US 12,276,130 B2
Autonomous dispensing device
Pierre L'Hoest, Liège (BE); and Sébastien Dawans, Liège (BE)
Assigned to IOTCO, Liege (BE)
Filed by IOTCO, Liège (BE)
Filed on Feb. 8, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/666,821.
Prior Publication US 2023/0250660 A1, Aug. 10, 2023
Int. Cl. E04H 4/12 (2006.01); C02F 1/68 (2023.01); C02F 103/42 (2006.01); G05D 9/12 (2006.01)
CPC E04H 4/1281 (2013.01) [C02F 1/688 (2013.01); E04H 4/1209 (2013.01); G05D 9/12 (2013.01); C02F 2103/42 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A floating and energy-autonomous device (1) configured to dispense a solid compound (2) into a volume (3v) of liquid, the solid compound (2) being at least partially soluble in the liquid (3) of the volume (3v) of liquid, the device (1) being able to be immersed in the volume (3v) of liquid and to float freely at a surface (3s) separating the volume (3v) of liquid from a gaseous environment (4), the device (1) comprising an immersed part (5) and an emergent part (6) which are separated by a plane containing the surface (3s) when the device (1) is floating freely at the surface (3s) in a calm state, and a vertical axis (7) inseparable from the device (1) and aligned with the direction of the force of gravity when the device (1) is floating freely at the surface (3s) in the calm state, where the surface (3s) is considered to be in the calm state when the surface (3s) is flat and immobile and the surface (3s) is normal to the direction of the force of gravity, the device (1) further comprising:
a circulation circuit (8) for the circulation of the liquid (3), comprising:
(i) a reservoir (9) able to contain a reserve (2r) of solid compound and comprising an intake orifice (9i) and a discharge orifice (9o), the reservoir being configured so that a circulating flow rate of the liquid (3) coming from the volume (3v) of liquid and entering the reservoir (9) via the intake orifice (9i) washes over at least part of the reserve (2r) of solid compound and dissolves and carries a flow of dissolved solid compound originating from the reserve (2r) of solid compound away from the reservoir and toward the volume (3v) of liquid via the discharge orifice (9o),
(ii) a pump (13) configured to generate the circulating flow rate of the liquid (3),
a power supply module (14) configured to supply power at least to the pump (13), and
a control module (16) comprising at least one of:
(i) a sensor (17) configured to measure at least one of a measured value of a parameter of the volume (3v) of liquid and a measured value of a parameter of the gaseous environment (4), and to generate a sensor signal indicative of at least one of the measured value of the parameter of the volume (3v) of liquid and the measured value of the parameter of the gaseous environment (4), and
(ii) a radio antenna (18) adapted to send and receive a radio signal, and wherein the control module (16) further comprises:
(iii) a microcontroller (19) configured to receive at least one of the sensor signal and the antenna signal, and to command the pump (13) and regulate or adapt the circulating flow rate of the liquid as a function of at least one of the sensor signal and of the antenna signal.