Cleaning and liquid contact with solids – Apparatus – Automatic controls
Patent
1995-01-31
1997-02-11
Stinson, Frankie L.
Cleaning and liquid contact with solids
Apparatus
Automatic controls
134 992, 1341001, 134113, B08B 1300
Patent
active
056011016
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to washing systems and more particularly a clean in place washing system.
There are situations where regular in place washing of equipment is required in order to maintain it in a clear and hygienic state. For example, in hotels, taverns, bars (both private and public), aerated waters, beers, ales etc are delivered under pressure from a bulk supply (such as pressurized kegs) to dispensing taps, guns or the like. The delivery lines need to be regularly cleaned to ensure that they are kept clear and the required levels of hygiene are maintained. This cleaning is generally carried out by flushing the lines with a mixture of a washing concentrate (e.g. caustic soda) and water from a pressurized container followed by clean water flushing.
While this system does effectively clean the delivery lines it is not a straight forward operation which can be readily carried out by bar management or staff. Thus it is an operation usually carried out by a manufacturer's representative visiting the establishment. Therefore it is quite often the case that the operation is not carried out as regularly as is desirable.
Also regular cleaning of liquid food dispensing equipment (such as, for example, Taylor Dairy Machines which dispense milk shakes and soft freeze ice cream) is required to keep the equipment clean and free of bacterial contamination. With such equipment, however, there are a large number of components which need to be manually dismantled and cleaned. These include milk feed pump(s) and the draw valve assembly. The operation of cleaning is thus one which takes a considerable amount of time to carry out. It therefore involves in many situations considerable expense to the owner/operator of the equipment.
Accordingly the present invention has as one of its main objects the provision of a washing system for in place washing of beverage and/or foodstuff dispensing equipment, the washing system being effective in use and easy to operate.
Broadly therefore in one aspect of the invention there is provided a washing system comprising a doser unit connectible with a washing fluid supply, said doser unit being connected to a cleaning additive supply and having means for supply of metered quantity of cleaning additive to the doser unit, sensing means for, in use, sensing the number of operations of the doser unit when said doser unit is metering cleaning additive into the washing fluid supply and control means for causing disconnection of the cleaning additive supply from the doser unit after a predetermined number of operations of the doser unit has been sensed by said sensing means.
In the preferred form of the invention the doser unit is a volumetric hydraulic pump. Preferably the sensing means is an external sensor coupled with the body or housing of the doser unit and can in one form be provided by an acoustic coupler.
According to a further broad aspect of the invention there is provided a washing system for in place washing of a machine or equipment the system including supply means connectible to at least one source of washing fluid and operable to regulate a flow of said washing fluid to the machine or equipment, means for adding a cleaning additive to the washing fluid, and control means for controlling said supply means whereby controlled changes in the flow of washing fluid to the machine or equipment can be effected.
The present invention also provides a washing system for in place washing said system including a doser unit for supply into washing liquid of a cleaning additive characterised in that it includes external sensing means which senses movement of an internal component or componentry of the doser unit such movement being correlated to a metered dosage being dispensed.
The following description will describe the washing system according to preferred forms thereof and reference will be made to the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is an illustration of the washing system according to one embodiment,
FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram of one form of the electronic circuitry of a cont
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Bell-Booth Mark R.
Grapes Robert D.
Precision Dispensing Systems Limited
Stinson Frankie L.
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