CA1085789A - Self-supporting stackable bottle container - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A self-supporting stackable bottle container is dis-closed. The container consists essentially of (a) a one-piece bottle carrier molded of a thermoplastic polymer and being rectangular in shape and (b) a bottomless jacket adapted to enclose the carrier and provide a cover therefor. The bottle carrier has a horizontal internal grid, vertical supports there-from and circular dishes defining compartments for bottles. The carrier and the jacket cooperate to provide a self-supporting stackable bottle container that is moveable as an integral unit.
The preferred thermoplastic polymer is a homopolymer of ethylene or a copolymer of ethylene and another .alpha.-olefin e.g. buten-1.
The jacket is preferably constructed from cardboard. The con-tainer is particularly useful for the transportation and storage of bottles of beer.

Description

me present invention relates to selr-supporting s~ackable bottle containers, especially such containers for beer bottles.
It has long been known to u~e paperboard containers e.g. cardboard or corrugated cardboard container~, for the trans-portation and sale of bottled beverages. If the beverage is beer, the contalners usually have top closure flaps. These flaps not only ald in the storage of the bottles but also protect the beer from the efrects Or expo6ure to llght, as beer, even beer bottled in darkened bottles, doe6 exhibit a tendency to deter-iorate on ex~osure to lig~t.
One type Or contàiner used in the brewery industry ror the transportation and storage of bottles o~ beer i3 that known as the "~etripper". me retripper is intended to be returned to the brewery and re-rllled, i.e. reused, m~y time~ bePore such use is terminated as a result of deterioration of the materia} ~rom which the contai~er is constructed.
Retrippers are usually constructed from fibreboard or corrugated cardboard and generally comprlse an ex~ernal rec--tangular shell into which is inserted a rectangular tray cont~n~nga divider structure. The di~ider structure is constructed from a ~umber of strips of, rOr examæle, eorrugated cardboard inter- -locked to giYe a series, normal}y twelve or twenty four, aper-tures or compartments for the bottleæ. Such di~ider structures ha~e a tendency to become distorted or warped after a short number o~ re-fl~lings. This can result in serious problems on automatic machlnes which drop the bottles into the compartments.
It is known to re~nforce the rectangular tray and di~ider structure by means o~ metal reinforc~ng strips. These 3o strips are usually inserted manually into the tray and d~ider ~ -.

--' structure, ther~by incressin~ the manufacturing cost~ Or retripper containers.
In or~l~r to ov~rcome problems associated with card-board retripper contain~rs, self-~upporting, stackable, one piece cartons moulded rrom resinuous plastic material, for exampl~, polyethylene, have been proposed, as is disclosed in Canadlan Patent 695,1 n of C.W. Sloan, which issued 29th Sept-ember, 1964. Such cases are compatible with the automatic machines u~ed with cardboard retripper~, are lightweight and provide protection from light. However R.E. Woodgate stated in Canadian Patent 943,918, which issued l9th March, 1974, that in order to pro~ide plastic containers with adequate strength to ~ith~tand the handling to which containers are subjected dur~ng use without the breakage of bottles, so much material must be used ln constructing the walls o~ the container that the cost of the container becom~s prohibitive. Woodgate discloscd a retripper having a cardboard tray and a plastic divider structure.
Whlle ~oodgate may have overcome problems associated ~ith cardboard dlvider structures,problems associated with card-board trays, especially those inherent i~ the material o~ con-~truction, have not been overcome~
A bottle container that overcomes many of the problems assoc~ated with retrippers known in the art has aow been found.
Accordingly the present invention provides a self-supporting stac~able bottle container consisting essentially of:
(a) a one-piece bottle carrier moulded of a thermo-pla tic polymer having a tensile modulu~ of elasticity in the range o~ about 1400-35,000 kg/cm2, said carrier comprising two ~ertical side walls and two vertical end walls defining a rec-tangular enclosure, a horizontal grid diæposed in the middleregion of said enclosure and comprising longitudinal and l~-teral members int~gral with each other at regular points of intcr-sectlon along th~ l~ngth thereo~, each end of said members being lntegral with one o~ th~ vertical walls, each of said members being structuralLy reinforced, bottom 6upports comprislng cir-cular dishes, interconnecting vertical supports between th-horizontal internal g~id and the circular dishes, said vertical supports, horizontal internal grld and circular dishe~ defining compartments ~or bottles, and an orificc in each of the vertical end walls adapted to be handles ~or carrying said bottle contai~er, and (b) a Jacket having two vertical side walls and two ~ertical end walls defining a bottomless rectangular enclosure of slightly greater dimensions than tho~e of the carrier and adap~ed to encloæe said carrier, at least one cover integr~lly hinged to at l~ast one side wall and adapted to cooperate with the side walls to cover the top of the encl~o~ra Or the jacket, ori~lces in thc vertical end walls located to cooperate with the orifices o~ the carrier, the orifices in the Jacket having fl&p~ i~tegral with the end walls thereof and adapted to bend into and through the orifices o~ the carrier.
said carrier and Jacket cooperating to provlde a self-suppor~i~g ~tac~able bottle container that is movable as an integral lmit.
In a preferred embodiment of the preæcnt invention the ~acket i8 constructed from cardboard.
In another embodiment the thermoplastic polymer is a ho polymer of ethylene or a copolymer of ethylene and a higher -ol~f~n.
A preferred embodiment of the present invention is sho~n in the drawing which is schematic repr~sentation of an exploded vic~, partly in section, of a bottle container of the prc~ent invention.

10857~39 Referring to the drawing the bottl~ container consists of a one-piece bottle carrier, de~ignated gencrally by thc numeral 1, and a Jacket, desi~nated generally by the nl~m~ral 2, bottle carrier 1 being adapted to fit inside jacket 2.
Bottle carrier 1 has ~ide walls 3 and ends walls 4 forming a rectangul&r enclo~ure. End walls 4 have horizontally elongated or~f~ces 5 centrally located in the upper portion ~hereo~, orl~ices 5 rorming part of the handle of the bottle con-tainer. A horizontal grid 6 is located within the enclosure formed by side walls 3 and end walls 4. ~orizontal grid 6 is integrally attached to side walls 3 and end walls 4 and forms grid orifices 7 that are adapted to receive a bottle. Horizontal grid 6 is comprised o~ longitudinal and lateral members, said member~ being structurally reinforced. In the embod~ment Rhown the horizontal grid 6 ~orm~ twenty rour grid ori~ices 7.
Circular dishcs 8 are located in the bottom of bottle carrier 1. A circular dish 8 is located under each grid orifice 7.
The circular dishes 8 are connected to horizontal grid 6 by, and held in place by, vertical supports 9. Circular dishe~ 8 ad~acent to side walls 3 and ond walls 4 ma~ be attached thereto for support.
Side walls 3 and end walls 4 may have sections thereof remo~ed, a8 i8 shown generally by the numeral 10 for end wall 4, provided that the sections 10 are removed in a m~ner that does not sig~ificantly affect the strength of the bottle carrier 1, especially with respect to support for circular dishes 8.
S~m~larly circular dishes 8 m~y ha~e dish orifices 11 in the centre thereo~. Such removal o~ sections is primarily to reduce the weight of th~ bottle carrier without reducing the strength-thereof.
Circular dishes 8 may have drainage ori~ices 12 located in the dish betwcen the centre of the di~h and thc periphary thereof for drainage o~ &ny liquid that might accumulate in the 10~7~9 dish during use.
Jack~t 2 has side walls 13 and end walls 14 forming a rectangular enclosure that is adapted to receive bottle carrior 1.
~acket 2 is bottcm-less. End walls 14 have horizontally elongated ori~ices 15 centrally located in the upper portion thereo~.
Ori~ices 15 are adapted to cooperate ~th orifices 5 of bottle carrier 1 when the bottle carrier 1 is inserted in jacket 2 to form handles for the bottlè container. Orifices 15 have ori~ice flaps 16 integrally attached along the upper edge of orifice 15. Flaps 16 are adapted to bend into and through orifices 5 Or bottle car-rier 1 to attach~ ~acket 2 to bottle carrier 1.
Jacket 2 haæ a cover 17 integrally attached along the upper edge of a side wall 13. Cover 17 has cover flap 18 along the outer edge thereo~. Cover 17 is adapted to cover the top of the enclosure formed by side walls 13 and end walls 14, co~er flapæ 18 ~itting inside side wall 13 opposite the side wall attached to cover 17 to e~ect closure. Although not shown, Jacket 2 mgy have covers 17 integrally attached along the upper edge of each of side walls 13 and adapted to cooperate to cover the top of the enclosure formed by side walls 13 and end w~lls 14.
In operation bottle carrier 1, usually conta~ning bottles, especially bottles as used for the m~chandising of beer, is placed in ~acket 2. Ori~lce flaps 16 o~ jacket 2 are bent through ori~ice 5 of bottle carrier 1, thereby attaching jacket 2 to bottle carrier 1 to form the bottle container. Cover 17 is closed for transportation.
The bottle carrier of the present invention is ~anu-factured from a thermoplastic polymer, especially a homopolymer of ethylene or a copo~ymer of ethylene and a lligher ~ -olefin, e.g. butene-l, having a tensile ~odulus of elasticity in the range o~ about 1400-35,000kg/cm~. Preferably the polymer of ethylene has a density in the range of 0.940 to o.960. The jacket 10~57~9 of the present invention is preferably constructed from card-bo~rd and is ln the form that i9 capable of being printed.
In a preferred embodiment of the bottle contalner of the present invention, anti-slip means, especially in the form of grommets, are located on the underside of the bottle carrier.
Such anti-slip means are disclosed in, for example, Canadian Patent 880,846 of W.E. Fidler which issued 14th September, 1971.
That patent discloc~es anti-slip means fabricated from copolymers of ethylene and 5-50~ by weight of vinyl acetate or ethyl acry-late, and from blends of such copolymers with polyethylene anddiscloses that such anti-slip means may be applied by solvent coating, extrusian and lamination, heat sealing or spln-weldlng.
The bottle container of the present invention is particularly useful for the storage and transportation of bottles of beer or the like. The bottle container is capable of being recycled, i.e. subjected ~o multiple use by for example, a brewery. The outer ~acket is capable of being replaced if and when it becomes damaged, soiled or the like. The container has the rigidity and strength of a thermoplastic bottle container and the protective characteristics of a cardboard container and is capable of being stored in self-supportable stacks.

Claims (8)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. A self-supporting stackable bottle container consisting essentially of:
(a) a one-piece bottle carrier moulded of a thermo-plastic polymer having a tensile modulus of elasticity in the range of about 1400-35,000 kg/cm2, said carrier comprising two vertical side walls and two vertical end walls defining a rectangular enclosure, a horizontal grid disposed within said enclosure and comprising longitudinal and lateral members integral with each other at regular points of intersection along the length thereof, each end of said members being in-tegral with one of the vertical walls, bottom supports com-prising circular dishes, interconnecting vertical supports between the horizontal internal grid and the circular dishes, said vertical supports, horizontal internal grid and circular dishes defining compartments for bottles, and an orifice in each of the vertical end walls adapted to be handles for carrying said bottle container, and (b) a jacket having two vertical side walls and two vertical end walls defining a bottomless rectangular enclosure of slightly greater dimensions than those of the carrier and adapted to enclose said carrier, at least one cover integrally hinged to at least one side wall and adapted to cooperate with the side walls to cover the top of the enclosure of the jacket, orifices in the vertical end walls located to cooperate with the orifices of the carrier, the orifice in the jacket having flaps integral with the end walls thereof and adapted to bend into and through the orifices of the carrier.

2. The container of Claim 1 in which the jacket is constructed from cardboard.

3. The container of Claim 2 in which the carrier is manufactured from a thermoplastic polymer selected from the group consisting of polyethylene and copolymers of ethylene and higher .alpha.-olefins.

4. The container of Claim 3 in which the higher .alpha.-olefin is butene-1.

5. The container of Claim 3 or Claim 4 in which the polymer has a density in the range 0.940 to 0.960.

6. The container of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 which is adapted for the transportation of beer bottles.

7. The container of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 in which sections have been removed from at least one of the walls of the carrier, the removal of said sections not significantly affecting the strength of said carrier.

8. The container of any one of Claim 1, Claim 2 and Claim 3 in which anti-slip means are located on the underside of the bottle carrier.