초록 ▼

A motorless continuous carbonator including a double acting piston type water pump driven by a double acting piston type gas pump actuator assembly powered by the carbonating gas. A connecting rod couples the pump piston with the actuator piston and includes means for operating a toggle switch mecha

A motorless continuous carbonator including a double acting piston type water pump driven by a double acting piston type gas pump actuator assembly powered by the carbonating gas. A connecting rod couples the pump piston with the actuator piston and includes means for operating a toggle switch mechanism for controlling a pair of solenoid valves respectively connected to the pump and actuator assembly for controlling the flow of water and carbonating gas, typically CO2, therefrom and thus deliver still water and CO2 to a semi-permeable membrane carbonator. The CO2 gas which initially provides the pumping force is subsequently fed to the carbonator where it is absorbed by the still water to form carbonated water which is then fed to a dispensing unit which may be either a post-mix dispenser utilized either on earth or in a microgravity environment.

대표청구항 ▼

A motorless carbonator for carbonated drink dispenser means, comprising: a double acting water pump including a pair of pump chambers separated by a reciprocatory pumping member, means for feeding still water alternately in and out of said pump chambers; a double acting gas activated pump actuator i

A motorless carbonator for carbonated drink dispenser means, comprising: a double acting water pump including a pair of pump chambers separated by a reciprocatory pumping member, means for feeding still water alternately in and out of said pump chambers; a double acting gas activated pump actuator including a pair of gas chambers separated by a reciprocatory actuator member powered by a differential gas pressure in said pair of gas chambers; means for feeding carbonating gas alternately into said gas chambers at a relatively high pressure and out of said gas chambers at a relatively low pressure; means for mechanically connecting said reciprocatory pumping member of said pump to said reciprocatory actuator member of said pump actuator; a carbonator assembly including a plurality of hollow semi-permeable membrane fibers coupled to said relatively low pressure carbonation gas out of said gas chambers and being located in a housing having a still water input port and a carbonated water output port, and wherein said carbonating gas passes through said semi-permeable membrane fibers and dissolves into still water fed from said pump to said input port to form carbonated water which is fed to said output port; and means connected to said output port of said carbonator assembly for feeding carbonated water to said drink dispensing means.