Device and method for sampling a liquid

Abstract

The present invention relates to a device and a method for decanting a beverage initially contained in one or more closed bottles into smaller containers. The device comprises an enclosure under an inert atmosphere, provided with an inlet port comprising receiving means, into which inlet port the neck of the bottles is fitted, and an outlet port through which the hermetically sealed containers are evacuated. The device contains an opening station for opening the bottles fitted into the receiving means, a collection vessel that collects the liquid flowing out of the bottles, a filling station for filling the containers from the collection vessel, and a sealing station for hermetically sealing the containers. In the method, the steps of opening and emptying the bottles, and of filling and hermetically sealing the containers, are all carried out under an inert atmosphere.

Claims

1. A sampling device of a liquid sensitive to contact with air, making it possible to decant said liquid, previously contained within an initial sealed container, into several final containers of a capacity that is less than that of the initial container, the device comprising: a plurality of inlet ports for at least one initial container, providing an interface between the exterior exposed to ambient air and the inlet of an enclosure, and each inlet port comprising at least one receiving station for connecting the initial container that communicates with the interior of the enclosure, wherein in the enclosure an inert atmosphere prevails, and the enclosure comprises: an opening station comprising an opening means of at least one initial container fitted into the at least one receiving station of the inlet port, a collection vessel, located beneath the opening station or communicating therewith in order to collect the liquid contained within the at least one initial container, a filling station for filling the final containers with liquid collected within the collection vessel, a sealing station for hermetically sealing the final containers; and an outlet port, providing an interface between the outlet of the enclosure and the exterior which is exposed to ambient air, wherein said sampling device allows the sampling of a liquid without any contact with air between the inlet port and the outlet port, from the opening of the initial container to the sealing of the final containers.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the inlet port comprises several receiving stations, and the opening station comprises several opening means provided in order to simultaneously open several initial containers.

3. The device according to claim 1 wherein the filling station comprises means that make it possible to fill several final containers simultaneously.

4. The device according to claim 1 wherein the receiving station of the inlet port is configured in such a way that the at least one initial container is partially fitted from the exterior until the part intended to be opened of said initial container emerges into the enclosure.

5. A method for sampling a liquid comprising the following steps: supplying a sampling device according to claim 1, supplying at least one sealed, initial container containing the liquid, supplying several empty final containers of a capacity that is less than that of the at least one initial container, and the following steps, all performed under an inert atmosphere: opening the at least one initial container, emptying the at least one initial container and collecting said liquid that is contained therein into a collection vessel, filling the final containers with a portion of said liquid provided by the collection vessel, and hermetically sealing the final containers filled with said liquid wherein the liquid does not contact air.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the several initial containers are supplied simultaneously.

7. The method according to claim 5 wherein the final containers are filled consecutively.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the several final containers are filled simultaneously.

9. The method according to claim 5 wherein the filled final containers are hermetically sealed, directly by means of welding or gluing, or by means of an independent insert.

10. A process comprising sampling wine or another liquid food or alcoholic beverage, with the sampling device of claim 1.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a schematic overview of a sampling device allowing the decantation of several bottles, and the simultaneous filling of several final containers;

(2) FIG. 2 illustrates the inlet port of an initial container and an opening station of the sampling device allowing the decantation of a single bottle and the filling of a final container, one at a time.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(3) The method and device according to the invention make it possible to implement the sampling entirely under an inert atmosphere and without any contact between the liquid, preferably wine, and the oxygen in the air. One of the advantages may be in not having to add sulfites to the wine as in the prior art, this operation being aimed at trapping the oxygen being introduced into the wine. Thus, the invention makes it possible to have better preservation of the organoleptic qualities of the liquid sample, especially wine.

(4) The sampling method according to the invention does not make changes to the wine. The repackaged wine within the samples (final containers) is in the same state as that contained within the initial bottles. No substantial change, nor evolution nor alteration to the original wine is to be expected by virtue of the absence of contact with the ambient air during all of the steps of the method. In fact, during all of these steps, the device of the invention makes it possible to manage the amount of oxygen present, but also the temperature and the sampling pressure or the removal of any particles for example by means of filtration.

(5) The repackaged wine within the final containers thus remains very similar to that contained within the combined bottles of the same vintage and retains the organoleptic qualities of the parent bottle. Any empty space within the final containers is filled with inert gas.

(6) Furthermore, the fact that, according to a preferred variant of the invention, the initial bottles are not entirely introduced into the enclosure under an inert atmosphere, provides additional benefits. Indeed, thanks to the inlet port and the receiving means thereof, the initial bottles can be introduced to and evacuated from the device much more easily than if they were placed entirely within the enclosure under an inert atmosphere, and this without generating significant disruption to said inert atmosphere.

(7) Insofar as only a part of the initial container, intended to be opened, is fitted into the port of the enclosure under an inert atmosphere, the volume of the latter can be much more confined than if it had to contain all of the initial containers. The enclosure and the inert atmosphere generation system thereof are thereby less costly, smaller and simpler to implement, even though, unlike the prior art devices, they can simultaneously process several initial containers.

(8) In order to subsequently recover, within a collection vessel, the wine from the bottle(s) introduced into the port under an inert atmosphere prior to filling the final containers, different means may be used, preferably by means of: uncorking the bottle and spilling the liquid by gravity, or by means of uncorking the bottle and inserting a liquid suction pipe to the bottom of the bottle, or by mean of passing a needle through the cork (if corked) to the bottom of the bottle and aspirating the liquid.

(9) To this end, every means known in the state of the art can be used (including conventional corkscrew, bi-metal, inserting a needle through the stopper followed by extraction by means of pressure, pushing the cork inside, in the case of a screw cap unscrewing it, perforation, etc.). One of the advantages of the invention lies in performing this operation under an inert atmosphere, which makes it possible for the liquid not to come into contact with air, even during opening. In general, the opening of the initial container is performed without breaking it. Thus, once the initial container is open, the contents thereof are poured out and no longer come into contact with the material constituting the original container. This avoids contamination of the liquid to be sampled, which is difficult to achieve when the original container is broken.

(10) The actuators allowing for the movement of the uncorking members are either integrated into the port, or externalized.

(11) In a preferred embodiment, the sampling process is stationary, due to the industrial characteristic thereof, thus allowing for high throughput, advantageously between 10 and 200 samples per minute, and in a preferred embodiment between 20 and 40.

(12) According to one embodiment of the invention, the machine has a cleaning cycle mode that uses a suitable solution. Said cleaning can be limited to the inlet port, the outlet port, the heart of the enclosure, or else it can be complete. Said cycle allows for the preparation of the machine for the sampling cycle for the following bottles.

(13) The cleaning can be brief (air blowing, water injection) or up to the complete sterilization of the members of the device according to the invention.

(14) In one of its variants, the invention is associated with a set of tests in order to certify the preservation of the wine during the process.

(15) Other features and advantages of the invention will appear upon reading the detailed description which follows, which is made with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

(16) FIG. 1 is a schematic overview of a particular embodiment of the sampling device according to the invention allowing for the decanting of several bottles and the simultaneous filling of several final containers;

(17) FIG. 2 illustrates a particular embodiment of the inlet port of an initial container and an opening station of the sampling device according to the invention allowing for the decanting of a single bottle and the filling of a final container, one at a time.

(18) The method and the sampling device according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Equivalent items shown in different figures will bear the same reference numbers. The following characteristics apply to all embodiments of the invention, and are by no means limited to those illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. They thus apply to all devices of the invention, for example devices having one or more inlet ports 6, the devices having any type of opening means 15 (including conventional corkscrew, bi-metal, inserting a needle through the stopper followed by extraction by means of pressure, pushing the cork inside, in the case of a screw cap unscrewing it, perforation, etc.).

(19) The sampling device 1 comprises a sealed enclosure 2, isolated from the external environment 3 exposed to ambient air, and wherein there prevails an inert atmosphere 4.

(20) Said atmosphere 4 is preferentially implemented using a gas or a mixture of low-reactive gases, for example nitrogen, argon or carbon dioxide, which are injected into the enclosure 2, thereby replacing the air. The device 1 can then comprise a gas reserve, not shown, and regulation means 5 that are suitable for controlling the amount, temperature and pressure of the inert gases within the enclosure 2.

(21) The enclosure 2 is advantageously supplied with an inlet port 6 for the initial containers, an inlet port 24 for the empty final containers and an outlet port 7 for the filled final containers. Said ports form the interface between the external environment 3 and the inside of the enclosure 2 under an inert atmosphere 4. They enable the continuous operation of the sampling device 1 according to the invention, without having to open the enclosure 2 and disrupt the inert atmosphere 4 therein.

(22) The inlet port of the initial containers 6 is preferably positioned on top of the device.

(23) It advantageously comprises two doors (34 and 27, FIG. 2), the first providing the inlet of the port (interface with the exterior) and the second providing the outlet of the port (interface with the inert enclosure 2). The filling of the inlet port of the initial container 6 with inert gas is performed once the end of the initial container 9 is introduced, and a seal is formed around said end (by means of a pneumatic seal or otherwise), in order to subsequently allow for communication with the inert enclosure 2. The size of said port is advantageously reduced as much as possible in order to decrease the losses of quantities of inert gases during the purging of the port.

(24) The corks, pieces of corks and natural deposits contained within wine can advantageously be evacuated at the inlet port of the initial containers 6 without having to open the enclosure 2 and disrupt the inert atmosphere 4 therein.

(25) For this purpose, the following means are taught in the invention: device making it possible to separate the cork from the extraction means of the bottle and to store it within the inlet port of the initial containers 6, liquid filtering matrix in order to retain the natural deposits and pieces of cork, system for cleaning the port by means of a liquid suitable for rendering the device directly and quickly usable for the sampling of the following bottle(s).

(26) According to the variants, the inlet port 6 comprises one (FIG. 1) or several (FIG. 2) receiving means 8 into which the initial containers 9 can be partially fitted.

(27) Preferably, said receiving means 8 has a first receiving part, open and directed outwards, of a flared shape matching that of the initial container 9, which extends by means of a narrower through-duct, emerging into the interior of the enclosure 2.

(28) As already indicated, the receiving means 8 makes it possible to implement a seal between the enclosure 2 and the external environment 3, advantageously by means of a pneumatic seal or other similar means that can adapt to the initial container and more particularly to the neck of a bottle.

(29) The shape and dimensions of the receiving part and/or the through-duct are preferentially adapted to and complementary to those of the initial container in such a way as to ensure, once fitted into the receiving means 8, that it obstructs, in a substantially sealed manner, the passage between the inside of the enclosure 2 and the external environment 3.

(30) The door 34 providing the interface 34 between the port and the external environment is optional. It corresponds to a temporary sealing means at each of the receiving means 8 making it possible to temporarily obstruct this passage in the absence of the initial container 9. This may for example be an articulated component, a seal or a flexible edge comb, or any other appropriate device that preferably automatically retracts when the initial container 9 is pushed.

(31) In the examples shown, the initial containers 9 are bottles 12 containing a liquid 13 that can be sensitive to contact with air, namely wine. Of course, the invention can be applied to any type of initial container 9, such as, for example, bag-in-boxes, cubitainers, tanks, vats, casks, barrels, cans, flasks or the like.

(32) The invention is particularly suited to wine sampling, regardless of the nature thereof: red, white, pink, sweet or sparkling, etc. However, it can also be applied to any other liquid 13 that is sensitive to contact with air and to other liquid foods, alcoholic or otherwise, such as whiskey, cognac, armagnac, vegetable oils (olive oil or other oils), etc.

(33) In the embodiments shown, the receiving means 8 are intended to receive only the neck of the bottle 12, which penetrates within the through-duct and sinks until the shoulder of the bottle comes into contact with the receiving part, the body portion of the bottle remaining external thereto. The bottle 12 is then seated downwards, advantageously in an oblique position (usually 25 to 65 in relation to the horizontal), the end of the neck thereof emerging into the inlet port 6. It is thus perfectly positioned for the following steps of the method, and in particular the emptying thereof once opened.

(34) The inlet port 6 comprises an opening station 14, which comprises an opening means 15 capable of opening an initial container 9 when it is fitted into a receiving means 8.

(35) The nature of the opening means 15 depends upon the intended application and the classic closure manner of the initial containers 9 for this application. This can be for example, as shown, a corkscrew means or an unscrewing or perforation means.

(36) The opening means 15 can be singular, as in the embodiment of FIG. 2. In the case where the device 1 comprises several receiving means 8 (FIG. 1), said single opening means 15 successively opens all of the initial containers 9 present within the receiving means 8.

(37) The opening station 14 can also comprise several opening means 15 capable of simultaneously opening several initial containers 9, as in FIG. 1. The opening means 15 can be operated simultaneously by virtue of an actuator M.

(38) A collection vessel 16 is also present within the enclosure 2 in order to collect the liquid flowing out of the initial containers 9, once opened by means of said opening means 15. For this purpose, the collection vessel 16 is preferably located underneath the opening station 14 present within the inlet port of the initial containers 6 or it can communicate therewith when the port is also placed under an inert atmosphere.

(39) In the lower part of the collecting vessel 16, there is (are) one or more drainage ducts 17 emerging at a filling station 18 whereto the final containers 19 are placed or carried.

(40) The final containers 19 preferably follow the following automatic cycle: supply by means of a vibrating bowl container dispenser 10, transfer of the containers on the conveyor 20, conveyance with integrated placement, purging the containers, advantageously using nitrogen, within a cleaning facility 23, drying the containers within a drying facility 11, filling with liquid, removal of a stopper 22 such as a lid and then the fastening of the lid and container, notably by means of thermal bonding (in the case of a lid) or the screwing of a stopper (for a screw cap).

(41) A system of valves, not shown and preferably automatic, can close or open the drainage ducts 17 in order to allow for the flowing through said drainage ducts 17 of the liquid from the collecting vessel 16, and can thus procure the filling of the final containers 19 located at the exit of said drainage ducts 17 within the filling station 18.

(42) According to the variants, the device can comprise one or more drainage ducts 17. The various final containers 19 can either be filled consecutively within the filling station 18 or simultaneously.

(43) According to a particular embodiment, filling level sensors, associated with valves and precision pumps, are used to accurately determine the necessary volume to be introduced into the containers. The latter will be filled either entirely or partially.

(44) Any empty space within the container is filled with inert gas, in such a way as to create a non-reactive atmosphere for the liquid within the final container thereof. The liquid can thus be kept for several months within the pod thereof without any evolution of its organoleptic qualities.

(45) The final containers 19 may be of any type and shape as long as they are suitable for the conservation of the liquid 13 to be sampled and have a capacity that is less than that of the initial container 9. These may be for example capsules, tubes, vials, pods, small bottles (miniature bottles or the like), flexible bags, cartons, or the like. They can be reusable or disposable, and are made from any suitable material, for example plastic, glass, aluminum or other metal, wood, cork, etc. Advantageously, they can be provided within a material that makes it possible to protect the liquid that they contain from light.

(46) The sampling device 1 according to the invention is preferably automated without requiring human intervention within the enclosure 2. The final containers 19 can thus be automatically carried from one position to the other, for example by means of a conveyor 20, as shown.

(47) The enclosure 2 also contains a hermetic sealing station 21 for the final containers 19 to which the latter are conducted once filled within the filling station 18. Within this station, the final containers 10 are sealed in an air-tight and hermetic manner in such a way as to guarantee that the liquid 13 that they contain remains sheltered from the air when the final containers have left the enclosure 2 under an inert atmosphere.

(48) This hermetic sealing can be performed in various ways according to the nature and composition of the final containers. They can for example be directly sealed, welded or glued. A separate insert 22, such as for example a lid, a capsule or a cork, can also be attached and secured to the opening of said containers, including by means of welding, heat-sealing, gluing, sealing, seaming, screwing, wedging or the like. Where appropriate, the separate insert 22 can be introduced together with the final containers or by means of a port dedicated to the introduction of separate inserts 22.

(49) Once hermetically sealed, the final containers are carried, preferably by means of the conveyor 20, to the outlet port 7, through which they are evacuated towards the outside of the enclosure 2.

(50) The outlet port of the final containers 7 is preferentially positioned on the side or beneath the device. It advantageously comprises two doors, the first providing the inlet of the port (interface with the inert enclosure 2) and the second providing the outlet of the port (interface with the exterior). During the process, the first door is nominally open, and the second closed; the port is therefore filled with inert gas insofar as it in direct contact with the enclosure 2. For the extraction of filled containers, the filling of the port with ambient air is performed once a certain number of final filled containers have been introduced, in order to then allow for communication with the exterior.

(51) The size of said port is advantageously reduced as much as possible in order to decrease the losses of quantities of inert gases during the purging of the port.

(52) The structure of the device preferentially has means satisfying a practical and industrial logic: chassis and frame made from a robust material (steel, sheet metal, etc.) dimensioned such as to respond to the forces of movement of the internal members and the pressure of the gas within the hermetically sealed enclosure, one or more faces of a transparent material (polymethylmethacrylate, glass, etc.) in order to observe each stage of the automated process from the exterior, one or more doors, wherein the opening authorization can be slaved to the prior emptying of the inert gas (in order to prevent danger to humans), particularly in order to access the collection vessel, adjust the internal actuators, release certain mechanisms or containers.

(53) FIG. 2 illustrates a particular embodiment of the inlet port 6 of an initial container 9. Said port comprises: a support 28 for maintaining an initial container 9 such as a bottle 12; a first receiving means 8 assuring the seal between the initial container and the port; an interface door 34 between the port and the external environment; an interface door 27 between the port and the enclosure 2; an opening means 15, for example a motorized corkscrew; a drainage hatch 32 for discharging the cleaning solution when the port 6 is cleaned; an evacuation hatch 33 for discharging at least one stopper of at least one initial container. When several initial containers are opened, several stoppers can be stored within the port 6 before being simultaneously evacuated; a tube 31 for supplying a cleaning solution making it possible to wash the port 6; optionally a tube 30 for supplying air; optionally an air outlet 25; a tube 26 supplying inert gas making it possible to place the port 6 under an inert atmosphere; an inert gas outlet 29.

(54) The tube 26 and the outlet 29 can be connected to the control unit 5 (R) for the regulation of the atmosphere of the device 1.

(55) Furthermore, the device 1 can comprise only one or a plurality of inlet ports 6 according to FIG. 2.

(56) Obviously, the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments described above and shown in the various figures, a person skilled in the art being able to make numerous modifications and imagine other embodiments without going beyond the framework and scope of the invention as defined by the claims.