Beverage Dispensing Valve

Abstract

The specifications and drawings disclose a dual valve combination for dispensing a soft drink beverage, including a water valve and a syrup valve, each valve including a plunger which may be operated by a pivoted handle simultaneously with the other plunger or by separate manual operation when the handle is rotated out of the way. Each plunger has a small O-ring that shuts flow off when it seats in a small bore section of the valve body and allows flow when it is moved into a larger cavity. Each plunger has a small diameter O-ring portion and, because of a small movement of the plunger after stopping the flow, creates a suction that draws liquid back from its nozzle orifice. A water nozzle and syrup nozzle control flow into a mixing nozzle with the water being expelled in two circular, horizontal streams near the top of the mixing nozzle and syrup being directed in a jet at a downward angle into the center of the water stream leaving the mixing nozzle.

Description

SUMMARY AND BACKGROUND

The overall object of the invention is to provide a dispensing valve that is simple, compact, easy to service, easy to manufacture and therefore inexpensive, and yet provides a number of unique features, not found in previous soft drink dispensing valves.

The dispensing, or mixing, valve is actually composed of two separate valves -- a water valve and a syrup valve -- which are easily operated separately by one finger when the handle is rotated out of the way or simultaneously when the handle is rotated in the opposite direction. This is especially a useful feature in a home dispenser where individuals may wish to doctor the ratio for a sweeter or less sweet drink, or to obtain water or syrup separately for use in other drinks. Previous valves have offered means for obtaining carbonated water separately, but not syrup also, in addition to the complete drink, the reason being that the water valve normally requires so much force to operate that the handle must be utilized and the design involves rotation of the handle in one direction to operate both valves and rotation in the other direction to operate the water valve alone, with no easy means to operate the syrup valve separately.

In the proposed design the water valve is easy to operate because of the unique plunger design, the use of teflon to reduce friction and the use of a light spring bias, which is possible because of the low friction. The plunger design is unique in its use of a small O-ring that moves into a small bore in the valve body to stop flow and out of the small bore into a larger bore to allow flow through a small clearance between the small bore and the plunger. The diameter at this section of the plunger is small (three-sixteenth inch approx.) and the force to unseat the plunger against a typical pressure of 100 psi acting on this cross section is only 2.8 pounds.

Another important feature of the valve is the fact that the low operating force makes it possible to operate the valve by manually pushing a paper cup against a bracket extended down from the handle. This bracket is made in whole or part of spring steel wire and practically insures against accidental partial opening of the valve, which could result in an improper water-syrup ratio. Once the cup has been pushed hard enough to partially open the valve, full opening takes place because of the stored energy in the spring action. The only way a similar feature has been obtained previously is through use of electric valves for water and syrup, both of which are opened simultaneously by a cup-actuated switch, a far more expensive answer than the one proposed here and not as readily applied to portable uses.

The plunger design is also unique because of the ready-made means it provides for a restriction in dispensing carbonated water. The plunger body itself in the area of the O-ring valving portion acts as a restrictor and, in addition, the return spring also acts as a restrictor when it is almost fully compressed during a draw. Neither of these features is found in previous designs.

The plunger design affords a further important feature by making the valve easy to service from the front end of the valve whereas previous designs have required the valve to be removed from its mounting for servicing to replace a valve seat or clear it of an impediment. This simplifies the design of the rear end of this valve and its mounting, since the parts do not have to be removed for normal servicing.

The plunger design is also unique, especially in its use in the syrup valve, in providing a suction action that draws syrup away from the end of the syrup nozzle when the valve closes. This is effected by a small additional movement of the plunger after flow has been stopped and prevents even one drop of syrup being left to possibly affect the next draw, which might be carbonated (or plain) water only. In previous valves carbonated (or plain) water drawn immediately after syrup has been dispensed in the previous drink noticeably discolored and flavored by a drop of syrup left on the end of the syrup nozzle.

Also important to prevention of contamination of one drink by residue from another are the design of the water nozzle and syrup nozzle and their relation to the mixing nozzle, as well as the simplicity of the mixing nozzle itself. The water nozzle causes water to enter the mixing nozzle in two horizontal streams near the top inside periphery on one side of the mixing nozzle, with the two streams circling in opposite directions and meeting on the far side of the nozzle where they counteract the swirling motion of each other and combine to fall through the bottom exit from the mixing nozzle. No baffles are required in the bottom of the mixing nozzle to control the swirling motion found in some previous mixing nozzle systems or to effect mixing of the syrup and water as required in other previous designs. Effective mixing is achieved in this design by the relation of the syrup nozzle to the stream of water leaving the mixing nozzle. Elimination of the baffles normally found contributes greatly to keeping the mixing nozzle clean. In addition the water nozzle is higher than the syrup nozzle and causes a small amount of water to leave the mixing nozzle last -- leaving the nozzle clean for the next drink and virtually eliminating the usual algae growth that has always required frequent cleaning of the mixing nozzle in previous designs.

The body design is extremely compact, being only 11/2 .times. 3/4" in cross section and 2 1/8 inch long in a preferred embodiment, and is unique in its basic simplicity, which makes it easy to mold using a suitable plastic material such as nylon or Delrin. The basic design consists of two longitudinal holes arranged in a rectangular block to give relatively constant wall thickness for easy molding. Inserts are used to provide the small diameter valving section of the separate bores. The transverse holes for the water nozzle, syrup nozzle and the annular groove for the mixing nozzle are provided by separate machining. A metal bracket attached to the front of the body provides mounting for the handle as well as being a retainer and stop for the plungers. Mounting of the valve is easily provided by rear fittings that are suitably threaded into the rear part of the longitudinal holes and seldom if ever have to be removed since normal servicing is done from the front of the valve.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

For a better understanding of the invention reference may be had to the accompanying drawings, and the detailed description which follows:

FIG. 1 is an enlarged front view of the valve with the handle broken away partially and the bottom parts below the valve body shown in section as viewed along line 1--1 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a section view taken along line 2--2 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section view taken along line 3--3 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a section view taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view showing the portion of syrup plunger 19 that is different from the same portion of plunger 11 in FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In FIG. 1, 10 is the main body of the valve, 11 is the water plunger and 19 is the syrup plunger. 15 is the handle mounting bracket, 16 is the handle and 17 the handle pin. 20 is water nozzle with orifice 20a, and 21 is the syrup nozzle with orifice 21a. 22 is the mixing nozzle with O-ring 22a. In this view and in FIG. 3 the important relationships between the water nozzle, syrup nozzle and mixing nozzle can be seen.

In FIG. 2 the valving action of the plunger and its relationship to the other parts can be most clearly seen. In this view 10 is again the main body with bore 12 and counterbore 12a extending the length of body 10. 13 is a teflon insert pressed forward against the shoulder between 12 and 12a. 13a is an O-ring. 11 is a stainless steel water plunger and 11a is a teflon sleeve with O-ring 11c. Plunger 11 is biased to the right by compression spring 14 and retained by handle bracket 15, which is secured to body 10 by machine screws 18. Handle 16 and plunger 11 are shown in the closed position with O-ring 11b seated in bore 13b, and with the water pressure and spring 14 biasing the shoulder 11f of the plunger against the lower edge of handle bracket 15. At the left end of FIG. 2 is shown fitting 23 which serves not only as an inlet for the water but also, with nut 24, as a means of mounting the valve to a bracket or through cabinet wall 25. The syrup side has a similar fitting and nut. Also shown on the water side is restrictor 26 mounted in the end of fitting 23, where it serves a function to be explained later, but is not required or desirable on the syrup side.

In FIG. 4 may be seen the further relationship of U-shaped handle 16, U-shaped bracket 15 and pin 17.

Referring again to FIG. 2, when handle 16 is rotated clockwise it presses against plunger 11 and moves it to the left to a fully actuated position where shoulder 11d is stopped by the bottom of handle bracket 15. This movement is enough to move O-ring 11b out of seal contact with bore 13b and leaves the clearance between plunger 11 and bore 13b open to the flow of water, which enters through fitting 23 and restrictor 26. This clearance is small -- on the order of 0.010 inch diameter wise -- and serves as a restriction for dispensing carbonated water. For dispensing syrup this restriction is not desirable and FIG. 5 shows how plunger 19 may be relieved to give additional clearance at 19a.

When the water leaves the right end of insert 13 it enters the clearance area between plunger 11 and spring 14. From here it flows through the clearance in the compressed turns of spring 14 to enter bore 20b of water nozzle 20. This clearance can be controlled by proper design of the pring as to the degree to which the spring is compressed when the plunger is fully actuated so that it may be large to allow free flow of syrup or small to restrict carbonated water flow.

After entering bore 20b, the water flows through orifices 20a, as seen in FIG. 3, striking the inner periphery of mixing nozzle 22 at the two areas 22b, flowing around in opposite circular paths and meeting at or near point 22c, where they counteract the circular motion of each other, combining and falling then through the bottom of mixing nozzle 22. The fact that the water leaving orifices 20a strikes the areas 22b at an oblique angle is significant in helping to preserve carbonation in the water. Orifice 20a is shown in FIG. 2 as if it were located along line 2--2 in FIG. 1. It is actually offset as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 so that the oblique angle mentioned above will be as large as possible.

At the same time that the water plunger was moved to its open position, the syrup plunger 19, identical to water plunger 11 except for the relieved area 19a shown in FIG. 5, was also actuated by handle 16, with syrup entering bore 21b of syrup orifice 21 in FIG. 1 after following a similar path to the water through an insert clearance area and through the turns of its spring. The syrup then flows at a downward angle out of orifice 21a into the center of the water stream at point 22d, where there is enough turbulence, combined with the angular entry of the syrup stream, to effectively mix the syrup and water, as they leave the bottom of the mixing nozzle, to a point sufficient to insure the complete mixing when they come to rest in the cup. When the valve is closed by releasing handle 16 and allowing the plungers 11 and 19 to return to the right the water and syrup flow stop simultaneously from orifices 20a and 21b, but since water orifice 20a is higher and expels water in a horizontal plane a small residue of clear water at the height of 20a in FIG. 1 falls through the bottom area of nozzle 22 last, leaving virtually no remnant of syrup or syrup flavored water in the mixing nozzle to cause contamination of the next drink or to support algae growth during slack draw periods. This normally requires daily or frequent cleaning to maintain a sanitary appearance. The action of the syrup plunger as it closes also contributes to keeping the mixing nozzle clean by a suction action that draws the syrup away from orifice 21a up into bore 21b as shown in FIG. 1. In FIG. 2 it will be noted that the valve plunger O-ring 11b has been moved to the right beyond the point where it first seats at the mouth of bore 13b. With O-ring 11c and the large plunger diameter at that point moving to the right after O-ring 11b seats, it can be seen that a suction is created by virtue of increasing the clearance volume in the area of spring 14 in bore 12 which draws the syrup upward as described. With the usual valve, where such suction is not created, a convex drop of syrup is normally left depending from the end of the syrup nozzle to contaminate the next drink and to contribute to algae growth.

It is evident in FIG. 2 that the handle 16 may be easily pivoted counterclockwise 90.degree. or so to a more or less horizontal position so that the water plunger 11 or syrup plunger 19 may be actuated separately by thumb or finger to obtain water alone or syrup. It is also evident that an additional bracket (not shown) may be extended from the lower end of handle 16 below and to the left of mixing nozzle 22 so that the handle may be actuated in a cw direction around pin 17 by pushing a glass or paper cup against the added bracket.

For each of the above features to be practical it is necessary for the force required to actuate the plungers to be quite low, in spite of the high water pressure normally found in carbonated water systems. The unique design of the plunger in using an O-ring as the valve means by moving the O-ring section into and out of a bored hole makes this easy to accomplish. The effective diameter at this point can easily be reduced to about 3/16" or 0.028 inches.sup.2 in cross section. With 100 psi this requires only 2.8 pounds to overcome. As soon as flow begins the pressure drops across restrictor 26, reducing this force on plunger 11 further, although there is a new force on sleeve 11a. However, because of an additional pressure drop through the restrictive action at 13b this force is low, so that the total force to hold plunger 11 open is approximately equal to the force required to open it. Restrictor 26 has been found to be important to keep the actuating force low but it can take other forms, such as a needle valve in the line immediately before fitting 23, or a flow control of suitable design similarly located. For the syrup side it has been found to be an advantage to use an adjustable flow control in the line coming from the syrup tank before the syrup is cooled and the viscosity affected, which does not apply to water.

The fact that this design also makes the valve extremely easy to service is seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 where it is evident that plunger 11 can be removed by simply removing one screw 18 on he left of FIG. 1 and pivoting handle bracket 15 up enough to clear the shoulder of plunger 11 and pulling 11 out. The use of teflon for the plunger sleeve 11a effectively prevents wear in the bore 12 of the body and the teflon insert 13 insures very long life for O-ring 11b, reducing service to a minimum.

The restriction at 13b of the insert and the use of spring 14 as a second restrictor require no additional expense of note and provide means for reducing the high pressure of carbonated water in two more steps besides restrictor 26: (1) from area 12a to a lower pressure in the area of spring 14 because of pressure loss through the restriction at 13b; and (2) to still lower pressure in bore 20b because of pressure loss through the turns of spring 14 when almost fully compressed. With the final pressure drop from 20b to atmosphere, the pressure of the carbonated water has actually been reduced in four steps from 100 psi to atmosphere, more steps than in any known previous valves and contributes to the high efficiency of this valve in preserving carbonation, while the simplicity of the means in each step renders the cost very low.

It might be pointed out that the restriction at 13b the restriction provided by the compressed spring provide the major reduction in pressure of the carbonated water to a point near atmospheric. As a matter of fact, for dispensing carbonated water alone it has been found that a simple tube can be substituted for water nozzle 20 in FIG. 2 and carbonated water dispensed very efficiently by carefully adjusting the degree to which spring 14 is compressed when the valve is open. This can be easily done by use of shims at either end of the spring. No mixing nozzle 22 is required in this case. The combination of the restriction at 13b and that provided by spring 14 appears to be ideal. Located downstream of the valve seat portion of insert 13 the water is maintained at a relatively high pressure in the turbulent area entering insert 13, insuring full retention of gas at this point. The restricted passageway at 13b causes the water to flow at high velocity through this area, and the large area inside spring 14, which is filled with water during a draw, serves as a cushion to absorb this high velocity water to prevent it from striking any abutment directly, which would cause undue loss of gas from solution. The spring is compressed to a degree to insure a positive pressure in this area, during a draw, several pounds per square inch above atmospheric and thus assures that the area is full of water. The nature of the spring thus affords an ideal means for receiving high velocity water in its large inner area and further is ideal for the discharge of water to a point at or near atmospheric pressure. It provides rounded entry and rounded exit for the water passing through the turns and a very elongated continuous spiral opening that appears to have great advantage for this purpose. A study of other valves for dispensing carbonated water reveals that the more successful ones have some form of elongated or continuous opening for the final discharge to atmospheric pressure and all of them provide specially manufactured means for this purpose. The advantage and uniqueness of using a simple standard item such as a compression spring for this purpose, especially when it serves in addition as a bias means for the plunger and as a cushioning area for high velocity water as well, can thus be appreciated.

Claims

I claim:

1. A valve for controlling fluid flow comprising a housing and plunger combination, said housing having connecting means to a source of supply at one end whereby said flow may enter said housing, and exit means whereby said flow may leave said housing, said plunger having a sealing ring groove and a sealing ring therein and said housing having a small bore into which said sealing ring moves and seals to stop flow when said plunger is moved to its closed position, said housing having a first enlarged cavity interposed between one end of said small bore and said fluid supply end and into which said sealing ring is moved when said plunger is moved to its open position, thereby allowing said flow to occur, and having a second enlarged cavity adjacent to the other end of said small bore and connecting to said exit means, said plunger having an enlarged portion, which has ring seal means, operable in a portion of said second enlarged cavity whereby the movement of said enlarged portion away from said small bore during the closing movement of said plunger, and after flow from said fluid supply has been stopped by said closing action, causes a suction that draws said fluid from said exit means into said second enlarged cavity.

2. A valve as in claim 1 wherein a portion of said plunger is within said small bore when said plunger is in said open position and said flow occurs, there being a clearance area between said plunger portion and said small bore, and wherein said flow passes through said clearance area into said second enlarged cavity and out through said exit means.

3. A valve for controlling fluid flow comprising a housing and plunger combination, said housing having a small bore centrally located, a first counterbore adjacent to one end of said small bore and a second counterbore adjacent to the other end of said small bore, said plunger having a small diameter portion moveable in said small bore with clearance and with an O-ring near the end of said small diameter portion, said plunger having a larger diameter portion at the end opposite to said O-ring and slidably moveable in said first counterbore, said large diameter portion having ring seal means engaging the walls of said first counter bore said valve being closed and a suction being created in said first counterbore by movement of said plunger when said O-ring is moved into the end of said small bore adjacent to said second counterbore and said valve being open and allowing said fluid flow when said plunger is moved in a direction that moves said O-ring out of said small bore and into said second counterbore, said valve having fluid entrance means connecting to said second counterbore and having exit means connecting to said first counterbore, with flow proceeding from said entrance means into said second counterbore, through said small bore clearance and into said first counterbore to said exit means when said valve is open.

4. A valve for controlling fluid flow comprising a housing and a plunger operable in a longitudinal cavity in said housing, said plunger having an end externally accessible at one end of said housing for manually operating said plunger, fluid supply means communicably connected with said cavity at the end of said housing opposite to said one end of said housing, fluid exit means communicably connected to said cavity and extending outward through one wall of said housing, flow control means located within a first portion of said cavity and operably by movement of said plunger in one direction to open communication between said fluid supply means and said fluid exit means and operable to close said communication when said plunger is moved in the opposite of said one direction, said plunger having ring seal means engaging a second portion of said cavity and having overtravel movement in said second cavity portion beyond that necessary to the closing of said flow control means and said overtravel movement causing a negative displacement in said second portion of said cavity, said second cavity portion having communication with said fluid exit means and said fluid being forced away from said exit means toward said second cavity portion by the atmosphere as a result of said negative displacement.

5. A valve for dispensing carbonated water comprising a housing having entrance and exit means for said water, a restricted passageway, a plunger operable to open and closed positions within said housing, a compression spring biasing said plunger toward its closed position, a valve seat in said housing, and a seating element that engages said seat to stop water flow and which is disengaged from said seat by movement of said plunger to its open position, said restricted passageway being interposed between said seat and said spring and said spring being aligned to receive the discharged water from said passageway longitudinally into the interior or said spring, said spring being compressed by the opening movement of said plunger and thereby forming a further restriction to the flow of said water outward through its coils to said exit means, and whereby a positive gage pressure is maintained inside said spring during said flow.

6. A means for dispensing carbonated water comprising a combination of a valve having an open position and a closed position, a restricted passageway, and a housing containing a partially compressed spring, said housing being downstream from said valve, and said restricted passageway being interposed between said valve and said spring, said spring being aligned to receive the discharged water from said passageway longitudinally into the interior of said spring, the compression of said spring being sufficient to cause a further restriction to the flow of said carbonated water outward through the spring coils and thereby to maintain a positive gage pressure inside said spring during said flow, said housing having exit means for said flow adjacent to the exterior of said spring.