A fully compostable beverage capsule may be produced by improving the seal strength between the capsule and its lid. In this invention, a number of protruding “spikes” are added to the upper and/or lower edges of the capsule. The lidding is then attached to the capsule via an energetic welding process, such as ultrasonic welding. The protruding “spikes” are deformed during this welding, increasing the surface area contact between the capsule and its lidding. Acting similarly to rivets, these spikes will improve the strength of the seal that forms between the lidding and the capsule.

A fully compostable beverage capsule may be produced by improving the seal strength between the capsule and its lid. Additionally, the lid itself may be made more resistant to the stress that occurs during brewing. In this invention, the lidding material is cut one or more times to produce a pattern similar to the blades of a pinwheel. The sections or “blades” are then overlapped and energetically welded to one another and joined to the beverage capsule. In this process, the double thickness of lidding material improves the seal between the lidding and the capsule. Each “blade” of the lidding has its own point of attachment to the capsule, which helps to isolate any stress that may occur during the beverage brewing process. As a result, the lidding as a whole remains securely attached to the capsule, even if one or two blades experience sufficient stress to trigger delamination.

A fully compostable beverage capsule may be produced by improving the seal strength between the capsule and its lid. In this invention, a number of protruding tabs are added to the upper and/or lower edges of the capsule. The lidding is then attached to the capsule via an energetic welding process, such as ultrasonic welding. In this process, the protruding tabs are folded over the edge of the capsule and deformed, increasing the surface area contact between the capsule and its lidding. Acting similarly to a swage fitting, these spikes will improve the strength of the seal that forms between the lidding and the capsule.

The present disclosure relates to a beverage capsule for use in a brewed beverage machine including a piercing element, the capsule comprising: a container defining an interior volume including a base configured for being perforated upon contact with a piercing element; a filter assembly disposed in the interior volume and dividing the interior volume into a first chamber for receiving beverage ingredients and a brewing medium and a second chamber, the assembly comprising: a filter element; and a registration element disposed above the filter element and configured for disposing the filter assembly into the container, wherein the filter element separates the registration element from the second chamber and is arranged to be contacted and pierced by the piercing element.

A system for packaging tea in a sealed casing. the system includes a machine for breaking dried tea leaves, said machine comprising an inlet for supplying dried tea leaves, an outlet for releasing the broken tea leaves, and at least one breaker device including a first breaker member and a second breaker member that can be removed relative to the first breaker member, said first and second breaker member being configured to bend the dried tea leaves until they break.

A method of manufacturing a cartridge body for use in a cartridge associated with a beverage preparation system includes extruding a tubular structure, forming the tubular structure into a desired shape, and cutting the tubular structure at intervals to separate the tubular structure into individual cartridge bodies.

A thermoforming machine and a thermoforming method are provided, in particular for producing capsules for obtaining beverages. The capsules (C) are produced from a film (F) of thermoformable material by thermoforming one or more predefined portions (X) of the film. The one or more predefined portions (X) of the film of thermoformable material are pre-heated, i.e. they are heated before being subjected to thermoforming so as to minimize the probability that the film of thermoformable material tears or breaks during thermoforming or after thermoforming.

A non-woven fabric comprising bicomponent fibers. The non-woven fabric has a core containing polylactic acid (PLA-1), coated with an envelope containing polylactic acid (PLA-2). The fibers are characterised in that PLA-1 is a copolymer of lactic acid monomers L1 and lactic acid monomers D1, and PLA-2 is a copolymer of lactic acid monomers L2 and lactic acid D2, whose D2 monomers rate is greater than the monomers rate D1 of PLA-1. The core further contains a polymeric plasticizer. The non-woven fabric may be used for making coffee filters and/or capsules via a thermoforming process for use in a percolating apparatus.

A container for the preparation of a beverage and a machine for the filling of containers for the preparation of the beverage. The container includes an outer cup, an inner cup nesting inside the outer cup, and a filter disposed between a sidewall of the outer cup and a sidewall of the inner cup and covering a bottom opening of the inner cup. The machine includes a first zone configured to dispense a container from a stack of containers, a second zone configured to fill the container with a beverage substrate, a third zone configured to seal the container and dispense a filled container, and a carriage configured to transport the container between the first and second zones, and between the second and third zones.

A beverage capsule includes a body defining an interior space having an opening. A filter is disposed in the interior space to define an ingredients chamber for containing and filtering ingredients for preparing a desired beverage product. The filter is formed of a hydrophobic and non-absorbent polymer material having a basis weight of less than 40 gsm, wherein said filter has a tensile strength of less than 100 N/5 cm in the Machine Direction (MD) and 70 N/5 cm or less in the Cross Direction (CD). The ingredients are disposed in the ingredients chamber for preparing the desired beverage product. A cover is disposed on the body to close the opening.