Cartridge for soluble products with sealing member

Abstract

Cartridge (1) for containing coffee or soluble products in general, suitable for being inserted in an apparatus for the production of beverages via pressurized water or other extraction fluid, the cartridge including a container body (10), hermetically closed at the opposite bases thereof (11, 12), respectively for the water input and for the beverage output from the cartridge, and an annular flange (20) at the edge of the base (12) for the beverage output and a sealing member (30) on the flange (20), wherein the sealing member consists of an annular seat (31) delimited on the base by a wall (32) of smaller thickness with respect to the remaining portion of the annular flange (20).

Claims

1. A cartridge configured for containing coffee or soluble products, for insertion in an apparatus for production of beverages via pressurized water or other extraction fluid, the cartridge comprising: a container body, hermetically closed at opposite bases thereof, respectively for water input and for beverage output from the cartridge; an annular flange at an edge of one of said bases for the beverage output; and a seal on said annular flange, wherein said seal is formed integrally with said annular flange and comprises an annular seat open in a direction of output of the beverage from the cartridge and delimited on the one of said bases by a base wall of reduced thickness with respect to a remaining portion of said annular flange, so as to deform plastically during mechanical action of a first part of said apparatus, to adhere a deformed first side of the base wall to irregularities of a contact surface of the first part of the apparatus against the deformed first side of the base wall, thereby ensuring a hermetic seal between the deformed first side of the base wall and the first part of the apparatus, said annular seat being placed adjacent to the container body and being shaped so that said base wall thereof is situated at a level greater than internal level with respect to an end section of said flange for placement against a counter-plate of the apparatus, wherein the thickness of said base wall of the seal varies from to of a depth (h) of said seat.

2. The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein the thickness of said base wall varies from 0.1 to 0.8 mm.

3. The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein said seal compensates irregularities of a sealed coupling edge of the apparatus for production of beverages, co-operating with the seal of the cartridge.

4. The cartridge according claim 3, wherein the thickness of said base wall of the seal being from to of a depth (h) of said seat renders said base wall sufficiently plastically deformable under the mechanical action of said apparatus to deform to thereby cover and fill said irregularities of the contact surface of the apparatus at the first side of the base wall.

5. The cartridge according to claim 1, wherein said seal is made of PP, coextruded PP/EVOH/PP, PET, PBT, PLA, or aluminum.

6. A system for production of a beverage, comprising the cartridge according to claim 1, and a beverage extraction apparatus comprising a member that holds the container body of the cartridge and having a free edge with irregularities, co-operating with the seal of the cartridge.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein said irregularities are troughs determining radial channels in contact with said seal.

8. A cartridge configured for containing coffee or soluble products, for insertion in an apparatus for production of beverages via pressurized water or other extraction fluid, the cartridge comprising: a container body, hermetically closed at opposite bases thereof, respectively for water input and for the beverage output from the cartridge; an annular flange at an edge of one of said bases for the beverage output; and an annular seat on said annular flange, wherein said annular seat is formed integrally with said annular flange, the annular seat is open in a direction of output of the beverage from the cartridge and delimited on the one of said bases by a base wall of smaller thickness with respect to a remaining portion of said annular flange, so as to deform plastically during mechanical action of a first part of the apparatus acting on a first side the base wall and an opposite, second side of the base wall being pressed against a second, counter-plate of said apparatus, to adhere to irregularities of a contact surface of the apparatus, ensuring a hermetic seal between the first side of the base wall and the first part of the apparatus, said annular seat being placed adjacent to the container body and being shaped that said base wall thereof is situated at a higher more internal level with respect to an end section of said flange, wherein the thickness of said base wall of the seal varies from to of a depth (h) of said seat to thereby render the seal sufficiently plastically deformable under pressure caused by the mechanical action of said first part of the apparatus acting on the base wall against the second, counter-plate of said apparatus to plastically deform to cover and fill said irregularities of the contact surface at the first side of the base wall against the first part of the apparatus.

9. The cartridge according to claim 8, wherein the thickness of said base wall varies from 0.1 to 0.8 mm.

10. The cartridge according to claim 8, wherein said annular seat compensates irregularities of a sealed coupling edge of a beverage production apparatus, co-operating with the seal of the cartridge.

11. The cartridge according to claim 8, wherein said seal is made of PP, coextruded PP/EVOH/PP, PET, PBT, PLA, or aluminum.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

(1) Further features of the invention will be made clearer by the following detailed description, referred to a purely non-limiting exemplary embodiment thereof, illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective side view of a cartridge according to the invention;

(3) FIG. 2 is a schematic side elevation view, with cutaway and sectioned parts, of the cartridge of FIG. 1 inserted in the extraction chamber of an apparatus for the production of beverages, before the complete closure of this chamber;

(4) FIG. 3 is an enlargement of the detail denoted by A in FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is a fictitious view of the detail of FIG. 3 with the extraction chamber in condition of complete closure;

(6) FIGS. 5 and 6 are schematic sections taken along the planes V-V and VI-VI of FIGS. 3 and 4 respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(7) Referring to the accompanying drawings, and for the time being in particular to FIG. 1, the cartridge or capsule for containing coffee or soluble products in general according to the invention has been denoted overall by reference numeral 1. It comprises a container body 10 with a cup shape, in this particular case truncated cone, with a smaller base 11 placed above in the illustration of FIG. 1, and a larger base 12 placed below.

(8) The aforesaid bases 11, 12 are suitable for being traversed by the fluid during the preparation of the beverage and can be perforated by mechanical means or by the pressure of the working fluid.

(9) According to the embodiment of the aforementioned patent application PCT/EP2012/069794, the bases 11 and 12 are constituted, at least in part, by seal closure membranes of the container body 10.

(10) When the cartridge 1 is inserted in an apparatus for extraction of the beverage, as shown schematically in FIG. 2, the smaller base 11 constitutes the side of input of the water and the larger base 12 the side of output of the beverage.

(11) Naturally, without departing from the scope of the invention, the side of input of the water and the side of output of the beverage can be inverted with respect to those indicated, as it is also clear that the extraction apparatus can be with vertical axis as shown in FIG. 2 or with horizontal axis.

(12) As can be seen in FIG. 1, the cartridge likewise represents an external annular perimeter flange 20 at the side of output of the beverage, conveniently formed integrally at the container body 10.

(13) At the peripheral flange 20 a sealing member 30 is also provided, which will be described in greater detail here below. The sealing member 30 is formed integrally at the peripheral flange 20, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

(14) According to the invention the sealing member 30 is constituted by an annular seat 31 open in the direction of output of the beverage from the cartridge and having a base wall 32 of slim thickness, smaller than that of the remaining part of the flange 20.

(15) More particularly the annular seat 31 is placed adjacent to the container body 10 and is shaped in such a way that said base wall thereof 32 is situated at a higher, i.e. more internal, level, with respect to the end section 21 of the flange 20.

(16) Conveniently the thickness of this base wall 32 varies between 0.1 and 0.8 mm and is such as to confer a certain elasticity and plastic deformability to the wall 32 under the mechanical action of a shaped contrast punch, as will be described here below.

(17) The thin wall 32, formed integrally at the perimeter flange 20 and at the container body 10, can be obtained through moulding of PP, PET, PBT, PLA or other, or through thermoforming of coextruded PP/EVOH/PP or other coextruded structures.

(18) FIG. 2 shows schematically the cartridge 1 inserted in an apparatus for extraction of the beverage, whereof the essential elements are shown schematically, in particular a bell-shaped member, or contrast punch 40 and a counter-plate 50.

(19) The bell-shaped member 40 has an internal chamber 41 wherein the container body 10 of the cartridge 1 is housed, while the perimeter flange 20, and in particular the sealing member 30, abuts against the free edge 42 of the member 40.

(20) This edge 42 in FIG. 2 has been shown undulated along its entire development, such as to have an alternation of troughs 43 and reliefs 44. However these troughs 43 and reliefs 44 can involve only a part of the perimeter of the edge 42 of the bell-shaped member 40 and constitute deliberate or undesirable irregularities.

(21) The upper or back wall 45 of the bell-shaped member 40 has a central hole 46 for the feeding of pressurised fluid in the extraction chamber 41 for the production of the beverage, after this fluid (water) has traversed the product contained in the cartridge 1.

(22) The process of formation of the beverage will not be described further in that it is to be considered in itself known.

(23) During the production of the beverage the pressurised water which enters the extraction chamber 41 flows also into the gap 47 (deliberately exaggerated in the accompanying drawings) which is created between the external wall of the container body 10 of the cartridge and the internal wall of the bell-shaped member 40 and could cause leaks outwards, with the disadvantages set out previously, should a sealed closure not be performed on the flange 20.

(24) The sealing member 30, according to the invention, provided on the perimeter flange 20 of the cartridge, has in fact the purpose of avoiding leaks of fluid outwards during the process of extraction of the beverage, as can be seen more clearly from the enlargements of FIGS. 3 to 6.

(25) FIGS. 3 and 5 show in two sections orthogonal one to the other the edge 42 of the bell-shaped member 40 resting on the sealing member 30 of the cartridge 1, before the complete approaching of the member 40 to the counter-plate 50. In this situation the pressurised fluid would tend to exit from the radial channels which would be created between the base wall 32 of the sealing seat 31 and the edge 42 of the member 40.

(26) However, as can be seen in FIGS. 4 and 6, when the bell-shaped member 40 is pushed under pressure against the counter-plate 50, the elastic yielding of the base wall 32 of the sealing seat 31 means that the latter deforms and goes to cover and fill the troughs 43 or any other irregularity of the lower edge 42 of the bell-shaped member 40 performing a perfect sealed closure.

(27) As mentioned, the deformation of said wall 32 which allows perfect sealing to be obtained is obtained thanks to its reduced thickness and to the presence of the hot fluid which laps the outer surface of the capsule.

(28) In the example shown, the thickness s of the base wall 32 of the sealing member 30 is 0.2 mm, while the height h of the sealing seat 31 is 1.55 mm.

(29) Naturally the invention is not limited to the particular embodiment previously described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, but numerous detailed changes may be made thereto, within the reach of the person skilled in the art, without thereby departing from the scope of the invention itself as defined in the appended claims.