Beverage infusion system, method and apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10625219-B2
Application number	US-201715664810-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 31, 2017
Priority date	Apr 11, 2013
Publication date	Apr 21, 2020
Grant date	Apr 21, 2020

Abstract

Disclosed is a beverage dispensing machine and a gas infused beverage dispensing system which facilitates combination of gas with in a configuration which provides a smaller footprint and provides gas infusion of a beverage on demand. The system may be configured to produce only gas infused beverage or to allow the user to select gas infused beverage or chilled beverage, and, alternatively, ambient, unchilled beverage. A gas infuser of the system introduces gas to a chilled beverage stream using an injector with slots. This inline, on-demand gas infusion system provides benefits over infusion tank systems that gas infuse a relatively large volume of beverage in bulk.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A gas infusion assembly for use with a beverage dispensing system, the gas infusion assembly including a beverage inlet line, a gas line, a mixing portion, and a tubular outlet line;
the mixing portion including communication with the gas line, the beverage inlet line, and the tubular outlet line;
a tubular beverage injector in the mixing portion communicating with the beverage inlet line and being at least partially concentrically retained within a portion of the tubular outlet line, gas being controllably introduced into the mixing portion external to the tubular beverage injector;
the tubular beverage injector including openings to facilitate introduction of beverage into the gas flow and mixing of gas and beverage in a space provided between the outside of the tubular beverage injector and the inside of at least a concentric portion of the tubular outlet line for producing gas infused beverage to be dispensed from the tubular outlet line.

2. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 1 , wherein the openings in the tubular beverage injector further comprising slots formed in a wall of the tubular beverage injector.

3. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the slots in the tubular beverage injector are directed in an orientation generally upstream of the flow of beverage from the inlet line to enhance the interaction between gas and beverage in the mixing portion.

4. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 2 , wherein the slots are approximately 0.010 inches wide.

5. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 1 , the tubular outlet line further including a static mixer to enhance the mixing and combination of gas and beverage.

6. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 1 , wherein beverage flows in a first direction in the tubular beverage injector and gas flows in a second direction opposite the first direction in the space.

7. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 5 , wherein the static mixer is coupled to the tubular outlet line and comprises a spiral baffle with a section of clockwise auger twists and a section of counterclockwise auger twists.

8. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 5 , further comprising a flow restrictor downstream of the static mixer.

9. A beverage dispensing machine having a gas infusion assembly, the gas infusion assembly including a beverage inlet line, a gas line, a mixing portion, and a tubular outlet line;
the mixing portion including communication with the gas line, the beverage inlet line, and the tubular outlet line;
a tubular beverage injector in the mixing portion communicating with the beverage inlet line and being at least partially concentrically retained within a portion of the tubular outlet line, gas being controllably introduced into the mixing portion external to the tubular beverage injector;
the tubular beverage injector including openings to facilitate introduction of beverage into the gas flow and mixing of gas and beverage in a space provided between the outside of the tubular beverage injector and the concentric inside of at least a portion of the tubular outlet line for producing gas infused beverage to be dispensed from the tubular outlet line.

10. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 9 , wherein the openings in the tubular beverage injector further comprising slots formed in a wall of the tubular beverage injector.

11. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 10 , wherein the slots in the tubular beverage injector are directed in an orientation generally upstream of the flow of beverage from the inlet line to enhance the interaction between gas and beverage in the mixing portion.

12. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 10 , wherein the slots are approximately 0.010 inches wide.

13. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 9 , the tubular outlet line further including a static mixer to enhance the mixing and combination of gas and beverage.

14. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 9 , wherein beverage flows in a first direction in the tubular beverage injector and gas flows in a second direction opposite the first direction in the space.

15. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 13 , wherein the static mixer is coupled to the tubular outlet line and comprises a spiral baffle with a section of clockwise auger twists and a section of counterclockwise auger twists.

16. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 10 , wherein the slots are approximately 0.010 inches wide.

17. The gas infusion assembly as set forth in claim 13 , further comprising a flow restrictor downstream of the static mixer.

Assignees

• Bunn O Matic Corp

Inventors

• Bandixen Mark W
• Dyer Sheryl
• Wiley Donald E

Classifications

• B01F5/061

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F3/04787 Primary

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F5/0463

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F5/0451

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic

• B01F3/0446

  Operations & Transport · mapped topic