FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[001] The subject matter of the present invention, in general, pertains to production of seamless reservoirs (capsules), and more particularly to a seamless reservoir, a system and a method to manufacture said seamless reservoirs that are uniform in size and weight.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[002] In the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, encapsulation refers to a range of dosage forms: techniques used to enclose medicines: in a relatively stable shell known as a capsule, allowing them to, for example, be taken orally or be used as suppositories. The two main types of capsules are:

1. Hard-shelled capsules, which are typically made using gelatin and contain dry, powdered ingredients or miniature pellets made by e.g. processes of extrusion or spheronisation. These are made in two halves: a lower-diameter "body" that is filled and then sealed using a higher-diameter "cap".
2. Soft-shelled capsules, primarily used for oils and for active ingredients that are dissolved or suspended in oil.

[003] Both of these classes of capsules are made from aqueous solutions of gelling agents, such as animal protein (mainly gelatin) or plant polysaccharides or their derivatives (such as carrageenans and modified forms of starch and cellulose). Other ingredients can be added to the gelling agent solution including plasticizers such as glycerin or sorbitol to decrease the capsule's hardness, colouring agents, preservatives, disintegrants, lubricants and surface treatment.

[004] Seamless capsules are a type of soft capsule made by utilizing the quality of interfacial tension of liquid. Their shape can only be spherical owing to manufacturing methods, but literally, a “seamless” capsule can be made. There are qualities such as containing the active ingredients until immediately before use and preventing the smell of the liquid content to leak out. Further, comparing with other kinds of capsules, there are plenty of materials to make the capsule out of (gelatin, agar and other polysaccharide thickeners) to fit the various needs of our customers in many fields.

[005] Techniques for manufacturing seamless capsules, including for manufacturing capsules smaller in size than soft capsules and larger in size than microcapsules, are widely known. In these techniques, a multi-layer liquid flow is blown out of the multiple nozzles to form multi-layer droplets which come in contact with the cooling liquid to solidify the droplets and thereby form seamless capsules enclosing inner liquid inside the outer layer. The same method is even employed to form single layer capsules by using single nozzle.

[006] Reference is made to EP 0513603 A1, wherein an apparatus for manufacturing seamless capsules is disclosed. In the said apparatus, a multi-layer liquid flow is blown out of a multiple nozzle to form multi-layer droplets which are brought into contact with hardening liquid, to thereby manufacture the seamless capsules. Parts of pipings for supplying the liquid flow for forming the capsules to the multiple nozzle are formed of a flexible material, and flexible portions thus formed are vibrated by a vibrator, to thereby form the multi-layer droplets.

[007] Reference is also made to US 2911672 A, wherein a process and apparatus for manufacturing seamless filled capsules is disclosed. The apparatus comprises means for forming a continuous downwardly flowing composite stream composed of a solid stream of liquid capsule filler material encased by a substantially cylindrical stream of encapsulating material and passing said composite stream into a container with cooling liquid said means consisting essentially of a downwardly facing extrusion nozzle including an annular downwardly facing first orifice and a substantially circular downwardly facing second orifice located concentrically within said first orifice, pressure means for continuously and simultaneously supplying and extruding encapsulating material through said first orifice and capsule filler material through said second orifice, and a container for cooling liquid normally present therein below and immediately adjacent said orifices, and means below the top of the container and exit of the nozzle for exerting a pressure impulse of regular frequency on said cooling liquid substantially below said orifices. The process involves extruding continuously and downwardly encapsulating material in liquid form through a first orifice and extruding continuously liquid filler material from a second orifice in the center of the first orifice, said liquids forming together a coherent composite jet consisting of a core of filler material and a jacket of encapsulating material, passing this jet into a cooling liquid and before congealing of the encapsulating material subjecting it to a vibration of regular frequency by consecutive pressure impulses of the cooling liquid on the coherent jet, resulting in formation of initial constrictions in said jet corresponding with the frequency of the vibration, whereupon the jet under the influence of natural forces constricts itself further in the places of the induced constrictions and ultimately divides itself into separate drops consisting of a core of filler material, and congealing the encapsulating shells by cooling the drops in a liquid cooling medium.

[008] Reference is also made to US 7112292 B2, wherein method of manufacturing a spherical seamless capsule formed by encapsulating a filler material such as a medicine with a capsule shell material such as gelatine is disclosed. A concentric multiple nozzle is positioned above the liquid surface of a curing liquid such that the tip of the nozzle faces down. A concentric columnar composite flow which is discharged from this concentric multiple nozzle and which is composed of a filler material and a capsule shell material outside the filler material is immersed in the curing liquid, and cut in the curing liquid to form a droplet. The capsule shell material of the droplet is cured by the curing liquid, and thereby a seamless capsule is formed. Since, the droplet is not dropped into the curing liquid, no deformation of the droplet caused by collision against the liquid surface occurs. The tip of the multiple nozzle is positioned above the liquid surface of the curing liquid. This prevents water contained in the curing liquid from adhering to the surface of the nozzle and penetrating into the composite flow.

[009] The major problems addressed in the prior art documents pertain to obtaining uniform size and weight of the capsules, technically terms as sphericity is ever challenging. To overcome this, the prior art teaches the use of applying vibration at a given frequency which divides the drops from the nozzle where the shell and the core liquid encapsulation happens. In particular, they specifically employ vibrations at a given frequency to obtain uniform composite drops. When a composite continuous jet consisting of a shell and core material which eventually forms into a drop, introduction of vibrations at the nozzle (where the “drop” formation originates), to ultimately divide the jet into uniform drops according to the frequency of vibration.

[0010] However, such conventional techniques have their own disadvantages such as high energy requirements, need for complex manufacturing set up, optimize or streamline the production process that still poses a challenge to the manufacturers.

[0011] Another drawback faced by the capsule making industry is positioning of the inner carrier material inside the said capsule. None of the prior art references provide a viable solution to the said problem.

[0012] Yet another drawback faced by the capsule making industry is to choose the ingredient in a manner that viscosity of the selected ingredient is low and is stable with varying temperature as most of the known technologies are viscosity sensitive. None of the prior art references provide a viable solution to the said problem.

[0013] To overcome the said drawbacks plaguing the capsule making industry, the subject invention discloses a simple yet effective system and method for manufacturing seamless capsules that is viscosity independent, thereby having a wide range of applications.

[0014] The subject invention discloses a system and method for making carrier material filled reservoirs (capsules) by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve so that the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless capsules may be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate may be increased, thereby seamless capsules of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The following presents a simplified summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This summary is not an extensive overview of the present invention. It is not intended to identify the key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concept of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description of the invention presented later.

[0016] An object of the present invention is to provide a seamless reservoir, a system and a method for making carrier material filled reservoirs.

[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a system and a method to manufacture spherical reservoirs that are uniform in size and weight.

[0018] Another object of the present invention is to provide a system comprising a nozzle system to dispense reservoir forming liquid in a metered volume/ dosage.

[0019] Yet another object of the present invention is a system comprising a nozzle system, wherein the rate of flow of the metered volume or dosage is regulated by a high frequency valve operated through a precise timing mechanism.

[0020] Yet another object of the present invention is a system with a nozzle system wherein material with viscosity ranging from 75 cps to 6000 cps can be processed with uniform shape and size.

[0021] Yet another object of the present invention is that the sphericity of the formed reservoir is at least 90% and above.

[0022] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a spherical reservoir in the size range of 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter.

[0023] Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide spherical reservoir with a composite material where in the composite material might be a mixture of two or more ingredients.

[0024] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a seamless spherical reservoir with at least one outer material and at least one inner carrier material placed within the outer material at any desired coordinate

[0025] Accordingly, in a first aspect of the present invention, a seamless reservoir is disclosed. The reservoir comprising: a uniform sphericity of at least 90% roundness; and a uniform size ranging from 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter; wherein said reservoir is made of any suitable material with a suitable viscosity ranging from 75-6000 cps.

[0026] In a second aspect of the present invention, a system for producing a seamless reservoir is disclosed. The system comprising: at least one insulated tank for storing a reservoir forming material; the material flow is controlled by any suitable means such as pneumatic pressure or positive displacement pump; a heated piping system; at least one high frequency liquid flow controlling valve wherein the valves allow specific volume of liquid to pass through; at least one nozzle system having a single orifice or multiple orifices; said nozzle system is operably connected to a suitable means such as pneumatic/lead screw to control the upward/downward movement of the said nozzle system; a crosslinking/gelling bath comprising a cooling fluid; wherein said seamless reservoir has 90% sphericity, size ranging from 100 micron and 15 mm in diameter.

[0027] In a third aspect of the present invention, a method for making a seamless reservoir is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: allowing a reservoir forming material (1,3) from an insulated tank (2,4) to a nozzle system (13) by building a positive pressure of the material (1,3) on the nozzle system (13) through a positive displacement pump, placing the tank at a suitable height or any other suitable means.

[0028] In one implementation, by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs may be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate may be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate can be produced.

[0029] In another implementation, the system can be used for both in-air type, wherein the nozzle tip is kept at a distance from the surface of the cooling liquid, and in-liquid type, wherein the nozzle tip is kept dipped/immersed inside the surface of the cooling oil, without any modification in mechanism of controlling the flow rate of liquids, with precise control of the distance of the nozzle tip from the cooling oil surface in both directions.

[0030] The carrier material filled seamless reservoirs are uniform in size and spherical in shape. reservoirs (capsule, droplet, globule, bead, biocapsule, seamless capsule, spheres, microspheres and the like) and in particular, seamless reservoirs. The system has a high frequency valve at the inlet port of inner nozzle and outer nozzle for supplying the liquid flow through the nozzle for forming the reservoirs by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs can be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate can be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

[0031] Other aspects, advantages, and salient features of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses exemplary embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
The above and other aspects, features, and advantages of certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

[0032] Figure 1 illustrates a system for manufacturing seamless reservoir according to the present invention.

[0033] Figure 2 illustrates an enlarged partial view of the high frequency valve and inlet port arrangement of inner and outer nozzle of the system according to the present invention.

[0034] Figure 3 illustrates the nozzle system according to the present invention.

[0035] Figure 4 illustrates examples of different kinds of seamless reservoirs that can be formed according to the present invention.

[0036] Figure 5 illustrates the operation of two valve system to produce a seamless reservoir according to the present invention.

[0037] Figure 6 illustrates examples of placement of the carrier liquid in the shell material according to the present invention.

[0038] Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and may have not been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figure may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure. Throughout the drawings, it should be noted that like reference numbers are used to depict the same or similar elements, features, and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0039] The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of exemplary embodiments of the invention. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary.

[0040] Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted for clarity and conciseness.

[0041] The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the invention. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention are provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0042] It is to be understood that the singular forms “a”, “an”, and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0043] By the term “substantially” it is meant that the recited characteristic, parameter, or value need not be achieved exactly, but that deviations or variations, including for example, tolerances, measurement error, measurement accuracy limitations and other factors known to those of skill in the art, may occur in amounts that do not preclude the effect the characteristic was intended to provide.

[0044] Features that are described and/or illustrated with respect to one embodiment may be used in the same way or in a similar way in one or more other embodiments and/or in combination with or instead of the features of the other embodiments.

[0045] It should be emphasized that the term “comprises/comprising” when used in this specification is taken to specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps or component but does not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, components or groups thereof.

[0046] The subject invention lies in providing a system and a method for making carrier material filled reservoirs.

[0047] In the present invention, a system and a method for making carrier material filled reservoirs (capsules) is disclosed. These carrier material filled reservoirs are spherical reservoirs (capsule, droplet, globule, bead, biocapsule, seamless capsule, spheres, microspheres and the like). The system has a high frequency valve at the inlet port of inner nozzle and outer nozzle for supplying the liquid flow through the nozzle for forming the reservoirs, by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs can be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate can be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

[0048] In one implementation, a system and a method to manufacture spherical reservoirs that are uniform in size and weight is provided for.

[0049] In one implementation, a system comprising a nozzle system to dispense both the outer material and inner material in a metered volume/ dosage is provided for.

[0050] In one implementation, the system comprising a nozzle system, wherein the rate of flow of the metered volume or dosage is regulated by a high frequency valve operated through a precise timing mechanism is provided for.

[0051] In one implementation, the system with a nozzle wherein material with viscosity ranging from 75cps to 6000cps may be passed is provided for.

[0052] In one implementation, sphericity of the formed reservoir is at least 90% and above is provided for.

[0053] In one implementation, a spherical reservoir is in the size range of 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter is provided for.

[0054] In one implementation, a spherical reservoir with at least one outer material and at least one inner carrier material placed within the outer material at any desired coordinates is provided for.

[0055] In one implementation, the system for manufacturing seamless reservoirs employing a high frequency valve situated at the inlet port of inner nozzle and outer nozzle that operates for supplying the liquid flow through the nozzle for forming the reservoirs is provided for.

[0056] In one implementation, by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs may be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate may be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

[0057] In one implementation, the system and method can be used for both in-air and in-liquid type without any modification in mechanism of controlling the flow rate of liquids.

[0058] The system and a method to produce seamless reservoirs that involves simple yet effective process for reservoir making that has a wide range of applications is disclosed. Techniques for manufacturing seamless reservoirs, including for manufacturing reservoirs smaller in size than soft reservoirs and larger in size than microcapsules, are widely known. In these techniques, a multi-layer liquid flow is blown out of the multiple nozzle to form multi-layer droplets which comes in contact with the cooling liquid to solidify the droplets and thereby form seamless reservoirs enclosing inner liquid inside the outer layer. The same method is even employed to form single layer reservoirs by using single nozzle. Such conventional systems employ vibration at a given frequency which divides the drops from the nozzle where the shell and the core liquid encapsulation happens.

[0059] Some of the challenges faced by the capsule making industry involve positioning of the inner carrier material inside the said capsule, to choose the ingredient in such a way that viscosity of the selected ingredient is low and is stable with varying temperature as most of the known technologies are viscosity sensitive and to provide a simple yet effective process having a wide range of applications.

[0060] To overcome said drawbacks, a system and a method for making carrier material filled reservoirs is disclosed. The system employs a high frequency valve at the inlet port of inner nozzle and outer nozzle for supplying the liquid flow through the nozzle for forming the reservoirs, by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs can be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate can be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

[0061] In one of the embodiments, the system for manufacturing of 2-layer (outer shell and inner core) / (core-in-shell type) seamless reservoir in an in-air nozzle type arrangement has been illustrated in Figure 1. The said system comprises an outer shell liquid 1 for forming the seamless reservoirs stored in a hot insulated liquid stank 2 and inner core liquid 3 stored in a liquid storage tank 4. Figure 1 illustrates an example of manufacturing a reservoir with two materials. The materials are pumped to the nozzle system and dispensed using high frequency flow controlling valves.

[0062] The outer shell liquid 1 is pumped from the insulated tank 2, by means of either the pneumatic pressure 5 or the positive displacement pump 7, flows through the heated piping system 9, and is delivered to the nozzle system 13 through the first inlet port controlled by high frequency valve 11, while the inner core liquid 3 is pumped from the liquid storage tank 4, by means of either the pneumatic pressure 6 or the positive displacement pump 8, flows through the piping system 10, and is delivered to the nozzle system 13 through the second inlet port controlled by high frequency valve 12. The enlarged partial view of the high frequency valve and inlet port arrangement of inner and outer nozzle is illustrated in Figure 2. In figure 2, the invention illustrates the arrangement of the flow controlling valves and nozzle system, wherein, the valves are controlled pneumatically and/or preferably by electrical means.

[0063] Figure 3 illustrates that the seamless reservoir forming system has a single nozzle to extrude a composite liquid (A) or a concentrically aligned multiple nozzles (B) or a nozzle system where more than one nozzle is placed in the outer nozzles (C) to encapsulate more than one inner material in the reservoir.

[0064] Figure 4 illustrates different kinds of reservoirs that can be formed according to one of the implementations of the present invention. The high speed flow controlling valves of the present invention can be operated in such a way that reservoir of different sizes can be made (ranging from 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter). Moreover, by controlling the on and off of inner nozzle, reservoir having multiple droplets of inner liquid can be formed (refer figures, 4a-4f). In particular, 4a: reservoir made of a single material; 4b: reservoir made of multiple layers; 4c: core-in-shell type; 4d: shell with dual inner core 4e: shell with three inner core 4f: shell with multiple globules (with same or different colour / properties).

[0065] Figure 5 illustrates that the inventors of the present invention have illustrated the operation of a two valve system wherein the two valve system in the present example comprises a shell liquid flow controlling valve and a core liquid flow controlling valve. The ON time of the outer shell flow controlling valve decides the volume of the outer shell dispensed every cycle, whereas the ON time of the inner core flow controlling valve decides the volume of the inner core dispensed every cycle. By increasing the shell liquid on time and reducing the core liquid on time, larger shell and smaller core (single and multiple) can be produced. The production rate is dependent on the ON time and OFF time of the outer shell material & dispense time.

[0066] In yet another implementation, by controlling the phase difference between the operation of the two valves, the vertical position of the core in the shell can be controlled as depicted in Figure-6. By this way it is possible to position the inner core at any desired coordinates within tin the shell of the reservoir. Figure 6 illustrates examples of placement of the carrier liquid in the shell material by changing the phase difference of the operation of the two valves in the two valve system. For example, by increasing the offset from the optimum level, the inner core can be pushed below the horizontal symmetric line and vice versa.

[0067] In one of the implementations, by controlling the on time, off time and offset of the high frequency valves 11 and 12 as described herein in figure 5, the shell liquid 1 and the core liquid 3 are forced out of the nozzle 13 in air or in liquid, by controlling the up and down motion of nozzle using pneumatic and lead screw system 14. The composite droplet comes in contact with a cooling means 16 which is a cooling fluid, e.g., cooling oil in the gelling bath 15, which can be a continuous flowing tubular system, thus, forming 2-layer droplets 17.

[0068] For example, the 2-layer nozzle can be used as 3-layer or 4-layer or even a single layer nozzle and various ways to position high frequency valve for entry of carrier and shell liquid to nozzle for producing the multi-layer droplets may be available. Furthermore, other construction may be adopted as the construction illustrated in Figure 1 for entry of carrier and shell liquid to the nozzle.

[0069] The system thus manufactures spherical reservoirs that are uniform in size and weight because a nozzle system to dispense both the outer material and inner material in a metered volume/dosage wherein the rate of flow of the metered volume or dosage is regulated by a high frequency valve operated through a precise timing mechanism. The material viscosity ranging from 200 cps to 1500 cps can be passed through the system of Figure 1. The sphericity of the formed reservoir is at least 90% and above with its size ranging from 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter. The orientation and operation of the valves provides a spherical reservoir with at least one outer material and at least one inner carrier material placed within the outer material at any desired coordinate.

Parameters Values
Shape spherical
Shape ratio 90% to 99.9% roundness
Total weight 10~30 mg
Size 2~ 8 mm
Crush strength 6 N ~ 20 N
Audible Audible pop sound while crushing
Shell material Vegetable based
Inner Material Any material that is soluble in oil
Parameters Values
Shape spherical
Shape ratio 90% to 99.9% roundness
Total weight 10~30 mg
Size 2~ 8 mm
Crush strength 6 N ~ 20 N
Audible Audible pop sound while crushing
Shell material Vegetable based
Inner Material Any material that is soluble in oil

Table 1: Tabulates the characteristics of the carrier material filled reservoirs

[0070] Significantly, material forming the shell of the seamless reservoir can be selected from the group consisting of gelatin, gum arabic, polyvinyl acetate, alginates, carob bean gum, potassium citrate, carrageenan, citric acid, dextrin, polyvinyl alcohol, povidone, dimethylpolysiloxane, dimethyl silicone, bleached shellac, guar gum, gellan gum, agar, ghatti gum, mannan gum, pullulan gum, modified starch, cellulosic materials, sodium citrate, sodium ferrocyanide, locust bean gum, polyphosphates, tannic acid, petroleum wax, terpene resin, tragacanth, polyethylene, xanthan gum, polyethylene glycol, and combinations thereof.

[0071] The carrier material may be imitation, synthetic or natural ingredients or blends thereof. They may be in any suitable form, for example, oil, liquid, or powder which is soluble in oil. As used herein, the terms "flavour" and "flavourant" refer to materials which, where local regulations permit, may be used to create a desired taste or aroma in a product consumption. The carrier liquid is selected from the group consisting of vanilla, coffee, chocolate, cream, mint, spearmint, menthol, peppermint, wintergreen, lavender, cardamon, nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, cascarilla, sandalwood, honey, jasmine, ginger, anise, sage, licorice, lemon, orange, apple, peach, lime, cherry, eucalyptus, strawberry, extracts (e.g., licorice, hydrangea, Japanese white bark magnolia leaf, chamomile, fenugreek, clove, menthol, Japanese mint, aniseed, cinnamon, herb, wintergreen, cherry, berry, peach, apple, Drambuie, bourbon, nicotine, spearmint, peppermint, lavender, cardamon, celery, cascarilla, nutmeg, sandalwood, coconut oil, bergamot, geranium, honey essence, rose oil, vanilla, lemon oil, orange oil, cassia, caraway, cognac, jasmine, ylang-ylang, sage, fennel, piment, ginger, anise, coriander, coffee, or a mint oil from any species of the genus Mentha), flavour enhancers, sugars and/or sugar substitutes (e.g., sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, saccharine, cyclamates, lactose, sucrose, glucose, fructose, sorbitol, or mannitol), and other additives such as charcoal, chlorophyll, minerals, botanicals, or breath freshening agents and the like.

[0072] Thus, the system of the subject invention employs a high frequency valve at the inlet port of inner nozzle and outer nozzle for supplying the liquid flow through the nozzle for forming the reservoirs, by controlling the on time and off time of high frequency valve, the liquid flow forced out of the nozzle is formed into uniform droplets, whereby the desirable seamless reservoirs can be manufactured, and moreover by controlling the operating time of the nozzle, the high frequency valve opening/closing rate can be increased, thereby seamless reservoirs of desired size and at desired rate may be produced.

[0073] The following are the effects obtained by the typical ones out of the inventions disclosed in the subject invention:
1. As the flow of inner and outer liquids is controlled using a high frequency valve mechanism in the nozzle, no external source is required to control the flow, thereby avoiding the occurrence of adverse effects due to undesirable vibrations;
2. In comparison with the case where vibration is used, the subject invention can be used for both in-air and in-liquid type without any modification in mechanism of controlling the flow rate of liquids;
3. The subject invention can be used to control the flow as well as to control the size of droplets to be formed; and
4. The subject invention is capable of producing seamless reservoirs of desired size at desired rate/frequency.

[0074] Although a simple, hassle free, high efficiency and highly effective system and method for making carrier material filled reservoirs has been described in language specific to structural features and/or methods, it is to be understood that the embodiments disclosed in the above section are not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods or devices/apparatus described. Rather, the specific features are disclosed as examples of implementations of a system and a method to produce seamless reservoirs having a wide range of applications.
,CLAIMS:1) A seamless reservoir comprising:
a uniform sphericity of at least 90% roundness; and
a uniform size ranging from 100 microns to 15 mm in diameter;
wherein said reservoir is made of any suitable material with a suitable viscosity ranging from 75-6000 cps.

2) The seamless reservoir as claimed in claim 1, wherein said reservoir is a capsule, droplet, globule, bead, bio-capsule, seamless capsule, spheres, microspheres and the like.

3) The seamless reservoir as claimed in claim 1, wherein said reservoir is adapted to be embedded in cigarettes, cigarette filters, eHNB, EVDs, cHNB, electronic cigarettes, personal care/cosmetic products such as soaps, shampoos, shower gels, perfumes/deodorants, food & beverages/confectionary products such as chocolates, toffees, candies and pharma products.

4) The seamless reservoir as claimed in claim 1, wherein said reservoir is made of a single/composite material, core-in-shell type, shell with dual/multiple core and the like.

5) A system for producing a seamless reservoir, said system comprising:
at least one insulated tank (2,4) for storing a reservoir forming material (1,3); the material flow is controlled by any suitable means such as pneumatic pressure (5,6) or positive displacement pump (7,8);
a heated piping system (9,10);
at least one high frequency liquid flow controlling valve (11,12) wherein the valves (11, 12) allow specific volume of liquid to pass through;
at least one nozzle system (13) having a single orifice or multiple orifices;
said nozzle system (13) is operably connected to a suitable means such as pneumatic/lead screw (14) to control the upward/downward movement of the said nozzle system (13);
a crosslinking/gelling bath (15) comprising a cooling fluid (16);
wherein said seamless reservoir has 90% sphericity, size ranging from 100 micron and 15 mm in diameter.

6) The system as claimed in claim 5 wherein a crosslinking and/ or gelling liquid bath (15) with cooling liquid (16) is placed below the nozzle (13) to turn the spherical liquid reservoirs into gel.

7) The system as claimed in claim 5 wherein the gelled reservoirs are strained and collected for further processing.

8) The system as claimed in claim 5 wherein the nozzle (13) is either placed at a height from the surface of the cooling oil or immersed in the cooling oil.

9) The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein the reservoir is formed by multiple materials passing through multiple nozzle (13).

10) The system as claimed in claim 5 wherein the reservoir is formed by at least one shell forming material and at least one core forming material.

11) A method for making a seamless reservoir, said method comprising;
allowing a reservoir forming material (1,3) from an insulated tank (2,4) to a nozzle system (13) by building a positive pressure of the material (1,3) on the nozzle system (13) through a positive displacement pump, placing the tank at a suitable height or any other suitable means.

12) The method as claimed in claim 11, produces a reservoir by controlling the on-off time of the said high frequency liquid controlling valve (11, 12).

13) The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein the high frequency liquid controlling valves (11, 12) can be opened and closed at any desirable period for any required interval to extrude the material (1, 3)

14) The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said reservoir comprises at least two or multiple inner core materials with the same and/or different material properties of each other.

15) The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said reservoir comprises at least one inner core material positioned at any defined coordinates of any given radial distance, polar angle and azimuthal angle of the said reservoir.