Pressurized viscous condiment dispenser

摘要

User-selectable volumes of a viscous condiment such as ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise are consistently dispensed from a pressurized vessel. The vessel is pressurized using a small air pump, a cylinder of compressed gas or an external gas source. Pressure in the vessel is kept constant by sensing the pressure using a MEMS pressure transducer. Condiment flows from the pressurized vessel into a flexible tube, which passes through an electrically-actuated pinch valve. For a given pressure in the vessel, the amount of condiment to be dispensed is determined by the time that the pinch valve is open. A processor monitors the pressure, actuation of a user interface and controls operation of the air pump.

主权项

1. A pressurized viscous condiment dispenser comprising:
a user interface comprising at least one switch device and configured to receive a selection of an amount of condiment to be dispensed, and to provide, responsive to actuation of the switch device, an electrical signal which represents the amount of condiment to be dispensed; a vessel, which is configured to be pressurized and to receive a condiment to be dispensed; a gas source coupled to the vessel and configured to pressurize the vessel with a gas; and a valve coupled to the vessel and coupled to the user interface, the valve being configured to release condiment from the vessel responsive to an actuation of the user interface; a pressure transducer pneumatically coupled to the vessel, the pressure transducer configured to provide an electrical signal which represents a pressure of the gas in the vessel; and a processor coupled to the user interface, the valve, and the pressure transducer, the processor receives the electrical signal from the pressure transducer and the electrical signal from the user interface and is configured to cause the valve to open for different lengths of time to dispense the amount of condiment to be dispensed responsive to the electrical signals received from the user interface and the pressure transducer.