RU239817U1 - A container for a two-component beverage, containing two annular grooves in the upper part, equipped with a lower support platform for the capsule nest, a jumper for the lower support platform for the capsule nest, a sealed bag, and a bottom made of natural rubber - Google Patents

Abstract

The utility model relates to beverage preparation devices, as well as containers specially adapted for specific products. The utility model can be used to operate the claimed device in challenging conditions, such as by passengers in vehicles, particularly taxis. A container for a two-component beverage, which in its upper part contains two annular grooves, one above the other, wherein the container is provided with a holder for two capsules, which has two sockets, the shape and size of which allow the capsules to be installed in them, wherein the holder has a projection allowing it to be fixed in the upper or lower groove of the container, wherein the holder is configured to move from its upper position, in which its projection is in the upper groove of the container, to its lower position, in which its projection is in the lower groove of the container, wherein the container is provided with a piercer containing two piercing elements, which is located inside the container and is attached to the inside of the container, wherein the piercer is located in such a way that, when the holder is in its upper position, the piercing elements do not interact with the capsules, and when the holder is in its lower position, the piercing elements pierce the capsules, wherein the capsule socket is provided with a lower support platform providing a stop for the lower part of the capsules, wherein the lower support platform of the socket The capsule is equipped with a bridge connecting the lower support pads of the capsule nest. The container contains a sealed bag of water. The elastomer material of the bottom is glued to the container body and allows for perforation of the bottom using a coffee machine piercer and restoration of the bottom's integrity after the container is removed from the piercer. The elastomer material is natural rubber 1.5-2 mm thick. The technical result achieved by the utility model consists of increased operational safety.

Description

Field of technology

The utility model relates to beverage preparation devices, as well as containers specially adapted for specific products. The utility model can be used to operate the claimed device in challenging conditions, such as by passengers in vehicles, particularly taxis.

State of the art

The prior art discloses beverage preparation containers described in RU 218200 U1, 16.05.2023, RU 219996 U1, 18.08.2023, RU 221418 U1, 07.11.2023, RU 220130 U1, 28.08.2023, RU 220368 U1, 20.07.2023, RU 220129 U1, 28.08.2023, as well as in RU 229407 U1, 04.10.2024, RU 229400 U1, 04.10.2024, RU 228658 U1, 09.09.2024, and equipped with capsule holders, as well as piercers.

However, existing solutions require two capsules to prepare a two-component drink: one containing, for example, coffee, and the other powdered milk or sugar. To do this, after using the first capsule, remove it from the capsule slot, discard it, and insert the second capsule in its place.

In addition, neither the capsule holders nor the piercers are movable, so the capsule is pierced by the user when inserting them into the holder, immediately before preparing the drink.

Therefore, known solutions cannot be stored with capsules installed, and also require the user to properly install the capsules. Operating the coffee machine with incorrectly installed capsules can result in hot water splashing out, which can land on the passenger, burn them, and stain clothing and/or the car's interior.

Thus, the known designs are unsafe to operate.

The technical result achieved by the utility model consists in increasing the safety of operation of the device.

In order to achieve the technical result, a container for a two-component drink is claimed, which in its upper part contains two annular grooves, one above the other, wherein the container is provided with a holder for two capsules, which has two sockets, the shape and size of which allow the capsules to be installed in them, wherein the holder has a protrusion that allows it to be fixed in the upper or lower groove of the container, wherein the holder is configured to move from its upper position, in which its protrusion is in the upper groove of the container, to its lower position, in which its protrusion is in the lower groove of the container, wherein the container is provided with a piercer containing two piercing elements, which is located inside the container and is attached to the inside of the container, wherein the piercer is located in such a way that, when the holder is in its upper position, the piercing elements do not interact with the capsules, and when the holder is in its lower position, the piercing elements pierce the capsules, wherein the capsule socket is provided with a lower support platform that provides support for the lower part of the capsules, wherein the lower support the capsule nest platform is provided with a jumper connecting the lower support platforms of the capsule nest, while the container contains a sealed bag of water, while the elastomeric material from which the bottom is made is attached to the container body by gluing and provides the ability to perforate the bottom with a coffee machine piercer and restore the integrity of the bottom after removing the container from the coffee machine piercer, while the elastomeric material is natural rubber with a thickness of 1.5-2 mm.

The essence of the utility model is explained by illustrations:

Fig. 1 - device with installed capsule before capsule puncture. Side cross-sectional view.

Fig. 2 - The device with the capsule installed after puncture. Side cross-sectional view.

Fig. 3 - The device. Side sectional view. A - before installation in a car coffee machine. B - after installation in a car coffee machine.

In this case:

1 - Car coffee machine

2 - Capacity

3 - Upper groove of the tank

4 - Lower groove of the tank

5 - Capsule holder

6 - Capsules

7 - Ledge

8 - Piercing elements

9 - Puncturer

10 - Lower support platform of the capsule nest

11 - Jumper of the lower support platform of the capsule nest

12 - Sealed bag

13 - Elastomeric material

Implementation of a utility model

The body of the water tank is made with rigidity that ensures the ability to operate the declared device without its destruction during user manipulation of the device at all stages of its operation.

To prepare a two-component drink, two capsules are required: one containing, for example, coffee, and the other, powdered milk or sugar. To do this, after using the first capsule, remove it from the capsule slot, discard it, and insert the second capsule in its place. However, after using the first capsule, the glass already contains liquid. Removing the capsule leaves the liquid open, which could result in liquid splashing onto the passenger and/or the vehicle interior during movement, sudden maneuvers, or braking. Furthermore, the removed capsule may leak from the punctures, and liquid from the capsule could stain the passenger or the vehicle. To reduce the risk of this hazard, the holder of this device contains two capsule slots, allowing two capsules to be inserted simultaneously. This solution eliminates the need to remove the first capsule and keeps the liquid inside the glass closed at all times, improving safety.

A beverage container 2 comprises two annular grooves 3 and 4 in its upper portion, one above the other. The container is provided with a holder 5 for two capsules 6, which has two receptacles of a shape and size suitable for inserting the capsules therein. The holder has a projection 7, which allows it to be fixed in the upper or lower groove of the container. Furthermore, the holder is movable from its upper position, in which its projection is in the upper groove of the container, to its lower position, in which its projection is in the lower groove of the container. The container is provided with a piercer 9, containing two piercing elements 8 (e.g., needles), which is located inside the container and is attached to the interior of the container. The piercer is arranged such that when the holder is in its upper position, the piercing elements do not interact with the capsules, and when the holder is in its lower position, the piercing elements pierce the capsules.

When pressurized water is injected into the capsules through punctures in the upper portion of the capsules, the water, as it passes through the beverage extract, creates pressure within the capsule body. This pressure creates tension on the capsule body walls, which can cause it to stretch and thin. This can lead to rapid rupture of the capsule body and an explosive spray of hot water under pressure from the ruptured capsule body. Such a capsule explosion under pressure can damage the glass body from the inside, potentially causing hot liquid to splash onto the user. To reduce the likelihood of such a hazard, the device comprises a capsule nest with a lower support plate, which provides support for the lower portions of the capsules. This support plate is designed as a flat ring, permanently connected via guides to any element of the claimed device. The lower support plate is equipped with an opening that allows the lower portion of the capsules to be pierced and the finished beverage to flow from the lower puncture of the capsules into the glass. The opening is positioned in accordance with the location of the lower piercing elements and is designed to allow the lower piercing elements to access the capsules.

The capsule holder's design, using a lower support pad, helps contain the water pressure entering the capsules, preventing their expansion. Because the lower support pad absorbs some of the water pressure, it prevents the capsule body from expanding, weakening, or rupturing, thereby increasing the safety of the device.

Due to the softness of the material from which the lower support pad of the capsule nest may be made, the lower support pad of the capsule nest may deviate to the side, thus the capsules may stand crooked in the capsule nest and get stuck, as a result of which the puncture of the lower part of the capsules may not occur.

To reduce the likelihood of such a hazard, the device includes a bridge on the lower support pad of the capsule nest, connecting the lower support pads of the capsule nest to each other using casting or gluing. This bridge is designed to increase the rigidity of the lower support pad of the capsule nest. Thus, the lower support pads of the capsule nest, connected by the bridge, reduce the likelihood of capsule distortion and increase the likelihood of successful puncture of the lower portion of the capsules, thereby enhancing the operational safety of the claimed device.

To prepare the beverage, water is forced under pressure through the capsules. To add water to the coffee machine, pour water from a bottle into the device. This requires opening the bottle, turning it upside down, and pouring the water into the device. In a moving vehicle, subject to shaking, braking, or abrupt maneuvers, this operation could result in water spilling onto the user and/or interior components. To reduce the risk of this hazard, the device contains the water used to prepare the beverage. However, water contained within the container could leak during transport from the production line to storage and/or from storage to use, or at any other stage of the device's operation. To reduce the risk of this hazard, the water is contained in a sealed bag.

Water in a sealed bag ensures the functional integrity of the device and serves as a medium that functions as part of the device. Without water, the lower receiving piercer no longer functions, thereby disrupting the functional integrity of the device. The stated technical result—improved operational safety—would not be achieved, as preparing a drink requires pouring water into the coffee machine, which is inconvenient and unsafe in moving vehicles. Furthermore, the presence of water in a sealed bag for preparing a drink ensures procedural integrity. In this case, the water in the sealed bag is not simply a container, like water in a drinking glass; it is an active component of the technological process, representing an assembly operation, as the water is added to the sealed bag directly during production, and then remains in the sealed bag until the beverage is produced. This eliminates the need for interaction with water, thereby increasing the operational safety of the claimed device.

Pouring water from the container into the coffee machine also carries the risk of spilling onto the user and/or interior components of the vehicle. To reduce the risk of this risk, the elastomer material of the bottom is glued to the container body. This allows the bottom to be perforated by the lower receiving piercer of the coffee machine, which is part of the beverage preparation unit, and the bottom to be restored to its original shape after the container is removed from the piercer.

Natural rubber (NR), derived from Hevea latex, can be used as such a material. Natural rubber has exceptional elasticity (elongation at break up to 1000%), low residual deformation, and the ability to restore its original shape after severe deformation, making it ideal for use as a material for container bottoms designed to self-seal after puncture. Its high elasticity and tensile strength prevent the formation of permanent channels after needle removal, ensuring a complete seal (https://proplast.ru/articles/nk/).

The elastomer material is designed to maintain a watertight seal when removed from the coffee machine's piercer. The thickness of the elastomer base is selected such that, after the lower receiving piercer is removed, the bottom of the container does not allow liquid to escape. Using a container with an elastomer base allows the bottom to be perforated by the piercer and restores its integrity after removal from the piercer. This ensures a watertight seal and eliminates the open stream of water that occurs when pouring water into the coffee machine using the traditional method, improving safety in a moving vehicle.

The coffee machine is designed with the ability to receive water from a container using the lower receiving piercer of the coffee machine, which is an element of the device for preparing beverages, which is a pointed tube, the diameter and angle of which are designed with the ability to easily pierce a layer of elastomer material when the claimed device is placed on the lower piercer of the coffee machine, eliminating the likelihood of destruction of the claimed device when the claimed device is placed on the lower piercer.

The lancing device is a needle made of surgical steel with an external diameter of 3.2 mm and an internal lumen of 3.0 mm (for example, https://clck.ru/3Mp3Gv), which has an ideal sharpening and high strength.

Below are examples of the implementation of the utility model, demonstrating the possibility of obtaining a technical result with a bottom thickness of natural rubber in the range of 1.5-2.0 mm.

The applicant manufactured and tested containers made in accordance with the declared utility model.

Specifically, cup-shaped containers were manufactured from 250 g/m² laminated cardboard with a capacity of 200 ml (upper diameter 70 mm, lower diameter 44 mm, height 93 mm). The upper portion of the cups contained two annular grooves, one above the other. The bottoms of the containers were made of natural rubber of varying thickness—from 1.0 to 3.0 mm. Each cup contained a piercer with a needle-shaped piercing element and a capsule holder (with a hole for the capsule) with a protrusion allowing the holder to be fixed in the upper or lower grooves of the container, depending on the upper or lower position of the holder. When the holder was in the upper position, the piercing element did not interact with the capsule, and when the holder was in its lower position, the piercing element pierced the capsule. The container was filled with water.

To test the manufactured containers, they were alternately inserted and removed from a car coffee machine's cup holder, which contained an 8G needle with an outer diameter of 3.2 mm and an inner clearance of 3.0 mm (https://clck.ru/3Mp3Gv). The tightness of the container's bottom was visually assessed based on the presence or absence of water droplets for 24 hours after removal. The observation results are presented in Table 1.

No. Thickness of the tank bottom, mm Observation after removing the container from the holder 1 1 Water seeping through the hole during the first 3-5 seconds after removing the container 2 1.5 No dripping, tightness of the container bottom 3 1.7 No dripping, tightness of the container bottom 4 2 No dripping, tightness of the container bottom

When using containers with a natural rubber bottom less than 1.5 mm thick, the hole after puncturing the bottom had less elastic compression capacity and water leakage was observed 3-5 seconds after removing the container from the holder.

When using containers with a bottom thickness of 1.5 to 2 mm, the bottom remained airtight throughout the entire observation period. The elastomer material closed along the channel thickness after the needle was removed, and elastic forces did not cause creep resistance (due to uniform stress distribution). A natural rubber layer thickness of 1.5-2 mm ensured 100% airtightness of the cup bottom when removed from the coffee machine's piercer.

During testing of containers with a 3 mm thick bottom, deformation of the walls was observed in 10% of cases when inserted into the holder, as the user required greater force to pierce the bottom with a needle. It should also be noted that when using thicker natural rubber, droplets may form on the surface of the container bottom over time due to a higher concentration of local stress around the puncture. This leads to the slow growth of microcracks from the puncture edge under water pressure, which can contribute to a deterioration in the seal and renewed water leakage.

During field tests during the preparation and consumption of a beverage in a coffee machine using containers manufactured in accordance with the claimed utility model, their safety in a moving vehicle (over 100 trips) was also confirmed. When using containers with a natural rubber bottom thickness of 1.5-2 mm, no spills occurred during all trips. However, when using containers with a bottom thickness of less than 1.5 mm or more than 2 mm, 90% of cases of leaks in the container bottom and deformation of the container walls when inserted into the coffee machine's piercer were observed. This included, in particular, splashing of liquid, hot beverage spills on the user (resulting in burns in 3% of cases), damage to the vehicle's upholstery and/or the user's clothing.

The lower receiving piercer is located in the cup holder and is fixed vertically with the piercing portion facing upward. The bottom of the container is pierced after the user places the container on the cup holder. A pump draws water from the device, passes through the beverage preparation elements, and through the upper piercer into the capsules. After passing through the capsule filler, it flows into the container as the finished drink. The user then removes the container from the cup holder, thereby removing it from the lower receiving piercer. An elastomer material located in the bottom of the device seals the opening from the lower receiving piercer, ensuring a watertight seal. This eliminates the need for contact with water, improving the safety of the device.

The utility model works as follows:

The user can use a beverage container pre-filled with capsules according to the beverage recipe. Alternatively, the user can customize the drink by inserting the appropriate capsules into the beverage container holder. Importantly, the capsules are not punctured during installation, and the user does not need to change the capsule to obtain a two-component beverage.

The user then places the beverage container into the coffee machine, which, by moving the holder, pierces the capsules from below.

The coffee machine is designed to simultaneously pierce the capsules from above with the upper piercers and cut a drinking hole. For this purpose, the coffee machine is equipped with a knife, which is a component of the coffee machine designed to cut a drinking hole when the piercers are lowered onto the device.

The coffee machine then heats and forces water under pressure through the capsules into the container, thus providing the user with a finished drink, ready for consumption through the opening created by cutting the drinking hole.

Claims (1)

A container for a two-component beverage, which in its upper part contains two annular grooves, one above the other, wherein the container is provided with a holder for two capsules, which has two sockets, the shape and size of which allow the capsules to be installed in them, wherein the holder has a projection allowing it to be fixed in the upper or lower groove of the container, wherein the holder is configured to move from its upper position, in which its projection is in the upper groove of the container, to its lower position, in which its projection is in the lower groove of the container, wherein the container is provided with a piercer containing two piercing elements, which is located inside the container and is attached to the inside of the container, wherein the piercer is located in such a way that, when the holder is in its upper position, the piercing elements do not interact with the capsules, and when the holder is in its lower position, the piercing elements pierce the capsules, wherein the capsule socket is provided with a lower support platform providing a stop for the lower part of the capsules, wherein the lower support platform of the socket The capsule is equipped with a jumper connecting the lower support areas of the capsule nest, while the container contains a sealed bag of water, while the elastomer material from which the bottom is made is attached to the body of the container by gluing and allows for perforation of the bottom by the piercer of the coffee machine and restoration of the integrity of the bottom after removing the container from the piercer of the coffee machine, while the elastomer material is natural rubber with a thickness of 1.5-2 mm.