Patent ID: 8776839

Claim:
An apparatus comprising a filling element for filling containers with a liquid product, said filling element comprising an actuation device, a connection, a controlled gas circuit comprising a closed gas space, a first gas channel section, and a second gas channel section that is separate and distinct from said first gas channel section, a delivery opening, a filling element housing, a fluid channel, a fluid valve, and a switching valve, wherein said fluid channel is formed in said housing, wherein said connection is formed in said housing to supply liquid product to said channel, wherein said delivery opening is connected to said fluid channel for delivering liquid product into a container, wherein said delivery opening is disposed in said fluid channel for delivering said liquid product into a container that is provided at said filling element and that is connected to said filling element in a sealed manner, wherein said fluid valve is disposed within said fluid channel between said connection and said delivery opening, wherein said actuation device is configured for controlled opening and closing of said fluid channel, wherein said switching valve is provided in said controlled gas circuit for switching between a first state of said controlled gas circuit and a second state of said controlled gas circuit, wherein said switching valve is in said first switching state when said fluid valve is closed, wherein said switching valve is in said second switching state when said fluid valve is open, wherein, in said first state, said controlled gas circuit pre-loads an interior space of said container with a pressurization gas, wherein, in said a second state, said controlled gas circuit receives return gas that has been forced out of said respective container during filling thereof, wherein, in said first state, said controlled gas circuit has a first effective flow cross-section, wherein, in said second state, said controlled gas circuit has a second effective flow cross-section that is less than said first effective cross section, wherein said first and second gas channel sections are in parallel between a gas source and said closed gas space, wherein, in said first state, said first and second gas channel sections are both connected to said controlled gas circuit so that gas from said gas source flows through both said first gas channel section and said second gas channel section into said closed gas space, and wherein, in said second state, only one of said first and second gas channel sections is connected to said controlled gas circuit so that gas from said gas source flows through only one of said first and second gas channel sections.