Keg tapping device

Claim 2

A liquid dispensing apparatus comprising a keg, said keg having top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall, said one keg wall having an outwardly projecting substantially cylindrical portion about the keg opening, a keg adapter including a member receivable within the opening in the one keg wall and having a fluid outlet passage therethrough for the transfer of fluid from the inside to the outside of the keg, a normally closed valve in said fluid outlet passage, means for retaining said member within the keg wall opening, means comprising at least a portion of said member defining a fluid inlet passage through the keg opening for the transfer of fluid frOm the outside to the inside of the keg, a pair of discrete check vlaves, each of said check valves including a closed flexible envelope in communication with said inlet passage and having spaced side walls and an end wall with an elongated slit in at least one of said walls, said fluid inlet passage means including a part having a lateral dimension greater than the diameter of the keg opening and a pair of passageways through said part forming a portion of said fluid inlet passage, said check valves lying in communication with said passageways, and sealing means engaging between said part and a keg wall portion about the opening, said member comprising a reduced diameter sleeve, said fluid inlet passage including a substantially annular passage formed between said member and said cylindrical keg wall portion, said retaining means including a ring coupled to said member and having a plurality of openings in communication with said annular passage and a seal disposed between said ring outwardly of its associated openings and the cylindrical wall portion of said keg, said sealing means engaging between said part and an interior portion of said keg wall.

Claim 3

A liquid dispensing apparatus comprising a keg, said keg having top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall, said one keg wall including an inner shoulder and an outwardly extending internally threaded cylindrical sleeve about said keg opening, a keg adapter including a member receivable within the opening in the one keg wall and having a fluid outlet passage therethrough for the transfer of fluid from the inside to the outside of the keg, a normally closed valve in said fluid outlet passage, means for retaining said member within the keg wall opening, means comprising at least a portion of said member defining a fluid inlet passage through the keg opening for the transfer of fluid from the outside to the inside of the keg, a pair of discrete check valves, each of said check valves including a closed flexible envelope in communication with said inlet passage and having spaced side walls and an end wall with an elongated slit in at least one of said walls, said fluid inlet passage means including a part having a lateral dimension greater than the diameter of the keg opening and a pair of passageways through said part forming a portion of said inlet passage, said check valves lying in communication with said passageways, and sealing means engaging between said part and a keg wall portion about the opening, said part having a flange, a seal between said flange and the keg shoulder, said retaining means including an externally threaded ring coupled to said member and having a plurality of openings in communication with said fluid inlet passage, said ring being threadable about the internally threaded cylindrical sleeve for clamping said seal and flange against said shoulder.

Claim 4

A liquid dispensing apparatus comprising a keg, said keg having top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall, said one keg wall including an inner shoulder and an outwardly extending internally threaded cylindrical sleeve about said keg opening, a keg adapter including a member receivable within the opening in the one keg wall and having a fluid outlet passage therethrough for the transfer of fluid from the inside to the outside of the keg, a normally closed valve in said fluid outlet passage, means for retaining said member within the keg wall opening, means comprising at least a portion of said member defining a fluid inlet passage through the keg opening for the transfer of fluid from the outside to the inside of the keg, a pair of discrete check valves, each of said check valves including a closed flexible envelope in communication with said inlet passage and having spaced side walls and an end wall with an elongated slit in at least one of said walls, said fluid inlet passage means including a part having a lateral dimension greater than the diameter of the keg opening and a pair of passageways through said part forming a portion of said inlet passage, said check valves lying in communication with said passageways, and sealing means engaging between said part and a keg wall portion about the opening, said part having a flange, a seal between said flange and the keg shoulder, said retaining means including an externally threaded ring coupled to said member and having a plurality of openings in communication with said fluid inlet passage, said ring being threadable about the internally threaded cylindrical sleeve for clamping said seal and flange against said shoulder.

Claim 5

A liquid dispensing apparatus for a keg having a top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall surrounded by a generally cylindrical integrally threaded keg neck and a coaxial reduced diameter annular flange comprising: a keg adapter including a member receivable within the keg opening in the one keg wall and having a fluid outlet passage therethrough for the transfer of fluid from the inside to the outside of the keg, said member having a central axis with at least part of said fluid outlet passage lying generally coaxially therewith an being defined by a central tubular element, a siphon tube carried by said member and in part forming an extension of said fluid outlet passage from said keg, a normally closed valve in said fluid outlet passage including a valve seat about said tubular element and a movable valve element engageable against said seat to seal said fluid outlet passage, means releasably secured to said central tubular element for retaining said seat about said tubular element, said member having a gas inlet passage therethrough for the transfer of gas from outside to the inside of the keg and including iN part an annular gas passageway portion, a valve in said gas inlet passage, means carried by said member and interrupting a portion of ssid gas inlet passage to define a pair of discrete gas passageways in communication with said annular gas passageway portion, said discrete gas passageways lying radially offset from the axis of said member on diametrically opposite sides thereof, said keg adapter including means for securing said member in the keg opening including an externally threaded ring for threaded engagement with the internally threaded keg neck, said member having a radially outwardly directed flange of larger diameter than the annular flange carried by the keg, said ring being threadedly engageable with the threaded keg neck to clamp the larger diameter flange about said member between said ring and the keg flange thereby to retain said adapter in the keg, said adapter including an externally threaded portion located axially outwardly of the external threads carried by said ring, a dispensing coupler for use with said adapter and including a head having inlet and outlet passages, means for connecting said coupler head to said adapter with the inlet and outlet passages of said coupler unit in respective communication with the inlet and outlet passages of said adapter, said connecting means including an internally threaded collar rotatably carried by ssid coupler and threadedly engageable with said externally threaded portion carried by said adapter.

Claim 6

A liquid dispensing apparatus for a keg having a top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall surrounded by a generally cylindrical integrally threaded keg neck and a coaxial reduced diameter annular flange comprising: a keg adapter including a member receivable within the keg opening in the one keg wall and having a fluid outlet passage therethrough for the transfer of fluid from the inside to the outside of the keg, said member having a central axis with at least part of said fluid outlet passage lying generally coaxially therewith an being defined by a central tubular element, a siphon tube carried by said member and in part forming an extension of said fluid outlet passage from said keg, a normally closed valve in said fluid outlet passage including a valve seat about said tubular element and a movable valve element engageable against said seat to seal said fluid outlet passage, means releasably secured to said central tubular element for retaining said seat about said tubular element, said member having a gas inlet passage therethrough for the transfer of gas from outside to the inside of the keg and including iN part an annular gas passageway portion, a valve in said gas inlet passage, means carried by said member and interrupting a portion of ssid gas inlet passage to define a pair of discrete gas passageways in communication with said annular gas passageway portion, said discrete gas passageways lying radially offset from the axis of said member on diametrically opposite sides thereof, said keg adapter including means for securing said member in the keg opening including an externally threaded ring for threaded engagement with the internally threaded keg neck, said member having a radially outwardly directed flange of larger diameter than the annular flange carried by the keg, said ring being threadedly engageable with the threaded keg neck to clamp the larger diameter flange about said member between said ring and the keg flange thereby to retain said adapter in the keg, said adapter including an externally threaded portion located axially outwardly of the external threads carried by said ring, a dispensing coupler for use with said adapter and including a head having inlet and outlet passages, means for connecting said coupler head to said adapter with the inlet and outlet passages of said coupler unit in respective communication with the inlet and outlet passages of said adapter, said connecting means including an internally threaded collar rotatably carried by ssid coupler and threadedly engageable with said externally threaded portion carried by said adapter.

Claim 7

A liquid dispensing apparatus according to claim 3 in combination with said keg, said keg having top, bottom and side walls with an opening in one wall surrounded by a generally cylindrical internally threaded keg neck and a coaxial reduced diameter annular flange.

Claim 8

A liquid dispensing apparatus according to claim 3 including means carried by said member and said coupler cooperable, when said coupler is secured to said adapter, to form a seal therebetween to maintain the respective inlet and outlet passages through said coupler and said adapter sealed one from the other.

Claim 9

A liquid dispensing apparatus according to claim 3 including a seal about said member for sealing between said radially outwardly directed flange and the annular flange carried by the keg.

Claim 10

A liquid dispensing apparatus according to claim 3 including means carried by said member and said coupler cooperable, when said coupler is secured to said adapter, to form a seal therebetween to maintain the respective inlet and outlet passages through said coupler and said adapter sealed one from the other, said externally threaded portion carried by said adapter having a smaller diameter than the diameter of the externally threaded ring, said psir of discrete passageways being located axially inwardly of said annular gas passageway portion, a seal about said member for sealing between said radially outwardly directed flange and the annular flange carried by the keg.