Aseptic Packaging Enclosure With Inert Gas Recirculation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing packaging systems for sterilized products, particularly in industries like cannabis, face challenges with high start-up costs, limited space requirements, and recontamination during post-sterilization processing, especially in facilities lacking dedicated clean rooms.
Innovation Solution
A system that maintains aseptic conditions using inert gas flow and recirculation to prevent recontamination, incorporating gassing assemblies and recirculation systems to ensure low oxygen levels and filter contaminants, suitable for bulk packaging and weighing/filling operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a dedicated clean room facility is used for packaging sterilized products, then aseptic conditions are maintained, but start-up costs and space requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential aseptic function from the complex clean room facility by using a portable barrier device that creates a localized sterile zone. Instead of requiring the entire facility to be a clean room, only the immediate packaging area is isolated using the barrier device with HEPA filtration, dramatically reducing space and cost requirements while maintaining aseptic conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The barrier device acts as an intermediary between the non-sterile environment and the sterilized product. It introduces HEPA-filtered air into the packaging zone and physically separates the sterile and non-sterile areas, allowing aseptic packaging to occur without requiring a dedicated clean room facility.
2Adaptability or versatility
If sterilization is performed in facilities with high mold and bacteria counts, then processing can occur in available space, but recontamination of sterilized product occurs during post-sterilization processing
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies preliminary anti-action by establishing a protective barrier and sterile air environment before recontamination can occur. The barrier device is positioned around the packaging area and HEPA-filtered air is introduced to prevent airborne contaminants from reaching the sterilized product during post-sterilization processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The barrier device serves as an intermediary that isolates the sterilized product from the contaminated environment. It creates a physical and atmospheric barrier that allows processing to occur in facilities with high mold and bacteria counts while preventing recontamination of the product.
3Ease of operation
If personal enter clean room facilities for processing, then operations can be performed manually, but training requirements increase and personnel capacity is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the personnel from the sterile environment by using automated or remote-operated packaging equipment within the barrier device. This eliminates the need for personnel to enter the clean room and undergo training, while still allowing manual operation of the packaging process from outside the barrier.
Solution Approach 2:
The barrier device acts as an intermediary that separates personnel from the sterile environment. Operators can control packaging equipment through the barrier without physically entering the clean room, eliminating training requirements and personnel capacity limitations while maintaining ease of operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Maintains aseptic handling and packaging of sterilized products by preventing recontamination, reducing the need for dedicated clean rooms, and ensuring low oxygen environments for improved product sterility.
Implementation Method 1
a recirculation system comprising at least one recirculation element and at least one recirculation exhaust disposed downstream of the recirculation element, and a recirculation filter interposed between and in fluid communication with the at least one recirculation element and the at least one recirculation exhaust, wherein the recirculation system is configured to flow a filtered gas into the enclosure through the at least one recirculation element such that the filtered gas flows over the one or more components within the enclosure and is collected by the at least one recirculation exhaust, wherein the recirculation exhaust directs the collected gas to the filter, which filters the collected gas and directs the filtered gas to the at least one recirculation element for reintroduction into the enclosure
Implementation Method 2
a gassing assembly comprising at least one gassing element disposed within one or more of the components to flow inert gas over and/or through the product within the one or more components
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods of aseptic processing of product can include a hopper for introduction of the product into the system and one or more components through which the product flows as it is processed through the system, an enclosure surrounding one more of the components, a gassing assembly comprising a plurality of gassing elements for maintaining a substantially constant flow of inert gas over the product as it travels through the components of the system, and filtered gas recirculation system that recirculates filtered air or gas through the enclosure. Such systems can be particularly advantageous for use in the cannabis industry.