Beverage dispenser

An apparatus for dispensing a post-mix beverage, comprising diluent supply means;

• beverage concentrate supply means;
• a beverage concentrate supply and metering system, said system including a disposable pump unit including inlet valve means for connection to said beverage concentrate supply means, first and second pistons disposed for reciprocation in respective first and second barrels, and outlet valve means for delivery of beverage concentrate from said first and second barrels;
• a non-disposable pump drive for reciprocating said first and second pistons in said first and second barrels to draw the beverage concentrate through said inlet valve means and into said first and second barrels in one direction of movement of the first and second pistons and to eject the beverage concentrate from said first and second barrels and through said outlet valve means in an opposite direction of movement of said first and second pistons;
• means for bringing together diluent from said diluent supply means with beverage concentrate delivered from said outlet valve means;
• a control system for controlling said diluent supply means and said beverage concentrate supply and metering system to bring together the beverage concentrate and diluent in a desired ratiometric mixture thereof;
• and means for mixing together the diluent and beverage concentrate and for dispensing the mixture from said apparatus, wherein said beverage concentrate supply means includes a container of the beverage concentrate and said disposable pump unit is an integral component of said container of the beverage concentrate for being replaced along with said container of the beverage concentrate when said container of the beverage concentrate is exhausted.

Apparatus for dispensing a post-mix beverage, said apparatus comprising a reservoir of beverage concentrate;

• a disposable pump unit including first and second piston pumps having inlet means fluid coupled to the beverage concentrate in said reservoir and outlet means;
• pump drive means for being coupled to said disposable pump unit for operating said pump unit to pump the beverage concentrate from said inlet means and through said first and second piston pumps to said outlet means;
• a mixer fluid coupled to said pump unit outlet means;
• a control valve having an inlet for being fluid coupled to a supply of diluent for the beverage concentrate and an outlet for being fluid coupled to introduce the diluent to the beverage concentrate intermediate said disposable pump outlet means and said mixer;
• control system means for operating said pump drive means and said control valve to provide a predetermined ratio of the diluent to the beverage concentrate as delivered to said mixer;
• and wherein said reservoir of the beverage concentrate includes a container of the beverage concentrate and said disposable pump unit is an integral component of said container of the beverage concentrate for being replaced along with said container of the beverage concentrate when said container of the beverage concentrate is exhausted.

A method of dispensing a post-mix beverage, said method comprising the steps of providing a reservoir of beverage concentrate;

• fluid coupling an inlet to first and second piston pumps of a disposable pump unit to the beverage concentrate in the reservoir;
• fluid coupling an outlet from the first and second piston pumps to a mixer;
• connecting a pump driver to the disposable pump unit to operate the first and second piston pumps;
• controlling the pump driver to reciprocate first and second pistons of the respective first and second piston pumps of the disposable pump unit to pump the beverage concentrate from the inlet to the first and second piston pumps to the outlet from the first and second piston pumps;
• delivering the beverage concentrate from the outlet from the first and second piston pumps to a mixer;
• fluid coupling the diluent for the beverage concentrate from a supply of diluent through a control valve to the beverage concentrate being delivered to the mixer to introduce the diluent to the beverage concentrate;
• controlling operation of the pump drive and the control valve so that a predetermined ratio of the diluent to the beverage concentrate is delivered to the mixer;
• and, upon exhaustion of the beverage concentrate in the reservoir, replacing the reservoir with a fresh reservoir of beverage concentrate and replacing the disposable pump unit with a fresh disposable pump unit.

A method of dispensing a post-mix beverage from a beverage dispenser, comprising the steps of providing a container of beverage concentrate connected to a disposable pump unit that includes a twin barrel piston pump, including a first barrel having a first inlet thereto a first outlet therefrom and a first piston reciprocable therein and a second barrel having a second inlet thereto, a second outlet therefrom and a second piston reciprocable therein;

• fluid coupling the first and second barrel inlets to the container of the beverage concentrate via at least one inlet valve;
• using a non-disposable drive system to reciprocate the first piston in the first barrel in one direction in a fill cycle to draw the beverage concentrate into the first barrel from the container via the first inlet and the at least one inlet valve and then in an opposite direction in a emptying cycle to eject the beverage concentrate from the first barrel via the first outlet and to reciprocate the second piston in the second barrel in one direction in a fill cycle to draw the beverage concentrate into the second barrel from the container via the second inlet and the at least one inlet valve and then in an opposite direction in an emptying cycle to eject the beverage concentrate from the second barrel via the second outlet;
• operating the drive system to reciprocate the first and second pistons such that at least one of the first and second pistons is always moving in the direction in the first and/or second barrel to eject the beverage concentrate from the associated first and/or second barrel to provide a substantially constant and uninterrupted output flow of the beverage concentrate from the twin barrel piston pump during a dispense cycle;
• introducing a flow of chilled diluent to the output flow of the beverage concentrate ejected from the twin barrel piston pump;
• controlling at least one of the drive system for the twin barrel piston pump and the flow of the diluent introduced to the output flow of the beverage concentrate to achieve a predetermined ratiometric mixture of the diluent to the beverage concentrate;
• passing the mixture of the diluent and beverage concentrate through a mixer to provide a substantially homogeneous mixture of the diluent and of the beverage concentrate for dispensing from the dispenser into a receptacle;
• and, upon exhaustion of the beverage concentrate in the container, replacing the container with a fresh container of a beverage concentrate and the disposable pump unit with a fresh disposable pump unit.

Apparatus for dispensing a post-mix beverage, comprising:

• a disposable pump unit, said disposable pump unit including a twin barrel piston pump having a first barrel with a first inlet thereto, a first outlet therefrom and a first piston reciprocable therein, and a second barrel with a second inlet thereto, a second outlet therefrom and a second piston reciprocable therein;
• at least one inlet valve;
• means for fluid coupling said first and second barrel inlets to a container of beverage concentrate via said at least one inlet valve;
• a non-disposable drive system for reciprocating said first piston in said first barrel in one direction in a fill cycle to draw the beverage concentrate into said first barrel from the container of the beverage concentrate via said first inlet and said at least one inlet valve and then in an opposite direction in a emptying cycle to eject the beverage concentrate from said first barrel via said first outlet and to reciprocate said second piston in said second barrel in one direction in a fill cycle to draw the beverage concentrate into said second barrel from the container of the beverage concentrate via said second inlet and said at least one inlet valve and then in an opposite direction in an emptying cycle to eject the beverage concentrate from said second barrel via said second outlet;
• means for operating said drive system to reciprocate said first and second pistons such that at least one of said first and second pistons is always moving in the direction in the associated first and second barrel to eject the beverage concentrate from the associated first and second barrel to provide a substantially constant and uninterrupted output flow of the beverage concentrate from said twin barrel piston pump during a dispense cycle;
• means for fluid coupling a mixer to said first and second outlets;
• means for introducing a flow of chilled diluent to the output flow of the beverage concentrate ejected from said twin barrel piston pump upstream from said mixer;
• and means for controlling at least one of said drive system for said twin barrel piston pump and said means for introducing to achieve a predetermined ratiometric mixture of the diluent to the beverage concentrate for passage of the mixture through said mixer, said mixer providing a substantially homogeneous mixture of the diluent and the beverage concentrate for dispensing, wherein said operating means operates said drive system to reciprocate said first and second pistons such that said emptying cycles of said pistons overlap to provide a substantially continuous output flow of the beverage concentrate from said first and second barrels.