Corks for sparkling wine bottles made of natural cork, agglomerated cork or composite cork with a cavity

Abstract

Cork for sparkling wine bottles made of natural cork, agglomerated cork or composite cork with a head (2) and a shaft (3), characterized in that at least one non-continuous cavity (4) is provided in the head and / or cavity (5) in the shaft, wherein the cavity can be arranged in an axial, radial or any desired spatial orientation, such that the cork meets the technical requirements customary for sparkling wine corks with regard to pressure resistance, mechanical strength, fracture strength and gas tightness.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a bottle closure for carbonated beverages, in particular sparkling wines such as sparkling wine, champagne, prosecco or cava, in the form of a cork made of natural cork, agglomerate cork or composite cork, which has at least one non-through cavity in the head and / or shaft area.

[0002] The invention is based on the following insight: Plastic closures for sparkling wines are known in the prior art, which can have cavities in both the head and stem regions. These cavities are often enclosed by an additional plastic or metal cap, which ensures the required compressive and flexural strength for the closure. Due to the material properties (high dimensional stability, gas and water impermeability), cavities can be created in plastic corks without significant or any loss of function. Such a construction is not known for corks made of natural cork, agglomerated cork, or composite cork. These materials have always been solid in the head and stem regions to guarantee the compressive strength, mechanical strength, breaking strength, and gas tightness required for sparkling wine corks.

[0003] The material structure of corks made from natural cork, agglomerated cork, and composite cork is porous, elastic, and sensitive to moisture. A cavity could reduce the wall thickness too much, preventing the cork from withstanding the forces involved in insertion or opening, leading to breakage or deformation under the industry-standard internal pressure of approximately 5-6 bar, and impairing the sealing function within the stem. To date, the industry has avoided cavities in these types of cork closures, opting instead for solid construction, as no widely used design approaches exist that simultaneously guarantee all technical requirements—particularly pressure resistance, mechanical strength, fracture resistance, and gas tightness. Furthermore, there has been no demand for such designs.

[0004] The invention solves the aforementioned problem for the first time with a cork made of natural cork, agglomerated cork, or composite cork, which has at least one non-through cavity in the head and / or stem area, without compromising the aforementioned technical requirements. The cavity is designed, dimensioned, and positioned such that the pressure resistance meets the industry-standard requirements for sparkling wine corks, the mechanical strength during machine insertion is guaranteed to meet conventional standard values, no breakage or tearing occurs when the cork is removed, and the gas tightness in the stem area is completely maintained. The cavity can be axial, radial, or in any spatial orientation, but if located in the stem, it must lie outside the zones relevant for the sealing effect.It is designed to allow the insertion of any type of insert, such as money, aroma capsules, weight-reduction elements, decorative objects, or technical assemblies like electronic modules.

[0005] In a preferred embodiment, the cavity extends axially from the head surface towards the shaft without completely penetrating it. Preferred dimensions are: depth in the head region approximately 23 mm, diameter 12–18 mm, wall thickness at least 5–6 mm, base thickness at least 2 mm. The shaft remains solid in the sealing zone but may have an additional cavity outside this zone.

[0006] The advantages of this invention are: Material savings while maintaining the same functionality. Option to integrate additional functions. Novel technical design of cavity geometries previously considered risky. Protection of all cork material variants and cavity orientations. Fulfillment of all existing industry requirements.

[0007] Further features of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the illustrations of possible embodiments. These illustrations show: Fig. 1. Recognizable in a graphical view: the (cut-open) side view of a bottle stopper / or a natural cork stopper, located in a bottle neck (F). The body of the bottle stopper / cork (1) has a head (2) and a shaft (3). The cavity (4) in the head is located at the upper end of the head (2) and the cavity (5) in the shaft is located below the cavity (4) in the head, tapered. Reference symbol list 1 cork 2 heads 3 shaft 4 Cavity in the head 5 Cavity in the shaft

Claims

[1] Corks for sparkling wine bottles made of natural cork, agglomerated cork or composite cork with head (2) and stem (3), characterized by , that at least one non-continuous cavity (4) is provided in the head and / or cavity (5) in the shaft, wherein the cavity may be arranged in axial, radial or any spatial orientation, such that the cork meets the technical requirements for sparkling wine corks in terms of pressure resistance, mechanical strength, breaking strength and gas tightness. [2] Cork according to claim 1, wherein the cavity is arranged exclusively in the head (2). [3] Cork according to claim 1, wherein the cavity is arranged exclusively in the shaft (3) and is located outside the sealing zone. [4] Cork according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the cavity extends both in the head (2) and in the shaft (3). [5] Cork according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cavity is designed to allow the insertion of any inserts. [6] Cork according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cavity is cylindrical, conical, prismatic or irregularly shaped, with rounded or chamfered inner edges.

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