WO2017009771A1

WO2017009771A1 - Prepackaged charge of powdered food material

Info

Publication number: WO2017009771A1
Application number: PCT/IB2016/054147
Authority: WO
Inventors: Alessandro Doria
Original assignee: Espressocap S.P.A
Priority date: 2015-07-13
Filing date: 2016-07-12
Publication date: 2017-01-19
Also published as: ITUB20152105A1; EP3347285A1

Abstract

Prepackaged charge of powdered food material, for the preparation of beverages by infusion or dissolution, comprising a container body (1; 2) provided with a continuous side wall (101: 102), an open end (401; 402) equipped with an appropriate closing plane (411; 412), and a bottom wall (201; 202) communicating with the outside through a delivery spout (211; 212), said delivery spout (211; 212) being in communication with a conduit (221; 222) projecting towards the inside of said container body (1; 2), and being the mouth end of said duct (221; 222), facing the interior of said container body (1; 2), covered by a layer (251; 252) of airtight material having at least one pre-fracturing formed along a plane (261; 262) perpendicular to that of said layer (251; 252).

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION

Prepackaged charge of powdered food material

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a prepackaged charge of powdered food material; in particular it relates to a prepackaged charge of powdered food material intended for use in machines for the preparation of beverages.

A significant problem in this area is on the conservation of prepackaged charges that normally affects, and much, the organoleptic features of the drink prepared using these charges. Many prepackaged charges are not airtight, and therefore does not provide the best preservation of the product contained therein; particularly in the case of coffee, rancidity of its oils leads to a significant deterioration of the quality of the drink.

For this purpose different types of airtight prepackaged charges have been realized, which, however, have in their turn operating problems. The air-tight capsule must be perforated to enter the water, must be perforated or must explode, at least in part to dispense the beverage.

Another problem is the use of prepackaged charges in the so-called "multi-beverage machine", in which can be prepared tea, coffee, herbal teas, milk and cocoa drinks. Commonly, it is necessary a washing cycle of the dispensing means, which are in contact with the beverage and which then would contaminate the next product. The solution that has been proposed is a capsule with a dispensing means, which discharge the beverage directly in the user's receptacle. The machine can accommodate the next prepackaged charge without any contamination.

In the document EP1472156 is described a capsule for the preparation of beverages by injection of fluid under pressure in a suitable substance, comprising a closed chamber containing a substance for the preparation of a beverage, and means adapted to allow the opening of said capsule at the time of its use to make sure that it comes out the said drink, in which the opening is obtained through the mutual engagement of the opening means with a retaining wall of the closed chamber, and in which the mutual engagement is performed under the effect the increase of the fluid pressure in the chamber.

This is achieved, among other ways, by providing the bottom wall of the capsule of reliefs and cavities, so that a wall, sufficiently sized to be air-tight, it may tear on these reliefs, so as to allow the beverage to flow through the cavity and towards the delivery means of the capsule. Of course, the construction of the bottom wall must be a balanced compromise between the filter performance and delivery capabilities. Inevitably, the construction of this type of capsules is definitely very complex.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a prepackaged charge that on the one hand present the shelf life given by the hermetic closure, and on the other hand it results simplified in its structure and therefore more easy and inexpensive to manufacture.

The object of the present invention is therefore a prepackaged charge of powdered food material, for the preparation of beverages by infusion or dissolution, comprising a container body provided with a continuous side wall, an open end equipped with an appropriate closing plane, and a bottom wall communicating with the outside through a delivery spout, said delivery spout being in communication with a conduit projecting towards the inside of said container body, and being the mouth end of said duct, facing the interior of said container body, covered by a layer of airtight material having at least one pre-fracturing formed along a plane perpendicular to that of said layer.

The tearing of the layer of air-tight material, which may advantageously be aluminum provided with micro-incisions made by laser, is determined precisely by the pre-fracturing present in the said material.

In a preferred embodiment, the said delivery spout and said conduit are coaxial and are arranged substantially at the center of said bottom wall, frustoconical shaped. Said conduit extends inside said container body for a substantial portion of the depth of the same. Similarly, said conduit extends for a short distance inside said container body, and it is surrounded by a plurality of radial fins, axially projecting towards the interior of the container body and intended to support a wall of filter material.

Further advantages and features of the prepackaged charge according to the present invention will become apparent from the following description of some embodiments thereof, made, by way of example and not limitative, with reference to the table of the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in longitudinal section of a first embodiment of the prepackaged charge according to the present invention; and

Figure 2 is a view in longitudinal section of a second embodiment of the prepackaged charge according to the present invention.

In figure 1 is illustrated a first embodiment of the prepackaged charge - in this case a prepackaged charge of coffee powder to be extracted - according to the present invention; with 1 is designated the container body, which comprises a continuous side wall 101, substantially frustoconical. At one end of the side wall 101 is joined the flange 401 projecting radially outwards, to which is coupled the closure plan 411, designed to interact with the means for supplying the fluid in a machine for the preparation of beverages. At the other end the side wall connects with the bottom wall 201, which is also frustoconical but formed substantially as a funnel. At the center of said bottom wall is formed a dispensing spout 211, communicating with the interior of the container body by means of the conduit 221, coaxial to the spout 211. Inside the spout 211 is placed the diffuser 231. From conduit 221 are branching a plurality of radial ribs, or fins, 241 that project axially towards the inside of the container body 1. These fins 241 provide the proper support to the layer of filter material 111, which delimits, together with the layer of filter material 131, the containing chamber 501 of the edible material powder, which in this case is coffee powder. Onto the mouth of the conduit 221 at the end facing the interior of the container body, it is deposited a layer 251 of material impermeable to air, which is provided with pre-fractures formed along the planes 261 perpendicular to that of said layer 251. Advantageously, the air-tight material is aluminum that is pre-fractured with a laser treatment, known in the art and therefore not subject to the present invention. However, the use of this particular material allows to achieve the purposes of the present invention, since it allows to eliminate the opening means of the retaining wall of the prepackaged charge, and therefore allows to realize in a much more easy way the delivery and filtration of the extracted beverage.

At the state of the art, in the document cited above, the retaining wall surface is divided into a plurality of smaller intervals which ensure by one hand the filtration, and from the other hand the control for the actual flow of the beverage toward the dispensing. The breakthrough by the only effect of the pressure of a single wall of air-tight material either involves a considerable reduction of the delivery flow, or a very reduced control ability of the same, since the wall break-through mode would result unpredictable. The use of a pre-fractured wall according to the present invention ensures the control of the breaking of the same, and therefore allows the control of the delivery of the beverage, in a very easy way and constructively very inexpensive.

The coffee powder will be suitably retained by the layer of filtering material, and then the system constituted by the conduit 221, the spout 211 and the wall 251 of air-tight and pre-fractured material only performs the control upon the dispensing of the coffee, and should not to filter it.

In Figure 2 it is illustrated a second embodiment of the prepackaged charge according to the present invention; with 2 is indicated the container body of said charge, which this time is intended for use for the preparation of beverages starting from freeze-dried powder or granules of the beverage to be prepared. The container body 2 comprises a continuous side wall 102, which at one end connects to the radial flange 402, on which is placed the closing plane 412, and the other end connects with the bottom wall 202, which centrally is provided with the dispensing spout 212.

Coaxial to the spout 212 is the conduit 222 which extends inside the container body 2 and the chamber 502 containing the edible material in powder form. At the mouth of the duct 222 it is placed a layer 252 of air-tight material to air that is provided with pre-fracturing along the planes 262 perpendicular to the plane of said layer 252; within the spout 212 is disposed the diffuser 232.

In this case, the only requirement which must to meet this prepackaged charge is to enable the best possible dissolution of the edible material in powder form, specifically a freeze-dried beverage. This object is achieved by providing a conduit 222 that extends inside the chamber 502 of the container body 2, a wall of pre-fractured material being arranged at the mouth of such duct, so as that a given level of pressure could be reached inside the chamber 502. The pre-fracturing then enable the dispensing of the drink by ensuring the right time range of dissolution.

In both the proposed solutions the pre-fractured air-tight material wall allows adequate control upon the dispensing of the drink, without the need to provide complex and costly means for opening, anyway destined to influence the design of the entire prepackaged charge of powder of edible material for the preparation of beverages. Moreover, in both the embodiments as above described, the conduit on which mouth end is positioned the said wall is provided with a cross section which is a sixth or less of the maximum cross section of the said container body, as it clearly appears from the figures 1 and 2 of the appended drawings.

Claims

Prepackaged charge of powdered food material, for the preparation of beverages by infusion or dissolution, comprising a container body (1; 2) provided with a continuous side wall (101 : 102), an open end (401; 402) equipped with an appropriate closing plane (411; 412), and a bottom wall (201; 202) communicating with the outside through a delivery spout (211; 212), said delivery spout (211; 212) being in communication with a conduit (221; 222) projecting towards the inside of said container body (1; 2), and being the mouth end of said conduit (221; 222), facing the interior of said container body (1; 2), covered by a layer (251; 252) of airtight material having at least one pre-fracturing formed along a plane (261; 262) perpendicular to that of said layer (251; 252).

Prepackaged charge according to claim 1, in which the said conduit (221; 222) is provided with a cross section which is a sixth or less of the maximum cross section of the said container body (1; 2).

Prepackaged charge according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said delivery spout (211; 212) and said conduit (221; 222) are coaxial and are arranged substantially at the center of said bottom wall (201; 202).

Prepackaged charge according to anyone of the preceding claims 1 to 3, wherein said conduit (222) extends inside said container body (2) for a substantial portion of the depth of the same.

Prepackaged charge according to anyone of the preceding claims 1 to 3, wherein said conduit (221) extends for a short distance inside said container body (1), and it is surrounded by a plurality of radial fins (241), axially projecting towards the interior of the container body (1) and intended to support a wall (111) of filter material.