GB2246757A - A pourer for a container - Google Patents

Abstract

A pouring spout 1 for a paint tin 2 or the like may comprise a channel section member (4, Figure 2) which releasably engages the interior rim 5 of the open mouth of the paint tin over a pan of the circumference thereof and a member attached to the channel section member which extends upwardly therefrom to form a spout. The channel section takes the form of a U-shaped section which is narrower at the front than the vertical dimension of the rim over which it engages. In an alternative embodiment there is a portion which permanently engages the interior vertical wall of the tin (10, 12, Figures 3 & 4) to which there is attached a second portion (1 Figure 3) which is hinged up to form the spout and which may subsequently be resiliently collapsed into the closure plane to allow the container to be closed. The portion which is hinged up may comprise pan of a larger membrane (21 Figure 5) initially sealing the tin which membrane is provided with weakness lines (22 Figure 5) defining the perimeter of the spout-forming portion. All embodiments may conveniently be formed from plastics material. The upper edge and the corner edge (9 Figure 2) of the member or portion forming the spout is preferably provided with a scraper edge suitable for separating paint from a paint brush. <IMAGE>

Description

"A POURER FOR A CONTAINER" This invention concerns an aid for pouring the contents of a wide-mouthed container of the type conventionally fitted within an interference-fitted lid, such container commonly being a paint tin.

It is a common experience, when pouring paint from a tin or when removing surplus paint from a paint brush that the concave rim, which defines a recess for receiving the bead normally formed at the outer periphery of the lid of the tin, fills with paint and more paint still runs down the outside walls of the tin and has to be wiped off, usually with the consequence of soiling one's fingers.According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a fitment which sealingly engages an interior wall of an opened, otherwise normally lidded container, or sealingly engages the inside facing surfaces of the rim around part of the circumference thereof, and has a portion which extends upward and outwardly from the container over an arcuate portion of its rim or which can be flexed upwardly or outwardly in the aforesaid manner so as to define a pouring spout which acts as a barrier preventing the poured contents from back-filling the rim or spilling over the sides of the container. The fitment also acts to shield the opened internal rim-edge of the container when removing surplus paint from a paint brush in the conventional manner.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention in respect of a container provided initially, i.e. at the point of sale, with a membrane sealing the opening, the said membrane is provided with lines of weakness demarking a zone of said membrane which can be separated from the other parts thereof along the weakness lines and moved upward manually to define a pouring spout. The said other parts of the membrane can be left in situ or, alternatively, can be removed.

In the above use of the expression "container", no limitations are intended to be imparted to the shape of the container receiving the fitment, other than that imposed by the functionality of the fitment, nor is any limitation intended with respect to the material from which the container or its fitment are to be formed.

Nor is any limitation implied concerning the usage of the container in terms of its contents, which may comprise low viscosity liquids, high viscosity liquids (such as paint), granular or particulate solids such as coffee and vegetable fat solids, or chemical materials and the like.

Embodiments of the invention are now described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows the upper part of a conventional paint tin having assembled thereto a fitment in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 shows a vertical cross-section through the fitment; Figure 3 shows a section through an upper portion of one side of a tin having a fitment in accordance with the invention permanently secured thereto; Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 in which the fitment is provided with a downward facing flange which is sealed to the side of the tin; and Figure 5 shows a plan view of the upper axial end of an opened tin, that is without its lid, which is fitted with a sealing membrane.

In the embodiment of Figure 1 the fitment 1 is a discrete article provided with or separately from the tin 2. The fitment may be substantially rigid and arcuate in shape to correspond with the conformation of the opening to which it is to be fitted, or it may be formed of a flexible and/or resilient material and normally provided flat, possibly being intended to fit a plurality of sizes of openings. The substance from which the fitment is formed is preferably a plastics material having sufficient stiffness or rigidity to allow the fitment to retain its shape when fitted.

At the base of the fitment along most, if not all, of its length there is provided a U-shaped channel sectioned member 3 defining a side opening 4 which is wedge and re-entrant shaped in corss-section. The greatest vertical dimension of the aforesaid opening 4 corresponds substantially to the depth of the rim 5 of the tin 2. Because of the re-entrant shape, the front of the opening 4 is of smaller dimension than the depth of the rim and therefore when the fitment is fitted to the rim of the tin the horizontal arms 6 of the U-shaped channel member are flexibly forced apart to allow the rim 5 to enter the opening 4 in the member 3. These arms, when the device is fitted to the tin, grip the rim to prevent the fitment from becoming detached by normal handling of the tin. However, they do not prevent the removal of the fitment from the tin when it is desired to replace the lid of the tin.

Although shown as an integral one-piece member, the fitment can be fabricated in two parts with the spout portion 7 attached to a vertical external surface of the web 8 of the U-shaped channel sectioned member 3. Attachment may be secured by heat sealing, by thermal welding, or by any other conventional production method.

It will be appreciated by experienced decorators that when removing surplus paint from a paint brush, the brush can be wiped against either the top or the bottom edges of the fitment when the latter is in place on the tin. Any residual paint removed by this process will return immediately to the tin and not enter the concave portion of the rim. To assist in the process of removing paint from a brush, a lower vertical flange portion 9 and a flat top edge (not shown) may be provided on the fitment 1.

Provided, when pouring paint from the tin, the user is reasonably careful, the paint can be confined to a path defined by the concave surface of the spout and be restrained from entering the exposed rim portions of the tin. The thin top edge of the spout will allow the paint to separate easily from the spout and greatly minimise any paint which adheres to the spout from travelling down the outside edge thereof. Any such paint that does succeed in adhering to the outside can easily be removed therefrom before it has the opportunity of travelling around the rim of the tin.

Referring to Figures 3 and 4, it is envisaged that the fitment 1 may be already fitted to the tin containing merchandise when the latter is marketed. With such an arrangement the fitment may be flat so as to lie in a first position in a substantially horizontal plane beneath the lid but be suitably flexible such that the spout portion can be bent upward out of the tin to a second position to serve its functional purposes and yet be returned to the horizontal plane when the lid is replaced.

Alternatively the attachment may have a normal position in which the spout position is upstanding from the tin and a collapsed position inside the tin when the lid is replaced. The material of the fitment must be such for this process of moving the spout in and out of the tin to be repeatable many times without damage to the spout 7 and until the tin is emptied of its contents. In Figure 3 the attachment is provided with an upstanding portion 10 which may be circular or arcuate and which is trapped between the layers of the metal during the formation of the rim on the tin.

A horizontal portion 11 of the fitment 1 lies in contact with the lower surface of the rim 5. In Figure 4 the attachment is provided with a downward facing vertical flange portion 12 which is in sealing engagement with the wall of the tin. As in the previous embodiment of Figure 3, it likewise has a horizontal portion 11 in contact with the lower surface of the rim 5. The vertical flange portion 12 may be fused to the surface treatment material normally provided on the interior surfaces of the tin. As previously described in relation to Figure 2, the top edge of the spout may be flat to facilitate the wiping of paint from a brush.

Some merchandise is supplied in tins which are hermetically sealed by a thin membrane 21 just underneath the lid, as shown in Figure 5. In a further embodiment of the invention weakness or tear lines 22 may be provided in such a membrane. The smaller portion 23 defined by the tear lines 22 can be separated from the remainder of the membrane and bent upward out of the tin to define the spout. This process, of course, leaves an opening at the top of the tin through which the contents can be poured without the necessity to remove the other parts of the membrane. After use the spout portion can be returned to the horizontal plane as with the embodiments shown in Figures 3 and 4, with the added advantage that with the choice of suitable materials a partially effective seal of the contents can be restored. In order to prevent tearing of the material of the membrane when the spout portion 23 is bent out of the horizontal, it may be necessary to terminate each side of the spout portion with a cordal edge 24 rather than to continue the arcuate line as shown by the broken line portions 24 in the Figure. It may be considered advantageous to provide a pull tab (not shown) on the spout portion adjacent the tear line to facilitate the easy separation of the spout portion from the remainder of the membrane. Such a tab portion can be fastened to the upper surface of the membrane by suitable adhesives.

Claims (8)

1. A fitment for a wide-mouthed normally-closable container having means for sealingly engaging at least a part of the circumferential length of the interior surface of the mouth of the container and a portion which extends upwardly from said open mouth over at least part of the length of the said engaging means so as to define a pouring spout which acts as a barrier preventing any contents of the container from spilling over the sides of the latter when poured.

2. A fitment according to Claim 1 wherein the said pouring spout has an upper edge which is shaped as a scraper.

3. A fitment according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 which is a fixture to the container and which is formed of a material such that the pouring spout may be retracted to the plane of the lid of the container when the latter is closed and subsequently restored to its pouring position when the container is reopened.

4. A fitment according to Claim 3 in which the spout comprises a part of a sealing membrane which is provided at the mouth of the container to hermetically seal it, said membrane being provided with weakness lines defining an area thereof which may be separated from the membrane and displaced upwardly to form the pouring spout.

5. A fitment according to any of Claims 1 to 3 wherein the engaging means comprises a portion having an outwardly facing U-shaped channel cross-section.

6. A fitment according to Claim 5 wherein the U-shaped channel cross-section portion defines a side opening which is wedge shaped, having a dimensions at the front of the opening which is narrower than the corresponding dimension of the rim of the container over which it is to fit.

7. A fitment according to any preceding claim formed from flexible plastics material.

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