WO2015113758A1

WO2015113758A1 - Pre-packaged pod of coffee powder

Info

Publication number: WO2015113758A1
Application number: PCT/EP2015/000155
Authority: WO
Inventors: Alessandro Doria
Original assignee: Espressocap S.P.A.
Priority date: 2014-01-29
Filing date: 2015-01-28
Publication date: 2015-08-06

Abstract

Pre-packaged pod (1) of coffee powder for use in espresso coffee machines, comprising a container body (101) which is open at one end and provided with an appropriate pierceable sealing membrane (121), said container body being provided with a bottom wall (201), characterized in that said bottom wall (201 ) is provided with a pierceable central operculum (231), a stiffening member (221) coaxial and concentric with said operculum (231), and a flexible member (211) coaxial and concentric with said stiffening member (221).

Description

TITLE

Pre-packaged pod of coffee powder

TEXT OF THE DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to the pre-packaged pods of coffee powder, and in particular concerns the prepackaged pods in use in machines for the preparation of espresso coffee.

From the early nineties to today, coffee machines are able to use prepackaged pods of coffee powder, and therefore are able to deliver high quality coffee without having the problems associated with the appropriate dosing of the quantity of coffee, the cleaning of the machine, and the discharge of the exhausted coffee powder. In this sense, tens - if not hundreds - of different pre-packaged pods of coffee powder have been developed and patented.

Among many solutions, it is worth to mention that proposed in document EP512468, which relates to a pre-packaged pod of coffee powder which is broken by the pressure of the liquid which is fed inside the same pod; the increasing of the pressure leads to crashing a wall of the pod against a plurality of sharp protrusions that are arranged in the infusion chamber, from which the infusion is then collected and dispensed. This system, however, involves the possibility that the coffee powder, combined with the oils present in coffee, is deposited inside the infusion chamber, creating a build-up which in the long run will damage the operation of the machine and the quality of the drink.

An alternative solution to that above described is the one provided in the patent EP1723047 of the same applicant, relating to a dispensing assembly in which the pre-packaged pod, made of waterproof material, is perforated, and the lips of the hole act as a valve on the piercing means used, making sure that the infusion does not spill out until it has been reached a given pressure. By this way, the gradual spill of the infusion, mediated by the formation of the hole, does not cause an explosion of the container body of the pre-packaged pod, and then most of the powder is retained inside the container body itself.

This type of dispensing unit is particularly suitable for capsules in plastic material, and is still perceived the need to be able to have more influence on what the industry refers to as "time of pre-infusion", i.e. the time of permanence of the infusion inside the pre-packaged pod before the same infusion begins to be delivered to the use.

The aim of the present invention is therefore a pre-packaged pod of coffee powder which allows to gain more control over the infusion, suitably cooperating with the piercing means present in the dispensing assembly of the espresso machine which uses it, and in any case maintaining control over the powder contained inside it.

The object of the present invention is therefore a pre-packaged pod of coffee powder for use in espresso coffee machines, comprising a container body which is open at one end and provided with an appropriate pierceable sealing membrane, said container body being provided with a bottom wall, characterized in that said bottom wall is provided with a pierceable central operculum, a stiffening member coaxial and concentric with said operculum, and a flexible member coaxial and concentric with said stiffening member.

In a preferred embodiment, the said bottom wall is integrally made of a thermoplastic material. Particularly, the said stiffening member comprises an annular expansion having a thickness which is much greater than that of said flexible member. Preferably, said stiffening member can extend over at least 50% of the inner surface of said bottom wall. Moreover, the flexible member can be made with the same thickness as said pierceable operculum.

In a preferred variant according to the present invention, said flexible member is a continuous wall which is tilted in such a way as to form an inward concavity with respect to said bottom wall.

Further advantages and features of the pre-packaged pod according to the present invention will become apparent from the following description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of illustration and not of limitation, with reference to the attached drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of a pre-packaged pod according to the present invention, inserted in a suitable dispensing unit; and

Figure 2 shows an operational phase involving the pre-packaged pod illustrated in Figure 1.

In figure 1 is illustrated an embodiment of the pre-packaged pod according to the present invention; with the numeral 1 it is designated said prepackaged pod, comprising a frustum-shaped container body 101 provided at the open end of a radial flange 111 outwardly projecting, on which is connected the pierceable closure layer 121 , made of plastic material, aluminum, or plastic material coupled to a metallic material. At the opposite end of the container body 101 is provided the bottom wall 201 , which has a central operculum 231 made of relatively thinner plastic material, in which has been formed the hole 10 from the tip 122; said operculum 231 is surrounded by the annular expansion 221 , made of the same plastic material but with a thickness very much greater than that of the operculum 231. On the expansion 221 , as well as on the inner peripheral edge of the bottom wall 201 , rests the filter 301 , which is a disk of filtering material made of paper, non-woven fabric or the like.

Between the annular expansion 221 and the outer side edge of the base 201 is inserted the membrane 211 , which constitutes the flexible element comprised in the bottom wall 201 , and which is made substantially of the same thickness compared to the operculum 231. The membrane 211 is formed in such a way as to create a concavity facing the outside of the bottom wall 201 of the container body 101 of the pre-packed pod 1.

The infusion chamber 102 in which is positioned the pod 1 has, on its bottom wall, the delivery duct 112 and the tip 122 of perforation which cooperates with the operculum 231 , which in the case is a cylindrical tip with a inclined cutting plan.

The operation of the pre-packed pod according to the present invention will appear evident from the following, also with reference to Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings, in which the same parts correspond to the same numerals. As is schematically represented by the arrow 20, when hot water is fed under pressure inside the container body 101 , for example through injection inside the same as a result of perforation, the annular expansion 211 , which occupies substantially 50% of the surface of the bottom wall, is pushed downward, and then transfers the force exerted by the pressure of the fluid supplied in the pre-packed pod to the membrane 211 , which is in turn flexible and therefore able to deform in a manner which is schematically represented in

Figure 2. in practice, the membrane 211 tilts toward the outside, turning the concavity in a convexity.

The infusion, which has passed through the filter 301 , now has room to expand within the pod, before reaching the hole 10', which in the meantime was fully opened, but in which is embedded the piercing tip 122, with the effects already described in the patent of the same applicant mentioned above.

Advantageously, both the operculum 231 and the membrane 211 are made in one piece with the annular expansion 221 , and preferably the container body of the capsule and its bottom wall are made by molding of thermoplastic materials. However it is possible to provide that both the operculum and the membrane are made of a different flexible material and coupled under construction to the remaining components of the bottom wall of the container body.

With the charge prepacked according to the present invention is on the one hand ensured the best cooperation between the pod prepacked and the means that enable the delivery of the infusion, and the other is provided a further control of the times and ways to coffee extraction, contributing to the improvement of the quality of the infusion.

Claims

1. Pre-packaged pod (1) of coffee powder for use in espresso coffee machines, comprising a container body (101 ) which is open at one end and provided with an appropriate pierceable sealing membrane (121 ), said container body being provided with a bottom wall (201 ), characterized in that said bottom wall (201) is provided with a pierceable central operculum (231 ), a stiffening member (221) coaxial and concentric with said operculum (231 ), and a flexible member (21 1 ) coaxial and concentric with said stiffening member (221 ).

2. Pre-packaged pod according to claim 1 , wherein said bottom wall (201) is integrally made of a thermoplastic material.

3. Pre-packaged pod according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said stiffening member comprises an annular expansion (221) having a thickness which is much greater than that of said flexible member (21 1 ).

4. Pre-packaged pod according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 3, wherein said stiffening member (221 ) extends over at least 50% of the inner surface of said bottom wall.

5. Pre-packaged pod according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 4, wherein the flexible member (21 1 ) is made with the same thickness as said pierceable operculum (231).

6. Pre-packaged pod according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 5, wherein said flexible member (21 1) is a continuous wall which is tilted in such a way as to form an inward concavity with respect to said bottom wall (201).