Nozzle

Abstract

A nozzle, such as a nozzle for use as a part of a beverage preparation package. The nozzle may include a nozzle body with a conduit, the conduit having an inlet end and an outlet end. The nozzle may also include a plug that is connected to the nozzle body in a detachable manner. The plug and the conduit may be configured such that, when the plug is detached from the nozzle body, the plug is adapted to travel along the conduit and be retained within the conduit at the outlet end such that fluid can flow through the conduit from the inlet end towards the outlet end.

Claims

1. A nozzle comprising: a nozzle body having a conduit that extends from an inlet end to an outlet end; a plug detachably connected to the nozzle body by a portion of material, the plug being positioned in the conduit at or adjacent to the inlet end; wherein the nozzle body, the plug, and the portion of material are formed from a same material as an integral article; wherein upon the plug becoming detached from the nozzle body, the plug moves through the conduit towards the outlet end of the conduit, the plug being retained at the outlet end of the conduit.

2. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug obstructs the conduit to impede passage of material through the conduit from the inlet end to the outlet end when the plug is attached to the nozzle body.

3. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug seals the inlet end of the conduit so that no material can pass through the conduit while the plug is attached to the nozzle body.

4. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein when the plug is connected to the nozzle body, the plug is positioned fully within the conduit so that no part of the plug protrudes from either of the inlet or outlet ends of the conduit.

5. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug and the conduit are configured so that when the plug is retained at the outlet end of the conduit, a fluid is able to flow through the conduit from the inlet end to the outlet end and be dispensed through an opening at the outlet end.

6. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the outlet end of the nozzle body and the plug are tapered.

7. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein when the plug is retained in the outlet end of the conduit, a first portion of the plug remains located within the conduit and a second portion of the plug protrudes from the outlet end of the conduit.

8. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug comprises an outer surface having grooves extending lengthwise along the plug.

9. The nozzle according to claim 1 further comprising at least one slot extending through the nozzle body at the outlet end of the conduit, the at least one slot forming a passageway from an outer surface of the nozzle body to an inner surface of the nozzle body that defines the conduit.

10. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the conduit has an opening at the outlet end, and wherein the plug sits within the opening when the plug is retained at the outlet end.

11. The nozzle according to claim 10 further comprising at least one slot formed into the nozzle body along the outlet end, and wherein when the plug is retained at the outlet end of the conduit the plug obstructs the opening at the outlet end but leaves portions of the at least one slot unobstructed for passage of fluid.

12. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug seals the inlet end of the conduit when the plug is connected to the nozzle body.

13. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug becomes detached from the nozzle body by a force being applied to the plug.

14. The nozzle according to claim 13 wherein the force required to detach the plug from the nozzle body is greater than 20 Newtons.

15. The nozzle according to claim 1 wherein the plug moves from the inlet end of the conduit to the outlet end of the conduit by gravity upon the plug becoming detached from the nozzle body.

16. A beverage preparation package comprising: a package body containing a beverage ingredient; and a nozzle comprising a nozzle body having a conduit with an inlet end and an outlet end and a plug detachably coupled to the nozzle body adjacent to the inlet end, the plug falling downwardly within the conduit from the inlet end to the outlet end upon being detached from the nozzle body; and wherein the nozzle is attached to the package body with the outlet end of the conduit positioned within the package body.

17. The beverage preparation package according to claim 16 wherein the package body further comprises a region that is releasable by heat and/or pressure to allow the beverage ingredient to escape from the package body.

18. The beverage preparation package according to claim 16 wherein the package body comprises a front sheet and a back sheet, wherein the front sheet is bonded to the back sheet along edges of the front and back sheets, and wherein the nozzle is incorporated between the front sheet and the back sheet.

19. The beverage preparation package according to claim 16 wherein the plug obstructs the conduit to impede passage of material through the conduit from the inlet end to the outlet end when the plug is attached to the nozzle body, and wherein when the plug is detached from the nozzle body the plug is retained within the conduit at the outlet end of the conduit.

Description

(1) The invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a beverage preparation package of the prior art.

(3) FIG. 2a is a cross-sectional view of a beverage preparation package of the prior art depicted in FIG. 1.

(4) FIG. 2b is a cross-sectional view of the beverage preparation package of FIG. 1 during use.

(5) FIG. 3a is a cross-sectional view of a nozzle of the present invention.

(6) FIG. 3b is a perspective view of the nozzle of the present invention depicted in FIG. 3a.

(7) FIG. 4a is a cross-sectional view of a nozzle of the present invention after the plug has been detached.

(8) FIG. 4b is a corresponding perspective view of the nozzle depicted in FIG. 4a.

(9) FIG. 1 depicts a prior art nozzle in the exemplary application of a beverage preparation package 100. The beverage preparation package 100 is formed from a front sheet 110 and a back sheet 112. The front sheet 110 is bonded to the back sheet 112 around the sheets' edges 116. A nozzle 140 is incorporated into the top edge of the beverage preparation package 100. The beverage preparation package 100 has a bottom seal 120 that can be released under the action of heat and pressure.

(10) FIGS. 2a and 2b demonstrate the general action of the beverage preparation package. The beverage preparation package 100 has a beverage preparation ingredient 150 contained within the package body. The beverage preparation ingredient 150 is held above a filter element 130. The inlet of the nozzle 140 is sealed by the presence of a foil member 144. This foil member 144 is removed so as to allow liquid to be injected into the beverage preparation package. Alternatively. the foil member may be pierced by an injection member of brewing apparatus. Water is then injected into the beverage preparation package 100 through the nozzle 140 and the releasable seal 120 is released to allow beverage to escape from the bottom of the beverage preparation package 100.

(11) The new nozzle described herein improves on the nozzle of the prior art.

(12) FIGS. 39 and 3b illustrate a nozzle according to the present invention. The nozzle 240 has a conduit 242 formed through the nozzle body 246. There is a plug 248 connected to the nozzle body 246 in a detachable manner. The plug 248 is positioned within the conduit 242. The plug 248 is connected to the nozzle body 246 by a continuous portion of material 252 about the periphery of the plug 248. This portion of material 252 is relatively thin and can be broken when a sufficient force is applied to the plug 248, for example 50 newtons. A suitable thickness for the portion of material 252 can be about 0.2 mm.

(13) The plug 248 is obstructing, in particular sealing, the inlet end 254 of the nozzle 240. At the other end of the conduit 242 is the outlet end 256 of the nozzle 240.

(14) The plug 248 has a shape that tapers in the direction of the outlet end 256. In particular, the plug is a substantially conical shape, more specifically a substantially frustoconical shape.

(15) The conduit 242 is tapered at the outlet end 256. In this manner, the plug 248 can be retained in the nozzle 240 at the outlet end 256.

(16) The outlet end 256 exhibits two diametrically opposed slots 258 extending along the conduit. Each of these slots 258 is present all the way to the end of the conduit. The slots act as outlets for the fluid flowing through the conduit when the plug 248 is retained at the outlet end 256.

(17) FIGS. 4a and 4b depict the nozzle after the plug 248 has been detached from the nozzle body 246. The plug 248 travels along the conduit 242 under the action of gravity and/or the flow of fluid from the inlet end 254 to the outlet end 256. The plug body 248 sits within the opening at the end of the conduit 242 at the outlet end 256. In this way, the plug 248 obstructs the opening 256 but leaves unobstructed portions of the slots 258 running along the sides of the conduit 242. In this way, the fluid flowing through the conduit is influenced by the presence of the plug 248 at the outlet end 256. The plug 248 stops fluid from leaving the opening at the outlet end of the conduit 242 and redirects the fluid sideways out of the slots 258.

(18) In this particular embodiment, the plug 248 has grooves 260 extending along the length of the plug. These grooves 260 do not extend across the maximum width of the plug 248. Therefore, these grooves 260 assist in minimising the friction between the plug 248 and the conduit 242 when the plug 248 is traveling along the conduit 242 but do not form continuous channels that would significantly contribute to allowing fluid to exit the conduit 242 via these grooves 260.

(19) The improved ease of manufacture of the nozzle 240 can be appreciated by considering FIG. 3a. As noted above, the nozzle 240 can be injection moulded as a single-piece. In the injection moulding process, the conduit 242 is formed by the presence of a pin on the outlet end side of the plug 248. This pin and the rest of the mould have a complementary shape in order to form the required configuration of the plug and the inside of the conduit. In particular, the pin is tapered so as to produce the tapered conduit at the outlet end. When the outlet end 256 is tapered, the presence of slots 258 contribute to the flexibility of this outlet end and thus contribute to the ability to remove the pin after the injection moulding process via the outlet end since the tapered end can splay in order to let the pin pass. It is particularly advantageous to perform the pin removal while the temperature of the injection moulded piece is relatively high since the flexibility of the tapered end will be higher.

(20) The tapered section of the conduit has relatively thin walls compared to the walls of the rest of the conduit. A suitable wall thickness for the tapered section can be 0.4 mm.

(21) It was previously not possible to injection mould a nozzle that was both sealed at the inlet end and had a configuration at the outlet end that provided a desirable fluid exit flow pattern. This has been achieved with the present invention by using a plug to initially seal the inlet end and then to subsequently direct the flow of fluid from the nozzle.

(22) The foregoing description has described the invention in specific terms, although it should not be considered as limiting. The scope of the invention is defined by the attached claims. It is possible to combine the various aspects of the invention described above in any compatible combination in order to produce a nozzle.