BEVERAGE DISPENSER COOLING SYSTEM

SYSTEME DE REFROIDISSEMENT POUR DISTRIBUTEUR DE BOISSONS

Description

CA 02612800 2007-11-29
Brief Description of the Drawings

Fig 1 is a schematic illustrating a beverage dispensing cooling system
constructed in
accordance with this invention

Fig. 2 is a drawing of the preferred embodiment of the invention
Detailed Description of the Invention

Fig 1 shows a beverage dispenser cooling system particularly for use in
dispensing beer
on tap. The system includes a storage container such as a beer keg 31
containing beer.
The keg 31 will typically be located within a refrigerated unit 33 such as a
large walk-in
refrigerator. A pressurized tank, usually containing carbon dioxide, beer gas
or
compressed air 39 is connected by line 35 to the interior of keg 31 for
applying pressure
to the beer therein. The contents of the beer keg 31 are connected to the
dispensing tap
36 by lines 7 and 11 that travel through an insulated trunk line 34. The
distance between
the beer keg 31 and the dispensing tap 36 can be quite far, with the trunk
line extending
up to five hundred feet. To prevent the beer in the trunk line from warming
excessively,
a glycol unit 32 is used. Glycol unit 32 is a conventional assembly, which
chills glycol
and pumps it through the trunk line 34 to the dispensing tower 37 and back.
The glycol
travels in parallel with the beer keeping it cool. A heat exchange device or
booster 55
placed in an intermediate location between the refrigerator and dispensing tap
further
cools the beer.

Fig 2 shows a drawing of a variable temperature booster. Beer is delivered to
the
variable temperature booster beer line 60 via a trunk line. The beer line is
split into two
lines prior to the entry of the heat exchange device. The heat exchange device
houses a
long beer line 61 and a short beer line 62. Both beer lines are immersed in an
insulated
chamber 63 through which a cooling liquid that's temperature is colder than
that of the
beer flows through. When beer passes through the heat exchangers beer lines,
the heat

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CA 02612800 2007-11-29

transfer between the beer and the glycol will be much greater in the long beer
line 61 than
the short beer line 62. The long beer 61 line will provide for a colder beer
exit
temperature from the heat exchange device than the short beer line 62. The
short beer line
62 is shown going through the chamber 63. However, it can also go around the
chamber
and join up with the valve 64 from outside the chamber. At the exit of the
heat exchange
device, both beer lines are attached to a valve 64 that allows for mixing of
beer from both
the long beer line 61 and the short beer line 62. The valve can be located at
either the
outlet or the inlet of the chamber 63. Adjustment of the valve 64 will allow
for varying
proportions of beer to exit both lines, thus varying temperature of beer
exiting the valve.
Upon exit of beer from the outlet 65, beer is delivered via a trunk line to a
beer tap for
dispense.

It is possible in other embodiments for the system to not include a valve.
This would
include a situation where the diameter of the line 62 is so narrow so as to
only allow a
miniscule amount of beer through.

2

Representative Drawing