EA000262B1 - Infusion packet and its manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

1. An infusion packet comprising a pair of sealed compartments containing infusion material and joined together at opposite ends of the packet, and a drawstring secured to a connecting region between the two compartments at one of said ends extending between the compartments from said attachment to said other end of the compartments, characterised in that the drawstring is secured by a portion intermediate its length to the connecting regions and comprises respective pull portions extending between the compartments from said secured portion to be movably held at said other end, whereby said pull portions can be drawn apart to be tensioned to contract the packet. 2. A packet according to Claim 1 wherein the compartments are so joined together at said other end as to leave free channels between them in which the drawstring pull portions are held captive but are freely slidable. 3. A packet according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the drawstring is fixed by sealing means to an inner face of said end-connecting region. 4. A packet according to Claim 3 wherein the drawstring is fixed to said inner face at a location spaced from the walls of the compartments. 5. A packet according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the drawstring pull portions are detachably secured to at least one of the compartments intermediate said opposite ends. 6. A packet according to any one of Claims 1 to 4 wherein said pull portions are each attached to a respective one of the two compartments between said ends. 7. A packet according to Claim 5 or Claim 6 wherein said detachable securing of the drawstring pull portions is located on a sealed boundary of one or both compartments. 8. A packet according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the length of each pull portion retained etween said opposite ends of the packet is greater than the distance between said ends. 9. A packet according to Claim 8 wherein the excess length of said pull portions between said ends is at least mainly gathered adjacent said other end of the packet. 10. A packet according to Claim 8 or Claim 9 wnerein said excess length of each pull portion is attached to its respective compartment in a serpentine pattern extending substantially across the width of the compartment. 11. A packet according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein the drawstring is secured to said connecting region to extend across substantially the lateral extent of the region at said one end. 12 A packet according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein at said other end the pull portions are located in laterally opposite regions of the joined compartments. 13. A packet according to any one of the preceding Claims wherein tag means are attached to the pull portions at said other end. 14. A packet according to Claim 13 wherein said tag means are also attached to said other end of the packet. 15 A packet according to any one of Claims 12 to 14 wherein said tag means are attached to an end margin of the packet separable from the main body of the packet by a line of weakening. 16. A packet according to any one of Claims 12 to 14 wherein the tag means comprises two separable portions, each secured to a respective drawstring pull portion. 17. A method of producing a packet comprising a pair of sealed compartments containing doses of infusion material and coined together at opposite ends of the packet, a connecting region joining the compartments at one said end and a drawstring being secured to said connecting region and to the other said end, characterised in that an intermediate portion of the length of the drawstring is attached to the connecting region before the compartments are doubled over to bring their opposite ends remote from the connecting region together at said other end of the packet with pull portions of said drawstring extending from said intermediate portion and running between the compartments to said other end of the packet, the compartments being secured together at said other end in a manner which permits withdrawal of said pull portions of the drawstring therethrough to contract the packet. 18.A method according to Claim 17 wherein the packet compartments are formed and filled before attaching the drawstring. 19. A method of manufacturing a packet comprising a pair of sealed compartments containing doses of infusion material and joined together at opposite ends, the compartments being initially formed end to end and joined by a connecting region between them, a drawstring being attached to opposite ends of the packet to extend therebetween, characterised in that the drawstring is laid along the length of the two compartments, and an intermediate portion of its length is secured to said connecting region, pull portions of said drawstring extending from said intermediate portion and being detachably secured to the respective compartments, the compartments then being doubled over to bring their remote ends together, said ends being secured together to hold the drawstring pull portions between them in a manner which permits movement of said pull portions of the drawstring to contract the packet by drawing the opposite ends of the compartments towards each other. 20. A method according to any one of Claims 17 to 18 wherein parts of the pull portions of the drawstring between the compartments are attached in a convoluted form to the respective compartments. 21. A method according to any one o<= Claims 17 to 20 wherein tag means are attached to the drawstring pull portions after the compartments have been secured together at said ends remote from said connecting region. 22. A method according to Claim 21 wherein the tag means are attached to the pull portions through the web material at said ends of said compartments remote from said connecting region. 23. A method according to Claim 22 wherein a line of weakening is provided in said ends of the compartments at the tag means to facilitate detachment of the tag means with their drawstring pull portions.

Description

The present invention relates to sachets containing a brewed substance, such as tea or coffee, and provided with a tension band or thread for squeezing the sachet in order to release the liquid from it after brewing.

Such squeezed bags are used only on a small scale. Many varieties of known sachets are ineffective or unreliable, for example, they allow substance to leak before use or burst too easily when a compressive pressure is applied. Other varieties of sachets are unsuitable for manufacturing in an economical manner, and yet other varieties of sachets are inconvenient to use or unattractive.

Therefore, it is desirable to create a sachet that can at least largely be manufactured in the traditional way and to which it would be relatively easy to attach the tension tape or thread in a manner that provides good reliability in use.

According to one of the objects of the invention, a method is provided for manufacturing a brewing bag comprising a pair of sealed compartments containing portions of the brewed substance and connected together at opposite ends of the bag, a tension thread between two compartments located initially end to end and connected by a connecting part at one end of the bag, middle a part of the length of the tension thread attached to the connecting part before folding the compartments in half to keep their ends distant from the connector At the other end of the bag, together with the stretchable parts of the specified tension thread, extending from said middle part and passing between the compartments to the specified other end of the bag, the compartments are fastened together at the indicated other end in a way that allows the stretchable stretch parts of the stretch thread to move. squeeze the bag by opposing the opposite ends to each other.

Preferably, before folding the compartments in half, the corresponding stretch parts of the tension thread are detachably attached to each of the compartments in the middle of the length of the respective compartment.

The extruded portions preferably have ends protruding from said other end of the sachet, which, when brought together, the said distal ends of the compartments are attached to the corresponding external means in the form of a tongue to facilitate manipulations with the tension thread.

According to another aspect of the invention, an infusion bag is provided comprising a pair of sealed compartments containing the substance to be brewed and joined together at opposite ends of the bag and a tension thread attached by a middle part of its length to the connecting part between two compartments at one of said ends and containing drawable parts extending between the compartments from said attachment part to said other end of the sachet to be movably held at said other end, dstvom whereby said stretchable portion may be tensioned for compressing the sachet.

The tensioning thread is preferably attached by means of sealing means to the inner surface of said end connection part, preferably in a place that does not coincide with the walls forming the compartments. The tensioning thread is preferably attached to said portion so that it extends substantially the entire width of the compartments at said one end. The extrudable parts between the compartments are preferably positioned so that they extend from the corresponding, transversely displaced portion of said end fitting portion to the oppositely displaced portion at the other end of the sachet.

It is also possible that, before using the sachet, the extruded parts at said other end of the sachet are attached to the edge of the sachet and / or the tensioning means in the form of a tongue connected to the sachet, and the said edge and / or tensioning means in the form of a tongue are designed to separate from bag so that you can pull these extrudable part of the specified other end to compress the bag.

In the preferred embodiment, each stretch part has an additional length (i.e., its length is longer than the shortest tensioning path between opposite ends of the bag) held between said two ends of the bag due to detachable attachment to the walls of the compartments. The bag can be made more convenient to use, thanks to these additional lengths of tension between the compartments. It may be preferable to lay additional segments so that at least their main part is located near the specified other end of the bag. The additional segments are useful for attaching to their respective compartments at a winding arrangement so that they can extend substantially across the width of each compartment.

Another preferred feature is that at the other end of the sachet the compartments are connected together, leaving free channels between them, in which the pullable parts of the tension thread are held to the grip, but with the possibility of free slip.

Hereinafter the invention is described on the examples of its implementation with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. la-1d is pleased with the stages of formation of the brewing bag according to the invention; FIG. 2 - bag made by the method of FIG. 1, fig. 3 shows a pair of compartments forming the second brew bag according to the invention with its tension string, in the intermediate stage of manufacturing the bag, FIG. 4 and 5 are mutually transverse views of the last stage of manufacturing the second bag, FIG. 6 - ready-made bag, FIG. 7 is another arrangement of the thread alternative to the scheme of FIG. 3, FIG. 8 is a modification of the bag of FIG. 5, FIG. 9 — bag of FIG. 8 after pulling out the additional thread from the space between the compartments, and FIG. 10 is an alternative arrangement of the thread in a manner similar to the method of FIG. 7

FIG. la-1d shows the steps of a method that can be carried out with a continuous tape of heat-sealable material to form the package shell as the tape travels through successive work areas. In the first section shown in FIG. 1a, portions of the brewing substance 2 are placed on the initially flat tape 4. Then the side edges of the tape are folded in and welded together with a longitudinal seam 6 to form a flat tube that contains the portions (Fig. 1b). Then, at intervals, transverse strip-like seams 8, 10 are made for sealing individual portions into separate compartments 12a, 12b (Fig. 1c). The resulting case of these stages, the case of each bag, which at this stage does not necessarily need to be separated from the continuous tape, contains a pair of compartments 12 end to end, joined together at one end of the bag with a sealing strip 8 and closed at the other end of the bag with several more narrow sealing strips

ten.

Now, on one 12th pair of compartments, the tensioning string 14, folded into the loop, is placed. The loop can be formed on the tape material or can be transferred onto it, being previously formed. The middle portion 16 of the loop is located on the connecting portion formed by the sealing strip 8 (FIG. 1d), and the ends 18 of the tension thread extend over the sealing strip 10 at the opposite end of the compartment. The protruding ends 18 are secured in the tongue 20. The thread is permanently attached to the sealing strip 8 and to the tongue 20, for example by heat sealing. It is also detachably attached to the wall of the compartment, for example, at intervals of tack welds (not shown), along a winding line along which the thread lies on this wall.

Then, a pair of compartments 12a, 12b is folded in half with the surface applied to the surface and a tension thread is inserted between them. The separation of pairs of compartments is usually completed at this stage. The sealing strip 8 is bent along its length to give a V-shaped fitting portion protruding inward between the compartments. The free ends of the sections are joined together by heat sealing along their sealed edges 10, leaving unsealed channels, where the ends of the thread are passed between these edges.

Thus, a bag is formed in FIG. 2, in which two compartments 12a, 12b are fastened together at their opposite ends by means of a sealing strip 8 of a V-shaped connecting part and an end seam 22. A tension thread is permanently attached to the connecting part at the bottom of the bag, which meanwhile is shaped as an incoming V-shaped fold , but the main part of the tension thread is detachably held in place on the wall of one compartment. The protruding ends 18 of the tensioning thread are seized, but can slide in the end seam 22 at the top of the sachet, from where they protrude to attach to the tongue 20.

When a bag is required to be used, it is pulled by the tongue 20, as a result of which the seized welds between the thread loop and the wall of the compartment 12a can be separated and an additional length of thread loop can be freely pulled out from the space between the compartments. You can then use a sachet for brewing, during which the tongue remains dry due to the location of the liquid outside. After brewing, the tongue is divided into two parts, tearing it along the central perforations 24. When the free ends of the tension thread 18 are pulled apart from each other, the free segments of the thread forming the stretchable parts tighten together the upper and lower parts of the compartments, squeezing the bag and squeezing the liquid out of the compartments. The method in which the loop of the tension thread is passed, essentially from the two ends of the connecting sealing strip to the diagonally opposite, widely spaced from each other places at the top of the bag, provides squeezing of the brewing substance.

FIG. 3, the tapered tubular tape of shell material from which the bag is formed is shown divided into two separate compartments 32a, 32b by means of two similar transverse welds 34a, 34b forming the central connecting part 36, while the compartments at their distant other ends are closed with additional transverse ones sutures 38a, 38b. Each compartment contains a portion of the brewing substance (not shown), which is placed before the compartment is closed by sealing.

The tension thread 40 is laid on a pair of compartments with a configuration containing the first inlet segment 42 of the thread extending longitudinally with a tape along an end transverse seam 38a near one lateral edge 44a of the compartments, a curved section 46 containing two bends partially overlapping this end seam and extending to almost the entire the width of the tubular tape. The curved section 46 ends near the side edge 44b opposite the entrance segment 42, and the thread pattern continues with a straight section 48 along the compartment extending near this opposite side edge 44b to the connecting portion 36. The thread is then passed with the cross section 50 almost in the center of the connecting portion 36 over the entire transverse length of the tubular tape. This configuration is reversed in the inverted form on the other of the two compartments, where the corresponding segments of the thread are marked with the same positions with the addition of the letter a.

The thread is attached to the tape, which is convenient to do heat sealing, although, as in all examples, glue can be used instead. The thread is attached with a constant connection of the transverse segment 50 with the connecting part and with weaker, detachable connections of other segments sufficient to preserve the configuration of the thread in which it is laid but able to separate to allow these parts of the tension thread to act as a pair of stretchable parts when used . To eliminate any risk of rupture of the walls of the compartments, it can be confined to attaching curved sections 46, 46a to the end-seam sections 38a, 38b.

During the continuous dosing and sealing process, it is preferable to form a series of transverse welds, as described in the first example, creating a continuous sequence of pairs of compartments connected end to end and separated at a later stage. A continuous tensioning thread can be placed on the tape when pairs of compartments remain connected to each other. It can be noted that even if the tension thread will extend continuously in successive pairs of compartments, then in each subsequent pair of compartments it will be stacked with a mirror image relative to the configuration in the previous pair of compartments.

After fixing the tension thread on the compartments with the above configuration, each pair of compartments is disconnected from the continuous tape. Then pairs of compartments are bent along their connecting part to bring together their mutually distant ends. These ends are fastened together with the formation of a laid seam on their outermost parts, for example, up to the border 52. The curved sections 46, 46a are left unclosed by the end seam, and the parts of the thread extending to the indicated outermost parts of the compartments are held in a manner that allows them to be pulled in the direction of shown sealing folds 54. During the folding stage, the connecting part 36 is folded inward with transverse seams 34a, 34b, giving it the shape of an inverted V (see Fig. 2) between the main sections of the compartments. The cross section of 50 threads lies at the top of V.

A folded cardboard tongue 58 is put on the joined ends, preferably with a heat sealable coating on its inner surfaces, partially overlapping the end seam, and then the tongue is welded into place. After that, transverse weakened lines 56 are formed at the places of the end seam, which coincide with the edge of the tongue and are essentially in the middle of the seam width. When welding the folded tongue into place, the inlet stretches of the tension thread are permanently fixed between the tape walls, where they overlap with the tongue. The bag is now completed, although the tongue may be folded for packing, as shown in Figure 6, to make the bag more compact.

As is understood without further illustration, the folded tongue 58 may be replaced with a flat tongue attached to one side of the connected ends of the bag.

When it is necessary to use the sachet, the tongue 58 is detached from the sachet's main body along the weakened line 56, while the tongue remains attached to the sachet's main body with two inlet sections 42, 42a of the thread movably held in the rest of the end seam between the weakened line and the border 52. The tongue has central weakened line 60, which allows to divide it into two parts, each of which is fastened to one of the input segments of the thread. Then, stretching these two parts of the tongue to the sides, it is possible to tear off the discontinuous mounts of the bent sections 46, 46a of the thread and pull this part of the tension thread out of the space between the compartments. Now you can use the tea bag, and the two parts of the tongue hang freely outside the liquid in which the bag is immersed.

At the end of brewing, parts of the tongue can be further stretched to the sides, with straight sections 48, 48a, the threads will now be pulled through the end seam, tightening the bag and, thus, squeezing out excess moisture. To make the use of the bag lighter, it is possible to arrange so that the straight segments 48, 48a are attached with seams, which have greater resistance to tearing than the seams of the bent segments 46, 46a, so that the user feels it when he first pulls out the additional a piece of thread, and it would be easier to avoid squeezing the bag before using it for brewing.

FIG. 7 shows an alternative arrangement of the tension thread, which can be used, for example, in a bag in FIG. 3. An additional part of the thread is placed with zigzag configurations 70, 70a so that from the central segment 50 the thread continues along the length and width of the sachet, and not only along its width, as in FIG. 3

The bag of FIG. 8 and 9 are generally similar to the bag shown in FIG. 4-6, with the corresponding parts denoted by the same positions. The end seams connecting the two compartments together are now formed in such a way as to leave the channels 62 open, through which the inlet segments 42, 42a are passed, which in this way facilitates the stretching of the thread. FIG. 9, the bag is shown in a stage in which the additional part of the thread is pulled out from the space between the compartments in preparation of the bag for immersion for brewing its contents, but before the two parts of the tongue are separated and used for pulling the tension thread and squeezing the bag.

FIG. 10 shows another arrangement of the tension string 14, which can be used in the bags described above, for example in the bag in FIG. 3. As in the earlier example, an additional portion of the string is located with two curved segments 80, 80a, which can be placed away from the central segment 50 at the locations of the end seams of the tubular tape (not shown), like the segments 46, 46a in FIG. 3. In each segment 80, 80a, the thread winds through the width of the belt in three passes, as well as segments 46, 46a in FIG. 3, but now with overlap.

In the examples described, methods of forming sealed compartments of tape material can be traditional and can be performed on known equipment. In this process, it is relatively easy to enter the stage of threading loops and adding them to the bags.

The method according to the invention makes it possible to use a stretch thread in a bag of any desired length of the tag, so that it is fixed, and this, in particular, minimizes the risk of leaving the free hanging thread, which could lead to tangling of the bags. A wide range of loop configurations made of thread is possible, without affecting the design of the bag compartment itself.

It can also be noted that since the tension thread is held outside the compartments themselves, it will not put at risk the portions of the brewed substances sealed in them.

Another distinctive feature of the illustrated examples is that the fastening of the thread should not loosen the bag, and, in particular, the thread is not permanently attached to the wall of the compartment in cases where the tension applied through the thread could break the compartment and cause its solid contents to spill out. .

Claims (23)

1. A tea bag containing a pair of sealed compartments containing a brewable substance and joined together at opposite ends of the bag, and a tension thread attached to the connecting part between two compartments at one of said ends, continuing between compartments from said attachment to said other end of compartments, characterized in that the tension thread is part, average in its length, attached to the connecting parts and contains the corresponding elongated parts, continuing between the compartments t of said fixed portion so that it movably held at said other end, whereby said Drawn part may be stretched to the sides with their tension to compress the sachet. 2. A bag on π. 1, characterized in that the compartments are connected together at the indicated other end, so that there are free channels between them, in which the stretchable parts of the tension thread are held with a grip, but with the possibility of free sliding. 3. A bag of π. 1 or 2, characterized in that the tension thread is attached with sealing means to the inner surface of the specified end connecting part. 4. A bag according to claim 3, characterized in that the tension thread is attached to the specified inner surface in a place located at a distance from the walls of the compartments. 5. A bag according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, characterized in that the stretchable parts of the tension thread are detachably attached to at least one of the compartments between these opposite ends. 6. A sachet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said drawable parts are each attached to the corresponding one of the two compartments between said ends. 7. The bag according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the said detachable fastening of the stretched parts of the tension thread is located on the sealed border of one of the two compartments. 8. A sachet according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, characterized in that the length of each stretched part held between said opposite ends of the sachet is greater than the distance between said ends. 9. The bag of claim 8, characterized in that the additional segment of the specified stretchable parts between the indicated ends, at least mainly collected near the specified other end of the bag. 10. A bag according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that said additional segment of each stretched part is attached to its corresponding compartment in a curved configuration, extending essentially along the width of the compartment. 11. A bag according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, characterized in that the tension thread is attached to the specified connecting part, continuing essentially along the transverse length of this part at the specified one end. 12. A bag according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, characterized in that at the indicated other end, the stretchable parts are located on transversely opposite sections of the connected compartments. 13. A bag according to any one of the preceding paragraphs, characterized in that the means in the form of a tongue are attached to the stretched parts at the specified second end. 14. A bag of and. 13, characterized in that the said tool in the form of a tongue is also attached to the specified other end of the bag. 15. A bag according to any one of paragraphs. 12-14, characterized in that the tool in the form of a tongue is attached to the end edge of the bag, separated from the main body of the bag by a weakened line. 16. A bag according to any one of paragraphs. 12-14, characterized in that the tool in the form of a tongue contains two separable parts, each attached to a corresponding stretchable part of the tension thread. 17. A method of manufacturing a brewing bag containing a pair of sealed compartments containing portions of the brewed substance and connected together at opposite ends of the bag, a connecting part connecting the compartments at one specified end, and a tension thread attached to the specified connecting part and to the other specified end, characterized the fact that the middle part of the tension thread is attached to the connecting part before folding the compartments in half to reduce their opposite ends distant from the joint part, at the indicated other end of the bag along with the stretched parts of the specified stretch thread, extending from the indicated middle part and passing between the compartments to the specified other end of the bag, while the compartments are fastened together at the specified other end with a method that allows you to pull the specified stretch parts of the stretch thread through him to compress the bag. 18. The method according to and. 17, characterized in that the compartments of the bag form and fill before attaching the tension thread. 19. A method of manufacturing a brewing bag containing a pair of sealed compartments containing portions of the substance to be brewed and joined together at opposite ends, the compartments being initially formed end to end and connected by a connecting part between them, and a tension thread attached to opposite ends of the bag, extending between them, characterized in that the stretch thread is laid along the length of the two compartments, the middle part of its length is attached to the specified connecting part, releasably attached stretchable parts of the specified stretch tape extending from the specified middle part to the respective compartments, then fold the compartments into two parts to bring together their distant ends, fasten the ends together to hold the stretchable parts of the stretch thread between them in a manner that allows the movement of these stretchable parts of the stretch thread to compressing the bag by pulling the opposite ends of the compartments to each other. 20. The method according to any one of paragraphs. 17-18, characterized in that the parts of the stretched parts of the tension thread between the compartments are attached in a curved manner to the respective compartments. 21. The method according to any one of paragraphs. 17-20, characterized in that the tool in the form of a tongue is attached to the stretched parts of the tension thread after fastening the compartments together at the indicated ends, remote from the specified connecting part. 22. The method according to item 21, characterized in that the tool in the form of a tongue is attached to the pulling parts through the material of the tape at the indicated ends of these compounds, remote from the specified connecting part. 23. The method according to p. 22, characterized in that at the indicated ends of the compartments in the form of a tongue, a weakened line is made to facilitate detachment of the means in the form of a tongue with its stretched parts of the tension thread.