EP1275594B1 - Container for keeping cool filled bottles - Google Patents

Abstract

A bottle cooler has an insert forming a double skinned construction with the trapped space filled with a thermally insulating gas or evacuated. The insert has a central hub (9) and an outer profile both shaped to hold a circle of bottles. The cooler has a separate cover (3) with holes (11, 12) to fit around the necks of the bottles. The cooler keeps pre-chilled bottles cool and requires no refrigerant nor an integral cooling unit.

Description

The invention relates to a container for keeping cool filled bottles, in which an inner pot is inserted into an outer pot with a distance from the side wall and the bottom of the outer pot, wherein the inner pot projecting from its bottom, hollow projection for lateral support in the inner pot between the side wall and the protrusion inserted bottles and the interior of the protrusion is filled with gas or evacuated.

Such a container is made, for example US 5,934,099 known. An insert, in which bottles can be placed, is inserted into a pot-shaped housing, wherein the bottom of the insert has a distance from the bottom of the housing. In the intermediate space formed thereby, a heat sink is arranged from a storage material. The remaining space between the insert and the housing is filled with gas.

GB 728 282 describes a food container which is formed by a two-walled shell and a likewise two-walled lid. The two walls of shell and lid are inserted into each other.

A conventional container, such as for example DE 84 24 041 U1 is known, is used as a tabletop device. In the hollow projection of the inner pot a deep-frozen cooling battery is used, which cools the beverage bottles used in the container for a long time and / or keeps cool. This heats the cooling battery, so that it must be frozen again or replaced with an already refrigerated other cooling battery. Cooling batteries themselves and the replacement of the cooling battery are expensive. They also require the presence of a freezer. For larger conferences, where such cooling containers are desired, such freezers are missing. In addition, they require operating personnel.

The invention has for its object to provide a container of the type mentioned, which is less expensive and easier to handle.

According to the invention this is achieved in that the inner and outer pot are jointly covered by a lid having arranged on a circle holes for performing each one of the filled bottle parts and the interior of the projection is closed by the bottom of the inner pot.

Such a container is in many cases, in which filled beverage bottles have already been cooled in a refrigerator or the like, sufficient to keep the bottles and their content until their emptying, eg at a conference, cool, as the gas or vacuum in the interior the projection acts as an insulator. The bottles are then kept cool at least on that side which bears against the projection and whose outer contour is at least partially adapted to the bottle contour. A cooling battery is therefore eliminated.

In addition, the space between the outer and inner pot can be filled with gas or evacuated. As a result, the insulating insulation effect of the container is further improved.

Then the circumference of at least some of the holes formed in the lid can be adapted to the circumference of different bottles. Although it is possible to form the holes all with the same diameter, which is adapted to the diameter in the cross section of round bottles, and to insert into the container only those bottles whose diameter corresponds to the holes. Sometimes one would like to use not only bottles with the diameter of the diameter of the hole, but also bottles with a smaller diameter. Optionally, heat could enter the container into the gap between the hole edge and the smaller bottle used. If then the circumference of at least some of the holes formed in the lid is adapted to the circumference of different bottles, it is possible to close the larger holes with these adapted bottles and the smaller holes with these circumferentially adapted bottles largely tight, so not easily heat between the edge of a larger hole and the circumference of a smaller bottle can penetrate into the container.

The interior of the projection is closed by the bottom of the inner pot. Likewise, the space between the inner and outer pot can be tightly closed. In all cases, the gas may be air for the sake of simplicity.

Fig. 1

einen Axialschnitt eines Behälters in der Schnittebene I-I der Fig. 2, wobei jedoch der dargestellte Innentopf nicht erfindungsgemäß ist; ein erfindungsgemäßer Innentopf ist in Figur 7 dargestellt,

Fig. 2

einen Querschnitt durch den erfindungsgemäßen Behälter in der Schnittebene II-II der Fig. 1,

Fig. 3

eine Draufsicht auf einen Innentopf des Behälters nach Fig. 1,

Fig. 4

eine Draufsicht auf einen Außentopf des Behälters nach Fig. 1,

Fig. 5

eine Draufsicht auf einen Deckel des Behälters nach Fig. 1,

Fig. 6

einen Querschnitt des Deckels nach Fig. 1 in der Schnittebene VI-VI der Fig. 5,

Fig. 7

einen Axialschnitt eines gegenüber dem Innentopf nach Fig. 1 etwas abgewandelten Innentopfes und

Fig. 8

eine Draufsicht auf einen etwas abgewandelten Deckel des Behälters.

The invention and its developments are described below with reference to the drawings of preferred embodiments. In it represent:

Fig. 1

an axial section of a container in the sectional plane II of Fig. 2 However, wherein the illustrated inner pot is not according to the invention; an inventive inner pot is in FIG. 7 shown,

Fig. 2

a cross section through the container according to the invention in the sectional plane II-II of Fig. 1 .

Fig. 3

a plan view of an inner pot of the container after Fig. 1 .

Fig. 4

a plan view of an outer pot of the container after Fig. 1 .

Fig. 5

a plan view of a lid of the container after Fig. 1 .

Fig. 6

a cross section of the lid after Fig. 1 in the section plane VI-VI of the Fig. 5 .

Fig. 7

an axial section of a relative to the inner pot after Fig. 1 slightly modified inner pot and

Fig. 8

a plan view of a slightly modified lid of the container.

The container after the Fig. 1 to 6 consists of an outer pot 1, an inner pot 2 and a lid 3. All three parts are made of plastic.

The inner pot 2 is inserted at a distance from the side wall 4 and the bottom 5 of the outer pot 1 in this. In this case, the inner pot 2 is located with a radially outwardly projecting flange 6 at its upper edge on a likewise radially outwardly projecting flange 7 at the top of the outer pot 1 loose. The flange 6 can but also be materially connected to the flange 7, for example by welding or gluing.

The inner pot 2 has a projecting from its bottom 8, hollow projection 9 for lateral support in the inner pot 2 between the side wall 10 and the projection 9 inserted (not shown) bottles for drinks or the like. Outer and inner pot 1, 2 are covered together by the lid 3. The lid 3 has arranged on a circle holes 11 for performing each one of the filled bottle parts. The holes 11 each have an axially inwardly projecting cylindrical wall 12. Further, the lid 3 has a circumferential outer wall 13 which is axially projecting downwardly on the underside of the lid 3 and on the inside of an outer periphery of the flange 7 upwards protruding short peripheral wall 14 of the outer pot 1 is applied.

The projection 9 in the inner pot 2 has a peripheral contour which is partially adapted to the peripheral contour of circular bottles, as shown in the Fig. 2 and 3 is shown. The bottles are inserted into the inner pot 2 through the holes 11 whose inner diameter corresponds to the outer diameter of the bottles in the space between the projection and the side wall 10.

The space in the projection 9 and thus also the space between the side walls 4 and 10 and between the floors 5 and 8 may be evacuated. Optionally, then the flanges 6 and 7 are connected to each other cohesively. These spaces can also be filled with gas, for simplicity, with air. If you are with Are filled with air, the flanges 6 and 7 need not be connected. Due to the vacuum or gas in the cavities between the pots 1 and 2, the bottles inserted through the holes 11 between the walls 9 and 10 are thermally insulated. When refrigerated, including contents, they will maintain their temperature for a longer period of time, at least until they are normally emptied, eg during a conference. A cooling battery, as it is arranged in conventional cooling containers of this type in the cavity of the projection 9, can then be omitted.

Fig. 7 represents a modification of the inner pot 2, in which the interior of the projection 9 is closed by the bottom 8. The projection 9 is evacuated in this case, but may alternatively be filled with gas.

Fig. 8 shows a modification of the lid 3, in which four of the further six holes 11 have a smaller diameter than the remaining holes 11. In the holes 11 with the smaller diameter then bottles with a correspondingly smaller diameter than in the first embodiment can be suitably used, while they had to be used in the first embodiment in the larger holes, so that a temperature compensation by convection through the gap between the smaller Bottles and the larger holes 11 could be done through. In the execution of the lid 3 after Fig. 8 However, such a temperature compensation can be prevented if all holes are filled with suitable bottles.

In both embodiments, the outer pot 1, the inner pot 2 and the lid 3 have a hexagonal shape in plan view. As a result, several such containers can be transported largely seamlessly arranged side by side. In addition, the outer pot 1 and the inner pot 2 have slightly upwardly widening side walls 4 and 10, while the side wall of the projection 9 tapers slightly upward. This facilitates on the one hand demolding in the production of the pots 1 and 2 made of plastic. On the other hand, several outer pots 1 can be stacked into one another to save space. Likewise, several inner pots 2 can be stacked into each other to save space.

Claims (5)

1. Container for keeping filled bottles cool, in which an inner receptacle (2) is inserted into an outer receptacle (1) at a distance from the side wall (4) and the base (5) of the outer receptacle (1), the inner receptacle (2) having a hollow projection (9), which protrudes upwards from the base (8) thereof, for laterally supporting bottles inserted into the inner receptacle between the side wall (10) thereof and the projection (9), and the interior of the projection (9) being filled with gas or being evacuated, characterised in that the inner and outer receptacle (2, 1) are jointly covered by a lid (3), which has holes (11) arranged in a circle for passing one of the filled bottles through in each case, and the interior of the projection (9) is sealed by the base (8) of the inner receptacle.
2. Container according to claim 1, characterised in that the space between the outer and inner receptacles (1, 2) is filled with gas or is evacuated:
3. Container according to either claim 1 or claim 2, characterised in that the diameter of at least some of the holes (11) formed in the lid is adapted to the diameter of different bottles.
4. Container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the gap between the inner and outer receptacles (2, 1) is tightly closed.
5. Container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the gas is air.

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