JPH0238463B2 - - Google Patents

Abstract

An infusion bag (10) for particulate food products (P) such as tea or coffee, constructed of a tube of perforated thermoplastic film (10) or other porous material having a central product-containing portion and flattened end portions (16, 17) on each end thereof, the perforated thermoplastic film (11) or other porous material having a multiplicity of minute holes or openings which are sufficiently small in size to prevent the migration of the particulate product therethrough but which are sufficiently large in size and number to permit adequate fluid flow therethrough. Joining together of the flattened end portions (16, 17) forms a flow-through or dual container type infusion bag and a handle for extending over the side of a cup or pot. The film is substantially odorless and tasteless.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates in particular to leaching packages such as T-bags, particularly those made of non-woven, fiber-free perforated thermoplastic films or other porous materials. Regarding the leaching package.

The present invention particularly relates to infusion packages constructed from coextruded, multilayer, perforated thermoplastic films with a plurality of uniform micropores or apertures, which provide a relatively flat configuration for boxing and which facilitate double chambering. It can be converted into a type or distribution type bag.

(Prior Art) Most tea bags currently on the market are of the "pillow" bag type, double bag or distribution type. Bags are made of paper, and threads and tabs are attached to the paper with staples or adhesive. Although these two types of bags have met with some success, their wet strength is poor. A single-chamber pillow-shaped bag is a flat bag made of liquid-permeable material that can be used for personal use.
It also contains enough tea to serve a large number of people in large packages used in restaurants. The tea adapts to the internal volume and spreads inside the bag. When the tea becomes wet, it forms a swollen, dense mass that fills the bag. The swollen tea pushes the inner wall of the bag outward. Squeezing or other external pressure applied to the bag may cause it to break or tear and release its contents, which is undesirable. To overcome this swelling, some bags are constructed with pleats on the inside. Although somewhat effective, they suffer from wet strength deficiencies and create other problems.

The use of a brewing package containing two or more filling compartments satisfies that need.
The compartment junctions allow liquid flow between the compartments and provide a large bag surface area for passing extraction liquid. Although such bags improve infusion preparation, they suffer from the wet strength defects customary in "pillow" type bags and create other problems such as assembly and packaging.

Infusion-type tea packages are generally rectangular packages made of single or multiple pieces of paper that are folded or sealed along their periphery. Another type is formed by folding a single piece of paper twice longitudinally and joining the two meeting edges in a double fold at the internal center. In the flow-through type T-bag, the middle of the folded paper strip is folded horizontally three times to create two pockets, the open ends are folded over, and a thread with a tab is attached to one end of the pocket. Partially fill with tea.

Over the years, there has been extensive development of infusion packages or bags containing tea that are commonly served as beverages. The package is usually constructed from filter paper or other type of porous material.

Infusion packages are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,290,521 that are in an expanded or uneven state when in use, but can be folded into a flat configuration for processing and packaging. A tension strip having a tab at one end is adhesively attached to the top of the package cage and, when pulled, expands the package from its flattened configuration.

A dosage pack or infusion package having two permeable bags interconnected along a common seam and placed in face-to-face relationship folded together along a fold extending into the common seam is It is described in Patent No. 4055668. A gripping thread is located between the two bags and has one end attached to one of the bags.

US Pat. No. 3,899,599 describes a one- or two-chamber tea cage. The package has a flexible piece attached to the outside of the chamber that can be partially removed to provide a sling that holds the package in place within the container.

A brewing package having two oppositely located hard separate tea pockets with two tapered end portions joined together to form a narrow triangular porous cup is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,597,222. Are listed.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,653,913 describes an infusion made of rectangular pieces of porous fibrous material, the longitudinal edges of which are folded together to form a longitudinal joint consisting of three layers carved together. Enter the tag for use. The formed tubular body is folded horizontally to form a pair of chambers for containing the perfusate, and the ends of the tube are joined together to close the package.

An early type of T-Bag or T-Ball, in which the bag was a triangular shaped pocket made from a rectangular piece of perforated aluminum foil, was published in the U.S. Patent No.
Described in No. 1581578.

Other types of filter paper bags with various modifications are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 2328017 and U.S. Patent No. 2359292.
No. 3,566,573, US Pat. No. 4,153,153 and British Patent No. 2,087,350.
British Patent No. 2,503,668 describes a tie bag with accordion pleats.

A brewing package with positioning means and flotation means is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,797,642 and U.S. Pat.
Each is described in No. 3809215. The tea bags themselves can be made of a variety of materials including paper, plastic materials such as nylon, perforated plastic films such as polyester, or natural or synthetic woven or non-woven fabrics.

A porous leachable bag constructed from a blend of unique fabrics or cellulosic fibers with small amounts of thermoplastic fibers is described in Canadian Patent No. 802,720.

The above-described infusion bags or packages with paper or fibrous bags currently on the market have met with varying degrees of success. One of the problems with paper bags is their lack of wet strength. Paper packages must be strong enough to withstand squeezing and other pressures commonly applied by consumers and other users.

An infusion pot for drinking food such as tea, coffee, etc. must have a number of characteristics.
It is necessary not to impart taste factors to the infused liquid. As a result, it must be virtually tasteless and odorless. Also, for example in steeping tea, coffee or similar beverage substances, sufficient strength is required to accommodate the beverage substance in boiling water. It should also be sufficiently porous to allow liquid to diffuse through it, but the pores or openings should be of a size that inhibits leakage of beverage substances whether the bag is dry or immersed in liquid. . It is also important that leaching is started within seconds and completed within minutes. The package, bag or bag, such as a tea scent bag, can be squeezed after infusion, and it is desirable to retain integrity and some strength without destruction of the container.

Thermoplastic films such as polyethylene and polypropylene are common packaging materials. Various multilayer films are also quite common packaging materials.
These films are generally non-porous and are resistant to water,
Impermeable to other liquids. At least one of the layers of this film has strong adhesive properties.
Examples of such multilayer films are U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,169;
No. 4,239,826, US Pat. No. 4,233,367, US Pat. No. 3,908,070, US Pat. No. 3,423,231, US Pat. No. 2,817,124, and US Pat. No. 2,817,123.

Perforated thermoplastic films are used for food packaging such as cheese, for horticultural and agricultural purposes, to prevent weed growth while moisture is transferred through the film to the underlying soil, and for applications such as disposable diapers. It has many useful uses, such as being used in the manufacture of absorbent structures (see US Pat. No. 3,814,101).

Perforation of thermoplastic films is commonly accomplished by vacuum perforation of thin plastic films, such as those obtained by extruding a molten polymeric material such as polyethylene through a fine-hole die. The hot melt web of film leaving the die is applied to a mold and a vacuum is applied through the mold to the film web to be perforated to form holes therein. Depending on the format used, the film can have as few as 50 holes per square inch to as many as several thousand holes per square inch. An early method for vacuum perforation of plastic film is described in US Pat. No. 3,054,148.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) The invention of this application solves the problems associated with the handle part of the prior art, such as foreign matter getting mixed into the exudate.
It is intended to address the problems of wet strength defects and ease of packaging.

The present invention meets the conditions for brewing tea,
It is a further object to provide an infusion package or bag which overcomes the problems associated with the prior art.

(Technical Means for Solving the Problems) The infusion package of the present invention is characterized in that it has an elongated flattened end portion in the center.

More particularly, the infusion bag of the present invention is of a porous, non-woven, non-fibrous construction of multi-layer extruded perforated thermoplastic film or other porous material having a large number of micropores or openings. . The thermoplastic film is a multilayer extruded film having one outer layer that is heat resistant and another outer layer that is less heat resistant and heat sealable. The apertures in the perforated thermoplastic film or porous material are of sufficient size to retain the tea, coffee, etc. granular article within the package and to restrict or prevent leakage of the particles through the pores, whether the particles are dry or wet. It is the level of detail. The pores or apertures in the perforated thermoplastic film or porous material are also of sufficient size and number to provide the desired degree of leaching. One outer layer of the apertured thermoplastic film is polyester or polypropylene or other high temperature thermoplastic. The other outer layer is polyethylene or other slightly less heat resistant thermoplastic. The perforated thermoplastic film or porous material is substantially odorless and tasteless.

Note that the distinctions in the structure of each independent claim in the claims of the present invention are as follows.

The invention set forth in claim 1 is a "package" of an infusion package filled with a product.

The invention set forth in claims 4 and 18 is a packaging material such as a bag for producing the infusion package set forth in claim 1. In the configurations described in these sections, regarding the packaging material portion according to claim 1, it is further clarified that "at least one flattened end portion has an elongated slot or opening." We believe that this clearly clarifies the invention as a packaging material.

The difference between claim 4 and claim 18 is that
The packaging material described in item 4 is made of a thermoplastic film, whereas the packaging material described in item 18 is made of a porous material.

Advantages of the Invention The infusion package of the present invention has the ability to form a handle with an integral flattened end portion.

That is, since this handle is integral, there is no risk that the handle will come apart from the main body of the brewing package during brewing and enter the liquid contained in the brewing package and contaminate the liquid.

In addition, this configuration has advantages in terms of packaging, such as avoiding the trouble of attaching a separate handle portion at the time of packaging. That is, the product is better packaged compared to the previously known paper bags with threads attached with staples or adhesives.

Furthermore, since the material is such that the central product housing portion and the flattened end portions can be separated by heat sealing, the material has sufficient wet strength and does not deteriorate in boiling water.

Additionally, the infusion bag of the present invention itself is odorless and tasteless, and does not impart any other taste to the packaged product. In fact, it is virtually inert.

EMBODIMENTS According to the accompanying drawings, the infusion package or bag of the present invention is generally occupied by 10. Bag or package 10 consists of a rectangular piece of perforated plastic film 11, the details of which will be described below. Holes in the film are not shown for ease of illustration. The film piece 11 is sealed at intermediate positions 13 and 14 and filled with granular material P, 12
It can be bent in the longitudinal direction. P is visible through the film 11 between the seal points. After the material P is inserted into the bag 10, the end portion 15
, thereby material P is packaged in package 1
Encased in 0.

The intermediate sealing portions 13 and 14 provide tabs 16 and 17 on either side of the material P. For convenience, knob 1
6 and 17 are formed with elongated cuts or longitudinal slots 18 and 19, respectively.

The infusion package of the invention has been described in its simplest form. Such packages can be easily manufactured on current filling and packaging machines with minor modifications. Bags are relatively flat and can be easily wrapped and boxed in the same manner as cigarette boxes.

Figures 6 and 7 illustrate two means by which, once flattened as described above, the bag can be easily transformed into a double-chamber type or flow-through type bag. In FIG. 6, the tab 16 can be inserted into the elongated cutout 19 of the tab 17. The tabs 16 and 17 are of sufficient length to provide a handle that can easily be passed over the side wall of a cup or beverage pot.

In Figure 7, the elongated cuts are not used and each tab is assembled as a half knot or a full knot as desired. Knobs 16 and 17 are of sufficient length to readily provide the desired handle.

The leaching bag or leaching package is a coextruded multilayer film 11 consisting of an outer layer of a heat-resistant thermoplastic such as polyester or polyolefin (polyester is preferred) and an inner sealant layer of a slightly less heat-resistant thermoplastic such as polyethylene. It preferably consists of: The film 11 has a large number of micropores or capillaries and is somewhat tapered in structure and more or less frustoconical when the pores are circular or oval.

Holes or apertures in the film are not shown for ease of illustration. The aperture may be of any desired shape, such as circular, oval, rectangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, or other geometric shape. Each pore is uniform, of sufficient size and number to provide adequate leaching, and of a sufficiently small size to prevent particles such as particulate material P from leaking through.

In packages of materials such as tea, the preferred pore size is 2 to 10 mils (0.00508 to 0.00508
0.0254 cm), and most preferably 3 to 4 mils (0.00762 to 0.01016 cm).
It is. The film has a thickness of 0.25 to 2 mils (0.000635 to 0.00508 cm) and 500 holes per square inch (77.5 holes per square centimeter) or more. A hole count of 1800 to 4200 holes per square inch (279 to 651 holes per square centimeter) is preferred, and a hole count of about 2900 holes per square inch (449.5 holes per square centimeter) is most preferred. The porosity of the film is preferably 50 to 500 ^ft3 /min) (CFM)
(23597 to 235973.7 cm ³ /sec).

The outer layer of the bag's coaxial or coextruded perforated thermoplastic film is 425° to 600° (from 218.83
Heat resistant polyesters having a melting point of 315.56°C (315.56°C) are preferred, with 525° (273.89°C) being most preferred. Bag's coextruded perforated thermoplastic film inner sealant layer is 180° to 250° (from 82.22
It is a slightly less heat resistant polyethylene film having a melting point of 121.11°C (121.11°C), and most preferably one with a melting point of 220°C (104.44°C). With the use of an outer polyester layer, a seal temperature/melting point temperature difference of approximately 150° (65.56°C) can be obtained. The film has a desired seal strength of 3/4 pound per inch of width (133.9 g/cm).

Melting of the polyethylene film for sealing requires a temperature of approximately 240°C (115.56°C). To prevent the outer layer of thermoplastic film from sticking to the sealing equipment or the steel components of the heat sealing machine, the melting point of the polyethylene must be adjusted to approximately 260°C.
(126.67℃) or below. Although certain polyolefins and other film-forming resins may have higher or lower melting points, it is important to provide a differential melt temperature between each layer to achieve the desired seal without film deterioration effects. .

The ends of the bag and the intermediate sealing area can be easily heat sealed using standard sealing and automatic bag sealing machines. The distal and intermediate sealing regions can also be effectively sealed using impact or band type sealing devices, hot wire, hot air, or other suitable equipment or means.

The longitudinal ends of the film are heat sealed to complete the packaging. The melt flow of the outer layer must be high enough to prevent sticking of the film to the sealing components. The inner sealant layer must have a melting temperature lower than the outer layer, but high enough to melt the inner layer to obtain the desired seal. For typical beverage commercial tea packaging, a suitable perforated thermoplastic film for construction of the infusion bag is a coextruded polypropylene/polyethylene perforated thermoplastic film formed from high density polyethylene and resin polypropylene resin. These resins are odorless and tasteless and are recommended for use in food packaging.

The color of the film is preferably transparent, but can be manufactured in natural colors or in a variety of colors as desired or permitted by government regulations.

The film has a dry surface and does not stick, tangle or clump.

Perforated thermoplastic films suitable for use in the present invention have a male side and a female side. In the construction of the brewing bag, the male side of the film is inside the bag. This relationship effectively seals the tabs of the package located on either side of the pocket or area containing the article.

The invention is described in its simplest form as a small infusion bag, typical of a package for personal drinking tea. However, larger packages such as those customarily used in food service establishments are also possible. Such a large bag is similarly constructed, and is constructed by sealing all four sides of two rectangular film pieces. Although the bags or packages of the present invention may be constructed in other geometric shapes as desired, rectangular packages are suitable for boxing and other collective packaging, and are generally easier to implement.

The material is filled into the center of the tubular section and the ends are heat sealed to form the tab section. Heat sealing is preferred, although other sealing methods can be used if desired. In addition, the flat knob has engravings, advertisements,
Provides a good surface for illustrative or other printing.

The cross-sectional shape of the filled bag is somewhat circular or elliptical, but may have any desired geometry, such as a star shape to promote flow and increase exposed surface.
In other configurations of the invention, two thermoplastic films
Align the two strips or ribbons male side to male side.

A thin layer of a tea-like material is deposited on the upper (male) surface of the lower ribbon. The top ribbon is then placed over the material and sealed along each end portion, with intermittent spot seals between each end in a regular or irregular pattern. This point seal closes the two ribbons together and prevents collection of material.
The male surface of the film is used to effectively prevent agglomeration of tea and other materials, thereby providing maximum surface area for the tea to be exposed to infusion.

Besides the above-mentioned advantages, the present invention also provides improved material distribution, rapid filling possibilities, thread material,
No staples or other external materials are required. A unique means of squeezing the bag is by simultaneously pulling and crushing the ends of the tubular body or package.

Although coextruded multilayer apertured plastic films are preferred, other types of apertured thermoplastic films can also be used. Of course, such a film must provide adequate leaching and sufficient strength for the intended purpose.

Some examples of film-forming resins suitable for making the perforated thermoplastic films that make up the infusion packages of the present invention are polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), crystalline polyester (CPE), amorphous polyester (APE), These are polycarbonate (PC) and nylon (N).

In addition to CPE/PE, examples of suitable multilayer films for use in constructing the infusion packages of the present invention include:

PC/PE PC/PE N/PP CPE/PP PC/PP N/PE CPE/APE PC/APE N/APE In addition to double-layer thermoplastic films, triple-layer films or films with as many layers as desired are also available. Can be used. Of course, such films must be of the perforated type and meet the desired leaching rate and packaging requirements.

Although the present invention is particularly directed to brew packages or bags constructed from perforated thermoplastic film, other types of porous materials may be suitably used, including paper, cloth, and similar types of materials. These porous materials also provide adequate leaching and sufficient strength for the intended purpose.

Although the invention is particularly suitable for packaging tea, it can be used for packaging other types of finely ground or granulated food products such as coffee, groats, etc. This bag can be used to package any item for which leaching is desired.

(Effects of the invention) In the present invention, the effects of the invention cannot be separated from the effects of the invention. It is stated after the section on methods).

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view of the embodiment of FIG. FIG. 3 is an end view of the embodiment of FIG. Figure 4 is 4 in Figure 1.
-4 sectional view. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 in FIG. FIG. 6 is an embodiment of FIG. 1 showing one method of assembling the ends of the package together. FIG. 7, like FIG. 6, is a diagram showing another method of combining both ends of the package.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A leaching package for a granulated or pulverized product, wherein the product containing package has sufficient wet strength or stability such that the package is destroyed even when squeezed after liquid leaching. The package is made of a tubular body made of porous thermoplastic film, and has no external attachment members such as staples, threads, tabs, tags, etc., and the tubular body has a central product storage area, a central a product in a product receiving portion of the product, having elongated flattened end portions at each end, the ends being oppositely located, and each of the flattened end portions being sealed to the central product; Separate from the receiving portion, said oblate end portion is extended and has a length such that it can be knotted together, such that when in the knotted state they form an integral handle. A package comprising a distribution type package with an attached package, in which most of the central product accommodating portion hangs below a handle formed by the flattened end portion. 2. The infusion package according to claim 1, wherein each package is flat so that a plurality of packages can be packaged into a rectangular parallelepiped. 3. An infusion package according to claim 1, which can be lined up in a flat relationship after being filled with a product and can be packaged as a rectangular aggregate. 4. An infusion package for granulated or pulverized products, consisting of a tubular body of porous thermoplastic film, said tubular body having a central product-receiving section and elongated flattened end sections at each end. the ends are oppositely located, each of the flattened end portions is sealed and separated from the central product receiving portion, and the flattened end portions are elongated and have a length of lengths that can be tied together so that when tied together they constitute a distribution-type package cage with integral handles, in which most of the central product-containing section is adapted to hang downwardly, at least one of said flattened end portions has an elongated slot or opening therein, and one flattened end portion is inserted into another flattened end portion. said thermoplastic film having a large number of uniform small pores or apertures of a size smaller than the floating particles of the particulate product contained in the central product-containing portion, but of a size that allows liquid to pass through. Package like you have. 5. The leaching package according to claim 4, wherein the perforated thermoplastic film is a polyester film. 6. The leaching package of claim 4, wherein the film has at least about 77.5 holes per square centimeter. 7. The infusion package of claim 4 having from about 279 to about 651 holes per square centimeter. 8. A percolation package according to claim 4, having approximately 449.5 holes per square centimeter. 9. The leaching package according to claim 4, wherein the pores of the film are circular, oval, rectangular,
Packages with pentagonal, hexagonal or other desired geometric shapes. 10. The infusion package of claim 4, wherein the opening or hole in the film is about 0.00508 to 0.0254 cm from its longest axis. 11. The infusion package of claim 4, wherein the opening or hole in the film is about 0.00762 to 0.01016 cm from its longest axis. 12. The infusion package according to claim 4, wherein the perforated thermoplastic film is a polyester film, a polycarbonate film, a polypropylene film, a polyethylene film, a nylon film, or a combination of these films. 13. An infusion package according to claim 4, which has sufficient wet strength or stability to allow the package to be squeezed after liquid infusion without tearing the package. 14. The infusion package of claim 4, wherein each elongated flattened end portion has an elongated slot or opening so that the elongated flattened portion can be inserted into another elongated flattened end portion. A package that can be assembled to form a flowable bag with a built-in handle. 15. The leaching package according to claim 4, wherein the package includes staples, threads,
A package cage that does not contain foreign objects such as knobs and tags. 16. The infusion package of claim 4, wherein the flattened end portions are tied together to form a flow-through package. 17. The infusion package according to claim 4, from which the liquid can be squeezed out when the package is removed from the cup or container after infusion. 18 An infusion package for granulated or pulverized products, consisting of a tubular body made of porous synthetic resin, said tubular body having a central product-receiving section and elongated flattened end sections at each end. the ends are oppositely located, each of the flattened end portions is sealed and separated from the central product receiving portion, and the flattened end portions are elongated such that the length of the flattened end portions is extended. lengths that can be fitted together so that when tied together they constitute a distribution-type package cage with integral handles, in which most of the central product-containing section is downwardly depending, at least one of said flattened end portions having an elongated slot or opening therein, and wherein one flattened end portion is insertable into another flattened end portion. and the porous synthetic resin material has a large number of micro-openings or pores smaller in size than the floating particles of the granular product contained in the central product-receiving portion, but large enough to allow liquid to pass through. Package like you have.