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EP-4490498-B1 - MEASURING SYSTEM FOR FOODSTUFFS

EP4490498B1EP 4490498 B1EP4490498 B1EP 4490498B1EP-4490498-B1

Inventors

  • VAN HALSEMA, FRANS EMO DIDERIK

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20230307

Claims (6)

  1. A measuring system (1) for automatically determining a quality of a foodstuff mixture (7, 16), and comprising - at least one product holder (5) with a longitudinal direction for receiving a fluid or viscous foodstuff (7), - a housing (2) with a receiving space (3) for receiving the at least one product holder, - a sensor device (8, 9, 10, 13) for measuring a parameter value of the foodstuff in the product holder, and - a control device (11) for controlling the measuring system and processing the measured parameter values, furthermore comprising and - a mixing device which comprises: - a mixing body (19) arranged in the product holder and comprising a magnetisable or magnetic material, and - a displacement device (12) arranged outside the product holder for displacing the mixing body along the longitudinal direction, characterised, in that the measuring system further comprises an additive dosing device (15, 17) which is configured to output an additive (16) to the foodstuff in the product holder under control by the control device when the product holder is closed, wherein the mixing device is configured to act on the additive dosing device via said mixing body for output of the additive.
  2. The measuring system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the additive dosing device comprises a vessel (15) with closing means (17; 25 ; 28) to be operated by the mixing body (19).
  3. The measuring device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the closing means is provided with a first coupling means (18) , wherein the mixing body comprises a second coupling means (20) which is configured to act on the first coupling means, wherein the control device is configured to move the mixing body such that the first coupling means and the second coupling means couple, and then move the mixing body away from the additive dosing device in order to release the additive.
  4. The measuring device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the first coupling means (18) and the second coupling means (20) each comprise a permanent magnet or magnetisable material, or a complementary part of a removable or permanent snap connection.
  5. The measuring device as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein the closing means comprises a flap (17) to be opened by the mixing body or a removable cover (25).
  6. The measuring device as claimed in claim 2, 3 or 4, wherein the closing means comprises a piston (28) movable by the mixing body, and wherein the vessel and/or the piston comprises an outlet opening (23) via which the piston can press the additive out of the additive dosing device.

Description

The present invention concerns a measuring system for automatically determining and/or monitoring a quality of a foodstuff mixture, and comprising at least one product holder with a longitudinal direction for receiving a fluid or viscous foodstuff, a housing with a receiving space for receiving the at least one product holder, a sensor device for measuring a parameter value of the foodstuff in the product holder, and a control device for controlling the measuring system and processing the measured parameter values, furthermore comprising a mixing device which comprises a mixing body arranged in the product holder and comprising a magnetisable or magnetic material, and a displacement device arranged outside the product holder for displacing the mixing body along the longitudinal direction. Such a measuring system is known from document WO2021066646-A1, and serves inter alia for reliably mixing foodstuffs in slender product holders. One disadvantage of the known measuring system however is that it is not suitable for many types of measurement, in particular not if an additive must be added to the foodstuff. For this, the product holder must be opened by an operator, the additive added and the product holder closed again. Such actions are often carried out only some time after the start of measurements, for example after setting a specific temperature in the product holder, after maturing of the foodstuff etc. This sometimes makes the performance of measurements awkward or requires complex planning. In any case, the human action, which may lead to errors, can at least reduce reliability. It is an object of the present invention to provide a measuring system of the specified type which no longer has the above disadvantages, or at least only to a lesser extent. The invention achieves this object with a measuring system according to claim 1. The invention here uses the understanding that the mixing body may be used to automatically output the additive to the product holder. The mixing body is to some degree controllable by means of the displacement device and can thereby be brought into cooperation with the additive dosing device. Thus no supplementary movable parts are required for output of the additive, and no electrical and/or mechanical connections are required between the product holder and the external environment for operation by a person or control device. Thus the measurements may continue without the need to open the product holder and without increasing the complexity of the measuring system. The reliability and reproducibility of the measurements of the parameter values of the foodstuff mixture thus also increase. In the present invention, the foodstuffs concern fluid or viscous substances or products which are at least pumpable. Examples are simply water, but in particular milk or dairy products, food juices, fruit jellies, oils, sauces etc. In the context of the invention, the term "foodstuff" means a product which is eaten by another non-vegetable organism, such as by humans, animals and even microorganisms such as yeast or bacteria. Because these products are eaten or drunk, it is extremely important to know as many properties thereof as possible, in particular for products for human or animal consumption. Since they often also have a long shelf life, and/or a consumer packing thereof is used for a long time under widely varying conditions such as temperature, it is important to know the evolution of these properties over time. Such foodstuffs are often prepared by adding materials or additives to a base. It is important to know how the additive is absorbed in or reacts with base/foodstuff. Examples are products to be dissolved such as milk powder in water, coffee or tea, drinking chocolate powder in hot or cold milk, soup powder or stock cubes in water, the formation of an emulsion of oil and water etc. It may also be important to know how well a foodstuff resists the effect of a substance such as an enzyme or microorganism. The addition thereof at a specific moment without a chance of undesired addition of yet other substances or microorganisms gives reliable information on e.g. the stability of the foodstuff. The present invention may be useful in these and other situations because no human action is required for the addition of additive and the product holder may remain closed. Also known are US2018/008080A1, that discloses an alternative solution with a spice hatch that can be opened by means of a permanent magnet, without requiring a physical connection of the main container, and US6166551A1, that deals with introducing a mixture of predetermined ingredients into a cooking vessel, but not with the present characterising portion. Particular embodiments of the present invention are described in the appended dependent claims and will be explained in more detail below. The mixing body is displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the product holder. This gives a better mixing than if the mix