Patent Application
20080142114
Consumers frequently purchase ready-made coffee, and other beverages, in bulk beverage containers, such as for the office and catering. A user may fill the bulk beverage container by pouring a beverage through an opening in the container and into the inner lining. Pouring liquids through a bulk beverage container opening may be complicated and in inefficient. For example, the inner lining of the container may be deflated, creating resistance to the efficient flow of beverage. The user may have to frequently pause to allow the beverage to displace the air in the container lining. Pouring the beverage too quickly may cause the beverage to overflow, creating a burn hazard if the beverage is hot.
A filling device is disclosed, such as a filling device, for directing a flow of liquid into a container. The filling device may have a bowl, a neck, a wall dividing the bowl into multiple sections, and a plurality of fingers located at an end of the neck.
Other systems, methods, features and advantages of the invention will be, or will become, apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the invention, and be protected by the following claims.
A filling device, such as a funnel, is disclosed for use with a container. The filling device may provide rapid filling of a container by permitting air to escape during pouring. Vendors may find that efficient container filling expedites service. Consumers may find the expedited service advantageous.
The bowl 102 may include a wall 104 that divides the mouth 102 into two spaces. A first space 112 may be of sufficient depth and size to accommodate a powder or a liquid, such as a beverage. The first space 112 may be wide, such as to prevent overflow by increasing volume and/or by allowing the user to see when the bag is approaching capacity.
A second space, generally referred to as an air escape passage 114 may be smaller than the first space 112. The air escape passage 114 may allow rapid filling of the substance into the inner lining 510, for example, by allowing air to escape while the substance is being poured via the filling device 100 to the inner lining 510. The second space 112 may allow the user to see when the bag is approaching capacity.
If the bowl 102 has a flat portion 116, it may prevent the filling device 100 from rolling around on a flat surface during storage. For example, the filling device 100 may rest with the flat portion 116 touching a surface and the rounded portion 112 not touching a surface. The flat portion 116 may also prevent the rounded portion 112 from contacting surfaces to help prevent contamination of the portion of the bowl 102 which receives the substances.
The neck 106 may be narrower than the mouth 102 of the filling device 100. The neck 106 may be dimensioned to fit through an opening in a container 110. The neck 106 may have a fitting 108. The fitting 108 may be threaded so as to couple with a container 110 opening. The fitting 108 may also couple with the container opening without threads, such as by snapping on, or other ways. Alternatively, the fitting 108 may not couple with the opening.
The filling device 100 may be open at the mouth 111 and at the terminal end of the neck 106. The neck 106 of the filling device 100 may have a fitting 108. The neck 106 may also have a flange 210. The flange 210 may retain the fitting 108 on the neck 106 of the filling device 100. The flange 210 may also position the fitting 108 on the opening of a container 110 and may set the insertion depth of the filling device 100. The flange 210 may also form a seal between a filling device 100 and a container 110, for example, but not limited to, a gasket seal. The flange 210 may be manufactured from rubber or include a rubber washer to help seal the filling device 100 to the container 110.
The neck 106 of the filling device 100 may terminate in a plurality of fingers 214, defining a plurality of openings 212. The opening 212 may include various shapes, such as a parabola. Alternatively, the neck 100 may have a plurality of openings 212 otherwise arranged. Alternatively or additionally, the neck 106 may also contain an opening 216 in the wall below the flange 210 but positioned such that it would fall above the container 110 fill line.
The inner lining 510 may be deflated or folded within the container shell 122 before being filled by the substance 512. The neck 106 of the filling device 100 may be inserted through the opening 516 in the container 100 and into the lining 510. A plurality of fingers 214 at the terminal end of the neck 106 may force the inner lining 510 open for filling.
A user may fill the container 110 with the substance 512 via the filling device 100. For example, a user may fill the container 110 with hot coffee from a coffee pot 514. The user may pour the substance 512, such as coffee, through the mouth 111 into the larger 112 section of the bowl 102 of the filling device 100. The liquid 512 may travel through the bowl 102 and neck 106 of the filling device into the container lining 510.
The container lining 510 may cling to the terminal end of the filling device neck 106. The spaces 212 between the fingers 214 at the terminal end of the filling device neck 106 may allow the liquid 512 to escape the filling device neck 106 if the terminal end is blocked.
As the container 110 lining 510 fills with liquid 512 and inflates, air may escape through the air escape passage 114 of the filling device 100. Alternatively or additionally, as the liquid level 512 rises and the filling device neck 106 is submerged, air may enter the air escape passage 114 (e.g., formed by a wall extended to the recommended fill line) through a hole 216 in the wall of the filling device neck 106.
While various embodiments of the invention have been described, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and implementations are possible that are within the scope of the invention.
