Patent Publication Number: US-9408491-B2

Title: Capsule piercing module

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a continuation application of U.S. Ser. No. 13/680,926, filed Nov. 19, 2012, which is a divisional application of U.S. Ser. No. 12/302,229, filed Jan. 21, 2009, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,316,759 on Nov. 27, 2012, which is a National Stage of International Application No. PCT/EP2007/054421, filed on May 8, 2007, which claims priority to European Patent Application No. 06010718.2, filed on May 24, 2006, the entire contents of which are being incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The present invention relates to the field beverages or other liquid comestibles (soups, of producing etc.) on the basis of ingredients which are contained in a capsule. 
     The capsule is inserted into the beverage production module of a beverage production machine (coffee machine, etc.). The module is designed to inject a liquid such as for example hot water under pressure into the capsule in order to have the liquid interact with the ingredients contained in the capsule. 
     Note that some beverage production techniques ask for a pressurized injection, others such as e.g. brewing tea can be made at ambient pressure. The invention can find application in both scenarios. 
     The result of the interaction, i.e. the produced beverage or liquid comestible is then drained from the capsule and fed to a receptacle such as e.g. a coffee cup placed below an outlet for the beverage. 
     SUMMARY 
     The invention preferably deals with capsules which are inserted into the beverage production module while being sealed. Therefore, the capsules have to be opened both at a fluid inlet side as well as at an outlet side after being inserted into the beverage production module. 
     The invention now targets at a reliable perforation of the capsule inside the beverage production machine. 
     This object is achieved by means of the features of the independent claims. The dependent claims develop further the central idea of the present invention. 
     According to a first aspect of the present invention a method for operating a beverage production system comprising a beverage production module and a capsule containing ingredients is proposed. The module injects a liquid into the capsule in order to produce a beverage. The module comprises at least a first and a cooperating second capsule engagement member, which first and second operating capsule engagement member are moved relative to each other. 
     The method comprises the step of inserting the capsule in the beverage production module. Then the first capsule engagement member is moved relative to the second capsule engagement member position in which position by in order to arrive at a relative closing the capsule is retained in a defined being engaged by the first and second engagement member. 
     After the capsule is safely retained in the defined position, the capsule is opened. 
     The capsule can be retained in the defined position by a clamping engagement of the first and second engagement member. 
     At least one of the first and second engagement members and perforation means are mechanically coupled such that the perforation means open the capsule after the capsule is retained in the defined position. 
     At least one of the first and second engagement members and the perforation means actuator can be controlled by a common actuator. 
     A further aspect of the present invention relates to a beverage production machine comprising a beverage production module designed for producing a beverage on the basis of ingredients contained in a capsule. The beverage production module comprises means for retaining the capsule in a defined position. 
     Opening means are designed to open the capsule while the capsule is retained in the defined position by the retaining means. 
     The retaining means and the opening means can be mechanically coupled such that the opening means open the capsule after the capsule is safely retained in the fixed position by the retaining means. 
     The retaining means can comprise a first and a second capsule engagement member which are supported relatively displaceable to each other such that they can immobilize the inserted capsule in the defined position. 
     The opening means can be perforation means which are functionally associated with one of the first and second engagement members and designed to be displaced at least partially together with the associated engagement member. 
     The retaining means and the opening means (perforation means) can be controlled by a common manual or electric actuator. 
     A further aspect of the present invention relates to a beverage production machine designed for producing a beverage from a capsule. The beverage production machine comprises a module with a first capsule member, which can be displaced relative to a second, cooperating capsule engagement member between an opened capsule in searching position and a closed capsule-enclosure position. 
     The relative displacement is a combined displacement comprising a linear displacement when the first and second capsule engagement members are close together and a swivelling or rotating movement when they are distanced from each other. 
     Capsule perforation means can be functionally associated with one of the first and the second engagement members such that the perforation means protrude into the capsule-enclosure space after the first and second engagement members have reached the capsule engagement position, and the perforation means are transferred into a retracted position relative to the associated engagement member during or after the swivelling movement. 
     Additional features and advantages are described herein, and will be apparent from the following Detailed Description and the figures. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1 a -1 c    show a sequence for illustrating the transfer from a capsule insertion state, ( FIG. 1 a   ) to a capsule enclosure state ( FIG. 1 c   ) and show an actuator mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention, 
         FIG. 2 a -2 e    show the complete cycle of transferring a beverage production module according to the present invention from a capsule insertion state ( FIG. 2 a   ) to a capsule enclosure state ( FIG. 2 c   ) and back to the capsule insertion state ( FIG. 2 e   ) and show an actuator mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3 a -3 e    illustrates beverage production sequence steps for the beverage production module according to an embodiment of the invention. 
         FIG. 4 a -4 e    show the steps according to the sequence of  FIG. 3 , however, in a representation illustrating the control and guiding means for the relative movements of the first and second engagement member and the perforation means, respectively, according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5 a , 5 b    shows an isolated view of the first engagement member and the control means in the capsule insertion state ( FIG. 5 a   ) and the capsule engagement state ( FIG. 5 b   ), respectively, according to a first embodiment of the present invention, 
         FIG. 6  shows in a sequence of steps from a capsule insertion state ( FIG. 6 a   ) to a figure enclosure state ( FIG. 6 c   ) illustrating the pre-fixation of the capsule before being engaged between the first and second engagement member, 
         FIGS. 7 a  to 7 c    show a sequence illustrating the control and guiding means for the relative movements of the first and second engagement member and the perforation means, respectively, according to a second embodiment of the present invention, 
         FIGS. 8 a  to 8 c    show a perspective view of a beverage production module illustrating the sequence of  FIGS. 7 a    to  7   c,    
         FIG. 9  shows a beverage production module with an actuator mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention in the intermediate position, 
         FIG. 10  shows the casing of a beverage production module having an actuator mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention and 
         FIG. 11  shows a detailed view of the coupling element according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Throughout the figures only the beverage production module  2  of a beverage production machine is shown. 
     Usually the beverage production module  2  is supplied with a liquid at a liquid inlet  14  which can be in fluid connection with means for heating and/or pressurizing the supplied liquid. 
     At the outlet side, means for guiding a produced beverage or liquid comestible to a designated outlet of the beverage production machine is provided. 
     The beverage production module  2  as shown in the figures is preferably housed in a casing of the beverage production machine such that it assumes an essentially horizontal position as shown in  FIGS. 1-4  and  FIGS. 7-10 , respectively. 
     Note that other arrangements of the beverage production module  2  are equally possible, although the horizontal arrangement has the advantage that the insertion of the capsule and the subsequent pre-positioning are assisted by gravity. 
       FIG. 1 a    shows a state of the beverage production module  2  in which a capsule  1  being at least partially filled with ingredients  5  can be inserted from the top through an opening (slot)  8  of a casing  19  of the beverage production module  2 . 
       FIG. 1 a    shows the state in which the capsule  1  has been already manually inserted by a user from the top through the opening  8  into the interior of the casing  19  of the beverage module  2 . 
     Preferably in the state as shown in  FIG. 1 a    the capsule  1  is held by pre-fixation means  12  which will be explained later on in detail referring to  FIG. 6 . 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 1 a   , in this pre-fixation position the capsule  1  is preferably held in an essentially vertical orientation, i.e. the symmetrical axis of the capsule is essentially horizontal. 
     Other pre-positioning arrangements of the capsule  1  can be thought of in which the capsule  1  is held in an orientation which forms a small (acute) angle vis-à-vis the vertical axis. 
     In the state as shown in  FIG. 1 a    the capsule is pre-fixed close to a second engagement member  4  which can comprise means for opening (perforating, etc.) the face of the capsule adjacent to the second engagement member  4 . 
     The first engagement member  3  is in an opened state, i.e. as controlled by a manual actuator mechanism in the capsule insertion state as shown in  FIG. 1 a   , the first capsule engaging member  3  is distanced from the second engagement member  4 , wherein this distance is substantially larger than the corresponding dimensions of the capsule  1 . 
     According to a further aspect which will be explained in detail later on, optionally the first engagement member  3  is not only distanced from, but also slightly rotated vis-à-vis the main plane formed by the second engagement member  4 . 
     In the embodiment of  FIG. 1  the first engagement member  3  is provided with capsule opening means, which can be perforation means such as a hollow needle  6 . In  FIG. 1 a    the perforation means  6  are in a position in which they are retracted such that they do not protrude into a half dome formed by a hollow bell member  13  of the first engagement member  3 . The hollow bell member  13  has an essentially matching shape to the contour of the capsule  1 . 
     The rear end of the first engagement member  3  is provided with a liquid supply  14  which is in fluid connection with the hollow needle (perforation member)  6 . 
     The first engagement member  3  is connected to an actuator mechanism  7 . According to a first embodiment the actuator mechanism  7  comprises a manually operable lever handle  9  and the first engagement member  3  is connected to the lever handle  9  by means of a knee-joint mechanism  11  which can preferably comprise several axis  10  and intermediate levers  20 . 
     In a second embodiment the first engagement member  3  is connected to a manually operable drawer  34  by means of a coupling element  39  which can preferably comprise several openings and clearance areas adapted to cooperate with several pins. 
     The actuator mechanism  7  is designed to control both the displacements of the first engagement member  3  and the displacements of the perforation member  6 . Note that alternatively or additionally an electric actuator can be used. 
     By operating the lever handle  9  or the drawer  34  of the actuator mechanism  7 , the first engagement member  3  can be transferred into an intermediate stage as shown in  FIG. 1 b   . The intermediate stage as shown in  FIG. 1 b    is characterized in that the hollow bell member  13  has essentially fully engaged the outer contour of the capsule  1 , while the hollow needle (perforation member)  6  is still in its retracted position vis-à-vis the bell member  13  and correspondingly the perforation member  6  is not yet interfering with the capsule  1 . 
     Now, when turning the lever handle  9  further in the anti-clockwise direction, the beverage production module  2  can be transferred from the intermediate stage as shown in  FIG. 1 b    to a final closure state as shown in  FIG. 1 c   . The final closure state as shown in  FIG. 1 c    is characterized in that the hollow bell member  13  still fully engages the capsule  1 , however, also mechanically controlled by manipulating the actuator mechanism  7 , the perforation member  6  has been actively pushed from its retracted position ( FIG. 1 a , 1 b   ) to a protruding position as shown in  FIG. 1   c.    
     By being actively moved from the retracted position to the protruding position as shown in  FIG. 1 c   , the perforation member  6  will perforate the associated face of the capsule  1  and will at least partially protrude into the interior of the capsule  1 . 
     In this state the liquid supplied to the liquid supply  14  of the first engagement member  3  can be injected into the interior of capsule  1  through the perforation member  6 . Thus, in the state as shown in  FIG. 1 c    the injected liquid can be made to interact with the ingredients of the capsule  1  in order to produce a beverage or another liquid comestible. 
     During the transition from the capsule insertion state of  FIG. 1 a    to the final closure state as shown in  FIG. 1 c   , the first capsule engagement member  3  has been moved along a composite trajectory vis-à-vis the second engagement member  4 . The composite trajectory preferably comprises a rotational movement at the beginning in order to align the front contour  21  of the first engagement member  3  with the vertical plane of the second engagement member  4 . 
     Both in the intermediate stages shown in  FIG. 1 b    and the final closure state as shown in  FIG. 1 c    the capsule  1  is held safely in a defined position by having a flange-like rim portion of the capsule  1  being clamped between the rim of the front contour  21  of the first engagement member  3  and in associated clamping surface  23  of the second engagement member  4 . 
     In other words, according to one aspect of invention, the capsule  1  finds itself already the present in a defined perforation position before the perforation member  16  will start its opening or peroration action on the associated wall of the capsule  1 . Therefore, when the perforation member  6  will perforate the associated wall of the capsule  1  this can be done with a high precision as the capsule  1  is not moving relative to the main elements of the beverage production module  2  when it encounters the opening action of the perforation member  6 . This leads to a higher position of the opening action and preferably both the location and the timing of the opening can be finely adjusted. 
     Preferably the perforation position of the capsule  1  also corresponds to the beverage production position in which the liquid is injected into the capsule  1 . 
     The cooperation of the first and second engagement members  3 ,  4  in the perforation and beverage production position is such that the capsule  1  is contained in a pressure tight manner in a space defined by the hollow bell member  13  of the first engagement member  3  on the one hand and the second engagement member  4  on the other hand. Thus, liquid injected into the interior of the capsule  1  under pressure can only flow through the capsule  1 , but can not leak outside the capsule walls. Preferably the sealing engagement occurs at the flange-like rim of the capsule pinched between the first and second engagement members  3 ,  4 . 
       FIGS. 2 a  to 2 c    essentially show the same transition from the capsule insertion state of the beverage production module  2  to the final closure state of  FIG. 2 c   , which is only also the beverage production state of the beverage production module  2 . 
     After the end of the beverage production, the actuator means  7  can again be manually and/or electrically operated in order to transfer the beverage production module  2  back to the opened capsule insertion state ( FIG. 2 e   ). 
     However, according to the invention, the transition from the beverage production state ( FIG. 2 c   ) to the capsule insertion state according to  FIG. 2 e    is not simply a reversal of the closing movement, i.e. the transfer of  FIG. 2 a    to  FIG. 2   c.    
     As it is shown in  FIG. 2 d    and  FIG. 2 e   , when manually moving the lever handle  9  of the actuator mechanism  7  in the clockwise direction of the embodiment of  FIG. 2 , in a first step the first engagement member  3  is linearly retracted and distanced from the second engagement member  4 . 
     Likewise, a movement of the drawer  34  in a direction away from the beverage production module  2  causes the first engagement member  3  to be linearly retracted and distanced from the second engagement member  4 . 
     Essentially due to the friction between the perforation member  6  and the surrounding walls of the opening in the capsule  1  the perforation member  6  remains in the protruded state and thus holds the capsule  1  in the hollow bell member  13  of the first engagement member  3  when the first engagement member  3  is transferred to the intermediate state as shown in  FIG. 2   d.    
     This holding-back function of the perforation member  6  of the first engagement member  3  thus leads to a separation of the capsule  1  from the second capsule engagement member  4 . 
     Starting from the intermediate state as shown in  FIG. 2 d    the first engagement member  3  is controlled to carry out a swivelling movement. During the final transition to the capsule insertion state as shown in  FIG. 2 e    the perforation member  6  is finally made to be retracted from the hollow bell member  13 . The capsule  1  which has been hitherto retained by the frictional engagement with the perforation member  6 , will drop from the first capsule engagement member  3  and will be discharged from the beverage module  2  through a opening  24  at the lower side of the beverage production module  2 . 
     Thus, the swivelling movement at the end of the trajectory of the first capsule engagement member  3  facilitates the discharge of the capsule  1  in the retracted position e.g. towards a waste container placed inside the beverage production machine and below the beverage production module  2 . 
     While  FIG. 2  in the above explanation mainly serve to illustrate the functionality of the present invention, further implementation details according to a first embodiment of the present invention will now be explained with reference to  FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 5 a  and 5 b   , the actuator mechanism  7  comprises a lever handle  9  acting on a knee-joint mechanism  11 , wherein the extremity of the actuator mechanism  7  being at the opposite end of the lever handle  9  comprises a first control curve  17 . 
     This first control curve  17  cooperates with a guiding pin  16  which is fixed to a U-shaped support member  25  which in its centre portion supports the perforation member  6  and the fluid supply  14 . 
     Each of the two outer legs  26  of the U-shaped support member  25  are respectively provided with a guiding pin  16 . 
     The U-shaped support member  25  can be linearly displaced vis-à-vis the bell-shaped member  13  by having a further control pin  27  cooperate with an axial slot  28  respectively provided at each of the side surfaces of the hollow bell member  13 . 
     Therefore, the cooperation of the first guiding curve  17  with the guiding pin  16  is designed to selectively displace the first engagement member  3 , comprising essentially the U-shaped support member  25  and the attached perforation member  6  as well as the bell-shaped member  13 . On the other hand, the guiding curve  17  is designed to selectively control a relative displacement of the U-shaped support member  25  vis-à-vis the dome member  13  and thus a displacement of the perforation member  6  attached to the U-shaped support member  25  vis-à-vis the dome-shaped member  13 . 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 3 to 5 , the first guiding curve  17  is essentially composed of a first linear section  29  and a second linear section  30 , being shorter than the first linear section  29  and forming an obtuse angle vis-à-vis the first linear section  29 . 
     When starting from the capsule insertion position ( FIG. 3 a , 4 a   ), the guiding pin  16  is made to cooperate with the first linear section  29  which is designed to linearly and integrally displace the first engagement member  3 . 
     On the other hand, in the final phase, i.e. when the first engagement member  3  approaches the beverage production state (transition from  FIGS. 3 b  to 3 c , 4 b  to 4 c   ), the guiding pin  16  is made to cooperate with the second linear section  30  of the guiding curve  17 . This second linear section  30  is designed to essentially control a relative displacement of the U-shaped support member  25  and the fixedly attached perforation member  6  vis-à-vis the dome ship member  13 . 
     Therefore, it is due to this specific design of the guiding curve  17  (having at least two different sections) that (cooperation with the first linear segment  29 ) the capsule is held in a defined position before (cooperation with the second linear segment  30 ) the perforation member  6  is made to open the capsule. 
     Other functional couplings between the motion control of the perforating means and at least one of the engagement members can be thought of which also guarantee a immobilisation of the capsule in the perforation position before it is perforated at its liquid inlet face. 
     As can be seen particularly from  FIGS. 3 d   ,  4   a, c, d  and  e , the guiding pin  16  is not only made to cooperate with the first guiding curve  17  (being part of the actuator mechanism  7 ), but also with a second guiding curve  18  provided in the lateral walls of the casing  19  of the beverage production module  2 . 
     As can be seen from the figures, also the second guiding curve  18  is composed of at least two different segments, such as for example an essentially horizontal linear segment  21  and an inclined linear segment  20  being raised to the rear end of the module. 
     Due to the cooperation of the guiding pin  16  with this particular design of the second guiding curve  18 , the first engagement member  3  carries out an essentially linear relative movement vis-à-vis the second engagement member  4  when the first and the second engagement member are close together, while the upwards inclined second linear segment  20  of the control curve  18  results in the swivelling movement of the first engagement member  3  such that the half dome defined by the bell member  13  is rotated slightly downwards, as it is illustrated in  FIG. 3   e.    
     As shown in  FIGS. 7 a  to 7 c   , the actuator mechanism  7  of the second embodiment comprises a drawer  34  acting on a coupling element  39  which in turn is coupled to the guiding pin  16  of the first engagement member  3 . 
     The drawer  34  is adapted to be manually operated by a user. When moving the drawer  34 , the movement via the coupling element  39  will be transferred to the pin  16  of the first engagement member so that by operating the drawer  34  the capsule is transferred from the capsule insertion state to the engagement state. With a reverse movement of the drawer  34  the capsule  1  is liberated from the engagement state and can be discharged. 
     The drawer  34  is attached to one side of the casing  19 . As shown in  FIGS. 7 a  to 7 c    the drawer is attached to the top of the casing  19 . The drawer  34  hereby is attached moveably to the casing  19 , so that the drawer  34  can be moved in a direction parallel to the side of the casing  19  to which it is attached. 
     The drawer  34  cooperates with one end of the coupling element  39  so that the movement of the drawer  34  is transferred to the coupling element  39 . The other end of the coupling element  39  cooperates with the pin  16  of the first engagement member  3  so that in turn the movement of the coupling element  39  is transferred to the guiding pin  16  and thereby to the first engagement member  3 . 
     The drawer  34  is a substantially flat element covering at least partially the side of the casing  19  to which it is moveably attached. The casing  19  hereby provides a guiding bar  35  for enabling the movement of the drawer  34  and at the same time limiting the movement of the drawer  34  in a direction parallel to the side of the casing  19  to which the drawer  34  is attached. 
     On each side of the drawer  34  a drawer pin  37  is provided. This drawer pin  37  slides within a bar opening  36  provided on both sides of the drawer  34  within the guiding bar  35 . Alternatively, the guiding bar  35  and the bar opening  36  can be separated so that the guiding bar  35  extends along the whole side of the casing  19  and the bar opening is provided beyond or above the guiding bar  35 . 
     When moving the drawer  34  the drawer pin  37  slides along the bar opening  36  and the drawer pin  37  is further provided to operate with a hole  52  at one end of the coupling element. 
     Thereby, when moving the drawer  34  one end of the coupling element  39  executes a movement parallel to the movement of the drawer  34  and along the side of the casing  19 . 
       FIG. 11  shows a detailed view of the coupling element  39  according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The coupling element  39  has a substantially longitudinal shape and substantially comprises tow sections, namely a first coupling element section  50  and a second coupling element section  51 . The second section  51  is shorter in length than the first section  50  and forms an obtuse angle with the first section  50 . 
     At the end of the first section  50  a hole  52  is provided for cooperating with the drawer pin  37 . Two further longitudinal openings are provided in the coupling element  39  which form a first guiding curve  41  and a second guiding curve  44 . 
     The second guiding curve  44  extends over the whole second section  51  and over a part of the first section  50 . Thereby the second guiding curve  44  comprises a first linear section  42  along the second section  51  of the coupling element  39  and a second linear section  43  along a part of the first section  50  of the coupling element, said first and second linear section  42 ,  43  forming an obtuse angle. 
     Along the first section  50  between the hole  52  and the second guiding curve  44  the first guiding curve  41  is provided which extends partially over the first section  50 . 
     With reference to  FIGS. 7 and 8  the detailed functionality of the actuator mechanism according to the second embodiment will now further be explained. 
     A fixed pin  40  is provided on the casing  19  and fixedly attached to the casing  19 . The fixed pin  40  operates with the first guiding curve  41  of the coupling element  39 . 
     The first guiding curve  41  cooperating with the fixed pin  40  has an elongated shape. The fixed pin serves substantially as a centre of rotation of the coupling element  39 . Due to the elongated shape of the first guiding curve  41  in addition to the rotational movement of the coupling element  39  around the fixed pin  40  a slight lateral movement is possible. The lateral movement and the rotational movement thereby superimpose. 
     Thereby, when moving the drawer  34  the coupling element  39  executes a substantially rotating movement around the fixed pin  40 . 
     The second guiding curve  44  is made to cooperate with the guiding pin  16  of the first engagement member  3 . Thereby, when moving the drawer  34  in a first direction caused by the substantially rotational movement of the coupling element  39  around the fixed pin  40 , the guiding pin  16 , is moved in a second direction due to the cooperation with the second guiding curve  44 . This second direction is substantially an opposite direction to the first movement direction of the drawer  34 . 
     As can be seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8  the second guiding curve  44  is essentially composed of a first linear section  42  and a second linear section  43 , being shorter than the first linear section  42  and forming an obtuse angle vis-à-vis the first linear section  42 . 
     When starting from the capsule insertion position  FIGS. 7 a  and 8 a   , the guiding pin  16  is made to cooperate with the first linear section  42  which is designed to linearly and integrally displace the first engagement member  3 . 
     On the other hand, in the final phase, i.e. when the first engagement member  3  approaches the beverage production state (transition from  FIGS. 7 b  to 7 c  and 8 b  to 8 c   ), the guiding pin  16  is made to cooperate with the second linear section  43  of the second guiding curve  44 . The second linear section  43  is designed to essentially control a relative displacement of the U-shaped support member  25  and the fixedly attached perforation member  6  vis-à-vis the dome shaped member  13 . 
     In addition to the cooperation with the second guiding curve  44  in accordance with the first embodiment, the guiding pin  16  is also designed to cooperate with the second control curve  18  provided in the lateral walls of the casing of the beverage production module  2 . 
     With reference to  FIGS. 8 a  to 8 c    further details of the second embodiment will now be explained. The drawer  34  comprises a holding element  48  adapted to be gripped by a user who wants to manually operate the drawer  34 . The holding element  48  further serves for stopping the movement of the drawer  34  when the drawer is moved from the capsule insertion state to the capsule engagement state. The holding element  48  is herefor formed as a plate attached to the drawer  34  forming a substantially rectangular angle with the sliding part of the drawer  34 . 
     The drawer  34  in addition comprises a capsule insertion slot  38  which enables the insertion of a capsule.  FIG. 8 a    shows the beverage production module  2  in the capsule insertion state. In this state the drawer  34  has been moved into a direction away from the beverage production module so that a significant part of the drawer  34  protrudes the casing  19 . The movement in a direction away from the casing  19  is stopped by the drawer pin  37  when reaching the end of the bar opening  36 . In this capsule insertion state the capsule insertion slot  38  of the drawer  34  is placed above and in alignment with the capsule insertion slot  8  of the beverage production module  2  so that a capsule  1  can be inserted. 
     For moving the first engagement member  3  towards the second engagement member  4  the drawer  34  has to be pushed in a direction towards the beverage production module  2 . The drawer pin  37  thereby cooperates with the coupling element  39  which in turn executes a substantially rotational movement around the fixed pin  40  and thereby cooperates with the guiding pin  16  so that the first engagement member  3  is moved towards the second engagement member  4 . 
     In the capsule engagement state as shown in  FIG. 8 c    the drawer  34  is substantially in alignment with the casing  19  and only the holding element  48  of the drawer  34  protrudes the casing  19 . 
     As can be seen from  FIGS. 8 a  to 8 c    the drawer  34  is guided along a guiding bar  35  provided on both sides of the drawer  34 . As the holding element  48  has a shape that is greater than the guiding bar  35  the movement of the drawer  34  is stopped by the holding element  48 . Further, a recess  49  in the guiding bar  35  may be provided to house the holding element  48  or parts of the holding element  48  when the drawer  34  is pushed in direction of the casing  19 . 
     Alternatively, instead of stopping the movement of the drawer  34  by the holding element  48 , the movement of the drawer  34  in both directions may be stopped by the drawer pin  37  when reaching the ends of the bar opening  36 , respectively. 
     As shown in  FIG. 9  the interior functions of the beverage production module  2  according to the second embodiment correspond to the interior functions and movements of the beverage production module according to the first embodiment. With movement of the drawer  34  the coupling element  39  operates with the guiding pin  16  in a way, that the first engagement member  3  is moved towards the second engagement member  4  in order to clamp the capsule  1  and in the capsule engagement step then the perforation member  6  will perforate the capsule. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 7 a  to 7 c  and 8 a  to 8 c   , knobs  45  are attached to the casing  19 . The knobs  45  hereby serve for attaching a cover  46  to the casing  19 . As shown in  FIG. 10  a cover  46  is attached to the knobs  45 . The cover  46  hereby extends over those parts of the casing where moving elements are provided. Specifically, the cover  46  extends over the part of the casing  19  where the coupling element  39  is provided and in addition extends over a part of the top of the casing  19  where the drawer  34  is moving. The cover  46  hereby in any case is not extending over the capsule insertion slot  8  of the casing in order to allow the insertion of a capsule. The cover  46  in addition may comprise a cover extension  47  which extends along the lateral side of the casing  19  and covers the linear part  21  of the second control curve  18 . 
     Other mechanical or electric implementations can be thought of for guaranteeing a composite trajectory of the first engagement member such that in and close to the beverage production state the two engagement members  3 ,  4  are moved in a linear relative trajectory, while they are moved relative to each other in a different trajectory (different angle an/or curvature) when distanced from each other. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 6 a  to 6 c    now a further aspect of the present invention will be explained. 
     According to this aspect the capsule  1  is pre-positioned by pre-fixation means, such as for example flexible capsule pre-fixation arms  12 . When seen from above ( FIG. 6 ) the arms  12  are provided at the lateral sides of the capsule. 
     The flexible arms  12  respectively present a vertical groove  31  made to engage with the rim of the capsule  1 . 
     Therefore, when the capsule  1  is inserted manually by a user from the top of the beverage production module, it will be initially pre-positioned and held in place by the flexible arms  12 . Note that this pre-fixation position as shown in  FIG. 6  is not the same position as the final beverage production position ( FIG. 6 c   ). 
     Actually, when the first engagement member  3  is made to approach the second engagement member  4 , the front side of the bell-shaped member  13  of the first engagement member  3  will push against the rim of the capsule I, will make the capsule leave the pre-fixation position in the vertical grooves  31  and will displace (push) the capsule  1  to the final beverage production position as shown in  FIG. 6   c.    
     To this regard means can be provided to actively disengage the rim of the capsule  1  with the pre-fixation means (flexible arms)  12 . As shown particularly in  FIG. 6 b   , the first engagement member  3  can be operatively connected to disengagement means  32  which cooperate with a slanted surface  33  of the flexible arms  12  in order to push the flexible arms  12  to the outside and thus to disengage the vertical grooves  31  of the flexible arms  12  from the rim of the capsule  1 . 
     Thus, when the front surface of the bell-shaped member  13  of the first engagement member  3  is taking over the positioning of the capsule  1 , the capsule  1  is made to be disengaged from the flexible arms  12  serving as prefixation means. 
     In the beverage production position as shown in  FIG. 6 c   , the rim of the capsule  1  is pushed behind the grooves  31  of the flexible arms  12 . 
     Now, when after completion of the beverage production the first engagement member  3  is moved rearwards (to the top in  FIG. 6 ) and the capsule  1  is only held by a frictional engagement of the perforation member  6 , the disengagement member  32  of the first engagement member  3  will again cooperate with specifically designed surfaces of flexible arms  12  in order to spread these arms  12  and thus have the capsule  1  pass these arms  12  without being engaged by the arms  12 . 
     To summarize, where the design as shown in  FIG. 6  the capsule  1  can be pre-positioned in a position which is horizontally offset from the beverage production position. The capsule  1  is pre-positioned in this position until the front surfaces of the bell-shaped member  13  engages the rim of the capsule  1 . 
     LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS 
     
         
         
           
               1  Capsule 
               2  Beverage production module 
               3  1st engagement member 
               4  2nd engagement member 
               5  ingredients 
               6  perforation member 
               7  actuator mechanism 
               8  capsule insertion slot of ( 2 ) 
               9  lever handle 
               10  axis 
               11  knee joint mechanism 
               12  capsule pre-fixation arms 
               13  bell-shaped dome of ( 3 ) 
               14  fluid supply for ( 6 ) 
               15  Coupling of ( 3 ) and ( 6 ) 
               16  Guiding pin 
               17  1st Control curve 
               18  2nd Control curve, arranged in ( 19 ) 
               19  Casing of ( 2 ) 
               20  Rotation part of ( 18 ) 
               21  Linear part of ( 18 ) 
               22  Flange-like rim of ( 1 ) 
               23  Holding flange of ( 4 ) 
               24  Discharge opening of ( 19 ) 
               25  U-shaped support member 
               26  Legs of ( 25 ) 
               27  Guiding pin 
               28  Axial slots in ( 13 ) 
               29  1st linear section of ( 17 ) 
               30  2nd linear section of ( 17 ) 
               31  groove of ( 12 ) 
               32  disengagement member 
               33  slanted surface of ( 12 ) 
               34  drawer 
               35  guiding bar 
               36  bar opening 
               37  drawer pin 
               38  capsule insertion slot in ( 34 ) 
               39  coupling element 
               40  fixed pin 
               41  first guiding curve 
               42  first linear section of ( 44 ) 
               43  second linear section of ( 44 ) 
               44  second guiding curve 
               45  knob 
               46  cover 
               47  cover extension 
               48  holding element 
               49  recess 
               50  first coupling element section 
               51  second coupling element section 
               52  hole  52   
           
         
       
    
     It should be understood that various changes and modifications to the presently preferred embodiments described herein will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Such changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present subject matter and without diminishing its intended advantages. It is therefore intended that such changes and modifications be covered by the appended claims.