EP0442076B1 - Vessel for holding hot drinks, in particular coffee or tea - Google Patents

Abstract

The jug (1) for keeping hot drinks especially coffee and tea, has a pourer-spout (8) at the top (3) edge (4), which is closed, together with the top of he jug by a lid (9). In a horizontal position, the jug top is covered by a flap (15) which moves on a pivot axle (27). The flap has a shield (30) protruding inside the jug and in which is a hole (34) formed by a symmetrical section the plane of symmetry of whcih is at right angles to the jug`s base (7).

Description

The invention relates to a jug for storing hot drinks, in particular coffee or tea, on the top of which a pouring spout is formed, which together with the top of the jug can be covered by a lid.

Such a jug is already known from DE-U-66 07 709. In the case of this jug, the lid which closes the top of the jug has a projection which corresponds to the opening of the pouring spout and which, when the jug is closed, closes the opening of the pouring spout at the top. In order to be able to pour a drink from the jug, the lid with the projection must either be completely removed from the jug or, if the aroma substances do not escape and the temperature losses should be low, it must be rotated by 180 ° so that the projection is the pouring spout releases. The projection engages in a recess which is adapted to accommodate the contour of the projection. In this position, the pouring spout is open at the top and the brewed beverage can be poured out of the jug through the lid while the top of the jug is still closed. This arrangement has the disadvantage that, if you want to allow only slight temperature and aroma losses on the brewed beverage, you always lift the lid with the projection from the jug before and after a pouring process, then twist it by 180 ° and put it back on the jug got to. This effort is necessary because the cover engages in the recess of the projection.

From EP-A-0 209 042 a jug for storing hot drinks is also known, in which the lid closing the top is pivotally mounted on the handle of the jug.

With this jug it is also considered less advantageous that the lid has to be opened by hand each time it is poured. If this does not happen, the brewed beverage flows out of the top of the jug in an uncontrolled manner, which can inevitably lead to soiling of the storage surface, tablecloth, etc.

From GB-A-431247 a can according to the preamble of claim 1 is known, the pouring spout of which is closed or released by a pivotable flap depending on whether the can is in the horizontal position or is pivoted. The flap is pivoted about a horizontal axis of rotation mounted in the area of the pouring spout. The flap itself is part of a two-armed lever, a counterweight being attached to the lever arm opposite the flap. Its size is matched to the length of the corresponding lever arm so that the flap remains closed in the horizontal state of the jug and only opens when the jug reaches a certain inclination under the influence of the resulting torque, so that the user can take the hot drink out the jug can serve. With this flap controlled by gravity, its opening starts from a certain angle of inclination of the can and increases after the opening of the flap with the angle of inclination of the can until the flap reaches its stop. This is disadvantageous because when the jug is full, the actual opening angle can still be so small that the relatively strong flow of liquid gushes out of the pouring spout and an uncontrolled pouring out of the liquid occurs while accepting the associated risk of spillage. Furthermore, the rotation axis mounted in the area of the pouring spout makes it difficult to clean this area of the can, which must be kept particularly clean.

The object of the invention is therefore to provide a jug according to the preamble of claim 1, the pouring spout in the horizontal position of the jug is covered by a pivotable flap, but the latter opens automatically when pivoting the jug so that regardless of the level always one controlled pouring of the hot beverage is possible and which can be cleaned just as easily in the area of its pouring villus as in its other areas.

This object is achieved by the characterizing features of claim 1. In the horizontal position of the jug, the top in the pouring spout is covered by a flap movable about an axis of rotation, which when the jug is pivoted from its horizontal position into its pouring position under the effect of forces exerted by the drink itself are lifted off the pouring spout and the axis of rotation of which is attached to the lid closing the top of the jug. The flap that opens automatically when pouring a brewed beverage makes handling the jug much easier. An operator does not have to worry about whether the flap has lifted from the top of the jug or not during the pouring process, but can only concentrate on the alignment of the pouring spout with respect to a collecting container, for example a cup, so that the brewed beverage is unerringly into the Cup arrives without a part being spilled, regardless of the level of the hot drink inside the jug. Such a flap with a lid is particularly suitable when using glass jugs for coffee or tea machines.

So that the flap lifts off from the pouring spout due to the flow forces exerted by the beverage itself, it is provided according to the invention that a shield protruding into the interior of the can is formed on the flap, which shield essentially runs transversely to the direction of flow of the beverage flowing out of the jug. When pouring out the brewing drink, i.e. when the jug is tilted, the sign dips into the brewing drink and the liquid flowing out forms a back pressure on the wall area of the sign facing the inside of the can, by means of which the flap is pivoted upwards by the pouring spout. Now the liquid can flow freely through the pouring spout out of the jug into a collecting vessel below the pouring spout.

In order to obtain a sufficiently high flow pressure on the shield during pouring, it is advantageous if the shield runs a short distance in front of the pouring spout. However, the minimum distance between the shield and the pouring villus must be at least so large that sufficient liquid reaches the pouring villus.

If, according to a further development of the invention, the shield has a passage which, viewed in the direction of flow of the beverage flowing out through the pouring spout, lies in front of the pouring spout, the liquid pressure on the shield and the outflow rate at the passage can be exactly determined by changing the passage cross section. Likewise, with appropriate passage cross-sections, a liquid flow with a higher flow rate than with conventional cans on the pouring spout can be achieved, so that spillage of the brewed beverage is largely avoided compared to conventional cans. The pouring behavior on the pouring spout is therefore considerably improved by the passage both with slow and with fast pouring, since a higher outflow rate of the beverage can be achieved. This is particularly favored if, according to an additional development of the invention, the passage is formed by a symmetrically extending incision whose plane of symmetry is perpendicular to the base of the jug. If the passage tapers towards the flap, a particularly homogeneous and self-contained pouring jet is achieved.

In another development of the invention, it is proposed that the passage have a swirl edge which projects into the outflowing beverage in the pouring position of the jug. A swirl is achieved by the swirl edge immediately behind the passage to the pouring spout on the top of the pouring stream, through which the condensate drops that may accumulate on the flap are washed away. This prevents the jug from dripping. If the flap is also made of transparent material, the liquid flow can be easily observed from above without condensate drops obstructing the view. This further increases the pouring accuracy of a jug.

It is advantageous that the pot has a curved outer surface in the area of the pouring spout, the shape of which corresponds to the contour of the shield located in this area. In this way, on the one hand, the lid can be quickly and easily placed on the jug without special operator attention and, on the other hand, the brewed beverage flows through the passage to the pouring spout.

The lid can be placed on a jug particularly easily if it is rotatably mounted on a bearing point opposite the pouring spout. The lid is first hung in the bearing point and then loosely placed on the edge of the jug by swiveling around the bearing point. So that the shield does not strike the edge of the can during this closing process, it is provided in a development of the invention that the pivot angle of the Flap and the spatial expansion of the shield are limited. This ensures that the sign can not strike the jug when pivoting the lid about its bearing point, so that the lid falls freely onto the edge of the jug. This measure prevents cumbersome handling of the jug.

To ensure that the flap always securely closes the pouring spout in the horizontal position of the jug, it is provided with a counterweight. If the axis of rotation of the flap is essentially perpendicular to the axis of symmetry of the pouring spout, the flap opens particularly easily when pouring drinks. Since the opening of the flap is opened by the force exerted on the sign by the flow of the drink, it is advantageous that the sign forms a part with the flap and extends on both sides beyond the flap below the lid. This is because the larger the area of the shield, the greater the force acting on the flap from the flow and the greater the torque available for opening the flap. So the larger the area of the sign, the smaller the counterweight can be.

In practice, it has been shown in conventional cans that when drinks are poured quickly, the liquid runs not only through the pouring spout but also laterally over the edge of the can. In most cases, this leads to undesirable stains on a table or on a tablecloth. In order to largely exclude this, it is proposed in a further development of the invention that the first section of the shield, which runs in front of the axis of rotation up to the beginning of the flap, has an incision that is open to the lid and that extends straight from the lower edge of the lid to the beginning of the flap is removed from the upper edge, which begins at the height of the axis of rotation. The incision of the first section thus serves on the one hand as a stop for the Flap so that it cannot be swung open beyond a predetermined angle and, on the other hand, it enables the flap to move in the first place. The incision creates a passage from the inside of the can to the edge of the can in the horizontal position of the lid, but it becomes smaller and smaller according to the inclination of the can until it finally lies flush with the top edge of the lid on the bottom edge of the lid. In this position, no more liquid can reach the outside through the cut of the shield over the edge of the can.

So that when the lid is removed, the flap also shows a stop towards the can, the extension of the label extends beyond the axis of rotation of the flap and, in the closed position of the flap, the second section of the label located behind the axis of rotation of the flap closes flush with the underside of the lid from. This stop is particularly important when the lid with the flap is removed from the jug, because then the flap must not swing down.

Fig. 1

Längsschnitt durch die linke Hälfte einer auf einer horizontalen Abstellfläche abgestellten Glaskanne mit einem nach der Erfindung ausgeführten Deckel mit Klappe gemäß der Schnittführung I-I nach Fig. 3,

Fig. 2

gleiche Darstellung der Kanne wie in Fig. 1, jedoch befindet sich hier die Kanne in ihrer Ausgießstellung,

Fig. 3

Schnitt durch den Deckel gemäß der Schnittführung III-III nach Fig. 1,

Fig. 4

Teilansicht von außen auf die Glaskanne in Richtung Z nach Fig. 3 und

Fig. 5

Teilschnitt durch den Deckel und die Kanne gemäß der Schnittführung V-V nach Fig. 3.

An embodiment of the invention is shown in the drawing and will be described in more detail below. Show it:

Fig. 1

Longitudinal section through the left half of a glass jug placed on a horizontal storage surface with a lid designed according to the invention with a flap according to section II according to FIG. 3,

Fig. 2

same representation of the jug as in Fig. 1, but here the jug is in its pouring position,

Fig. 3

Section through the lid according to the cut III-III of FIG. 1,

Fig. 4

Partial view from the outside of the glass jug in the direction Z according to FIGS. 3 and

Fig. 5

Partial section through the lid and the jug according to the VV cut according to FIG. 3.

According to FIGS. 1 to 3, the jug 1 consists of a hollow cylinder 6 with a bottom 2 and a filling opening 5 which is delimited on its upper side 3 by an edge 4 and which has almost the same diameter as the hollow cylinder 6. The jug 1 is shown in FIG. 1 its bottom 2 on a horizontally extending shelf 7. At the edge 4 of the jug 1 a pouring spout 8 is formed which tapers radially outwards. The material of the hollow cylinder 6 with bottom 2 is made of glass, but it can also consist of other materials suitable for vessels. The jug 1 can also be designed as a warming or thermos jug. 1 to 3 lies on the edge 4 on the top 3 of the hollow cylinder 6, a cover 9 which has a relatively small diameter 10 in the center of the hollow cylinder 6. The attached lid 9 runs parallel to the bottom 2 of the jug 1 and has in its central region a funnel-shaped depression 11 which concentrically surrounds the inlet opening 10 and which, when the jug 1 is placed under a coffee or tea filter (not shown in the drawing) that comes from the Filter escaping brewed beverage leads to the inlet opening 10.

5, the radially outer edge of the lid 9 is surrounded by a circumferential rib 12 directed towards the can 1 and which delimits the edge 4 radially outwards. Radially within the edge 4, a second rib 13 directed towards the can 1 is formed on the lid 9. The two ribs 12, 13 thus center the lid 9 on the edge 4 of the can 1. The inner rib 13 additionally prevents, when pouring out, that the condensate which may settle on the underside 24 of the lid 9 runs over the edge 4 of the can 1.

In the area of the pouring spout 8, the lid 9 according to FIGS. 1 to 3 have a recess 14 which serves to receive a flap 15 which closes the pouring spout 8 upwards. The flap 15 lies with its top 16 filling the recess 11 at the same height as the top 17 of the lid 9, so that the lid 9 forms a unit with the flap 15. Shortly before the end face 18 delimiting the cutout 14 runs according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the flap 15 slants downward via a connecting part 19, so that the section 20 adjoining the connecting part 19 runs parallel to the underside 24 and below the cover 9. At the section 20 is an end piece 21, which serves as a counterweight for the flap 15.

According to FIG. 3, a pin 22, 23 protrudes laterally from the section 20 of the flap 15, which are buttoned or clipped into hanging bearings 25, 26 formed on the underside 21. The connecting line of the two pins 22, 23 represents the axis of rotation 27 of the flap 15, which runs symmetrically to the axis of symmetry 28 of the pouring spout 8. 2, the flap 15 can be pivoted upward about the axis of rotation 27 by a predetermined angle Y.

According to FIGS. 1 to 3, a shield 30 is formed on the left side of the connecting part 19 on the underside 29 of the flap 15, which extends in the circumferential direction, essentially parallel to the lateral surface of the container 6 of the can 1. The shield 30 extends further into the interior 31 of the can 1 and is curved such that the wall of the shield 30 lies on a radius 32, the Center lies approximately on the center 33 of the cover 9. A passage 34 runs parallel and symmetrically to the axis of symmetry 28 on the shield 30, which begins at the free end 35 of the shield 30 and ends shortly before the underside 29 of the flap 15 with a swirl edge 36. The passage 34 tapers continuously from the free end 35 to the swirl edge 36.

According to FIGS. 1, 4 and 5, the second section 37 of the shield 30 extending to the right of the axis of rotation 27 strikes with its upper edge 38 on the underside 24 of the cover 9 when the cover 9 with the flap 15 assumes the horizontal position shown in FIG. 1. To the left of the axis of rotation 27, the shield 30 forms a first section 39 which has an incision 40 open to the cover. The upper edge 41 delimiting the incision 40 runs according to FIG. 4 from the upper edge 38 in the height of the axis of rotation 27 straight down towards the pouring spout 8 and ends outside the effective range of the end face 18, from where it then again vertically upwards to the underside 29 of the Shield 15 runs. The angle Y enclosed by the underside 24 of the cover 9 and the upper edge 41 corresponds to the pivoting angle of the plate 15 (see FIGS. 2 and 4). 5, the course of the upper edge 41 of the incision 40 and of the first and second sections 39, 37 of the shield 30 is again shown in perspective. As can be clearly seen from FIG. 3, the shield 30 runs symmetrically to the axis of symmetry 28.

In order to avoid repetitions, in all FIGS. the same reference numerals have been chosen for the same components.

The flap works as follows:

In the horizontal position of the cover 9 shown in FIG. 1, the flap 15 also assumes a horizontal position since the Flap 15 is rotated counterclockwise due to its own weight minus the counterweight by the end piece 21 until the upper edge 38 of the second section 37 strikes the underside 24 of the cover 9. Depending on whether the end piece 21 is light or heavy, the flap 15 falls gently or hard or slowly or quickly.

If the can 1 is now brought into a pouring position, as shown for example in FIG. 2, the flap pivots clockwise about the axis of rotation 27 and goes from the edge 4 of the container 6, so that the pouring spout 8 is released. Depending on how the weight ratios are formed to the left of the axis of rotation 27 on the flap 15 and to the right of the axis of rotation 27 on the end piece 21, the flap 15 pivots parallel to the liquid level 42, which always runs horizontally, or it begins only from a certain inclined position of the can 1 to open. In the pouring position, the shield 30 is almost completely immersed in the liquid 43, so that the passage 34 is completely surrounded by liquid (FIG. 2). Due to the liquid flowing off in the direction of the arrow X through the passage 34 to the pouring spout 8, a slight overpressure arises on the plate 30, which causes the flap 15 to be opened even further than before, but only until the upper edge 41 strikes the underside 24. Since the liquid 43 must pass the bottleneck of the passage 34, the pouring streams bundled behind the shield 30 form at a higher pouring speed than in a conventional pouring spout without the flap 15 according to the invention. When the liquid 43 passes through the passage 34, the liquid 43 becomes at the Swirl edge 36 swirled such that any condensate drops that have accumulated on the underside 29 of the flap 15 are entrained with the pouring jet.

If the pouring process is ended and the can 1 is brought back into its horizontal position, the flap 15 closes the pouring spout 8 again completely, so that the brewed beverage 43 does not suffer any appreciable loss of aroma and temperature.

Claims (14)

1. A jug (1) for storing hot beverages, in particular coffee or tea, on the brim (4) of whose top aide (3) closed by a lid (9) a spout (8) is designed which, in the horizontal position of the jug (1), is covered by a flap (15) tiltable about an axis of rotation (27), the said flap (15) on tilting of the jug (1) from its horizontal position into its pouring position being lifted from the spout (8),
   characterized in that the flap (15) is provided with a plate (30) which projects into the interior of the jug (1), which extends substantially transversely to the direction of flow X of the beverage flowing out of the jug (1) and which, in the pouring position, is immersed into the outflowing beverage, where it is exposed to forces caused by the beverage and acting in the lifting direction of the flap (15), and in that the axis of rotation (27) of the flap (15) is arranged on the lid (9).
2. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
   characterized in that the plate (30) comprises a passage (34) which is placed in front of the spout (8) when viewed in the direction of flow X of the beverage flowing out through the spout (8).
3. A jug as claimed in claim 2,
   characterized in that the passage (34) is formed by a symmetrically extending notch whose axis of symmetry extends vertically to the rest surface (7) of the lid (9).
4. A jug as claimed in claim 2,
   characterized in that the passage (34) tapers towards the flap (15).
5. A jug as claimed in claim 2,
   characterized in that the passage (34) includes an edge of turbulence (36) which, in the pouring position of the jug (1), is passed around by the outflowing beverage.
6. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
   characterized in that the flap (15) is made of a transparent material.
7. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
   characterized in that, in the area of the spout (8), the jug (1) has a curved peripheral surface, to the shape of which also the contour of the plate (30) lying in this area is conformed.
8. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
   characterized in that the lid (9) is pivotally mounted on a point of bearing on the jug (1) which lies opposite to the spout (8).
9. A jug as claimed in claim 8,
   characterized in that the tilting angle (Y) of the flap (15) and the spatial expansion of the plate (30) are limited such that the plate (30) is not allowed to abut on the wall (6) of the jug (1).
10. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
    characterized in that the flap (15) is provided with a counterweight designed as end portion (21).
11. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
    characterized in that the axis of rotation (27) of the flap (15) extends substantially vertically in relation to the axis of symmetry (28) of the spout (8).
12. A jug as claimed in claim 11,
    characterized in that the plate (30) forms one part with the flap (15), and in that the plate (30) extends on both sides beyond the flap (15) underneath the lid (9).
13. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
    characterized in that the first section (39) of the plate (30) which extends in front of the axis of rotation (27) until the beginning of the flap (15) comprises a notch (40) which latter is open towards the lid (9) and which is confined by an upper edge (41) moving in a straight line away from the lower edge (24) of the lid (9) until where the flap (15) begins, the said upper edge beginning at the level of the axis of rotation (27).
14. A jug as claimed in claim 1,
    characterized in that the extension of the plate (30) reaches beyond the axis of rotation (27) of the flap (15), and in that in the closed position of the flap (15) the second section (37) of the plate (30) disposed behind the axis of rotation (27) of the flap (15) with its upper edge (38) is flush with the bottom side (24) of the lid (9).

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