GB2048204A

GB2048204A - A Package of Nested Articles

Info

Publication number: GB2048204A
Application number: GB7916464A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1979-05-11
Filing date: 1979-05-11
Publication date: 1980-12-10

Abstract

A multi-package of disposable bowl-shaped vessel inserts of the type having thin-walled side (3) and bottom (4) portions and a relatively stiff upper peripheral collar (2), or similar articles is made by vertically stacking a plurality of inserts together and folding collectively or individually, the thin-walled bottom (4) and side (3) portions inside the upper collars (2) by pushing the insert bottoms into the space enclosed by the collars (2). Single or multiple folds may be made and the stacked and folded inserts may be enclosed in a protective envelope. Apparatus 9-15 and methods for making such multiple packs are also disclosed. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in or Relating to a Package This invention relates to a package comprising substantially bowl-shaped, thin-walled, disposable vessels having a relatively stiff upper peripheral collar, and to methods and means for manufacturing such packages.

The invention is of particular utility in connection with thin-walled vessels of a disposable type which, individually, or when stacked together in the normal way, take up considerable space. For purposes of illustration, the invention will be described herein with reference to disposable inserts intended to be used as cooking vessels, although the invention is not in any way limited to such vessels.

Bowl-shaped, thin-walled, disposable inserts used with cooking vessels are known and are described for example, in U.K. Patent Application 47,068/76 (Serial No. 1,576,814) corresponding to Swedish patent application No. 75 12 688-8.

They are manufactured from a thin, flexible material capable of efficient heat transfer from a thermally conducting medium such aswater vapour to food contained in the vessel. The insert is intended to be placed in a special support such as a mesh basket or the like, which, in turn, is placed inside a cooking vessel of conventional design. To facilitate its placement in the basket, such an nsert is usually provided with a stiff upper edge or collar, the remainder of the wall and bottom portions being thin walled. The insert may be vacuum moulded of a polythene material and formed so that the wall thickness of the upper portion or stiff upper collar is about 0.01--0.03 mm.

Since the inserts are disposable, and are therefore quickly used up, it is desirable for distribution purposes to market them in packages of convenient size, say 10-100 inserts stacked one inside the other in a suitable envelope or protective casing. However, since a typical insert may have a volume capacity of two litres, a diameter of roughly 200 mm and a height of about 1 80 mm, such inserts tend to be rather bulky from the standpoint of shipping, storage and handling, even when stacked. Also, since the sides and bottoms of such inserts are extremely flexible, it is sometimes difficult to stack them together satisfactorily.

According to one aspect of this invention, there is provided a multiple package of substantially bowl-shaped vessels, each having a bottom wall and adjoining side wall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff, upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall said package comprising a plurality of said vessels nested inside each other in stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of the sidewalls and the collars thereof define an enclosure, the flexible side walls of said vessels being folded so that at least part of the lower ends of the side walls.

Preferably the bottoms extend into the enclosure and the sidewalls may be folded a plurality of times. The multiple pack may be encased in a conventional protective shrink film casing.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a method of forming a multiple pack of substantially bowl-shaped, vessels each having a bottom wall and adjoining side wall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff, upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall, comprising the steps of nesting a plurality of said vessels in stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of the side walls and the collars define an enclosure and folding the bottom and side walls so that atleast part of the lower ends of the sidewalls extend into said enclosure.

Multipackages may be produced by stacking a plurality of inserts together in nested relation, holding the stiffer collar sections of the inserts while folding over the thin side walls and pushing the bottom walls back inside the nested vessels.

In a preferred method of packaging the inserts, they are stacked upside down with the upper peripheral flanges of the insert collars supported on a similarly shaped flange on a form which also has an annular, upwardly extending, upwardly tapered tubular member, folding the side walls of the stacked inserts over the top edge of the tapered member and pushing the bottom walls of the stacked inserts down into the interior space formed by the stiffer collar sections of the stacked inserts.

The bottom walls of the inserts are either pressed down into the tubular member until they are substantially fiush with the tops of the collar sections, or the side walls may be folded twice so that the second fold is near the bottom of the tubular member and the bottom walls are substantially flush with the top of the tubular member.

For a single fold, at least one movable cylindrical member is arranged to engage the bottom walls of the nested, upside down inserts and move them downwardly to a desired location inside the tubular member, the upper peripheral flanges of the insert collars being supported on the form during the folding operation. To this end, the cylindrical member is concentric with the tubular member and suitably sized to provide sufficient clearance to accommodate the folded side wails of the inserts.

Multiple folds in the flexible side walls of the stacked inserts may be made by repeated folding operations using several such cylindrical members movable towards the inserts from opposite sides thereof. The first fold may be made essentially as described for a single fold, a cylindrical sleeve-like member being used to push the bottoms of the stacked inserts through the stiffer upper collars to a location beyond the tops af the upside down inserts. The cylindrical sleeve member is then retracted somewhat and a second cylindrical member concentric with and suitably sized to enter the open end of the cylindrical sleeve member is inserted into the latter from the opposite direction to push the bottoms of the inserts back through the stiff upper collars so as to form a double fold.

According to another aspect of this invention there is provided a method of forming a multiple pack of substantially bowl-shaped, vessels each having a bottom wall and adjoining side wall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff, upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall, comprising the steps of individually folding the bottom and thin sidewall of a plurality of said vessels and nesting a plurality of said folded vessels into stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of said sidewalls and said collars thereof define an enclosure which contains at least part of the lower ends of the sidewalls.

According to a further aspect of this invention there is provided an apparatus for manufacturing t multiple package of substantially bowl-shaped, thin sidewalled, vessels each having stiff, upper, peripheral collar, comprising a form having a flanged portion adapted to support a stack of nested vessels by their peripheral collars and a tubular portion adapted to extend into a stack of nested vessels so supported, means securing said stack of nested vessels releasably on said form, and a cylindrical member coaxial with the tubular portion of said form and movable in the direction thereof for folding the bottom and thin side walls of said nested vessels over an end of said tubular portion.

Preferably the form tubular portion tapers inwardly and means is provided for clamping the nested vessels releasably on the form, and conveniently said cylindrical member is tubular, and a second cylindrical member is provided that is concentric with said tubular cylindrical member and movable thereinto from the opposite direction for folding the thin bottom and side walls of said nested vessels reversely over said tubular cylindrical member.

In order that the invention may be more readily understood, and so that further features thereof may be appreciated, the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a prior art disposable insert of the kind disclosed in U.K.

Patent Application No. 47,068/76; (Serial No.

1,576,814).

Figure 2 is a part sectional view, on an enlarged scale, taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Figure 3 is a front view, partially in section, of an inverted stack of disposable inserts; Figure 4 is a side view, partly in section, of an inverted stack of disposable inserts and an apparatus for forming a mutlipackage thereof.

Figures 5 and 6 illustrate a second technique for manufacturing multipacks of disposable inserts; and Figure 7 is a perspective view of a completed multipack formed in accordance with the -invention, enclosed in a shrink film casing.

Like references refer to like parts throughout the specification.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2 a disposable insert 1 for cooking vessels comprises a bottom wall 4 and a lower side wall portion 3 made of extremely thin, flexible material. The lower side wall portion 3 is joined to a relatively stiff upper side wall section 2, which terminates at its upper end in a downwardly and outwardly extending flange 8.

Mounted on opposite sides of the flange are a pair of protruding handles or grips 5 and 6 designed to cooperate with corresponding support surfaces on a support basket (not shown), which is, in turn, adapted to be suspended in any suitable manner in a conventional cooking vessel. For a 2-litre capacity, the insert 1 may have a diameter of 200 mm and a height of 180 mm, for example.

In the first stage of forming a multi-package according to the invention, a plurality of such disposable inserts are stacked together in nested relation in an inverted pile, as shown in Figure 3.

Such a stack has a stiff collar section 7 of height A.

In the subsequent steps of a first method of forming a multipack of inserts 1, an inverted stack of nested disposable inserts 1 as shown in Figure 3 is mounted on a tubular support or form 9 as shown in Figure 4 having a recess 10 shaped to receive and hold the stiff upper peripheral collar and edge flanges 8, and an annular, upwardly extending, inwardly tapering, tubular member 11 adapted to extend inside the lower open ends of the inserts 1. The vertical height of the tubular member 11 will be chosen depending upon the desired location of a fold in the inserts 1 that will be described hereinafter.During the actual folding operation which will be described ereinafter, the edge flanges 8 of the inserts 1 may be suitably retained in the support 9 by means such as collet jaws 13, 14 which are adapted to engage the outermost edge flange 8 so as to apply pressure on the other edge flanges in the direction of the recess 10.

The actual folding of the side wall 3 is performed by a cylindrical member 1 5 concentrically disposed with respect to the support 9. The cylindrical member 1 5 is movable upwardly and downwardly in the direction of the arrow B and is arranged during its downward movement to engage the bottom walls 4 at their original positions shown in dotted lines in Figure 4, to press the bottom walls downwardly and thus to fold the sides 3 of the inserts 1 over the top of the tubular member 11 into the interior space 12.

When the folding operation has been completed, the cylindrical member 15 and the collet jaws 13, 14 can be returned to their original positions and the multipackage of inserts thus obtained may be removed from the support 9. If desired, the completed multipackage may be provided with a protective outer cover or casing, such as a cover of shrink film or the like.

Another method of forming a multipack of inserts form a stack as shown in Figure 3 is illustrated in Figures 5 and 6, in which a double fold of the side walls of the inserts is effected. In this method, an inverted stack of inserts 1 like that shown in Figure 3 is placed on a tubular support 9 similar to that shown in Figure 4 and a first fold is effected by the downward movement of a first cylindrical member 16, similar to the member 1 5 in Figure 4 but being of tubular form and thus having a central opening, into which a second member 1 7 can be inserted with an upward movement.The member 1 6 is adapted to be moved somewhat further downward into the support 9 than in the case of Figure 4, so that the bottoms 4 of the inserts 1 in the stack are moved downwardly to a point below the plane formed by the lower edge of the support 9.

In the next stage, the cylindrical member 16 is retracted slightly, as shown in Figure 6 and a second cylindrical member 17, disposed oncentrically with the member 1 6 and the support 9, is moved upwardly in the direction of the arrow C to provide a second fold in the side walls 3 of the inserts 1. The side walls 3 and bottoms 4 of the stacked inserts are thus double folded inside the space 1 2 in the support 9. The cylindrical members 16 and 1 7 can then be retracted to their initial positions, the collet jaws 13, 14 being released, and the double folded stack of inserts 1 being removed from the support 9.

A package produced in accordance with the method shown in connection with Figures 5 and 6, and finally provided with a protective shrink film cover 18, is illustrated in Figure 7.

While the invention has been described and illustrated with reference to either a single or double fold operation, it will be understood that modifications in the process and resulting multipackage are possible without departing from the present invention. Also, while the invention has been described with reference to disposable inserts intended to be used with cooking vessels, it will be understood that the present invention is equally applicable to the manufacture of multipackages of other types of items havin the necessary thin wall structure. Also whilst the invention has been described with specific reference to methods in which the sidewalls of stacks of vessels are folded, the sidewalls of a plurality of vessels may be folded individually, the vessels with the folded sidewalls then being stacked.

Claims

1. A multiple package of substantially bowlshaped vessels each having a bottom wall and adjoining sidewall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall said package comprising a plurality of said vessels nested inside each other in stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of the sidewalls and the collars thereof define an enclosure, the flexible sidewalls of said vessels being folded so that at least part of the lower ends of the sidewalls extend into said enclosure.

2. A multiple package according to claim 1 wherein said bottoms extend into said enclosure.

3. A multiple package according to claim 1 or claim 2 in which the flexible side wails of said vessels are folded a plurality of times.

4. A multiple package according to any one of the preceding claims together with a sealed envelope containng the stacked vessels.

5. A method of forming a multiple pack of substantially bowl-shaped, vessels each having a bottom wall and adjoining side wall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff, upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall, comprising the steps of nesting a plurality of said vessels in stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of the sidewalls and the collars thereof define an enclosure, and folding the bottom and sidewalls so that at least part of the lower ends of the sidewalls extend into said enclosure.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein said bottoms extend into said enclosure.

7. A method according to claim 5 or 6 in which the nested vessels are mounted on a form having a flanged portion adapted to support the nested upper collars of the vessels and a central, tubular member adapted to extend into the enclosure defined by said nested upper collars, the nested vessels being retained in assembled relation on the form, and the flexible side walls of the nested vessels being folded over said tubular member into said enclosure by moving, in the direction of said enclosure, a cylindrical member applied to the bottoms of said nested vessels.

8. A method according to claim 5 in which the cylindrical member is tubular in shape and open ended, the flexible side walls of said nested vessels are again folded by moving another cylindrical member in the opposite direction against the bottoms of said nested vessels to fold the flexible side walls of the latter over and into the open end of said tubular cylindrical member, withdrawing said cylindrical members, and removing the nested, folded vessels from said form.

9. A method according to any one of claims 5 to 8 in which the nested, folded vessels are encased in an envelope.

10. A method of forming a multiple pack of substantially bowl-shaped, vessels each having a bottom wall and adjoining side wall made of thin, flexible material and a stiff, upper, peripheral collar joined to the upper end of said side wall, comprising the teps of individually folding the bottom and thin side wall of a plurality of said vessels and nesting a plurality of said folded vessels into stacked relation such that the nested upper ends of said sidewalls and said collars thereof define an enclosure which contains at least part of the lower ends of the sidewalls.

11. A method according to claim 10 in which said enclosure contains said bottoms.

12. An apparatus for manufacturing a multiple package of substantially bowl-shaped, thin sidewalled, vessels each having a stiff, upper, peripheral collar, comprising a form having a flanged portion adapted to support a stack of nested vessels by their peripheral collars and a tubular portion adapted to extend into a stack of nested vessels so supported, means securing said stack of nested vessels releasably on said form, and a cylindrical member coaxial with the tubular portion of said form and movable in the direction thereof for folding the bottom and thin side walls of said nested vessels over an end of said tubular portion.

13. An apparatus according to claim 12 in which the form tubular portion tapers inwardly and means is provided for clamping the nested vessels releasably on the form.

14. An pparatus as defined in claim 13 in which said cylindrical member is tubular, and a second cylindrical member is provided that is concentric with said tubular cylindrical member and movable thereinto from the opposite direction for folding the thin bottom and side walls of said nested vessels reversely over said tubular cylindrical member.

1 5. A multiple package substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.

1 6. A multiple package substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in Figures 1 to 3 and 5 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

17. A method of making a multiple ackage substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 of the accompanying drawings.

18. A method of making a multiple package substantially as herein described with reference to Figures 1 to 3 and 5 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

1 9. An apparatus for making a multiple package substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in Figure 4 of the accompanying drawings.

20. An apparatus for making a multiple package substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying drawings.

21. Any novel feature or combination of features disclosed herein.