AU598321B2 - Transport and storage container for concentrates of beverages or the like - Google Patents

Abstract

TRANSPORT AND STORAGE CONTAINER FOR CONCENTRATES OF BEVERAGES OR THE LIKE A transport and storage container for concentrates of beverages or the like for making a ready-to-drink beverage by means of a drink-making machine is provided in the form of an inner bag package, whereof the two narrow side walls, as well as the top and bottom, are parallel to each other, whereof the narrow side wall containing the concentrate outlet, removal and connection, piece and the opposite narrow side wall form angles of approximately 93.degree. and 87.degree. with the top and with the bottom. The two triangular wall portions of the inner bag gussets located in the bottom and top planes of the package are sealed or welded together, and a viewing window structure is provided in the outer cardboard casing of the package adjacent the end where the concentrate outlet piece is located.

Description

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5~Gz3 21 COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA PATENTS ACT 1952-69 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION (OR IG INAL) Class I t. Class Application Number: Lodged: Complete Specification Lodged: Accepted: Published: Priority: Ralated Art &~mc4njr~i Iude Under sectioim 49, is GW "trnl Name of Appi Address of Ap Actual lnventc Address for Se icant: CARL EDELMANN VERPACKUNGSTECHNIK GMBH COCA- C t- A C 0I'A flo 9 plcn:Paradiesstrasse 20, 7920 Heidenheim/Brenz, Federal plcn:Republic of Germany CA"-'d Coca,. Co Wc Pla-zA Aq o: ERICH HEUBERGER, WIOLF-DIETER KNORRICH and JOACHIM W.

DZIALLAS

rvice: EDWD. WATERS SONS, .rvice 50 QUEEN STREET, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, 3000.

Complete Specification for the invention entitled: TRANSPORT AND STORAGE CONTAINER FOR CONCENTRATES OF BEVERAGES OR THE LIKE The foilowing statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to u H-752 1 TRANSPORT AND STORAGE CONTAINER FOR 2 CONCENTRATES OF BEVERAGES OR THE LIKE 3 RELATED APPLICATION 4 This application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 932,294 filed November 19, 1986.

S6 Background of the Invention 7 This invention refers to a transport and storage 8 container for concentrates of beverages or the like, particularly 9 such as fruit juice syrups or the like, for making a ready-todrink beverage, which container is capable of being inserted into 11 a drink-making machine and connected to its system, wherein a 12 dose of concentrate is removed from the supply of concentrate and 13 water and, if applicable, carbon dioxide are added. The 14 container consists of what is called an inner bag package known per se with an outer cardboard casing in the form of a folding 16 box. The box has interconnected, especially glued together 17 bottom and top flaps and a liquid-tight inner bag closed at its 18 upper and lower ends by a sealed or welded seam, and wherein the 19 inner bag gussets are folded inwardly in the area of the bottom and top closures and lie between two bottom or top flaps each.

21 The bottom and top closures.both of the inner bag and of the 22 cardboard casing are identically embodied, the removal and 23 machine-connection piece is connected by a flange to a side wall 24 of the inner bag and the connection piece projects outwardly through an orifice in the side wall of the cardboard casing.

26 Up to now, plastic containers have been used for the 27 transport, storage and keeping of beverage concentrates and the 28 provision of supplies thereof in drink-making machines, which 29 containers are inserted into these machines and connected to the

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1 concentrate removal system of the machine. A disadvantage of the 2 previously known plastic containers consists in the fact that 3 upon their being "emptied" a relatively large, no longer usable 4 residual quantity of concentrate remains in them. Furthermore, only certain plastics, unharmful to foodstuffs and luxury foods, 6 can be used for the manufacture of the containers. However, this 7 has the disadvantage of not being optimal with regard to some 8 beverage concentrates, since, if longer storage times are 9 involved, they can detract from the taste of the container contents. Also, the disposal of the empty plastic containers 11 results in a considerable burden on the environment.

12 The already mentioned transport and storage containers 13 consisting of inner bag packages have already been proposed for 14 the purpose in question; however, the forms and designs available up to now have not yet proven to be satisfactory enough to enable 16 their unreserved practical use.

17 Object of the Invention 18 The invention is therefore based on the task of improving S, 19 the containers in question for beverage concentrates, insertable in drink-making machines, in such a way that on being emptied, S21 only a very minimum residual amount effectively remains, and in 22 which it should be possible to check the level of the contents of 23 the container inserted in the drink-making machines without the S24 stability of the package or its contents being diminished by a 001 25 viewing window making this possible. Finally, any detraction 26 from taste of the container contents is also to be avoided.

27 For the solution of this task, according to the invention 28 it is suggested that the container of the given type be embodied 29 in such a way that the two triangular wall portions of the inner 2 yj 1 bag gussets located in the bottom and top planes of the package 2 are sealed or welded together, the two narrow side walls, like 3 the top and the bottom of the package, are in parallel 4 arrangement to each other, but the narrower side wall containing the removal and connection piece and the opposite side wall 6 respectfully form angles of approximately 930 and 87' with the 7 top and of approximately 87' and 930 with the bottom.

8 Inner bag packages of the designated type have become 9 known in the widest variety of forms. A considerable disadvantage existing in such packages if they are used as 11 transport and storage containers for beverage concentrates for 12 use in drink-making machines is that a considerable residual 13 amount of the liquid contained therein remains in the container, 14 since the inner bag generally does not flatly abut the inner wall of the cardboard casing surrounding it, but rather forms creases, 16 recesses or similar uneven places which hinder a desired flow-off 17 of the contents of the container. Thus a certain, albeit only a 18 seemingly relatively small quantity of the contents is lost to 19 the consumer with each package. However, such lost quantities, added up over a longer period of time, are indeed of substantial 21 significance.

22 If, however, instead of beverage concentrates 23 environmentally harmful chemicals in concentrated form are 24 involved, for instance such as those used for pest control or plant protection and the like, then the residual amounts left in 26 the emptied packages have particularly serious consequences.

27 Therefore, strong demands for packaging such substances only in 28 such a way that they can be removed from the packages with 29 virtually no residue have recently been made. Thus the packages proposed according to the invention are also usable in the last- -3- L7j 1I above-mentioned technical field.

2 The novel features serving to solve the problem or to 3 promote and further develop the solution will become apparent 4 from the appended claims as well as in the following detailed description of embodiments of a package designed in accordance 6 with the invention, as represented by Figures 1 to 5 of the 7 drawings.

8 Brief Description of the Drawings 9 Figure 1 shows a perspective view of the finished package with closed inner bag in its filled position; 11 Figure 2 shows a perspective view of the only partly 12 closed, not yet filled, package with inner bag according to Fig.

13 1; 14 Figure 3 shows a side view of the package according to Fig. 1 in a position assumed upon being inserted in a drink- 16 making machine; 17 Figure 4 shows a perspective view of the filling and 4 18 outlet connection piece with its flange; 19 Figure 5 shows a section through the outlet connection piece in a second embodiment.

eat 21 Detailed Description of the Drawings aIl 22 As seen in particular in Fig. 2, the package comprises as 23 usual, in this type of package, the outer cardboard casing 11 and OV 24 the inner bag 12 consisting of a composite foil which can be a thin foil laminate, a three layer laminate of foils of 26 plastic, aluminum, plastic, or of three foil laminates of 27 transparent plastic, the middle layer being a gas-tight 28 transparent plastic foil.

29 The packages of the type in question are usually supplied 4- 1 lying flatly to the consumer and are to be set up and filled by 2 machine only before being used. The inner bag 12 is closed by 3 sealing or welding first at its lower end and then at its upper 4 end by means of a transverse seam 13. The bottom of the cardboard casing is shown already closed, namely in the same way 6 as the top closure. At its upper end the package is shown still 7 partly open.

8 Before the inner bag end is sealed and closed, the 9 filling and outlet connection piece 16, to be later provided with a sealed cap 15 (Figure is securely connected and sealed 11 to the inner bag 12 so as to be liquid-tight by means of a flange or o O o o 12 17. The connection piece 16 has a tubular member which projects 0 o 13 from within the bag 12 to the outside of the package through an 14 orifice 18 in the one narrow side wall 19 of the cardboard casing O .15 11.

o 16 The filling and outlet connection piece 16 with its o 00 17 flange 17 can be seen especially in Fig. 4. The flange 17 is 18 designed to have a relatively large area and is shaped such that ao 2 19 three of the edges lying at right angles to each other abut the o 0 adjacent walls of the interior of the bag 12. The flange 17 has 21 a bend 31 which approximately intersects the axis of the outlet S 22 connection piece 16. The angle formed by the two flange parts 23 17a and 17b is preferably 1740 However, it is also possible to 24 design the flange 17 as a whole in the form of a very flat funnel 17', with the funnel angle likewise being approximately 1740 as 4 4 26 seen in Fig. 5. In this way it is possible for the container 27 contents to pour into the tubular outlet piece and out of the 28 package and to be used almost completely.

29 The inner bag 12 is advantageously glued at several locations, including adjacent its upper and lower ends to the 5 p 1 inner side of the cardboard casing 11ii ii the area of the surfaces 2 20 marked by dotted lines, to guarantee that the bag cecurely 3 abuts and is adhered to the inner wall of the cardboard casing of 4 j the package and to prevent the inner bag 12 from collapsing with progressive emptying.

6 To achieve the required, necessarily very substantial 7 stability of form, the inner bag 12 is held or clamped fast in 8 the area of the top and the bottom by the special design of the 9 top and bottom closure, whereby a particularly stable construction results in the area of the top and bottom.

011 Although, for the sake of simplicity, the following 12 description refers to the design of the package in the area of 000444 S 13 the top opening or its closure, this applies to the design of the S 14 bottom closure accordingly.

The size of the two larger top and bottom flaps 21, 22 of I 16 the cardboard casing facing each other before closure 17 substantially corresponds to that of the top and bottom openings 18 of the package.

19 In closing the package, first of all, the inner bag 12 is closed by means of the liquid-tight welded or sealed seam 13 and S 21 then the edge 14 containing this seam is folded onto the plane of 22 the top opening of the cardboard casing 11ii, whereupon the 23 superposed wall portions of the lateral gussets 23 are sealed or 24 welded together. In this way, the gussets are sealed from the main interior part of the bag 12 and liquid which could otherwise 26 remain as a residual amount in an emptied package is prevented 27 from entering the gussets 23. Furthermore, this measure will 28 provide an additional stiffening of the package in the bottom and 29 top areas. The lateral gussets 23 are laid outwardly onto the outwardly turned smaller top flaps 24, as seen at the upper -6 2J 1 right-hand portion of Figure 2, and are preferably glued thereto.

2 The lowest or innermost top flap 21 is folded against the upper 3 end of the inner bag 12 and subsequently the smaller top flaps 24 4 with the gussets 23 of the inner bag 12 are folded against the larger top flap 21 lying on the inner bag 12 and are glued 6 thereto. Finally, the upper or outer top flap 22 is folded down 7 and glued to the top surfaces of flaps 21 and 24 which are 8 already closing the top opening.

9 To produce as good and secure a connection as possible between the upper or outer top flap 22 and the lower or inner 11 top flap 21 by gluing, the corners 25 of the smaller top flaps 24 0 0 12 are cut off, so that the free edge 26 of the upper top flap 22 o. 13 can be glued virtually along its entire length to the top flap S 14 21.

S15 To enable good and stable gluing of the smaller top flaps 0 0 16 24 to tIhe lower or inner top flaps 21, the outer corners 27 of o oo 17 the inner bag edge 14 can be folded against the gussets 23, 18 whereby a large gluing surface can be obtained.

o 19 As seen in Fig. 3 in particular, the narrow side walls 19 S, 20 are not at right angles to the vertical top or bottom flap 22, 21 but are rather at an angle of approximately 870 at one end and 930 22 at the other end, so that after insertion of the package into a 0 23 drink-making machine with the ends represented by flaps 22 being 0, 24 held vertical, the narrow side wall 19, with the removal or outlet connection piece 16, which is now the bottom wall is 26 downwardly inclined by approximately 30 toward said connection 27 piece relative to a horizontal H. In this way the residual 28 container contents must necessarily run into the outlet 29 connection piece 16. This is also promoted by the design of the flange 17 and 17' of the outlet connection piece 16 and 16' -7t ii 1 according to Fig. 4 and Fig. 2 In order to check the level of the liquid contained in 3 the interior of the container, it is advantageous to provide a 4 viewing window 32 enabling this, which, however, requires that the inner bag 12 of the container be made of a transparent foil.

6 As seen in Fig. 2, the viewing window 32 is arranged in the area 7 of the edge 33 between the one side wall 28 and the top flap 22.

8 In order not to diminish the stability of the package prior: to 9 its insertion into a drink-making machine, a perforated line 34 is located in the side wall 28 and in the top 22 along the edges 11 of the viewing window 32, so that the cardboard strip 35 bordered oo,~ 12 by the perforated line need only be removed from the cardboard S.13 casing 11 to form the viewing window 32 at a suitable point in 14 time. This construction also has the advantage of protecting the contents from the effects of light.

16 If desired, as an alternate location, a viewing window 31 17 can be provided in the outer cardboard casing near the outlet 18 piece 16, at the adjacent edge of the side wall 19, as also shown 19 in Fig. 2 and as is true with the construction of viewing window 32, the inner bag 12 in this case must also be made of a 21 transparent material.

22 It is advantageous to locate a slot 29 extending around 23 three-quarters of a circle in the top flap 22, thus forming a tab 24 30 with the aid of which the package can be more easily pulled from a stack or from the shaft of the drink-making machine into 26 which the package has been inserted.

27 The packages designed in accordance with the invention 28 also have the advantage of being capable of bearing substantial 29 loads, especially while forming stacks of packages, due to their great stability of form. In these cases the packages are turned -8- 1 by 900 whuereby the bottoms and tops become side walls.

2 The existing dispenser machines into which the container 3 is inserted has a fixed depth. Prior art containers for the 4 dispensers have been rectangular and dimensioned for the depth of the dispenser machine. The skewed parallelogram shape of the 6 container of this invention results in a package that has the 7 same depth between its ends so it fits into the existing 8 1 dispenser machines with front and rear walls vertical and the 9 lower wall inclined toward the outlet connection piece. The shape of the container of this invention provides a greater 11 capacity than a rectangular container which has the same end wall 00? a o 12 area and the same depth dimension as that measured between the 13 walls 22 of the container of this invention.

S14 The invention may be embodied in other specific forms 15 without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics 0 16 thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered 17 in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of 18 the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than Df 19 by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore 21 intended to be embraced therein.

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Claims (9)

1. An improved transport and storage container for concentrates of beverages or the like, particularly such as fruit juice syrups or the like, for making a ready-to-drink beverage, said container being insertable into a drink- making machine and connectable to its system, wherein a dose of concentrate from the container, a dose of water and, if applicable, carbon aioxide are added; said container consisting of an inner bag package with a folding box type outer cardboard casing (11) having interconnected, especially glued together bottom and top flaps (21, 22, 24) and a liquid-tight inner bag (12) closed at its upper and lower ends by a sealed or welded seam whereine inner bag gussets (23) folded inwardly in =he area of the bottom and top closures lie between two bottom or top flaps (21, 22, 24) each, the bottom and the top closures both of the inner bag (12) and of the cardboard casing (11) are identically embodied, a concentrate removal and machine- connection piece with an inlet and outlet, has a flange (17) sealed and connected to a side wall inner surface of the inner bag (12) and the connection piece (16) projects outwardly through an orifice (18) in one of two narrow walls (19) of the cardboard casing the impoved container being constructed with the two triangular wall portions of each inner bag gussett which are located It in the bottom and tno planes of the package and are sealed, by being welded together, =~e=two narrow side walls (19) as well as the top an bottom surfaces of the package are respectively parallel to each other, and with the one of the side walls (19) containing the removal and connection piece (16) and an opposite one of the side walls form angles of respectively approximately 930 add 870 with the bottom surface and angles of respectively 870 and 930 with the top surface. OFF- 11

2. A container according to claim 1, characterized in that the flange (17) of the removal and connection piece connected to the interior of the inner bag (12), extends to the adjacent walls of the interior of the inner bag (12).

3. A container according to claim 2, characterized in that the flange (17) of the removal and connection piece (16) has a bend line (31) crossing a tubular inlet opening, and flange parts (17a, 17b) on both sides of the bend (31) form an angle of approximately 1740.

4. A container according to claim i, 2 or 3, characterized in that the flange (17) of the removal and connection piece (16) is in the shape of a very shallow furiel with a funnel angle of approximately 1740. A container according to claim i, 3 or 4, characterized in that the inner bag (12) is connected to the inner side of the outer cardboard casing (11) by gluing a plurality of areas, such as spots or strips located at least Sin the area of the upper and the lower end of the package.

6. A container according to claim i, 3 or 4, with an inner bag consisting of a transparent plastic foil, in coordination with a cardboard strip (35) to be removed from the cardboard casing to form a viewing w.~ow (32) for determining the level of the container contents, said strip being enabled by a closed perforated line (34) at least partially arranged in the cardboard casing (11) in the side wall (19) containing the removal and connection piece (16).

7. A container according to claim i, 3 or 4, characterized in that the inner bag (12) consists of a three -layered composite foil whereof the middle layer is aluminum foil. 12

8. A container according to claim 1, 3 or 4, characterized in that the inner bag (12) consists of a three -layered composite foil whereof the middle layer is a gas- tight, transparent plastic foil.

9. A containter according to claim 6, characterized in that the inner bag (12) consists of a three-layered composite foil whereof the middle layer is a gas-tight, transparaent plastic foil. A container according to claim 8, wherein a viewing window (32 or 31) is provided in the cardboard casing near the removal and connection piece (16).

11. A container as claimed in claim 1, substantially as I herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. DATED this 22nd day of January 1990. CARL EDELMANN VERPACKUNGSTECHNIK GMBH WATERMARK PATENT TRADEMARK ATTORNEYS, 290 Burwood Road, HAWTHORN. VIC. 3122 AUSTRALIA LJD:RCTS:jl(9.7)