JPH01169593A - Method for heating drink canned food of automatic vending machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten a waiting time by maintaining canned food to a temperature lower than the lower limit temperature of a temperature area where the quality change of the contents drink of the caned food is larger and close to the lower limit temperature before the canned food are inserted into a heating device. CONSTITUTION:Drink caned foods A to be filled with milk coffee are accommodated to an automatic vending machine, the air in an enclosure 1 is heated by an electric range 5, the air is agitated by a fan 2, the upper and lower temperatures in the enclosure 1 are approximately made into the same, and the temperature in the enclosure 1 is maintained to the temperature (39-41 deg.C) lower than the lower limit temperature of a temperature area where the quality change of the contents drink of the canned foods A is larger and close to the lower limit temperature by a temperature controller 3. Next, a coin is put into a coin inputting port, the selecting button of the canned foods is depressed, and then, a stopper 6 is descended, the lowest caned food A of a canned foods accommodating frame 4 is rotated out, enter the inside of a high frequency induction heating device 7, heated, and arrives through a guide plate 9 to an output port 10.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) This invention inserts canned beverages stored in a vending machine one by one into a high-frequency heating device installed in the vending machine based on a signal. The present invention relates to an improvement in a method for heating canned beverages to a predetermined temperature.

(Prior Art) A method for heating canned beverages in a vending machine using a high-frequency induction heating device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 56-2758. In this conventional method, canned beverages stored in a vending machine are left unheated and inserted into a high-frequency induction heating device, as canned beverages usually have a lifespan of 6 months to several years when stored at room temperature. When heating the canned beverage, a temperature detector detects the temperature of the canned beverage, and based on this temperature, the time required for heating with a high-frequency induction heating device is controlled to raise the canned beverage to a predetermined temperature. be.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) In general, if it takes more than 10 seconds for the canned beverage to come out after inserting coins into a vending machine and pressing the canned selection button, the waiting time feels long and becomes irritating. This irritation becomes even more severe when purchasing canned beverages from vending machines installed outdoors, especially in the winter when many heated beverages are consumed.

However, when using the conventional method, there is a problem that this waiting time is long.

An object of the present invention is to provide a heating method that solves the above-mentioned problems in vending machines.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention has provided that canned beverages housed in a vending machine are heated to a temperature lower than the lower limit temperature of a temperature range where the quality of the beverage largely changes. The canned beverage maintained at this temperature is inserted into a high-frequency induction heating device and heated to a predetermined temperature.

(Function) Since the method of the present invention has the above-mentioned steps, for example, even in a vending machine installed outdoors in the cold winter, canned beverages stored in the vending machine can be maintained at the set temperature in advance. The high-frequency induction heating device is used only to heat the drink from this temperature to a predetermined temperature suitable for drinking. Therefore, in winter when the temperature is not maintained at -
Compared to the conventional method of heating canned beverages at temperatures close to the outdoor temperature, the heating time with the high-frequency induction heating device can be significantly reduced. The time can be reduced by the same amount,
Waiting time will be shorter.

(Example) Examples of the present invention will be described below.

This example was carried out using a vending machine whose main parts are shown in FIG. 1. The vending machine shown in FIG. 1 has an air circulation fan 2 on the ceiling wall 1a of a box 1 surrounded by a heat insulating wall, and a temperature control device 3 including a temperature detection sensor on the upper part of the back wall 1b. An electric heater 5 is provided below the beverage can storage frame 4.
has.

Note that 6 is a stopper provided at the lower end of the housing frame 4;
8 is a high-frequency induction heating device with a frequency of 7.5 Hz, a high-frequency output voltage of 120 cm, and a high-frequency output type cuff KW that heats the inserted canned beverage A to a predetermined temperature; 8 is a support device that supports the canned beverage A; , 9 are guide plates for guiding the canned beverage A-1 heated by the high-frequency induction heating device 7 to the outlet 10.

This canned beverage vending machine stores canned beverage A, which has a steel can body containing 250 g and is filled with milk coffee,
The air inside the box 1 is heated by an electric heater 5, the air is stirred by a fan 2 to make the upper and lower temperatures in the box 1 almost the same, and the temperature inside the box 1 is adjusted to 39°C by a temperature control device 3. The temperature was maintained at ~41°C.

Next, insert a coin into the coin slot (not shown) and press the canned selection button, the stopper 6 will lower in response to a signal, and the bottom beverage can A (this is 39~
(heated to 41°C) rolls out of the storage frame and enters the high-frequency induction heating device 7 in an upright state, is supported by the support device 8, and is heated here for a predetermined time (3 seconds in this example). The canned beverage (55° C. in this example) A-1 was formed, and the arm 8a of the support device 8 rotated horizontally about the shaft 8b, so that it fell onto the guide plate 9 and reached the outlet 10.

The operation of the stopper 6, the heating time control of the high-frequency induction heating device 7, and the operation of the support device 8 are performed by signals from a known electric control device.

The heating time (3 seconds) in this example is 7 seconds compared to the conventional method in which there is no pre-warming of the canned beverage A in the box 1 and the temperature of the canned beverage is, for example, 5°C.
The time it takes is much shorter, and the time it takes from inserting a coin and pressing the canned food selection button until the canned beverage comes out at the takeout port is reduced by about 7 seconds, reducing the conventional waiting time by about 70%. The shortening effect was remarkable.

The canned milk coffee beverage heated to 39 to 41°C had good quality without any bacterial deterioration or chemical deterioration even after being stored for 3 weeks.

In addition, the vending machine has amazake (main ingredients: sugar, rice malt,
250g made of steel filled with sake lees, salt, acidulant)
The air inside the box body 1 is maintained at 34 to 35°C, and the canned sweet sake beverage heated to 34 to 35°C is heated to the above-mentioned high frequency by putting in hardening and pressing the canned selection button. After heating with an induction heating device for 4 seconds, it was taken out from the outlet. This canned amazake beverage had been heated to approximately 55°C and was ready to drink. Moreover, this heated amazake maintained the same color tone as before filling the can.

Furthermore, in health drinks containing vitamin C, the above 2
The canned food, which was heated to 34-35°C for 4 seconds using a high-frequency induction heating device in the same manner as in the example, was heated to about 55°C, and the decrease in vitamin C content was extremely small.

In addition, when the canned milk coffee drink is maintained at a temperature of 45°C, some of it deteriorates, and when the canned sweet sake drink is maintained at a temperature of 40°C, a change in color can be visually discerned, and it is a vitamin C-containing health drink. When canned food is maintained at a temperature of 40°C, vitamin C decreases by 20% in 4 weeks.

Changes in the quality of canned liquid include changes in color and aroma, and a decrease in vitamin content, in addition to changes caused by bacteria.
The lower limit of the temperature range where these undesirable phenomena occur, ie, the set temperature, can be determined as appropriate through experiments.

In addition, in Fig. 1, a cooling machine 11 is provided, but this may be used, for example, if the place where the vending machine is installed is heated, and the quality of canned drinks will change if kept at that temperature for a long period of time. In addition, the cooler is used to lower and maintain the temperature of the canned beverage to a temperature that does not affect the quality.

In addition, in Figure 1, there is a cooler 11 and an electric heater 5 in the vending machine.
However, if the temperature at the location where the vending machine is installed does not change the quality of the canned beverage and does not rise to that temperature, a cooler is not necessary.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the present invention, canned beverages are maintained at a temperature lower than the lower limit temperature of the temperature range where the quality of the beverage changes significantly and close to the lower limit temperature, and when the consumer purchases the beverage, Since canned beverages are heated to a predetermined temperature using a high-frequency induction heating device, the long waiting time can be extremely frustrating compared to heating canned beverages that are not maintained at that temperature and are close to outdoor temperatures in winter. In the cold season when food tends to become cold, the effect is that the time from when coins are inserted and the canned food selection button is pressed to when the canned food comes out from the outlet can be significantly shortened.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the arrangement of main parts of a vending machine used in an embodiment of the present invention. Δ: Canned beverage (canned beverage maintained at a set temperature), A-
canned beverage heated to a predetermined temperature, 3: temperature control device, 5
: Electric heater, 7: High frequency induction heating device.

Claims (3)

[Claims] (1) In the canned beverage heating method, the canned beverages stored in a canned beverage vending machine equipped with a high-frequency induction heating device are inserted one by one into the heating device based on a command and heated to a predetermined temperature, wherein the automatic Before inserting the canned beverages housed in the vending machine into the heating device, the canned beverages are heated in advance to a temperature lower than the lower limit temperature of the temperature range where the quality of the beverage contained in the canned beverage changes significantly and close to the lower limit temperature. A method for heating canned beverages in a vending machine, characterized in that it is maintained. (2) The method for heating canned beverages according to claim 1, wherein the canned beverage filled with milk coffee is maintained at a maximum temperature of 40°C. (3) The method for heating canned beverages according to claim 1, wherein the amazake-filled canned food is maintained at a maximum temperature of 35°C.