U.S. patent application number 17/067546 was filed with the patent office on 2021-03-04 for additive delivery control systems and methods.
The applicant listed for this patent is Cirkul, Inc.. Invention is credited to DAVID W BAARMAN, ANDREW GAY, GARRETT S. WAGGONER.
Application Number | 20210060503 17/067546 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005212006 |
Filed Date | 2021-03-04 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20210060503 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
WAGGONER; GARRETT S. ; et
al. |
March 4, 2021 |
ADDITIVE DELIVERY CONTROL SYSTEMS AND METHODS
Abstract
A modular flow monitoring package (MFMP) is provided for use in
an additive delivery system. The MFMP may be manufactured as an
add-on to be added to an existing additive delivery system, or may
be incorporated into a cartridge or container structure. The MFMP
includes a flow sensor for sensing flow of a base fluid and user
actuator position sensors for sensing the position of one or more
user actuated additive flow adjustment levers. A visual display,
which may comprise an array of multi-color LED's may convey
information to a user that is relevant to a user's use of the
additive delivery system or the user's nutritional needs. Such
information may include a current dosage of additive, being
delivered, whether a recommended dosage of additive has been
consumed, remaining life of a cartridge or supply of additive, and
other data relative to health or performance monitoring.
Inventors: |
WAGGONER; GARRETT S.;
(SARASOTA, FL) ; GAY; ANDREW; (MILL CREEK, WA)
; BAARMAN; DAVID W; (Fennville, MI) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Cirkul, Inc. |
Tampa |
FL |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005212006 |
Appl. No.: |
17/067546 |
Filed: |
October 9, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15903014 |
Feb 22, 2018 |
10843142 |
|
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17067546 |
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62462310 |
Feb 22, 2017 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A23L 2/56 20130101; B01F
15/00149 20130101; B01F 13/1061 20130101; B65D 47/06 20130101; B01F
5/0496 20130101; A47J 31/005 20130101; A47J 43/27 20130101; B01F
15/0429 20130101; B01F 3/0865 20130101; B01F 13/0022 20130101; A23V
2002/00 20130101; B65D 51/2892 20130101; B01F 5/0471 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B01F 3/08 20060101
B01F003/08; A23L 2/56 20060101 A23L002/56; A47J 31/00 20060101
A47J031/00; A47J 43/27 20060101 A47J043/27; B01F 5/04 20060101
B01F005/04; B01F 13/10 20060101 B01F013/10; B01F 15/00 20060101
B01F015/00; B01F 15/04 20060101 B01F015/04; B65D 47/06 20060101
B65D047/06; B65D 51/28 20060101 B65D051/28; B01F 13/00 20060101
B01F013/00 |
Claims
1. A modular flow monitoring package for monitoring and controlling
additive flow in an additive delivery system, the system including
at least one user actuated control for controlling the amount of
additive added from a cartridge to a base fluid, comprising: a flow
sensor for sensing flow of the base fluid; a position sensor for
sensing the position of the user actuated control; a visual
indicator for displaying recommended dosage related information to
a user based on the base fluid flow and the position of the user
actuated control.
2. The package of claim 1, wherein the visual indicator comprises
at least one LED.
3. The package of claim 1, further comprising an end-of-life
indicator for indicating the end-of-life of the cartridge.
4. The package of claim 1, wherein the flow sensor comprises a
magnetic turbine disposed in the base fluid flow path and a Hall
effect sensor for sensing rotation of the magnetic turbine.
5. An additive delivery system comprising: a base liquid flow path
for permitting flow of a base fluid; an additive flow path for
permitting flow of an additive to be mixed with the base liquid as
the base liquid flows thru the base liquid flow passage; a flow
measuring device for measuring flow of the additive; a flow
adjustment device for permitting a user to adjust an additive
dosage added to the base fluid; a user interface for conveying
information to the user about the additive.
6. The additive delivery system of claim 5, wherein the user
interface includes a visual display for indicating whether a
predetermined consumption of additive has been attained.
7. The additive delivery system of claim 5, wherein the user
interface includes a visual display for indicating the remaining
life of a supply of additive.
8. The additive delivery system claim 5, wherein the user interface
comprises a plurality of discrete optical indicators.
9. A method of delivering additive comprising: dispensing a base
liquid from a container; adding an additive in response to the base
liquid flowing from the container; measuring flow of the additive;
adjusting a dosage of additive added to the base fluid; conveying
information to a user about the additive.
Description
STATEMENT REGARDING COPYRIGHT
[0001] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains
material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright
owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of
the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the
Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise
reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
BACKGROUND
1. Technical Field
[0002] The disclosure relates to dispensing and delivery systems
for beverages and other products. The disclosure further relates to
dispensing and delivery systems in which an additive, such as
flavorings, concentrates or supplements, may be provided in
replaceable cartridges and mixed with a base fluid, such as water,
as the base fluid is dispensed and/or consumed from a container and
wherein one-way flow of base fluid is provided to prevent additive
from mixing with the base fluid supply, which may thus be used with
different additive delivery systems. The disclosure further relates
to dispensing and delivery systems that provide for user adjustment
of the amount of additive that is mixed with the base fluid. The
disclosure further relates to user interfaces and user interface
features for enabling user monitoring and control of additive
dosage mixed with a base fluid during dispensing. The disclosure
further relates to systems and methods for guiding user decisions
on additive dispersing based on various inputs including but not
limited to gender, height, weight, genetic makeup, hydration and
electrolyte levels, historical nutritional and exercise
information, and real-time activity information provided by
smartphones, fitness trackers, smart devices, etc. The disclosure
further relates to methods of utilizing additive dosage adjustment
features in nutritional applications, for example, to enhance
performance in athletic and other activities by humans.
2. Prior Art
[0003] Additive delivery systems for providing a user-adjusted flow
of an additive to a flow of as it is dispensed from a container are
generally known. Such systems may be applied to beverage mixing and
may incorporate removable cartridges for storing a supply of the
additive, such as flavoring, to be added to a base fluid, such as
water. Example devices and methods are disclosed in US Published
Application No. 2017/0296988, published on Oct. 19, 2017 titled
ADJUSTABLE ADDITIVE CARTRIDGE SYSTEMS AND METHODS and U.S. Pat.
Nos. 9,498,086 and 9,795,242.
[0004] There is a need to enhance the user interface and additive
dosage monitoring and control features of additive delivery
systems, such as those described in the aforementioned
publications. There is a further need to utilize such user
interface and additive dosage monitoring and control features to
support and make recommendations regarding changing, real-time
nutritional needs and general well-being, for physical activities
(including athletic activities.)
SUMMARY
[0005] According to one aspect of the disclosure, a modular flow
monitoring package (MFMP) is provided for use in an additive
delivery system. The MFMP may be manufactured as an add-on to be
added to an existing additive delivery system, or may be
incorporated into a cartridge or container structure. The MFMP may
include a flow path defined thru it, and an outer housing that
protects internal components. A tube defines a flow-thru path in
the housing. A flow rate monitoring device is provided for sensing
flow in the tube and may comprise a magnetic turbine, which
cooperates with a Hall effect sensor and supporting circuitry
housed within the housing and mounted on an internal circuit board.
An internal power supply and an inductive charging circuit may be
incorporated into the MFMP. The inductive charging circuit may
include a wire coil extending within or just inside an outer wall
of the housing. The coil can be an air core wound wire or a printed
circuit coil routed about the outside diameter of the printed
circuit board to form a printed circuit coil. The MFMP also
includes user actuator position sensors for sensing the position of
one or more user actuated additive flow adjustment levers or other
structures. It should be noted that a single digital magnetic
sensor can also be used to sense the position of all three
magnetics by mapping these fields and noting the feedback based on
each location and positioning possibility. A visual display, which
may comprise an array of multi-color LED's is incorporated into the
MFMP and may be on an upper wall thereof so as to be visible to a
user when the MFMP is in an installed position in an additive
delivery system. The visual display may convey information to a
user that is relevant to a user's use of the additive delivery
system or the user's nutritional needs. Although we demonstrate
individual LED's other display technologies may be incorporated to
allow such positioning feedback. This information can also be
indicated via the mobile application. Such information may include
a current dosage of additive, being delivered, whether a
recommended dosage of additive has been consumed, remaining life of
a cartridge or supply of additive, and other data relative to
health or performance monitoring. The MFMP may be adapted to
monitor more than one additive being supplied to a base fluid and
corresponding number of additive cartridges. Additionally, the type
of dose can be manually selected or optionally detected by an RFID
reader that reads the package ID, mfg. dates, use by dates and type
of product for identification and authentication. This information
will be password protected much like the ATMEL TK5551 RFID
transponder relating to package information to be displayed.
[0006] According to another aspect, the MFMP may communicate with
external devices and systems to enhance the user experience. Such
devices may include smartphones, exercise equipment, heart rate and
blood pressure monitors, fitness trackers and "smart" devices, such
as computer-equipped exercise equipment. Additional mobile
information may be displayed that the product may not or cannot
displayed. Information that may be displayed includes total dosage
over periods of time, consumption accumulators and dosage
accumulators. Relevant dosage information may be utilized in
combination with a personal profile, hydration and electrolyte
levels, historical nutritional and exercise information, and
real-time activity information to develop tailored dosage
recommendations for a user. Smartphone apps or other applications
for computing platforms may be utilized to facilitate user
interaction with the MFMP. A use-case for this application could be
an individual who participates in cycling on a regular basis. By
measuring performance data including speed, peak output, distance
covered, heart rate, lactic acid production (measured through
fitness trackers, onboard bicycle computers, and other smart
devices) and comparing this to additive data (e.g. electrolyte
dosage) for the same periods of time, correlations to optimal
electrolyte dosage could be obtained and relayed to the user
through the application.
[0007] According to another aspect, a recommendation system
utilizing the MFMP may accept a number of data sets as input to
determine real-time hydration and nutritional needs of a user and
may make recommendation on additive dosage in real-timer as a user
is engaged in physical activity.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The above and other attendant advantages and features of the
invention will be apparent from the following detailed description
together with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference
numerals represent like elements throughout. It will be understood
that the description and embodiments are intended as illustrative
examples and are not intended to be limiting to the scope of
invention, which is set forth in the claims appended hereto.
[0009] FIG. 1 is a front, exploded view of an example dispenser
environment suitable for application of the invention.
[0010] FIG. 2 is a front assembled view of an example internal
additive delivery system comprising an MFMP according to an aspect
of the invention.
[0011] FIG. 3 is a top view of a dual cartridge additive delivery
system environment suitable for application of an MFMP according to
an aspect of the invention.
[0012] FIG. 4 is a front view of the dual cartridge additive
delivery system of FIG. 3.
[0013] FIG. 5 is cross-sectional view of an example MFMP according
to aspects of the invention.
[0014] FIG. 6 is a top view of an example MFMP.
[0015] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a system for utilizing an
MFMP according to aspects of the invention.
[0016] FIG. 8 is a detail of an example user interface for
indicating additive levels, charge capacity and end-of-life
conditions of an example MFMP according to aspects of the
invention.
[0017] FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of an example logic flow for an
MFMP according to aspects of the invention.
[0018] FIG. 10 is a representation of example data fields that may
be monitored or input into systems utilizing an MFMP according to
aspects of the invention.
[0019] FIG. 11 depicts an example data set of daily activity,
calorie intake and calories burned as well as body weight that may
be utilized in a system according to aspects of the invention.
[0020] FIG. 12 depicts an example data set of energy (calories)
expended as a function of walking or running speed that may be
utilized in a system according to aspects of the invention.
[0021] FIG. 13 depicts user interface displays of a medication
dosing application on a smartphone according to aspects of the
invention.
[0022] FIG. 14 depicts user interface displays of a diet
application on a smartphone according to aspects of the
invention.
[0023] FIG. 15 depicts user interface displays of a flavor and
hydration application on a smartphone according to aspects of the
invention.
[0024] FIG. 16 depicts a user interface display of an application
that may display overall statistics and data gathered for best
performance according to aspects of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] FIG. 1 is a front, exploded view of an example dispenser
environment 10 suitable for application of a MFMP according to
aspects of the invention. A dispenser, such as a drinking water
bottle, may include a container body 12 defining an interior volume
for containing a base fluid (water) and a screw-fit cap 14 having a
spout 16. Referring additionally to FIG. 2, and additive delivery
system 100 may be cooperatively associated with the dispenser
environment 10. The additive delivery system 100 may include an
intake tube 104 for conveying base fluid upward and through an
annular cartridge 102 disposed around the intake tube 104. The
cartridge may include a port on an interior thereof (not shown in
FIG. 2) which communicates additive into a mixing zone within the
but 104. The rotational position of the cartridge 102 may be
adjusted by a user using an actuator, in a manner that will be
described, to adjust the amount of additive being added to the base
fluid as the base fluid flows in the intake tube 104. According to
aspects of the invention, a modular flow monitoring package (MFMP)
200 may be cooperatively associated with the additive delivery
system 100 for enhancing user monitoring and control of the
additive. monitoring the dosage of additive.
[0026] FIGS. 3 and 4 depict details of an example dual cartridge
additive delivery system that may be a suitable environment for use
of the MFMP according to aspects of the invention. FIG. 3 is a top
view and FIG. 4 is a front view. First and second cartridges 102.1
and 102.2 may be cylindrical, annular containers disposed
concentrically relative to intake tube 104. Each may have a port
126.1 and 126.2 to permit flow of respective additives from an
interior space into the intake tube for mixing with a base fluid.
The respective flows of additive from the cartridges 102.1 and
102.2 may be controlled with control arms 120.1 and 120.2 which are
attached to annular stems 124.1 and 124.2 that extend
concentrically downward and may have ports defined for selective
alignment with respective ports on the cartridges 102.1 and 102.2.
Rotational movement of the control arms 120.1 and 120.2 thus may
result in adjustment of the respective flows of additive from
cartridges 102.1 and 102.2 into the flow path of base fluid within
the intake tube. Control arms may include magnetic elements 122.1
and 122.2 for enabling their actuation/movement to be controlled
from outside the sealed housing 210 in which they reside.
Cartridges 102.1 and 102.2 may be provided with machine readable
identifying information, including RFID tags, bar codes or other
electronically stored information that may identify cartridge type,
flavor type, date and other useful information to the MFMP.
Suitable reading components may be incorporated into the MFMP to
read the machine readable identifying information.
[0027] FIG. 5 is a cross-section showing further details of an
example MFMP 200. A flow rate measuring device 230, which may be a
magnetic turbine, may be centrally located and mounted for
rotational movement in response to fluid flow within tube 104. A
Hall effect sensor 240 may be mounted to detect the rotational rate
of the turbine 230 such that data representing the flow rate of
base fluid within tube 104 may be obtained. A power supply 250,
such as a battery, provides electrical energy for operation of the
internal components of the MFMP 200, which may be sealed within a
housing 210. A circuit board 245 may support the battery 250,
sensor 240 as well as support electronics that may include a
microprocessor, memory, drivers for the visual indicators and radio
components for communicating to receivers outside of the housing
interior. A cartridge reader, which may include an RFID reader, may
also be present on the circuit board to sense the identify of one
or more cartridges being used. An inductive charging coil 211 may
be installed within or adjacent to an outer wall of housing 210 for
enabling inductive charging of the power supply 250.
[0028] FIG. 6 is a top view of an example MFMP, which includes a
number of visual indicators 225 mounted such that they may be
visible to a user from outside the housing and when the unit is
installed on an additive delivery system. An upper wall of housing
210 may be made of a clear, transparent material to permit viewing
of the visual indicators, which may be mounted on an internal
circuit board. Respective sensing magnets 127.1 and 127.2 may be
included to sense the rotational position of control arms 120.1 and
120.2. Visual indicators may include an indicator set (four per set
shown in FIGS. 6) 225.1 and 225.2 for each cartridge, such as a
plurality of discrete light sources, such as LED's, which may be
multicolored. As will be explained, indicator sets 225.1 and 225.2
convey information regarding the additive dosage relative to each
cartridge to a user. Other indicators may be present, including a
charge indicator 227 to indicate the level of charge on the power
supply 250. Respective end-of-life (EOL) indicators 229.1 and 229.2
may be associated with each cartridge indicator set to indicate the
EOL of a cartridge.
[0029] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a system for utilizing an
MFMP according to aspects of the invention. The components of the
example MFMP are represented in box 200. In this implementation,
three cartridges may be utilized and monitored by the MFMP in an
additive delivery system. A central, microprocessor-based control
system 260 may include non-volatile memory and an accelerometer and
receives inputs from the Hall sensor 240, which inductively senses
the rotational rate of turbine 230, and actuator arm position
sensors 127.1, 127.2 and 127.3. Control system 260 also controls a
radio interface 264 and wireless inductive charger 211, as well as
the visual indicator sets 225.
[0030] According to aspects of the invention, the MFMP 200 may
interface with exercise equipment, fitness trackers and bike
computers via radio interface 264. Radio interface 264 also permits
interaction with smartphones running suitable applications direct
radio or via a cloud or wide area network. Cartridge data can be
read via RFID and a coil is located on the printed circuit board.
Each cartridge may have an RFD chip with specific type and product
data. Venturi positions for dose are tracked magnetically. By
keeping sensors and the electronics intrinsically separate we can
design a ultrasonically sealed watertight electronics package for
reliability and ease of use.
[0031] FIG. 8 illustrates an example set of patterns for visual
indicator sets to indicate status and recommend consumption and
dosages of additive. Flashing indicators may be used to indicate
that a user should consume. The communication language will show
the recommended dosage for your activity level. By indicating end
of life, recommended dose and present dose we can modify dose
behavior based on historical performance and present activity. In
this example we show the present recommendation as flashing but we
may also show the present setting at the same time as a solid. The
display also is designed to show life for the cartridge by
indicating % of life. These same gas gauge type indicators can be
used to show state of charge (battery life remaining 0-100%) and
charging state (percentage of charge 0-100%).
[0032] FIG. 9 illustrates an example logic flow. The MFMP may
typically default to a sleep mode at step 902. If movement is
detected at 904, the logic proceeds to step 906, if not, the logic
loops to 902. At 906, cartridge identifiers are read, mix ratio
settings may be read from a profile stored in memory, accumulated
values, such as volume, calories consumed may be updated, EOL
percentages are computed and battery level is sensed. At 908, a
monitoring loop is initiated to check for consumption flow and
update accumulated values and ratios. At 910, the logic checks for
an EOL flag being indicated. This may be determined by an
accumulated value of additive being compared to a known additive
supply. If yes, at 912, the visual indicator are activated to
indicate EOL for the given cartridge and the logic flows to step
914. If no EOL is flagged at 910, the logic goes directly to
decision 914. At 914, the logic checks whether a timer and
consumption mode is desired. At this point the decision is made to
trigger alarms and notifications. The timers are based on flow and
consumption time as it relates to the dose setting. The comparison
data can be preset, set over the application of brought in through
the RFID data. It is ideal to have the consumption tables come in
with the cartridge and reset as the new cartridge is installed. If
the use accumulator using flow, and dose timer accumulators when
converted to uL or mL are greater than the use table values end of
life is indicated. If so, a recommendation is made using the
indicators at 916 and notification flags are sent to the mobile
device and/or cloud. At 918, a check is made as to whether the
communication is interrupted. At 920, the system interfaces to the
cloud or mobile device to update a profile, usage data and
recommendations as well as displaying charging indicator of the
unit is charging. At 922, new values are updated in an accumulator
such as EEPROM. The dose, flow rate and time flowing are
accumulated for end of life comparison. This accumulated value is
stored in two places as to prevent loss of data and is updated in
non-volatile memory after each use. These accumulators are also for
overall flow, flow by dose counters and overall use of cartridge
accumulators (using flow, dose over time) to get to uL or mL of use
per drink.
[0033] FIG. 10 is a representation of example data sets that may be
monitored or input into systems utilizing an MFMP according to
aspects of the invention. A user profile data set may include
height, weight, gender, age, ID Weight, Height, Gender, Age, ID,
fitness grade, body mass grade, heart health grade, BMI, Fast mass,
Fat free mass, Diet, Eating records, Exercise records, Personal
feedback records, Muscle mass history, Body fat history. A bottle
use profile may include stored preferred mix ratios, additive
product types, consumption accumulators by ratio A-B-C, overall
consumption, tilt time, activity, time between usage, average use
time. An exercise equipment profile may include parameters for a
given exercise equipment including RMP, number of steps, torque,
elevation, incline percentage, kilowatt hours, peak energy
required, average energy, temperature, miles, time used, reps,
contiguous exercise times and KWH expended. A wearable profile may
include activity, steps, heart rate, contiguous activity time,
overall activity time, max heart rate, resting heart rate. A system
aggregator, which may be a mobile application or a cloud services
based application may receive the data sets as input to generate
optimal consumption, suggested consumption rates, optimal mixes,
electrolyte levels, protein and caloric intake recommendations. The
aggregator may also generate or permit the user to generate reports
on use and optimal performance, comparisons to physical tests, best
performance curves, performance enhancement opportunities, etc.
[0034] When using the accelerometer the device itself can track
walking and running gates and can utilize this information and
relate it to a mobile device.
[0035] FIG. 11 depicts an example data set of daily activity,
calorie intake and calories burned as well as body weight that may
be utilized in a system according to aspects of the invention.
[0036] FIG. 12 depicts an example data set of energy (calories)
expended as a function of walking or running speed that may be
utilized in a system according to aspects of the invention.
[0037] FIG. 13 depicts user interface displays of a dynamic sports
application on a smartphone according to aspects of the invention.
The application may present an overview screen (left), a
recommendation screen (middle) and an historical results screen
(right).
[0038] FIG. 14 depicts user interface displays of a medication
delivery application on a smartphone according to aspects of the
invention. The application may present an overview screen (left)
and a recommendation screen (right).
[0039] FIG. 15 depicts user interface displays of a diet management
application on a smartphone according to aspects of the invention.
The application may present an overview screen (left) and a
recommendation screen (right).
[0040] User interface displays of may also include a flavor and
hydration application on a smartphone according to aspects of the
invention.
[0041] FIG. 16 depicts a user interface display of an application
that may display overall statistics and data gathered for best
performance according to aspects of the invention.
[0042] It should be understood that implementation of other
variations and modifications of the invention in its various
aspects may be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the
art, and that the invention is not limited by the specific
embodiments described herein. It is therefore contemplated to
cover, by the present invention any and all modifications,
variations or equivalents that fall within the spirit and scope of
the claims that follow.
* * * * *