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US 2009/0013645 A1Published application
Active sterilization zone for container filling
AssigneeStokely-Van Camp, Inc.
InventorsMichael J. Mastio, Rei-Young Amos Wu, Michael F. McGowan, Subodh K. Raniwala, Gregory Schimmel, James D. Schuman, Richard O. Powell
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for sterile filling of beverage containers has a first module and a second module. The first module rinses and sterilizes empty containers and delivers the sterilized containers to the second module. The second module fills and caps the containers with beverage product at ambient temperature in an active sterilization zone utilizing an e-beam sterilization unit.
Claims34
An apparatus having:
- a filler wheel having a plurality of grippers, each gripper adapted to grip a container to be filled by the filler wheel;
- and
- a first e-beam emitter associated with the filler wheel, the e-beam emitter emitting an e-beam field directed at the grippers to aid in sterilizing the grippers prior to gripping a container.
A method comprising:
- (A) during a filling operation, substantially sterilizing a first gripper adapted to receive a container;
- (B) after (A) receiving an unfilled container with the gripper;
- (C) after (B) filling the container with a filler valve;
- (D) after (C) transferring the filled container off of the gripper to a capping operation;
- and
- (E) after (D) repeating (A)-(D) with the gripper.
3 more elements
An apparatus comprising:
- a filler wheel comprising at least one filler valve and at least one gripper associated with the filler valve, the gripper configured to grip a container to be filled by the filler valve;
- a first e-beam emitter emitting a first e-beam field;
- wherein the e-beam field is directed at a zone which the gripper and the filler valve pass through prior to the gripper gripping a container to be filled by the filler valve.
An apparatus comprising:
- a filler wheel configured to provide rotational movement, the filler wheel having a plurality of filler valves and a plurality of grippers, wherein a respective gripper is positioned proximate a respective filler valve wherein each gripper is configured to grip a container to be filled by the filler valve, the filler wheel defining a container inlet portion and further defining a container outlet portion spaced from the container inlet portion;
- a first e-beam emitter positioned between the container inlet portion and the container outlet portion, the first e-beam emitter emitting a first e-beam field dimensioned such that the filler valves and grippers pass through the first e-beam field prior to the gripper gripping a container to be filled by the filler valve.
An apparatus comprising:
- a filler wheel configured to provide rotational movement, the filler wheel having a plurality of filler valves and a plurality of grippers, wherein a respective gripper is positioned proximate a respective filler valve wherein each gripper is configured to grip a container to be filled by the filler valve, the filler wheel defining a container inlet portion and further defining a container outlet portion spaced from the container inlet portion;
- and
- a confined hygienic environment operably associated with the filler wheel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.