A carbonated beverage maker includes a water reservoir, a carbon dioxide creation chamber, and a carbonation chamber. The water reservoir holds ice water and has a first impeller and a shroud surrounding the first impeller. The carbon dioxide creation chamber contains chemical elements and receives warm water. The chemical elements react with each other to create carbon dioxide when the warm water is introduced to the carbon dioxide creation chamber. The carbonation chamber is connected to the water reservoir and the carbon dioxide creation chamber. The carbonation chamber has a second impeller that includes a stem portion and blades. The stem portion and the blades define conduits therein. The blades create a low pressure region in a lower portion of the carbonation chamber such that carbon dioxide from the carbon dioxide creation chamber flows through the conduits to the low pressure region.

A rotational machine, designed as a bearing free motor, including a stator designed as a bearing and drive stator having a stator winding and a disc-shaped rotor stored magnetically contact free within the stator. An axial height (H) of the rotor is smaller than or equal to a half diameter (D) of the rotor and with the rotor being passively stabilized by reluctance forces with regard to the stator both against a displacement along a rotational axis (A) of the rotor and also against a tilting from an equilibrium position (G), and with the stator including a permanent magnet for the generation of a homopolar magnetic flux (H). The rotor is a ring-like rotor rotatably arranged about a pole piece of the stator and the rotor includes a ferromagnetic material (FM) and no permanent magnet.

Magnetically coupled mixer having an impeller magnetically coupled to a drive shaft and thrust bearings that support the impeller. The drive shaft can be moved along its axis, and an upwardly directed axial force is applied to the drive shaft to partially offset downward forces exerted by the impeller and thereby reduce friction between the thrust bearing surfaces while maintaining contact between them. In one disclosed embodiment, the force is applied to the drive shaft by a pair of magnets arranged so that the magnetic fields interact to produce the force, and the magnitude of the force is controlled by adjusting the distance between the magnets. The forces exerted by the impeller can be monitored and utilized in controlling the magnitude of the force applied to the shaft.

A fluid-agitating tank assembly is disclosed. The tank assembly includes a tank filled with a fluid, and an agitator disposed in the tank so as to be at least partially immersed in the fluid and supported by the tank in a rotatable manner about an axis. The agitator includes a double helix disposed in an upper volume of the tank and adapted to act on the fluid to transform unidirectional rotation of the agitator about the axis into a bidirectional movement of the fluid in the tank towards bottom and top portions of the tank, and at least one rotary blade projecting transversally from the axis, disposed in a lower volume of the tank, and rotating about the axis to move the fluid towards at least one lateral outlet of the tank.

A carbonated beverage maker includes a water reservoir, a carbon dioxide creation chamber, and a carbonation chamber. The water reservoir holds ice water and has a first impeller and a shroud surrounding the first impeller. The carbon dioxide creation chamber contains chemical elements and receives warm water. The chemical elements react with each other to create carbon dioxide when the warm water is introduced to the carbon dioxide creation chamber. The carbonation chamber is connected to the water reservoir and the carbon dioxide creation chamber. The carbonation chamber has a second impeller that includes a stem portion and blades. The stem portion and the blades define conduits therein. The blades create a low pressure region in a lower portion of the carbonation chamber such that carbon dioxide from the carbon dioxide creation chamber flows through the conduits to the low pressure region.

A device for the processing of liquids and/or solids comprises a disposable layer adapted to shield a working surface from coming into contact with, and being fouled by, the processed liquids and/or solids, and apparatus suitable to apply a negative pressure in a gap between said disposable layer and said working surface, thereby causing said disposable layer to adhere to said working surface.

The present invention relates to a disposable container comprising a side wall, top and bottom, wherein the side wall and the bottom comprise a flexible material, wherein the side wall, top and bottom are joined together to define the container with an interior compartment for keeping a fluid inside the container. The bottom of the container comprises at least one portion of rigid or semi-rigid material comprising a folding means that enables folding of the bottom. Thus an easy way of folding the bottom of the container is provided.

A decanting vessel has an internal pump for recirculating a beverage such as wine and aerating it within the decanter.

A beverage machine system that includes: an insulated potable liquid storage tank having an interior volume; a liquid carbonator spaced within the interior volume of the insulated potable liquid storage tank and submerged therein; a high pressure potable liquid pump configured to pump potable liquid from the interior volume of the insulated potable liquid storage tank through a potable liquid conduit to a spray nozzle within an interior volume of the liquid carbonator; and a cooling coil positioned in a spaced apart relationship but wound around the carbonator such that the cooling coil does not physically touch an exterior surface of the carbonator submersed within the chilled potable liquid and the space between the cooling coil and the carbonator is at least substantially free of any other structure other than periodic frozen potable liquid adjacent the cooling coil.

A blending appliance includes a housing having a jar receiving portion defined between an upper housing and a base portion laterally extending from the housing. A blender jar is adapted to be laterally received within the jar receiving portion and includes a jar base and a receptacle portion. A stator is disposed in the base portion of the housing and is adapted to create an electromagnetic field to drive a rotatable magnetic coupler disposed in the jar base as part of a magnetic coupling system. The rotatable magnetic coupler is coupled to a drive shaft that is further coupled to a blade assembly disposed within the receptacle portion of the blender jar. The blade assembly is configured to process ingredients within the receptacle portion of the blender jar as coupled to the rotatable magnetic coupler.