure 2) , in which cup 4 cooperates with a pressurized-hot-water sprinkler (not shown) to define, with the sprinkler, a fluidtight percolating chamber.
• Each cup 4 is a cup-shaped body comprising a bottom wall 10; and a substantially cylindrical lateral wall 11 defining, with bottom wall 10, a percolating half-chamber 12 bounded along its free edge by a circular outer flange.
• a perforated disk 13 at the bottom of percolating half-chamber 12 acts as a filter for the percolated beverage, and separates the inside of half-chamber 12 from a conical catch surface tapering towards the inlet of a beverage outflow channel 14.
• cup 4 for receiving a measure of ground coffee (not shown) , or a filter-paper wafer, or a rigid perforated capsule (both known and not shown) .
• cup 4 is designed to receive a known sealed capsule; in which case, perforated disk 13 at the bottom of half-chamber 12 is replaced by a known piercing device with needles facing inwards of half-chamber 12 to pierce a bottom wall of the capsule to permit outflow of the beverage.
• outflow channel 14 has an axis 15 sloping towards axis 9, and is formed partly through bottom wall 10 and partly along drain conduit 3, which is coaxial with axis 15 and projects from bottom wall 10 towards supporting wall 8.
• a tubular member 16 of elastically deformable material is fitted to the end portion of drain conduit 3, and has an end portion 17 projecting axially from the end of drain conduit 3.
• Tubular member 16 forms part of fitting 1, which also comprises a funnel 18 connected rigidly to the free end of intake conduit 5, and which, as explained in detail below, cooperates with tubular .member 16, when drain conduit 3 is in the percolating position ( Figures 2 and 3) , to fluidtight connect drain conduit 3 to intake conduit 5.
• funnel 18 has an axis 19, and is connected to intake conduit 5 by a tubular body 20 coaxial with axis 19 and inserted through a hole formed in a tilted portion 21 of supporting wall 8.
• Tubular body 20 and intake conduit 5 are connected by a cylindrical end portion of tubular body 20 located on the opposite side of portion 21 to funnel 18 and inserted inside a corresponding end of intake conduit 5.
• Tubular body 20 is locked axially to portion 21 of wall 8 by a flange 22, which is pressed against portion 21 by a nut screwed to a threaded portion of tubular body 20 on the opposite side of portion 21 to the flange.
• funnel 18 has a central hole of a diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of tubular member 16, has an outside diameter equal to at least 4/5 times the diameter of the central hole, and is bounded, on the side facing cup 4, by a concave surface 23 with its concavity facing cup 4.
• Funnel 18 is made of rigid plastic material, and may be fitted rigidly and locked axially to tubular body 20 or form an integral part of tubular body 20.
• funnel 18 has a transverse hole, in which is inserted a vent pipe 24 for releasing any air bubbles forming at fitting 1.
• fitting 1 has no vent pipe 24.
• surface 23 is located in the percolating position to interfere with path P of portion 17 of tubular member 16, so that, when portion 17 is moved, together with cup 4, along path P into the percolating position in a direction crosswise to axis 19, surface 23 intercepts portion 17, which advances and deforms elastically to click inside and engage surface 23 in fluidtight manner when cup 4 ( Figure 4) is arrested in the percolating position.
• portion 21 of wall 8 must be so tilted that, when cup 4 is in the percolating position, axis 19 of funnel 18 is substantially aligned with axis 15 of tubular member 16 to achieve uniform pressure of portion 17 on concave surface 23.
• axis 19 of funnel 18 is substantially aligned with axis 15 of tubular member 16 to achieve uniform pressure of portion 17 on concave surface 23.
• also or only funnel 18 is made of elastically deformable material.
• fitting 1 provides for fast, fluidtight connection of drain conduit 3 of cup 4 to fixed intake conduit 5, is extremely straightforward and cheap to produce, and is connected and disconnected automatically simply by the movement of cup 4, with no additional actuating members required.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Food Science & Technology (AREA)
• Apparatus For Making Beverages (AREA)
• Joints Allowing Movement (AREA)
• Tea And Coffee (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=38566830

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Families Citing this family (1)

Family Cites Families (2)

• 2006
  • 2006-05-05 IT ITTO20060330 patent/ITTO20060330A1/it unknown
• 2007
  • 2007-05-07 WO PCT/IB2007/001173 patent/WO2007129204A2/en not_active Ceased
  • 2007-05-07 EP EP07734489A patent/EP2019613A2/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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