US 10,555,545 B2Granted

Frozen beverage machine valving

AssigneeTaylor Commercial Foodservice, LLC

InventorKevin H. Bischel

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Abstract

A dispensing apparatus (20; 300; 400) comprises: a freezing cylinder (40); a water flowpath (526); a first controllable valve (130) along the water flowpath; a syrup flowpath (528), merging with the water flowpath and proceeding as a water/syrup flowpath (552) to the freezing cylinder; and a second controllable valve (132) along the syrup flowpath. The first controllable valve and the second controllable valve each comprise: a valve body (144; 432) having a cartridge compartment (164,166), an inlet (176) to the cartridge compartment, and an outlet (178) from the cartridge compartment; and a valve cartridge (162). The valve cartridge comprises: a cartridge body (200) mounted in the cartridge compartment; a valve element (222) carried by the cartridge body and shiftable between a first condition permitting communication between the inlet and the outlet and a second condition blocking communication between the inlet and the outlet; and a solenoid (224) carried by the cartridge body and coupled to the valve element to drive movement of the valve element.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A dispensing apparatus (20;

300;
400) comprising:
a freezing cylinder (40);
a water flowpath (526);
a first controllable valve (130) along the water flowpath;
a syrup flowpath (528), merging with the water flowpath and proceeding as a water/syrup flowpath (552) to the freezing cylinder;
a second controllable valve (132) along the syrup flowpath;
and,
a carbon dioxide flowpath (572, 574) merging with the water/syrup flowpath, the carbon dioxide flowpath comprises a branch (576) extending to the water/syrup flowpath and the freezing cylinder,
wherein the first controllable valve and the second controllable valve each comprise:
a valve body (144;
432) having a cartridge compartment (164,166), an inlet (176) to the cartridge compartment, and an outlet (178) from the cartridge compartment;
and
a valve cartridge (162) having a unitary construction so as to allow removal from the valve compartment and replacement as a unit, the valve cartridge comprising:
a cartridge body (200) mounted in the cartridge compartment and having a valve seat;
a valve element (222) carried by the cartridge body and having a head shiftable between a first condition disengaged from the valve seat and permitting communication between the inlet and the outlet and a second condition engaged to the valve seat and blocking communication between the inlet and the outlet;
and,
a solenoid (224) carried by the cartridge body and coupled to the valve element to drive movement of the valve element.

15 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 16/126,902Filed 10 Sep 2018 · continuation
Priority: 9 Sep 2015
Published: US 2019/0000109 A13 Jan 2019
Granted: 11 Feb 2020
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification23 codes

A23G 9/228
Details, component parts or accessories of apparatus insofar as not peculiar to a single one of the preceding groups: arrangement and mounting of…
A23G 9/045
Production of frozen sweets, e.g. ice-cream: of slush-ice, e.g. semi-frozen beverage
A23G 9/06
Production of frozen sweets, e.g. ice-cream: characterised by using carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide snow or other cryogenic agents as cooling medium
A23G 9/222
Details, component parts or accessories of apparatus insofar as not peculiar to a single one of the preceding groups: freezing drums

Family

Application62/215,993Us provisional application · filed 9 Sep 2015
Application15/259,665Parent of this continuation · filed 8 Sep 2016
US 2019/0000109 A1Pre-grant publication · published 3 Jan 2019
US 10,194,678 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2017/0064977 A1Published application
US 10,555,545 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.