GB2543571A

GB2543571A - Infusion device & method of making it

Info

Publication number: GB2543571A
Application number: GB1518807.1A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Milne Downie Donald
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2015-10-23
Filing date: 2015-10-23
Publication date: 2017-04-26
Also published as: GB201518807D0

Abstract

A device and method of making a device for infusing a liquid with an infusionable substance, such as tea or coffee, comprises a tube of porous high wet strength (HWS) sheet material 18, a relatively rigid stiffener rod 13 and a moveable sleeve 20. The length of the rod is greater than that of the tube and the rod is partly disposed in the tube. A first end of the rod and a first end of the tube 16 are sealed and fixed relative to one another and a second end of the rod extends beyond a second end of the tube 15 to form a handle. The tube is filled with infusionable solids, such as tea leaves, and the second end of the tube is sealed such that it permits the sliding of the rod relative to the tube. A sleeve member is mounted on the handle. In use, the sleeve member is slid down the rod until it compresses and crumples the tube causing the expulsion of excess liquid.

Description

Infusion Device & Method of Making It

The present invention relates to an infusion device and to a method of making it.

Known infusion devices are used for infusing a liquid, such as hot water, into an infusionable solid, such as tea, coffee, herbs, to make a liquid infusion for drinking or medicinal purposes. Well-known examples are tea-bags. Present devices have drawbacks. For example, when a tea-bag is removed from the liquid, it often produces drips as liquid drains from the tea-bag, which is inconvenient and may be a nuisance since it can cause scalds and staining. Moreover, efficient infusion is not always possible unless the tea-bag and/or the hot water are stirred or agitated by means of an implement such as a spoon. Furthermore, removal of a tea-bag from hot water (e.g., following an infusion step) is not always easy and some tea-bags are provided with cords or threads which can be grasped by the user to lift the tea-bag from the liquid.

The present invention provides a method of making an infusion device as specified in claim 1 of the set of claims following this description. Optional and/or preferred features are the subject of the method claims of the set of claims following this description. The present invention also provides an infusion device as specified in the first of the device claims of the set of claims following this description. Optional and/or preferred features are the subject of the other device claims of the set of claims following this description.

The invention is now described with reference to embodiments thereof, given by way of non-limitative example, and with reference to the diagrammatic and/or schematic drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 shows a reel of porous, high wet-strength (HWS) sheet material and a reel of relatively rigid stiffener rod at an early stage of the method;

Figure 2 shows the reels of Fig. 1 unwinding together;

Figure 3 shows the HWS sheet material being folded around the stiffener rod;

Figure 4 shows a later stage of the method after the stage shown in Fig. 3;

Figure 5 shows a stage subsequent to that shown in Fig. 4;

Figure 6 shows a stage subsequent to that shown in Fig. 5;

Figure 7 shows a completed infusion device;

Figure 8 shows the device of Fig. 7 following use in an infusion operation.

Figures 9 to 15 show a sequence of stages in the making of an infusion device of the invention;

Figure 16 shows a device made by the sequence of Figs. 9 to 15 following use in an infusion operation.

Reference is first made to Fig. 1 wherein the reel 10 is wound with porous HWS paper and/or plastics material and/or a synthetic resin and/or a suitable composite material 11, and the reel 12 is wound with suitable relatively rigid material 13 such as plastics material (e.g. polyethylene or polypropylene). The material 11 must comply with health regulations and should be susceptible to heat sealing and/or ultrasonic welding. Materials which are suitable are well-known. The material 11 may be from 25 to 55mm wide, e.g., from 30 to 50mm wide, such as from 35 to 45mm wide. The material 13 may be from 2 to 6mm wide, e.g., from 3 to 5mm wide, such as 4mm wide or thereabouts.

Fig. 2 shows the materials 11 and 13 being unwound together from their respective reels 10,12.

Fig. 3 shows the sheet material 11 being folded around the rigid material 13. Equipment for folding in this way is well-known.

In Fig. 4, the material 11 has been folded around the material 13 to form a flattened tube and the overlapping longitudinal edge regions (not indicated) adhered to each other by heat sealing and/or ultrasonic welding. The transverse end region 15 of the tube is heat sealed and/or ultrasonically welded on each side of the rigid material 13 so that the latter is a sliding fit in the sealed end region 15. The other transverse end region 16 of the tube and the corresponding end of the rigid material is cut by suitable means such as a guillotine (not shown, the scissors 17 being depicted for illustrative purposes only). The length of the tube between the end regions 15,17 can be any length suitable for the infusion process intended for the finished infusion device (described hereinafter). For example, the length may be from 40 to 100mm, e.g., from 50 to 75mm, suitably from 55 to 65mm, such as 60mm or thereabouts. The rigid material 13 is cut to protrude from the end region 15 a suitable length for handling and/or manipulating the tube 18. The length of the protrusion may be 40 to 120mm, e.g., 45 to 100mm, such as 45 to 80mm.

Fig. 5 shows the tube 18 being charged with infusionable material 19 via unsealed end 16. The amount of infusionable material charged to attain acceptable infusion would be known to those skilled in the art.

After the charging operation depicted in Fig. 5, the end region 16 of the tube 18 is sealed by heat sealing and/or ultrasonic sealing to close the end region 16 and trap and retain the other end of the rigid material in the sealed end region 16, as shown in Fig. 6. A sleeve member 20 is slidden onto the protruding part of the rigid member 13, as shown in Fig. 7. In use, the tube 18 is held by the user's fingers holding the rigid member 13, and the user can thereby immerse the tube in hot liquid (e.g., hot water) to produce an infusion. Moreover, the user can employ the rigid member 13 to stir and/or agitate the tube in the liquid to promote efficient infusion. Efficient infusion may reduce the amount of infusionable material necessary to produce an infusion of a desired strength. The user may employ the rigid member 13 to withdraw the tube from further contact with the liquid. When the tube 18 is lifted from the liquid, it normally drips liquid, and such drips may be undesirable since they can stain and/or wet objects that they land on. In order to reduce and/or eliminate the occurrence of drips, the sleeve member 20 is slid down the rigid member 13 so that it contacts, and presses down on the end region 15 causing the tube 18 to collapse against the other end region 16. The collapse of the tube 18 in this manner squeezes the contents (the infusionable material 19 and liquid soaked therein) and liquid is expelled as drops 22 which can be conveniently caught and captured in a vessel (e.g., a cup or saucer) and/or added to the infusion already obtained. The infusion is thus strengthened, thereby enhancing the efficiency of the infusion process for a given amount of infusionable material 19. Moreover, the tube 18 is relatively freer of liquid than a known infusion device and can therefore be discarded with less of a problem.

Reference is now made to Figs. 9 to 16. Fig. 9 shows two rolls 30, 31 of porous FIWS sheet material 32, 33 and a roll 34 of relatively rigid material 35. The rolls 30, 31 are so arranged that the rigid material 35 is drawn off the roll 34 between the sheets 32, 33. The rigid material 35 is drawn off the roll 34 quicker than the sheets 32, 33 are drawn off their respective rolls 30, 31 so that the rigid material is longer than the sheets 32, 33, as schematically depicted in Fig.10. In Fig. 11, the sheets 32, 33 and the rigid material 35 therebetween are cut by suitable means (such as a guillotine indicated by reference 36) to form two sides 36, 37 of the device with a length of rigid material 38 partially sandwiched between the sheets 36, 37, with part 39 of the rigid material protruding beyond the sheets/sides 36, 37. After the cutting operation of Fig. 11, the side regions 40,41 and the distal lateral regions 42 of the sheets 36, 37 are sealed together by heat-sealing, crimping and/or adhesive to form an open ended bag with the rigid member 35 partially disposed therein with part 39 protruding from the closed bottom end 42. The rigid member is slidably retained in place by the seal of the lateral end region 42. In Fig. 13, the open-ended bag 44 formed in the step of Fig. 12 is at least partially filled with tea leaves 45 (or other infusionable substance) and when this step is completed, the open end 46 is sealed as indicated by reference 47 in Fig. 14. The seal 47 traps the end of the rigid member. A sleeve 48 or similar movable member is disposed on the protruding part 39 of the rigid member as shown in Figs. 14 and 15. Fig. 15 shows the completed device 49 ready for use in an infusion operation, the part 39 serving for use as a handle for manipulating the device and for stirring it in an infusing liquid. Fig. 16 shows the device 49 after use in an infusing step, the sleeve 48 being slidden along the part 39 until it compresses and crumples the bag 44 causing the expulsion of excess liquid 50, which can be collected for addition to other infused liquid.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A method of making a device for infusing an infusionable substance from an infusionable solid into a liquid, comprising: (i) forming a tube of porous high wet strength (HWS) sheet material, the tube having at least a length A between its ends; (ii) disposing a length B of relatively rigid stiffener rod partly in the tube and partly protruding from the tube; (iii) closing and sealing one end of the tube so that the respective end of the rod is slidably constrained relative to the sealed one end of the tube; (iv) disposing infusionable solid(s) into the tube via the other open end thereof; (v) closing and sealing the open other end of the tube so that the respective end of the rod is constrained relative to the closed and sealed other end of the rod; (vi) wherein B is greater than A so that a portion of the rod extends beyond the respective sealed and closed end of the tube to serve as a handle for the device; (vii) disposing a movable sleeve slidably on and around the extending portion of the rod.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the said one end is the normally lower end of the tube and wherein a respective end of the rod is attached to the said normally lower end.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the other end of the rod is free to be slidable relative to the normally upper end of the tube, said other end of the rod extending beyond the said upper end of the tube and having the movable sleeve slidably disposed thereon.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the said one end is the normally upper end of the tube and wherein a respective end of the rod is slidably received in the normally upper end.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the other end of the tube is the normally lower end of the tube and wherein a respective end of the rod is attached to the normally lower end of the tube.

6. The method of claim 4 or claim 5 wherein steps (iv) and (v) are implemented with the tube inverted relative to its normal disposition.

7. The method of any preceding claim comprising forming the tube of step (i) by folding an elongated strip of the HWS material longitudinally and sealing longitudinally-overlapping edges.

8. The method of any of claims 1 to 6 wherein the tube is formed by providing two similar sheets of porous HWS material, and adhering the longitudinal edge regions of the sheets to each other.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the two similar sheets are formed by unreeling lengths of HWS material from respective rolls of HWS material and cutting the lengths across their widths to form the sheets.

10. The method of any of claims 7 to 9 comprising cutting the tube or the sheets forming the tube into portions each having a length A.

11. The method of any of claims 4 to 10 wherein the rod is unwound from a reel and cut into lengths B.

12. The method of any of claims 4 toll wherein the steps (ii) to (vi) are performed with the tube inverted from its normal disposition, and the tube, rod and infusionable solid are inverted to their normal disposition prior to step (vii).

13. The method of any preceding claim wherein sealing is effected by welding and/or crimping.

14. A device for infusing a liquid into an infusionable solid comprising a tube of HWS porous material of length A between its ends, a relatively rigid stiffener rod of length B greater than length A, the normally lower end of the tube and the normally lower end of the rod being sealed and fixed relative to each other, infusionable solids being disposed in the tube, the normally upper end portion of the rod extending beyond the normally upper end of the tube to serve as a handle for the device, the normally upper end of the tube being sealed but permitting the upper end portion of the rod to slide relative to the tube, and a sleeve member slidably mounted on the upper end portion of the rod.

15. The device of claim 14 wherein the sealing is effected by welding and/or crimping.

16. The device of claim 14 or claim 15 wherein the HWS porous material comprises paper and/or a synthetic resin.

17. A kit comprising a box and a plurality of devices according to any of claims 14 to 16 disposed side-by-side in the box, a biasing means urging the devices towards one end of the box, the box having a lid closing the upper side of the box except for an opening at said one end of the box permitting access to one or more of the devices in the box.