System for handling sterilisation of thin-body flexible containers (POUCH)

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10245336-B2
Application number	US-201615082969-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 28, 2016
Priority date	Jul 1, 2015
Publication date	Apr 2, 2019
Grant date	Apr 2, 2019

Abstract

A system for handling the sterilization of thin-body, pouch-type, flexible containers (1), provides for applying sacrificial closures (200) to the pouches, loading the provisional closed pouches to be sterilized on a transport device (300) for collective transport, to performing the sterilization of the transport device (300) carrying the provisional closed pouches and, finally, separating, in a sterile chamber, the sacrificial closures (200) from the pouches, performing filling and applying an inviolable cap (100).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. Method of sterilisation of flexible pouches, comprising the steps of:
producing a plurality of pouches, wherein each pouch comprises a container body formed by walls made of flexible film and a spout comprising an entrance portion with an inlet and a tube with an outlet, said spout being sealingly applied to the container body so as to protrude outside of it with at least a section of the tube;
providing a plurality of sacrificial closures reversibly applicable to the outlet mouth of the spout;
applying, sealingly and reversibly, the sacrificial closure to the outlet of the spout, thereby obtaining provisionally closed non-filled pouches to be sterilised;
loading a plurality of provisionally closed non-filled pouches to be sterilised on a transport device for collective transport;
forming a transport group, containing a plurality of transport devices, each carrying the provisionally closed non-filled pouches to be sterilised, stacked;
transporting the transport group from the site of the producer subject to a steriliser subject;
performing a sterlisation of the entire transport group loaded with provisionally closed non-filled pouches, by ionising radiation;
picking the sterilised provisionally closed non-filled pouches from the transport device and sending them in succession to a sterile chamber;
for each sterilised provisionally closed non-filled pouch, making at least a portion of the tube provided with the sacrificial closure to pass through the sterile chamber;
during said passing through of the sterile chamber, separating the sacrificial closure from the tube, filling the sterilised open pouch and applying a tamper-proof cap to the tube to close the pouch.

Assignees

• Guala Pack Spa

Inventors

• Tamarindo Stefano

Classifications

• B65B55/08 Primary

  by irradiation · CPC title

• B65B3/045

  for filling flexible containers having a filling and dispensing spout, e.g. containers of the "bag-in-box"-type · CPC title

• B65B61/186

  by applying or incorporating rigid fittings, e.g. discharge spouts · CPC title

• A61L2103/23

  Containers other than laboratory or medical, e.g. bottles or mail · CPC title

• B65B43/123 Primary

  Feeding flat bags connected to form a series or chain · CPC title