Patent attributes
A dispensing apparatus has: a freezing cylinder; a water flowpath; a first controllable valve along the water flowpath; a syrup flowpath; and a second controllable valve along the syrup flowpath. The flowpaths merge as a water/syrup flowpath to the freezing cylinder. The first controllable valve and the second controllable valve each have: a valve body having a cartridge compartment, an inlet to the cartridge compartment, and an outlet from the cartridge compartment; and a valve cartridge. The valve cartridge has: a cartridge body mounted in the cartridge compartment; a valve element carried by the cartridge body; and a solenoid carried by the cartridge body and coupled to the valve element to drive movement of the valve element. The valve element is shiftable between a first condition permitting communication between the inlet and the outlet and a second condition blocking communication between the inlet and the outlet.