Field of technology

The invention concerns a device for automated beer brewing. The device includes two vessels for the processes of first and second part of the process, whereby the transfer and filtration of the semi-product (or intermediate product) is considerately ensured by the underpressure in the second vessel. The invention likewise discloses a method with high or total level of automation, thanks to which the device can be effectively used without personnel in small or home operations.

Prior state of the art

The basic ingredients hitherto used for beer brewing are usually considered to be barley, water, malt, hops and yeast. The ratio of all these ingredients is exactly defined and it is necessary to use them in exactly defined processes of beer brewing. Individual parts process of beer brewing are malting, roasting, mashing, wort boiling, hops flavoring, fermentation, conditioning (maturing, aging) and carbonation.

There are many large breweries worldwide which produce large amounts of beer, however, hitherto small and home mini-breweries are coming into vogue. Large industrial breweries and small breweries are designed for the production of as large amount of beer as possible for the purposes of selling. The home breweries are mostly designed for home brewers who brew beer for their own personal consumption, whereby there are many small devices for brewing beer; however, all processes must be realized manually by the personnel.

Document GB 2523931 A discloses small automated system for home beer brewing which contains a mean for automatic tapping from primary fermentation vessel to the secondary vessel through the pipe and sediments collector controlled by the electric tap. The secondary vessel has an automatic mixing device using motor and stirrer. It is equipped with an extended fermentation stopper for degassing; the output from the stopper can be connected to the overflow vessel in order to stop eventual overflow which can occur. This system involves automatic addition of the ingredients through the inlets, whereby ingredients can include sulphites, fining agents, filling ingredients and sugar for beer saturation. The secondary vessel can be emptied by opening of the electric tap. The tap can be connected to the automatized bottling system for filling of several bottles. Several switches allow for automation of all functions including the ingredients dispenser, two electric taps, electromotor and fermentation stoppers. The device can be supplied by power from the electrical system or use 12V battery.

Document CN 103013728 A discloses automatic device for home beer brewing which includes a fermentation vessel on its upper side and vessel for a liquid from the fermentation on the lower side and respective cooling device, whereby the bottoms of both vessels are smooth sloped surfaces; on the top of the fermentation vessel there is an entry for the material and on the bottom of the vessel for liquid for the fermentation there is an outlet pipe; the cooling device is connected with the regulator which is connected with fully automated control system; the fermentation vessel and the vessel for the liquid from the fermentation are respectively equipped by the temperature sensor and they are connected to the regulator and fully automated control system; between the bottom of the fermentation vessel and the vessel for the liquid from the fermentation there is a liquid line; in the middle of the liquid line there is a filtration device and an electronic valve; the electronic valve is connected with the fully automated control system; the upper end of the liquid line is connected with the upper space of the smooth sloped surface of the fermentation vessel; the upper parts of both vessels are equipped by the automated outlet valves; and at the bottom end of the body of the fermentation vessel there is a heater which is connected with the fully automated control system.

The deficiencies in the abovementioned solutions lie mainly in the respective control systems whose configurability is limited and where the options to adjust the parameters of brewing process are likewise limited.

Small brewery pursuant to publication DE 102006009612A1 has height-oriented construction with a vessel with two sections which uses gravitational transfer of the material, which overall leads to the construction of device being very high. This device as well as other devices in prior art are not equipped with sufficient means for automation and thereby require a manual operation.

In various brewery sets there are several processes occurring basically in a single vessel or mutually in two or more interconnected vessels. The operation with two or multiple vessels requires the transfer of the liquid semi-product, whereby pumps are used for this purpose or the vessels are arranged one above the other and the flow of the material is ensured gravitationally. In case of small brewery sets there is a need for compact spatial arrangement so that it can be simply transferred and installed in a limited space. In such case the arrangement of the vessels one above the other is undesired. The use of typical pumps with rotational wheel leads to inconsiderate contact with the pumped material and worsens the sensuous qualities of the resulting product. A technical solution is desired and not known, which will provide a compact construction with the automatic operation and, at the same time, allows for considerate processing of the raw materials and semi-products.

Essence of the invention

Deficiencies in the state of the art are significantly remedied by the invention defined by the method pursuant to patent claims 13 and 14 and by the invention defined as a device pursuant to patent claims 1 to 12.

Automated device for beer brewing pursuant to this invention in one of its preferable arrangements contains a first vessel containing a device and components for the first part of the beer brewing process, a second vessel containing a device and components for the second part of the beer brewing process, where the first and second vessel are connected to the liquid supply from the first vessel to the second vessel, and the devices and components for the first and second part of the beer brewing process are connected to the control system. The essence of the invention lies in the fact that the first vessel and second vessel are placed side by side on a common frame, where the first vessel contains upper torospheric bottom which contains drive of the stirrer and malt feeder; the vessel is equipped by the heating and at least one temperature sensor and on the bottom it contains sloped bottom surface and outlet valve; the second vessel contains upper torospheric bottom which contains drive of the stirrer, hops and yeast dispenser, pressure sensor, CO2 sensor and connector for the air pump which is preferably placed on a common frame; this second vessel is further equipped by the heating and cooling and at least one temperature sensor, and on the bottom it contains sloped bottom surface and output valve; where the first vessel is connected with the second vessel through the outlet valve of the first vessel and the connecting pipe with filter; where the connecting pipe is connected to the upper torospheric bottom of the second vessel; whereby the drives of the stirrers, the heatings and coolings of the vessels, the temperature sensors, the malt feeder, the hops and yeast dispenser, the outlet valve, the output valve and the air pump are connected to the control box containing the control system. An important feature of the device is the arrangement of two vessels side by side on a common frame, thanks to which the device has a compact construction which allows for simple manipulation of the whole device through common construction openings, doors, and so on. Both vessels are precisely placed side by side on the frame, not one above the other, thanks to which the height is relatively small and the width is in principle set by the dimension of one vessel.

An important feature of the method of the automated beer brewing is the separation of individual processes into two vessels, whereby the underpressure produce in the second vessel by means of an air pump is used for transfer of the brewing semi-product. Underpressure ensures considerate transfer of the material and allows for effective filtration.

In the basic arrangement the device for the automated beer brewing includes a first vessel containing a device and components for the first part of the beer brewing process, a second vessel containing a device and components for the second part of the beer brewing process. The first and second vessel are placed side by side on a common frame and are connected by the connecting pipe for the liquid supply from the first vessel to the second vessel. The device also contains an outlet valve of the first vessel and the control system which is connected with a stirrer with a drive, hops and yeast dispenser, outlet valve, at least one temperature sensor in first vessel and/or second vessel, and heating and/or cooling of at least one vessel. An important feature is that the device includes an air pump and a pressure sensor, where the air pump is connected with the second vessel and the connecting pipe is connected to the bottom part of the first vessel and to the upper part of the second vessel, whereby the air pump and the pressure sensor are connected with the control system. Thanks to this arrangement the device can ensure, with help of the air pump, a considerate and easily controlled transfer of the semi-product from one vessel to the second vessel.

It is preferable if the air pump is connected with the second vessel by means of connection which leads to the second vessel in its upper part, preferably on the upper bottom of the second vessel. The outlet valve is preferable placed between the bottom bottom of the first vessel and the connecting pipe.

The device includes a filter placed between the first and second vessel, preferably behind the outlet valve. This arrangement achieves a synergic effect where the underpressure of the air pump ensures not only transfer of the semi-product from the first vessel to the second, but also an effective and considerate filtration of the fermented semi-product.

The control system of the device according to this invention consists of a singleboard computer (SBC) and modules with microcomputers, where the SBC contains front-end application, back-end application and database, the modules with microcomputers are temperature sensor module with microcomputer connected to the temperature sensor, motors module with microcomputer connected to the motors of the drives of stirrers, heating and cooling, pressure sensor module with microcomputer connected to the pressure sensor, CO2 sensor module with microcomputer connected to the CO2 sensor, air pump module with microcomputer connected to the air pump and the outlet valve, and malt feeder and the yeast and hops dispenser module with microcomputer connected to the malt feeder and the yeast and hops dispenser. Microcomputers are wirelessly connected to the back-end application realizing in the background control of and communication with every microcomputer. Back-end application is connected to the database which serves as a storage of the measure values, individual past brewings, configurations of microcomputers, brewing steps and the order of these steps, and moreover it is connected to the front-end application, where the front-end application communicates with the touch display connected to the SBC, whereby this front-end application creates an interface for the user for the display of the actual state of the sensors and effectors and for the insertion of the order of the brewing steps, where individual brewing steps are presented as blocks which the user orders one after another by dragging these blocks on the touch display.

During automated beer brewing pursuant to this invention the fermentation of the raw materials takes place in the first vessel and in the second vessel the beer is brewed, boiled, hops flavored (if hops flavoring is part of the process), cooled and matured, whereby individual phases are controlled by the control system in the preprogrammed regime with feedback with at least one temperature sensor. The transfer of the semi-product from the first vessel to the second vessel is ensured by the underpressure in the second vessel whereby the air pump is controlled by the control system, preferably with use of the pressure sensor. After the transfer from the first vessel to the second the semi-product is filtered by means of underpressure in the second vessel and preferably the semi-product is filtered in the filter which is inserted behind the outlet valve by the bottom bottom of the first vessel. The advantage of the device and method according to this invention is the compact construction with high level of automation, whereby excellent sensuous characteristics of the beer are achieved. All production steps are flexibly adjustable and fully automated and thanks to the use of the underpressure for the transfer and filtration of the semi-product one gets an excellent final product without the need for human operation.

Description of drawings

The device for automated beer brewing according to this invention is further depicted on the attached drawings, where:

Fig. 1 is a side view of the device;

Fig. 2 is a top view of the device;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the device;

Fig. 4 is a block diagram of the control system of the device.

The depicted details of individual elements as well as dimensional ratios are for illustration purposes only and cannot be interpreted as limiting the scope of protection.

Examples of realization

Automated beer brewing device according to this invention, as depicted on fig. 1 to 3, contains a first vessel A and second vessel B, which are both placed on a common frame 1. The common frame 1 in this example is equipped by the wheels for easy transport of the device.

Vessels A, B are of a common cylindrical shape.

The first vessel A is intended for the process of fermentation and the second vessel B is intended for the beer brewing process, hops flavoring (if it is part of the brewing regime) and cooling to the temperature where the beer matures.

First vessel A in this example has an upper torospheric bottom 2 which contains connections to the attachment of the devices and components necessary for the part of the process of beer brewing related to fermentation. In general, it is preferable for whole device that the realization of connections and the connecting of individual fittings and pipes is done by means of flap joints and flanged joints; this ensures simple disassembly and simple cleaning.

The mentioned devices and components include stirrer’s drive, typically a motor 3 with a gear which drives the stirrer (not depicted on the drawings) of the first vessel A, malt feeder 4 with a malt storage bin 5, ventilation through a biological filter for ventilation 6, hole 20 for cleaning of the vessel and observation hole 21 for visual control of the process.

First vessel A, moreover, contains heating, in the depicted example in form of electric heating strip 7. Heating can also have a form of a duplicator sheath or, eventually, a duplicator bottom for the purposes of heating by the heating liquid. Heating can be thus ensured either by direct electric heating as well as heating by heating fluid. At the bottom the vessel A has sloped bottom which is in this example conical. The vessel A is equipped by at least one temperature sensor 8. The temperature sensors measure the temperature for the purposes of control of the process. For the more precise control there are, duplicately, two temperature sensors 8 present. In the depicted example the two temperature sensors are on the bottom of the vessel A. The temperature sensors 8 can be placed in another place of the vessel A which is suitable for the measuring of the temperature of the process.

First vessel A is on the bottom equipped by the outlet valve 9 which allows to pump the liquid from the first vessel A to the second vessel B.

Constructionally, the second vessel B is almost identical to the first vessel A, the difference being that the upper torospheric bottom 12 contains connections for the connection of the devices and components necessary for the second part of the beer brewing process concerning boiling, hops flavoring and cooling.

The mentioned devices and components include stirrer’s drive, typically motor 13 with a gear which drives the stirrer (not depicted on the drawings) of the second vessel B, the overpressure valve, the pressure sensor 24, the CO2 sensor 25 depicted on the drawings by a common connection 14 for the overpressure valve with the pressure sensor 24 and the CO2 sensor 25. The pressure sensor 24 and the CO2 sensor 25 serve the purpose of determining the pressure and CO2 concentration for the purposes of control of the process. The devices of vessel B also involve yeast and hops dispenser 26, hole 20 for cleaning of the device and the observation hole 21 for visual control of the process. The second vessel B contains a connection 15 for the air pump 17 preferably on its upper torospheric bottom 13. The connection 15 for the air pump 17 can be on the other part of the vessel B, for example on its cylindrical part, whereby in general this connection 15 must be in the upper part of the vessel B. The air pump 17 is preferable placed on the common frame 1.

The second vessel B contains a heating, in the depicted example in the form of electric heating strip 18. The heating can be in form of duplicator sheath for the heating by the heating liquid, too. On the bottom the vessel B has a sloped bottom which is in this example conical and includes a duplicator sheath 19 through which the process of cooling of the beer is realized. The heating can thus be ensured by the direct electric heating or by heating by the heating fluid. In case of the duplicator sheath of the whole vessel B it is possible that aside from the heating by the heating fluid such a duplicator sheath ensures cooling by the cooling fluid.

The second vessel B is, moreover, equipped by at least one temperature sensor 8. The temperature sensor8 serves the purpose of determining the temperature for the purposes control of the process. For the more precise control there are two duplicate temperature sensors 8. In the depicted example the two temperature sensors 8 are on the bottom of the vessel B. The temperature sensors 8 can be placed on another place of the vessel B suitable for the measurement of the temperature of the process.

The second vessel B is equipped on its bottom by the output valve 22 to allow the pumping of the final product, beer, to the bottling device.

The first vessel A is connected with the second vessel B through the outlet valve 9 on the bottom of the first vessel A and the connecting pipe 10 in which the filter 11 is placed. The filter 11 serves the process of filtration before the process of hops flavoring. The connecting pipe 10 is connected to the second vessel B on the upper torospheric bottom 12 of the second vessel B. The pumping of the liquid from the first vessel A to the second vessel B and the process of filtration are all realized by means of an air pump 17 which creates an underpressure in the second vessel B through the connection 15 of the air pump 17 and the opening of the outlet valve 9. That is, in this example the liquid transfers through the connecting pipe 10, after the process of the filtration through the filter 11 , to the second vessel B through its upper torospheric bottom 12.

A control box 23 with the control system is further placed on the frame 1 . All controllable devices and components operate under this control system and therefore this device can be considered to be fully automated, already since the process of feeding or dispensing the raw materials in form of malt, until the creation of product in form of beer. The device contains sensors 8, 24, 25 which gather data about the process such as temperature of the brewed beer, temperature of the cooling liquid, pressure, CO2 concentration, and these data are then processed in the control system P and they can be displayed on the display 0, preferably touch display and, for example, available application in the mobile device.

The control hardware placed in the control box 23 consists of two main components. It is an SBC and multiple modules with microcomputers.

Block diagram of the control system of the device according to this invention is depicted in fig. 4. Each module is controlled by the microcomputer and it controls a group of similar sensors and effectors, where module M8 of the temperature sensors contains microcomputer MM8 connected to the temperature sensors 8; module M313 of the motors contains microcomputer MM313 connected to the motors 3, 13 and their frequency alternators, respectively, and to the drive of the stirrers, to heating - in this example by means of heating strips 7, 18 - and to cooling - in this example by means of duplicator sheath 19 bottom; module M24 of the pressure sensors contains microcomputer MM24 connected to the pressure sensors 24; module M25 of the CO2 sensors contains microcomputer MM25 connected to the CO2 sensors 25; module M17 of the air pump contains microcomputer MM17 connected to the air pump 17 and to the outlet valve 9; module M426 of the malt feeder 4 and hops and yeast dispenser 26 contains microcomputer MM426 connected to the servomotors of the malt feeder 4 and hops and yeast dispenser 26.

Modules M8, M313, M24, M25, M17, M426 are connected wirelessly and they communicate by means of wireless BS network with SBC P and realize the inserted instructions on the respective effectors or send the measured values from the sensors. This is realized by means of connection of the microcomputers MM8, MM313, MM24, MM25, MM17, MM426 with back-end application BeA on the SBC P.

SBC P contains a database D, back-end application BeA and front-end application FeA. Database D serves as a persistent storage of the measured values, individual past brewings, configurations of microcomputers MM8, M313, M24, M25, M17, M426, and recipes. Back-end application BeA is connected to this database D. From the point of view of the user, back-end application BeA is not visible and it realizes the control on and communication with each other component of control the background.

Touch display 0 connected to SBC P displays front-end application FeA which is connected to back-end application BeA. This front-end application FeA is an interface for the user and it displays actual state of the sensors and effectors and allows for insertion of the recipe.

The recipe is an order of the steps of brewing. Individual steps are represented by blocks which the user orders on the touch display 0 one after another by dragging. It is thus possible to automate any sequence of heating to various temperatures, cooling, opening of hoppers, that is, malt feeder 4 and hops and yeast dispenser 26, temporal delays, and so on; and also starting of the stirrers, air pump 17 and outlet valve 9.

In case the processing of the finished beer is automated, too, an output valve 22 can be suitable connected into the control system. In this example the output valve 22 could have its own module in the control system or it could be added to some of the existing effector modules, for example module M17 of the air pump 17.

Industrial applicability

Industrial applicability is obvious. According to this invention it is possible to industrially and repeatedly construct a device for automated beer brewing which can be used, for example, in gastronomic or home operations.