GB2116152A - Spout for a liquid container - Google Patents

Abstract

A spout for a liquid container has three portions. These portions are a tubular portion 10 including a laterally extending flange 12, one end portion 14 constituting a cutter 16,18 for cutting a circular hole, and a seal structure portion 22 located adjacent the flange for sealing with a wall of the container. The spout is intended for use with a container containing for example milk or orange juice. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Spout for a liquid container This invention relates to a spout for a liquid container that can readily be attached to and detached from the container.

At present, liquids, for example, milk and orange juice, are sold in containers made from cardboard or thick paper-like material, laminated with a plastics or a metal foil layer to make them liquid-proof. One example of such a liquid container is that known by the Trade Name "PURE-PAC" and made by or under licences from the EX-CELLO CORPORATION.

Such packs are used by Express Dairies Limited for retailing milk and by Marks 8 Spencer Limited for retailing orange juice. Containers of this kind, although very widespread, have the disadvantage that they are not easy to open and that the liquid therein is easily spilt or caused to spurt out during opening. Such packs are particularly difficult for persons who lack manual dexterity, such as old or inform people, or persons who have injured a hand or fingers. It would be desirable if there was an easy alternative to the present method of opening.

According to the invention, there is provided a spout for a liquid container, the spout having a tubular portion including a laterallyextending flange, one end portion arranged to constitute a cutter for cutting a circular hole, and a seal structure portion located adjacent the flange.

The flange is preferably located about midway between the ends of the ends of the spout, and the seal preferably is formed by a channel running peripherally around the spout adjacent the root of the flange.

In a most preferred version of the invention, the spout has a tapered portion of gradually increasing diameter adjacent the channel and on the opposite side of the channel from the flange. One wall of the channel is preferably angled (e.g. 40 to 50 degrees, most preferably about 45 degrees) to the axis of the spout.

The said one end portion may be integral with the remainder of the spout or it may be separate therefrom. It may be made of metal, for example, stainless steel. Alternatively, (and this is presently preferred) the whole spout may be moulded integrally from a mouldable synthetic plastics material.

The invention will be better understood from the following non-limiting description of examples thereof given with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an axial cross-section through a first example of an attachable and detachable spout according to the invention; Figure 2 is an axial cross-section through a second example of an attachable and detachable spout according to the invention; and Figure 3 is a like section through a third example of the invention wherein the spout has a metal cutter.

The attachable and detachable spout illus trated in Fig. 1 is moulded in one piece from a relatively rigid synthetic plastics material and has a tubular portion 1 0 including a laterally extending flange 1 2. One end portion 14 of the spout has a serrated edge 1 6 which comes to a point 1 8. The other end of the spout is angled as shown at 20, and consti tutes the pouring end of the spout. In order to promote a satisfactory pouring action, the rim of the angled end 20 may be smoothed over or radiused as may be convenient. Such radi using is not illustrated in the drawing.

An important feature of the spout is the inclusion of a seal structure portion 22, which defines a channel 24 intended to receive the newly-exposed edge of the cardboard or like liquid container. The seal structure 22 in cludes a portion 26 whose outside diameter gradually increases, moving in a direction towards the pouring end 20, and thereafter merges into an angled wall portion 28, which forms one wall of the channel 24, whose other wall is formed by the flange 1 2.

In operation, the user takes an unopened carton or pack of liquid, for example, a milk carton, and grips the spout between finger and thumb with the cutter end 14 pointing towards a surface of the carton which it is desired to pierce and cut a circular hole therein. The spout is then pushed into the carton in a direction approximately at right angles, and is rotated while it is being pushed in. This causes a circular hole to be cut by the cutter portion 14, of a diameter substantially equal to the outside diameter of the portion 30 of the spout. The user then continues to push the spout in until the flange 1 2 comes in face to face engagement with the wall of the carton.In this position the exposed edge of the circular hole in the carton is disposed within the channel 24, the cardboard having sprung back after being deformed by the increasing diameter portion 26. According to a preferred feature of the invention, the wid eth of the channel 24 (its length measured along the axis of the spout) is arranged to be substantially equal to the thickness of the wall of the liquid container being punctured. If this criterion is met, in in most cases there will be no leakage from the container once the spout is inserted therein, during a pouring operaton.

An alternative version of pouring spout, which is attachable to and detachable from a liquid container, is illustrated in Fig. 2.

In Fig. 2, like parts are indicated by like reference numerals to those used in Fig. 1, and the general principles of construction and operation are similar to those of Fig. 1 example of the invention. The spout shown in Fig. 2 is also moulded integrally from a syn thetic plastics material. The differences in con struction, compared to Fig. 1, are that the cutter edge 1 6A's would be curved rather than being serrated, coming to a point 1 8A.

The pouring end is cut off perpendicular to the spout axis as shown at 20A. Once again the dimension "A" is chosen to be substantially equal to the thickness of the wall of the liquid container to be punctured. That is to say, it is chosen to be within the range of about 85% to 11 5% of the liquid container wall thickness.

Fig. 3 shows an alternative embodiment of the invention in which the major part of the spout 40 is moulded from a synthetic plastics material, having a flange 42, a seal structure portion 44, and a pouring spout end 46. In this embodiment, however, the cutter end portion of the spout is made of a metal tube, for example, stainless steel, which is force fitted or otherwise appropriately secured over the end of the plastics portion 40 of the spout. The metal cutter end is shown at 48 and has an angled sharp edge 50 coming to a point 52.

Referring to Fig. 2, in one practical example of the invention, the dimension A is chosen to be equal to the wall thickness of the liquid container for which the spout is intended. The dimension B is approximately 3/32nd of an inch. The angle C may be about 25 to 75 , preferably about 50 . The dimension D is approximately +". The dimension E is approx 0.4". The Angle F of the sloping wall of the channel is in the range 15 to 65 , and more preferably 30 to 45 to the normal to the axis of the spout; smaller angles will be appropriate when the wall of the carton is of relatively thin cardboard (e.g. 0.8 mm and less) whereas larger angles will be appropriate for thicker carton walls.The angle G of the inclined external surface is about 5-15" measured from the axis of the spout. The dimension H may be from 2.4mm upwards, e.g. 3 to 6mm.

A further alternative embodiment of the invention is shown in Fig. 4. This is similar to Fig. 2 and like parts bear like reference num bers. I However, the spout shown in Fig. 4 has a plain right-angled pouring end 208, and an air entry bore 70 in the wall of the spout extends longitudinally from a lateral hole 72 to an air inlet port 74.

The benefit of this arrangement is that, with this design of pouring spout, there is no need to puncture a separate air entry hole in the carton to facilitate smooth and even pouring.

The spout may be made in different colours. A colouring agent may be added to the plastics material prior to moulding of the spout. For example, one could have a white spout for use on milk cartons and an orangecoloured spout for use on orange-juice cartons.

A cap may be supplied with the spout, which may be a push fit onto either end of the spout. Any suitable shape of cap, e.g.

cylindrical with a laterally extending flange at its closed end, may be used. Such a cap may be used as a stand or holder for a spout.

Alternatively, several spouts may be sold in, and carried by, a holder or base having recesses in its upper surface.

It will be seen that there has been particularly disclosed and illustrated herein a convenient spout which can be easily and cheaply manufactured and which can readily be inserted into a liquid container, so avoiding any problems associated with spillage or spurting which occur when such a container is opened in the normal manner.

Claims (7)

1. A spout for a liquid container having at least three portions, namely a tubular portion including a laterally-extending flange, one end portion arranged to constitute a cutter for cutting a circular hole, and a seal structure portion located adjacent the flange for sealing with a wall of the container.

2. A spout according to claim 1 in which the flange is located about midway between the ends of the ends of the spout, and the seal is formed by a channel running peripherally around the spout adjacent the root of the flange.

3. A spout according to claim 1 or 2 in which the spout has a tapered portion of gradually increasing diameter adjacent the channel and on the opposite side of the channel from the flange.

4. A spout according to claim 3 in which one wall of the channel is angled (e.g. 40 to 50 degrees, preferably about 45 degrees) to the axis of the spout.

5. A spout according to any preceding claim in which the one end portion is integral with the remainder of the spout.

6. A spout according to any preceding claim which is moulded in one piece from a mouldable synthetic plastics material.

7. A spout substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.