Patent Description:
While the system detailed in said patent is bulky, portable devices for household use are described in <CIT>, <CIT> and <CIT>.

Needless to say, the lower is the pressure inside the food container the better is the food preservation because aerobic degradation processes are proportional to the concentration of oxygen in the container. In this regard, it is noteworthy to mention that most of the food vacuum systems for domestic use are capable to achieve limited vacuum levels, i.e. in the order of <NUM>-<NUM> mbar (<NUM>-<NUM> Pascal).

Also, an additional limit inherent with portable systems of the known art is the coupling of the vacuuming unit with the container to be evacuated. Such operation sometimes is often not totally straightforward, as a vertically elongated element needs to be coupled in a tight manner to the lid valve in an essentially perpendicular plane (the container lid). To avoid missteps in the coupling, great attention must be paid, especially during the start-up phase, to the positioning of the vacuum module on the food container. This problem can be overcome with the use of mechanical constraints that guarantee a correct coupling and thus allow the system to function, these mechanical constraints being usually movable and subject to wear.

Better performing evacuation equipment loses the portability requirement due to the weight of components, with particular reference to the weight of the vacuum pump, such systems being typically resident systems with a large rectangular base. A food container evacuation system according to preamble of claim <NUM> is also known from <CIT>.

Purpose of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the known art with a portable system capable to achieve a higher degree of vacuum in food containers, and in a first aspect thereof consists in a food container evacuation module according to claim <NUM>.

The term "inscribable in a box" with certain dimensions indicates that the case stays/is contained in such box.

The combination of the technical features of a food container evacuation module according to the present invention allows to achieve heightened operational performances combined with system portability and ease of use, in terms of reliable coupling between the evacuation module and the food container to be evacuated.

The combination of pump weight and pump flow rate at a given operating pressure are elements that allows a person skilled in the art to unambiguously identify a suitable pump for reducing to practice the present invention by simply looking at the information provided by the vacuum pump manufacturer, usually in the pump manual.

The invention will be further illustrated with the help of the following figures where:.

It is to be underlined that the above figures are representative schematics and views and as such dimensions or dimensional ratios are to be considered merely indicative of a certain element, component, module, system according to the present invention.

Moreover, some ancillary elements, such as electric tracks and circuitry, have not been represented as they are not essential to illustrate and understand the core of the invention and its underlying principle.

<FIG> shows a broken view of a first embodiment of a food container evacuation module <NUM> according to the present invention that comprises a case <NUM> shaped somewhat like binoculars in its lower part, with two circular elements <NUM>, <NUM> protruding from the bottom of case <NUM>. Circular elements <NUM>, <NUM> act as interfacing elements with the outside environment and each fulfills a different function.

Circular element <NUM> is suitable for coupling with a matching valve on a lid of a food container to be evacuated. It is to be remarked that its detailed structure and the means for coupling with a suitable food container to be evacuated are not the subject of the present invention as they are widely known to a person skilled in the art, as described for example in the aforementioned <CIT> and <CIT>. In the following, the circular element <NUM> will be also equivalently defined as "vacuuming interface".

Circular element <NUM> comprises a receiver suitable for coupling with a recharge base to charge rechargeable batteries <NUM>, <NUM>'. It is to be remarked that the detailed structure and coupling means for charging batteries <NUM>, <NUM>' as well as the charging control routine are not the subject of the present invention as they are widely known to a person skilled in the art and widely diffused in the telecommunication sector for mobile phones charging, as described for example in <CIT>. In the following, the circular element <NUM> will be also equivalently defined as "charging interface".

Needless to say, within case <NUM> there is a suitable electric circuit (not shown) to deliver electrical current to rechargeable batteries <NUM>, <NUM>' that supply current to a T-shaped pump <NUM> and to a display <NUM> for showing the operating status of module <NUM> as well as other useful information, for example vacuum level and battery level. Batteries <NUM>, <NUM>' also provide current to the control electronics module, a printed circuit board (PCB) present within the module (not shown).

Preferably the control electronics module should be able to switch between two operational modes, a standard mode when the food container evacuation module is operated at full vacuuming capacity, i.e. the residual pressure in the coupled container reaches about <NUM> mbar (<NUM> Pascal), and a "soft vacuum", when the residual pressure stays at about <NUM> mbar (<NUM> Pascal). Such dual operational mode enables for more versatility and allows use with "soft shell" food, such as berries.

For the higher pressure operation, a system according to present invention, i.e. comprising a pump with a flow rate of at least <NUM>/min at a residual pressure of <NUM> Pascal, ensures that the target pressure is reached in a short time. This is a secondary advantage of the present invention, with respect to the main advantage associated with the standard mode, i.e. the capability of reaching <NUM> mbar in less than <NUM> minute.

Pump <NUM> is composed by two main parts, i.e. motor <NUM>" and suction head <NUM>', and a connecting pipe <NUM> puts in communication the suction head <NUM>' with the vacuuming interface <NUM>. Batteries <NUM>, <NUM>' also provide current to a relief valve <NUM> that is also connected to the vacuuming interface <NUM> through a connecting pipe <NUM> to allow disengagement of the coupled food container once the proper vacuum level is reached. Such vacuum level can be measured by a pressure transducer <NUM> connected through a pipe <NUM> to the vacuuming interface <NUM>. Relief valve <NUM> may be automatically or manually controlled, and in the case of automatically controlled relief valves the preferred ones are those based on shape memory alloy (SMA) wires, solenoid valves or piezoelectric valves.

As mentioned, the invention is characterized by the use of a specific class of pump allowing to achieve superior vacuum levels and being compact and light, more specifically pumps that according to their specification have a pumping flow rate of at least <NUM>/min at a residual pressure of <NUM> Pascal.

Such feature can be easily verified by curves typically provided with the pump itself or by connecting the pump to a suitable test bench. In this regard, the pump requirements are met if at a residual pressure of <NUM> Pascal or below (in a real environment it is not meaningful to express an absolute pressure value as testing condition) the pumping flow rate is no less than <NUM>/min, preferably no less than <NUM>/min at <NUM> Pascal. An alternate method to verify if a pump is suitable to be used is to verify if during an evacuation cycle from atmospheric pressure the data point at <NUM> Pascal, directly measured or as extrapolated by the flow/pressure curve, provides a pumping flow rate of at least <NUM>/min, or preferably the data point at <NUM> Pascal provides a pumping flow rate of at least <NUM>/min.

The invention is not limited to a specific type of pump as long as it fulfills the above specified condition on flow rate at a certain pressure level, even though preferred pumps are the so called double head T-diaphragm pumps, single head L-shaped pumps, rolling diaphragm pumps and linear diaphragm pumps. Moreover such pumps shall also satisfy the condition of having their weight comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>.

With reference to the material of case <NUM>, it is preferable to use plastics, more preferably acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic (ABS) or polycarbonate (PC). The preferred solution is such that the case shape and the plastic materials of choice are optimized for an injection molding process, those specified above being the preferred materials, even though a person skilled in the art knows immediately how to select other variants, see for example the paper "<NPL>.

Preferably, case <NUM> has an internal support structure designed in nylon reinforced with glass fiber, preferably in an amount comprised between <NUM> wt% and <NUM> wt% (calculated over the weight of the support structure), because it is the best solution to combine strength and vibration absorption. Variants could comprise as constituting material recycled plastics, bioplastics, steel, aluminum alloys or wood because they could be advantageous in terms of different characteristics, such as wear resistance, lightness, strength, sustainability/recyclability.

More in detail, in order to maintain optimal easy handling and portability of the food container evacuation module <NUM>, the overall weight of the components, excluding the vacuum pump, should be comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>.

For the same reason, the shape of case <NUM> is inscribable in a box with height comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, width comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, depth comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>. The two circular protrusions <NUM>, <NUM> with diameter comprised between <NUM> and <NUM> and height comprised between <NUM> and <NUM> project from the bottom part of case <NUM> (i.e. the part for food container coupling) and are not taken into account for the dimensions of the above-mentioned box.

The case shape may vary as long as it fulfills the above geometric requirements, even though preferred is the use of a rounded shape for easier handling and the one resembling a pair of binoculars in the lower part is the most preferred one.

It is to be underlined that the food container evacuation module <NUM> described in <FIG> is a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, its essential features being recited in the first claim of the present application, all the other features being optional or easily modifiable by a person of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

In this regard, the pressure transducer <NUM>, whose preferred operating range is <NUM>-<NUM> Pascal, is to be considered an optional element since the pressure level could be determined, albeit less precisely, from the power absorbed by the vacuum pump (the lower the pressure, the lower the absorbed current) or by evaluation based on the vacuum pump operation time.

The preferred way to recharge the rechargeable batteries, whose energy is preferably comprised between <NUM>-<NUM> Wh and more preferably between <NUM> and <NUM> Wh is the one outlined in <FIG>, i.e. through inductive wireless charging. Alternately, a proper socket could be present in case <NUM> for power supply through a cable via a suitable voltage transformer. This allows also for the module operation when the batteries are depleted.

The present invention is not limited to a specific type of display, even though the preferred one is an organic light-emitting device (OLED). Also, in some alternate embodiments the display can be replaced with other types of communicating elements and interfaces, such as LED lights with different color indicators, sound type communications, haptic feedbacks.

The module turning on operation may be achieved through a button or similar mechanical mechanism (lever, mechanical switch) or via a touchscreen display. Turning off may be both manually set or automatically driven once proper vacuum is achieved in the food container connected to the food container evacuation module. At the same time, module <NUM> may present some other additional elements, for example a vacuum pump muffler may be added depending on the noise during operation of the vacuum pump.

Also, another optional element is a port for connecting with the vacuum pump suction head a piping element external to the module case, for evacuation of a deformable food containing element (i.e. plastic sachet/bag) or more generally coupling with a valve for different types of food containers.

A schematic representation of the broken view of a second embodiment of a food container evacuation module <NUM> according to the present invention is shown in <FIG>. The main difference with respect to <FIG> is that the charging interface <NUM> has been replaced with a gas bottle <NUM> whose opening and closing is controlled by an electronic driver <NUM>, while the rechargeable batteries can be recharged via a suitable socket in the food container evacuation module case for connection to the mains, allowing for its portability and use without the need of having a proximity with a mains socket.

The gas bottle <NUM> is refillable or replaceable and its volume is preferably comprised between <NUM><NUM> and <NUM><NUM>. A replaceable bottle more easily allows for inserting into the food container different gases and so tailor the protective modified atmosphere to the food to preserve, preferred gases to be used for such purposes being nitrogen, carbon dioxide, argon and their mixtures. Some information on the role of different gases together with vacuuming for food preservation can be found, for example, in the chapter "Modified atmospheres and vacuum packaging" of the book "Food Preservatives" by A.

In addition, the pressure transducer <NUM> is located in a different position and the container to be coupled to module <NUM> shall obviously present a suitable interface for fluid-tight coupling with the gas bottle <NUM>.

In a second aspect thereof the invention is inherent to a food container evacuation system <NUM> according to claim <NUM>, as shown in <FIG>.

The evacuation module <NUM> has an on/off button <NUM>, and in the lower part are present a vacuuming interface <NUM> and a charging interface <NUM>.

The first coupling circle <NUM> on the food container lid <NUM> is for active vacuuming of the food container <NUM>, meaning that it presents suitable elements to put in fluid communication the food container atmosphere with the vacuum pump suction head in a safe and efficient manner. Namely, it presents a non-return valve capable of preventing the unwanted entry of air into the food container <NUM>, for example during the disengagement of the evacuation module <NUM> from the food container via relief valve actuation, and at the same time prevents any spill-out in the evacuation module <NUM> from the food container <NUM> during evacuation.

In the preferred embodiment, the ventilation of container <NUM> is done directly through the evacuation valve, that can be opened allowing ambient air to enter when the food is to be consumed/accessed. In this regard, the preferred solution envisions the use of lifting mechanisms, such as straps, to allow the entry of air, as described in <CIT>.

The second coupling circle <NUM> of the food container lid <NUM> is simply a lid protrusion in order to provide mechanical stability to the vacuum system during operation through mechanical coupling with charging interface <NUM> of the evacuation module <NUM>. Needless to say, the internal diameter of the coupling circles <NUM>, <NUM> must substantially match the external diameter of the vacuuming interface <NUM> and of the charging interface <NUM> respectively.

The wireless charging base <NUM> has an inductive charging element <NUM> for suitable coupling and energy transmission to charging interface <NUM> of the evacuation module <NUM>. Moreover it presents raised edges <NUM>, <NUM>' on its extremities to hold in place the evacuation module <NUM> during charging.

A variant of system <NUM> uses the evacuation module <NUM> shown in <FIG>, whereby the system does not include a wireless charging base, but possibly a support base. In this variant, the second coupling circle <NUM> is replaced with a suitable fluid-tight interface for the injection of a gaseous protective atmosphere during the connection with the gas bottle <NUM> in the evacuation module <NUM> and subsequent container sealing after its disconnection. The advantages of combining vacuum and a modified atmosphere for food preservation are for example described in <CIT>.

With regard to the power source for the food container evacuation system according to the present invention, it could be a transformer to allow for direct connection to the voltage mains or, as already outlined, a battery pack contained in the evacuation module to be coupled with a recharging base, preferable a wireless recharging base, or to be charged via the above-mentioned transformer.

In a third aspect thereof, the invention consists in a food container suitable to be coupled with a food container evacuation module according to claim <NUM>.

The lid of the food container is circular with a diameter between <NUM> and <NUM> and has a convex shape to improve resistance to the pressure levels reached inside it. The lid has two circular outward protrusions matching the position and outside diameter of the evacuation module charging interface and vacuuming interface, said protrusions having the function of reinforcing the lid structure by acting as a structural reinforcing rib, in addition to the function of improving the coupling between the evacuation module and the container.

It is to be underlined that the present invention is not limited to any lid material nor to any specific lid thickness, as long as the lid is able to sustain the pressure difference between the external environment and the evacuated container. Such combination of parameters is readily ascertainable by a person skilled in the art, taking into account the ultimate vacuum level within the food containers and reasonable thicknesses. The most useful materials have a flexural strength comprised between <NUM> MPa and <NUM> MPa. In a preferred embodiment, lids are made with a plastic material, whose minimum thickness is chosen depending on the material flexural strength, starting from about <NUM> for the more robust materials.

The minimum thickness of the lid is usually in correspondence of indentations to accommodate the two food container evacuation module protrusions.

Claim 1:
Food container evacuation module (<NUM>; <NUM>; <NUM>) comprising a case (<NUM>) with a top portion and a bottom portion, the case containing a vacuum pump (<NUM>) with a suction head (<NUM>'),
wherein in the bottom portion of said case (<NUM>) there are means (<NUM>; <NUM>) for coupling said suction head (<NUM>') with evacuation valving means located on the lid (<NUM>) of a food container (<NUM>),
characterized in that the weight of said vacuum pump (<NUM>) is comprised between <NUM> and <NUM> and its pumping flow rate is at least <NUM>/min at a residual pressure of <NUM> Pascal,
wherein the case (<NUM>) is inscribable in a box with height comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, width comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, and depth comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>,
wherein two circular protrusions (<NUM>, <NUM>; <NUM>, <NUM>), whose diameter is comprised between <NUM> and <NUM> and height comprised between <NUM> and <NUM>, are present at the bottom of the case (<NUM>), the presence of said two circular protrusions (<NUM>, <NUM>; <NUM>, <NUM>) not being taken into account for calculating the dimensions of the above-mentioned box, wherein it includes one or more rechargeable battery packs (<NUM>, <NUM>'), preferably with an energy comprised between <NUM> and <NUM> Wh, more preferably between <NUM> and <NUM> Wh,
wherein a first (<NUM>; <NUM>) of said circular protrusions acts as a vacuuming interface that is suitable for coupling with said evacuation valving means located on the lid (<NUM>) of a food container (<NUM>), and a second (<NUM>; <NUM>) of said circular protrusions acts as a charging interface that is suitable for coupling with a recharge base to charge said rechargeable battery packs (<NUM>, <NUM>').