Coffee machine with losing filter or capsule

• US 8,191,463 B2
• Filed: 03/08/2007
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Spinel, S.r.l.
• Original Assignee: Spinel, S.r.l.
• Inventors: Spinelli, Giovanni
• Primary Examiner(s): Alexander, Reginald L
• Application Number:
  US12/224,962
• Publication Number:
  US 20090114100A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,916 Days
• Field of Search: 992/95, 992/89.R, 993/02.P, 992/80, 992/81, 992/82
• US Class Current: 99/289.R
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/0668 specially adapted for cartridges
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/36 with mechanical pressure-producing means
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/368 Permeable cartridges being employed
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 31/4471 by means of a hinge
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 13/065 for drink preparation

Abstract

An espresso machine using an innovative, semi-automatic, mechanical system to load and discard the disposable coffee filter or capsule, comprising a novel system of sealing and applying pressure on the disposable filter or capsule to avoid spurts of coffee or hot water while the coffee is brewed, consisting of a completely mechanical clamping system of sealing between the capsule and the infusion piston by manually adjusting the distance between the capsule and the piston and the use of an electro-mechanical control system to verify that the capsule is properly lodged and to verify the lodging pressure of the brewing piston.

Claims

1. An espresso coffee machine using a disposable filter or capsule and equipped with a semi-automatic system to brew espresso coffee, comprising:

a chassis (1), a heat exchanger (5), an electro-pump (24), an infusion piston (6) operated by a coffee brewing cam (19), control and regulation means and supporting means;

a semi-automatic mechanical system to load, hold and discard by gravity the disposable filter or capsule;

a mechanical system of sealing and applying pressure on the disposable filter or capsule wherein the sealing effectiveness between a disposable filter or capsule (14) and the infusion piston (6) is ensured by the clamping given by a vertical mechanical motion of the infusion piston (6) caused by the rotation of a pressure cam (7) and wherein said sealing and applying pressure action is fully adjustable to compensate for any disposable filter'"'"'s or capsule'"'"'s size differences;

said mechanical system of sealing between the capsule (14) and the infusion piston (6) is ensured by an O-ring (27) and by a macro-adjustment of the distance between the infusion piston (6) and the capsule (14), carried out by the rotation of the infusion piston (6), threaded to an infusion cycler (43), and by a micro-adjustment consisting in the sliding up or down of a tappet (9) controlled by the spring action of two Belleville washers (15) mounted on the tappet (9) which is locked in place to the heat exchanger (5) by a socket head screw (36);

said infusion piston (6), connected to the heat exchanger (5) by an infusion cycler (43), has a truncated-conical shape near the contact area with the capsule (14), to avoid possible spurts of coffee or hot water;

an electro-mechanical control system to verify that the disposable filter or capsule is properly lodged inside a capsule-holder body before allowing the brewing of the coffee.

2. An espresso coffee machine according to claims 1 wherein the semi-automatic mechanical system to hold and discard the disposable filter or capsule, is comprising:

a capsule-holder body made of a rotating part (2) and a fixed part (3), reproducing the exact shape of the disposable filter or capsule (14);

a rear sensor shaft system (29) and a front extractor (35), located in a way to insure the removal and fall of the capsule into a suitable container;

said front extractor (35) being equipped with an optional rubber terminal (49) to prevent the rotating part (2) of the capsule-holder body to open during the coffee brewing.

3. An espresso coffee machine according to claim 2, wherein the semi-automatic mechanical system to hold and discard the disposable filter or capsule allows an approximately 60 degrees rotation of a rotating part (2) of the capsule-holder body, hinged by a grooving (11) to a fixed part (3) of the capsule-holder body, thus making the system ready to accept a next capsule for a next coffee-brewing cycle.

4. An espresso coffee machine according to claim 3 wherein the positioning of the rotating part (2) and fixed part (3) is achieved by the grooving and tonguing joint and a ball (46) pressed on the bottom of the rotating part (2).

5. An espresso coffee machine according to claim 3 wherein said rotating part (2) of the capsule-holder body is made of plastic.

6. An espresso coffee machine according to claim 1 wherein said mechanical system of sealing and applying pressure on the disposable filter or capsule is carried out by the pressure cam (7) which is rotated by an electric motor (21);

said pressure cam (7) causes the descent of the infusion piston (6) on the capsule (14) and, concurrently, the brewing cam (19) triggers the electro-pump (24) to feed the brewed coffee.

7. An espresso coffee machine according to claim 1 further comprising a plurality of micro-switches connected to an electrical or electronic circuit, which provide an easier and safer use of the machine with only one manual operation, that is the loading and removal of the disposable filter or capsule.