The present invention relates to a collector for collecting infusible material used for the preparation of beverages, in particular of hot beverages, by means of a beverage infuser, the beverage infuser comprising a beverage container for receiving the beverage and the infusible material, the beverage container having an open end and a closed end, and a plunger assembly comprising a plunger rod and a plunger head with a filter, the plunger rod and the plunger head being introducible into the beverage container via the open end and movable towards the closed end. The collector is introducible into the beverage container via the open end and comprises a structure forming a sidewall, a bottom and an opening, the plunger head being introducible into the collector via the opening, and fastening means engageable with the plunger head for coupling the plunger head with the collector when the plunger head is introduced into the collector. Beverage infusers are commonly known as French press or press filters. The beverage containers typically have a cylindrical or prismatic shape. For preparing coffee or tea a desired amount of infusible material like coffee grind or tealeaves is filled into the beverage container and subsequently poured over with hot water. The coffee or tea flavors are allowed to be extracted by the hot water. After that a plunger assembly is introduced into the beverage container and the plunger head pressed down towards its closed end. As a result the used coffee grind or tealeaves are separated from the coffee or tea and accumulated at the area of the closed end of the beverage container. The now filtered coffee or tea is then consumable. After use the plunger assembly is pulled out of the beverage container and the accumulated coffee grind or tea leaves are removed from the beverage container.

Depending on the amount of tea leaves or coffee grind used they may be fairly compressed so that their removal and thus the cleaning of the beverage container may be tedious. In many cases the coffee grind or the tealeaves are removed by mixing with water and subsequently poured down the sink which may lead to clogging of the drains.

To solve this problem the use of collectors has been proposed. For example, DE 34 32 289 C1 and WO 96/035360A1 disclose collectors that are introduced into the beverage container before the infusible material and the water are filled into the beverage container. When the plunger head is pressed down the infusible material is pushed into the collector. Moreover, by pressing down the plunger head it is is coupled with the collector filled with the infusible material so that the collector can be removed from the beverage container together with the plunger assembly. The cleaning of the beverage container is thus significantly facilitated and the infusible material can directly be disposed into a bin so that the amount of infusible material introduced into the drain can significantly be reduced. In the beverage infuser disclosed in the WO 96/035360A1 the coupling of the collector with the plunger head is done by friction which has the disadvantage that due to wear the coupling forces may decrease with time so that the collector may not be removable by the piston assembly and remain in the beverage container. Moreover, the forces needed to safely remove the collector from the beverage container may be relatively high so that the decoupling of the collector from the plunger head may be difficult, in particular when the infusible material is still hot. There may be the risk that the user burns parts of his fingers.

In the DE 34 32 289 C1 the coupling of the collector with the plunger head is done by latching means generating a form closure. However, there is the danger that the latching means may wear with time or even break so that also in this solution the coupling may not be reliable, either. The movable latching means are arranged at the plunger head and thus not accessible when the collector is coupled. Thus, the forces the user has to exert to separate the collector from the plunger head must be high enough to move the latching means radially inwards so that the separation may be difficult. Moreover, there is the risk that the user burns parts of his fingers as the user has to grip the collector tightly. It is thus an object of the present invention to propose a beverage infuser in which the collector can reliably be coupled with the plunger head over a long operation period and can easily be removed from the plunger head without the risk of wear of the fastening means and with reduced risk for the user.

The object is reached by a collector according to claim 1 . Advantageous embodiments are given in the dependent claims.

According to the present invention the structure is deformable and the collector comprises a number of gripping sections where a user can grip and deform the collector with their hand for decoupling the collector from the plunger head. The term deformable is to be understood in a way that the forces an ordinary user can exert with his fingers are sufficient to deform the collector. Preferably, the collector returns to its original shape once the user reduced the force or releases the collector. Assuming that the collector has a substantially cylindrical or prismatic shape, the user may press the collector together along a first direction radially inwardly so that the deformation leads to an expansion of the collector along a second direction radially outwards. The deformation and in particular the expansion of the collector is used to separate the fastening means from the plunger head. As a consequence the fastening means are not prone to wear and thus do not deteriorate with time. Moreover, the forces needed to deform the collector can be reduced to an extent that the decoupling is easy for a user. Thus the decoupling can be performed within a short time so that the risk of burning the fingers is significantly reduced. The gripping sections indicate the optimal position to touch and squeeze the collector.

In a preferred embodiment of the inventive collector the gripping sections are arranged substantially perpendicularly to the fastening means. As mentioned above, the beverage containers usually have a cylindrical or prismatic shape. In order to collect the majority of infusible material the collector has a similar shape. Thus squeezing together the collector along a first direction will lead to a maximum expansion in a second direction that is perpendicular to the first direction. Hence the distance the fastening means are moved when the collector is pressed together is maximized in this embodiment. As a consequence the decoupling is facilitated and more reliable. The arrangement of the fastening means relative to the gripping sections relates to a plane perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the collector.

Advantageously the collector comprises two gripping sections arranged opposite to each other and two fastening means arranged opposite to each other. It has been found that this configuration provides sufficient coupling forces and ensures an easy decoupling. At the same time the amount of material used for the collector is reduced. One material preferably used for the collector is POM (Polyoxymethylen). POM offers stability during high temperatures and water submersion, whilst maintaining good shape retention properties. Moreover, POM is a BPA (bisphenol A) free polymer which is important for food safety reasons.

Preferably the fastening means are located on the sidewall and embodied as latching means. Latching means are easy to manufacture and reliable in their application. In contrast to the latching means disclosed in DE 34 32 289 C1 there is no risk of wear as the latching means are moved outwards when the beverage container is pressed together at the gripping section. Thus there is no contact between the plunger head and the latching means upon decoupling, i.e., by axially withdrawing the collector from the plunger head so that no friction occurs that may lead to wear. Moreover, latching means provide a feedback to the user when the plunger head is coupled by generating a click sound or a sudden change in the counterforce acting on the plunger head and thus on the plunger rod operated by the user.

Further, the sidewall has areas of decreased wall thickness. Within the areas of decreased wall thickness the collector is easier to deform. Moreover, the location and the extent of expansion and compression of the collector can be selectively adjusted. Further, the latching means are preferably located within the areas of decreased wall thickness. As mentioned above, a reduced thickness leads to an increased expansion or compression at a given force. As a consequence the latching means are moved outwards to a larger extent in case they are located in the areas of decreased wall thickness. Thus the latching means can be increased in size to transmit higher coupling forces. At the same time it is still ensured that the latching means do not contact the plunger head upon decoupling and that wear is avoided. Another aspect is that the area of decreased wall thickness is ensuring that the collector is properly coupled to the plunger head even in case the collector is not positioned concentrically to the beverage container. The structure of the collector may then flex to compensate for the misalignment to ensure proper coupling.

In an advantageous embodiment of the inventive collector the fastening means are located within elevated areas of the side wall. In the context of this application the term elevated area is understood in a way that within the elevated area the sidewall has a longer length between the bottom and the opening than outside the elevated area. It is thus possible to create a clearance between the plunger head and the sidewall outside the elevated areas. When too much infusible material is used it may be difficult or even impossible to insert the plunger head far enough into the collector to enable the coupling. In this case a certain amount of infusible material may be pressed through the clearance so that the plunger head can be introduced into the collector even in case too much infusible material is used. Moreover, the possibility to discharge excess infusible material avoids that the collector expands and may not couple with the plunger head and may get stuck in the beverage container.

Furthermore the sidewall preferably comprises one continuous area of decreased wall thickness completely surrounding the opening, the area of decreased wall thickness being enlarged in the surroundings of the fastening means. The decreased wall thickness at the opening effectively increases the overall flexibility of the collector. At the same time the expansion of the fastening means is increased due to the fact that the area of decreased wall thickness is enlarged in the surroundings of the fastening means. The term surroundings is to be understood in a way that the area of decreased wall thickness may expand over or beyond the entire length or may only expand over a part of the length of the fastening means.

In a further embodiment the continuous area of decreased wall thickness is interrupted by a number of stop ribs. The stop ribs serve as a stop for the plunger head to avoid that the plunger head is introduced too far into the collector which may cause damage to the collector and may expand the collector so that it gets stuck in the beverage container. The stop ribs provide a solid contact point between the plunger head and the collector and prevent the user from pressing the plunger head further into the beverage container. Once the plunger head abuts against the stop ribs the user gets a feedback that the collector is coupled to the plunger head. Preferably, the stop ribs comprise of a recess running towards the bottom. The recess reduces the size of the free surface of the stop rib and consequently of the contact surface between the stop ribs and the plunger head. As a consequence, the amount of infusible material that may accumulate on the free surface is also reduced. In case too much infusible material accumulates on the stop ribs the plunger head may not be introducible sufficiently far into the collector, thereby obstructing the coupling. Due to the recesses the risk that infusible material accumulated on the stop ribs prevents the plunger head from being coupled to the collector is significantly reduced. Moreover, infusible material may be transferred through the stop ribs into the collector which would otherwise be stuck between the plunger head and the collector and may uncontrollably spread upon decoupling.

In an advantageous embodiment the stop ribs are located outside the elevated areas and terminate together with the sidewalk The fact that the free surface of the stop ribs align with end of the sidewalls surrounding the opening of the collector has the effect that the plunger head is only introduced into the collector within the elevated areas. Thus the collecting volume of the collector is maintained at a high level. Consequently the extent of compaction of the collected infusible material is reduced which facilitates the subsequent cleaning of the collector. Moreover, the progression of the sidewall below the free surface of the stop ribs can be chosen independent from the shape of the plunger head. Only the elevated areas need to correspond to the shape of the plunger head. Thus, for example the gripping section may be embodied as concave sections protruding into the collector.

In a preferred embodiment the sidewall and the bottom merge into each other with a curved region, the structure comprising longitudinal slits running through the curved region. The slits enable the dewatering of the compressed infusible material so that the volume of collectable infusible material in the collector is increased. At the same time dripping of the infusible material after the removal from the collector is reduced, thereby reducing the risk that the fingers of the user get burned when the prepared beverage is still hot.

Beyond that, the collector comprises a number of feet located at the bottom of the structure. The feet position the collector inside the beverage container which facilitates the coupling. Moreover a clearance and thus a volume are created between the bottom of the collector and the bottom of the beverage container. The beverage squeezed through the slits may accumulate in this volume and is thus be controllably handled. The object of the present invention is also reached by a beverage infuser comprising a beverage container for receiving the beverage and the infusible material, the beverage container having an open end and a closed end, and a plunger assembly comprising a plunger rod and a plunger head with a filter, the plunger rod and the plunger head assembly being introducible into the beverage container via the open end and movable towards the closed end by a user, comprising a collector according to one of the embodiments discussed above, the collector being introducible into the beverage infuser. The advantages and technical effects accomplished by the beverage infuser are the same as presented for the collector. In particular a safe and reliable way of collecting infusible material is proposed wherein the collector is easy to decouple from the plunger head after the use of the beverage infuser.

In the following the invention is further described by means of a preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 shows an inventive beverage infuser,

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of section X defined in Figure 1 ,

Figure 3 is a top view of an inventive collector for collecting infusible material,

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross section along the plane A-A defined in Figure 3,

Figure 5 is a bottom view of the inventive collector, and Figure 6 is a perspective view of the inventive collector.

In Figure 1 an inventive beverage infuser 10 is shown. The beverage infuser 10 comprises a beverage container 12 typically made of glass or plastic. The beverage container 12 has a substantially cylindrical shape, however, other shapes are also conceivable, e.g., a prismatic shape. The beverage container 12 has an open end 14 and a closed end 16. A handle 18 is fixed to the beverage container 12 for facilitating the handling of the beverage infuser 10. Moreover, the beverage container 12 is introduced into a base 20 to safely place the beverage infuser 10 e.g. on a table or another surface.

Moreover, the beverage infuser 10 comprises a plunger assembly 22. The plunger assembly 22 comprises a plunger rod 24 and a plunger head 26 connected to the plunger rod 24. The plunger rod 24 is guided by a lid 28 that also serves for closing the beverage container 12. The lid 28 also forms a spout 30 for guiding the beverage when being poured out of the beverage container 12.

As best seen in Figure 2 the plunger head 26 comprises a perforated plate 32 located at the distal end of the plunger head 26 and typically made of metal. Further a spiral plate 34 is arranged next to the perforated plate 32. A filter (not shown) is disposed between the spiral plate 34 and the perforated plate 32. Both the perforated plate 32 and the spiral plate 34 are fixed to the plunger rod 24. A collector 36 according to the invention for collecting infusible material used for the preparation of beverages is introduced into the beverage container 12 and coupled to the plunger head 26 as will be explained in detail further below.

In Figure 3 the inventive collector 36 is shown by means of a top view and in Figure 4 by means of a cross section along the plane A-A defined in Figure 3. Figure 5 is a bottom 42 view of the collector 36. Referring in particular to Figure 4 the collector 36 comprises a structure 38 that forms a sidewall 40, a bottom 42 and an opening 44 located opposite of the bottom 42. The collector 36 has a substantially cylindrical shape defining a longitudinal axis A and thus corresponds to a large extent to the shape of the beverage container 12. Further the collector 36 comprises fastening means 46 that are formed integrally with the sidewall 40 and are embodied as latching means 48 having a conical surface 50. In the embodiment shown the collector 36 has two latching means 48. Moreover, the collector 36 has gripping sections 52 that are formed as concave recesses protruding into the interior of the collector 36. In the shown embodiment the collector 36 is provided with two gripping sections 52.

The sidewall 40 merges with the bottom 42 via a curved region 54. Longitudinal slits 56 are arranged within the curved region 54 but also extend into the bottom 42 and the sidewall 40. Moreover, the bottom 42 comprises a plurality of holes 58 completely penetrating the bottom 42 and having a conical shape. Beyond that the collector 36 comprises a number of feet 60 located at the bottom 42 (see Figure 5). In the embodiment shown the collector 36 is equipped with seven feet 60, six located at the periphery of the bottom 42 and one in the center. The bottom 42 has a concave curvature that substantially corresponds to the curvature of the closed end 16 of the beverage container 12 (cf. Figure 2).

In Figure 6 a perspective view of the collector 36 is shown. It is evident that the two latching means 48 are arranged opposite to each other as well as the two gripping sections 52. A first line L-i running through the center of the two latching means 48 and through a plane perpendicular to the longitudinal axis A runs perpendicular to a second line L ₂ running through the center of the two gripping sections 52 and through the same plane (see Figures 2 and 3). It is also apparent from Figure 6 that the sidewall 40 comprises areas of decreased thickness 62 (see also Figure 4). In the embodiment shown the collector 36 is provided with one continuous area of decreased thickness 62 starting from the opening 44 of the collector 36. The area of decreased thickness 62 is only interrupted by in total four stop ribs 64 that terminate together with the sidewall 40 and have the same thickness as the sidewall 40 outside the area of decreased thickness 62 and forming a free surface 66. The stop ribs 64 comprise a recess 68 that runs towards the bottom 42 of the collector 36. It is noted that the area of decreased thickness 62 is enlarged in the surroundings of the latching means 48.

Beyond that it can be seen from Figure 6 that the latching means 48 are located in an elevated area 70 of the sidewall 40. Hence, a distance d between the latching means 48 and the free surface 66 is generated (see also Figure 4).

The inventive beverage infuser 10 may be operated as follows: Initially the collector 36 is introduced into the beverage container 12 so that the feet 60 are contacting the closed end 16 of the beverage container 12. After that a desired amount of infusible material like coffee grind or tealeaves is filled into the beverage container 12 and subsequently poured over with hot water. The coffee or tea flavors are allowed to be extracted by the hot water. After that the plunger assembly 22 is introduced into the beverage container 12 and the plunger head 26 pressed down towards its closed end 16. By pressing down the plunger head 26, the extracted infusible material is separated from the coffee or tea and pressed into the collector 36. The now filtered coffee or tea is then consumable.

After the tea or coffee has been completely consumed, the plunger head 26 is further pressed towards the collector 36 until perforated plate 32 of the plunger head 26 contacts the free surface 66 of the stop ribs 64. When passing the latching means 48 the perforated plate 32 contacts the conical surface 50 thereby centering the collector 36 and the plunger head 26 to each other and slightly expanding the collector 36 in the surroundings of the latching means 48. To ensure that the outward movement of the latching means is not obstructed, the outer diameter of the collector 36 is slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the beverage container 12. Consequently, a clearance c is formed (see Figure 2). After the perforated plate 32 has passed the latching means 48 the collector 36 returns to its original shape so that a form closure between the latching means 48 and the perforated plate 32 is generated and the collector 36 is coupled to the plunger head 26. By pressing the plunger head 26 towards the collector 36 the used infusible material is compressed and excess beverage is squeezed out of the collector 36 via the holes 58 and the longitudinal slits 56. The beverage squeezed out accumulates in the volume between the collector 36 and the beverage container 12 generated by the feet 60.

Due to the distance d between the latching means 48 and the free surfaces there is a clearance between the perforated plate 32 and the sidewall 40 outside the elevated area 70 when the perforated plate 32 is located between the latching elements and the free surfaces 66. Excess infusible material may be pushed through the clearance so that the collector 36 is not overloaded with infusible material. After use the plunger assembly 22 and the coupled collector 36 are pulled out of the beverage container 12 and the accumulated infusible material removed from the beverage container 12. In order to decouple the collector 36 from the plunger head 26 the collector 36 is gripped at the gripping sections 52 with the fingers, namely the thumb and the index finger and/or middle finger and squeezed together. As a result the collector 36 deforms and expands at the surroundings of the latching means 48. The latching means 48 are moved radially outwards so that a radial clearance between the perforated plate 32 and the latching means 48 is generated. The deformed collector 36 can thus be decoupled from the plunger head 26 by axially removing it from the plunger head 26 without a contact between the latching means 48 and the perforated plate 32. The vast majority of used infusible material can then be deposited in a bin. The remaining infusible material sticking to the collector 36 and the beverage container 12 can be removed by cleaning with water.

As the forces the user has to exert on the collector 36 for decoupling are relatively low and only two or three fingers are needed to grab the collector 36 the decoupling process is quick and easy. Moreover, as the infusible material is compressed inside the collector 36 by the plunger head 26 no or only a small amount of beverage will drop out of the collector 36 during the decoupling. As a result the risk that the user gets burnt by the hot beverage or hot infusible material is significantly reduced. Reference list

10 beverage infuser

12 beverage container

14 open end

16 closed end

18 handle

20 base

22 plunger assembly

24 plunger rod

26 plunger head

28 lid

30 spout

32 perforated plate

34 spiral plate

36 collector

38 structure

40 sidewall

42 bottom

44 opening

46 fastening means

48 latching means

50 conical surface

52 gripping section

54 curved region

56 longitudinal slit

58 holes

60 feet area of decreased thickness stop rib

free surface

recess elevated area longitudinal axis

clearance

distance

first line

second line