WO2007045553A1

WO2007045553A1 - Device for expelling used prepackaged capsules for espresso coffee machines

Info

Publication number: WO2007045553A1
Application number: PCT/EP2006/066972
Authority: WO
Inventors: Carlo Rosa; Alessandro Ostuni
Original assignee: Ariete S.P.A.
Priority date: 2005-10-19
Filing date: 2006-10-02
Publication date: 2007-04-26
Also published as: ITGE20050077A1

Abstract

Device for expelling prepackaged capsules of coffee powder from a coffee machine, said machine comprising two parts (1, 2) co-operating with each other so as to define the receiving seat (101) for said prepackaged capsule (20) of coffee powder and possessing a relative movement with respect to each other, there being defined a first part (1) inside which said capsule is arranged and a second part (2) intended to engage with the said first part (1 ) so as to perform extraction; said device comprises an ejection member (201 ) co-operating with the lateral outside edge (21) of said capsule (20), connected pivotably by suitable means (211, 221) to said first part (1) of the receiving seat (101) for said capsule (20) and provided with actuating means (3, 403, 221) mechanically associated with said second part (2), said ejection member (201) being able to pivot with respect to said first part (1) from a position substantially parallel to the transverse middle plane thereof into a position corresponding to the falling plane of said capsule (20), said falling plane being the plane which is inclined with respect to the transverse middle plane of said first part (1) and which allows positioning of the centre of gravity of said capsule (20) so that the latter falls outside of said first part (1).

Description

TITLE: DEVICE FOR EXPELLING USED PREPACKAGED CAPSULES FOR ESPRESSO COFFEE MACHINES

DESCRIPTION The present invention concerns espresso coffee machines and in particular concerns espresso coffee machines which use prepackaged capsules of coffee powder; even more particularly it concerns a device for expelling used prepackaged capsules.

For a long time already, in order to standardize the quality of the infused product, simplify the use and make maintenance of espresso coffee machines easier, prepackaged capsules of coffee powder are used instead of loose coffee powder. This development has resulted in substantially two approaches: firstly, ways have been found for adapting the existing machines, which are designed for the use of loose coffee powder, to the new type of capsule; this solution is still widely used, although the users never obtain the quality of product or simplicity of use and maintenance able to provide full satisfaction since, for example, removal of the used capsule must be performed manually. Secondly, espresso coffee machines which minimize the operations to be performed by the user have been developed such that the latter merely has to choose the capsule of coffee powder and insert it into the special seat, without having to worry about its removal which is performed automatically.

The document EP-B- 1095605 describes a device for expelling a coffee powder capsule of a coffee machine, comprising two parts which form a receiving seat for the capsule and one of which is mounted so as to be able to pivot with respect to the other one; operation of the movable part allows operation of an expulsion device joined to the fixed part, by means of co-operation of an actuating arm integral with the said movable part. A device of this type, which is in theory applicable to various forms of capsules, in practice is greatly conditioned during use by various factors; firstly the capsule must be seated in a suitable manner between the fixed part and the movable part so that the latter is able to pivot easily ensuring closing of the receiving seat and therefore the quality of extraction of the coffee infusion and thus preferably must have a certain symmetry with respect to its middle plane. Secondly, it must have a fairly small height so that expulsion is really efficient and so that the lever arm necessary for raising it and expelling it is not too great. The object of the present invention is therefore to provide a device for expelling used prepackaged capsules from a coffee machine which is suitable in principle for a wide range of prepackaged capsules and which allows expulsion thereof in a manner substantially independent of their shape.

The present invention therefore relates to a device for expelling prepackaged capsules of coffee powder from a coffee machine, said machine comprising two parts co-operating with each other so as to define the receiving seat for said prepackaged capsule of coffee powder and possessing a relative movement with respect to each other, there being defined a first part inside which said capsule is arranged and a second part intended to engage with the said first part so as to perform extraction; said device comprises an ejection member co-operating with the lateral outside edge of said capsule, connected pivotably to said first part of the receiving seat for said capsule and provided with actuating means mechanically associated with said second part, said ejection member being able to pivot with respect to said first part from a position substantially parallel to the transverse middle plane thereof into a position corresponding to the falling plane of said capsule, said falling plane being the plane which is inclined with respect to the transverse middle plane of said first part and which allows positioning of the centre of gravity of said capsule so that the latter falls outside of said first part.

In a preferred embodiment, the middle transverse plane of said first part is substantially horizontal and said falling plane is inclined by at least 90°, preferably by a value ranging between 90° and 135° with respect to said middle transverse plane of said first part.

Further advantages and characteristics of the device according to the present invention will become clear from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof provided by way of a non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic side elevation view, with parts sectioned, of a machine provided with an expulsion device according to the present invention; and

Figures 2 to 5 show the following operating steps of the machine shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1 shows schematically a machine provided with the device according to the present invention; 1 denotes the infusion chamber, comprising a cavity 101 inside which the prepackaged capsule of coffee powder 20 is inserted, the bottom of the said cavity 101 being provided with a channel 1 1 1 for dispensing the coffee infusion. The outgoing edge of the cavity 101 has, around it, an annular seat 131 inside which the expulsion ring 201 is arranged, the flange 21 projecting radially from the capsule 20 resting thereon. The said ring 201 is provided with a radial tail-piece 211 to which there is connected, in a rigidly angled manner, the arm 221 which is pivotably hinged on the infusion chamber by means of the pin 231 and which, at the opposite end, has a pin 241. The cavity 101 of the infusion chamber 1 has an inclined receiving wall 121 along the outgoing edge in the vicinity of the tail-piece 21 1 of the expulsion ring 201.

The pin 241 of the arm 221 is inserted inside the curved groove 413 formed in the fork 403 situated at one end of the lever 3. Immediately upstream of the said fork 403 the lever is connected, by means of an eyelet 423, to a spring 503 which at the opposite end is connected to an eyelet 13 fastened to the frame 10 of the coffee machine. The lever 3 has, formed therein, the passage 303 which is closed off by the flange 223 of the closing flap 203 pivoting with respect to the lever 3 on which it is hinged by means of the pin 213 and provided with a flange 233 angled at 90° with respect to the flange 223. The free end of the flange 233 of the closing flap 203 is connected to a spring 243 fixed to an eyelet 253 arranged on the lever 3, in the vicinity of the end of the said lever 3 connected to the lug 12 projecting from the frame 10 of the machine by means of the pin 103.

The infusion chamber has, arranged above it, the head 2 for dispensing hot water under pressure, provided with a channel 102 and a dispensing spray piece 1 12: the said head is connected, via an end portion 202, to a lug 1 1 projecting from the frame 10 of the machine, by means of a pin 212, the end portion 202 having projecting radially therefrom a rod 302 provided at its free end with a pin 312.

With reference to Figures 1 to 5 of the accompanying drawings, operation of the expulsion device according to the present invention will now be illustrated. In Figure 1 the coffee machine has just completed dispensing of the coffee infusion from the channel 11 1 : the capsule 20 inside the cavity 101 of the infusion chamber 1 is therefore empty and must be extracted therefrom. Upon raising the head 2 dispensing the hot water under pressure, as shown in Figure 2, the end portion 202 which connects it to the frame 10 of the machine actuates the rod 302 which, as a result of the action of the pin 312, raises the lever 3 and therefore causes pivoting of the arm 221 , thereby tilting the expulsion ring 201 , the action of which causes the capsule 20 to come out of the cavity 101 of the infusion chamber 1.

When the lever 3 reaches its maximum inclination, as shown in Figure 3, the capsule is situated in a position so that its centre of gravity is arranged in such a way that the capsule itself can no longer fall towards the inside of the cavity 101. Basically the expulsion ring 201 has reached the falling plane of the capsule, namely that inclined plan beyond which the capsule is obliged to fall outside the position from which it was removed. Advantageously the receiving wall 121 of the cavity 101 favours the expulsion of the capsule, guiding the exit thereof outside of the said cavity 101.

After passing beyond the maximum raised point of the lever 3, the pin 312 of the rod 302 is released from its engagement with the said lever 3, the spring 503 therefore recalls the lever 3 into its rest position shown in Figure 1 and the expulsion ring 201 is repositioned in its annular seat 131 along the outgoing edge of the cavity

101 of the infusion chamber 1.

At this point, when a new capsule 20 is positioned inside the cavity 101 of the infusion chamber 1 , the head 2 for dispensing pressurized hot water will be lowered again and, at the same time, as can be seen from Figure 5, the pin 312 of the rod 302 will be inserted inside the passage 303, forcing the flange 223 of the closing flap 203 which closes it off. Then, the flange will be recalled into its stop position against the tooth 313 of the passage by the spring 243 which acts on the other arm 233 of the said closing flap 203; in this way, the possibility of co-operation between the pin 312 of the rod 302 and the lever 3 will be re-established, and the capsule 20 inside the cavity 101 of the infusion chamber 1 may be expelled again.

The device thus conceived is extremely efficient and is suitable for the expulsion of prepackaged capsules which also have very widely varying shapes; it is also very compact from the point of view of its dimensions and therefore influences in a fairly limited manner the general design of the machine, as well as being relatively simple and substantially inexpensive to produce.

Claims

1. Device for expelling prepackaged capsules of coffee powder from a coffee machine, said machine (10) comprising two parts (1 , 2) co-operating with each other so as to define the receiving seat (101 ) for said prepackaged capsule (20) of coffee powder and possessing a relative movement with respect to each other, there being defined a first part (1 ) inside which said capsule is arranged and a second part (2) intended to engage with the said first part (1 ) so as to perform extraction, characterized in that said device comprises an ejection member (201 ) co-operating with the lateral outside edge (21 ) of said capsule (20), connected pivotably by suitable means (21 1 , 221 ) to said first part (1 ) of the receiving seat (101 ) for said capsule (20) and provided with actuating means (3, 403, 221 ) mechanically associated with said second part (2), said ejection member (201 ) being able to pivot with respect to said first part (1 ) from a position substantially parallel to the transverse middle plane thereof into a position corresponding to the falling plane of said capsule (20), said falling plane being the plane which is inclined with respect to the transverse middle plane of said first part (1 ) and which allows positioning of the centre of gravity of said capsule (20) so that the latter falls outside of said first part (1 ).

2. Device according to Claim 1 , in which the middle transverse plane of said first part (1 ) is substantially horizontal and said falling plane is inclined by at least 90°, preferably by a value ranging between 90° and 135° with respect to said middle transverse plane of said first part (1 ).

3. Device according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said actuating means comprise means (503) for the automatic return of the said ejection member

(201 ) into the position substantially parallel to the transverse middle plane of the said first part (1 ).

4. Device according to any one of the preceding Claims 1 to 3, in which the receiving seat for said capsule (20) comprises a cavity (101 ) formed in said first part (1 ).

5. Device according to Claim 4, in which said ejection member comprises an annular or annular-segment element (201 ) arranged along the outgoing edge of said cavity (101 ) of said first part (1 ).

6. Device according to Claim 5, in which said means for actuating said ejection member (201 ) comprise an arm (221 ) connected so as to be angled with respect to the plane of the said ejection member (201 ) at one end, pivotably mounted (231 ) on said first part (1 ) and co-operating at the opposite end (241 ) with the end (403) of a lever (3) which at the other end (103) is hinged on the frame (10) of the said coffee machine.

7. Device according to Claim 6, in which said end of said arm (221 ) of the ejection member (201 ) co-operating with the end (403) of said lever (3) is provided with a radially projecting pin (241 ) which engages inside a curved groove (413) formed in a fork (403) situated at the end of said lever (3).

8. Device according to Claim 6 or 7, in which said means for actuating said ejection member (201 ) are mechanically associated with said second part (2) by means of a rod (302) co-operating at one end (312) with said lever (3), the opposite end being connected to said second part (2) in the vicinity of the portion (202) thereof which is pivotably connected (212) to the frame (10, 1 1 ) of the said coffee machine.

9. Device according to Claim 8, in which said rod (302) is provided at the end co-operating with said lever (3) with a radially projecting pin (312) which cooperates with the wall of said lever (3) directed on the opposite side with respect to the said second part (2).

10. Device according to any one of Claims 6 to 9, in which said automatic return means comprise resilient recall means (503) associated at one end with the frame (10) of said machine and at the other end being connected to the said lever (3) co-operating with an arm (221 ) of said ejection member (201 ), in a middle position between the end (103) of said lever (3) hinged with the frame (10) and the end (403) co-operating with said arm (221 ).

1 1. Device according to any one of Claims 8 to 10, in which said lever (3) is provided with a passage (303) which is substantially transverse thereto and inside which said end (312) of said rod (302) is intended to be inserted, said passage being closed, at the end directed on the opposite side with respect to the said second part (2), by a closing flap (223, 203) provided with resilient recall means (243) and cooperating with stop means (212) arranged at said end of said passage (303).