THIS INVENTION relates to the packaging and dispensing of liquids. In particular it relates to those liquids which should preferably or essentially- be packaged and later dispensed from such a package without contacting the package's environment, or which are affected by gross agitation.

The objects of this invention include the provision of a new or improved method of filling containers and dispen¬ sing from those containers by means of special filling and dispensing heads mating with special flanged spouts fitted to a flexible container or containers within a respec¬ tively sealed or ventilated rigid outer container, avoid¬ ing atmospheric contact and/or inclusion during coupling and uncoupling and atmospheric entry and/or product agita¬ tion during pumping.

The invention is particularly applicable to filling and dispensing liquids from what are known as "bag-in-box" type containers wherein a bag formed of flexible plastic film (generally laminated) is housed in a rigid outer con¬ tainer which is generally formed of cardboard but which may be formed of a more rigid plastic or metal as desired.

In its broadest form the invention resides in a container for packaging and dispensing liquids comprising an inner container formed of flexible material, an outer container housing the inner container, and means for applying pres¬ sure externally to the inner container to effect dispen¬ sing of the liquid packaged therein, said inner container being provided with a spout projecting through one wall of the outer container, said spout being capable of having a filling head or a dispensing head fitted thereto so that

the liquid is kept free of atmospheric contact and/or agitation during filling or dispensing, and said spout being provided with a removable seal which can be removed and/or replaced whilst the filling head or the dispensing head is fitted to the spout, said outer container being formed of a material sufficiently rigid to support the inner container when full and the pressure applied there¬ to.

One means for applying pressure externally to the inner container comprises a second flexible container located within the outer container and having a spout projecting through one wall of the outer container through which fluid under pressure can be fed into or bled out of the second flexible container and said outer container being vented to atmosphere.

In another embodiment the outer container is formed as a rigid pressure vessel and has a second spout projecting therefrom through which fluid under pressure can be fed into or bled out of the space between the flexible con¬ tainer and the walls of the outer container.

The invention also provides a filling head for filling the container with a liquid under conditions where there is minimum exposure of the liquid to the atmosphere as well as a dispensing head for dispensing the liquid from the container.

Thus in another form the invention resides in a filling or dispensing head comprising a tubular body closed at its upper end and open at its lower end, said lower end having means for coupling it in a substantially air tight manner to a spout of a container, said spout being sealed by a bung or like closure, a port adjacent said lower end adapted to be connected to a supply line or a delivery

line,- a piston provided with a- downwardly projecting skirt slidably mounted in the lower portion of the tubular body so that it can be moved between a position in which it closes the port and an open position, a rod slidably mounted in the closed end of the tubular body and the piston so that one end projects externally of the closed end and the other end is located within the skirt of the piston and is provided with means for engaging the bung or closure, the skirt being so dimensioned to effect sealing engagement with the bung or closure when withdrawn, and means for actuating said piston.

Preferably a filling head as defined above is provided with a valved orifice adapted to be connected to a suction line to enable air to be bled from the container when the bung or closure has been withdrawn into sealing engagement with the skirt.

The various aspects of the invention will be better under¬ stood by reference to the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings which illus¬ trate embodiments suitable for the bulk packaging of still or carbonated wine or beer or other gassed or oxidizable liquids and wherein:-

Figs. 1 to 6 inclusive are sectional elevations illustrating the filling of a container in accordance with the invention and the dispensing of the contents of the filled container;

Figs. 7 to 10 inclusive and 21 illustrate the con¬ struction of the spouts;

Figs. 11 to 17 inclusive are sectional elevations illustrating the construction and operation of one form of filling head; and

Figs. 18 to 20 inclusive are sectional illustrating the construction and operation of one form of dis¬ pensing head.

The packaging unit shown in Figs. 1 to 6 comprises a pair of flexible containers 3 and 4 formed of a laminated plastic material housed within an outer container 6 which is fabricated from rigid plastic ends secured to a spiral¬ ly wound fibre board tube, a construction which is suffi¬ ciently rigid to support -the flexible container 3 when filled with liquid and the pressure of container 4 when filled with fluid under pressure.

The liquid to be packed is held in a holding tank 7 under pressure of a suitable gas P and is connected by a flexi¬ ble hose 8 to a filling head 9 which is mated without inclusion of atmosphere to a flanged spout 2 as described hereunder with reference to Figs. 12 to 16 inclusive.

The flange of spout 2 is sealingly fitted to flexible con¬ tainers 3 and 4. The flange of spout 5 is sealingly fitted to flexible container 4 only. Spouts 2 and 5 are fitted to their respective flexible containers in posi¬ tions enabling then to be both axially and radially locked into suitable orifices in the outer container 6. The rigid container 6 may be, but not necessarily, placed for filling on the platform of a weighing device 11 which would actuate the closing of the filling head 9 valve and application of the bung 1 to spout 2 upon the mass of the liquid packed representing the correct volume to be packed.

FILLING FUNCTION

It will be seen from Fig. 2 that when filling head 9 is applied to spout 2 vacuum can be applied via a valved orifice 10 to ensure that the flexible container 3 and neck of spout 2 are virtually void of any gaseous con¬ taminant.

The vacuum valve 10 is then closed and the filling head admits the product via the hose 8 from the holding tank 7 which is pressurised with a suitable gas via P.

The filled flexible container 3 occupies the. available volume of the rigid container 6 forcing the air from the interspace between the exterior of flexible container 3 and interior of flexible container 4 via spout 5 and from the interspace between the exterior of flexible container 4 and interior of the rigid container 6 via vent V.

When the required amount of liquid has been admitted to the flexible container 3, the weighing device 11 signals the closure of the valve in the filling head 9 and bung 1 is inserted to seal the neck of spout 2. Fig. 3.

The filling head 9 is then removed from spout 2 and a hygenic cap 24 (Fig. 7) is locked over spout 2. The pack¬ age is now ready for delivery to the user.

DISPENSING FUNCTION

The user's dispensing tap 12 is connected via flexible hose 13 to the dispensing head 14 which is attached to spout 2 as in Figs. 3-6.

The pressurising head 15 is connected via flexible hose 17, two-way valve 18 and a pressure regulator 19 to pressure source 20 which in this case is a water supply. As shown in Fig. 4 the valve 18 is cracked to the water supply and trapped air bled off via valve 16 on the pres¬ surising head 15. Valve 16 is closed and valve 18 fully opened to pressurise the interspace between flexible containers 3 and 4 as the volume of flexible container 4 is restricted by the internal volume of the vented pres¬ sure vessel 6.

OMPI

The pressure of the water supply is thus transmitted to the product packed in flexible container 3. The dis¬ pensing head 14 is now activated and as described and de¬ picted hereafter the bung 1 is internally removed and the valve port to hose 13 opened.

Supply of pressurised product to the dispensing tap 12 has now been achieved without the admission of any air to the system.

The combined density of the flexible container 3 and pro¬ duct is less than that of the pressurising water. Con¬ sequently as the product is dispensed and the volume becomes less flexible container 3 folds upward, (Fig. 4) floating in the pressurising water until all of the pro¬ duct contents has been expelled via spout 2 (Fig. 5).

As shown in Fig. 6 the user detaches the dispensing head 14 and removes from it the bung 1. As described and depicted herearfter, titis process leaves the product supp¬ ly line 13 unbrσached.

The two-way valve 18 is then actuated to communicate line 17 to line 21.

Air may now enter the rigid container 6 via spout 2 per¬ mitting the water in the interspace between flexible containers 3 and 4 to be recycled to a header tank or alternatively syphoned to another use or to waste.

The rigid container 6 now only contains the collapsed and empty flexible containers 3 and 4 and may be removed from the dispensing site.

A second embodiment envisages the selection of a material physically and mechanically unaffected by the pressurising

- ι i-EA

medium for the construction of the outer container as a rigid pressure vessel.

The rigid pressure vessel 6 then may be constructed as a sealed container with the spout 5 intergrated with 6 pro¬ viding that the mounting of in the wall of the vessel 6 is done in a fluid tight manner.

A configuration as above obviates the necessity for flexi¬ ble container 4 but will be seen to systematically func¬ tion as described heretofore except that upon expulsion of the pressurising medium at the end of the cycle, the flexible container 3 will expand so that atmospheric air will occupy the internal volume of the rigid container.

A third embodiment envisages the use of compressed air or other suitable compressed gas as the pressurising medium.

In this case the pressurising medium may, but not necessa¬ rily, have a lower density _, than the combined densities of the packed product and the flexible container 3. Thus as the amount of product becomes less due to off-draw, the remaining product and its flexible container 3 will sink in the pressurising medium. The spout 2 is preferably mounted in the base of the rigid container 6.

FLANGED SPOUT

The flanged spout 2 (Fig. 7) which is sealingly fitted to flexible containers 3 and 4 preferably has a grill base 46 (Fig. 9) to prevent the flexible container 3 when emptied from being forced into the neck of spout 2 and/or the dispensing head (Fig. 18) and has external means of com¬ pression locking such as bayonet ramps to the tubular body. The internal bore of the tubular body of the spout is preferably smooth and parallel and of such a diameter

as to offer a sealingly interference-fit to the barb sec¬ tion lands of the bung 1 (see Fig. 11).

The flanged spout 2 (Fig. 8) is preferably provided with a cap 24 which locks onto the spout 2 providing both axial and radial compression in addition to a hygenic covering to the spout 2.

The external base of the tubular section of the flanged spout 2 is provided with a non-circular (in this case a square) form 25 (see Fig. 9) to radially locate the flan¬ ged spout 2 to the rigid container 6.

In this embodiment a plastic radially sprung washer (Fig. 10) is provided to slide over the tubular body of spout 2 after it has been located in its square hole in the rigid container 6 thus locking it axially to container 6.

A similar method is provided for locating and locking to container 6 the smaller flanged spout 5 (Fig. 21) which is sealingly fitted to flexible container 4.

FILLING HEAD

The filling head (see Fig. 11) consists in this embodiment of a two chamber tubular body. The bottom chamber is pro¬ vided with a construction 26 which will sealingly lock to spout 2, an orifice 27 capable of supply connection to the product holding tank 7 (Fig. 2), a valved orifice 28 cap¬ able of supply connection to a vacuum pump or similar and a . bore to sealingly accept the vented 29 bung-piston and hollow rod assembly 32 and vent 29.

The upper chamber is constructed to form a double acting air cylinder with the piston sealingly fitted to the hol¬ low piston rod 32 which sealingly passes through both top and bottom end plates of the upper chamber.

On the top end of the hollow piston rod 32 is concen¬ trically mounted on air cylinder which operates the bung- ejector 33.

FILLING HEAD FUNCTION

The assembled container is conveniently positioned and the hygenic cap 24 (Fig. 8) removed from spout 2.

Compressed air is supplied to orifice 30 of the upper chamber of the filling head ensuring that piston 32 keeps product supply orifice 27 closed.

Compressed air is supplied to orifice 34 of the top air cylinder ensuring that the bung-ejector 33 is retracted and a bung 1 is sealingly inserted into the hollow of piston 32.

The filling head (see Fig. 12) is then offered and seal¬ ingly locked by construction 26 to spout 2. The valve 10 of orifice 28 Fig. 12 is opened evacuating the flexible container 3 and neck of spout 2.

Orifice 28 (see Fig. 13) is then closed and compressed air admitted to orifice 31 (see Fig. 14) thus opening orifice 27 so that the fluid product flows into container 3.

On completion of the fill, supply of compressed air is re¬ moved from orifice 31 (Fig. 15) and reconnected to orifice 30 thus closing supply orifice 27. Compressed air supply is now transferred from orifice 34 (Fig. 16) to orifice 35 forcing the bung 1 sealingly into spout 2.

The filling head 9 Fig. 17 is now removed from spout 2 and the hygenic compression cap 24 re-locked onto spout 2.

OMPI

The package has now been filled without the product fluid contacting the environmental atmosphere at any time.

DISPENSING HEAD

The user conveniently positions the container and removes the hygenic compression cap 24.

The dispensing head 14 (Fig. 18) is offered and sealingly locked to spout 2 by a similar construction to the filling head 9 26.

In this emboidment water of sufficient head is supplied via a pressure reducer and regulator 19 (see Fig. 3) to a two way valve 18.

The bleed valve-coupling 16 is connected to spout 5. The system is bled and flexible container 4 is pres¬ surised with water as described heretofore.

The chamber 36 of the dispensing head (see Fig. 18) con¬ tains a sealingly slidable vented 38 piston 37 with a hollow externally threaded piston rod 39 the mating thread of which is in the vented 40 head of the chamber 36.

The bung extractor 41 is attached to the bung 1 in this case by a threaded sleeve to the bung's threaded hub by rotating handle 42. The bung 1 is then sealingly slid into the recess of piston 37 by turning handle 42 (see Fig. 19) over so that cam 43 or a similar mechanism im¬ parts axial motion to rod 41.

The "T" bar 44 (see Fig. 20) is then rotated so that the threaded hollow rod 39 withdraws piston 37 together with bung 1 thus communicating the delivery orifice 45 with the pressurised contents of flexible container 3.

When the contents of flexible container 3 is exhausted the "T" bar 44 is rotated returning piston 37 which closes orifice 45.

The dispensing head 14 Fig. 19 is then removed from spout 2 and the bung 1 is removed from the device 14 by rotating handle 42.

The supply line has now been disconnected from the con¬ tainer without the product fluid coming in contact with the environmental atmosphere.