GB2229991A

GB2229991A - Infusion packages

Info

Publication number: GB2229991A
Application number: GB8829967A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Derrick Barker; Peter Whitehead
Original assignee: TEA COUNCIL Ltd
Current assignee: TEA COUNCIL Ltd
Priority date: 1988-12-22
Filing date: 1988-12-22
Publication date: 1990-10-10
Anticipated expiration: 2008-12-22
Also published as: GB8829967D0; GB2229991B

Abstract

An infusion package comprises an infusion bag e.g. a tea bag 10, of liquid pervious material containing a beverage making material, and first and second container members 12, 14 hinged together, said infusion bag being attached to one of said members, said members being adapted, when in an open position, in use, to support said infusion bag suspended in a beverage making receptacle (Fig.3, not shown) and, when in a closed position, to form a closed container for the bag (Fig.4, not shown). <IMAGE>

Description

IMPROVEMENTS RELATING TO INFUSION PACKAGES The invention relates to infusion packages and more particularly to such packages containing tea bags and the like.

The advent of convenience foods has lead to the invention, and now wide spread use, of infusion bags such as tea bags, which generally comprise a flat rectangular or square bag of liquid pervious material containing an individual portion of tea or some other beverage making material such as coffee or herbs.

These bags are steeped in hot water to allow the material contained therein to undergo infusion to make a beverage.

For ease of removal of the infusion bag from a cup, tea pot or other suitable container, infusion -bags have been made with tabs, covers, strings, hooks and the like which are supported by the edge or rim of the container whilst the beverage is brewing.

Swiss Patent No. 563,756 discloses a tea bag which is attached to a protective cover made from two leaves connected together in the middle. The bag is attached either at one end of one of the leaves or at the join. The cover provides means for supporting the tea bag on a cup or tea pot during the infusion process. The cover protects the bag from damage before use and may be used when removing the bag from the cup or tea-pot to protect the fingers from being burnt and/or getting wet whilst squeezing the remaining liquid in the bag prior to disposal. There are, however, a number of problems which arise from using such a cover. Firstly, it is difficult to reposition the leaves after use when the bag is attached to one end of one of the leaves. Secondly, the leaves of the other embodiment described obstruct the opening of the cup and prevent water from being poured in to the cup.Additionally, tea tends to be squeezed out of the sides of the cover when squeezing the liquid out of the bag thus causing it to spray everywhere.

Patent Application GB-A-2167380 partly overcomes some of these problems by attaching the bag to one of the two leaves of the cover adjacent and below the fold line where the two leaves join.

However, both of these covers have a major disadvantage in that it is very difficult in practice to squeeze out all the remaining water in the bag and therefore drips of tea tend to fall from the bag after it has been removed from the cup or tea-pot.

A further disadvantage lies in that the abovementioned covers only protect the two flat sides of the bag and leave the sides open to damage. In GB-A-2167380 it is suggested that the leaves may be joined together to seal the bag therein, but this would require a perforated tear off strip to release the bag before use. The addition of such a strip would add to the cost of manufacture of the cover as an additional step in the manufacturing process would be required and would lead to an increase in the debris generated by use of such a cover.

The main object of the present invention is to overcome these disadvantages.

Thus according to the present invention there is provided an infusion package comprising an infusion bag of liquid pervious material containing a beverage making material, and first and second container members hinged together, said infusion bag being attached to one of said members, said members being adapted, when in an open position, in use, to support said infusion bag suspended in a beverage making receptacle and, when in a closed position, to form a closed container for the bag.

Preferably one of the container members forms a counterbalance to the infusion bag when the package is, in use, in an open position and the first container member preferably forms a receptacle to receive the infusion bag and the second container member forms a closure for the receptacle.

Preferably means are provided for keeping the container closed and at least one of the container members preferably comprises means for sealing the container.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention the first and second container members and the hinge means form a single unit and the second container member is a flat sheet. Preferably, the infusion bag is attached to the first or second container members by means of at least one staple or a heat seal and the container members are formed from a liquid impervious material such as plastic.

The invention also provides a method of infusing a material using an infusion package comprising the steps of opening a closed container to free an infusion bag, placing the bag inside a beverage making receptacle such that one of the container members supports the bag over the rim of the receptacle for infusion in liquid already contained therein or, adding liquid to the receptacle, allowing infusion of the beverage making material to take place and removing the bag from the receptacle enclosing it within the container for disposal.

A preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; Figure 1 is a side elevation of a tea bag with a protective container in an open position; Figures 2 and 2A are front perspective views of the protective container of the tea bag of Figure 1 and an alternative embodiment of the protective container; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the tea bag of Figure 1 supported in a cup by the protective container; and Figure 4 is a perspective view of the protective container of the tea bag of Figure 1 in a closed position.

The invention is not restricted to bags for tea, but for ease of reading any references made to tea and tea bags also include other infusion beverages and bags containing other beverage making materials.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 a tea bag 10 comprises a generally flat bag made of a liquid pervious material containing a portion of tea for infusing.

Although the tea bag 10 is shown as being rectangular it can of course be any suitable shape.

A protective container 11 for a tea bag 10 comprises a receptacle 12 which is of a suitable size to receive the tea bag 10. In Figures 1 to 4 the receptacle 12 is shown as being generally square in cross-section, but it may also be of any suitable shape for receiving the tea bag 10.

The tea bag 10 is attached at one end thereof by means of a heat seal 13 or other suitable means such as adhesive, crimping, stapling etc, to a support means 14. The support means 14 provides means for supporting the tea bag 10 over the rim of a cup 15 (see Figure 3) or other suitable vessel when the tea bag 10 is placed inside the cup 15 to infuse. The support means 14 forms a closure for the receptacle 12 to provide substantial protection for the bag 10 and in the preferred embodiment of the invention the support means 14 is hinged to the receptacle 12 by hinge means 16.

The position of the point of attachment of the tea bag 10 to the support 14 is such that bag 10 is balanced by the support means 14 over the rim of the cup 15 such that the tea bag 10 does not fall out of the cup 15 and the protective container 11 does not fall in.

The support means 14 additionally has a sealing flange 17 which fits inside the rim 18 of the receptacle 12 when the container 11 is closed, to prevent leakage of liquid or moisture into or out of the container 11.

Push-fit means for holding the support means 14 closed to seal the receptacle 12 comprise a small projection 19 on the support means 14 and a corresponding recess 20 on the receptacle 12. When the support means 14 is closed the projection 19 fits tightly into the recess 20 to keep the container llclosed. The container 11 can be manually opened by applying a force to separate to projection 19 and recess 20.

Alternately, as shown in Figure 2A the hinge means 16 may be perforated and the support means 14 comprises a recessed lid. The perforations allow the lid 14 to effectively be recessed into the receptacle 12 to achieve secure closure.

For storage purposes the container 11 is kept closed and sealed as shown in Figure 4 until the tea bag 10 is required. The container 11 is then opened as shown in Figures 1 and 2 and the tea bag 10 placed are the rim of a cup 15 or other vessel as shown in Figure 3. Hot water is poured into the cup 15 and the tea allowed to infuse. When the infusion process is finished the tea bag 10 may be removed from the cup 15 by lifting the container 11 such that the tea bag 10 rests in the receptacle 12. The container 11 may then be closed by folding the support means 11 about the hinge means 16 whilst the tea bag 10 remains in the receptacle 12 and sealed by pushing together the projection 19 and recess 20 or recessing the support means 14 into the receptacle 12. The tea bag 10 may thus be disposed of without splashing drips of tea everywhere.

The container 11 is preferably moulded from a suitable plastics material in one piece comprising the receptacle 12, the support means 14, the hinge means 16 and the closure means (where applicable) comprising the sealing flange 17, the projection 19 and recess 20. The hinge means 16 in such a case may be a simple fold line perforated when required.

In another embodiment of the invention, not shown, the support means is a tab or a leaf which is not formed as a part of the receptacle and is not hinged thereto. The tea bag 10 may be attached to the tab by means of a staple or a string or other suitable means which enables the tea bag to be lifted clear from the cup and placed into a separate receptacle. Suitable means are provided for keeping the tab sealed over the receptacle.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. An infusion package comprising an infusion bag of liquid pervious material containing a beverage making material, and first and second container members hinged together, said infusion bag being attached to one of said members, said members being adapted, when in an open position, in use, to support said infusion bag suspended in a beverage making receptacle and, when in a closed position, to form a closed container for the bag.

2. An infusion package as claimed in claim 1 in which one of the container members forms a counterbalance to the infusion bag when the package is, in use, in an open position.

3. An infusion package as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first container member forms a receptacle to receive the infusion bag and the second container member forms a closure for the receptacle.

4. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which means are provided for keeping the container closed.

5. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which at least one of the container members comprises means for sealing the container.

6. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the first and second container members and the hinge means form a single unit.

7. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the second container member is a substantially flat sheet.

8. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the infusion bag is attached to the first or second container member by means of at least one staple or a heat seal.

9. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the container members are formed from a liquid impervious material.

10. An infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims in which the container members are of a plastics material.

11. A method of infusing a material using an infusion package as claimed in any one of the preceding claims comprising the steps of opening the closed container to free the infusion bag, placing the bag inside a beverage making receptacle such that one of the container members supports the bag over the rim of the receptacle for infusion in liquid already contained therein or, adding liquid to the receptacle, allowing infusion of the beverage making material to take place and removing the bag from the.

receptacle and closing it within the container for disposal.

12. An infusion package substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.