Dripper

• US 8,146,486 B2
• Filed: 04/22/2008
• Issued: 04/03/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mont-Bell Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Mont-Bell Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Tatsuno, Isamu
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Gene
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cegielnik, Urszula M
• Application Number:
  US12/081,817
• Publication Number:
  US 20090260521A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,442 Days
• Field of Search: 993/22, 993/21, 993/17, 993/06, 993/04, 383/33, 383/104, 383/19, 248/331.2, 248/315, 248/94, 220/9.4, 220/9.1, 414/88, 414/364, 222/189.07
• US Class Current: 99/322
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/0647 with means to adjust the brewing chamber volume to accommodate different quantities of brewing material

Abstract

Provided is a dripper that is light-weight and deformable into an arbitrary shape to be stored compactly and that enables coffee extraction irrespective of the existence of a filter. Provided is a dripper 1 for extracting coffee, including: a filter portion 10 that is formed from fabric with permeability and that includes an opening 11 through which coffee powder can be added and a receiving portion 12 that receives the coffee powder added through the opening 11; and a frame 50 that is made of an super-elastic alloy and can define the respective shapes of the opening 11 and the receiving portion 12 in the filter portion 10.

Claims

1. A dripper for extracting coffee, comprising:

a filter portion that is formed from fabric with permeability and that includes an opening through which coffee powder can be added and a receiving portion that receives the coffee powder added through the opening; and

a frame that has elasticity and can define the shapes of the opening and the receiving portion in the filter portion,

wherein the opening is formed at an upper part of the filter portion,

the receiving portion has a bag shape that extends continuously downward from the opening, and

the frame includes an opening definition frame member that is arranged along at least part of the opening and a receiving portion definition frame member that is arranged along at least a part of the receiving portion in a direction that extends from the opening portion toward a bottom of the receiving portion wherein the frame includes at least two frame bodies, each of which includes the opening definition frame member and the receiving portion definition frame member that are connected to each other; and

at least the receiving portion definition frame member of one of the frame bodies and the receiving portion definition frame member of the other frame body are arranged at positions that are approximately 180°

opposite to each other, wherein when placing the filter portion, the shape of which is defined by the frame, on a container that receives extracted coffee, a retaining portion, which retains a supporting member that supports the filter portion with respect to the container, is arranged at a position where the receiving portion definition frame member in the filter portion is arranged.

2. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the opening definition frame member is arranged along the generally entire circumference of the opening.

3. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the frame body is formed by continuously forming the opening definition frame member and the receiving portion definition frame member.

4. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the frame is made of a super-elastic alloy.

5. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the frame exerts a restoring force in at least a direction for expanding the opening in the filter portion.

6. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the frame is formed by being restrained linearly and being subjected to shape memory treatment.

7. The dripper according to claim 1, wherein the fabric can collect the coffee powder.