GB2111462A

GB2111462A - Container for liquids

Info

Publication number: GB2111462A
Application number: GB08135285A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Parker Good
Original assignee: TRI WALL CONTAINERS Ltd
Current assignee: TRI WALL CONTAINERS Ltd
Priority date: 1981-11-23
Filing date: 1981-11-23
Publication date: 1983-07-06

Abstract

A container for liquids comprises a floor and upstanding walls 17-20 forming a substantially rigid, self- supporting outer shell, at least one substantially rigid self-supporting internal dividing wall forming two or more compartments within the container and a flexible impermeable bag within each compartment for receiving liquid. The dividing walls are preferably defined by corrugated fibreboard sleeves 12-15 which surround and support the impermeable bags. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Container for liquids The present invention relates to containers for liquids and particularly to containers for storing and transporting liquids in bulk.

It is known to use rigid containers, which may be made from glass, plastics or metal for storing and transporting liquids. However such containers are relatively expensive and cannot be collapsed when they are not in use. As a result they take up unnecessary space when not in use and are uneconomic.

In order to provide a container for liquid which is more economic to manufacture and which can be collapsed and folded for storage when not in use it has been proposed to form a liquid container from an outer-shell of foldable but substantially rigid material to act as a housing and support for a flexible impermeable bag. While this known type of liquid container has been found satisfactory for relatively small volumes of liquid it has not hitherto been possible to provide a container of this type which had sufficient strength to withstand the forces generated by the movement of a relatively large volume of liquid during transport of the container.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a container of this general type which is so constructed that it has sufficient structural strength to enable it to be used for transporting substantial volumes of liquid without any risk that the movement of the liquid will generate forces which would damage or destroy the container.

According to one aspect of the present invention we provide a container for liquids comprising a floor and upstanding walls forming a substantially rigid, self-supporting outer shell, at least one substantially rigid self-supporting internal dividing wall forming two or more compartments within the container and a flexible impermeable bag within each compartment for receiving liquid.

Preferably the outer shell is rectangular in section and at least two inner sleeves are located as a close fit within the outer shell, each sleeve being rectangular in section and the sleeves forming the internal dividing wall or walls of the container. Preferably also the outer shell and the inner sleeves are formed from a similar corrugated fibreboard material having parallel flutings and the arrangement being such that the flutings in the material forming the shell are perpendicular to the flutings in the material forming the inner sleeves.

We have found that by dividing the container up into two or more compartments each containing a flexible impermeable bag, the forces generated by the movement of the liquid within each compartment tend to counteract each other thereby reducing the overall stress applied to the outer shell.

Forming the internal compartments of the container by providing a plurality of sleeves which are a close fit within the outer shell has the further advantage that the overall strength of the container is substantially increased. Furthermore, forming both the outer shell and the inner sleeves from a corrugated fibreboard material and arranging the flutings of the outer shell and the inner sleeves perpendicular to one another increases the resistance of the container to burst forces.

A preferred form of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a container according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a perspective sectional view on an enlarged scale of a detail of the container shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a partially cut away side view showing a bag located in one of the compartments of the container of Figure 1; and Figure 4 is a perspective view of a bag shown in Figure 3.

A container for liquids is indicated generally at 10 in the drawings. The container 10 comprises an outer shell 11 which is divided into four separate compartments by four inner sleeves 12, 13,14 and 15.

The outer shell 11 comprises a conventional fibreboard box having a floor 16 formed by four foldable bottom flaps, four upstanding side walls 17,18, and 20 and a lid formed by four foldable top flaps, only two of which are shown at 21 and 22. The outer shell 11 is mounted in a conventional manner, for instance, by staples on a conventional wooden fork lift pallet 23.

Each of the inner sleeves is formed from a similar corrugated fibreboard material and comprises a square section open ended tube, formed in a conventional manner by creasing, folding and stitching or gluing.

Both the outer shell 11 and the inner sleeves 1 2 to 1 5 are preferably formed from a heavy duty corrugated fibreboard material such as that sold under the trade name TRI-WALL PAK (Registered Trade Mark) and preferably, the parallel flutings of the material forming the outer shell 1 are arranged perpendicular to the parallel flutings forming the material of the inner sleeves 12 to 15.

Located within each inner sleeve, is a flexible liquid containing bag 25, only one of which is shown in Figure 3. The bag 25 is formed from polythene or any other suitable liquid impermeable flexible material and is gussetted at the top and bottom in a conventional manner. A substantially rigid lid 26 having a liquid inlet 27 is attached to the upper end of the bag 25 so that the bag can be suspended from the lid 26. A similar bottom member 28 is also attached to the bag 25 to spread the bottom of the bag apart. The lid 26 and the bottom member 28 may be stitched, adhered or otherwise attached to the bag 25 in any convenient manner.

In order to fill the container 10 with a liquid or a plurality of different liquids, the sleeves 12 to 1 5 are manually slid into place within the outer shell 11 to form four separate compartments within the container. The outer shell 11 is square in section and each of the inner sleeves is square in section and dimensioned so that the four sleeves are a snug fit within the outer shell. When in place the four sleeves therefore form a compact and substantially rigid assembly.

A bag 25 is then placed in each compartment of the container. The dimensions of the bottom member 28 of each bag are such that it is a clearance fit within the inner sleeve. The dimensions of the lid 26 however correspond to the outside dimensions of the sleeve so that the lid will rest on the upper edge of the sleeve. Each bag 25 is tailored so that, when filled with liquid, it forms a close fit within the inner sleeve. When the bags 25 are in place, they are filled by pouring liquid through the inlets 27 in the bags. Finally, the upper flaps are foided over to close the container which can then be strapped or taped for transport.

In use, we have found that a container outer shell not being provided with any additional restraint means can support a substantially greater volume of liquid during transport if it is divided into a plurality of separate compartments each containing a separate flexible bag of liquid than if it contains only one large bag of liquid. We believe that this is.partly because of the added strength provided by the internal compartment walls formed by the sleeves but also because the volume of liquid is broken down into a number of components and the forces set up by movement of the liquid are similarly broken up act against one another to reduce the overall stress place on the walls of the container.

By forming the outer shell and the inner sleeves from corrugated fibreboard material and arranging the flutings of the outer shell and the inner sleeve perpendicular to one another we further increase the overall strength of the container and its resistance to internal burst forces.

It is preferred to use the flexible bag 25 having a substantially rigid lid but this is not essential and a conventional bag or liner may be employed in conjunction with the container of the present invention.

In the preferred embodiment of the container, the outer shell and the inner sleeves are shown as being square in section but again this is not essential and the container may be shaped to suit any particular requirement or application. The container may also be formed with any suitable number of separate compartments and these may be formed by providing sleeves or alternatively by providing separate internal walls in the form of flat fibreboard sheets.

Claims

1. A container for liquids comprising a floor and upstanding walls forming substantially rigid, selfsupporting outer shell, at least one substantially rigid self-supporting internal dividing wall forming two or more compartments within the container and a flexible impermeable bag within each compartment for receiving liquid.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outer shell is rectangular in section and at least two inner sleeves are located as a close fit within the outer shell, each sleeve being rectangular in section and the sleeves forming the internal dividing wall or walls of the container.

3. A container as claimed in claim 2 wherein the outer shell and the inner sleeves are both formed from corrugated fibreboard material having parallel flutings and the arrangement being such that the flutings in the material forming the shell are perpendicular to the flutings in the material forming the inner sleeves.

4. A container as claimed in claim 2 or claim 3 wherein four sleeves are located as a close fit within the outer shell, each sleeve housing a flexible impermeable bag for liquid.

5. A container as claimed in any preceding claim where each bag is attached to and suspended from a substantially rigid lid which is formed with an inlet and which is adapted to rest on the upper edge of a compartment of the container.

6. A container as claimed in claim 5 wherein each bag incorporates a substantially rigid bottom member shaped to fit closely within one of the compartments of the container.

7. A container as claimed in any preceding claim and including a lid formed by four foldable flaps integral with the side walls of the outer shell.

8. A container substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.