WO2004020308A1

WO2004020308A1 - Interconnected sachets adapted to allow liquid to pass through the contents.

Info

Publication number: WO2004020308A1
Application number: PCT/GB2003/003708
Authority: WO
Inventors: John Nicholas Reid
Original assignee: Vallid Limited
Priority date: 2002-08-30
Filing date: 2003-08-28
Publication date: 2004-03-11
Also published as: WO2004020308A8; AU2003259364A1; GB2392429A; GB0220106D0

Abstract

A continuous web (10) is disclosed which consists of a chain of interconnected sachets (12,14,16). Each sachet (12) is formed of two sheets (11,13), of impermeable material bonded to one another to define a pocket that contains a particulate material from which a beverage can be made by injecting a liquid into the pocket. Each sachet, when separated from the web, also has a discharge opening from which the beverage can be discharged from the pocket. The connection between the sachets (12,14,16) is such that the discharge opening of a sachet remains hermetically sealed while the sachet (12) is connected to the next sachet (14) in the web (10) but the seal is broken to permit the beverage to be discharged from the sachet when the sachet (12) is separated from the web (10).

Description

INTERCONNECTED SACHETS ADAPTED TO ALLOW LIQUID TO PASS THROUG_{H THE CONTENTS}

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to the dispensing of beverages .

Background of the invention

In order to dispense beverages such as coffee, tea, chocolate or soup, dispensing machines have normally relied on the use of instant products, these being powders that dissolve completely in water to produce the desired beverage. To make the beverage, it was only necessary to dispense the appropriate amount of instant powder into a cup and to fill the cup with water. This considerably simplified the construction of the vending or dispensing machine, but the taste of the resulting beverages left much to be desired. Most consumers prefer tea made by brewing tea leaves and coffee made by percolating hot water through ground coffee powder.

To produce beverages of improved guality, machines are known that do use tea leaves and ground coffee powder instead of instant tea and coffee, examples of these being available in the UK under the Flavia^® and Kenco Singles^® trade marks. In the known machines, individual sealed sachets or boxes containing tea leaves or ground coffee powder are inserted into a dispensing machine. In the dispensing machine, the sachet or box is pierced by a needle that is used to inject hot water into it. After the water has filtered through the ground coffee powder or remained in contact with tea leaves for a sufficient time for the tea to brew, the resulting beverage leaves the sachet and falls directly into a cup for dispensing. It is important that the sachets should remain hermetically sealed until they are used in making a beverage. The breaking of the hermetic seal to inject a liquid into the sachet can be effected by inserting a needle into a wall of the sachet but it is also necessary to break the seal to allow the liquid to flow from the sachet into a dispensing cup. In the case of the Flavia^® sachets, the sachet is arranged to burst under the pressure of the injected liquid. This however is not particularly satisfactory as the popping of the sachet is unpredictable and can lead to the user being splashed.

A further disadvantage of known sachets is that they are not well suited to use in an automated dispensing machine. This is because the sachets are packaged individually.

With a view to mitigating the foregoing disadvantages, the present invention provides a continuous web comprising a chain of interconnected sachets, wherein each sachet is formed of two sheets of impermeable material bonded to one another to define a pocket containing a beverage material from which a beverage can be made by injecting a liquid into the pocket, each sachet being hermetically sealed when connected to the next sachet in the web, and the hermetic seal being broken upon separation of the sachet from the web to form or unseal a discharge opening through which the beverage may be discharged from the sachet.

The term "beverage material" is used herein to include materials such as tea leaves and coffee powder that leave a residue in the sachet as well as fully soluble powders and liquid concentrates that leave no residue.

In an embodiment of the invention that is particularly suitable for making tea and other infusions, the discharge opening is formed by an array of holes made in at least one of the sheets, the holes acting as a sieve to permit the brewed beverage to leave the sachet while retaining the leaves .

When the sachets are formed in this manner, the sachets may be connected to one another by labels that are adhered to the outer surfaces of the sachets, the line of adhesion of the labels to the sachets encircling the discharge opening so as to seal the contents of the sachet. In this case, when the label is torn to enable a sachet to be separated from the web, the hermetic seal is automatically broken. The label nevertheless remains in place and this is advantageous in that the label can act to channel the discharged beverage into a dispensing cup and to prevent the beverage from spurting out laterally from the discharge opening when liquid is injected into the sachet under pressure .

When making coffee or a beverage that uses a fine powder through which the injected liquid must percolate, it is preferable to form the sachet with a pocket that is open at one end and to adhere a filter material to the interior surfaces of the sheets defining the pocket to act as a filter. With such sachets, the injected liquid must first pass through the fine powder then the filter material before it can be discharged from the open end of the pocket.

With this type of sachet, it is once again possible to use labels adhered to the opposite sides of the sachets to connect the sachets of the web to one another. While the web is intact, the open end of each sachet is hermetically sealed by the labels that connect it to the next sachet in the web. Once the labels are severed to separate the sachet from the web, then the beverage can be discharged from the sachet once it has passed through the filter material. With the latter form of sachet, it is not however necessary to use adhered labels and one may instead form the sachets from continuous sheets of plastics material. The sheets may be weakened between adjacent sachets while remaining impervious to air and water along their entire length. In this case, when connected to the next sachet in the web, a sachet may be viewed as not yet having a discharge opening, but such an opening is formed automatically when the sachet is severed from the web.

The sheets of plastics material may for example be formed of a laminate that comprises an inner layer of a first material, such as polypropylene that is simple to weld and a second layer of polyester that offers greater strength. When using such a laminated material, it would be possible for the polypropylene layer to be continuous but for the polyester layer to be interrupted between the individual sachets. The interruption of the polyester layer would make the web easy to tear between sachets but before a sachet is separated from the web the continuous polypropylene layer would ensure that the contents of the sachets remain hermetically sealed.

The manner in which the liquid is injected into the sachet may be conventional, but it is preferred to provide within the sachet an annular spacer as disclosed in copending PCT Patent Application No. (based on GB

Patent Application No. 0220105.1). Such a spacer serves during the production of a beverage to receive the tip of a needle piercing only one of the sheets and to permit liquid injected therein by the needle to flow into the pocket in order to contact the beverage material.

Conveniently, the spacer may comprise an annular body bonded to at least one of the sheets and defining an annular chamber for receiving the tip of a needle and at least one passage for enabling liquid injected into the chamber to flow into the pocket. The advantage of such a construction is that the sachet is essentially flat, which permits the web to be rolled or more preferably to be fan folded for easy storage in any automated dispensing machine.

If the web of the invention is to be used in a sachet dispenser, be it for manual use or for use in an automated dispensing machine, it is preferable to form tractor feed holes along the sides of the web. These may either be formed in extensions of the sheets of plastics material lying outside the pockets or they may be formed in a tape that is adhered to the sachets.

An automated dispensing machine using the webs of the invention may suitably comprise a transport mechanism that passes sequentially through three stations. In a loading station, a sachet separated from a selected one of several webs (for different types of beverages) is advanced into the transport mechanism. The sachet, which is no longer hermetically sealed, is carried to a dispensing station where liquid, usually hot water, is injected into it and the resulting beverage escapes from the discharge opening into a dispensing cup. Lastly, the spent sachet is carried to a waste station where it is discarded.

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which : *

Figure 1 is a plan view of a web of a first embodiment of the invention with one of the labels between adjoining sachets removed,

Figure 2 is a plan view of a web of a second embodiment of the invention,

Figure 3 is a section through one of the sachets of the web of Figure 1 during a dispensing operation, and Figure 4 is a section similar to that of Figure 3 through one of the sachets of the web of Figure 2 during a dispensing operation.

The portion of the continuous web 10 shown in Figure 1 comprises three sachets 12, 14 and 16 which are suitable for beverages made from coarser particulate materials such as dried leaves for making tea or other infusions. They can also be used for instant beverages made from a particulate material that is fully soluble.

Each sachet is formed of two sheets, designated 11 and 13 in Figure 3, which are bonded to one another around the entire periphery (or at least three sides) of each sachet to form a pocket. A spacer 18 is bonded to the two sheets 11 and 13. The spacer 18 is annular and has a central chamber into which a liquid can be injected by a needle passing through one of the sheets 11, 13. The spacer also has radial passages through which the injected liquid can be distributed, as designated by the arrows in Figure 3, to all parts of the interior of the sachet to permeate the particulate material 26 in the sachet.

Each of the sheets 11,13 is formed of a laminated plastics material having an inner layer of a material such as polypropylene that can be heat welded and a stronger liquid impervious outer layer made of a material such as a polyester. The sheets may have further layers, if desired, and may, for example, include a metallic layer.

A discharge opening is formed by an array 20 of fine holes in at least one of the two sheets 11,13 through which liquid can be discharged from the sachet after the beverage has brewed or the particulate material has dissolved. The holes can be formed either by piercing the sheet or by means of a laser. The individual sachets are connected to one another to form a web by means of labels 22 that are applied to both sides of the sachets. The labels 22 have an adhesive applied only around their periphery and are adhered to both of the sheets 11,13. The web 10 is shown with the label that connects the individual sachets 12 and 14 removed to expose the array 20 of fine holes.

While the labels 22 are in place, as shown for the labels connecting the sachets 14 and 16, the array of holes 20 is covered by the labels 22 so that the sachet remains hermetically sealed. When however the labels 22 are cut or torn to separate a sachet from web, the sachet is no longer sealed and liquid injected into the sachet through the spacer 18 can escape from the sachet through the array of holes in the manner represented by the arrows in Figure 3.

Because the label 22 remains stuck to the sachet, it acts as a flap which prevents liquid from spraying out of the sachet. Instead the beverage is channelled between the flap and sachet and drops cleanly into a dispensing cup placed below the sachet.

In use, the web of Figure 1 is stored in a dispensing machine either as a roll or as a fan fold. The side edges of the web 10 have sprocket holes which are either formed in the sheets 11, 13 or in tapes that are adhered to the individual sachets. The sachets 12 to 16 are connected to one another by means of the labels 22 which also act to ensure that all the sachets remain hermetically sealed.

When a beverage is to be dispensed, an indexing mechanism having a tractor feed is used to advance the web by means of the sprocket holes by a distance corresponding to the length of one sachet. The advanced sachet is then separated from the web by cutting through the labels 22 that attach the sachet to the next sachet in the web. The individual sachet is transported to a dispensing station in which it is held vertically above an opening. A liquid, usually hot water, is injected into the sachet, passes through the particulate material in the sachet and leaves through the array of holes 20 to fall through the opening in the dispensing machine into a cup. After the required quantity of liquid has passed through the sachet, the sachet is removed from the dispensing station and transported to a waste station where the spent sachets are stored for subsequent disposal.

Because liquid only comes into contact with the sachet and no other part of the dispensing machine, the machine remains clean at all times and there is no risk of cross- contamination between different beverages dispensed using the same machine. Each sachet remains hermetically sealed until it is separated from its web immediately before it is used and it can therefore benefit from a prolonged shelf life.

The array of holes 20 is not particularly well suited to certain beverages, such as coffee, that are made from finely ground powder. With such beverages, it is preferred to use a filter material, that is adhered to the interior of the sachet.

An embodiment that uses filter paper is shown in Figures 2 and 4, where the ground coffee powder 126 is shown as being retained by filter material 115, such as a fine fabric mesh or filter paper. The filter material 115 is shown as being gusseted to provide a larger surface area for the liquid to percolate through the powder 126, but this is not essential.

When a sachet 112 is provided with a filter material that prevents the particulate material from escaping from the sachet, it remains possible to attach the sachets to one another by means of labels that must be cut to separate each sachet from the web. It is however also possible in this case to dispense entirely with the labels and to form the sachets such that the sheets 111, 113 are made from continuous stock. In this case, a sachet 112 is separated from the web by cutting through the sheets 111, 113. By cutting through the sheets, a discharge opening is formed to permit liquid introduced into the sachet 112 through the spacer 118 to leave the sachet after passing through the particulate material 26 and the filter 15.

It is possible to form a line of weakness 120 between the sachets in the web by interrupting the polyester layer of the sheets 111, 113 between individual sachets while leaving the polypropylene layer intact. It is however simpler to provide a cutter in the dispensing machine that can sever the full thickness of the sheets 111, 113.

The embodiment of Figures 2 and 4 requires an additional weld line 122 at the top of each sachet to ensure that the next sachet 114 in the web remains hermetically sealed after the sachet 112 has been severed from the web along the line 120. As the band 127 at the top of each sachet between the lines 120 and 122 need not be hermetically sealed, it may conveniently be formed with holes 123 from which the sachet can be suspended while a beverage is being dispensed. If the holes 123 are formed as elongate slots the sachet will hang straight even when the beverage material in it is unevenly distributed.

Figure 2 also shows that it is possible to incorporate a funnel at the bottom of each sachet by forming two further inclined weld lines 125 beneath the filter material 115. It is important to note in this case that the interior of the funnel is also hermetically sealed until the sachet 112 is removed from the web.

Claims

1. A continuous web (10) comprising a chain of interconnected sachets (12,14,16), wherein each sachet is formed of two sheets (11,13) of impermeable material bonded to one another to define a pocket containing a beverage material from which a beverage can be made by injecting a liquid into the pocket, each sachet being hermetically sealed when connected to the next sachet in the web, and the hermetic seal being broken upon separation of the sachet from the web to form or unseal a discharge opening (20) through which the beverage may be discharged from the sachet .

2. A web as claimed in claim 1, wherein the discharge opening (20) is formed by an array of holes made in at least one of the sheets, the holes acting as a sieve to permit the brewed beverage to leave the sachet while retaining the leaves .

3. A web as claimed in claim 1, wherein each sachet is formed as a pocket that is open at its lower end to define a discharge opening, and a filter material (115) is adhered to the interior surfaces of the sheets to retain the particulate material within the sachet and to act as a filter.

4. A web as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the sheets are welded to one another along inclined weld line (125) to form a funnel leading to the discharge opening.

5. A web as claimed in claim 3 or 4, wherein a band (127) is provided between the hermetically sealed pockets of adjacent sachets, which band (127) remains connected to the top of a sachet after the sachet has been separated from the web, and is formed with holes (123) or a slot to enable the sachet to be suspended.

6. A web as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the sachets are connected to one another by a label (22) which in use is severed to separate each sachet from the web, the label (22) being adhered to the outer surfaces of the sachets with the line of adhesion of the label to the sachets encircling the discharge opening (20) so as to seal the contents of the sachet.

7. A web as claimed in claim 6 when appended to claim 2, wherein in use the label (22) remains adhered to the sachet after the sachet has been separated from the web and acts to channel the beverage into a dispensing cup and to prevent the beverage from spurting out laterally from the discharge opening when liquid is injected into the sachet under pressure.

8. A web as claimed in claim 3 4 or 5, wherein the sachets are formed from continuous sheets of plastics material, the material being severed to separate each sachet from the web, the severing of a sachet serving to form the discharge opening.

9. A web as claimed in claim 8, wherein the plastics sheets are weakened between adjacent sachets while remaining impervious to air and water along their entire length.

10. A web as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the sheets of plastics material are formed of a laminate that comprises an inner layer of a material that may be welded readily and a second layer that offers greater strength.

11. A web as claimed in claim 10 when appended to claim 9, wherein the inner layer is continuous but the outer layer is interrupted between the individual sachets.

12. A web as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein each sachet includes a spacer (18, 118)) located within the pocket, which spacer serves during the production of a beverage to receive the tip of a needle piercing only one of the sheets and to permit liquid injected therein by the needle to flow into the pocket in order to contact the beverage material.

13. A web as claimed in claim 12, in which the spacer (18,118) comprises an annular body bonded to at least one of the sheets (11,13) and defining an annular chamber for receiving the tip of a needle and at least one passage for enabling liquid injected into the chamber to flow into the pocket .

14. A web as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein sprocket holes (24) are provided along the sides of the web to permit the web to be advance by a tractor feed indexing mechanism.