Beverage preparation system

1 . A beverage production system comprising a pack and a module for producing a beverage from the pack,

said pack comprising a beverage ingredient, said ingredient being configured to be mixed with a fluid to produce a beverage, said pack comprising a bottom side and an upper end, said pack presenting a plane shape oriented along a plane extending between the bottom side and the upper end, said bottom side of said pack comprising an area configured to be openable, said openable area being made of a flexible material, and

said module comprising:

a pack holder assembly adapted for receiving and holding said pack, said pack holder assembly comprising a pack chamber adapted for receiving said pack through an upper pack inlet and for holding said pack inside the module, said chamber presenting a bottom opening configured to enable access to at least the bottom side of said pack held in the chamber;

a fluid processing device comprising:

at least one inlet for introducing a fluid into said pack for preparation of a beverage by mixing said fluid with the beverage ingredient contained in said pack, and

at least one outlet for dispensing said beverage from said pack, said fluid processing device being designed to open the openable area of the pack; and

an actuating device to move said fluid processing device and said pack towards one another so that the fluid processing device opens the bottom side of said pack, the actuating device being configured to position said fluid processing device and said pack in a fluid introduction position, wherein said fluid processing device protrudes inside an internal volume of the pack in order to introduce the fluid,

wherein the pack holder assembly comprises a movable locking device, said movable locking device being configured to position the pack inside the pack chamber when a beverage is prepared,

wherein the pack comprises a front wall and a back wall, said front and back walls being made of flexible material, at least edges of bottom parts of said front and back walls being sealed together at a bottom end of the pack,

wherein the pack comprises at least two fixing means, said at least two fixing means being holes or deformable areas formed in the sealed edges of the front and back walls at the bottom end of the pack, said at least two fixing means being positioned around the openable area of the bottom side of the pack, and

wherein the movable locking device comprises at least two positioning means, each of said positioning means being configured:

to move inside one of the holes of the pack held in the chamber, or to move inside and deform one of the deformable areas of the pack held in the chamber and to fit in the resulting deformed area.

2 . A beverage production system according to claim 1 , wherein the openable area is made of a stretchable material.

3 . A beverage production system according to claim 2 , wherein the stretchable material is selected from the group consisting of: polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polylactide (PLA), polyhydroxyalcanoates (PHA), polybutylene adipate terepthalate (PBAT), polybutylene succinate (PBS), polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH), starch-based polymers, a polymer comprising food-grade oxygen and/or moisture scavengers, and a combination thereof.

4 . A beverage production system according to claim 1 , wherein the pack comprises two circular fixing areas, a distance between centers of said circular fixing areas being at most 52 mm, and

wherein each of the holes or deformable areas of the pack encompasses one of said circular fixing areas.

5 . A beverage production system according to claim 4 , wherein the circular fixing areas are provided in said sealed edges, and

wherein the distance between the centers of the circular fixing areas is at least 40 mm.

6 . A beverage production system according to claim 1 , wherein the openable area of the pack comprises a piece of reinforcing material and the sealed edges are disposed around said piece of reinforcing material.

7 . A beverage production system according to claim 6 , wherein said piece of reinforcing material comprises an opening, said opening being closed by the flexible material.

8 . A beverage production system according to claim 7 , wherein the opening of the piece of reinforcing material and a cross section of the fluid processing device present circular shapes, and

a diameter of the opening of the piece of reinforcing material is greater than a diameter of the cross section of the fluid processing device by 1 mm, said cross section of the fluid processing device being positioned in the opening of the piece of reinforcing material when the fluid processing device protrudes inside the internal volume of the pack in order to introduce the fluid.

9 . A beverage production system according to claim 1 , wherein the bottom side of the pack comprises:

an external primary sheet of flexible material, said primary sheet comprising a first opening at the openable area,

an intermediate secondary sheet of flexible material, said secondary sheet covering the first opening, and

an internal piece of reinforcing material, said internal piece comprising a second opening, said second opening facing the first opening.

10 . A beverage production system according to claim 4 , wherein the distance between the centers of the circular fixing areas is between 40 and 52 mm.

11 . A beverage production system according to claim 1 , wherein the pack presents a transversal dimension between 65 and 75 mm.