Abstract:
The object of the invention concerns a coffee capsule, in particular a Nespresso™-compatible capsule that improves the yield of the product obtained through the use of a depression or concavity on the side where the water and/or steam enters the capsule, using a radial diversion of the flow of the water and/or steam that otherwise would enter along a axis parallel to the axis of the capsule.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of PCT Patent Application PCT/IB2011/055250, filed on Nov. 23, 2011, and Italian Patent Application PD2010A000358, filed on Nov. 25, 2010, both incorporated herein by reference. 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    This invention is a capsule for coffee and in particular a capsule that is compatible with Nespresso™ (Trademark registered by Nestle). 
       DISCUSSION OF RELATED ART 
       [0004]    As is well known Nespresso™ capsules have become a de facto standard over time, as a Now the tapered exterior form of this capsule, with a flat base that can break under the effect of the liquid that is injected and that can be fitted with a fracture line if needed, and with an upper wall that is smaller than the base, is suitable for letting the liquid in, using an injection needle if required, is an unrestricted shape and in any event a required shape. 
       TECHNICAL PROBLEM 
       [0005]    Naturally the capsule in this invention is not a simple reproduction of the shape of the Nespresso™ capsule, but rather solves the main drawbacks that beset the existing capsules, improving them and making them more adaptable. 
         [0006]    Indeed, the drawbacks of the Nespresso™ capsule have two main aspects: one substantial, and the other concerning compatibility. 
         [0007]    Currently there have been numerous attempts to modify the original capsule, with variations in the shape, with the provision of a breaking zone, with the insertion of filters, done more so as not to appear to be a simple imitation than for other reasons, but nevertheless these imitations have still not succeeded in making improvements and obtaining a coffee yield that is an improvement over the original capsule. 
         [0008]    It seems paradoxical that after so much time on the market there has been no success in a fundamental goal, namely improving the yield of the original capsule, even if there is widespread agreement that the product obtained with the traditional capsule is quite satisfactory. 
         [0009]    Only the invention in this patent has posed the basic question, whether the result obtained with the traditional capsules can be improved, in terms of coffee yield, not only by using an appropriate coffee mixture but above all by using a new and inventive capsule, and it succeeds in doing this by resolving the problem that has been identified, and this has been demonstrated in trials. 
         [0010]    Moreover, another drawback of the original capsules is that the successive variants have not been able to find a solution, even if there have been numerous attempts, regarding the brewing of soluble and leafy products. 
         [0011]    All the capsules examined in the prior art in fact, when making a tea or a herbal tea, do not make use of all the product contained in the capsule, but leave a good part of the product in the capsule unused. 
         [0012]    What all the previous versions have in common is the presence of one or more openings in the wall where the water goes in, or the use of one of more injection needles by which the heated water and/or the steam goes through the capsule, soaking the powder, soluble or otherwise, or the leafy products, in a direction towards the outlet with a flow that is practically parallel to the main axis of the capsule, or in any event with a flow that creates The drawback of this arrangement leads to just a part of the product in the capsule being directly affected by the stream of fluid. 
         [0013]    The part of the product in the capsule that is not directly hit by the stream of fluid, and which is not sufficiently used during the making of the drink, compromises the yield that is obtained with the prior art capsules, and which just the capsule in this patent can improve to a surprising degree and in an unexpected manner with a yield that practically uses 100% of the product contained in the capsule. 
         [0014]    To compensate for this deficiency, and above all to change the aroma and the taste, especially of the coffee, the above-mentioned numerous variants of the original capsule, without recognizing the real problem, sought to provide a remedy by modifying the number and the positions of the points where the water and the steam entered the capsule, with an eventual modification of the coffee mixture contained in the capsules, or else by trying various degrees of fineness of the coffee powder. 
         [0015]    The results obtained with these above-mentioned attempts, when not downright poor, were also influenced by the position of the capsule during the brewing, and therefore sometimes from a passable production you could get an average production, all things being equal, just by using a machine with a different positioning of the capsule (for example from vertical to horizontal, or vice-versa, you could dissolve only a part of the soluble product, tea, barley, etc.). 
         [0016]    Therefore another purpose of this invention is to also overcome the above-mentioned drawback, improving both the yield as well as the quality no matter what the position of the new capsule is. 
         [0017]    Since there are numerous types of coffee machines with varying configurations, each one designed to use its own capsule, the user is obliged to buy only the specific capsules for his machine, without being able to use the capsules of a competitor, which are sometimes cheaper and also better because of the coffee mix used, and that produces an excellent brew of coffee. 
         [0018]    Another purpose of this invention is to overcome also this above-mentioned drawback, with just a single capsule that can adapt to the numerous types of machines, while maintaining the above-mentioned prerogatives. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0019]    The above-mentioned aims are attained by a capsule for making coffee and/or brews with a tubular body or a tapered body whose face where the water and/or steam enters has a concavity or a depression that stretches out and penetrates the interior of the body of the capsule, and which has a series of radial holes, and the inflow of water and/or steam that comes into said concavity, with a directional axis parallel to the main axis of said capsule, is deviated or diverted to pass through said series of radial holes to reach the inside of the body the capsule. 
         [0020]    Other benefits and expedient characteristics of the capsule that is the subject of this invention are listed below. 
         [0021]    Said concavity has a tubular or tapered shape with said series of radial holes on the side wall, beneficially varying the effect of the flow direction from parallel to the main axis of the capsule to practically or substantially radial. 
         [0022]    Said concavity, since the volume in it includes a buffer chamber, blocks the direct flow going straight to the outlet, avoiding preferential channels going straight to the outlet, and thereby guaranteeing the substantially full use of the content of the capsule. 
         [0023]    Said concavity has a sort of pin or peg solidly connected to it and that protrudes with a tapered profile towards the inflow or open side of the depression, where said pin is an element that diverts the flow in order to facilitate changing the direction of the flow entering therearound. 
         [0024]    Said radial holes have sizes such that they could be called a filter with respect to the product contained in the capsule, avoiding the need to put a further filter element in the capsule or at the inlet. 
         [0025]    Said holes are positioned near and/or adjacent to the inner wall of the water inflow face, with an evident benefit of diverting the radial flow towards the initial part of the capsule, namely its base, thereby affecting the capsule&#39;s entire contents. 
         [0026]    Said concavity is fully protected by a cover making the capsule auto-protected, making any further protective packaging unnecessary. 
         [0027]    Said cover can easily be replaced because the cover element is separate from the body of the capsule, thereby facilitating the choice of materials in the design phase and the molding process. 
         [0028]    Said cover can be perforated by an injection needle so as to be used with coffee machines that have this type of injection needle. 
         [0029]    Said cover can be broken and/or cracked by the incoming water and/or steam for machines that do not have a needle or when the user forgets to take off the cover before putting said capsule in the coffee machine. 
         [0030]    Said cover can be broken by the pressure of the water in an area that can give way, so that it can be used in coffee machines that are not expressly designed for using capsules with a water and/or steam inlet hole that is closed. 
         [0031]    The above-mentioned pin, moreover, because it can be sized so that its top end is below the protective closure of the concavity of the cover, facilitates it being broken by the pressure. 
         [0032]    Said cover can be removed to reveal a plain flap or another zone that can be easily gripped by the user in order to remove it. 
         [0033]    Said concavity is set on a raised part of the flat face where the water goes into the capsule, therefore remaining partially protruding from the body of the capsule, creating a buffer chamber for the inflow pressure with balanced pressure diffusion over the entire openings of the radial holes, thereby avoiding any concern about how this flow of water and/or steam enters the concavity, or how a hole is made in the cover or how it is broken. 
         [0034]    Said raised part has a height extension to give the entire capsule dimensions that are compatible with the machine in which said capsule will be used. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0035]    The above-mentioned beneficial characteristics, and others described below, can be better seen with reference to a non-restrictive preferred solution set out in the following diagrams, where: 
           [0036]      FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of the capsule that is the object of the invention. 
           [0037]      FIG. 2  shows the capsule of  FIG. 1  with a diametrical section. 
           [0038]      FIG. 3  shows an alternative solution for the capsule with the concavity protruding with respect to the surface of the top base of the capsule. 
           [0039]      FIG. 4  shows a perspective view of the capsule of  FIG. 3 . 
           [0040]      FIG. 5  shows the capsule of  FIG. 3  with a diametrical section. 
           [0041]      FIG. 6  is an enlargement of a part of the capsule shown in  FIG. 5  with reference to the concavity. 
           [0042]      FIG. 7  is an alternative solution for the positioning of the radial holes on the side surface of the concavity and the presence of a pin inside the concavity is shown. 
           [0043]      FIG. 8  and  FIG. 9  are enlargements of parts of the capsule shown in  FIG. 5  with reference to eventual strengthening ribs and the edge profile that protrudes with respect to the tapered body. 
           [0044]      FIG. 10 ,  FIG. 11 ,  FIG. 12  and  FIG. 13  are examples of radial holes or micro openings, interrupted and spaced, shown for display purposes on a flat expanse of a part of the inside surface of the concavity. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0045]    The capsule  1  that is the object of this invention has a tubular body, and in particular, with reference to the specific case shown, a tapered body  2 , with a lower base  3  where the water comes out with an edge  4  that protrudes from the tapered body  2 , and an upper base wall  5 , parallel and opposite to the lower surface  3 , which constitutes the face where the water and/or steam goes in. 
         [0046]    On the lower base  3 , and more precisely on said edge  4 , it is easy to join, either through welding, gluing or the like, a laminar layer for closing and holding the powder or leafy material for brewing that is inside the body of the capsule  1 . 
         [0047]    The wall of the upper base  5  has, preferably in the center, an open concavity  6  that extends towards the inside of the body of the capsule  1 . Said concavity  6 , with its tubular shape, has a side wall  8  closed on a concavity base  7 . 
         [0048]    This side wall is completely inside the section of the capsule  1  and on the surface of this capsule  1  to the volume inside said concavity  6 . Said radial holes  9  can take the form of micro apertures. 
         [0049]    In the event that the form of this concavity is tapered or funnel-shaped (as shown in the diagrams) the base of the concavity  7  makes up the smaller base. 
         [0050]    It is clear from the diagrams that the flow of water and/or steam going in, forced inside said concavity  6  along an axis parallel to the main axis of said capsule  1 , is obstructed by the presence of the smaller base  7  of this concavity  6  and is forced to divert its path passing through said series of radial holes on the side surface  8  of the concavity  6 . 
         [0051]    In the case where said radial holes  9  are micro apertures, they can also take on the role of a filter, with aperture sizes compatible with the content of the capsule  1 . 
         [0052]    Clearly both the radial holes  9  as well as the micro apertures can also extend to the outermost diametrical part of the base of the concavity  7 , in any case having a diversion of the flow, as shown in the enlargement of  FIG. 6 , or else just affect the side surface  8  of the concavity  6  as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0053]    Said concavity  6  can have its aperture directly on the wall of said upper base  5  of the capsule  1 , or it can be slightly offset on a plane towards the outside with respect to said capsule  1 . 
         [0054]    In this configuration the height of the capsule increases by an amount equal to the height h ( FIG. 6 ) of the ring  10  that protrudes with respect to the upper base  5  of the capsule  1 . 
         [0055]    By appropriately varying the height h of said ring  10  it is easily possible to obtain capsules  1  that are suited to and compatible with various types of coffee machines. 
         [0056]    The flow of water and/or steam put into the concavity  6 , which acts as a buffer chamber, in a direction parallel to the main axis, finding said radial holes that start just below the wall of the upper base  5  or, in the case of a protruding concavity, which are also placed outside beyond the surface  5 , is diverted lapping the internal part of the upper base  5 , namely the bottom  11  of the capsule  1 , guaranteeing the substantially complete infusion of the powder or anything else contained in the capsule  1 . 
         [0057]    To increase this divergence a pin  12  in the center of the concavity base  7  is used that rises up towards the opening. A conical profile of said pin  12  helps the inflow change direction, from parallel to the main axis to radial and perpendicular to it. 
         [0058]    By appropriately sizing said pin  12  and putting its end, preferably pointed, near and underneath any cover of the entrance to the concavity  6  (solidly joined along the perimeter of the ring  10  or directly onto the surface  5 ), this allows the cover to be easily broken by the pressure of the water and/or steam coming in. 
         [0059]    Along the inner surface of the funnel-shaped body  2  there are one or more ribs  13 , protruding towards the inside, which in addition to providing an effective structural seal for the funnel-shaped body  2 , prevent, by interrupting them, any flows in a straight line that might form on the inner surface of the body, minimally affecting the content of the infusion. 
         [0060]    In order to avoid the use of a containment filter for the brewed material in the part where the water and/or the steam enter, the radial holes  9  on the side wall  8  of the concavity  6  can be configured either with holes  14  of an appropriate dimension or with micro openings  15  that have a suitable aperture. 
         [0061]    Even if the illustration of  FIGS. 10 ,  11 ,  12  and  13  refers to a flat expanse of a side surface of a tubular concavity  6 , it is obvious that the arrangement of these holes  14  and micro openings  15 , or other equivalent apertures, will be compatible with the effective side wall that the concavity will have. 
         [0062]    It is evident that with the object of the invention, which has been made to expressly improve and overcome the drawbacks of a specific capsule, you can also use a generic tubular capsule with the same benefits and undeniable improvements and advantages, avoiding any drawbacks that might be similar to those that affect the specific capsule in question.