阅读说明：本技术 利用研磨咖啡的配量加载浓缩咖啡机的波塔过滤器的设备 (Device for loading a wave tower filter of an espresso coffee machine with doses of ground coffee ) 是由 G·阿比亚蒂 于 2019-05-27 设计创作，主要内容包括：利用研磨咖啡的配量加载浓缩咖啡机的波塔过滤器的设备。该设备包括多个料斗,其均容纳不同类型的咖啡豆。料斗的排出管汇聚到与咖啡豆称重装置和能提供不同研磨度的咖啡豆研磨装置相关联的单个收集点。根据形成配量的咖啡类型可具有不同粒度的研磨咖啡流入加载装置的相应筒状容器,加载装置具有绕着转动中心轴线配置的多个容器以及径向且轴向开放的隔室,隔室设计为当所述隔室因加载器的角位移移动以与压实器且与下方的波塔过滤器对准时允许压实器通过,压实器用于压实波塔过滤器中的研磨咖啡的配量。该设备包括用于压实研磨咖啡的压实器,压实器还可以在波塔过滤器中有配量时根据所选择的配方对形成配量的不同量的研磨咖啡提供不同压实程度。(Device for loading a wave tower filter of an espresso coffee machine with doses of ground coffee. The apparatus comprises a plurality of hoppers each containing a different type of coffee beans. The discharge pipes of the hopper converge to a single collection point associated with the coffee bean weighing device and the coffee bean grinding device capable of providing different degrees of grinding. Ground coffee, which may have different granulometry depending on the type of coffee forming the dose, flows into the respective cylindrical container of a loading device having a plurality of containers arranged around a central axis of rotation and radially and axially open compartments designed to allow the passage of a compactor for the dose of ground coffee in a wave tower filter when said compartments are moved by the angular displacement of the loader to be aligned with the latter and with the underlying wave tower filter. The device comprises a compactor for compacting the ground coffee, which can also provide, when there are doses in the wave tower filter, different degrees of compaction of the different quantities of ground coffee forming the doses according to the selected formulation.)

1. An apparatus for loading a wave tower filter of an espresso coffee machine with doses of ground coffee having a predetermined weight and consisting according to a given formula, comprising: a plurality of containers (1, 1a, 1b) each containing coffee beans of a given type; coffee bean feeding means (2, 2a, 2b) connecting each container with a common collection point (3) for all said containers; a weighing device (4) for weighing the quantity of coffee beans received at the common collection point (3); -grinding means (5) for grinding a weighed quantity of coffee beans from the common coffee bean collection point (3); a discharge duct (23) opening into a grinding chamber (32) of the grinding device (5); -collecting means (7) for collecting a quantity of ground coffee from the grinder (5) and introducing said quantity of ground coffee into the wave tower filter; a compacting device (P) for compacting the quantity of ground coffee in the wave tower filter; and a motor means (14, 15, 16, 26, 27) and a Central Processor (CPU) for electrically controlling and monitoring the device, characterized in that the collecting device (7) comprises a plurality of containers (6, 6a, 6b, 6c) and a compartment (S) which is radially and axially open, the plurality of containers (6, 6a, 6b, 6c) being arranged in a circle around an axis of rotation (a), the plurality of containers (6, 6a, 6b, 6c) giving the collecting device the configuration of a carousel loader.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the coffee bean feeding means connecting each container with a common collection point comprise: -a duct (2, 2a, 2b) located at the bottom of the respective container (1, 1a, 1b) and extending to said common collection point (3); an auger axially mounted to the pipe; a motor component (16, 16a, 16b) connected to one end of the auger to set the auger in rotation; a coffee bean discharge opening (18, 18a, 18b) formed in the duct at an end of the duct facing the common collection point (3).

3. Device according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the discharge openings (18, 18a, 18b) for discharging the coffee beans from the respective containers into the common collection point (3) have a plate-like closing member which is pivotally mounted about an axis and is subjected to a predetermined action of an elastic member which opposes the thrust exerted by the auger on the coffee beans to cause the coffee beans to come out through the openings.

4. The apparatus according to one or more of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the quantity of coffee beans received at the common collection point (3) consists of coffee beans from a single container (1, 1a, 1b) with the relevant type of coffee.

5. The apparatus according to one or more of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the quantity of coffee beans received at the common collection point (3) consists of a mixture of coffee beans from at least two containers (1, 1a, 1b) with respective different types of coffee.

6. the apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the common coffee bean collection point (3) is configured as a truncated cone-shaped container having a vertically arranged axis (X-X), the common coffee bean collection point (3) being connected to a weighing device (4) and having a discharge opening (21) that can be opened after weighing, the opening (21) communicating with an inlet (22) of a discharge duct (23) opening into the grinding chamber (32) of the grinding device (5).

7. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that a longitudinal axis (Y-Y) of the discharge duct (23) opening into the grinding device (5) for discharging a quantity of coffee beans forms an angle of 45 ° with respect to a vertical axis (X-X) of the common collection point (3) for collecting a quantity of coffee beans to be weighed.

8. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the grinding means are configured such that the axis (Z-Z) of the rotating shaft (31) rotating the grinding wheel forms an angle of 0 ° to about 20 ° with the axis (Y-Y) of the discharge duct (23) for discharging the quantity of coffee beans to be ground.

9. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the compacting device (P) is fixed to a lower end (9) of a rod (10), the rod (10) driving the compactor (P) towards or away from a wave tower filter support (8) through motor means (13, 14, 15) based on instructions received from a Controller (CPU) of the apparatus, thereby applying a desired degree of compression to the dose of ground coffee in the wave tower filter, the displacement of the compactor (P) being allowed only when the carousel loader (7) has been angularly displaced so that radially and axially open compartments (S) are vertically aligned with the rod (10) to which the compactor (P) is fixed.

Technical Field

the present invention relates to a device for loading a wave tower filter (portafter) of an espresso coffee machine with doses (dose) of ground coffee having a predetermined weight and consisting of a single type of coffee or different types of coffee ingredients according to a given formula.

Background

Apparatuses for mixing different types of coffee beans in different quantities and subsequently grinding the mixture or transferring the mixture to a packaging device are known in the art.

One of these devices is disclosed in US 5603458. The device comprises a plurality of containers, each container containing a different type of coffee beans. The discharge pipes of the vessels converge into a single hopper-like collection point where the mixture is formed.

In the prior art discussed above, the discharge conduit of each container is equipped with means for blocking the flow of coffee beans in the form of a solenoid valve. The solenoid valves of the discharge conduits are controlled by a controller so that the opening time will control the amount of coffee beans flowing from each container into the hopper below, thereby producing the composition of the mixture.

When the ingredients of the mixture are not accurately weighed after grinding, the ingredients of the mixture cannot be used as a dosage formed according to a specific formulation to be introduced into a wave tower filter for preparing espresso coffee.

Alternatively, it is also known to use an encoder housed in the drive motor of an auger (auger) that feeds the coffee beans in the discharge duct to obtain volume control. With this arrangement, a particular number of revolutions of the auger corresponds to a particular amount of coffee beans being dispensed.

WO 2016/113258 a1 discloses an apparatus for forming a mixture of different types of coffee according to a given recipe or composition, the apparatus comprising a plurality of containers, each containing coffee beans of a given type, and a coffee bean feeding device connecting each container to a common collection point, wherein the common collection point has means for weighing a quantity of coffee beans (coffee beans) received therein.

The apparatus disclosed in WO 2016/113258 a1 comprises, in addition to the unidentified mixture compacting means and the packaging means, a grinding means for grinding a quantity of coffee beans mixed, received and weighed in a common collection point, and a discharge duct positioned adjacent to the grinding means for discharging the ground coffee into a wave tower filter of a machine for preparing coffee beverages.

In modern coffee making, there is an increasing need to deliver coffee from a single dose of ground coffee, compose the coffee according to a specific formula and place the coffee in a wave tower filter. Formulations require that the mixture be formed, for example, with varying proportions of different types of coffee, sometimes with the components of the mixture arranged in stacks in a wave tower filter, each layer having its own grind size and degree of compaction.

Disclosure of Invention

The object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus that meets the requirements of modern coffee making in terms of delivering espresso coffee, which is prepared with a dose of ground coffee made according to a specific ingredient recipe.

These and other objects are achieved by the device defined in the following claims, as better illustrated below.

An apparatus for loading a wave tower filter of an espresso coffee machine with doses of ground coffee having a predetermined weight and consisting according to a given formula, comprising: a plurality of containers each containing a given type of coffee beans; a coffee bean feeding device connecting each container with a common collection point for all said containers; a weighing device for weighing the quantity of coffee beans received at the common collection point; a grinding device for grinding a weighed amount of coffee beans from the common coffee bean collection point; a discharge conduit opening into a grinding chamber of the grinding apparatus; a collecting device for collecting a quantity of ground coffee from the grinder and introducing said quantity of ground coffee into the wave tower filter; a compacting device for compacting the quantity of ground coffee in the wave tower filter; and a motor unit and a central processor for electrically controlling and monitoring the device, characterized in that the collecting device comprises a plurality of containers arranged in a circle around an axis of rotation, the plurality of containers giving the collecting device the configuration of a carousel loader, and a compartment which is radially and axially open.

drawings

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, given by way of example and not by way of limitation, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a hopper-shaped coffee bean container and its dispensing duct;

Figure 2 shows a schematic top rear perspective view of the apparatus of the invention;

Figure 3 shows an enlarged upper part of figure 2;

Figure 4 shows a schematic vertical section of the apparatus of the invention;

Figure 5 shows a partially enlarged top perspective view of the bean mixing collection point;

Figure 6 shows a partially sectioned perspective view of the connection zone between the bean mix collection and weighing point and the passage towards the grinding chamber of the grinding means of the apparatus; and is

Figure 7 shows a schematic top perspective view of the apparatus, seen from the support of the wave tower filter and the compactor of the ground coffee.

Detailed Description

With reference to the above figures, it will be understood that the apparatus of the invention comprises a plurality of containers, such as hopper-like containers (for example three hopper-like containers), one container being indicated by reference numeral 1 in the figures. Each hopper 1, 1a, 1b is intended to contain a different type of coffee beans. The discharge ducts 2, 2a, 2b of the hoppers converge at a single collection point 3 associated with a coffee bean weighing device 4 (for example a load cell).

From said collection point 3, a quantity of weighed coffee beans according to a predetermined formula, which may correspond to the entire dose or to a portion of the dose, flows to a grinding device, generally indicated by reference 5, which is able to provide different degrees of grinding using conventional means for adjusting the distance between the grinding wheels.

According to the invention, ground coffee with its own granulometry flows into respective cylindrical containers 6, 6a, 6b, 6c (fig. 7) of a loading device 7, in which such containers are arranged in a circle around the axis of rotation a of the loader 7 in the form of a carousel, wherein the motor imparts a predetermined angular displacement to the loader 7. In addition to the ground coffee containers, the carousel loader (carousel loader)7 has a compartment S which is radially and axially open, the purpose of which will become apparent from the following description.

Below the loader 7, the apparatus comprises a conventional fork-shaped support 8 for positioning and supporting a wave tower filter, not shown, designed to receive in the wave tower filter a dose of ground coffee contained in the cylindrical container 6 or 6a or 6b or 6c, to which the container selected by the program already set in the control of the apparatus will be vertically aligned when the loader 7 is rotated, and to let the bottom of the container open to let the quantity of ground coffee contained in it fall, using a conventional mechanism, not shown.

The apparatus further comprises a compactor P for compacting a dose of ground coffee to impart a predetermined degree of compaction to the dose of ground coffee received in the wave tower filter while it is still engaged with the fork-shaped support 8.

For this purpose, the compactor P is fixed to the lower end 9 of the rod 10, the other end 11 of the rod 10 being fixed via a transverse connection 12 to a further rod 13, the further rod 13 extending vertically parallel to the rod 10 but on a different side of the apparatus. A portion of the lever 13 has a rack 14 which engages a motor-actuated pinion 15.

Then, based on instructions received from the Controller (CPU) of the apparatus, the motor-actuated pinion 15 will be able to operate the compactor P by moving it vertically towards and away from the wave tower filter support 8, so as to apply a desired degree of compression to a dose of ground coffee in the wave tower filter.

The actuation of the compactor P is controlled and initiated only when the loader 7 has been angularly displaced, vertically aligning the compartment S with the rod 10 to which the compactor P is fixed.

Thus, the angular displacement of the loader 7 in cooperation with the actuation of the compactors P, when the doses are received in the wave tower filter, can provide different degrees of compaction for each quantity of ground coffee forming a dose according to a preselected recipe.

With particular reference to fig. 1, an auger (auger), not shown, is arranged in each discharge conduit 2, 2a, 2b and is driven by a respective motor, not shown, by a drive gear (driving gear) at one end of the auger, generally indicated at 16. At the end 17, 17a, 17b of the discharge duct above the mouth 19 of the common collection point 3 for collecting coffee beans from the hoppers 1, 1a, 1b, a respective opening 18, 18a, 18b is formed.

In a particular embodiment, each opening 18, 18a, 18b is equipped with a not shown gate that swings elastically for opposing the flow of coffee beans from the hopper with a predetermined resistance, so as to maintain a quantity of beans in a compact form to the duct without causing dosing changes.

The amount of coffee beans discharged into the common collection point 3 can be conventionally determined according to the actuation time set for such an auger by the corresponding motor, a suitable weighing being performed in the common collection point 3.

Alternatively, the amount of coffee may be determined according to the number of revolutions of a motor driving the auger.

In addition, sensors, generally indicated by the reference numeral 20, may preferably, but not exclusively, be provided at each hopper 1, 1a, 1b to detect the presence of coffee in the hopper and to control the filling operation by means of a Controller (CPU) of the apparatus, which, although not shown, is conventionally provided to the apparatus.

In the particular embodiment in the figures, the common collection point 3 is shaped as a funnel with a quadrangular cross section, the bottom end portion 21 of which is connected to the mouth 22 of an exit channel 23, the exit channel 23 carrying the coffee beans to the grinding means 5.

In particular, the bottom end portion 21 is spaced from the mouth 22 by a short gap 24, inside which the plate 25 can slide to close the bottom of the common collection point 3 and keep it closed for the time required to form a predetermined dose of a single type of coffee beans or a mixture of different types of coffee, and weigh this dose.

At the end of the weighing operation, the plate 25 is pulled out of the gap 24 by means of a rack 26 driven by a motor-actuated pinion 27 and determines the opening of the end of the bottom 21 of the common collection point 3, allowing the coffee beans to move into the mouth 22 of the discharge channel 23, which is aligned below.

It should be noted that, for the weighing of the doses and the calculation of the tare weight, the plate 25, the rack 26 and the corresponding motor-actuated pinion 27 of the rack 26 are rigidly coupled to the funnel-shaped wall 28 of the collection point 3 via a plurality of posts 29, the plurality of posts 29 projecting from a plate 30 supporting the rack 26.

In particular, in a preferred operating mode of the apparatus, the coffee doses formed in the common collection point 3 are weighed to calibrate the operation of the auger to dispense the coffee beans from their respective hopper in the respective discharge duct 17, 17a, 17 b.

thus, the single or mixed doses requested from the hoppers 1, 1a, 1b by the selected program are sent (route) directly from the common collection point 3 to the channel 23 and from the channel 23 to the grinding device 5 without the need for repeated weighing operations.

However, when filling the hopper 1, 1a, 1b with coffee beans from different packages, a new calibration of the auger dispensing operation, and thus a new weighing operation, may be required.

with particular reference to fig. 4, it will be understood that in the apparatus of the invention, the longitudinal axis Y-Y of the passage discharging the coffee beans from the common collection point 3 of the coffee bean mixture forms an angle α of about 45 ° with the vertical axis X-X of the funnel shape of the common collection point 3 and an angle β of from 0 ° to about 20 ° with the axis Z-Z along which the drive shaft 31 of the grinding means 5 lies.

This inclined configuration of the discharge channel 23 and of the drive shaft 31 of the grinding device 5 confers a compact shape to the apparatus of the invention and allows the ground coffee to be discharged from the grinding chamber 32 of the device 5 into a given cylindrical container 6, 6a, 6b or 6c of the carousel loader 7 at the grinding chamber outlet 33, according to the selected operating program and the coffee dosed composition formed and weighed in the collection point 3.

The value of the angle β is conveniently chosen in view of facilitating the exit of the ground coffee from the grinding chamber 32 by gravity.

The provision and calibration of a program capable of forming a specific mixture for coffee dosing and the selection of the current operating program of the device are carried out using a conventional keyboard, generally indicated in the figures by reference numeral 34.

The operation of the device of the invention is apparent from the foregoing.

Such a device is capable of forming doses of ground coffee from a single type of coffee or doses consisting of a specific mixture of different types of coffee.

Furthermore, it is possible to form in the wave tower filter a dose consisting of layers (layers) of coffee of different qualities, wherein each layer has its own weight and even its own degree of compaction.

The invention is capable of embodiments and of being practiced with equivalents within the scope of the claims that follow.