1. A pneumatic product sorting apparatus (1, 70) comprising:
at least a solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) having a hollow body (15) defining at least one inlet orifice (4) for a pressurized fluid, a plurality of outlet orifices (6) for said fluid, and a plurality of conveying channels (5) for conveying said fluid from said inlet orifice (4) to respective said outlet orifices (6), said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) also comprising, for each said conveying channel (5), an interception element (27) housed inside said body (15) and selectively movable between a closed configuration, in which it interferes with the respective said conveying channel (5) preventing said fluid from passing through it, and an open configuration, in which it leaves free the respective said conveying channel (5) allowing said fluid to pass through it;
at least one ejection head (7) having a plurality of firing nozzles (8) that is selectively activated for emitting respective pressurized fluid jets directly on products to be selected; and
a plurality of connecting conduits (10) connecting each firing nozzle (8) with a corresponding outlet orifice (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032, 3\u2032);
wherein said ejection head (7) is formed by a cover (50) of the body (15) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032),
characterized in that said connecting conduits (10) are formed in said cover (50) and in that at least two of said connecting conduits (10) have different lengths and identical volumes from said outlet orifices (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) to the respective firing nozzles (8).
2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cross section of the longest of said two connecting conduits (10) of different lengths is smaller than that of the shorter connecting conduit (10) of said two connecting conduits (10) of different lengths.
3. (canceled)
4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said body (15) has a main axis (B), and wherein said inlet orifice (4), said outlet orifices (6) and said conveying channels (5) extend parallel to said main axis (B).
5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outlet orifices (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) are formed in said cover (50).
6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said firing nozzles (8) are formed on a side surface of said cover (50), and wherein said connecting conduits (10) extend transversely to said conveying channels (5) and to said outlet orifices (6).
7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said connecting conduits (10) are constituted by holes formed in said cover (50) and connecting said outlet orifices (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) to respective said firing nozzles (8).
8. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said outlet orifices (6) extend around said main axis (B) of said body (15).
9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said outlet orifices (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) are equally spaced angularly about said main axis (B) of the body (15) of the solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) itself.
10. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said outlet orifices (6) of said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) are arranged along an ellipse (E) extending around said main axis (B) of the body (15) of the solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) itself.
11. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said cover (50) comprises:
a first plate (51) supporting said outlet orifices (6) and said firing nozzles (8) and provided with a plurality of grooves (52) connecting said outlet orifices (6) to said firing nozzles (8); and
a second plate (53) fixed in position superimposed on said first plate (51) and delimiting with said grooves (52) said connecting conduits (10).
12. The apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said grooves (52) are formed in said first plate (51) by way of milling.
13. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said solenoid valve (3, 3\u2032) further comprises:
elastic means (31) acting on said interception elements (27) to place them in said closed configuration; and
actuator means (19) carried by said body (15) and selectively operable to move each said interception element (27) in said open configuration against the action of said elastic means (31).
14. The apparatus according to claim 13, wherein said solenoid valve (3\u2032) further comprises pre-load generator means (61) carried by said body (15) to generate a pre-load on said elastic means (31) defining the time law with which each said interception element (27) moves from said open configuration to said closed configuration once the action of said actuator means (19) ceases.
15. The apparatus according to claim 14, wherein said elastic means (31) comprise an annular elastically yieldable element (32) having a plurality of interaction portions (33) acting on contact portions (30) of respective said interception elements (27), and wherein said pre-load generator means (61) comprise, for each said interception element (27), a load element (63), which exerts a pressure action on relative said interaction portion (33) of said elastically yielding element (32) along a predefined adjustment axis (D), and is coupled to said body (15) so as to be able to vary its own position along said adjustment axis (D).
16. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein each said adjustment axis (D) is parallel to a main axis (B) of said body (15).
17. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a common supplying manifold (2) of said solenoid valves (3, 3\u2032) with said pressurized fluid, said manifold (2) being formed in a base element (11) supporting in cantilever manner said solenoid valves (3, 3\u2032).
18. The apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said base element (11) integrally defines at least part of the bodies (15) of said solenoid valves (3, 3\u2032).
19-21. (canceled)
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A receptacle, comprising a mug or a coffee mug, for receiving a liquid, wherein the receptacle comprises:
an energy harvesting element, comprising a peltier element, for harvesting electric energy from the temperature difference between said liquid and an ambient of the receptacle,
a data processing device,
a display device,
a data communication device for receiving data wirelessly from an outer application system,
wherein
said energy harvesting element is configured to supply electric energy to said data communication device, data processing device and display device, whereupon
said data processing device is configured to receive said data via said data communication device and control said display device to display said received data.
2. A receptacle of claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises inner and outer receptacle structures to be coupled within each other to form said receptacle, wherein said display device is coupled between said outer and inner structures and wherein said display device is insulated from the inner receptacle structure.
3. A receptacle of claim 2, wherein the outer receptacle structure is configured to form a support structure of the receptacle and the inner receptacle structure is configured to form a receiver portion of the receptacle for receiving said liquid.
4. A receptacle of claim 2, wherein said energy harvesting element is provided with a mass portion and coupled or configured to be coupled with said inner receptacle structure so that the thermal energy is configured to be conducted to the mass portion and again for energy harvesting element.
5. A receptacle of claim 2, wherein said energy harvesting element is coupled with or provided with an thermally conductive interface element and coupled with said inner receptacle structure so that the interface element is arranged to be faced with said liquid received by said receptacle.
6. A receptacle claim 1, wherein said energy harvesting element is coupled with the structure of the receptacle in an elastic manner.
7. A receptacle claim 1, wherein electric wires from the energy harvesting element are integrated on the surface of the structure of the receptacle and configured to be coupled with said display device.
8. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises an accelerometer or gyroscope device configured to determine acceleration of the receptacle.
9. A receptacle of claim 8, wherein said receptacle is configured to use said determined acceleration data as a user interface input data.
10. A receptacle of claim 8, wherein said receptacle is configured to control the data communication andor change the data to be displayed with said display device based on the determined acceleration.
11. A receptacle of claim 8, wherein said receptacle is configured to determine a drinking habit of a user based on said determined acceleration data and display information related to the drinking habit of the user via said display device of the receptacle andor send information related to the drinking habit of the user via the data communication device to the outer application system.
12. A receptacle claim 1, wherein said display device comprises an electronic paper, a TFT display, a dot matrix or segmented display, a black and white display, grey scale display, coloured display, hologram display or touch sensitive display andor wherein said display device is a curvedbent display.
13. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises a positioning device, such as a GPS or local positioning device.
14. A receptacle of claim 13, wherein the receptacle is configured to be provided with a map data to be displayed with said display device, whereupon the receptacle is configured to be functioning as a navigation device using the positioning data and the corresponding map data.
15. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises an identification device readable outside the receptacle, such as barcode, 2D barcode, or RFID or NFC tag.
16. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises a liquid surface level determining device, comprising a capacitive detector or electro-optical detector, whereupon the data processing device is configured to control the display device to display the determined liquid surface level, or wherein the receptacle comprises transparent portion arranged to indicate the liquid surface level of the liquid in the receptacle.
17. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises a temperature determining device, comprising a thermocouple element, whereupon the data processing device is configured to control the display device to display the determined temperature.
18. A receptacle claim 1, wherein the receptacle comprises concentration andor roasting level determination device, comprising an electro-optical detector for determining of the concentration andor roasting level, whereupon the data processing device is configured to control the display device to display the determined concentration andor roasting level of the content of the receptacle.
19. A communication system for communicating with a receptacle, comprising a mug, in particularly a coffee mug, for receiving a liquid, wherein the communication system comprises an application system for managing data to be communicated to the receptacle,
wherein the receptacle comprises:
an energy harvesting element, comprising a peltier element, for harvesting electric energy from the temperature difference between said liquid and an ambient of the receptacle,
a data processing device,
a display device,
a data communication device for receiving data wirelessly from the application system,
wherein
said energy harvesting element is configured to supply electric energy to said data communication device, data processing device and display device, whereupon
said data processing device is configured to receive said data via said data communication device and control said display device to display said received data.
20. A communication system of claim 19, wherein the application system has an access to a user account, said application system or user account being configured to receive data from other users or other applications and to be sent to said data communication device of the receptacle to be displayed.
21. A communication system of claim 19, wherein the data communication between the data communication device of the receptacle and the application system of the communication system is arranged via a data transferring devices of a mobile communication device.
22. A communication system of claim 19, wherein the receptacle comprises an identification device readable outside the receptacle.
23. A communication system of claim 22, wherein the communication system comprises a liquid manufacturing device, comprising a coffee machine, wherein said liquid manufacturing device comprises a reader for reading said identification device of the receptacle.
24. A communication system of claim 23, wherein the communication system is configured to determine user preferences stored in a user account based on said read identification information of the identification device, whereupon the liquid manufacturing device is configured to manufacture a liquid composition according to the determined user preferences.