Compostable Coffee Cartridge Bottom with Pre-formed Openings
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current coffee cartridge systems are limited in the range of beverages they can produce, particularly excluding filter coffee, and use non-compostable materials that are not environmentally friendly, leading to functional issues with perforation and delivery.
Innovation Solution
A cartridge design featuring a compostable casing and bottom structure that uses a mechanical fit with perforating tips to support the bottom, allowing for the preparation of both espresso and filter coffee without perforating the cartridge, and is made from biodegradable materials like polylactic acid and polyhydroxyalkanoates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If the cartridge is made of compostable material, then environmental friendliness is improved, but the material cannot be perforated by delivery assembly tips
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of making the cartridge bottom perforable by tips (conventional approach), the invention inverts the approach by making the bottom non-perforable and providing pre-formed openings. The cartridge bottom is designed with a plurality of openings already present before delivery, eliminating the need for tip perforation while maintaining compostable material benefits.
Solution Approach 2:
The openings are created in advance during cartridge manufacturing rather than during delivery. The bottom wall is formed with pre-defined openings that allow liquid product to pass through during extraction, eliminating the need for mechanical perforation by delivery tips and preserving the integrity of compostable materials.
2Productivity
If the cartridge bottom is perforated by pressure, then espresso coffee delivery is improved, but filter coffee preparation is excluded
Solution Approach 1:
The cartridge bottom is designed with a plurality of openings that serve multiple functions: they enable espresso coffee delivery through controlled flow and support filter coffee preparation through gravimetric percolation. The same bottom structure adapts to different beverage types and extraction methods, making the cartridge system universal.
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom structure dynamically adapts to different delivery conditions. For espresso, the openings facilitate pressure-driven flow; for filter coffee, the same openings allow gravity-driven percolation. The bottom wall flexes and deforms under pressure to maintain contact with the delivery assembly while preserving opening integrity.
3Strength
If the cartridge is made non-perforable, then material integrity is improved, but liquid product extraction is hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The bottom wall incorporates a plurality of openings that provide porosity for liquid product extraction while maintaining overall structural integrity. The openings are strategically positioned and sized to allow liquid flow during extraction while the surrounding material maintains strength and prevents collapse under pressure.
Solution Approach 2:
The bottom wall has different local properties: regions with openings for extraction and regions without openings for structural support. The openings are localized to specific areas where extraction is needed, while other areas maintain full integrity to withstand delivery pressures and maintain cartridge shape.
4Ease of operation
If the cartridge bottom deforms under pressure, then opening formation is improved, but ground coffee entrainment occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The openings are formed during cartridge manufacturing before delivery, eliminating the need for pressure-induced deformation during extraction. This preliminary formation of openings prevents ground coffee from being forced through the bottom wall during high-pressure espresso delivery, avoiding entrainment in the beverage.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of relying on pressure to create openings (which causes deformation and entrainment), the invention inverts the approach by pre-creating openings without pressure. The openings are formed during manufacturing using controlled methods that prevent coffee contamination, and the bottom wall maintains its shape throughout delivery.
Data Source
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AI summary
A cartridge (10) containing a dose (12) of at least one substance for preparing a liquid product, e.g., coffee, by means of liquid and/or vapour introduced into the cartridge (10). The cartridge comprises a casing (14) containing the aforesaid dose (12) with a bottom wall (142) through which the liquid product may flow out of the cartridge (10). The bottom wall (142) has, as viewed from outside the cartridge (10) : - a central portion (1420); - a first annular cavity (1422) that surrounds the central portion (1420); - an intermediate annular portion (1424) that surrounds the first annular cavity (1422) and is separated from the latter by a first annular rib (1423); and - a second annular cavity (1426) that surrounds the intermediate annular portion (1424) and is separated from the latter by a second annular rib (1425). The bottom wall (142) has openings (1428) for exit of the liquid product from the cartridge (10), which are localized, for example, in at least one from between, and preferably in both, the aforesaid central portion (1420) and the aforesaid intermediate portion (1424).