Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Packaged or wrapped product
Reexamination Certificate
1997-12-29
2003-04-22
Sherrer, Curtis E. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Packaged or wrapped product
C426S112000, C426S115000, C426S118000, C426S124000, C426S131000, C426S394000, C426S397000, C426S398000, C220S501000, C220S502000, C053S420000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06551638
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD & BACKGROUND ART
The present invention relates to a method of packaging a beverage containing gas in solution and to a beverage package. More particularly the invention concerns beverage packages of the kind discussed in our U.K. Patent GB-A-2,183,592 in which a sealed container is charged with beverage containing gas in solution and includes a hollow insert having a chamber which communicates with the beverage through a restricted aperture. The hollow insert contains fluid comprising gas under pressure which is in equilibrium with gas at a pressure greater than atmospheric in the headspace of the container. Upon opening the container to dispense the beverage, the headspace is opened to atmosphere which results in a pressure differential causing the pressure of gas in the insert to eject fluid (which may be gas, beverage or froth) from the insert by way of the restricted aperture. The ejected fluid is jetted into the beverage in the container and this causes gas in solution in the beverage to be liberated for the development of froth. The use of hollow inserts in beverage packages for froth development has met with considerable commercial success and since the concept of such an insert (as initially proposed in our aforementioned U.K. Patent) many forms and structures for hollow inserts have been proposed in an attempt to reduce their cost of manufacture and also processing costs for fitting the inserts into the containers. Commercially, beverage packages, typically fermented beers, which include hollow inserts (utilising so-called “widget” technology) are sold by the millions per annum so it will be appreciated that a small saving in the cost of manufacture or fitting of each hollow insert can result in a considerable overall saving per annum. One way of achieving such a saving is by reducing the amount of material required for each hollow insert and also the cost of locating the insert in its container and hollow inserts which float on the beverage lend themselves towards this. A floating insert has the advantage that it can simply be dropped into the container (or otherwise easily deposited) to save on material costs for flanges or other extensions by which the insert is intended to be wedged or otherwise secured at a predetermined position in the container and also in alleviating the requirement for specialised equipment on a filling line to locate (typically wedge) a hollow insert into its container. Where hollow inserts are wedged into a container as aforementioned it is necessary to ensure that the container walls are adequate to withstand the stresses to which they are subjected by the wedging operation. Consequently, where the hollow insert is allowed to float it may be possible to use thinner walled containers and thereby provide a further saving.
Use of hollow inserts which float on the beverage in the container and are loaded, weighted or otherwise ballasted to ensure that the restricted aperture is maintained below the surface of the beverage was originally proposed in our GB-A-2,183,592. Following from that concept many hollow inserts have been proposed, often of a spherical structure, for floating on the beverage but such latter proposals are, typically, of a somewhat expensive and complicated structure and rely upon relatively complex technology for their operation to effect in the jetting of fluid into the beverage to liberate gas from solution in the beverage and the development of froth (upon opening of the container). Examples of such hollow inserts are to be found in Patents GB-A-2,280,886, GB-A-2,280,887, International Publication WO 95/03983 and International Publication WO 95/03982. In these latter publications the hollow inserts may require a sophisticated arrangement of individual chambers and interconnecting passages, the use of non-return valves and the use of displaceable ballasting arrangements or internal wicking devices.
It is now recognised in hollow insert or “widget” technology that the fluid which is ejected from the hollow insert to initiate froth development should, preferably, be predominantly gas under pressure as this provides efficient liberation of gas from solution in the beverage (as compared with such liberation as is achieved predominantly by the ejection of liquid beverage from a floating hollow insert). Hollow inserts are well known which are initially located in the container as a sealed capsule containing gas under pressure but such pre-sealed inserts are expensive. Far less expensive is a hollow insert which derives its gas under pressure (required for ejecting into the beverage to effect froth formation) from the pressurised headspace of the sealed beverage package. With this latter proposal it is essential to ensure that when the headspace is vented to atmosphere upon opening of the beverage package, adequate pressure is available in the insert to provide the necessary pressure differential to develop the jetting effect for froth development and hence the relatively complicated structures and fluid technology employed by the hollow inserts disclosed in the four last mentioned prior Patents. More particularly, a non-return valve permits the chamber of the hollow insert to be pressurised from the headspace of the beverage package through such valve and for gas in the pressurised insert to be ejected through a further non-return valve into the beverage for froth development. The complex system of fluid flow passages and chambers together with the moving ballast and beverage wicking arrangements act so that when the chamber of the floating insert has been pressurised with gas from the headspace of the sealed package, beverage has also been taken into the insert and this causes a change in the ballast which then causes the insert to rotate during its floatation to a condition in readiness for gas to be ejected for froth formation.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of packaging a beverage containing gas in solution and also a beverage package of the kind generally discussed above which utilises a floating hollow insert, which will provide for efficient development of froth upon opening of the container, and which lends itself to the use of a hollow insert of a very simple structure capable of relatively inexpensive manufacture.
STATEMENTS OF INVENTION & ADVANTAGES
According to the present invention there is provided a method of packaging a beverage having gas in solution therewith which comprises providing an open topped container having a primary chamber and charging the primary chamber with the beverage to form a headspace; providing in the primary chamber a hollow insert having a secondary chamber and restricted aperture means through which the secondary chamber communicates with the primary chamber, said hollow insert being floatable on the beverage in the primary chamber and being ballasted as provided to the container to an orientation in which the restricted aperture means is at a predetermined disposition relative to the surface of the beverage when floating naturally thereon; closing the open top to seal the primary chamber and pressurising the headspace to a pressure greater than atmospheric, and which further comprises locating the hollow insert in the headspace in a raised position in which it is raised relative to its natural floating position during said pressurisation for location of the restricted aperture means in communication with the headspace and provide in the secondary chamber pressurised fluid comprising gas under pressure derived from the primary chamber and following said fluid pressurisation of the secondary chamber, locating the hollow insert in a lowered position to float naturally on the beverage with the restricted aperture means submerged in the beverage so that when the headspace is open to atmospheric pressure, a pressure differential caused by the decrease in pressure at the headspace causes fluid comprising gas under pressure in the secondary chamber to be ejected by way of the restricted aperture means to jet into the beverage of the primary chamber
Dodd Carole Jane
Purdham Robert
Sargeant Vivien Jane
Guinness Brewing Worldwide Limited
McCormick Paulding & Huber LLP
Sherrer Curtis E.
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