Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D77/00—Packages formed by enclosing articles or materials in preformed containers, e.g. boxes, cartons, sacks or bags
  • B65D77/10—Container closures formed after filling
  • B65D77/20—Container closures formed after filling by applying separate lids or covers, i.e. flexible membrane or foil-like covers
  • B65D77/2024—Container closures formed after filling by applying separate lids or covers, i.e. flexible membrane or foil-like covers the cover being welded or adhered to the container
  • B65D77/2028—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab
  • B65D77/2032—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab by peeling or tearing the cover from the container
  • B65D77/2044—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab by peeling or tearing the cover from the container whereby a layer of the container or cover fails, e.g. cohesive failure
  • B65D77/2048—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab by peeling or tearing the cover from the container whereby a layer of the container or cover fails, e.g. cohesive failure whereby part of the container or cover has been weakened, e.g. perforated or precut
  • B65D77/2056—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab by peeling or tearing the cover from the container whereby a layer of the container or cover fails, e.g. cohesive failure whereby part of the container or cover has been weakened, e.g. perforated or precut the cover being weakened
  • B65D77/206—Means for opening the cover other than, or in addition to, a pull tab by peeling or tearing the cover from the container whereby a layer of the container or cover fails, e.g. cohesive failure whereby part of the container or cover has been weakened, e.g. perforated or precut the cover being weakened so as to uncover one or more preformed openings made through some layers of the cover
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D75/00—Packages comprising articles or materials partially or wholly enclosed in strips, sheets, blanks, tubes, or webs of flexible sheet material, e.g. in folded wrappers
  • B65D75/52—Details
  • B65D75/58—Opening or contents-removing devices added or incorporated during package manufacture

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a squeezable container, primarily for storing and dispensing of food chilled dairy products, semi liquids, or pasty products.
• containers for storing of dispensing of chilled dairy products are known. They typically consist of a thermoformed pot closed by a peelable membrane. Those pots are widely used for example for yoghurt.
• thermoformed container for flowable food products comprising a squeezable container body with a flat upper edge, and a container body opening, characterized in that:
• said container body is squeezable at least in both axial and transversal directions such that its volume can be reduced by at least 85%, preferably by at least 95% upon application of manual pressure
• said edge is rigid and comprises a dispensing spout continuous with the container body, said opening being closed by at least one primary membrane that is sealed onto said edge.
• the container provides a convenient and user-friendly packaging structure for on-the-go consumption of a product, especially by young consumers.
• squeezable in both axial and transversal directions it is meant that the container body is squeezable not only in one direction, but in at least two directions, which allows for maximum compression of the container volume, so as to allow the consumer to completely and efficiently dispense the container contents.
• the container body is even squeezable in a multitude of directions, not only on two - axial and transversal - directions.
• axial direction it is meant the vertical axis when the opening of the container is turned upwards.
• transversal direction it is meant any direction that is comprised in a plane perpendicular to the axial direction.
• the container After consumption, the container remains in one piece and can be disposed of very easily.
• said at least one primary membrane can be sealed onto the edge and comprises a dispensing hole located in the spout region of said membrane, said dispensing hole being closed by a secondary peelable membrane, sealed on the primary one.
• said dispensing hole has a diameter comprised in the range of 1 to 15 mm, preferably 2 to 8 mm.
• said primary membrane can comprise a first portion closing the opening of the container body, that is sealed onto the flat upper edge in a fixed manner, and a second portion closing the dispensing spout, that is sealed onto the flat upper edge in a peelable manner.
• the peelable portion of the closing membrane can be folded over the rest of the membrane, in Oder to allow direct consumption from ther container in an hygienic manner.
• said membrane can comprise a first portion closing the opening of the container body that is sealed onto the edge, and a second portion closing the dispensing spout, both portions being sealed in a peelable manner.
• the primary membrane is preferably a complex foil comprising at least a sealing layer, and an aluminium or a polyester. Also preferably, the upper flat edge is a horizontal ring.
• Said dispensing spout can advantageously define a channel opening and has a width less than 10 mm and a height less than 10 mm.
• the container body is made from a thermoplastic material taken from the group of: polystyrene, polyactic acid, polyethylenetherephtalate (PET), polyethylene, polypropylene, or a combination thereof.
• a thermoplastic material taken from the group of: polystyrene, polyactic acid, polyethylenetherephtalate (PET), polyethylene, polypropylene, or a combination thereof.
• the flowable product that can be contained in the container of the invention is preferably a frozen, chilled, or shelf-stable dairy food product.
• Figure 1 is a perspective top view of the container with the primary closing membrane closed by a secondary peelable membrane
• Figure 2 is a perspective top view of the container of figure 1 with the secondary membrane in the open configuration
• Figure 3 is a side view of the container in the closed configuration
• Figure 4 is a perspective bottom view of the container in the closed configuration.
• the shape of the container 1 is generally that of a strawberry. However, it should be understood that other shapes could be obtained as well by a thermoforming process.
• the container body 2 is squeezable in both axial and transversal directions such that its volume can be reduced by at least 95% upon application of manual pressure.
• a primary membrane 6 is a complex foil comprising a sealing layer compatible with the material of the edge 3, comprising aluminium and plastic.
• said primary membrane 6 is sealed onto the edge 3 in a fixed manner, and comprises a dispensing hole 7 in the spout region of said primary membrane.
• a secondary, peelable, membrane 8 is releasably attached onto said primary membrane 6. Said secondary membrane 8 can be easily peeled off from the primary membrane, as illustrated in figure 2, so as to open the dispensing hole 7, and allow dispensing of ther contained product.
• the spout 5 defines a generally channel opening and has a width less than 10 mm and a height less than 10 mm.
• the lengths of the spout and the channel are determined in order to allow the membrane to have a sufficient non-sealed surface, in order to use it as a tear open strip to peel the membrane from the spout, prior to consumption.
• the primary membrane in case the primary membrane should be removed completely from the container body edge, it can be sealed in a peelable manner and its shape can be made such that the spout portion 9 of said primary membrane protrudes from the spout region of the edge 3.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Packages (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)
• Packging For Living Organisms, Food Or Medicinal Products That Are Sensitive To Environmental Conditiond (AREA)
• Containers And Packaging Bodies Having A Special Means To Remove Contents (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=34979520

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (10)

Families Citing this family (14)

Family Cites Families (8)

• 2006
  • 2006-05-02 WO PCT/EP2006/004076 patent/WO2006117178A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2006-05-02 JP JP2008509359A patent/JP2008539704A/ja active Pending
  • 2006-05-02 MX MX2007013589A patent/MX2007013589A/es unknown
  • 2006-05-02 US US11/913,303 patent/US20080197153A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2006-05-02 CN CNA2006800151062A patent/CN101171177A/zh active Pending
  • 2006-05-02 AU AU2006243387A patent/AU2006243387A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2006-05-02 CA CA002606523A patent/CA2606523A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2006-05-02 RU RU2007144971/12A patent/RU2007144971A/ru unknown
  • 2006-05-02 BR BRPI0611387-7A patent/BRPI0611387A2/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2006-05-02 EP EP06724675A patent/EP1879802A1/de not_active Withdrawn

Non-Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events