Beverage dispenser and refrigeration appliance comprising a beverage dispenser
11029083 · 2021-06-08
Assignee
Inventors
- Denis Lux (Heidenheim, DE)
- Tobias Mayr (Bachhagel, DE)
- Elena Claass (Geislingen, DE)
- Andrea Fink (Gerstetten, DE)
- Jessica Dittmann (Herbrechtingen, DE)
- Armin Weber (Lauchheim, DE)
Cpc classification
F25D2327/001
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
F25D23/126
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
B67D3/0025
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
F25D27/00
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
International classification
B67D3/00
PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
Abstract
A beverage dispenser has an actuation lever which is mounted in a dispenser recess in such a way as to be able to pivot about an axis, at least one lighting device, and at least one optical waveguide, which extends from the lighting device, for illuminating the dispenser recess. A light exit is provided on the actuation lever, and the optical waveguide connects the lighting device to the light exit on the actuation lever.
Claims
1. A beverage dispenser, comprising: a housing having a dispenser recess formed therein and a rear wall; an actuation lever mounted in said dispenser recess in such a way as to be able to pivot about an axis, said actuation lever having a light exit; at least one illuminator disposed on said rear wall covered by said actuation lever; at least one optical waveguide extending from said illuminator for illuminating said dispenser recess, said optical waveguide connecting said illuminator to said light exit of said actuation lever; a base mounted on said rear wall, said actuation lever is articulated on said base and said optical waveguide is fastened to said base, said base being a hollow body opening toward said rear wall of said housing, said hollow body having a wall with an edge facing said rear wall and at least one recessed portion formed therein toward said edge, said recessed portion being open on said edge thereof, and said optical waveguide is inserted from said edge into said recessed portion.
2. The beverage dispenser according to claim 1, wherein said optical waveguide and said base are integrally molded from a transparent material.
3. The beverage dispenser according to claim 1, wherein said actuation lever has a rough surface, said light exit and said rough surface oppose one another on two sides of said actuation lever.
4. The beverage dispenser according to claim 1, wherein said actuation lever has a first lever arm which extends downwardly from the axis and a second lever arm which protrudes from the axis into said dispenser recess.
5. The beverage dispenser according to claim 4, wherein said second lever arm has a lower face with a lower light exit.
6. The beverage dispenser according to claim 5, wherein said first lever arm is illuminated via said lower light exit.
7. The beverage dispenser according to claim 4, wherein said actuation lever is formed from a translucent material provided with an opaque coating and said opaque coating has a hole formed therein functioning as said light exit.
8. The beverage dispenser according to claim 7, wherein said opaque coating has an internal layer and an external layer, said internal layer is brighter than said external layer.
9. The beverage dispenser according to claim 7, wherein said second lever arm is hollow and said optical waveguide terminates in a hollow space of said second arm spaced apart from said light exit.
10. The beverage dispenser according to claim 7, wherein said translucent material is exposed on an edge of said first lever arm facing the axis, and said optical waveguide terminates opposite said edge.
11. The beverage dispenser according to claim 5, wherein said first lever arm has a base plate and a rib which protrudes from said base plate and said rib extends from an end of said optical waveguide to said lower light exit.
12. A beverage dispenser, comprising: a housing having a dispenser recess formed therein and a rear wall; an actuation lever mounted in said dispenser recess in such a way as to be able to pivot about an axis, said actuation lever having a light exit, a first lever arm extending downwardly from the axis and a second lever arm protruding from the axis into said dispenser recess, said first lever arm having has at least one lower light exit formed therein; at least one illuminator disposed on said rear wall covered by said actuation lever; at least one optical waveguide extending from said illuminator for illuminating said dispenser recess, said optical waveguide connecting said illuminator to said light exit of said actuation lever; and a base mounted on said rear wall, said actuation lever is articulated on said base and said optical waveguide is fastened to said base.
13. The beverage dispenser according to claim 12, wherein said first lever arm is plate-shaped and has a plate, said lower light exit extends along an edge of said plate of said first lever arm or is disposed at a central point of said first lever arm.
14. A beverage dispenser, comprising: a housing having a dispenser recess formed therein and a rear wall; an actuation lever mounted in said dispenser recess in such a way as to be able to pivot about an axis, said actuation lever having a light exit, a first lever arm extending downwardly from the axis and a second lever arm protruding from the axis into said dispenser recess; at least one illuminator disposed on said rear wall covered by said actuation lever; at least one optical waveguide extending from said illuminator for illuminating said dispenser recess, said optical waveguide connecting said illuminator to said light exit of said actuation lever; a base mounted on said rear wall, said actuation lever is articulated on said base and said optical waveguide is fastened to said base; and said second lever arm having an upper face and one of said upper face or said base having an upper light exit.
15. The beverage dispenser according to claim 14, further comprising a disposable beverage container being illuminated via said upper light exit.
16. The beverage dispenser according to claim 15, wherein said disposable beverage container has a wall and said upper light exit is aligned with said wall of said disposable beverage container.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
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DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
(17) In
(18) The door subassembly 1 comprises a door 4, in the narrower sense closing the storage compartment, and a cover 5 which is pivotable relative to the door 4 about the same axis 3. In the view of
(19) The cover 5 comprises a window pane 6 made of clear or tinted glass or plastics material, in this case enclosed by a non-transparent frame 7. An upper strip of the frame 7 is L-shaped in section with a limb 8 extending vertically upwardly from the window pane 6, and a limb 9 angled back from an upper edge of the limb 8 toward the body 2, and extending across an upper flank of the door 4. Correspondingly, a right-hand strip of the frame comprises a limb 10 extending from the right-hand edge of the window pane 6 in the width direction of the door subassembly 1, and a limb 11 which is angled back toward the body and which, however, is divided into two by a handle recessed portion 12 into an upper and a lower half. A central piece 13 of the handle recessed portion 12 extends from the edge into the limb 10.
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(21) By pivoting solely the cover 5 about the axis 3, a dispenser recess 20 is accessible, said dispenser recess having been cut out of a lower part of the door 4 and being shown in
(22) Level with the central piece 13, however, the edge of the limb 10 is flush with the projection 19 so that a user grips the handle groove 18, acting at the level of the central piece, and thus pivots the entire door subassembly 1 about the axis 3 and a storage compartment 21 for refrigerated goods in the interior of the body 2 is accessible.
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(24) As may be identified in
(25) One respective actuation lever 24 is mounted below each beverage container 22 in the dispenser recess 20, said actuation lever, in a manner to be described in more detail below, serving to open a valve 25 on the lower face 22′ of the beverage container 22 arranged there above, if a receptacle is pressed against the actuation lever 24 in the dispenser recess 20, and serving to fill the receptacle with a beverage from the container 22.
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(27) The beverage containers 22 are substantially cuboidal. The beverage containers comprise in each case a container lower part 30 which is preferably formed from glass-clear plastics material, the upper face thereof being closed by a lid 31 and the valve 25 being releasably mounted on the lower face thereof.
(28) The valves 25 and the actuation levers 24 are visible through the opening 28 in
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(31) The actuation lever 24 in
(32) As is clear in
(33) A plurality of ribs 45 protrude from an upper narrow side 44 of the base 36, in each case optical waveguides 47, 48 are attached to the ends thereof. Each optical waveguide 47, 48 has an inlet aperture 49 which opposes one of the LEDs 35 on the printed circuit board 34. Adjoining the inlet aperture 49, the optical waveguides 47, 48 in each case are oriented perpendicular to the rear wall 32 and/or to the printed circuit board 34 and the LEDs 35, in order to capture as fully as possible the light radiated by the LEDs substantially perpendicular to the printed circuit board 34. The ends of the optical waveguides remote from the rear wall 32 are curved downwardly in the case of the optical waveguide 47 and curved upwardly in the case of the optical waveguide 48.
(34) In the case of
(35) In the simplest case, the optical waveguides 47, 48 are bars made of a uniform transparent plastics material and injection-molded integrally with the ribs 46 and the base 36. The fact that in this case the base 36 also consists of transparent plastics material is barely noticeable to an observer since the base 36 in the interior of the dispenser recess 20 is fully concealed behind the actuation lever 24. Light losses via the ribs 46 are thus not able to be entirely avoided but may be kept small by a narrow width of the ribs 46.
(36) Optical waveguides 47, 48 with lower losses could be formed by bundles of optical fibers onto which the ribs 46 and the base 36 are injection-molded.
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(38) The optical waveguide 47 extends in the hollow space 51 without being in contact with the upper and lower wall 52 and/or 53 thereof. As a light exit 46 via which the light of the LEDs 35 passes into the dispenser recess 20, a hole 54 is formed on the lower wall 53 in the opaque coating 50 which opposes an outlet aperture 55 of the optical waveguide 47 so that the light which emerges from the optical waveguide 47 substantially fully strikes the outlet aperture 55 and illuminates the outer face of the lever arm 38 located therebelow and/or, if present, a receptacle pressed against the lever arm 38.
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(41) Light which passes through the hole 54 of the upper wall 52, strikes the lower face of the container 22 located thereabove and is reflected back thereby into the dispenser recess 20.
(42) The transparent layer of the walls 52, 53 in
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(44) A housing 58 is provided in order to receive the printed circuit board 34. Each of the numerous openings 59 of the housing 58 opposes one of the LEDs 35 in order to permit the light thereof to pass through to an optical waveguide 47 or 48.
(45) Here the sets comprise in each case five LEDs 35.
(46) The housing 58 and the printed circuit board 34 are provided in order to be mounted on the rear face, i.e. the side facing the storage compartment 21, of the rear wall 32 of the dispenser recess, not shown in
(47) Optical waveguides 47, 48 made of glass-clear plastics opposing the LEDs 35 are connected by projections 61 to form an integral molded part 60. The optical waveguides 47, 48 comprise in each case inlet apertures 49 facing one of the LEDs 35 and/or one of the openings 59, and alternately upwardly and downwardly oriented outlet apertures 55. In order to deflect light passed via the inlet apertures 49 into the optical waveguides 47, 48 to the outlet aperture 55 the optical waveguides 47, 48 may have fully reflective planar surfaces 62 between the inlet and outlet.
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(49) The indentations 64 in each case are located at the end of a groove 65 which extends from a front face 66 of the base 36 horizontally via the flanks 63, so that the actuation lever 24 may be easily latched from the front onto the base 36 by its axle pins initially being inserted into the grooves 65 and pushed therein to the rear until latched in the indentations 64.
(50) In the vicinity of its upper end, the base 36 has a through-passage 67 through which in the assembled state the central optical waveguide 47 of the molded part 60 extends. The lateral flanks 63 of the base 36 in each case extend between the central optical waveguide 47 and the two outer optical waveguides 47 and in each case are provided with a horizontal notch 68. The notches 68 in the assembled state receive horizontal portions of the projections 61 and thus fix the molded part 60 in the vertical direction.
(51) A groove 69 extends vertically downwardly in the base 36 starting from the through-passage 67.
(52) Two recessed portions 72 are formed in an upper wall 70 of the base 36, starting from an edge 71 facing the rear wall 32 of the dispenser recess, said recessed portions receiving the outlet apertures 55 of the optical waveguides 48 in a flush-mounted manner.
(53) The actuation lever 24 comprises a second lever arm 39 protruding above the axis 37 into the dispenser recess and a first lever arm 38 extending obliquely downwardly. The first lever arm 38 comprises a base plate 73 and ribs 74 protruding from a side of the base plate 73 facing the rear wall 32. If the actuation lever 24 is mounted on the base, two of the ribs 74 encompass the flanks 63 of the base 36 and bear the axle pins engaging in the recessed portions 64 thereof. A further rib 74 is received in the groove 69. In each case opposite the ribs 74 slotted light exits 46′ are formed on a front face of the base plate 73.
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(56) An upper edge of the base plate 73 and an upper end 75 of the central rib 74 oppose the outlet aperture 55 of the central optical waveguide 47 so that light escaping at this point is largely absorbed by the rib 74 molded from glass-clear plastics material and is conducted downwardly along the rib 74 in the lever arm 39. An edge of the rib 74 remote from the base plate 73 is roughened by a fluted contour. Edges 82 of this fluted contour extend parallel to the axis 37 and transversely to the direction of the dissipation of the light in the ribs 74 so that light which strikes the facets 76 defined by these edges 82 is reflected in the direction of the base plate 73 and thus the output of light via the light exit 46′ (below the cutout shown in
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REFERENCE CHARACTERS
(61) 1 Door subassembly 2 Body 3 Axis 4 Door 5 Cover 6 Window pane 7 Frame 8 Limb 9 Limb 10 Limb 11 Limb 12 Handle recessed portion 13 Central piece 14 Outer wall 15 Inner wall 16 Hollow space 17 Insulating glass pane 18 Handle groove 19 Projection 20 Dispenser recess 21 Storage compartment 22 Beverage container 22′ Lower face of beverage container 23 Recess 24 Actuation lever 25 Valve 26 Housing 27 Front face 28 Opening 29 Upper face 30 Container lower part 31 Lid 32 Rear wall 33 Aperture 34 Printed circuit board 35 LED 36 Base 37 Axis 38 First lever arm 39 Second lever arm 39′ Upper face of second lever arm 39″ Lower face of second lever arm 40 Cut-out 41 Finger 42 Screw dome 43 Recessed portion 44 Narrow face 45 Rib 46 Upper light exit 46′ Lower light exit 47 Optical waveguide 48 Optical waveguide 49 Inlet aperture 50 Coating 51 Hollow space 52 Upper wall 53 Lower wall 54 Hole 55 Outlet aperture 56 Axle pin 57 Side wall 58 Housing 59 Opening 60 Molded part 61 Projection 62 Planar surface 63 Lateral flank 64 Indentation 65 Groove 66 Front face 67 Through-passage 68 Notch 69 Groove 70 Upper wall 71 Edge 72 Recessed portion 73 Base plate 74 Rib 75 Upper end 76 Facet 77 Coating 78 External layer 79 Internal layer 80 Side wall 81 Rib 82 Edge