AU2012100363A4 - A container - Google Patents

Abstract

A container including a receptacle with an open end; a cover portion including a 5 fluid egress hole and a breather hole, a first seal that includes releasable means and wherein the first seal covers both the fluid egress hole and breather hole providing a sanitary and protective barrier and wherein the cover portion is sealably connectable to the receptacle such that a second seal exists between the cover portion and the receptacle providing a sanitary and protective barrier. .. $SKC :18 Figure 1a Figure 1b

Description

1 A CONTAINER FIELD OF THE INVENTION 5 The invention relates to a container and particular, but not exclusively, a container for beverages or foodstuffs that provides a fillable chamber that may be sealed to provide the contents with an extended shelf life and/or easy drinking or pouring. 10 BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION There are various methods and devices to provide containers that contain beverages and foodstuffs for the takeaway and convenience markets. 15 Injection moulded clear plastic bottles are a common container for use with beverages such as milk and juice. These bottles have a cap with a seal that allows for preservation of the contents allowing the contents to have an extended shelf life. The plastic bottles can come in a variety of shapes and sizes; however the shape does not allow efficiencies in stacking for storages and transportation 20 purposes before or after the beverage is deposited into the bottle. It is often necessary that the location where the beverage is produced must also produce the plastic bottles, due to the inefficiencies in transportation of the empty bottles. The takeaway coffee cup is another well-known device which allows a 25 beverage to be contained within the cup and includes a tight fitting cover that prevents spillages. Conventionally, the take away coffee cup cover has a mouth hole to allow the consumer to partake of the beverage through the cover and a breather hole to allow the easy passage of the beverage through the mouth hole. 30 However, the takeaway coffee cup has the disadvantage in that the cup may only be used for instantaneous use; the coffee, tea or other beverage is made freshly on the premises such as a cafs or restaurant and then is presented to the customer.

2 Further improvements in the development of containers, such as those described in WO 2009/132049 A2 (Kim) have proposed the use of a movable portion on the cover of a cup that functions to provide a sanitary overlay. This 5 cover provides a more sanitary takeaway cup which also prevents spillages. The beverage drinker then may then uncover the mouth portion of the cover of the coffee cup when drinking. However, when the coffee cup is not directly in use, the movable portion can be rotated or flipped onto the mouth hole, protecting the mouth hole from contamination. 10 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a container including a receptacle with an open end, a cover portion including a fluid egress hole and a breather hole, a first seal that includes releasable means and wherein 15 the first seal covers both the fluid egress hole and breather hole providing a sanitary and protective barrier and wherein the cover portion is sealably connectable to the receptacle such that a second seal exists between the cover portion and the receptacle providing a sanitary and protective barrier. 20 The first and second seals have an advantage by acting both as a preservative and protective barrier from outside contamination affecting the contents of the container. The seals work together to allow the preservation and consequently an extended lifetime of any perishable materials of the container. 25 In addition, the first seal acts as a protective and sanitary barrier from contamination on the fluid egress hole and breather hole from handling and storage. This allows the drinker or pourer of the beverage or other fluid to be assured that there is little or no risk of contamination of the cover portion before consumption. 30 Preferably, the first seal may include releasable means of a graspable tag and the cover portion may further include a recess which aids in the release of 3 the graspable tag. More particularly, the first seal may be made of a film like flexible material formed from a selection of plastics, metal foil, paper or a combination thereof. Thus the consumer may expose the fluid egress hole and breather hole by peeling off the first seal easily for quick consumption of the 5 beverage or other fluid within the container. The first seal may be applied to the cover portion without an adhesive. Preferably, the first seal is applied to the cover portion during the process of producing the cover portion. The first seal may include a material that increases the melting temperature of the first seal wherein the first seal may then be applied 10 to a cover portion without melting during an injection moulding process to form a releasable seal. Preferably, the material is included in a partial or full layer on one surface of the first seal. Even more preferably, the material is calcium carbonate. The application of the first seal without an adhesive has the advantage of 15 producing the cover portions with a seal in a more efficient manner with less process steps and fewer materials. This also decreases the cost of the cover portions. As an option, the cover portion may be sealably connectable to the receptacle by sonic welding or heat treatment. Preferably, the cover portion is 20 sealably connectable to the receptacle by a friction seal. Even more particularly, the cover portion is sealably connectable to the receptacle by a standard tamper evident friction seal but without a releasable tab. This feature allows that the separate components of the cover portion and receptacle may be produced at one location, brought to another location where the container are filled, and then 25 the containers are then sealed to provide a sanitary and protective barrier that extends the lifetime of the contents. Preferably, one receptacle is stackable with another receptacle. One cover portion may also be stackable with another cover portion. Preferably, one container may be stackable on another container. 30 4 The particular advantage of this conventional device is the shape of the device, and indeed all components of the device, to allow for efficient stacking and storage. The cover portions and receptacles are stackable. Additionally, the container with the cover portion in place is also stackable, allowing consumers 5 with multiple coffees or teas in an order to more efficiently carry their purchases or for storage and display purposes. The tapered or conical shape of the cup is also a pleasing and aesthetic shape for consumers and lends itself to being transported in conventional 10 beverage holders such as those provided in cars or other vehicles. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order that the present invention may be more readily understood, a 15 preferred embodiment thereof will now be described, by way or example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Figure 1a and 1 b is a top view and a perspective view respectively of a cover section of a container in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the 20 present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded view of a container showing the separate sections of a seal, receptacle and cover portion of Figure 1a and 1 b; 25 Figure 3 is a perspective view of the container of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a sectional view of two containers, where one container is stacked upon another container; 30 Figure 5a and 5b is a top view and a perspective view respectively of a cover section of a container in accordance with yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention; 5 Figure 6 is an exploded view of a container showing the separate sections of a seal, receptacle and cover portion of Figure 5a and 5b; Figure 7 is a perspective view of the container of Figure 6; and 5 Figure 8 is a sectional view of the container of Figure 6 and 7 with an additional enlarged view of the second seal connecting the cover portion to the receptacle. 10 DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to Figures 1a, 1b and 2, there is a shown a top view and a perspective view of a cover portion 10 and receptacle 16 of a container 12. The cover portion 10 is generally of a circular shape as viewed from above, 15 particularly in Figure Ia. There is an outer circumferential rim 14 of the cover portion 10 that is sized to fit the top rim of the receptacle 16 of the container 12, allowing the cover portion 10 and the receptacle 14 to be connected together. The cover portion 10 of Figure 1a, lb and 2 also shows a raised rim 18. 20 This raised rim 18 includes a mouth hole 20 on part of the top of the raised rim 18, providing a comfortable and convenient way for the consumer to partake of the beverage. Within the raised rim 18 is a substantially flat and circular platform area 24. In this particular embodiment of a beverage container, the aperture on the raised rim is a mouth hole 20, however it can be understood that mouth hole 25 20 can function equally as well as a fluid egress hole, allowing fluid or other materials to be poured from the container easily. Cover portion 10 also includes a first seal 26 which forms a protective and sanitary barrier over mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22. First seal 26 consists of 30 an elongated and flexible strip of material that substantially covers the middle of platform area 24 and also covers both fluid egress 20 and breather hole 22. The first seal 26 of the cover portion 10 can be made from a selection of flexible materials including plastic, paper, metallic foil or a combination of these.

6 The first seal 26 may be applied in a way that ensures sealing of the mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22 in a protective and hygienic way. For example, the first seal 26 may be a metal foil which is heat sealed in a known manner, the 5 cover portion 10. One advantage of the first seal 26, if formed to provide a substantially fluid tight seal, is that any perishable contents of the container 12, such as a coffee or tea or other beverage, have an extended shelf life. In this context of these containers, an extended shelf life means to reduce the exposure of the perishable materials to the external environment and increase the useful 10 life of the materials from what it would have been without the protection of the seal. This embodiment presents the invention as a beverage container, however it can be understood that any type of fluid or liquid that requires storage and/or 15 transportation for an extended shelf life may be used. In addition, the platform area 24 of the cover portion 10 also includes a recess 28. One end of first seal 26 overlaps the recess 28 such that it provides a tag-like section that may be lifted for easy access for a consumer to grasp the 20 seal 26. The consumer of the beverage may then easily remove the first seal 26 away from cover portion 10; this action uncovers mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22 in readiness for the consumption of the beverage of container 12. Finally it can be seen in Figures 1a and 1b, that the cover portion 10 is 25 moulded in a way that allows multiples of the cover portion 10 to be stacked or nested in an efficient way within each other. Through being stackable, the amount of space taken up prior to the container being created in a manufacturing process is reduced. 30 Referring specifically now to Figure 2, there is shown an exploded view of the entire container 12 which consists of at least three parts; a cover portion 10, a receptacle 16 and a first seal 26.

7 The cover portion 10 of Figure 2 is the same cover portion 10 as described in Figures 1a and 1 b. However, the first seal 26 is shown above the cover portion in Figure 2, exposing mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22 for view. It can be seen that mouth hole 20 located on part of the top of raised rim 18 is in a 5 convenient position for allowing the beverage of the container 12 to be consumed by the drinker. In addition, breather hole 22 is located near the recess 28, allowing for the ease of the passage of fluid through the fluid egress hole 20 when the beverage or other liquid content is being drunk or poured. Figure 2 shows clearly that when the first seal 26 is in position on cover portion 10, that the seal 10 26 completely covers mouth hole 20, breather hole 22 and an area around both holes 20, 22. The receptacle 16 of Figure 2 has a substantially frusto-conical shape which allows multiples of the receptacle 16 to be stacked or nested within each 15 other easily and efficiently. This again allows the amount of space taken up prior to the container being created in a manufacturing process to be reduced for storage and transportation purposes. It can be seen in Figure 2 that the circumferential rim 14 of the cover 20 portion is adapted to fit over the top rim 30 of the receptacle 16. Furthermore, the circumferential rim 14 of the cover portion 10 is connectable to the top rim 30 of the receptacle 16 to form a second seal 32 that provides a sanitary and protective barrier. In particular, the second seal 32 prevents any of the contents of the receptacle 16 from spilling during the transport or storage of the container and 25 second seal 32 may be a substantially impermeable seal that helps to protect and preserve any perishable contents of the container 12 from spoilage, thus also contributing to an extended shelf life. In addition, a first seal 26 of Figure 3 is applied to the platform area 24 and 30 part of raised rim 18, covering mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22 and forming yet another protective and sanitary barrier. First seal 26 is formed from a film-like material that may be easily removed by grasping and pulling the tag-like portion 8 formed from the overlap of the seal 26 and recess 28 which results in the exposure of a sterile mouth hole 20 and breather hole 22. Referring now to Figure 4, there is shown a container 12 that includes the 5 receptacle 16 and cover portion 10 sealably connected together, according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 also shows a second receptacle 16 which has been placed in the platform area 24 of the cover portion 10. The base of the receptacle 16 engages within the platform area 24 of the cover portion 10, allowing multiples of the container 12 to be easily and stably stacked 10 on top of each other. This is particularly useful as the amount of space taken up by a number of containers is reduced for storage and transportation purposes and more importantly, does not require the use of special crates or boxes. Also, the ability to stack containers is an advantage when displaying the filled containers in a convenience store, supermarket or takeaway location. 15 In this embodiment, Figure 4 shows that the container 12 has been formed by connecting receptacle 16 to cover portion 10 by using ultrasonic welding at a meeting point 25 of the receptacle 16 and cover portion 10. The ultrasonic welding process produces a seal that hermetically seals the two portions 10, 16 20 together and allows that perishable contents within the container 12 may be preserved for an extended shelf life. While this embodiment of the invention applies ultrasonic welding to sealably connect receptacle 16 to cover portion 10, it can be understood that 25 other types of sealing processes may be substituted, including, for example, heat sealing. According to another embodiment of the invention, Figure 5a, 5b and 6 now shows a cover portion 34. Specifically, Figure 5a shows a perspective view 30 of cover portion 34 and Figure 5b shows a top view of cover portion 34. The cover portion 34 is generally of a circular shape as viewed from above, particularly in Figure 5a.

9 In this embodiment, the cover portion 34 has a circumferential rim 36 which allows a secure and sealed connection to the top rim 54 of receptacle 38. The cover portion 34 includes a raised rim 40 which includes a mouth hole 42. Again, while this embodiment refers to a beverage container, it can be 5 understood that mouth hole 20 can function equally as well as a fluid egress hole, allowing fluid or other materials to be poured from the container easily. Similar to Figures 1-3, the cover portion 34 of Figures 5a, 5b and 6 also includes a platform area 46 which is a substantially flat area within the area of the 10 raised rim 40. A first seal 48 substantially covers the platform area 46 within the raised rim 40 and extends over part of the raised rim 40 to circumferential rim 36. First seal 48 consists of an elongated and flexible strip of material that substantially covers the platform area 46 and also covers both mouth hole 42 and 15 breather hole 44. The first seal 48 of the cover portion 34 is made from a selection of flexible materials including plastic, paper, metallic foil or any combination of these. First seal 48 may be printed with text or images or a combination of text 20 and images to indicate a brand, trade mark, to label the contents of the container 52 or to otherwise inform the user or consumer. The first seal 48 may be applied in a way that ensures sealing of the mouth hole 42 and breather hole 44 in a protective and hygienic way such that any 25 perishable contents of the container 52, such as a coffee or tea or other beverage, have an extended shelf life. In this context of the containers of this embodiment, an extended shelf life means to reduce the exposure of the perishable materials to the external environment and increase the useful life of the materials from what it would have been without the protection of the 30 container.

10 This embodiment presents the invention as a beverage container, however it can be understood that any type of fluid or liquid that requires storage and/or transportation for an extended shelf life may be used. 5 Figures 5a, 5b and 6 also show a tag 50 at one end of the seal 48 that extends over the edge of the circumferential rim 36. This tag 50 allows a consumer to grip and unpeel the seal 48 from the cover portion 10, allowing the mouth hole 42 and breather hole 44 to be exposed for use. As seal 48 provides a protective and sterile barrier covering the mouth hole 42 and breather hole 44, the 10 consumer can be assured that the mouth hole and breather hole 42, 44 are uncontaminated and safe for use. Finally, it can be seen in Figures 5a and 5b, that the cover portion 34 is moulded in a way that allows multiples of the cover portion 34 to be stacked or 15 nested in an efficient way within each other. This is advantageous as the amount of space taken up prior to the container being created in a manufacturing process is now reduced for storage and transportation purposes. Referring now specifically to Figure 6, there is shown an exploded view of 20 the container 52. In particular, it can be seen that the circumferential rim 36 of cover portion 34 is adapted to sealably connect onto the top rim 54 of receptacle 56. Receptacle 56 also has a frusto-conical shape which allows one receptacle 56 to be fitted within another receptacle 56. This again allows for efficiencies in stacking multiples of these receptacles for both transport and storage. 25 The exploded view of Figure 6, shows specifically that first seal 48 covers both mouth hole 42 and breather hole 44, protecting both holes 42, 44 from external contamination and also to preserve any perishable contents that may be within the container 52. 30 First seal 48 may be made of a thin film-like plastic material that does not require adhesive but may be moulded into the platform area 46 during the injection moulding process that produces the cover portion 34. However it can be 11 understood that this embodiment is not limited to this particular process, but that a person skilled in the art would be able to find a number of conventional processes that allow the seal to be applied to the cover portion, including the use of an adhesive. In particular, the process of heat sealing discussed in relation to 5 the other embodiment may also be used here and vice versa in relation to the process described for this embodiment. Applying a seal, such as first seal 26, 48, during the injection moulding of cover portion 10, 34 is a modification of a standard process known as 'in-mould 10 labelling'. It has been surprisingly found that, by careful selection of the parameters of the injection moulding process and materials of the label, a label applied in an in-mould labelling process can be releasably attached to the injection moulded 15 product. In this manner, a releasable seal may be applied in a single injection moulding process. This has the advantage of possibly reducing the length and number of steps of the manufacturing process. Additionally, the use of this process negates the use of an adhesive, thereby reducing the number of elements required to manufacture the product. This produces the overall result of 20 reducing the time and cost of manufacture of the product. In particular, it has been found that the addition of other materials to the first seal, such as calcium carbonate, CaCO 3 , allows the first seal to bond without melting. This is achieved by setting a melt and mould temperature during the 25 injection moulding process that is sufficient to allow the polymer to flow into the mould without substantially melting the first seal material. This results in a "peelable" bond so that the label is secured on the cover portion 34 and provides a seal but may be removed from the lid to allow consumption of the contents. 30 The CaCO 3 , or other suitable material may be applied in partial or full layer covering one surface of the first seal. The partial or full layer of the first seal would then be in contact with the cover during the injection moulding process.

12 Referring now to Figures 7 and 8, there is shown a perspective view and cross sectional view of the entire container 52 respectively. The container 52 includes that the cover portion 34 is sealably connected to the receptacle 56 forming second seal 58. 5 Figure 8 shows a close up view of second seal 58, which, in this embodiment of the present invention, is a friction seal. The seal 58 is formed by a double armed circumferential rim 36, that forms a recess, which mates with the single arm of the top rim 54. Thus to seal cover portion 34 to receptacle 56, the 10 circumferential rim 36 is aligned with top rim 54 and then pressure applied to connect the two rims 36, 54. The arms of the circumferential rim 36 and top rim 54 bias slightly, allowing the insertion of the arm of top rim 54 into the recess formed by the arms of the circumferential rim 36. A protrusion 55 on the outer arm of the circumferential rim 36 interlocks with the protrusion 57 on the top rim 54 15 forming a friction seal which then resists the removal of the arm of top rim 54 from the recess of formed by the arms of the circumferential rim 36. This forms a hermetic and protective barrier which may then allow the extended shelf life of the perishable contents of the container. A band 35 is also present which includes a lip 37 which prevents access to the outer arm of the double curved circumferential 20 rim 36. This prevents removal of the cover portion 34 without significant distortion of the container 52. This type of seal between a container and closure is known in tamper evident food packaging when a releasable tab is provided in band 35. However, the second seal 58 includes an unbroken band 35 around the 25 entire circumferential edges of both the top rim 54 and circumferential rim 36. The feature of an unbroken band 35 prevents any accidental or easy access that may disturb the hermetic and protective seal 58. It also provides a tamper evident seal which is never intended to be broken by the consumer. This allows the product to be easily filled without requiring any additional equipment beyond 30 'force' fitting the cover portion 34 on the receptacle 56. To separate the cover portion 34 from receptacle 56, the band 35 must be removed from the second seal 58, which is made more difficult without the feature of a releasable tab.

13 First seal 48 made of a film-like material substantially covers the platform area 46 which extends over part of the raised rim 40 and circumferential rim 36 which seals mouth hole 42 and breather hole 44 forming a sterile and protective barrier. The seal 48 extends over circumferential rim 36 forming a tag 50 that 5 allows for easy removal and grasping by a user. A consumer may grasp and pull tag 50 which allows seal 48 to be removed from the cover portion 34. The container 12, 52 of Figures 1-8 may be used as part of the supply chain providing beverages to the take-away and convenience industries. Although 10 it may be understood by a person skilled in the art that the invention may be used in any number of industries, where it would be convenient to provide stackable containers, and stackable components of containers that require the extension of shelf life to the contents of the container. 15 The separate components of container 12, 52 of the cover portions 10, 34 and receptacles 16, 52 may be produced at one location. The cover portion 10, 34 and receptacles 16, 52 may then be transported to a second location such as a factory that produces beverages or other perishable items. The factory supplies the receptacles 16, 52 with the beverage produced by the factory. The factory 20 may then sealably connect the cover portions 10, 34 to receptacles 16, 56. The cover portions 10, 34 may already be supplied with first seal 26, 48, or the first seal 26, 48 may be applied at the factory supplying the containers 16, 52. The factory may want to provide the container 16, 52 with a first seal 26, 48 that 25 has customised printing to match the contents of the container or other branding or trade mark material. The combination of the first seal 26, 48 covering cover portion 10, 34 and second seal 32, 58 connecting the cover portion 10, 34 to receptacle 16, 52, 30 provides a hygienic, hermetic and protective barrier for the contents of the container 12, 52 ensuring that the beverages or other perishable material have an extended shelf life. The contents of the container 12, 52 are now able to be preserved for transportation from the factory where the containers 12, 52 were 14 filled to a convenience store without spoiling. At the convenience store or supermarket location, the filled containers 12, 52 may then stored or put on display until required by the consumer without degradation to the perishable contents of the containers 12, 52. 5 It should be noted that although different types of first and second seals are described in each of the embodiments, all of the seals described are interchangeable between embodiments. For example, the second seal is described as being formed by a ultrasonic weld in relation to figures 1 to 4, but 10 this second seal could be replaced by the second seal as described in figures 5 to 8. The embodiments above are for illustrative purposes only. They are not intended and should not be interpreted to limit either the scope or the spirit of the 15 invention. Those skilled in the art would appreciate that there are many variations or substitutes that can be used as equivalents for the purposes of this invention, which is defined solely by the written description and the claims.

Claims (5)

1. A container including: a receptacle with an open end; a cover portion including a fluid egress hole and a breather hole; a first seal that includes releasable means and wherein the first seal covers both the fluid egress hole and breather hole providing a sanitary and protective barrier and wherein the cover portion is sealably connectable to the receptacle such that a second seal exists between the cover portion and the receptacle providing a sanitary and protective barrier.

2. A container according to claim 1 where the first seal is applied to the cover portion during the process of producing the cover portion.

3. A container according to any one of claims 1 or 2 where the first seal includes a material that increases the melting temperature of the first seal wherein the first seal may then be applied to a cover portion without substantially melting during an injection moulding process such that a releasable seal is formed.

4. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3 where the cover portion is sealably connectable to the receptacle by sonic welding or heat treatment or by a friction seal.

5. A container according to any of the preceding claims where each component of the container is stackable and/or the container is stackable. ALTO MANUFACTURING PTY LTD WATERMARK PATENT & TRADE MARK ATTORNEYS UIP1322AUOO