Dosage element and a method of manufacturing a dosage element
Dosage elements to be consumed in use in a ware washing machine are made by (a) forming a main container part within a cavity of a mould; (b) providing the main container part with a first substance; (c) adhering a second substance to the underside of a part which is to form a lid of the dosage element; and (d) sealing the lid-forming part to the main container part so as to close the main container part and enclose the first and second substances within it; wherein the second substance covers at least 5% of the free area of the lid-forming part.
1 . A method of manufacturing a ware washing machine dosage element, the method comprising:
(a) forming a main container part within a cavity of a mould;
(b) providing the main container part with a first substance;
(c) adhering a second substance to the underside of a lid-forming part of the dosage element; and
(d) sealing the lid-forming part to the main container part so as to close the main container part and enclose the first and second substances within;
wherein the second substance covers at least 5% of the free area of the lid-forming part.
2 . A method according to claim 1 , wherein the second substance has a substantially flat contact surface which is adhered to a substantially flat surface of the lid-forming part, or is shaped, and the lid-forming part conforms to the surface.
3 . A method according to 1 further comprising, the step of: providing a vent in the lid-forming part.
4 . A method according to wherein the lid-forming part includes a slit or hole.
5 . A method according to claim 4 , wherein the hole or slit when as formed has an area from 0.2 mm 2 up to 8 mm 2 .
6 . A method according to claim 1 , wherein the dosage elements are of water-soluble polymeric material.
7 . A method according to claim 1 , wherein the second substance is a solid, a compressed powder; a gel; or a capsule or pouch encapsulating an active agent.
8 . A method according to claim 1 , wherein the second substance projects into the first substance such that the first substance surrounds the other remaining surfaces of the second substance.
9 . A method according to claim 1 , wherein the mould comprises a plurality of cavities adapted forming a plurality of dosage elements at one time, and step (d) comprises: indexing the lid-forming part with portions of the second substance attached to it to a position in which each of the portions is in register with a corresponding cavity in the mould, closing the cavities with the film in this position and sealing the lid-forming part to the main container parts in the cavities.
10 . A ware washing machine dosage element produced according to the method according to claim 1 .
11 . A ware washing machine dosage element comprising: a main container part and a lid-forming part sealed thereto, first and second substances, the second substance being adhered to the underside of the lid-forming part, and covering at least 5% of the free area of the lid-forming part.
12 . A dosage element according to claim 11 , and wherein a vent is provided in the lid-forming part.
13 . A method of ware washing which comprises the steps of:
providing a dosage element according to claim 10 to an automatic dishwasher,
providing ware to be washed to the automatic dishwasher, and
operating the automatic dishwasher to dispense the dosage element.
14 . The method of ware washing according to claim 13 , where the method is a dishwashing method practiced in an automatic dishwasher.
15 . A method according to claim 1 wherein parts of the dosage elements are adhered to each other using water as an adhesive