Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
212862~j
! WO 93/15973 PC~/GB~3/û0239
~E~ONA~rBD B3~ERAG~ CONTAIN~
BAC~G~O~ OF T~E I~avElNTIo~
When dispensing carbonated beverages ~ particularly
5 beers and especially draught stout, it i~ desirable to
obtaisl a ~:lose~-knit ¢reamy head. This c:p~ributes tcs a
cxeamy taste and adds considerably to the customer appeal~.
Traditionally, such heads are only obtained when dispensing
such beverages f rom draught . Another f actor that
10 considerably enhanc:es the customer appeal is the way in
which, when dispensing beverages, especially 3:eers from
draught, ~;mall bubbles are intimately mixed with the body
o~ the beverage as it i5 dispensed and then, after dispen-
sing is completed, the bllbbles gradually separate out to
15 f orm a close-knit crei~my head O
The ~ormation of such small bubbles libera~ed through-
out t:he body of the beverage during dispensiny can be
encouraged by causirlg shear of the liquid with resulting
local pressure changes which causes release of small
20 bubbles of controlled and uniform size. Over the years
: ~ : many proposals have bee~i made to increase and control the
lib~ration of such small bubbles and the gerleration of
~:~ h~ads c~n beverages . Our own earlier specif icatiorl GB-A-
l,378~692 dlescribes the use of an ultrasonie:: transducer to
subj~ct the b~er: to shear immediately before it is
di~p~nsed into a drinking ve~sel and describes the way that
by subjectin~ the initially dispensed portion of beverage
to ul~r~sonic vibrations, the small bubbles released from
this initial portion a~fe~t the remainder of the beverage
by:forming nucleation sites and triggering the generation
of further sma~l bubbles of controlled size.
:: PR~OR~
~: ~ GB -1,266,351 describes a system ~or producing a
draught ~ype head when dispensing beer, ox other carbonated
: 3S beYerage, from a container such as a aan or a bo~tle. In
the ~rrangement described in this .~pecification the
contai~ner includes a simple secondary chamber which is
~lZ86~
WO93~15973 PCT/GB93/002
charged with gas under pres~ure either as part of the
~illing process in which th~ container is filled with
beverage or by pre-charging the inner secondary chamber
with gas undsr pressure. The secondary chamber includ~s a
small ori~ice which is located beneath the surface level of
the beverage i~ the container and the over~ ~ arrangement
i ~uch that, upon opening the container and ~o reducing
the pressure in it, gas from the secondary chamber is
jetted via the orifice into the bevexage in the main ~ody
of the container so causing shear. This liberates th~
required small bubbles in the beverage which in turn act as
nualeation sites during release or similar bubbles through-
out the entire contents of the can or other container. The
arrangemen~s ~escri~ed in this patent specification are
somewhat aomplex mainly requiring the use of a separate
~harging s~ep to pre surize the se ondary chamber after the
container has been ~illed and mainly re~uiring the use o~
an especially d si~ned divided contain~r with a result that
this technique has not been adopted commercially.
:~ 20 GB-B-2,183,592 describes a different technigue which
~: has recently achieved success in the market place. In his
system a co~tainer containing a carbonated beverage
includes, t~war~s it base, a separate hollow insert with
an orifice in,it~ side wall. As part o~ the co~tain~r
: 25 filling process beer is delib~rately introduced into the
in~ide o~ ~he:holl~w ingert through the orific~ and the
pre~ures of th~ inside of the insert and of the main body
of the container are thereafter ~aintained in equilibrium
via the orifice. Upon opening the container the beverage
fr~ inside the insert is jetted out through the orifice
directly i~*o the beverage in the body of the container and
:this jet act~ to shear liquid in the container with the
resul~ that a number of small b~bbles are liberated which,
in turn, as they rise through khe beverage in the
~:; 35 :¢ontainer, act as nucleation sites to generate a number of
mall bubbles throughout the entire contents of the
~ contain~r. When di~pensing a beverage from such a container
:
-- 2i28~Z.j
i WO93/15973 PCT/GB93/00239
into a drinking vess~l ~he ~iberation oP small bubbles
throughout the entire volume of the beverage as it is
dispensed gives a similar appearance ~o dispen~ing the ~ame
beverage ~rom draught.
Thi~ ~ystem has many disadvantages. It is e~sential
to remov~ all of the oxygen from in~ide t ~ ollow i~sert
o~ substantial volume before filling the conta~ner with
beer. Tb~ presence of oxygen inside the container leads to
: the beverage b ing oxidised with the xesulting impairment
of f~avour and ri~k of microbial growth leading to, ~or
example, acetification o~ ~he resulting beverage when it
contains alcohol. Thus, there is a general requirement to
displace substantially all of the oxygen from a container
and its hollow insert before the cont~iner is sealed. The
15 hol l ow insert has a substantial volume and with only a
small ori~ice in its wall, this insert is filled with air
it is dif~icult to displace all of ~he air during the
~illing and ~aling of such a contai~er.
The applicants hav2 developed a comparable ~ystem
whioh is descrabed in International Publication Number
~: WO9ltO732~ and again includes a hollow in~ert mounted
towardæ the base of a carbonated beverage container.
However, thi hollow insert aontains only non-oxidising.gas
and includes a valve, or similar me~ns, to ~aintain the
in~ert clos~d until the container is opened. Upon opening
h~ contain~r the~valve, or other ~sans, open~ to allow gas
to be ~etted from-the insert ïnto the bever2ge, By provi-
;: ding an insert w~ich is closed and contai~s no oxidising
gas upon insertion into~ the container this avoid~ the
problems with having to remove all of ~he oxygen from theinside o~ the hollow insert after it is placed inside the
; co~tainer and ~efore the container is filled with baer, or
other carbonated be~erage. This arrangement has ~et with
considerable c~mmercial su~cess and iæ capable of being
~illed at speeds of up to 1,600 cans per ~inute instead of
he muc~ slower ~peed of about 200 cans per minute which is
,
~ the ~axi~um speed available for the system described in GB
2i2~G2S
WO 9~J15973 P~r/C~3/0~2
B-2,1~3,592. ~o~ever, the ~illed inserts have a restricted
shel~ life after pres;urization and prior ~o ~illing oî the
container due to creep in the plastic whic:h can result in
the loss of pressuriz ing ga~ .
Both the arrangements described in GB-B-2,183,592 and
that de~;cribed in WO-A-07326 require the~;e of an over
sized can, for example, ~ypically the use of a 500 ml s::an
with only 44 0 ml of beverage and both use a relatively
large amount of plastic f or the insert partly as a result
:LO of it~ largl3 volume and partly to form flanges khat prvvide
an interference fit with the side wall of the can. This
relatively large ar~ount o~ plastic results in a high price
addition to the ov~rall pack price and this is also
undesirable ~rom a materials re-cyc~ing point of view.
Fur~hsr, a small per cen age of cans fail to operate as
expected due to the fact ~hat the ins~.rt becomes dislodged
during handling and or mild abuse o~ the cans prior to
their opening. Once ~hl3 inserts are dislodged they tend to
float: to th~ top of the beverage in the container ~nd then
~ail to operate as required. Further there is a ne~d to
: spe~:ify a tight can diameter tolerance for cans to be used
with this technique whic:h is more demandin~ that the normal
Metal Packaging Ma~ufacturers Association (~PMA~ standards.
I~I~Y OF ~ INV~C~
25~ In accordaDce w~th this invention, a container
¢on~aining a carbonated beverage, includes a pod loS~ated
within the head space above the level of the beverage and
ontaining a gas, th~ pod including a hole in its lower
part above the . level of ~the beverage and means to ensure
I
that only gas is discharged from the pod, the arrangement
bein~ such that when ~he csntainer is closed the pressures
of the gas in the pod and in the head space are in equi-
librium, but, as soon as the container is opened to reduce
the pressure inside the head space of the container, the
~; 35 gas at super atmospheric inside the pod is jetted out of
the hole and into the beverage in the container to cause
~; ~hear of the beverage and the liberation OI small bubbles
2123~2~j
WO g3/15973 P~/GB93/llllt23g
which acaumulate in a surface layer on the bev~rage, wh~n
the b~v~rage is dispensed the smal 1 bubbles in its ~urf ace
îayer act to seed the generation of ~;mall bubbles through-
out the remaind~r.
The means to ensure that only gas is disc:harged from
th~ pod r~ay include a valve which preven~ beverage from
entering the pcsd during ~illing and ~;ub~;equent can handling
procedures but pre~erably it comprises a tube surrounding
the hole in the lower wall of the pod and extending upwards
towards the top of the con~ainer closure. ~his arrange-
ment ensures that, even i~ some liquid doe~ enter the pod,
upon opening of the con~ainer, only gas i jetted through
the hole and in~o the beverage. It is d~sirable to prevent
lis3uid entering the pod and bein~ ejected since we have
found that ~he action of jetting liquid into the surface of
a be~erage is less c:ontrollable than gas for the nucleatisn
of ~nicro-bllbbles. ~t is believed that n~t only does the
gas that i~; jetted into the beverage c:ause shear and
mechanical æhock to the beverage æo resultimg in the
liberat~on o~ ~mall bubble~; but al~3o, the ~et of ga itself
nd any gas from the head space entrained with the jet of
gas are converted into bubbles afl:er it has penetrated into
the bevera~e. It al~;o appears that by ietting gas frs:~m
outside the ~urface of the beverage into 1:he beverage that
the ~hear and micro-~ubble seed forma~ion requir~d to give
op~imum heat f oncation can be controll~d 50 that there is
less risk of fwer foaming on openirtg the container than
there is wi1:h the submerged insert systems disclosed above.
This has a particular a~vantage when it is used with a
beverage having a: higher leYel of carbonatiorl such as a
lager having a carbonation level of 2 . O v/v and above.
ally the hole in the lower part G~E ths pod has a
: ~ diamet~r betweerl O.l and 2.0 mm and more pref~rably it has
:~:
a d~ meter of substantially 0 . 9 mm.
The pod may be formed from two parts whic:h are snap-
itted togeth~r, or welded together, in an atmosphere
containing a inert gas or, alternatively, may be fitted
`~:
.
21 2S~2~
WV93/15973 PCT/GB93/0023'-
~
together a~ter ~eing dosed with a precursor of an inert gassuch as dry ice or liquid nitrogen. In this way, after
the pod is formed by closing its two parts together, the
dry ice or liquid nitrogen evaporates to drive oxygen out
of it to ensure that the pod is substantially filled with
an inert ga~O Alterna~ively, the pod ma~ e formed in
~ubstantially the same way as described in our earlier
application WO-A-OQ825 with the pod essentially being
formed as an open~topped pod to enable it to be dosed with
liquid nitrogen, or ~olid carbon dioxide, at the same time
as dosing the open-topped cnntainer and then sealing the
open-topped container with a closure which, in turn, either
carries with it the second part o~ ~he pod or itself closes
the open top of the podO
Preferably the pod is attached t~, or, at least held
in place by the top closure of the container. In the former
: cas~, the attachment o~ the pod to the top clo~ur2 of the
container may take place away from a beYerage filling line
and thus ~ no s~parate pod insertion stage i~ required as
~: . 20 part o ~he beverage filling line. Thus the beverage
filling line~ ~peed: and efficiency are substantially
~; unaff~cted. The container may have the for~ of a glass
bottle and, in this case the pod ~ubstantially fills the
head ~pace in the ~eck of such a container. Preferably the
25~ pod~is attached t~ th~ closure of ~uch a bottle whether of
a screw:cap type or~a crown cork type so that, upon opening
the container the pod is removed from the neck of the
bo~tle with the closure. Alternatively, the container may
~ave the form of a metal~can and in this case the pod is
~either fixed to the lid of the container by adhesive or is
held in place by being trapped in the seam formed between
the lid and the ide wall of the container.
: When the containex has the form of a can preferably
:the can includes an easy-open featur such as a ring-pull
~:~ 35 or a ~tay-on tab. In this case it is important that the
presence of the pod does not interfere with the operation
~ of the e~sy-open feature and essential that the pod i5
: ~:
~ WO93/15973 2 1 2 ~ ~ 2 ~ PCT/CB93/00239
arranqed not to interfere with dispensing be~erage through
the easy-open feature. Typically the pod does not cover
- the entire under surface of the lid of the can and is
arranged to be ab~ent from a portion of the 1id immediately
beneath the easy-open feature. Alternatively, the pod may
be temporarily attached to the inside of~e lid by an
adhesiYe which breaks down on contact with a beverage or on
the application of heat, for example, during a pasteurisa-
tion step. In this way, t~e pod is arranged to be ~irmly
attached to the lid during the lid handling and container
closing process bu~, subsequently, after the container is
filled and sealed, this bond between the pod and the
closure is arranged to be broken down. In this case it is
preferred that ~he pod is also connected to the container
l~ by, ~or example, a protruding lip which is caught in the
seam between the closure and the container so that, upon
opening the container ~he pod can hinge about its
protruding lip to al}ow ~he pod ~o be displaced from
beneath th easy open feature and thereby allow a beverag~
to be dispen~ed ~rom the inside of the ~an, whilst, at *he
same time, the pod is s curely held by the lip being held
in the sea~.
With the arrangement in accordance wi~h thi~ invention
the pod is accommodated entirPly within the head space
:~ 25 a~o~e the le~el o the beverage in the cont~iner and foam
formation wi~hin the contai~er can be controlled to a lower
~:~ level than with submerged systems. This means that a
~tan~ard size container can be used and the containers can
be filled with g~neraIly conventiQnal canning or bottling
: 30 machinery operatin~ at high cpeed. Since this system does
not rely on the use of an interference fit b2tween a
submerged i~sert and *he container it is not likely to
~: become dislodged with abuse during handling and storage.
: Furtherm~re there is a substantial saving of ~aterial
previously used to form $he flanges of th~ submerged
insert~
~:
.
i3
WO93/15973 PCT/GB93/002
BRIEP DE8CRIP~ION OF ~H~ DRAWING8
Various examples of carbonated beverage containers in
accordance with this invention will now be described with
reference ~o the accompanyi~g drawings in which:-
Figure l is an under plan of a first example of pod
fixed to the lid of a can; ~ ~
Figure ~ is a section through the first ~xample;
Figure 3 is an under plan of a second example of pod;
Figure 4 is a cross-section through a second example;
Figure 5 is an under plan of a third example;
Figure 6 is a cross-section through the third example;
Figure 7 is a cross-section through a completed can
containing a ~hird example of pod;
Figure 8 is an under plan of a fourth example of pod
showing it attached to a lid of a container;
: Figure 9 is a side ~levation through the fourth
example of pod attached to its ~id;
Tigure l0 is a ross-section through a completed can
showi~g the fourth examp1e of pod in place;
Figure ll is a cros~-sectiQn simila~ to Figure l0
~: showîng the stay-on ~ab being opened;
~;~ Figure 12 is: a ~iew similar to Figure l0 wi~h the
st~y-on tab fully opened;
Figure 13. i8 a cross-section through a top of a can
shouing a fifth ex~pl~ of pod;
Figure 14 is a~diagr~m of a can sealing ma~hine;
i ~ res lSA~ t~ E are a series of cross-$2ctions
~:~ through the top o~ a bottle showin~ the filling sequence of
assembly of a p~d;
30 ~ Figures lSA and B are scrap radial sections showing
the connection between the two part~ of the pod sh~wn in
Figure 15;
: Figure 17 is a diagram of a filling pl~nt for carrying
out the operation shown in Figur s 15A to E;
Figure 18 shows an alternative pod for use in a
bottle; and,
: ~ .
~: :
~ ~ W093/15973 2 i 2 ~ ~ 2 ~ PCT~GBg3/00239
Figure l9 ~hows a further example of pod for u~e in a
bvttle.
DE:~CRIPq!ION OF PREFER~E~D EXaUlPL~:8
In all th~ following examples a carbonated beverage
container ~uch as a can or bottle containing ~eer for
exa~ple stout, an ale, or lager includes~ pod mad~ of
plastics material. ~he pod lies wholly within the head
space within the container abovR the level of the beverage.
The first few example~ are systems where the beverage
container is ~ormed as ~ can 1 having a lid 2 with an easy~
open f eature in ~he ~orm of a stay-on tab 3 . A~ part of
this easy-open feature the stay-on tab includes a shield
portion 4 the periphery of which is def ined by a weakened
zone to enable the shield portion 4 to break free from 'che
15 remainder o~ the lid 2 and pivot downwards into the inside
of the can 1 upon opening the easy open f eature 3 .
The example shown in Figure 1 shows a lid 2 before it
is ~eames~ on to the body of the can 1. ~ cup-shaped
plasti~:s pod 6 i8 iEitted into the inside of the countersink
20 portion of the lid 2 and fixed in place by a bead 7 of glue
:~ or by hea~ ~;ealing the upper rim of the cup-shaped pod 6 to
~:: the underside of the lid 2. In plan the pod is generally
C-shaped with its re-elltrant portiorl f itting around he
shield pc~rtion .4: of the easy-open f eature 3 . In this way
25 the pod 6 does not in arly way int~rfere with the operatioa
of the easy open :eeature 3.
Figures 3 arld 4 ~;ht~w an alternative Earrangement again
~: illustrating the lid ~2 before it is seamed onto body of a
can 1. In this example the pod 6 is formed as a closed
plastics moulding having both a top wall 8 and a bottom
wall 9. The pod 6 also includes a flange 10 extending
outwards from the periphery of the pod 6 which, in us2, is
trapped into the ~eam formed between the rim of the lid 2
and the top of the body of the can 1. Once the flange 10
i~ trapped into the seam th~ pod 6 is held fixed into
position. The pod 6 may ~lso be glued onto the lid 2 to
provide at least a temporary bo~d to ensure that it is not
2~28~25
WO93/15973 PCT/GB93/0023
displaced during handling and seaming operations. Again,
the pod 6 is generally C-shaped in plan and fitt~d with the
re-entrant portion in register with the shield portion 4 of
the easy-open feature 3.
The third example shown in Figures 5 and 6 is
g~nerally ~imilar to the second example exc~ that it does
not include the flange lO and is, instead, simply s~tuck
onto the lid 2 by a band of glue 7 or a heat seal.
In all the above examples the pod 6 includes an
aperture 11 in its lower wall ~ and a tube 12 sealed to the
inside of the lower wall 9 and surrounding the aperture 11.
The tube 12 extends upwards towards the lid 2.
In all the a~ove examples the lid 2 together with the
pod 6 is treated to ensure that all of the oxidising gas is
removed ~rom the ~nside of the pod 6 hefore the lid 2 is
applied to the body of a can 1. The body of the can 1 is
: filled with beer 13 in a ~onven~ional can filling machine
and then the head space 14 dosed with liquid nitrogen or
solid carbon dioxide, again in a conventional fashion~ The
lid 2, togetber wi*h the pod 6 is then seamed onto the top
of the body ~f the can and as the liquid ~itrogen or solid
~ ; carbon dioxide evapora~es builds up a pressure inside the
: can of~be~ween 1.5 and 4 atmospheres. Evaporated liquid
nitrogen or so~lid carbon dioxide builds up in the head
space l~ ~nd passes~into the inside o~ the pod 6 via the
hole ~1. Th~ pressure inside the pod 6 is exactly the same
; as that:in the head ~pace 14. Typically the filled cans
~:~ are then subjected to a pasteurisation process before being
di tributed.
,
Upon ope~ing a can in accordance with this invention
- the initial opening of the easy open feature 3 vents the
: head space 14 to the atmosphere so that the pressure within
~: the head space 14 is rapidly reduc~d to atmospheric.
However, the pressure inside the pod 6 is still very ~uch
in excess of a~mospheric pressure and this causes gas to be
etted through the hole 11. The jet of gas penetrates
:seYeral centimetres into the beer 13 giving a mechanical
: .
- 21Z3C25
! WO 93/15973 PCT/CB93/00239
shock ts the beer 13 and also causing shear in it. This
shear in the beer cause the release of small bubbles of
carbon dioxide and ni~rogen and the gas that i~ jet~ed into
the beer together with any gas from the head space that is
entrained wi~h ~he jet also results in the formation of
bubble~ in the b~er 13. Naturally these bu~es gradually
rise to the sur~ace generating some further bubble
~oxmation as they go and form a layer o~ foam on the top
surface of the beer 13. As the beer is poured out of the
aperture left by the shield 4 in the lid 2 of the can and
into, for example, a drinking vessel this layer of foam
mixes with the remaind~r of the beer and this layer of foam
generates bubbles ~hroughout the beer as it is dispensed
giving a similar appearance to that obtained when
dispensing beer from draught.
: Instead of making the pod 6 C-shaped as described in
: : the first thr~e examples abo~e it is also possible to make
:: ~ the pod 6 cir ular as sho~n in Figures 8 to 1~ and
described with reference to the fourth example. In this
exa~plP the pod ~ has a closed circular configuration with
a projecting lip 15. ~ The lip 1~ is captured in the seam
~: formed between the lid 2 and the body of .he can 1 as the
can is fill d and ~ealed. The pod 6 ~s also adhered to the
: lid 2 by glue .7. The glue is of a type which is broken
~: 2~ down on exposure to the beer 13 or to, for exa~ple, the
:~ temperatures attained during the pasteurisation step. A
cha~nel (not shown) is also provided between the outside of
tha top wall 8 of the pod 6 and the lower face of the lid
2. Oxidising gas is agai~n remoYed from the inside of the
pod 6 as described above before the lid 2 is seamed onto
the body 1 of a full container as shown in Figure 10.
Upon ini~ially opening the easy-open feature 3 as ~oon
as the integrity of the package is broXen the pressure from
~; wi~hin the container is vented Yia the channel (not shown)
;~ ~ 35 ~etween the top wall 8 of the pod 6 and the lower surface
;~ of the lid ~. This causes jetting of the gas from inside
-: the pod 6 in exactly the way described previously and as
~ ~ .
212S625
W~ 93/15g73 PCr/C~g3/0023
shown diagra~atically in Figure 11. Further and complete
opening of the easy-open feature 3 wh.ich results in the
shield portion 4 being pivoted downwards into the body o~
the can 1 breaks any remaining hold of the glue 7 on the
pod 6 and causes it ~o pivot downwards with the lip 15
acting as a hinge as shown in Figure 12. ~hee the po~ is
moved into thiæ position it does not in any way interf ere
with the ~low of beer 13 through the aperture left in the
lid 2 by the movement of the shield portion 4 of the easy-
open feature 3.
In all the above examples the provision of the tube 12surrounding the hole 11 in the bottom wall of the pod 6
ensures that only gas is jetted through the hole 11 during
opening of the container. Should any beer be forced into
the inside of the pod 6, for example, during filling or
pasteurising st~ps this naturally falls to the bottom of
the pod 6 and so is prevented from being jetted out of the
pod 6 by the ~ube 12.
~nother way of ensuring that no beer is jetted from
the pod 6 upon opening of the container is described with
reference to Figure 13. In this arrangement the pod 6 i5
provided with a valve which act~ ts prevent beer ever being
fo~ced into the pod 6. ~his example is generally similar
to the ~ourth example in that it is gener~lly cir~ular and
includes a lip 15 which is captured in the seam formed
~: between the lid 2 and the body of the can 1 and acts as a
:: ~ hinge during opening of the can. The tube ~2 i5 extended
: upwards to meet a`:rounded seating 16 formed on the top wall
8 of the pod 6. The lower~wall 9 is made sufficiently thin
for it to act às a pressure responsive diaphragm and
:: preferably the pod is made from a gas permeable material
such as low density polyethylene. In this way, when the
pod 6 is first fitted to the lid 2 and the lid 2 seamed
onto the ean all oxidising gas has been remoYed from the
~: 35 inside of the pod 6 leaving it eith~r in an evacuated state
or filled with inert gas such a~; nitrogen or carborl dioxide
at substantially atmospheric pressure. As soon as the lid
.
! WO g3/15973 2 i 2 8 5 2 S P~/GB93/00239
. 13
2 is seamed onto ~he can 1 the pressure inside the head
space of the can quickly builds up to a super atmospheric
pressure somewhere between l.S and 4 atmospheres. This
pressure acting on the lower wall 9 of the pod 6 urges it
upwards t~wards the lid 2 o~ the container ~o urging the
top of the tube 12 tightly against t ~ seating 16
completely to clos~ and seal the pod ~. Over a period of
time such as a week the nitrogen and carbon dioxide gas in
the head space above the beer 13 in the can diffuses
through the lower wall 9 of ~he pod 6 to increase the
pressure inside the pod 6 unti- it is super atmospheric and
an equilibrium is established between the gas in the pod
and that in the h~ad space.
Upon opening the can it operates in substantially the
same way as the fourth example and, as soon as the pressure
; in the head space of the can has been vented, the pressure
subsisting inside the pod 6 being, super atmospheric,
causes the lower wall 9 to bow downwards and outwards.
This r~moves the top of the tube ~2 from its seating ~6 and
thu allows the gas at super atmospheric pressure from
inside th~ pod 6 to be vented via the tube 12 and the
orifice ll:so that it forms a je~ which then penetrates the
surface of the beer 13 again in exactly the same way as has
bee~ de~cribed.with re~erence to ~he above examples.
25: ~ In all:of the abo~e examples it is important to re~vve
all o~ the oxidising gas~from inside the pod 6 before the
lid 2, with attached pod 6 is seamed onto the top of a
filled~can. This can be done by subjecting the pods with
a permanently open orific~ 11 to a series of evacuation and
30: inert gas fil~ing cycles to ensure that the pods are only
illed with iner~ gas when they are seamed onto the cans~
Alternatively, the pods can be made in t~o parts orl for
example, when the first example of pod is attached to the
lid, the pod can be dosed with an inert gas precursor such
as liquid nitrogen or solid carbon dioxide~ If the pod is
dosed and assemb~ed immediately before being seamed onto
the can the inert gas drives subs~antially all of the
~'
2i~862~
WO93/15973 PCT/~B93/002-~
14
oxygen out of the pod immediately before they are seamed
onto the can.
Figure 14 shows diagrammatically a typical can filling
arrangementO In this example a steam of rans A are fed to
a rotary filling station B in which they are filled with a
predetermined volume of beer. ~hey then pas~_along ~eneath
liquid nitrogen dosing station C and then~e to a standard
seaming machlne ~ where the lids are applied to the open
tops of the cans ~efore the closed and sealed cans leave a
stream I. In this sys~em a bag of lids 2 with attached pods
6 are loaded into hopper D from which they are fed to a
turn table E. As the lids and pods circulate around the
turn table E they are subjected ~o a series of evacuation
and inert gas charging steps before being Ped along a
closed iner~ gas ~illed path G to an end feed star forming
part of the seaming machine H.
~ h sixth example is for a draught-in-bottle system
which is ~pecially suited to beers such as lager which are
usually:served at a lower temperature and at a higher gas
content, around 2.0 v/v, than ales or stout~. Bottles can
withstand higher internal pressures than cans which above
~ 6 to 6.5 bar~tend~to "peaki' with resulting di~tortion of
:::; the ~can. Such:pressures can be anticipated when beers
containing around ~2.0 v/v carbon dioxide are put into
packages which:~are~then further pre-~uri~ed with nitrogen.
In ~he example a~screw topped bottle 20 is initially filled
; wi~h ~eer~on a ~onventional rotary filling machin~ and its
neck detail is ~hown in Figure l5A. Thç h~ad space in the
neck of the bottle 20 is then purged with an in~rt gas as
indicated by the arrows in Figure 15B or the beer made to
~ foam by jetting~:a small volume of liquid into its top
:~: :sur~ace to remove all of the oxidising gas from the head
~; . pace of the bottle. Then the pod 6 ha~ing a generally
cylindrical form and an upper flange 21 is inserted into
the head space in the neck of the bottle ~0. The pod ~ has
an open-top, a hole ll in its lower wall and a tube 12
~ ealed to the lower wall around the hole ll and extending
:
,
2~ 23~i2~j
'Ç ~ WO 93/1~973 PCI'/(~893/00239
upwards . Liquid nitrogen 3 0 is dosed into the pod 6 and
then a cap 22 complete with plastic wad liner 23 is placed
ovex the neck of the bottle and crimp rolled onto screw
thr~aded formations 24 on the nec:k of the bottle to clo~e
the bottle. The plastic wad liner 23 ~orm~; a seal with the
flange 21 at the top of the pod 6 to ::lose~he pod 6 and to
seal l:he bottle. As ~he liquid nitrogen 30 evaporates it
firstly rem~ve~ all of the c~xygen from the podl 6 before it
is clo~ed by the cap 22 and also provides pressurisation
for the boktle 20. Upon opening the bottle by un~crewing
the cap ~4 this releases the pressure in the head space
above the beer 13 and re~;ults in the super atmospheric
pressure ~rom within the pod S being jetted via the inside
of the tub~ 12 and the hole 11 into the beer 13~ As the
s;::rew cap 22 is compl~t~ly removed it carries with it the
pod 6 so allowing the beer 13 ~o be dispensed from the neck
of the bottle.
Figures 16A and B show in greater detail how the
~lange 2~ of the~ pod 6 is engaged with the pztckirlg wad 23
as th~ cap ~2 is rolled around the thread fini~h of tlle
bottle 24.
Figure 17 illustrates a typical rotary filling ~achine
` with a stream of ~ottles P being applied to a rotary
illing station Q where they are filled with beer ~n~ ifrom
: ~; 2~5 ~h~r~ *e:d to a $ecclnd rotary carousel R where the pod~ Ç
are inserted. The bottles then travel under a liquid
nîtrogen dosing station S and f inally to a rotary cap
~: : a~plying and crimping station T.
An alternative two-part f orm of pod f or use with a
3 0 bottle is shown in Figur~s lB and l9 . This system is
: designed for use with a conventio~al crown type bottle
closure 25. In the example shown in Fîgure 18, tha pod 6 is
formed in two parts. A first, lower part 26 which inc:ludes
the hole ll and tube 12 which is arranged to snap-fit onto
an upper part 27 which also includes a protruding flange 28
which acts as a gasket between the crown cap 25 anel the top
~: rim of a bottle nec:k. In this arrangement the upper part
2 1 ~ 8 ~ 2 ~
W0~3/~Sg73 pCT/~t93/0023
1~
27 i~ pre-assembled with the crown 25 a~d then the lower
pa~t 26 is dosed with liquid nitrogen 30. The two parts
are assembled, in~er~ed in the bottle neck a~d then the
crown cork 25 is crimped onto the neck o~ the bottle in a
conventional fa~hion. Crimping the crown 25 onto the
bottle also ensures that the crown 25 tigh~y en~agés the
flange 28 to ensure that when the crown cap is removed ~rom
the bottle it carries with it the pod 6.
In the system shown in Figure 1g the pod 6 is again
formed in two parts, a first lower part 26 which includes
th~ hole 1~ and tube 12 and which is arranged to snap-~it
onto a second upper part 27. In this example the lower
part car~ies the flange 28 which acts as a gasket between
the crown cap 25 and the top rim of the bottle neck. In
this arrangem~nt ~he upper part 27 is pre-assembled with
the crown 25. ~he lower par~ 26 is inserted in the bottle
neck supported by thtP flange 28. Aftar the bottom part 26
i dos~d with liquid nitrogen 30 the crown cap 25 together
~with the upper part 27 of the pod i~ pushed downward~ on
: 20 top of the lo~er part 26 to snap-fit the two parts
t~gether. Then th~ crown 25 is cximped onto the bottle in
a conventional f~shion. Again crimping of the crown 25
: o~to the bottle also ensures that the crown 25 tightly
~ngages t~e flange 28 to e~sure that when the crown cap 25
25 i8 ~emoved fro~ the bottl~ it also carries with the the pod
6 . : :
' ' ` .
