EP0377506A1

EP0377506A1 - Clip and spindle tool

Info

Publication number: EP0377506A1
Application number: EP90300072A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Andrew Nicholas Harland Frank; Anthony Eric Thompson
Original assignee: Cannie Products Ltd
Current assignee: Cannie Products Ltd
Priority date: 1989-01-06
Filing date: 1990-01-04
Publication date: 1990-07-11

Abstract

To remove a foil closure sealed around its edge to a food container, a tab on the foil is gripped between clip elements (20,21) on legs (13,14) being parts of a spindle (10). To do this the leg (14) is hinged towards the leg (13) and secured thereto by snap-action elements (18,19). The tab and closure can then be wound on the spindle (10) by a handle (11) that can serve as a spoon. In an alternative the spindle comprises two elongate coaxial parts in sliding engagement with legs in the form of overlapping projections that engage the tab between them at the centre of the spindle when the parts are pushed together.

Description

This invention relates to clip and spindle tools, particularly for the removal of foil and like closures from containers, although it is not limited exclusively to that purpose.
Many containers of food and drink items, such as yoghurt, cream and fruit juices, are provided with a foil or like closure that is sealed around its periphery to the container rim. The closure is usually provided with a tab that can be gripped and pulled to separate the closure from the container.
For some people the removal of the closure from a container can be difficult and often lead to spillage of the contents, in spite of the presence of the tab.
One object on the invention is, therefore, to provide a device that may assist in the removal of foil and like closures from containers by winding the foil into a roll.
Many devices have been proposed in which a spindle or rod is furnished at one end with an element for taking hold of a tab or with some other tool for use in opening a container. However, problems arise in relation to the aforesaid closures firstly because they are made of extremely flexible material and secondly because they widen considerably on each side of the tab. Whereas the tools of the invention are particularly well contrived to meet this problem, they can also be well adapted to other functions, such as hair curlers.
According to the invention a clip and spindle tool comprises a spindle divided along a portion of its length into two legs to be separated and closed together while remaining mounted in the tool, the legs having clip elements in the vicinity of the centre of the spindle arranged to clip a comparatively narrow end of a flexible material to be wound on the spindle when the legs are closed together, the spindle being provided with means for holding the legs together when closed and with a handle at at least one end for turning the spindle to wind the material thereon. Often the handle may advantageously consist of a spoon or other kitchen type utensil.
In one very useful form of the invention one of the legs is an integral part of the spindle and the other is hinged adjacent to the clip elements. This tool may conveniently be made of plastics material chosen to have such resiliance and strength to provide an integral hinge without additional hinging means.
In another very practical embodiment of the invention the spindle consists of two elongate parts arranged to slide towards and away from one another along a common spindle axis and formed with legs constistuting overlapping projections with facing surfaces inclined to the spindle axis and providing the said clip elements, the surfaces being aranged to approach one another when the elongate parts are moved towards one another and to separate when the elongate parts are moved away from one another.
In order that the invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect tools in accordance therewith will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-

Figure 1 is a plan of a clip and spindle tool;
Figure 2 is a plan of a modification of the tool of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is an end view of each of the tools of Figures 1 and 2 as seen in the direction of the arrow A;
Figure 4 is a plan of another clip and spindle tool shown in a closed condition;
Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 4 but showing the tool in an open condition; and
Figure 6 is an end view of the tool of Figures 4 and 5.
Figure 7 is a perspective view of a still further embodiment of a clip and spindle tool;
Figure 8 is a side elevation of the tool shown in Figure 7 shown in an open condition:
Figure 9 is a cross-section of the tool taken along the line 9-9 of Figure 7, and
Figure 10 is a plan view of the tool shown in Figure 8 with the hinged leg removed;

The tools of Figures 1 to 6 may be made of plastics material.
Referring to Figure 1, a tool for removing foil closures from a container comprises a spindle 10 moulded at one end with a spoon 11. The spindle 10 is split along part of its length to form a pair of legs 13 and 14. The leg 13 is fixed relatively to the unsplit portion 15 on the spindle, whereas the leg 14 is hinged at 16 to the portion 15, the hinge being formed by a thinning of the plastics material.
The leg 13 is formed at its end remote from the hinge 16 with a laterial projection 17 having on its inner face a flange 18 with an arcuate edge. The leg 14 is formed at its end remote from the hinge with an arcuate recess 19 in a widened end of the leg. When the legs 13,14 are closed together the flange 18 snaps into the recess 19 to hold the legs together. When the legs are so latched together a clip element in the form of a rib 20 on the leg 13 lies in a mating clip element in the form of a recess 21 in the leg 14, in which position they can hold the tab of a foil closure on a food container.
After a tab has been secured, the spindle 10 is rotated using the spoon 11 as a handle so that the tab and closure wrap around the spindle and separate from the container. It will be understood that the closure is considerably wider than the tab and so can be accommodated on the lengths of the spindle 10 on opposite sides of the clip elements. The legs 13 and 14 can be pulled apart to open the clip.
In the modification of Figure 2 the lateral projection 17 is formed with a tooth-shaped flange 22. In closing the legs together the end of the leg 14 slides over the inclined edge of the flange 22 causing the projection 17 to yield slightly until the leg 14 snaps past the flange 22 and is held thereby in the closed position. In this position any lateral relative movement between the legs 13, 14 is prevented by parallel cheeks 23 on the leg 14 that lie adjacent opposite faces of the flange 22. To release the leg 14, finger pressure is put on an end 24 of the lateral projection 17 to withdraw the flange 22.
Referring to Figures 4 to 6, a bipartite spindle 25 has its two elongate parts 26,27 relatively movable in the longitudinal direction to open and close a clip at the centre by pulling handles 28, 29 apart or pushing them towards one another.
The parts 26,27 respectively have longitudinal slots 30,31 on opposite sides of the longitudinal axis of the spindle. The parts 26, 27 also have overlapping legs or projections 32,33. Each projection terminates in a tongue in sliding engagement in the slot 30 or 31 in the the other part. Between these tongues the projections respectively have parallel surfaces 34,35 inclined to the longitudinal axis of the spindle. The tongues are retained in the slots 30,31 by arcuate bars 36,37. When the tool is open as shown in Figure 5 the tab of a foil closure can be slipped between the surfaces 34,35. The spindle can then be closed as close as possible to the state of Figure 4 to grip the tab between the surfaces 34, 35.
In the embodiment shown in Figures 7 to 10 the clip and spindle tool is similar to the embodiment of Figure 1 to 3. The tool comprises a spindle 38 moulded at one end with a handle 39. The spindle is split along part of its length forming a fixed leg 40 and a hinged leg 41. The hinge 42 is formed by a narrowing of the plastics material and the hinged leg has a projection 43 engaging a recess 44 in the spindle so that in the closed position the projection and recess of the hinge interfit to allign the legs of the tools. The hinged leg 41 is moulded in a curved shape to provide a preload pressure.
At the opposite end of the spindle to the handle is a hinged catch 45 engaging with a projection 46. The catch 45 has pips 47 forming a gripping surface for the catch to be engaged or disengaged from the projection to open or close the legs of the tool.
To grip the tab of the container foil closure, the legs 40 and 41 have gripping means comprising a ribbed projection 48 on the hinged leg engaging grooved recess 49 in the fixed leg having side grooves 53 to engage corresponding side ribs 54 running along the sides of the ribbed projection 48 to increase the gripping action the legs have a longitudinal V-shape and V-grooves as shown in the cross-section in Figure 9. To provide a rigid form to the legs, the hinged leg has two further projections 50 engaging recesses 51 in the fixed leg.
In operation the legs of the tool are separated by pressing on the end of the catch 45 to release it from the projection 46 as shown in chain - dotted line. The tab of the foil closure is gripped between the gripping means 48 and 49 and the legs secured together by engaging the catch 45 with projection 46. The length of the spindle enables the full width of a foil closure to be wound onto the spindle of the tool using the handle 39.

Claims

1. A clip and spindle tool comprising a spindle divided along a portion of its length into two legs to be separated and closed together while remaining mounted in the tool, the legs having clip elements in the vicinity of the centre of the spindle arranged to clip a comparatively narrow end of a flexible material to be wound on the spindle when the legs are closed together, the spindle being provided with means for holding the legs together when closed and with a handle at at least one end for turning the spindle to wind the material thereon.

2. A tool according to claim 1, in which one of the legs is an integral part of the spindle and the other is hinged adjacent to the clip elements.

3. A tool according to claim 2, in which the means for holding the legs together comprise two snap-action elements respectively at the ends of the legs that can be separated by the application of finger pressure.

4. A tool according to claim 3, in which the integral leg has at its end a lateral projection with a flange shaped to snap into a resess of the tip of the hinged leg.

5. A tool according to claim 3, in which the integral leg has at its end a lateral projection with a saw-tooth shaped element past which the tip of the hinged leg is arranged to snap to the closed position.

6. A tool according to any one of claims 2 to 5, which is formed from an integral piece of plastics material.

7. A tool according to claim 1 in which the spindle consists of two elongate parts arranged to slide towards and away from one another along a common spindle axis and formed with legs constistuting overlapping projections with facing surfaces inclined to the spindle axis and providing the said clip elements, the surfaces being arranged to approach one another when the elongate parts are moved towards one another and to separate when the elongate parts are moved away from one another.

8. A tool according to claim 7, in which the elongate parts are formed with slots parallel to the spindle axis but on opposite sides thereof and in which the projections have tongues slidably mounted in said slots.

9. A tool according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the handle is formed as a spoon or other kitchen-type utensil.

10. A tool according to any of Claims 1 to 3 in which the integral leg has a pivotable catch for engaging with a projection on the end of the hinged leg; the clip elements comprising a projection on the hinged leg engaging in a recess in the integral leg, the projection having a V-shape which engages in a V-shaped recess; the hinged leg being curved away from the integral leg to provide a preload pressure and wherein the hinged leg has two further projections which engage in recesses in the integral leg to maintain the form of the hinged leg.