Patent Publication Number: US-11383868-B2

Title: System for handling the sterilisation of flexible pouches

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application is the 35 U.S.C. § 371 national stage application of PCT Application No. PCT/IB2017/051768, filed Mar. 28, 2017, where the PCT claims the priority to and benefit of Italian Patent Application No. 102016000032367, filed Mar. 30, 2016, both of which are herein incorporated by reference in their entireties. 
     The object of the present invention is a method and an apparatus for preparing flexible pouches for sterilisation. Such pouches generally are used for containing food products such a fruit juices, yoghurt, fruit purée, creams, honey and the like, or medicines and the like. 
     In the food sector, the sterilisation of such a type of pouch is enormously important for avoiding contaminations and the proper conservation of the food therein contained. 
     Sometimes, a chemical sterilisation is performed during which the pouch is washed with disinfecting agents, e.g. hydrogen peroxide, and then is dried before being sent to the successive filling operations. 
     However, chemical sterilisation has certain disadvantages such as for example, the presence of residues of the disinfecting agent in the dry container or the presence of non-disinfected areas due to complex or irregular geometries of the pouch. Such a disadvantage is particularly felt in the field of pouches. 
     Instead, sterilisation by ionising radiation, such as gamma rays or electron beams, is very widespread in the sector. For example, Patents EP 2701751 and EP 2701979 relating to electron beam sterilisation systems, to the Applicant. 
     Usually, the performance of sterilisation by ionising radiation is performed in specialized centres where the manufacturer of the pouches sends the pouches to be treated; once the sterilisation has been performed, the sterile pouches are sent to the filler and the applier of the closure using contrivances which allow maintaining the sterility condition inside the pouch. 
     Such logistics obviously imply significant transport costs between the sites and significant complexity in managing the pouches within the sites themselves. 
     To obviate such a drawback, the Applicant has already conceived a system for managing the sterilisation of flexible pouches, disclosed for example, in International Application PCT/IB2016/051108. 
     According to the aforesaid management system, the use is provided of a plurality of sacrificial closures reversibly applied to the outlet of the spout of empty pouches, which are separated from the spout in a sterile chamber, after the empty provisional closed pouches have been sterilised and immediately prior to filling the pouch. 
     It is the object of the present invention to provide a method and an apparatus for preparing for the sterilisation the empty flexible pouches which use further types of closures suitable for optimizing the process which transforms the empty pouch to be sterilised into the sterilised and full pouch. 
     Such an object is achieved by the methods, assemblies and transport devices according to the following claims. 
    
    
     
       The features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, given by way of a non-limiting example, according to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  shows an empty pouch provided with a sacrificial closure; 
         FIG. 2  shows a plurality of pouches of  FIG. 1 , loaded on a transport device; 
         FIG. 3  depicts a sectional view of a spout provided with the sacrificial closure, partly accommodated in the transport device, made according to a first sectional plane orthogonal to an axis X in  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  shows a sectional view of the spout provided with the sacrificial closure, partly accommodated in the transport device, made according to a second sectional plane containing the axis X in  FIG. 2  and orthogonal to the first sectional plane; 
         FIG. 5  shows a spout and a permanent cap applicable to the spout, in separate parts; 
         FIGS. 6 and 7  show diagrams of embodiment variants of transport groups; 
         FIG. 8  depicts a diagram of a filling machine. 
     
    
    
     With reference to the accompanying drawings, numeral  1  indicates a flexible pouch as a whole. 
     Pouch  1  comprises a container body  2  formed by two or more walls  4  made of flexible film, facing and joined to each other, e.g. sealed, along the edges, possibly with gusseted side walls (gusset pouch) or with a bottom wall. 
     According to one embodiment, the film has a single layer. Preferably, the film is multilayer. 
     Preferably, one or more layers of the film are made from polymers, such as e.g. polyolefins, polyamides, polyesters, polycarbonates, polymers obtained from renewable (bio-based), biodegradable, compostable sources. 
     Moreover, preferably one or more layers are coated with metallic oxides, e.g. aluminium oxides, silicon or combinations thereof, or with coatings, with or without metallic oxides, such as aluminium oxides. 
     Moreover, preferably one or more layers are impermeable to oxygen and/or to moisture and/or to light. 
     Moreover, preferably the film is suitable for supporting sterilisation treatments by ionising radiations, and also certain heat treatments such as pasteurization, freezing, or pressure or vacuum treatments. 
     Moreover, preferably the film or the single layers have a thickness between a few nanometres and a few millimetres. 
     Pouch  1  further comprises a spout  6  made of rigid material, sealingly applied to body  2 . In particular, spout  6  typically is inserted in a section of the edge of body  2 , usually between the side walls  4 . 
     Preferably, spout  6  is made in a single piece, in plastic material, e.g. polyethylene or polypropylene, by means of injection moulding. 
     Spout  6  substantially extends along a longitudinal axis Z and comprises, on the side which remains inside the container body  2  of pouch  1  toward the outside, an entrance portion  8 , an intermediate portion  10  and a final portion  12 . 
     Internally, spout  6  provides a duct  14 , usually cylindrical circular in shape, which extends along the longitudinal axis Z between an inlet  16  of the entrance portion  8  and an outlet  18  of the final portion  12 . 
     The entrance portion  8  preferably is made from a pair of facing walls  20 , with prevalent extension in transverse direction, i.e. perpendicular to the longitudinal axis Z, which are joined at the ends. Such walls externally form two engagement surfaces  22  intended for coupling with the films of the container body  2 , preferably by means of sealing. 
     The final portion  12  comprises a tube  24  which extends along the longitudinal axis Z, coaxial to duct  14 , typically ending with outlet  18 . 
     According to one embodiment, the final portion  12  further comprises a thread  26  for screwing a cap  100 , for example made by means of sections of interrupted thread. 
     Preferably, cap  100  for spout  6  comprises an outer annular wall  102  which surrounds tube  24  and for example, is provided with the thread for engaging with the thread  26  of spout  6 . 
     Cap  100  further comprises, at one end of the outer annular wall  102 , a bottom  104  suitable for closing the outlet  18  and a warranty seal  106  at the other end. 
     Preferably, the final portion  12  of spout  6  comprises an engagement portion suitable for engaging with the warranty seal  106  of cap  100  to create an anti-rotation restraint of said warranty seal. 
     In other words, cap  100  is applicable to spout  6  of the full pouch in a tamper-proof manner because the unscrewing of the cap induces the breaking of the warranty seal  106 , which engages with the engagement portion of spout  6 . 
     Moreover, according to the invention, there is provided a sacrificial closure  200  suitable for being applied to the spout  6  of the empty pouch, and in particular to the tube  24  of the final portion  12 , to close outlet  18  in an irreversible manner. 
     In other words, the sacrificial closure  200  is irreversible because it cannot be reused or it is separable from the spout only by the cracking or breaking thereof or of tube  24  to which it is applied. 
     For example, the sacrificial closure  200  is formed by a thin membrane applied to the peripheral edge of outlet  18 , for example by means of an adhesive or by means of soldering. 
     Said thin membrane can be peeled from the spout, but it cannot be reused, unless there is a new application of adhesive or after new soldering. 
     According to a further embodiment, the sacrificial closure  200  is formed by a septum applied to the peripheral edge of outlet  18 , for example by means of an adhesive or by means of soldering. Said septum can be broken for example, by using a specific tool. 
     According to a further embodiment again, the sacrificial closure  200  is formed by a stopper arranged to close outlet  18 , made in a single piece with said tube  24  during the moulding process. 
     For the opening of the spout, tube  24  is cut close to the stopper so as to move away the plugged portion. 
     The sacrificial closure  200  in any case makes a seal with tube  24  so as to preserve any pre-existing sterility conditions inside the pouch. 
     The intermediate portion  10  comprises a first support surface  30  and a second support surface  32 , which substantially are lying on planes orthogonal to the longitudinal axis Z, and spaced axially. 
     For example, said support surfaces are formed by axially-spaced facing surfaces of a first plate  30   a  and a second plate  32   a , respectively. 
     Preferably, the first plate  30   a  is joined to the walls  20  of the entrance portion  8 , while the second plate  32   a  is joined to the engagement portion of the final portion  12 . 
     Moreover, preferably the intermediate portion  10  has a first guide surface  34  and a second guide surface  36  which are parallel to each other, parallel to the longitudinal axis Z and equidistant therefrom, the guide surfaces being contained between the support surfaces  30 ,  32 . 
     For example, said guide surfaces  34 ,  36  are formed by transversely-spaced, opposed, surfaces of guide walls  34   a ,  36   a , respectively. 
     According to the invention, there is also provided a transport device  300  suitable for loading a plurality of pouches  1  provided with the respective sacrificial closure  200 . 
     Said transport device  300  has a compartment  302  in which, when the pouch with the closure is loaded, at least a portion of spout  6  is housed and a respective sacrificial closure  200  is applied to the spout, while the possible remaining part of spout  6  and the container body  2  are arranged outside compartment  302 . 
     Moreover, the transport device  300  has support means suitable for engaging spout  6  and supporting the pouch provided with the closure, both in the “standing” configuration in which the spout is arranged at the top and the pouch at the bottom, and in the “upside down” configuration in which the spout is arranged at the bottom and the pouch at the top ( FIG. 2 ). 
     Preferably, said support means comprise a pair of fins  304  suitable for being housed between the support surfaces  30 ,  32  of spout  6 , thus creating a bilateral engagement in the direction of the longitudinal axis Z. 
     Moreover, said engagement means of the transport device  300  are suitable for engaging spout  6  in a sliding manner along a sliding axis X, lying on a plane orthogonal to the longitudinal axis Z. 
     In particular, said fins  304  allow the sliding of the pouch with the closure along the sliding axis X; preferably, said sliding is guided by the guide surfaces  34 ,  36  which cooperate with the fins  304 . 
     According to a preferred embodiment, said transport device  300  comprises a section bar having extension along said sliding axis X. 
     Preferably, said section bar comprises a base  308  placed side-by-side side walls  310 , said base covered by said fins  304 , each protruding from the respective side wall  310 . Base  308 , the walls  310  and the fins  304  peripherally define compartment  302 . 
     For example, with pouch  1  provided with spout  6  loaded on the section bar, the fins  304  are inserted between the support surfaces  30 ,  32 , while the second plate  32   a , tube  24  and closure  200  are contained in compartment  302 . 
     According to the invention, a method of preparation for the sterilisation comprises a first step which provides producing a plurality of container bodies  2 , the production of a plurality of spouts  6 , the production (or the reuse) of a plurality of sacrificial closures  200 . 
     Spout  6  is sealingly applied to the respective container body  2 , thus obtaining a plurality of pouches  1 . 
     In certain variant embodiments, the sacrificial closure  200  is applied to tube  24 , thus making an empty provisional closed pouch to be sterilised  600 . 
     In certain variant embodiments, the sacrificial closure  200  is integrated with the spout (stopper in a single piece with the tube), thus equally making an empty provisional closed pouch to be sterilised  600 . 
     Moreover, the method of preparation for the sterilisation comprises a successive step of loading a plurality of transport devices  300  with empty provisional closed pouches to be sterilised, each transport device being loaded with a predetermined number of empty provisional closed pouches to be sterilised, for the collective transportation to a sterilizer. 
     For example, the loading step provides the insertion by sliding of the empty provisional closed pouches  600  in said section bar along said sliding axis X and the support of the provisional closed pouch, in the “standing” or “upside down” configuration, by means of the engagement of the fins  304  between the support surfaces  30 ,  32  of the spouts  6 . 
     Then, preferably the method provides forming a transport group  400  containing a plurality of transport devices  300 , each carrying the empty closed pouches to be sterilised, stacked. 
     According to one embodiment ( FIG. 6 ), group  400  comprises a plurality of simple transport surfaces  402 , in which each transport surface  402  comprises a predefined number of transport devices  300  placed side-by-side at the same height, all carrying the empty provisional pouches arranged in the same direction, for example all “standing”, i.e. facing with the spout towards the side, or all “upside down”, i.e. facing with the spout downwards. The transport surfaces  402  are stacked, thus forming the transport group  400 . 
     According to a further embodiment ( FIG. 7 ), group  400  comprises a plurality of dual transport surfaces  402 , in which each transport surface comprises a first level  404  comprising a predefined number of transport devices  300  placed side-by-side at the same height, all carrying empty provisional pouches arranged in the same direction, for example all “standing” or all “upside down”, and a second level  406  superimposed on the first, comprising a predefined number of transport devices  300  placed side-by-side, all carrying the empty provisional pouches arranged in the direction opposite to that of the first level  404 , for example all “upside down” or all “standing”. 
     In the transport surfaces according to such an embodiment, the “standing” provisional pouches therefore are alternated by the “upside down” provisional pouches along the sliding axis X. 
     Said transport surfaces  402  also are stacked, thus forming the transport group  400 . 
     The loading operations for forming the dual transport surfaces are shown, for pouches not provided with sacrificial closure, in European Patent EP-B1-2611704 to the Applicant, the teachings of which in this regard are incorporated herein. 
     Generally, the transport group  400  is housed in a box  410 , e.g. a cardboard box, for transport. 
     The method further provides a possible transport step in which the transport group  400  is transported from the manufacturer&#39;s site to a steriliser, for example a specialized centre or a filler that also performs the sterilisation, where a sterilisation step is performed. 
     During the sterilisation step, the whole transport group  400 , with or without box  410 , or the individual simple or dual transport surfaces  402  thereof, is subjected to sterilisation by ionising radiations. 
     If the sterilisation step is performed at a specialized centre, the transport group  400 , consisting of sterilised empty provisional closed pouches, is transported to the filler. 
     At the filler, the sterilised empty provisional closed pouches are picked from the transport group  400  and sent to a filling machine  500  provided with a sterile chamber  502  suitable for containing, for each sterilised empty provisional closed pouch, at least a portion of the tube  24  of spout  6  and the sacrificial closure  200  applied thereto. 
     The opening of the sterilised empty provisional closed pouch is performed in the sterile chamber  502  of machine  500 , i.e. a step of breaking the sacrificial closure  200  or separation from the spout, so as to free the filling access. 
     Preferably, the sacrificial closures  200  are collected and set aside, and possibly allocated for recycling. 
     The filling machine  500  further comprises filling means  504  which lead into the sterile chamber  502 , which are suitable for the controlled supply of the product that pouch  1  is filled with, through spout  6 . Therefore a filling step is performed. 
     Finally, a step of applying the tamper-proof cap  100  to the tube  24  of spout  6  of the full pouch occurs in the sterile chamber  502  of machine  500 . 
     The final, still sterile closed pouches thus obtained, provided with cap  100 , leave the sterile chamber  502  and are sent to the successive packing and shipping operations. 
     Innovatively, the sterilisation management system according to the present invention overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art because it allows an increased number of empty pouches to be transported or handled while maintaining the sterility conditions up to the application of the final cap. 
     Moreover, advantageously the use of peelable membrane or of a breakable septum allows the inside of the container body to be accessed very quickly without for example, unscrewing or separating a sacrificial closure applied by pressure or screwing. 
     According to a further advantageous aspect, the use of a stopper in a single piece with the tube of the spout avoids the step of applying a sacrificial closure by pressure or screwing, since the stopper is made directly during the moulding step of the spout. 
     It is apparent that those skilled in the art may make modifications to the above-described method and device in order to meet contingent needs, without departing from the scope of protection defined by the claims.