Eaton Corporation

Larry D Powers

Michael G Weimer

Richard L Rejret

Lawrence G Searing

David K Wetzel

Jeffrey Hale

John W Parmley

William C Rantanen

A switch, mounted on a standard beverage tap, provides an electrical signal indicating when beverage is being dispensed into a serving container. The electrical signal is applied to a monitor which measures the period of time that the beverage flows from the tap. As beverage dispensing occurs, a series of steps are taken which determine from the time measurements whether the dispensing is proceeding into one container, is complete, is part of a continuous pour into several containers or has been completed with a subsequent single container pouring operation occurring. That determination is based on whether the period of time is within a range indicative of dispensing the beverage into a single serving container. When that determination is made a serving container count is incremented. The monitor also uses the measured time period to detect when the tap is opened for longer than the typical time required to fill a single beverage container. In response to that detection, a numerical estimate is made of how many serving containers were filled while the beverage tap was open and the numerical estimate is added to the serving container count. The measured time that the tap was open also is employed to calculate the quantity of beverage that has been dispensed.

Beverage dispenser with serving time monitor

Existing beverage dispensing taps may be retrofitted with a mechanism that provides an electrical signal which indicates when the tap is open. That mechanism includes a housing with an open bottom for placement over the tap with a lever of the tap projecting upward through an aperture in the housing. The housing is held in place over the tap by a compression bonnet the holds the operating lever on a conventional beverage tap. A switch assembly within the housing is engaged and operated by a component of the beverage tap to provide the electrical signal. The switch assembly has a unique double action actuator that tolerates different amounts of movement of the tap component. The actuator has a ring that is engaged by the tap component to operate the switch assembly and an annular flange secured to the housing. A first flexible web connects the ring to the annular flange and a button with a surface with a conductive surface is coupled to the ring by a second flexible web. When the switch is closed the conductive surface abuts a pair of contacts.

Beverage dispenser tap cover with position sensing switch

A dispenser is programmed to automatically dispense a beverage into a plurality of different size containers by storing therein a volume designation for each size container. The flow rate of beverage through the dispenser is determined. To do so, a user manually operates the dispenser to fill a given container with the beverage while the dispenser measures the filling time. The dispenser calculates a beverage flow rate from the volume designation for the given container and the filling time. Then the flow rate and volume designations are used thereafter by the dispenser to derive a dispensing time for each different size container. Thus the dispenser is able to derive dispensing times for each container size from filling only one of the containers. A unique dispenser valve also is disclosed.

Automatic beverage dispenser

Growing community of inventors

Watertown, WI, United States of America

Larry D Powers