1. Field of the Invention
This application relates to the field of aeration of liquids. More particularly, this application relates to aeration of liquids using an in-bottle aerator.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many wine consumers often like to aerate, or oxidize, their wine to enhance its flavor prior to drinking. Existing aerators are typically extensions of the wine bottle and must be purchased by the consumer separately as an accessory. An in-bottle aeration system would allow consumers to more easily aerate wine as it is poured without requiring a separate accessory.
Wine aerators are in general best suited for young red wines that are high in tannins such as mixes, cabernets, syrahs, or zinfandels. Positive aeration results have been achieved using aerators that aerate the wine as much as a possible.
Embodiments provide low cost, aesthetically-pleasing wine aerators. These aerators are preferably located within the bottle and effectively mix and soften the mouth feel of liquids, such as wines.
One embodiment of an in-bottle wine aerator is a Venturi-style in-bottle aerator. In this embodiment, wine enters the constricted section where it speeds up, decreasing the fluid pressure. As pressure is decreased, air is drawn in and mixes with the wine. The wine then enters an expansion nozzle, resulting in greater mixing of air with the wine.
Another embodiment is a corkscrew-shaped in-bottle aerator. The corkscrew shape increases the turbulence of the wine as it exits the bottle. The increased turbulence results in air mixing with the wine as it exits the bottle, aerating the wine.
Yet another embodiment is a tapered turbulence in-bottle aerator. The in-bottle aerator induces turbulent flow of the wine as it is poured from the bottle. The turbulent flow of the wine aerates the wine as it is poured.
In a first aspect, an aerator for use substantially within the neck of a bottle, includes a body having a first end, a second end, and a pouring channel for egress of liquid from the bottle. The pouring channel may vary in cross-sectional area from the first end to the second end. The pouring channel may have a first cross-sectional area at the first end, a second cross-sectional area at an area intermediate the first end and the second end, the first cross-sectional area being larger than the second cross-sectional area. The aerator may further include an air passage channel substantially parallel to the pouring channel, the air passage channel configured to allow air to enter the bottle and an aerator channel configured to allow air to enter the pouring channel at the second cross-sectional area.
In some embodiments, the aerator may further include at least one flexible sealing surface on an exterior surface of the body such that the body can seal within a neck of the bottle and act as a stopper to prevent liquid from passing between the body and an interior surface of the bottle, the sealing surface having a diameter greater than an external diameter of the body. In some embodiments, the diameter of the at least one flexible sealing surface is 20.5 mm and the external diameter of the body is 17 mm. In some embodiments, the aerator includes five sealing surfaces. In some embodiments, the aerator is made from one or more of silicone, acrylic, stainless steel, food-grade high-density polyethylene, and polypropylene. In some embodiments, the air passage channel can extend further into the bottle beyond one of the first and the second end of the body. In some embodiments, the air passage channel has a smaller cross-sectional area than the first cross-sectional area of the pouring channel. In some embodiments, the air passage channel has a diameter of 1 mm. In some embodiments, the second cross-sectional area is a minimum cross-sectional area of the pouring channel. In some embodiments, the aerator channel bisects the air passage channel. In some embodiments, the aerator channel is substantially orthogonal to the pouring channel. In some embodiments, a flow of liquid through the pouring channel is approximately 50 milliliters per second.
In another aspect, an aerator for use substantially within the neck of a bottle includes a body having a first end, a second end, a pouring channel for egress of liquid from the bottle, an air passage channel for ingress of air to the bottle, and an aerator channel for ingress of air to the pouring channel, the pouring channel having at least one of converging section and at least one diverging section.
In yet another aspect, an aerator for use substantially within the neck of a bottle includes a body having a first end, a second end, and a pouring channel for egress of liquid from the bottle, the pouring channel varying in cross-sectional area from the first end to the second end. The pouring channel may have a first cross-sectional area at the first end and taper to a second cross-sectional area at a first point intermediate the first end and the second end, the second cross-sectional area at the first point transitioning without taper to a third cross-sectional area larger than the second cross-sectional area. In some embodiments, the first cross-sectional area and the third cross-sectional area are approximately equal. In some embodiments, the second cross-sectional area is a minimum cross-sectional area of the pouring channel. In some embodiments, the aerator may further include an aerator channel passing through the body of the aerator from an external surface of the body to the pouring channel, the aeration channel intersecting the pouring channel at the second cross-sectional area. In some embodiments, the aerator may further include at least one flexible sealing surface on an exterior surface of the body such that the body can seal within the neck of the bottle and act as a stopper to prevent liquid from passing between the body and an interior surface of the bottle, the sealing surface having a diameter greater than an external diameter of the body. In some embodiments, the diameter of the at least one flexible sealing surface is 20.5 mm and the external diameter of the body is 17 mm. In some embodiments, the aerator is made from one or more of silicone, acrylic, stainless steel, food-grade high-density polyethylene, and polypropylene.
The features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings of several embodiments, which are intended to be within the scope of the invention herein disclosed and disclosed in U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/863,838, filed Aug. 8, 2013. The disclosure of the above-referenced application is hereby expressly incorporated by reference in its entirety. These and other embodiments will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the embodiments having reference to the attached figures, the invention not being limited to any particular embodiment(s) disclosed.
While some “aerators” are no more than a filter that the wine flows through, more effective aerators would make use of the Venturi effect to actively mix air with the wine by decreasing the wine's pressure with a nozzle. The resultant low pressure produced by flow through the nozzle pulls air into the nozzle through a port located just after the nozzle. Once the air is introduced to the wine, the mixture flows through an expanding nozzle that creates turbulence and further mixes it.
Many current aerators are injection molded, but some are made from silicon, cast acrylic, and even stainless steel and almost all current aerators are external of the wine bottle. To offer a more convenient solution, the aerator can be designed to fit within standardized corked bottles of different shapes and sizes.
One embodiment of the in-bottle wine aerator 100, shown in
A plurality of rib members 110 may extend from the external surface of the body 102 to provide a gripping surface with the interior of the neck of the wine bottle to securely hold the aerator 100 in place within the bottle. The rib members 110 desirably grip the interior surface of the neck of the wine bottle such that the aerator 100 can act as a stopper and direct all flow of liquid through the pouring channel 108. The cylindrical body 102 is preferably shaped such that the body 102 can fit tightly within the neck of a standard corked wine bottle. In other embodiments, the aerator 100 may be formed in different sizes and shapes to fit in lager bottles, such as Magnums or larger bottles. In some embodiments, the body 102 may the diameter and length of the body 102 may vary so that the body 102 can fit securely within wine bottles having varying neck diameters and lengths. Preferably, the aerator 100 has a diameter such that it will securely fit within wine bottles having a range of internal diameters of 19 mm to 21 mm. Preferably, the body 102 of the aerator 100 has an external diameter of approximately 17 mm. In some embodiments, the body 102 has an external diameter between approximately 10 mm and 25 mm, between approximately 12 mm and 22 mm, and between approximately 15 mm and 19 mm. In some embodiments, the external diameter of the body 102 may be larger or smaller to fit within wine bottles having smaller or larger neck diameters. Desirably, the diameter of each of the rib members 110 is approximately 20.5 mm. In some embodiments, the diameter of each of the rib members 110 is between approximately 10 mm to 30 mm, between approximately 15 mm to 25 mm, and between approximately 18 mm to 22 mm. Desirably, the cross-sectional area of the aerator 100 at the widest point (through one of the rib members 110) is approximately 126 mm̂2. In some embodiments, the cross-sectional area of the aerator 100 at the widest point (through one of the rib members 110) is between approximately 50 mm̂2 and 200 mm̂2, between approximately 75 mm̂2 and approximately 150 mm̂2, or between approximately 100 mm̂2 and approximately 135 mm̂2. As discussed above, preferably the rib members 110 grip the interior of the wine bottle and are flexible such that the aerator 102 can fit within wine bottle necks having a diameter larger than the diameter of the body 102 and smaller than the diameter of the rib members 110.
The aerator 100 may be formed from any material safe for use with food or drink that will not “leak” or “leach” into the food or drink. For example, the aerator 100 may be made from silicone rubber, case acrylic, stainless steel, or polymers such as food grade high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP). In some embodiments, the aerator 100 is injection molded but other manufacturing methods may also be used.
Desirably, an opening 112 defines an aeration passage 114 that allows air and oxygen to be sucked into the passage 108 and mix with the fluid passing through the passage 108. In some embodiments, including the illustrated embodiment, the diameter of the aeration passage 114 is approximately 2 mm. In some embodiments, the diameter of the aeration passage 114 is between approximately 0.5 mm to approximately 5 mm, between approximately 1 mm to approximately 4 mm, and between approximately 1.25 mm to approximately 2.5 mm. In some embodiments, the length of the aeration passage 114 from the opening 112 to the throat 116 is approximately 7.5 mm. In some embodiments, the length of the aeration passage 114 from the opening 112 to the throat 116 is between approximately 4 mm to approximately 15 mm, between approximately 5 mm to approximately 10 mm, or between approximately 6 mm to approximately 9 mm. The aeration passage 114 desirably intersects the pouring channel 108 at the throat 116. Air and oxygen will be pushed into the pouring channel 108 because the air pressure outside the channel is greater than the pressure of the fluid. This process causes air and oxygen to mix with the fluid as it is being poured. As the fluid enters the diverging section 115 of the pouring channel 108, the fluid decelerates causing the pressure of the fluid to increase and allowing the fluid to be easily poured from the bottle at the distal end 103 of the pouring channel 108. In some embodiments, the pouring channel 108 diverges from the throat to the distal end along a length of approximately 27 mm. In some embodiments, the pouring channel 108 diverges from the throat to the distal end along a length of between approximately 15 mm to approximately 35 mm, between approximately 20 mm to approximately 32 mm, or between approximately 25 mm to approximately 30 mm. In other embodiments, the diverging section 115 may be longer or shorter depending on the size of the wine bottle and the aerator 100 and the characteristics of the fluid. Desirably, the diameter of the pouring channel 108 at the distal end 103 is approximately 10 mm. In some embodiments, a diameter of the pouring channel 108 at the distal end 103 may be between approximately 3 mm and approximately 25 mm, approximately 6 mm and approximately 17 mm, or approximately 8 mm and approximately 12 mm. The aeration passage 114 allows a surface area of wine passing through the pouring channel 108 to come in contact with oxygen in the air to improve the flavor of the wine.
Additionally, the air passage 106 in the aerator 100 allows air to pass into the bottle as the wine or other liquid is poured due to a vacuum effect. The additional air passage 106 allows more air to enter the bottle without inhibiting the aeration process and provides a more consistent pour rate.
Two side plane views of the aerator 100 are shown in
With reference to
The aerator 100 is effective at aerating liquids because of the proportional dimensions of the converging and diverging sections of the pouring channel 108. This design gives the aerator 100 the flow rate and optimal oxygen mixing capabilities to effectively aerate liquids with comparable results to much larger aerators on the market. Incorporating aerator 100 into the bottle increases the ease of use of the aerator.
The aerator 100 is designed to fit into many standard glass wine bottles such as Burgundy and Bordeaux bottles currently used in the wine industry. It should be noted that many glass wine bottles vary in design but the dimensions of the bottleneck are similar and typically range from approximately 18-22 mm inside diameter. The rib members 110 allow flexibility to install the aerator 100 into a wide range of bottles.
In other embodiments, the aerator 100 may have a longer length and larger rib members such that the aerator 100 can fit larger diameter bottles. The dimensions of the aerator 100 may also be adjusted so that the aerator 100 can fit within the taps of wine kegs. In some embodiments, the aerator 100 can fit within bottles having traditional corks.
A second embodiment of an in-bottle aerator is illustrated in
A third embodiment of an in-bottle aerator is illustrated in
A fourth embodiment of an in-bottle aerator is illustrated in
A compressive stress analysis was performed on the Venturi design. The analysis utilized the basic cylinder press fit principle: interference between an outer hollow cylinder and an inner full cylinder results in radial and hoop stresses on the inner cylinder. The aerator was press fit into the bottle neck, essentially deforming the silicon rubber seal and causing the surface to feel radial and hoop stresses. The glass inner diameter is defined as the minimum diameter of the bottle neck which serves as a conservative estimate of the stress. The main assumption during the compression analysis was that preferably only the seal deforms so the aerator body and glass bottleneck act as rigid bodies because the modulus of the glass and aerator is high relative to the silicon rubber.
A finite element analysis was also performed on the Venturi design. The analysis was used to analyze whether the aerator can uphold its structural integrity when acted on by the compressive load resulting from the press fit within the bottle neck. A radial pressure found from the compressive stress calculation is applied to the aerator, and the maximum deformation and stress points are found.
The compressive stress analysis used the following dimensions: glass inner diameter, aerator outer diameter (with seal), and the aerator diameter without the seal. The material properties for the seal are determined from the manufacturer's specification sheet. Equations 1 and 2 are used to calculate radial and hoop stress, respectively.
The results are shown in Table 2. The results were used to conduct a finite element analysis on each aerator prototype.
The FEA (Finite Element Analysis) was conducted using the software ABAQUS/CAE version 6.11-2. The aerator material is preferably acrylic so a Young's modulus of 1800 MPa and a Poisson's ratio of 0.35 were input. The external pressure load was 0.38 psi (2620.01 Pa).
For the first analysis, a 1 mm thick by 16.5 mm diameter cylinder made of a solid element was analyzed to simulate the worst case scenario wherein no internal structures support the outer shell. Boundary conditions were assigned to each end of the cylinder so that the cylinder didn't rotate or move along its center axis. The mesh elements were hexagonal with quadratic (no reduced integration) analysis and a 1 mm seed size. The maximum amount of experienced stress is 20,350 Pa which is far less than the material's yield strength of around 48 MPa.
A second Finite Element Analysis was performed on the Venturi style design. The Venturi design was meshed with triangular elements and a seed size of 1 mm. The inside of the mixing chamber was fixed in placed and considered rigid to provide ABAQUS with a boundary condition. The maximum deformation was found to be 0.00025 mm with a maximum stress of 54,600 Pa. These values are both far below failure conditions.
The pour angle is a dominant variable when testing the flow rate of wine through aerators. Obviously, the typical wine pour involves someone pouring wine into a glass at a specific angle, which fluctuates constantly from glass to glass. An apparatus utilizing a constant pour angle was made in order to develop a consistent flow rate test. The apparatus tests the amount of time it takes to empty the volume of water out of a full wine bottle. The time can be calculated as an average flow rate, which accounts for pressure changes in the bottle throughout the process. Each aerator was tested at a 45 degree angle with the exception of the Soiree, which is preferably poured at a 90 degree angle in order to effectively function. The idea is to develop a baseline average flow rate to compare to the developed designs. Table 3 shows the times and flow rates for each aerator to empty a 750 ml bottle of wine.
The control scenario exhibited far lesser restriction of flow than the aerator scenarios. The control flow rate was greater than the aerator flow rates by a max factor of approximately 7.5. The magnitude of the control flow rate introduces a turbulent feel and unaesthetic look while pouring. The designed aerator preferably has a flow rate with a minimum of 9 ml/s (80 seconds to empty).
Flow rate testing was also performed with the Venturi design, as indicated by the following tables of results.
Flow rate testing was conducted for multiple variations of the Venturi design illustrated in
Additional flow rate testing was conducted on other variations of the Venturi design shown in
Aerating wine essentially changes the sulfides and oxygen content within the fluid. Several methods can quantify aeration, including measuring the amount of dissolved oxygen within the fluid. A base measurement (control) needs to be established with each trial during the testing as the wine essentially begins aerating once the bottle is opened. The testing process involved testing the existing aerators by measuring the dissolved oxygen in the wine before and after the wine is poured. Each raw measurement is in units of parts per million (ppm) or mg/l, and the reduced data includes each aerator's average difference in dissolved oxygen before and after pouring. Table 6, below, illustrates the dissolved oxygen testing results.
The control results for each pour were taken before the wine was poured. As indicated by the results, the amount of dissolved oxygen increased for each pour from the initial control value. The Tapered 2 design exhibited the greatest amount of dissolved oxygen within the fluid, followed by the Tapered 1 design and the Spiral Design.
The dissolved oxygen tests were performed at room temperature with the same wine used for all tests. Two Venturi aerator designs similar to the embodiment shown in
All references cited herein are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. To the extent publications and patents or patent applications incorporated by reference contradict the disclosure contained in the specification, the specification is intended to supersede and/or take precedence over any such contradictory material.
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) are to be given their ordinary and customary meaning to a person of ordinary skill in the art, and are not to be limited to a special or customized meaning unless expressly so defined herein.
Terms and phrases used in this application, and variations thereof, especially in the appended claims, unless otherwise expressly stated, should be construed as open ended as opposed to limiting. As examples of the foregoing, the term ‘including’ should be read to mean ‘including, without limitation,’ ‘including but not limited to,’ or the like; the term ‘comprising’ as used herein is synonymous with ‘including,’ ‘containing,’ or ‘characterized by,’ and is inclusive or open-ended and does not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps; the term ‘having’ should be interpreted as ‘having at least;’ the term ‘includes’ should be interpreted as ‘includes but is not limited to;’ the term ‘example’ is used to provide exemplary instances of the item in discussion, not an exhaustive or limiting list thereof; adjectives such as ‘known’, ‘normal’, ‘standard’, and terms of similar meaning should not be construed as limiting the item described to a given time period or to an item available as of a given time, but instead should be read to encompass known, normal, or standard technologies that may be available or known now or at any time in the future; and use of terms like ‘preferably,’ ‘preferred,’ ‘desired,’ or ‘desirable,’ and words of similar meaning should not be understood as implying that certain features are critical, essential, or even important to the structure or function of the invention, but instead as merely intended to highlight alternative or additional features that may or may not be utilized in a particular embodiment of the invention. Likewise, a group of items linked with the conjunction ‘and’ should not be read as requiring that each and every one of those items be present in the grouping, but rather should be read as ‘and/or’ unless expressly stated otherwise. Similarly, a group of items linked with the conjunction ‘or’ should not be read as requiring mutual exclusivity among that group, but rather should be read as ‘and/or’ unless expressly stated otherwise.
With respect to the use of substantially any plural and/or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and/or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and/or application. The various singular/plural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.
It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to embodiments containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”
All numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, reaction conditions, and so forth used in the specification are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term ‘about.’ Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth herein are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of any claims in any application claiming priority to the present application, each numerical parameter should be construed in light of the number of significant digits and ordinary rounding approaches.
Furthermore, although the foregoing has been described in some detail by way of illustrations and examples for purposes of clarity and understanding, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that certain changes and modifications may be practiced. Therefore, the description and examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention to the specific embodiments and examples described herein, but rather to also cover all modification and alternatives coming with the true scope and spirit of the invention.
Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57. This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/863,838, filed Aug. 8, 2013. The disclosure of the above-referenced application is hereby expressly incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US2014/049997 | 8/6/2014 | WO | 00 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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61863838 | Aug 2013 | US |