CA2903926A1

CA2903926A1 - Pallet container

Info

Publication number: CA2903926A1
Application number: CA2903926A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Sascha Siebel
Original assignee: IBA INTERMEDIATE BULK ALLIANCE GmbH; Mauser Werke GmbH
Current assignee: IBA INTERMEDIATE BULK ALLIANCE GmbH; Mauser Werke GmbH
Priority date: 2013-03-05
Filing date: 2014-03-05
Publication date: 2014-09-12
Also published as: WO2014135277A1; MX2015011263A; BR112015021817A8; US20160001951A1; RU2015142101A; PT2964540T; ES2623237T3; DE112014001161A5; BR112015021817A2; EP2964540B1; RU2015142051A; DK2964540T3; BR112015021825A2; CA2903932A1; US20160001921A1; EP2964541A1; HUE032154T2; EP2964541B1; EP2964540A1; PT2964541T

Abstract

The present invention relates to a pallet container (10) for storing and transporting in particular aseptic liquid filling materials, comprising a base pallet (12), a grid frame (14) having metal bars, which is mounted thereon, and a fabric cover (16) which is suspended in said grid frame and in which a liquid-tight inliner (18) of a plastic or/and a metal film is arranged for receiving the liquid filling material. In particular in the case of viscous, pasty filling materials, it is difficult and time-consuming to remove the filling material. In order to accelerate this procedure, the invention provides that for the purpose of a gas-assisted emptying the inliner (18) arranged inside the cube-shaped fabric cover (16) is designed as a double-chamber inliner (18) having a rear chamber (36) for injecting compressed air or gas and a front chamber (38) for receiving the aseptic liquid filling material. An intermediate film partition wall prevents that the sensitive filling material can get into direct contact with the injected compressed air.

Description

Pallet container The present invention relates to a pallet container for storing and for transporting aseptic liquid filling materials, with a base pallet, a lattice frame which is fastened thereon and consists of metal bars, and a fabric bag which is suspended in said lattice frame or a cube-shaped fabric cover in which a liquid-tight inliner which unfolds automatically during filling composed of plastics film and/or metal foil for receiving the liquid filling material is arranged, wherein the inliner has a base-side filling and removal connection piece to which a filling and removal fitting, which is fastened at the bottom to the front lattice frame, is attached, by means of which filling and removal fitting the folded-up inliner is not unfolded and aligned until during the filling operation.
A pallet container of this type is already known, for example, from EP 2 149 508 B1. In said pallet container, the inner liquid-receiving inliner is designed so as to be exchangeable, for which purpose the outer fabric cover is provided with a large closeable flap opening at the top, through which the inliner can be exchanged. A disadvantage of the known pallet container is that in particular viscous filling materials can be emptied only slowly. Especially high viscous filling material, such as, for example, fruit concentrate with fruit pieces for jam production does not flow off by itself via the removal fitting. A further disadvantage of the known pallet container is that the inliner exhibits creases on being filled under pressure, and said creases can subsequently delay the emptying, in particular by the creases being able to block the opening of the removal connection piece.
AMENDED SHEET

- 2 -In further known pallet containers (EP 1 103 486 Al, WO
2007/029011 Al), the inliner is fastened to the outer cover, and therefore inliner and outer cover can only be tensioned into the lattice cage when air passes into the inliner.
However, in the case of pallet containers which are provided for filling with aseptic filling materials, it absolutely has to be prevented that the sensitive filling material comes into contact with air (impurities, bacteria, geLms).
The inliners receiving the filling materials are therefore emptied of air (evacuated) before the filling operation and are not unfolded and aligned until during filling with the liquid filling material.
The known pallet containers (EP 1 103 486 Al, WO 2007/029011 Al) are therefore unsuitable for filling with aseptic filling materials. Furthermore, viscous filling materials can also only be emptied slowly from said known containers.
A known bag in box system (US 2008/006 7176 Al) also does not have any device for facilitating the emptying of viscous filling materials.
It is the object of the present invention to propose a pallet container of the type mentioned at the beginning, in which the emptying of the liquid filling material, in particular if viscous filling material is involved, can be accelerated, wherein it is furtheLmore ensured that the emptying cannot be disturbed and obstructed by the possible creasing of the inliner.
AMENDED SHEET

- 2a -This object is achieved according to the characterizing features of patent claim 1 in that the inliner arranged within the cube-shaped fabric cover is designed, for gas-assisted emptying, as a double chamber inliner with a rear chamber for blowing in compressed air or gas ("compressed air chamber" below) and a front chamber for receiving the liquid filling material ("filling material chamber" below).
The double chamber inliner is sometimes also referred to in abbreviated form below as "inliner".
For the emptying-promoting blowing in of compressed air, it is provided that the compressed air chamber is provided on the upper side thereof with a small connection piece for the connection of a compressed air line, wherein the front filling material chamber has on the front side thereof a base-side filling and removal connection piece for attaching a filling and removal fitting (the filling and removal fitting is also called "base valve" for short below).
So that the sensitive filling material can come only into operative contact, but not into direct contact with the compressed air - which would cause the aseptic filling material to be contaminated - a flexible elastic film or foil wall is provided within the double chamber inliner as a separating wall between the compressed air chamber and the filling material chamber.
AMENDED SHEET

- 3 -Said separating wall runs vertically within the double chamber inliner from the upper side thereof to the lower side thereof in the unfilled state of the pallet container when the fabric cover is stretched therein.
This expedient refinement advantageously results in the fact that in the filled state of the pallet container, the filling material chamber is completely filled with liquid filling material and the compressed air chamber is completely empty, while in the emptied state of the pallet container, the filling material chamber is completely empty and the compressed air chamber is completely filled with compressed air, wherein, in the filled state of the pallet container, the separating wall between the compressed air chamber and the filling material chamber bears completely against the rear side of the double chamber inliner and, in the emptied state of the pallet container, bears completely against the front side of the double chamber inliner.
The cost-effective pallet containers according to the invention are to be used instead of expensive stainless steel IBCs. The filling installations for intermediate bulk containers at the filling material manufacturers (fillers) operate at a comparatively high filling pressure, and therefore the liquid filling material flows with a strong jet through the base-side filling and emptying fitting into the inliner. In customary pallet containers with film or foil inliners, this generally results in creases forming in the base of the film or foil inliner and the corners drawing in. Such creases are then a nuisance during the removal of the filling material through the base-side filling and removal fitting and can block the removal opening on

- 4 -the inside. In order to prevent this, a thin, stiff base plate on which the double chamber inliner is fixed is arranged within the fabric cover directly below the double chamber inliner.
In addition, the pallet container according to the invention is equipped with a residue emptying aid which ensures that even the smallest quantities of even highly viscous filling material can still be sucked out of the inliner without there being the risk of the film or foil of the inliner being able to be pulled in front of the opening of the removal connection piece by the powerful negative pressure for extraction by suction.
The invention is explained and described in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments which are illustrated schematically in the drawings, in which:
figure 1 shows, in an overall view, a pallet container according to the invention with suspended fabric cover and exchangeable inliner, figure 2 shows a pallet container according to the invention with suspended fabric cover and cut-open illustration of the thin-walled inliner, figure 3 shows the special folding in of a double-walled inliner for gas-assisted emptying of a pallet container according to the invention, figure 4 shows the operation for the gas-assisted emptying of a pallet container according to the invention,

- 5 -figure 5 shows, in a perspective illustration, a tubular residue emptying aid, and figure 6 shows, in a side view, the residue emptying aid according to figure 5.
Figure 1 illustrates a pallet container 10 according to the invention with base pallet 12, lattice frame 14 and suspended fabric cover 16 with inner-side inliner 18.
Figure 2 illustrates the constructional design of the pallet container 10 according to the invention. The pallet container 10 according to the invention is formed as follows:
The lattice frame 14 with the fixedly connected base pallet 12 thereof serves for load and transport handling. It can be lifted and transported by industrial trucks and has already been tried and tested as a standard IBC with a polyethylene bubble. The fabric cover 16 with inliner 18 located on the inside is referred to by definition as a modular unit. The modular unit fulfills two tasks. Firstly, the static and dynamic forces which occur are absorbed by the strength and elasticity of the outer fabric cover 16 and, secondly, the inner-side inliner 18 serves for the gas and liquid tightness of the entire container. The fabric cover 16 is stretched in the lattice frame 14 by the four straps 40. In the unfilled state, the inliner 18 lies on the base of the fabric cover 16 and does not have any filling volume in this state. The inliner 18 is designed, for gas-assisted emptying, as a double chamber inliner. A gas connection 35 for the gas-

- 6 -assisted emptying is attached on the upper side of the inliner 18. Said gas connection 35 is fastened at the top to the fabric cover 16 but does not have any influence on the unfolding of the inliner 18 during the filling. The filling and removal connection piece 28 is fixed on the lattice frame 14 by means of the adapter plate 32. The adapter plate 32 has a trough toward the inside and therefore ensures the necessary positioning of the filling and removal connection piece 28 with attached filling and removal fitting 30 such that the latter does not protrude outward beyond the projection area of the lattice frame 14. The adapter plate 32 permits easy connection of the filling and removal fitting 30 to existing filling and emptying installations. The inliner 18 has a special folding configuration and is fixed on a base plate 20, for example by means of double-sided adhesive tape. The base plate 20 is located under the inliner 18 and also in front of the inliner 18 in the valve region. The base plate 20 is not fixed in the fabric cover 16. It is merely positioned over the basic area within the lattice frame 14 and the adapter plate 32. The function of the base plate 20 also includes protecting the inliner 18 against the penetration of sharp objects from below, and the horizontal support at high filling speeds. The access to the internal volume of the inliner 18 takes place via the filling and removal fitting 30, wherein the volume of the inliner 18 corresponds to zero in the unfilled state and to that of the filling material in the filled state. The volume of the inliner 18 is limited by that of the fabric cover 16. Optionally, a degassing connection piece can be attached on the upper side of the inliner 18. If the filling material is intended to be agitated by a gas

- 7 -prior to removal, the quantity of gas which exceeds the volume of the fabric cover 16 has to be let out via the degassing connection piece. For this purpose, as irreversible access, the viewing window 34 is opened or cut open and a sterile filter is screwed onto the degassing connection piece. The filling and removal fitting 30 is fixed on the lattice frame 14 by the adapter plate 32. The adapter plate 32 ensures the necessary distance of the filling and removal fitting 30. Said filling and removal fitting must not protrude beyond the projection area of the lattice frame 14. The adapter plate 32 permits an easy connection of the filling and removal fitting 30 to filling and emptying installations. Commercially customary filling cannons can be connected directly by means of the geometry thereof to the filling and removal fitting 30. The inliner 18 stands up by itself during the filling. A
manipulation from the outside by the filler is neither required nor desired nor possible through the closed fabric cover 16.
The special folding-in of said double chamber inliner 18 and positioning on the base plate 20 for gas-assisted emptying of a filled pallet container 10 is illustrated schematically in figure 3. The inliner 18 is folded flat and fixed on the base plate 20. The separating wall is designed so as to run vertically within the double chamber inliner 18 from the upper side thereof to the lower side thereof in the unfilled state when the fabric cover 16 is suspended therein, wherein the gas connection 35 is fixed at the top to the fabric cover 16.

- 8 -Figure 4 shows the operation of said gas-assisted emptying in a corresponding sequence of images. The separating wall of the double chamber inliner 18 stands vertically in the fabric cover 16. The introduction of a gas or gas mixture (for example nitrogen, inert gas, compressed air) at a working pressure of below 500 mbar into the compressed air chamber 36 on the side opposite the filling and removal connection piece 28 results in the formation of a working bubble which replaces the volume of the flowing-out filling material with air or gas. The overall volume in the fabric cover 16 remains constant here. The volume of the gas bubble is also limited by the film or foil available. The film or foil is subjected to a tensile force which lifts the final aprox. 20% of the liquid and pushes same in the direction of the filling and removal connection piece 28. An additional effect is that the internal pressure causes a positive pressure at the base valve 30 and, despite the negative pressure of the pump, the inliner 18 in the region of the base valve 30 does not collapse. A further advantage is the easier or assisted discharge of the liquid. The pumps used are often not self-priming.
Figure 5 shows a tubular residue emptying aid 42 in a perspective illustration, and figure 6 shows the side view of the residue emptying aid 42.
For optimum functioning of the pallet container 10 according to the invention with inserted modular unit when filling and unfolding the inliner 18 in the filling plant at a filling company and when extracting the liquid filling material by suction at the customer (= emptier), the inliner 18 is equipped on the inside

- 9 -upstream of the opening of the base-side removal connection piece 28 with a particular means for the improved residue emptying of the filling material. Said means for the improved residue emptying of the filling material consists of a short tubular residue emptying aid 42 which is designed as a flexible corrugated pipe 44 which is composed of thin plastics material and has a multiplicity of lateral bores 46, as illustrated in figure 6. The thin-walled corrugated pipe 44 has a wall thickness of approx. 1 mm, a length of approximately 300 to 500, preferably 400 mm, and a diameter of 35 to 57 mm, suitable for a 2" connection. Said corrugated pipe is inserted through the filling and removal connection piece 28 into the double chamber inliner 18 and is screwed to the base valve 30 on the filling and removal connection piece 28 of the inliner 18.
As becomes clear in Figure 6, the lateral bores 46 are introduced into the corrugated pipe 44 from four directions, and therefore a row of bores 46 is always located just above the inliner base. It is thereby ensured that even very small quantities of residue liquid can still be sucked out of the inliner 18 without there being the risk of the film or foil of the inliner 18 being able to pull in front of the opening of the removal connection piece because of the powerful negative suction pressure.
With the refinement according to the invention of the pallet container 10 with double chamber inliner 18, a compressed-air-assisted emptying of in particular highly viscous filling materials, such as fruit concentrate with fruit pieces, is substantially improved in an advantageous manner.

- 10 -List of reference numbers 10- Pallet container 12- Base pallet 14- Lattice frame 16- Fabric cover 18- Double chamber inliner 20- Base plate 22- Extension of the base plate 24- Film hinge 25- Double-sided adhesive tape 26- Opening in (22) 28- Filling and removal connection piece 30- Filling and removal fitting 32- Adapter plate 34- Closed viewing window 35- Gas connection 36- Compressed air chamber 38- Filling material chamber 40- Strap for tensioning the fabric cover 42- Tubular residue emptying aid 44- Flexible corrugated pipe 46- Lateral bores 48- Flange border end

Claims

1. The pallet container (10) for storing and for transporting aseptic liquid filling materials, with a base pallet (12), a lattice frame (14) which is fastened thereon and consists of metal bars, and a fabric bag which is suspended in said lattice frame or a cube-shaped fabric cover (16) in which a liquid-tight inliner (18) which automatically unfolds during filling composed of a plastics film and/or metal foil for receiving the liquid filling material is arranged, wherein the inliner has a base-side filling and removal connection piece (28) to which a filling and removal fitting (30), which is fastened at the bottom to the front lattice frame, is attached, characterized in that the inliner (18) arranged within the fabric cover (16) is designed, for gas-assisted emptying, as a double chamber inliner (18) with a chamber (36) for blowing in compressed air and a chamber (38) for receiving the liquid filling material, wherein the double chamber inliner is fixed on a thin, stiff base plate (20) which is arranged within the fabric cover (16) below the double chamber inliner (18), and wherein the compressed air chamber (36) has on the upper side thereof a small connection piece (35) for the connection of a compressed air line and the filling material chamber (38) has on the front side thereof the base-side filling and removal connection piece (28).

2. The pallet container as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that a film or foil wall is formed within the double chamber inliner (18) as a separating wall between the compressed air chamber (36) and the filling material chamber (38).

3. The pallet container as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the separating wall is designed so as to run vertically within the double chamber inliner (18) from the upper side thereof to the lower side thereof in the unfilled state when the fabric cover (16) is suspended in the lattice frame (14).

4. The pallet container as claimed in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, in the filled state of the pallet container (10), the filling material chamber (38) is completely filled with liquid filling material and the compressed air chamber (36) is completely empty, while in the emptied state of the pallet container (10), the filling material chamber (38) is completely empty and the compressed air chamber (36) is completely filled with compressed air, wherein, in the filled state of the pallet container (10), the separating wall between the compressed air chamber (36) and the filling material chamber (38) bears completely against the rear side of the double chamber inliner (18) and, in the emptied state of the pallet container (10), bears completely against the front side of the double chamber inliner (18).

5. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the thin base plate (20) is designed so as to be extended on the front side beyond the internal size within the lattice frame (14) and said extension (22) is connected to the base plate (20) via a film hinge (24) in the manner of a buckling fold.

6. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 5, characterized in that an opening (26) is provided centrally in the extension (22), through which the base-side filling and removal connection piece (28) of the double chamber inliner (18) is inserted and fastened from the outside.

7. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 6, characterized in that fabric cover (16) and double chamber inliner (18) located on the inside form a modular unit in the flat folded-in delivery state, wherein the extension (22), to which the removal fitting (30) is attached, with attached removal fitting (30) is laid back or folded back flat onto the folded-in double chamber inliner (18).

8. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, in the inserted state of the modular unit consisting of fabric cover (16) and double chamber inliner (18), the outer fabric cover (16) is stretched and fixed in the lattice frame (14), wherein the extension (22) of the base plate (20) is folded upward by 90° into the perpendicular and is fastened to the front side of the lattice frame (14) by means of an adapter plate (32) reaching behind the removal fitting (30).

9. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the inliner (18) is equipped on the inner side upstream of the opening in the base-side filling and removal connection piece (28) with a means for the improved residue emptying of the filling material.

10. The pallet container as claimed in claim 9, characterized in that the means for the improved residue emptying of the filling material is a pipe (42) which is designed as a flexible corrugated pipe (44) which is composed of thin plastics material and has a multiplicity of lateral bores (46).

11. The pallet container as claimed in claim 10, characterized in that the corrugated pipe (44) is inserted through the filling and removal connection piece (28) into the double chamber inliner (18) and is screwed to a base valve (30) on the filling and removal connection piece (28) of the inliner (18).

12. The pallet container as claimed in one of the preceding claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the double chamber inliner (18), which is not connected to the outer fabric cover (16), is fixed on the thin base plate (20) which is designed so as to be extended on the front side beyond the internal size within the lattice frame (14), and said extension (22) is connected to the base plate (20) via the film hinge (24) in the manner of a buckling fold, wherein the opening (26) is introduced centrally in the extension (22), through which the removal connection piece (28) of the inliner (18) is inserted, wherein, in the flat folded-in delivery state of the modular unit, the extension (22) with attached filling and removal fitting (30) is laid back or folded back flat onto the folded-in inliner (18).