The present invention refers to bottling techniques in general and, more specifically, to an integrated unit for treating caps and/or corks for bottles, particularly suitable for treating and storing a plurality of caps and/or corks before they are supplied to a bottling machine. Background Art

It is widely known in the state of the art the use of a physical agent, such as heat, in the form of a jet. of wet water steam, in direct contact with the caps and/or corks in order to clean them. Such a method is disclosed in Brazilian patent No. PI 8702673 and in Brazilian patent application No. PI 9001180.

The basic problem related with the use of this method known to the state of the art concerns the quality of the water steam used in the treatment of the caps and/or corks, among which can be pointed out:

1. The water steam industrially produced for use as a sterilizing agent is not pure. It is usually contaminated with chemicals by-products resulting from the treatment used to remove from the water the corrosive agents that act on the equipments, boilers and/or industrial steam generators. Under these conditions, the steam is not only useless to remove the fat, oil and grease that usually contaminate the caps and/or corks as it also carries the chemicals by-products resulting from the water treating equipments into the caps and/or corks, adding to their contamination.

2. The caps and/or corks manufactured from plastics materials can warp when submitted to the high temperature of the water steam sterilising agent when it is not properly applied, whereby they can not be latter used in a bottling operation.

3. The time required to treat the caps and/or corks is unusually long when the sterilising agent is an

scorching solution, whereby the caps and/or corks can be further contaminated with remnants of the agen .

4. After sterilization. the caps and/or corks are not p>roperly stored in order to attend to specific processes where the presence of wetness and/or steam in these components is definitely unwelcome. Disclosure of the Invention

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a solution to the above-discussed problems, by providing an integrated unit for treating and storing caps and/or corks for bottles wherein sterilised water steam and other agents are used to treat the caps and/or corks in addition to the physical agent.

According to the present invention, this purpose is accomplished by the provision of an integrated unit for treating and storing caps and/or corks for bottles comprising: a gas-tight, sealed container for storing a plurality of caps and/or corks, said caps and/or corks being randomly arranged within said container; means for carrying out a first washing of said caps and/or corks, said first washing including a solvent agent and being conducted in a downward direction within said container; means for carrying out a rinsing of said caps and/or corks after said first washing, also in a downward direction; means for carrying out a second washing of said caps and/or corks with an hypochloric sanitising agent; means for carrying out a second rinsing of said caps and/or corks after said second washing: means for sterilizing said caps and/or corks in an upward direction within said container; and means for drying and storing said caps and/or corks after they have been treated. Brief Description of the Drawings

The present invention will be described hereinafter in greater details, as a non-limitative example, in connection with its actually preferred embodiment shown in the attached drawings, wherein:

Figure I is an schematic representation of the integrated unit for treating and storing caps and/or corks

for bottles according to the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

With reference now more particularly to the drawings, an integrated unit for treating and storing caps and/or corks for bottles according to the present invention is schematically shown in Figure 1 as comprising a gas- tight, sealed container 1 for storing a plurality of caps and/or corks, said caps and/or corks being randomly arranged within said container. Although the container 1 is shown as substantially cylindrical and having a circular cross- section, it can have any preferred cross-section such as square, rectangular and others.

The volumetric capacity of said container 1 is over 0.5 cubic meters in order to allow for the treatment and storage of big amounts of caps and/or corks in a safe manner, including protecting them against potential damages during the treating operation.

Container 1 bears over a support structure 2 having coupling means 3 to receive wheels or the like in order to allow for its displacement, inclusive by means of a fork lift.

A lid 4 having a central opening 5 closes the upper end of container 1, with an overlid 6 closing said central opening 5. This constructions allows the feeding of a great amount of caps and/or corks into said container 1 when lid 4 is not in position. When lid 4 is in position, overlid 6 can be used to feed small amounts of caps and/or corks into the container and/or to insert or circulate treating agents for cleaning the caps and/or corks.

A discharge means 21 is provided on the lower end of said container 1 to feed the caps and/or corks to a transporting means 22 which feeds them to storage means 23 and to feeding means 24 which supply said caps and/or corks to bottling machines.

Container 1 is additionally provided with means adjacent to its upper end, for supplying washing solutions into said container.

Said supplying means comprises an inner distributing duct 7 having a plurality of openings 8 to provide an even distribution of said washing solutions over the plurality of caps and/or corks randomly arranged within the container 1, in a manner similar to a shower.

Distributing duct 7 connects to a reservoir 9 for supplying a first washing solution, which is preferably a solution containing a solvent agent.

A low pressure hydraulic pump 10 pumps said washing solution from reservoir 9 to distributing duct 7, from where it falls over the caps and/or corks by gravity in a downward direction.

Distributing duct 7 also connects, through a second low pressure hydraulic pump 12, to a second reservoir 11 for supplying a second washing solution, which is preferably a solution containing a hypochloric sanitising agent.

Distributing duct 7 also connects, through a high pressure hydraulic pump 14, to a water reservoir 13. This connection allows the rinsing of the caps and/or corks, after they have been treated with the solvent and the sanitising agent, to be carried out with plenty of water.

Container 1 is also provided, next to its lower end, with means to supply an sterilising solution into the container.

Said supplying means comprise an inner- distributing duct 15 selectively connectable to a plurality of reservoirs or containers 16, 17, 18 containing sterilising means under pressure. Said sterilising means can vary according to the requirements, needs and features of the caps and/or corks and can be selected among any of the group comprising steam, ionising gases, criogenic gases or any combination of the above. The positioning of the distributing ducts 15 at the lower end of the container I allows for the sterilising agents to be distributed over the caps and/or corks in an upward direction in counter—current with respect to the

prior washing operations, in order to increase the efficiency of the cleaning process.

After decontamination. in order to avoid the caps and/or corks to be contaminated again by external agents prior to their feeding to the bottling machines, the lower distributing duct 15 connects, through a steriliser

20, to a supply of pressurised air 19. This way the interior of the container 1 and of the discharging means

21, the transporting means, the reservoir means 23, and the feeding means 24 for feeding the caps and/or corks to the bottling machines can be filled with sterilised air at a suitable temperature in order to assure the drying and cleaning of the caps and/or corks before they are used to close the bottles. The present invention provides an otimisatior- of the costs and operational features involved in the treatment and storage of great amounts of caps and/or corks used in the industrial bottling processes. It also minimises the flow of transportation of caps and/or corks between manufacturers and users of caps and/or corks and within the bottling plants.

Having described the invention it is to be understood that modifications and variations will occur to those skilled in the art, and that all those modifications and variations shall be considered as being enclosed within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed in the attached claims.