Beverage production device using centrifugation for extracting a liquid comprising heat loss compensating means

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10405689-B2
Application number	US-201314651701-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 11, 2013
Priority date	Dec 12, 2012
Publication date	Sep 10, 2019
Grant date	Sep 10, 2019

Abstract

Beverage production device for preparing a liquid extract by interaction between a liquid and food ingredients to form the liquid extract by effect of centrifugation of the liquid passing through the ingredients comprising:
a brewing unit ( 2 ) for receiving the food ingredients, a collecting unit ( 18 ) for collecting the liquid extract centrifuged outside the centrifugal unit, driving means connected to the centrifugal unit for driving the centrifugal unit in rotation, liquid supply means being connected to the centrifugal unit to supply liquid in the centrifugal unit, wherein the collecting unit ( 18 ) comprises a heater ( 10 ) for heating the liquid supplied in the centrifugal unit, said heater ( 10 ) being further arranged to heat the liquid extract after it leaves the brewing unit ( 2 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A beverage production device for preparing a liquid extract by interaction between a liquid and food ingredients to form the liquid extract by effect of centrifugation of the liquid passing through the food ingredients, the beverage production device comprising:
a brewing unit for receiving the food ingredients;
a collecting unit for collecting the liquid extract centrifuged outside the centrifugal unit;
a driver connected to the centrifugal unit for driving the centrifugal unit in rotation; and a liquid supply connected to the centrifugal unit to supply the liquid in the centrifugal unit, the collecting unit comprises a heater for heating the liquid supplied in the centrifugal unit, the heater arranged to heat the liquid extract after the liquid extract leaves the brewing unit, and
the collecting unit comprises a collecting cavity thermally connected with a heating block of the heater, the heater comprises a duct extending through the heating block, the liquid to be heated enters the heater through a section of the duct, and-the section of the duct is positioned such that the liquid in the section of the duct cools the collecting cavity, and the duct is a helicoidal duct comprising an inlet below the collecting unit a winding of the helicoidal duct arranged below the collecting unit the heicoidal duct configured for the liquid to be heated to enter the heating block through the inlet and be circulated through the winding of the helicoidal duct arranged below the collecting unit.

2. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein a temperature of the liquid extract leaving the beverage production device is no more than 10 degrees lower than a temperature of a supplied heated liquid in the brewing unit.

3. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the heater is a thermobloc heater, and the heating block comprises a massive metal block.

4. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the liquid extract is heated in the collecting cavity.

5. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the section of the duct is arranged close to the collecting cavity.

6. The beverage production device according to claim 5 , wherein the section extends in parallel to the collecting cavity.

7. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein a temperature difference between the collecting cavity and the liquid when the liquid leaves the heater is in a range between 8° C. and 20° C.

8. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein after a heat-up time, a temperature difference between the collecting cavity and the liquid when the liquid leaves the heater is a function of a liquid flow rate only.

9. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the brewing unit is configured to leave a small interstice or liquid outlets at a periphery of the brewing unit for the liquid extract to be centrifuged out of the centrifugal unit.

10. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the collecting unit comprises a impact wall placed at a certain distance or air gap from the brewing unit, and a U-shaped collecting part of the collecting unit forms a block with the heater to form a thermobloc including:
an inlet through which the liquid enters;
a chamber formed by the helicoidal duct through which the liquid is circulated; and an outlet through which the liquid leaves the thermobloc.

11. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the beverage production device is arranged to produce beverages of different predefined volumes and use different liquid flow rates for the different predefined volumes.

12. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the collecting unit comprises an impact wall dissociated from the heater.

13. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the collecting unit comprises a impact wall placed at a certain distance or air gap from the brewing unit, the impact wall is a tubular wall forming a surface of impact for the liquid and extending downwards in a U-shaped collecting part of the collecting unit which forms a block with the heater to form a thermobloc including:
the an-inlet through which the liquid enters;
a chamber formed by the helicoidal duct through which the liquid is circulated;
an outlet through which the liquid leaves the thermobloc; and
an annular resistive heating element that converts electrical energy supplied by a connector into heating energy, the heat supplied to a massive metal block of the thermobloc and through the massive metal block, to the liquid,
the U-shaped collecting part forming a part of a frame of the beverage production device or being connected thereto.

14. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the heating block is made of a material having a high thermal capacity for accumulating heat energy and a high thermal conductivity for transferring a required amount of accumulated heat to the liquid circulating through the duct.

15. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the collecting cavity abuts or is formed in the heating block.

16. The beverage production device according to claim 1 , wherein the collecting cavity and the section of the duct are both annular with similar cross-sections and arranged co-axially.

17. The beverage production device according to claim 12 , wherein the impact wall is positioned at a certain distance or air gap from a restriction valve of the brewing unit.

18. A centrifugal unit for a beverage production device, the centrifugal unit comprising:
a brewing unit for receiving food ingredients;
a collecting unit for collecting a liquid extract centrifuged outside the centrifugal unit; a driver connected to the centrifugal unit for driving the centrifugal unit in rotation; and a liquid supply connected to the centrifugal unit to supply a liquid in the centrifugal unit, the collecting unit comprises a heater for heating the liquid supplied in the centrifugal unit, the heater arranged to heat the liquid extract after the liquid extract leaves the brewing unit, and
the collecting unit comprising a collecting cavity thermally connected with a heating block of the heater, the heater comprises a duct extending through the heating block, the liquid to be heated enters the heater through a section of the duct, and-the section of the duct is positioned such that the liquid in the section of the duct cools the collecting cavity, and the duct is a helicoidal duct comprising an inlet below the collecting unit and a winding of the helicoidal duct arranged below the collecting unit the heicoidal duct configured for the liquid to be heated to enter the heating block through the inlet and be circulated through the winding of the helicoidal duct arranged below the collecting unit.

19. The centrifugal unit according to claim 18 , wherein the section of the duct is arranged close to the collecting cavity, cooling the collecting cavity down to a temperature below a temperature of the liquid exiting the heater to be supplied to the centrifugal unit.

20. The centrifugal unit according to claim 18 , wherein the collecting cavity abuts or is formed in the heating block.

Assignees

• Nestec Sa
• Nestle Sa

Inventors

• Perentes Alexandre
• Yoakim Alfred
• Colantonio Jean-Luc
• Staub Andreas

Classifications

• A47J31/22 Primary

  Centrifuges for producing filtered coffee (A47J31/20 takes precedence) · CPC title