Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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Sterile Apparatus for Rapid Cooling of Hot Water
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention refers to a sterile apparatus for the rapid cooling of
hot water.
BACKGROUND ART
It is often necessary to boil liquids before using them in order to prevent
contamination, and then cool them down to a temperature that is suitable for
drinking.
For example, when preparing milk substitutes for babies, the water must first
be
1() boiled in order to prevent contamination, and then cooled down to a
temperature that
is suitable for feeding the baby. It is of course desirable that the procedure
of cooling
the water to the desired temperature be sterile. In general, it is commonly
accepted
that the parent pours the boiling water into the feeding bottle, and waits a
relatively
long time for the contents to cool. Sometimes the parent places the feeding
bottle with
the boiled water in a vessel that is filled with tap water, in order to hasten
the cooling,
although this still requires a long period of time to cool the contents. The
present
invention offers a good and effective solution to the aforementioned problem,
and for
a variety of other cases in which there is a need for the rapid, sterile
cooling of very
hot liquids.
U.S. patent application 2012/0312521 ("Application 521") discloses a beverage
cooling device comprising relatively many parts including several cooling
portions,
which assembled one into the other. The structure of the device of Application
521 is
cumbersome, expensive for manufacturing and not easy for cleaning, relatively
to the
apparatus subject matter of the present invention.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The intention of the drawing attached to the application is not to limit the
scope
of the invention and its application. The drawing is intended only to
illustrate
the invention and it constitutes only one of its many possible
implementations.
FIG. 1 depicts the cooling apparatus (1) in its closed state, ready for use.
FIG. 2 presents an exploded view of the apparatus (1), showing the external
tank (2)
the internal flasks (3) the stoppers manifold (4), and the pouring receptacle
(5).
FIG. 3 presents a sectioned side view of the apparatus (1), showing the
internal
cooling space (6).
FIG. 4 depicts the way in which the pouring receptacle (5) is mounted on the
stoppers
manifold (4) that closes the flasks (3).
FIG. 5 presents a sectioned top view of the flasks (3), and the way in which
they fit
into the external tank (2).
FIG. 6 is a sectioned side view of the external tank (2) into which the flasks
are
inserted (3) and closed by the stoppers manifold (4), and of the way in which
the
pouring receptacle (5) closes the external tank (2).
THE INVENTION
The main objective of the present invention is to provide an apparatus (1)
that
enables to cool hot fluids within a relatively very short time. Another
objective of the
present invention is to provide an apparatus as mentioned that enables to cool
liquids
as mentioned while maintaining the sterility of the cooled liquids. For the
sake of
fluency of the text, the term "water" will refer to water as well as to a
variety of other
liquids, and the expression "boiled water" will also refer to hot water.
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The apparatus for cooling hot water (1) consists of an external tank (2) and
several
internal cooling flasks (3). In addition, the apparatus (1) may include
stoppers (4) or a
stoppers manifold (4) and a pouring receptacle (5). Figure 1 depicts the
apparatus (1)
in its assembled state. Figure 2 presents an exploded view of the apparatus
(1) and the
way in which its components are integrated. Figure 3 presents a sectioned side
view
of the apparatus (1).
The external tank (2) is closed on the bottom and on its circumferential
sides, and
has a top opening (21). The cooling flasks (3) are relatively narrow
containers with a
top opening (31). The apparatus (1) comprises several cooling flasks (3)
positioned
very close to one another within the external tank (2), as depicted, for
instance, in
Figures 2 and 3. The cooling flasks (3) should contain coolant, which can be
either
regular tap water or any other coolant.
The top openings (31) of the flasks (3) may be permanently closed after being
filled
with coolant. Alternatively, the openings (31) may be closed with stoppers (4)
in a
way that enables the user to fill and empty the coolant contents. Stoppers (4)
may be
individual such that each stopper closes one opening (31) or they can comprise
a
stoppers manifold (4) that closes all of the openings (31) at once, as
depicted for
example in the drawings. As mentioned, the apparatus (1) may be equipped with
a
pouring receptacle (5) that can be designed as a kind of basin with a bottom
opening
(51). The pouring receptacle may also serve as a top cover for the external
tank (2). In
principle, the apparatus (1) does not have to be equipped with a pouring
receptacle.
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The spaces between one internal cooling flask (3) and another constitute a
fundamental element of the invention, subject of the present patent
application. The
internal cooling flasks (3) are set within the external tank (2) in such a way
that a very
narrow space is left between each cooling flask (3) and the next cooling flask
(3)
adjacent to it. Thus, almost the entire volume of the external tank (2) is
occupied by
the volume of internal cooling flasks (3). Figures 2-5 illustrate the way in
which the
cooling flasks (3) can be positioned within the external tank (2). The spaces
between
flasks (3) range from 1.5 mm to 2.5 mm in width, although the invention covers
both
larger and smaller dimensions as well.
Internal cooling space (6): Setting the internal cooling flasks (3) in the
external tank
(2) according to the aforementioned structure leaves very narrow spaces
between the
flasks (3). These narrow spaces constitute an internal cooling space (6). A
variety of
fixing means may be used (22) (33) to fix the cooling flasks (3) in the
external tank
(2) so that very narrow spaces exist between them, thus forming the inner
space (6).
The fixing means may be, for example, as depicted in the drawings, whereby the
inner
wall of the external tank (2) has internal recesses (22) that match the
rounded side
(33) of the flasks (3). The said spaces between the flasks (3) create a single
space that
constitutes the internal space (6), which may either be closed and have a top
opening,
or be completely open on top.
The internal cooling space (6) constitutes a space for quick and effective
cooling,
since its surface area is relatively very large. The structure of the internal
cooling
space (6) enables the coolant fluid in the cooling flasks (3) to quickly
adsorb the heat.
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Thus, a relatively small volume of boiled water is poured into the inner
space, filling
the very narrow spaces between the cooling flasks. The large contact area
between the
boiled water and the walls of the cooling flasks (3) leads to rapid cooling of
the boiled
5 water. After boiled water is poured into the apparatus (1), its
temperature plummets to
the desired temperature within a very short period of time.
Using the apparatus (1): If the apparatus (1) is equipped with stoppers (4)
that
enable the user to fill it with coolant such as tap water, and a pouring
receptacle (5),
as described above, then the apparatus (1) is used in the following way: the
cooling
flasks (3) are filled with tap water or another coolant, and are then closed
with the
stoppers (4). The tank (2) is then covered with the pouring receptacle (5).
The boiled
water is poured into the pouring receptacle (5) and flows into the internal
cooling
space (6). After a very short period of time, the water in the internal space
(6) may be
poured out, simply by tilting the apparatus (1). The water that is cooled in
the
apparatus (1) is stationary during the cooling process and does not have to be
circulated.
The structure of the apparatus components enables quick access to all
component
parts for quick and easy cleaning and disinfection, a very important aspect in
the
preparation of baby food. The apparatus components can be made from a wide
variety
of materials, even materials that are not especially good conductors of heat.
For
example, components may be manufactured from polypropylene, which meets strict
standards with regard to food and beverage containers. The apparatus may come
in a
variety of sizes. For example, an apparatus designed for cooling boiled water
used in
the preparation of milk substitutes for babies may include an internal cooling
space
(6) with a volume in the order of 200 ml.
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Figure 1 depicts the cooling apparatus (1) in its closed state, ready for use.
Figure 2
presents an exploded view of the apparatus (1) that shows the external tank
(2), the
internal flasks (3), the stoppers manifold (4) and the pouring receptacle (5),
and the
way in which they are integrated. Figure 3 presents a sectioned side view of
the
apparatus (1) showing the internal cooling space (6). Figure 4 depicts the way
in
which the pouring receptacle (5) is mounted on the stoppers manifold (4) that
closes
the cooling flasks (3). Figure 5 presents a sectioned top view of the cooling
flasks (3),
and the way in which they fit into the external tank (2). Figure 6 is a
sectioned side
view of the external tank (2) into which the flasks are inserted (3) and
closed by the
stoppers manifold (4), and of the way in which the pouring receptacle (5)
closes the
external tank (2).
As it is understood from the above explanations and the drawings the apparatus
for
cooling liquids (1) comprises an external tank (2) and several internal
cooling flasks
(3). The apparatus (1) includes at least three internal cooling flasks (3).
The internal
flasks (3) are similar to each other in their structure; and each of them has
two
longitudinal walls (32) and two lateral walls (33). The internal flasks are
designed to
contain coolant material, which may be top water for example. The external
tank is
shaped like a closed container with a top opening (21), having two
longitudinal walls
(24) and two lateral walls (23). Each said longitudinal wall (24) of said
external tank
(2) has internal recesses (22). These internal recesses (22) match the size of
the lateral
walls (33) of the internal cooling flasks.
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These internal recesses (22) constitute in fact a means for fixing the cooling
flasks
inside of the external tank, wherein said lateral walls of said internal
cooling flasks
constitute a means for fixing said cooling flasks inside of said external
tank. The
internal cooling flasks are designed to be set within the external tank in
such a way
that very narrow spaces are formed between the external walls of each cooling
flask
and the adjacent flasks, creating an internal cooling space. The user may pour
hot
water into said internal cooling space and the coolant material within said
internal
cooling flasks will adsorb heat from said hot water.
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