Abstract:
The invention relates to a dispensing device for dispensing a flowable substance to form a beverage. The device includes a removable container which in a filled state has a main flexible pouch into which is stored the flowable substance and a fitment located at the bottom of the pouch and tightly attached thereto. The fitment is shaped so as to include a pair of side flanges at least one passage for allowing the flowable substance to pass therethrough by gravity. The device also has a dispensing base adapter that includes a pair of side channel-type guides shaped to guide in slidable arrangement the flanges and a bottom bearing surface for supporting the fitment. In addition, the device has an elastic member for maintaining a downwardly oriented pressure of the flanges onto the bottom bearing surface effective to create a substantially tight seal arrangement and prevent the flowable substance from entering the space between the flanges and the bottom bearing surface.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention generally relates to dispensing devices suitable for dispensing flowable substances, in particular dry soluble flowing materials, for use in beverage dispensing or vending machines. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Various automated beverage dispensers for making hot or cold beverage products are known in the art. In a conventional beverage dispenser, a metered amount of water-soluble beverage powder, stored in powder refillable canisters, and a metered amount of hot or cold water, supplied from a water source, is conveyed into a mixing chamber to produce a beverage or soup product, which is then dispensed into a receptacle and served. 
     The conventional dispensing units comprises a series of canisters mounted at various locations within the machine for holding large quantities of dry powder such as milk, sugar, chocolate, powdered creamer, ground tea and coffee. The canisters are generally rigid plastic or metal boxes having a removable lid to allow periodical refilling with the dry powders. On-demand dispensing of measured amounts of the powder within the canister can be produced by augering or other delivery methods that are well known in the art. 
     These canister-based dispensing machines have serious drawbacks. In particular, the refilling of the canisters requires time consuming manual operations from the operator. The operator has usually to refill the canisters by pouring the powder from large powder bags. This can cause significant loss of powder and hygienic problems due to possible contamination with the outside environment. Periodical cleaning of the machine is also rendered necessary to avoid these hygiene hazards. 
     Another problem associated with the dispensing of dry and powdered materials in canisters is that such materials are very hygroscopic and therefore have a very high tendency to form caking, bridging or rat holes within the canister. These cause serious flowing problems and consequently affect the accuracy of the metered dosage during reconstitution of the beverage. As the canisters are built to remain removable or openable, it is very difficult to ensure a tight arrangement of the canister to prevent the environmental humidity from reaching the powder, especially when the powder is left for storage during extensive periods of time, such as during several weeks or so. 
     Canisters due to a lack of flexibility are also cumbersome and the vending machines must be sufficiently oversized to allow the desired number of the canisters to be mounted therein. There is an increasing tendency to promote smaller vending systems but it is detrimental to the powder capacity and to the choices for varied beverages. 
     Therefore, there is a need for a novel dispensing device which overcomes the disadvantages of the prior art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a dispensing device for flowable substances, especially dry powdered food materials, which can be more conveniently and more rapidly refilled with powder while necessitating less labor time. In addition, this dispensing device ensures essentially no loss of the flowable substance, reduces cleaning requirements and consequently diminishes the risks of potential hygienic hazards. Furthermore, the dispensing device also preserves the flowable substance from environmental humidity by reducing and/or delaying moisture ingress. This, in turn, promotes the flowing capabilities of the powder substance through the system by preventing the substance from caking or clumping. Finally, the invention allows optimization of the size of the dispensers or vending machines as a function of the capacity of service and of the choice of beverages. 
     Therefore, the present invention relates to a dispensing device for dispensing a flowable substance, especially for a beverage vending machine. This device includes a removable container which in a filled state has a main pouch into which is stored the flowable substance and a fitment located at the bottom of the pouch and attached thereto. The fitment is shaped to include a pair of side-extending end flanges. The fitment further comprises at least one passage for allowing the flowable substance to pass therethrough by gravity. The device further has a dispensing base adapter comprising a pair of side channel guide members shaped to guide in slidable arrangement the flanges and a bottom bearing surface for supporting the fitment. A closure member is further provided for maintaining a downwardly oriented pressure on the flanges toward the bottom bearing surface. This pressure is effective to create a substantially tight seal arrangement and prevent the flowable substance from flowing between the flanges and the bottom bearing surface. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the fitment of the container is of a boat style comprising an upper sealing portion having an elongated boat style shape along which the bottom of the pouch is tightly sealed and a lower engaging portion at the lower end of which laterally extends the pair of flanges and which defines the at least one passage therebetween. This construction has numerous advantages including: 
     a reliable and quick latching system for connecting a supple container to a rigid piece of equipment; 
     adaptability to form to the suitable shape for promoting the flow and dispense of the substance; 
     a reliable, efficient and strong seal configuration which preserves the flowable substance inside in dry and clean conditions. 
     In one embodiment, the flanges of the fitment include elastic member which comprises an upward oriented brim at the edge of the flanges when the container is in a disengaged position. The channel guide members are configured to force the brim to flex downwardly as the flanges slidably engage the channel guide members of the dispensing base adapter. Advantageously, the upper surface of the channel guide members provides a restriction which is smaller than the overall dimensional height of the brim. Such a construction provides essentially perfect sealing conditions for a closed system with, on one hand, reduced ingress of humidity, and on the other hand, substantial elimination of loss of powder material that could find its way outside the system. 
     In an alternative embodiment, the channel guide members may include a spring member which causes the expansion of the dimensional height sufficiently to adjust to the thickness of the flanges while forcing the flanges to tightly press on the bottom bearing surface of the fitment. In that case, this is the system in the dispenser that carries the elasticity function, thus simplifying the construction while making it more robust. 
     In another embodiment, emptying of the container may be facilitated and the space required may be reduced if the dispensing base adapter further comprises a pair of side bearing members extending upwardly and arranged in a close relationship with the pouch to support the flexible sidewalls of the pouch so as to maintain the pouch in a substantially upright position. 
     The invention also relates to a container especially adapted to closely fit with a dispensing device for preparing beverages comprising a pouch sized to receive a flowable food substance and a fitment portion located at the bottom of the pouch and attached thereto. The fitment comprises a pair of side-extending end flanges and at least one passage therebetween within which the flowable substance can flow by gravity and a removable closure member for sealing the passage before the container is in a fully engaged state within the dispensing device. 
     In a preferred aspect of the invention, the fitment is of a boat style and comprises an upper sealing portion having an elongated boat-style shape along which the bottom of the pouch is tightly sealed and a lower engaging portion at the lower end of which laterally extends the flanges. More preferably, the flanges of the fitment comprise an upward oriented brim at the edge of the flanges. 
     In another aspect, the invention relates to a beverage dispensing apparatus comprising means for adapting a container with a fitment having at least one pair of flanges and at least one passage therebetween for the flowable substance to flow by gravity; wherein the means comprise a pair of side channel guide members shaped to guide in slidable arrangement the flanges of the fitment and a bottom bearing surface for supporting the fitment. Preferably, the means for adapting the container includes means for holding the container in an upright position when the container is in a filled state and after correct positioning of the container with the dispensing apparatus. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Preferred features of the present invention are disclosed in the accompanying drawings, wherein similar references characters denote similar elements throughout the several views, and wherein: 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a dispensing device for the flowable substance made in accordance with the present invention with the container fitted in operation with the rest of the dispensing device; 
     FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 before the container is installed in the dispensing device; 
     FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view along line A—A of FIG. of the dispensing device to illustrate internal components; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the dispensing device along line B—B of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the container itself according to the embodiment of FIGS. 1-4; 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the dispensing base adapter of the invention; 
     FIG. 7 shows a cross sectional view along line C—C of the fitment of the container of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 7A illustrates a detail along line D—D of FIG. 3 of the sliding engagement of the fitment within the base adapter; 
     FIG. 7B illustrates a view similar to FIG. 7B but along line B—B of FIG. 3; 
     FIG. 8 illustrates a perspective view of the fitment of the container of FIG. 5; 
     FIG. 9 is a side view of the fitment of FIG. 8; 
     FIG. 10 is a top view of the fitment of FIG. 8; 
     FIG. 11 is a cross sectional view along line E—E of FIG. 10; 
     FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of the dispensing base adapter according to a variant of the invention; 
     FIG. 13 is a side view of the adapter of FIG. 12; 
     FIG. 14 is a front view of the adapter of FIG. 12; 
     FIG. 15 is a top view of the adapter of FIG. 15; and 
     FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the fitment according to the variant of FIGS. 12 to  15 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     A preferred exemplary embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1 to  11  wherein like numerals represent like parts. The dispensing device  1  is comprised of a removable container  2 , a lower dispensing base adapter  3  and further lower down a dispensing unit  4 . 
     The dispensing device is preferably a part of a more important beverage dispenser which can be of a general type in that it is a liquid dispensing type of vending machine from which the customer selects the type of drink that he/she wishes, such as coffee or tea, possibly creamer and/or sugar, or soup, etc. The downstream part of the dispenser as well as the automatic and control system are known in the art and will not be illustrated in detail herein. The dispensing device that is shown in the figures may be implemented in a more complete dispenser or vending machine with single or multiple devices being used depending upon the number of different types of powders or powder products desired within each machine. When multiple dispensing devices are used, each corresponds to only one type of powder such as coffee, decaffeinated coffee, cocoa, creamer, tea, powdered soup, etc., to provide a variety of different products in one machine. 
     The dispensing device  1  preferably comprises a removable container  2  which is mainly constituted of a flexible pouch  20  and a lower substantially rigid elongated fitment  25 . The pouch  20  is intended to form a refill of soluble powder of several tens of grams to several thousands of grams, for instance, more specifically between about 200 grams to about 2.5 kg. The pouch is preferably flexible, but a certain degree of rigidity of the sidewalls of the pouch may be envisaged as far as the side walls remains relatively flexible upon fitting within the rest of the dispensing device. There are numerous advantages for a flexible pouch compared to a non-deformable pouch, including space and cost savings, ease of manufacturing, improved airtight sealing, etc. The pouch may be made of metalized and/or non metalized plastic materials as desired. The pouch may be made of a laminate having oxygen and water barriers and optionally, UV barriers. Cardboard sheets may be part of the laminate to improve the rigidity of the pouch provided it remains sufficiently deformable. A typical pouch laminate is 48 gauge—metallized Polyester/Linear Low Density Polyethylene having an overall thickness of about 3.5 millimeters. 
     At the lower end of the pouch is sealed a fitment  25  made of a relatively more rigid material such as an injection molded plastic. The structure of the fitment and its connection to the pouch will be described in more detail further in the course of the description in relation to the corresponding figures. 
     Importantly, the fitment  25  plays the role of interface between the pouch onto which it is fixedly connected and the dispensing base adapter  3  mounted on the rest of the dispensing device. The dispensing base adapter  3  is intended to be part of the dispenser machine and fits to a dispensing unit  4  located directly below the base adapter  3 . The base adapter may be attached to the dispensing unit by any suitable connection means. For instance, it may simply fit by friction onto the dispensing unit. In alternative embodiments, the connection means may be removable positive connection means such as bolts or permanent connection means such as rivets or welding. 
     The dispensing base adapter  3  and the removable container  2  are complementary shaped so as to provide a slidable connection along a substantially horizontal and longitudinal direction I therebetween as shown in FIG.  2 . For that, the elongated fitment  25  comprises a lower engaging portion  26  which forms a substantially vertically oriented oval rigid ring and a pair of outwardly extending side flanges  27  which extend on each side at the lower ends of the engaging portion  26 . Turning to the dispensing base adapter, a pair of side bearing members  31  are provided at a location laterally spaced apart a distance W sufficient to allow the lower engaging portion  26  to engage therebetween. Extending transversally below the side bearing members  31  is a support base  32  forming a bearing bottom surface  33  of the adapter demarcating with the side members  31  a substantially longitudinal opening  34  for the reception of the fitment. Along the centerline of the bearing bottom surface  33  is aligned an elongated passage  35  for the powder to communicate in the lower dispensing unit  4 . The support base  32  and the bearing side members  31  are attached together by connection means such as screws/holes/nuts assemblies  36  distributed along each exterior side of the base adapter to form a substantially fixed subassembly. 
     As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 4, the two side bearing members  31  form together an upwardly tapered configuration with upper slanted portions  313  which extend in vertical direction along a significant height of the bearing members. The purpose of these slanted portions to provide support for the sidewalls  201  sufficient to maintain the pouch in upright position when it is filled with powder and consequently to facilitate the flow of the powder in the direction of the passage  35 . It should be noted that the container is specially designed to present a relatively narrow fitment of external width W 1 , lower than the overall width W 0  of the pouch, which is in fact necessitated for reducing as much as possible the space required for the dispensing lower part of the device of overall width W 2 . This space saving arrangement can be advantageously used for making more compact a single beverage vending machine and/or for increasing the number of dispensing devices within a multiple product vending machine. 
     The optimum height and inclination of the upper slanted portions  201  of the side bearing members  31  depend upon the size and capacity of the pouch and may be easily determined by routine experiments within the normal skill of the man in the art. It must be noted that the general profile of the bearing member may encompass various modifications. For example, the slanted portions may be replaced equally by curved tapering portions. Vertical bearing portions may also be used but may be detrimental due to increase in space requirements or decrease in overall capacity of the pouch. 
     A pair of side guiding recess or channel guide members  37  results from the combination of the bearing members  31  and the support base  32 . Each recess may preferably extend along the entire length of the bearing members  31  as illustrated in FIG.  3 . The support base is preferably shaped so as to present a shallow step  38  which corresponds to the dimensional height “h” of the recesses. The upper surface of the recesses is further limited by the lower inner edges  310  of the bearing members  31  which extends inwardly beyond the shallow step  38 . 
     As illustrated in FIGS. 6,  7 , and  7 B, the side channel guide members or recesses  37  provide along a significant portion of the adapter and, at least along the lateral side of the passage  35 , with a tight slidable arrangement for the flanges of the fitment. According to an important aspect of the invention, the connection between the fitment and the adapter is rendered tighter by providing a spring effect carried on the flanges which forces the flanges  27  to bend and compress against the bottom bearing surface  31  of the support base. More specifically, the flanges of the fitment comprises an upward oriented brim  28  at the edge of the flanges. The brim forms an upturned resilient lip that is forced to unbend within the restricted guiding recesses  37  as the flanges are slid into place. Because the height “h 0 ” of the brim, when the container is in a disengaged position, is taller than the dimensional height “h” of the recesses  37 , the brim is flexed downward so that it comes almost flat within the recess and creates a tight seal at the interface between the bearing surface  31  and the flanges. Consequently, the passage  35  is tightly connected to the interior  29  of the fitment and efficiently isolated from the outside environment which thus eliminates any risk of loss of the powder while also minimizing moisture ingress into the container. 
     The introduction of the fitment within the channel guide members due to these taller brims is preferably facilitated by advantageously providing an entry portion  311  forming a region of higher dimensional height “h 1 ” along a predetermined length of the guide means as better illustrated in FIGS. 3,  6  and  7 A. For that, the bearing members advantageously include a slight inverse step  312  with a progressively decreasing thickness “t” in the direction of the interior of the opening  34 . As a result of this decreasing distribution of thickness, the brims progressively flex as the fitment slidably engages into the adapter and the sliding motion of the fitment is rendered smoother without risking blockage of the container in a non-fully engaged position along the adapter. 
     FIGS. 5,  7  and  8  to  11  illustrates a preferred construction of the fitment of the container according to one preferred mode of the invention. The fitment is of a boat style having a sealing upper portion  28  having an elongated general profile with substantially vertically oriented side sealing surfaces  275 ,  276  with progressively narrowing opposite ends  280  terminated by short substantially flat edges  281 . The ends  280 ,  281  are substantially flat and front and back ends of the fitment. The side members are also substantially flat and are spaced apart at the widest distance of the V-shaped ends  280 ,  281 , similar to the configuration of a canoe. Such design has proved to be in the context of the invention the best mode for sealingly attaching the flexible pouch along an elongated configuration to the relatively more rigid fitment and guaranteeing a strong and air tight seal. However, more conventional constructions and sealing arrangement can also be used for certain products. For example, the side sealing surfaces can be configured as sidewalls which are at least partially or completely accurate as this results in a separation of the central portion of the side surfaces at a greater distance than the ends. In addition, sidewalls that include flat and accurate sections can be used. Of course, for optimum efficiency, the bearing surfaces  31  should be designed to conform to the sidewalls of the fitment. 
     As illustrated, the fitment dispenses the flowable substance through a main passage  29  which includes a lower section  290  having a shape and dimensions preferably matching the exact shape and dimensions of the passage  35  of the base adapter. The upper portion of passage  29  is configured and dimensioned to match that of the sidewalls  275 ,  276  and ends  280 . Preferably, the upper portion of the passage is provided a pair of angled or downwardly oriented chamfered end portions  287  which favor the collection of powder from the sides of the pouch toward the lower section of passage  29 . Therefore, the combination of the fitment design and the flexibility of the pouch works toward a more efficient and reliable emptying of the pouch. The sealing surfaces of the upper portion  28  are preferably structured to increase the strength of the seal with a series of longitudinally oriented ribs  282 . The connection between the pouch and the fitment is preferably obtained by heat sealing along the ribbed sealing surfaces of the portion  28 . In case it is appropriate due to the nature of the materials, heat sealing may be replaced by ultrasonic or friction welding or gluing with adhesives. The sealing connection has to withstand the mechanical efforts during the replacement of the container within the dispensing device although these efforts are kept minimal. It has also to withstand wet and warm ambient conditions such as storage extensive periods in tropical climates. 
     The fitment is preferably made of injection molded plastic material. The nature of plastic material and its thickness and hardness may vary depending upon the desired dimensions and rigidity for the intended purpose. Preferably, the plastic material has a low coefficient of friction to favor the sliding motion along the dispensing adapter. It may preferably be selected among polyolefine based plastic materials such as polyethylene or polypropylene material. 
     Referring to FIG. 5, the refill container  2  of the invention is of a simple but elegant closed concept especially adapted to quickly fit to the static part of the dispensing device. A significant amount of room can be saved with the general elongated shape of the pouch compared to large cylindrical or rectangular rigid containers. From a construction standpoint, the lower passage  29  of the fitment is securely sealed by a peelable closure or membrane  291  which can be stripped off after or at the time the fitment is engaged in the adapter. The pouch preferably includes barrier layers and its sealed membrane forms an impervious container that can be easily and conveniently transported and stored with essentially no risk of moisture ingress before it is coupled to the delivery system. Then, the coupling to the delivery system is such that a moisture ingress is still essentially prevented compared to the box type hopper and lid assemblies of the current state of the art. 
     FIG. 11 shows one solution for the peelable closure which has a first band portion  291   a  securely attached to the lower edge of the fitment around the lower section  29  of the passage and a second band portion  291   b  extending from the termination of the first portion by a folded portion  291   c  at one end and tab portion  291   d  terminating beyond the fitment contour at the opposite end. Upon introduction of the fitment in direction A, which corresponds to the side of the folded portion, the band may be removed by pulling the tab in the opposite direction to progressively free the passage  29 . The progressive opening of the passage preferably corresponds to the progressive matching of the passage of the container  29  and the passage of the adapter  35  together in order to prevent the powder from soiling the vicinity of the passage of the adapter. Friction during the sliding motion also helps to partly strip off the closure. Other mechanical means may be used which may engage the free portion  291   b  and strip off the closure progressively while the fitment is continuously fitted in the adapter. In that case, the free portion may advantageously be made shorter so as to engage at the time the fitment is fitted in the adapter. European Patent Application number 99200394.7 filed on Feb. 2, 1999 describes various solutions of peelable closures adapted to be stripped off in conditions of introduction of a powder refill in a vending machine; as these are useful in the present invention the disclosure of that application is herein incorporated by reference. 
     FIGS. 12 to  15  illustrates another variant of the invention in which the elastic means for making a tight seal between the fitment and the dispensing base adapter are integrated to the adapter itself. In this arrangement, the side bearing members  31  are elastically mounted onto the base plate  32  via series of spring biased mechanical connections  360 . More precisely, spring members  361  are inserted in sockets  363  of the base plate between the screws  362  of the connections and the abutting bottom surfaces of the sockets. As a result of this specific elastic construction, the channel guide members or recesses  37  of the adapter are capable of expanding in dimensional height sufficiently to adjust to the thickness of the flanges  27  of the fitment show in FIG.  16  and consequently form a press-fit arrangement. The thickness of the fitment “h 0 ” of the flanges  27  is chosen to be slightly taller than the height of the recesses  37  so as to allow the side bearing members to be forced upwardly slightly upon the action of sliding the fitment and to cause fitment to be compressed by reaction against the support base to reduce moisture ingress into the dispensing device and powder leakage outside the device. In that embodiment, the fitment flange may be made more rigid to support the compressive forces exerted thereon. 
     Referring again to FIG. 3, an abutment member  318  is located on the rear of the bottom bearing surface  33  to longitudinally cooperate with the front side of the engaging portion of the fitment and fix the container in the right position when the passage  29  of the fitment matches the contour of the passage  35  of the adapter. 
     The dispensing device of the invention has the base adapter  3  connected to a lower dispensing unit  4 . The dispensing unit is basically composed of a hopper portion or housing  40  having walls demarcating a interior volume  41  for collecting the powder in downward direction toward a dosing mechanism  42 . The dosing mechanism may be of various type. In a preferred embodiment, it would comprise a rotary screw or auger  43  axially mounted along the bottom of the housing. The screw or auger is driven in rotation through an axle  44  coupled to an electrical motor secured on the rear of the dispensing device (not shown). The electrical motor is preferably a non-intermittent DC motor system adaptable to commonly found electrical power supply. The speed as well as the time sequences of the motor can be properly adjusted according to electronic controlling means using programmated dispensing schemes to dispense the product in pre-set quantities. In an alternative the motor may be a DC stepping motor system which favors portion sizing of the powder more easily. 
     The powder is transported in direction “J” by the screw or auger toward an outlet  45  and is allowed to fall into a mixing bowl  46  from above. A predetermined amount of hot or cold water may be added from a separate inlet  47 . The mixture may be transferred to a whipping device  48  which may optionally be turned on when a whipping action is required for making a foamy beverage, for instance. The beverage is then transported to be dispensed by a tube  49  to a recipient or to another mixing bowl and whipping assembly when a mixture want to be made with other types of powder. Suitable arrangements of tubing and mixing and whipping zones are possible depending on the various combinations of preparations desired. 
     Although the use of flexible pouches is preferred as refills for the beverage dispensing apparatus of the invention, other containers may also be used such as those made of blow molded or injection molded plastics. 
     As various changes could be made in the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted in an illustrative rather than limiting sense.