US20250042648A1

US20250042648A1 - A capsule for the preparation of a beverage

Info

Publication number: US20250042648A1
Application number: US18/717,246
Authority: US
Inventors: Nicola Galaffu; Daniel Abegglen
Original assignee: Societe des Produits Nestle SA
Current assignee: Societe des Produits Nestle SA
Priority date: 2021-12-08
Filing date: 2022-12-05
Publication date: 2025-02-06
Also published as: WO2023104712A1; EP4444636A1; CA3240196A1; CN118265663A; AU2022404691A1

Abstract

The invention is directed to a capsule (1) for the preparation of a beverage in a beverage preparation machine (10) comprising: —a cup-shaped body, being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall (2), lateral walls (3), and a peripheral rim (4) extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls (3), —a closing membrane (5) attached to the rim (4) for closing the cup-shaped body (1) and forming a closed chamber containing a beverage ingredient, wherein the bottom wall (2) is adapted to be pierced by a water-injection piercing member (12) of the beverage preparation machine (10), and wherein said cup-shaped body comprises an outer layer of moulded cellulose pulp (6) and an inner layer of polymeric liner film (7) having barrier properties to oxygen and/or moisture, said barrier liner film (7) being attached to said moulded pulp outer layer (6), characterized in that: said capsule (1) further comprises a rigid holding insert (8) inside said closed chamber, positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body, said insert (8) comprising a ring-shaped portion (9) that holds said liner film (7) against said moulded pulp layer (6) along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall (2).

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention concerns a capsule for the preparation of a beverage in a beverage preparation machine and a method for manufacturing said capsule. The capsule comprises a cup-shaped body made at least partially of cellulose pulp.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Containers or capsules made of cellulose pulp are known in the field of beverage preparation machines. Materials made of cellulose pulp are also known which are capable of maintaining the qualities of the beverage substance in the capsule, at least for a certain period of time. Single-use capsules for preparing a beverage in a beverage preparation machine are also known.
These cellulose pulp-made single-use capsules provide a potential reduced environmental impact compared to capsules made of other materials.
Known cellulose pulp made capsules are used in beverage preparation machines which comprise a brewing chamber adapted to enclose the capsule during the beverage preparation process as shown in FIG. 2 , and an injection element adapted to inject water in the capsule for the preparation of the beverage. Generally, the water injection element comprises at least one needle, or as illustrated in FIG. 2 , a set of piercing blades.
In order to ensure freshness of the beverage precursor ingredient contained in the capsule, over the entire shelf life of said capsule (which can be up to 12 months, sometimes even 18 months, or more), oxygen and/or moisture barrier liner films have been developed, which are attached to the inner surface of the cup-shaped body made of cellulose pulp.
Unfortunately, in the known paper capsules, it was found that when the water injection element pierces the dedicated portion of the cup-shaped body of the capsule, and penetrates the wall made of cellulose pulp, said injection element pushes onto the barrier liner film which leads to a detachment of said barrier liner from the cellulose pulp wall, as illustrated with an arrow in FIG. 2 . This is due to the fact that the pulp and the liner film are not extremely rigid materials, and therefore the force applied from the outside towards the inside of the capsule, mechanically deforms at least part of the capsule wall and impairs the attachment between the pulp and the liner film.
In this case, the so-called “delamination” of the liner film from the layer of cellulose pulp leads to a partial piercing of the liner (as depicted in FIG. 2 ), or even sometimes to no piercing of the liner at all. In any case, it was found that this delamination and poor piercing of the liner leads to blocking of the beverage preparation machine during extraction, and/or blocking of the capsule inside said beverage preparation machine, because the water flow from the beverage machine into the capsule and through the ingredient does not occur or only very partially.
The present invention aims at improving the attachment of the oxygen barrier liner in capsules, made at least partially of cellulose pulp, for the preparation of a beverage in a beverage preparation machine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention meets the above aims with a capsule for the preparation of a beverage in a beverage preparation machine comprising:

- a cup-shaped body, being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall, lateral walls, and a peripheral rim extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls,
- a closing membrane attached to the rim for closing the cup-shaped body and forming a closed chamber containing a beverage ingredient,

wherein the bottom wall is adapted to be pierced by a water-injection piercing member of the beverage preparation machine, and wherein said cup-shaped body comprises an outer layer of moulded cellulose pulp and an inner layer of polymeric liner film having barrier properties to oxygen and/or moisture, said barrier liner film being attached to said moulded pulp outer layer.
According to the invention, the capsule further comprises a rigid holding insert inside said closed chamber, positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body, said insert comprising a ring-shaped portion that holds said liner film against said moulded pulp layer along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall.
Advantageously, the capsule according to the present invention comprises circumferential clipping means at the internal surface of said cup-shaped body, for clipping said rigid holding insert.
The circumferential clipping means can be a circumferential groove, a circumferential protrusion, or even a combination of both.
In one embodiment of the invention, said rigid holding insert comprises a conical ring having a cross-section profile identical to the profile of the bottom wall portion to which it is affixed, such that the entire external surface of said conical ring is in contact with the inner surface of said bottom wall.
In another embodiment of the invention, the conical ring can advantageously—but not necessarily—comprise a plurality of holes having a diameter comprised between 500 μm and 2 mm.
In any case, the conical ring has a preferred thickness comprised between 300 μm and 3 mm, preferably between 1 and 2 mm.
In yet another embodiment of the invention, the rigid holding insert further comprises a set of spokes extending from the ring-shaped portion inwardly to a central point, from which a pillar extends towards the central point of the bottom wall, the tip of said pillar holding said liner film against said moulded pulp layer.
The characteristics of the rigid holding insert, in the different embodiments described above, can be considered separately, but one can also combine some, or all of them.
In any of the embodiments described above, the rigid holding insert can be made of: compressed cellulosic pulp, cardboard, a biodegradable polymer, starch, compressed hard wood fibres, a polyolefin, a polyester, or a combination thereof.
The present invention is further directed to the use of a capsule as described above, in a beverage preparation machine, for the preparation of a beverage. In one preferred, but not limiting example, the beverage is coffee, that is prepared from a roast and ground coffee ingredient contained in the capsule.
The present invention is further directed to a method for producing a beverage capsule as described above, characterized in that it comprises the steps of, in order:

- forming a cup-shaped body by moulding a cellulose pulp layer in a mould, said cup-shaped body being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall, lateral walls, and a peripheral rim extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls,
- thermoforming a barrier liner film into the cup-shaped body such that said barrier liner film is attached to the interior surface of the moulded pulp layer,
- filling said capsule body with a beverage ingredient,
- closing the filled capsule with a closing membrane by sealing said membrane onto the rim.

According to the invention, said method further comprises the step of, between the thermoforming and filling steps above, overmoulding by injection a rigid holding insert inside said closed chamber, positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body, said insert comprising a ring-shaped portion that holds said liner film against said moulded pulp layer along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall.
Preferably, a rigid holding insert in a beverage capsule manufactured according to the method of the invention, is made of: a biodegradable polymer, starch, compressed hard wood fibres, a polyolefin, a polyester, or a combination thereof.
The bottom wall of the capsule is suitable for being pierced by a piercing member of the beverage preparation machine.
According to the invention, the lateral walls of the cup-shaped body are made of cellulose pulp.
According to a preferred embodiment, the barrier liner comprises one or more of the following polymers:

- a biodegradable polymer selected within the list of: polybutylene succinate (PBSA/bioPBS), polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT), starch, cellulose derivates, polylactic acid (PLA), polyhydroxyalcanoates (PHA), or a combination thereof;
- a biodegradable modified or functionalized polyolefin;
- a polymer selected within the list of: butenediol vinyl alcohol copolymer (BVOH), polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) or a combination thereof;
- a biodegradable modified or functionalized polyolefin;
- a biodegradable polymer selected within the list of: polybutylene succinate (PBSA), polybutylene adipate terephthalate (PBAT), starch, cellulose derivates, polylactic acid (PLA), polyhydroxyalcanoates (PHA) or a combination thereof.

The oxygen barrier liner preferably comprises a polymer of fossil or non-fossil origin, or a BioSource polymer.
Preferably, the oxygen barrier liner preferably comprises at least a common polymer.
A preferred multilayer barrier liner comprises a core layer having oxygen and/or moisture barrier properties, surrounded by a sealing layer for sealing said barrier liner to the cellulose pulp material.
Preferably, the capsule of the invention is a single use coffee capsule.
In the context of the invention, the term “cellulose pulp” refers to a pulp comprising cellulose fibres in a percentage ranging from 80% to 100% by weight.
The term “cellulose fibres” refers to fibres having a wood and/or a wood free origin. The fibres, by way of non-limiting examples, are: hard wood cellulose fibres, soft wood cellulose fibres, wheat fibres, corn fibres, bagasse fibres, bamboo fibres, hemp fibres, cotton fibres, other similar vegetable or plant fibres, or a combination thereof.
The closing membrane is made in a known material, preferably it is a polymeric film membrane.
The closing membrane may be flat, or be slightly convex (with convexity oriented outwardly with reference to the capsule), or concave.
As generally known from prior art capsules of the same type, the closing membrane is sealed onto a sealing layer of the cup-shaped body opening, in order to close it after filling with an ingredient. The sealing layer is located on the upper surface of a peripheral rim of the capsule that extends outwardly from the upper edges of the capsule lateral walls.
Preferably, the barrier to oxygen for both the closing membrane and the cup-shaped body is selected to provide a sufficient shelf life depending on the nature of the beverage ingredients. For coffee, for example, the shelf life expected may be of 12 months.
Preferably, the cup-shaped body, its oxygen barrier liner and/or the closing membrane of the capsule are made of home compostable materials. The capsules according to the invention are normally meant to be recycled in recycling processes that are organized at official recycling facilities according to national regulations (for instance in paper recycling streams, or in general garbage recycling or treatment streams).
However, in case the capsule is placed in nature, in a household compostable waste or in a landfill, said capsules are manufactured with materials that are naturally ready to be degraded by bacteria and in conditions of temperature and humidity that are naturally present in nature. In this way, it is ensured that such capsules will not stay in nature and will naturally disappear within a short period of time (a few weeks in principle) within the conditions defined by home composability standards.
More precisely, home composability is now well defined on a national level and mainly based on international standard EN 13432; therefore, they do not require to be further defined in-depth in the present specification. Materials or products compliant with these standards can be recognized by a conformity mark stating their home composability. Some examples of home composability certifications at a national level include, but are not limited to, the following. The certifier TUV AUSTRIA BELGIUM offers such a home composability certification scheme, and DIN CERTCO offers a certification for home composability according to the Australian standard AS 5810. Italy has a national standard for composting at ambient temperature, UNI 11183:2006. In November 2015, the French Standard “NF T 51-800 Plastics—Specifications for plastics suitable for home composting” was introduced. This standard is covered in the DIN CERTCO scheme.
The preparation of the beverage is obtained by mixing of the fluid substance with an ingredient contained in the capsule. Preferably, the ingredients are chosen within the list of roast and ground coffee, compacted or not, soluble powder coffee or leaf tea. Dairy ingredients (e.g., milk or creamer) could also be provided, as well as chocolate, fruit juices, soups, vegetable juices, bouillons, smoothies, purees, coulis, creams, chicory, barley, culinary aid, soup ingredient, infant formula or a combination thereof, in powdered soluble form, liquid concentrated form having various viscosities or in gel form.
Most preferably, the beverage ingredient is roast and ground coffee.
The capsule of the invention may typically interact with a beverage and/or food preparation machine, such as by being fed with a diluent (e.g., hot, cold or ambient water) in the container; such diluent mixes, or interacts otherwise, with the beverage ingredients. With the expression “mixing of the diluent with the beverage ingredient(s)” it is meant that all the ingredients contained in the capsule are in a form which is compatible with a generic mixing operation (dissolution, extraction or infusion) with the diluent to obtain the beverage product. Machines of this type are for example those used for the extraction of Nespresso® capsules.
Preferably, the cavity delimited by the capsule body and the closing membrane of the capsule is essentially oxygen-free and the empty space is preferably (but not necessarily) saturated with an inert gas such as nitrogen, carbon oxide and combinations thereof. Preferably, the capsule has an internal pressure of gas above atmospheric pressure, due to the gas contained in the coffee and emanating in the cavity after sealing, such as carbon oxide and dioxide.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Additional features and advantages of the present invention are described in, and will be apparent from, the description of the presently preferred embodiments which are set out below with reference to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a capsule to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of a capsule of the prior art in a brewing chamber of a beverage preparation machine;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are respectively a perspective view of a first embodiment of a holding insert, and a schematic sectional view of a capsule with said insert placed therein according to the invention;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are respectively a perspective view of a second embodiment of a holding insert, and a schematic sectional view of a capsule with said insert placed therein according to the invention;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are respectively a perspective view of a third embodiment of a holding insert, and a schematic sectional view of a capsule with said insert placed therein according to the invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic enlarged sectional view of an insert being overmoulded in a beverage capsule according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In FIG. 1 is depicted a capsule 1 according to the invention comprising a cup-shaped body, being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall 2, lateral walls 3, and a peripheral rim 4 extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls 3.
The capsule further comprises a closing membrane 5 (illustrated in FIG. 3B) attached to the rim for closing the cup-shaped body and forming a closed chamber containing a beverage ingredient.
Like capsules of the prior art, the capsule 1 according to the invention is adapted to be placed within the brewing chamber of a beverage preparation machine, as depicted in FIG. 2 . The brewing chamber comprises a cup-shaped brewing cavity 11 to hold the capsule 1 and a dispensing piercing plate 13 the surface of which is equipped with a plurality of truncated pyramid-shaped piercing members, onto which the closing membrane 5 is pierced when the pressure of water injected within the closed capsule by the beverage machine, reaches a predetermined pressure. More precisely, when the capsule is placed therein and the brewing chamber is closed in the functional configuration of the beverage machine, the bottom wall 4 of the capsule is pierced by a set of water-injection piercing members 12 of the beverage preparation machine. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , the water-injection piercing members of the beverage machine take the form of piercing blades 12. During preparation of a beverage, the blades 12 inject water under pressure within the closed chamber, which mixes with the beverage ingredient contained therein, such that a beverage is prepared. Simultaneously, the water pressure within the capsule increases, which causes the closing membrane 5 to deflect outwardly, hence contacting the truncated pyramid-shaped piercing members of the piercing plate 13, until said closing membrane 5 is pierced. Upon piercing of the closing membrane 5, the beverage prepared within the capsule can flow out towards a beverage path of the machine (not described in greater detail therein), until it flows to a consumer cup.
The capsule cup-shaped body is generally a hollow solid of revolution, i.e. it is symmetrical around a vertical symmetry axis (as illustrated with a dotted line in FIGS. 1, 3B and 4B).
The bottom wall 2 has a concave shape has shown in FIGS. 2 to 6 .
As illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3B, 4B and 5B, the cup-shaped body of the capsule 1 is made of a first outer layer of moulded cellulose pulp 6, and a second inner layer of polymeric liner film 7 having barrier properties to oxygen and/or moisture. The barrier liner film 7 is attached to the moulded pulp outer layer by thermoforming it from a flat film, by a conventional thermoforming process. Alternatively, the barrier liner layer could be applied with a spray coating technique.
According to the main principle of the present invention, the capsule 1 further comprises a rigid holding insert 8 inside the capsule closed chamber. Said insert comprises a ring-shaped portion 9 that holds the liner film 7 against the moulded pulp layer 6 along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall 2.
As depicted in FIGS. 3B, 4B and 5B, the insert 8 is designed to be positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body.
The insert 8 illustrated in the drawing and described in the following exemplary embodiments if manufactured from a biodegradable polymer, for instance a starch-based polymer.
In a first embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3A, the ring-shaped portion 9 of the rigid insert 8 is a conical ring having a cross-section profile identical to the profile of the bottom wall portion to which it is affixed, such that the entire external surface of said conical ring is in contact with the inner surface of said bottom wall as depicted in FIG. 3B.
Also as illustrated in FIG. 3B, the insert 8 is placed within the capsule after forming the outer layer of pulp 6 of the cup-shaped body and thermoforming the barrier liner 7 therein, but before filling it with a beverage ingredient and closing it, and such that said insert 8 remains stationary therein. More precisely, the cup-shaped body of the capsule 1 is designed such that it comprises circumferential clipping means at its internal surface, for clipping said rigid holding insert 8. As shown in FIG. 3B, said circumferential clipping means is constituted by a circumferential protrusion 14 having a smallest diameter that is less than the greater diameter of the ring-shaped insert 8, with a dimensional difference between the two that allows insertion of the ring-shaped insert into the bottom portion of the cup-shaped capsule body, while maintain it in place therein once it is clipped.
In a second embodiment of the invention, depicted in FIG. 4A, the rigid holding insert 8 comprises a set of spokes 16, extending from the ring-shaped portion 9 inwardly to a central point 17. From said central point 17, a pillar 18 extends towards the central region 19 of the bottom wall 2. The tip 20 of said pillar 18 holding the liner film 7 against the moulded pulp layer 6 in this central region 19 of the bottom wall 2, as shown in FIG. 4B.
This second embodiment is advantageous because it allows to hold the liner 7 against the pulp layer 6 in two different regions of the capsule bottom wall 2 as can be seen in FIG. 4B: first along the periphery of the ring-shaped portion 9, and second at the central region 19 of said bottom wall 2. In between these two regions, a space is left for arranging the piercing blades of the machine when the latter pierce the capsule for a beverage preparation.
In a third embodiment of the invention, represented in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the insert 8 comprises a conical ring-shaped portion 9, similar to that of the first embodiment described above, but which further comprises a plurality of holes 21 having a diameter comprised between 500 μm and 2 mm. These holes serve to allow pierceability of the holder insert by the water injection blades of the machine, and also these holes allow water to circulate between the two sides of the rigid insert 8.
In the first and third exemplary embodiments described above, the conical ring 9 has a thickness of about 1 mm.
In FIG. 6 is illustrated an alternative embodiment of a capsule 1 with a rigidifying insert 8 according to the invention, which being manufactured by a method of overmoulding by injection a rigid ring-shaped insert 8 after the cup-shaped pulp layer 6 has been formed and the inner barrier liner layer 7 has been thermoformed therein. In this case, the cup-shaped body of the capsule 1 does not need clipping means for the insert 8, as was described above, because due to the overmoulding process, the insert 8 is “sealed” onto the surface of the barrier liner layer 7 in a stationary way.
It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments of the capsules described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention covered by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A capsule for the preparation of a beverage in a beverage preparation machine comprising:

a cup-shaped body, being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall, lateral walls, and a peripheral rim extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls,

a closing membrane attached to the rim for closing the cup-shaped body and forming a closed chamber containing a beverage ingredient,

wherein the bottom wall is adapted to be pierced by a water-injection piercing member of the beverage preparation machine, and wherein said cup-shaped body comprises an outer layer of moulded cellulose pulp and an inner layer of polymeric liner film having barrier properties to oxygen and/or moisture, said barrier liner film being attached to said moulded pulp outer layer, and

characterized in that: said capsule further comprises a rigid holding insert inside said closed chamber, positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body, said insert comprising a ring-shaped portion that holds said liner film against said moulded pulp layer along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall.

2. The capsule according to claim 1, which further comprises circumferential clipping member at the internal surface of said cup-shaped body, for clipping said rigid holding insert.

3. The capsule according to claim 2, wherein said circumferential clipping member is a circumferential groove or a circumferential protrusion.

4. The capsule according to claim 2, wherein said rigid holding insert comprises a conical ring having a cross-section profile identical to the profile of the bottom wall portion to which it is affixed, such that the entire external surface of said conical ring is in contact with the inner surface of said bottom wall.

5. The capsule according to claim 4, wherein said conical ring comprises a plurality of holes having a diameter comprised between 500 μm and 2 mm.

6. The capsule according to claim 4, wherein said conical ring has a thickness comprised between 300 μm and 3 mm.

7. The capsule according to claim 2, wherein said rigid holding insert further comprises a set of spokes extending from the ring-shaped portion inwardly to a central point, from which a pillar extends towards the central region of the bottom wall, the tip of said pillar holding said liner film against said moulded pulp layer.

8. The capsule according to claim 1, wherein said rigid holding insert is made of a material selected from the group consisting of: compressed cellulosic pulp, a biodegradable polymer, starch, compressed hard wood fibres, a polyolefin, a polyester, and a combination thereof.

9. Use of a capsule according to claim 1 in a beverage preparation machine for the preparation of a beverage.

10. A method for producing a beverage capsule comprising the steps of, in order:

forming a cup-shaped body by moulding a cellulose pulp layer in a mould, said cup-shaped body being a solid of revolution with a bottom wall, lateral walls, and a peripheral rim extending outwardly at the top edges of said lateral walls,

thermoforming a barrier liner film into the cup-shaped body such that said barrier liner film is attached to the interior surface of the moulded pulp layer,

filling said capsule body with a beverage ingredient,

closing the filled capsule with a closing membrane by sealing said membrane onto the rim, and

between the thermoforming and filling steps-above, overmoulding by injection a rigid holding insert inside said closed chamber, positioned in a stationary manner relative to the cup-shaped body, said insert comprising a ring-shaped portion that holds said liner film against said moulded pulp layer along the circumference of at least one portion of said bottom wall.

11. The method according to claim 10 which further comprises creating a circumferential clipping member at the internal surface of said cup-shaped body, for clipping said rigid holding insert.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein said circumferential clipping member is a circumferential groove or a circumferential protrusion.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein said rigid holding insert is a conical ring having a cross-section profile identical to the profile of the bottom wall portion to which it is affixed, such that the entire external surface of said conical ring is in contact with the inner surface of said bottom wall.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein said rigid holding insert is made of a material selected from the group consisting of: a biodegradable polymer, starch, compressed hard wood fibres, a polyolefin, a polyester, and a combination thereof.