GB2284588A

GB2284588A - Container package

Info

Publication number: GB2284588A
Application number: GB9325408A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Christopher John Hammond; Mark James Patrick Harrison
Original assignee: Bass PLC
Current assignee: Bass PLC
Priority date: 1993-12-11
Filing date: 1993-12-11
Publication date: 1995-06-14
Also published as: GB9325408D0

Abstract

A container 10 contains an insert 14 which is retained adjacent the base wall 10a by means of a pair of arms 22 which are connected to the remainder of the insert 14 by means of respective integral hinges 24. The arms 22 can be pivoted about the respective hinges 24 between a folded position to enable the insert 14 to be introduced through a neck 12 of the container and an extended position in which an outer end 26 of each arm 22 engages against the side wall of the container 10 to hold the insert 14 in position. <IMAGE>

Description

CONTAINER PACKAGE This invention relates to a container package and to a method of manufacturing such a container package.

The invention is particularly, but not exclusively, concerned with container packages where an item is to be retained within a package containing liquid, e.g. a container for a beverage such as beer.

It is known to introduce into a liquid package an item such as an insert which contains gas and/or liquid under pressure so that, when the container is opened, gas and/or beverage is jetted through one or more restricted orifices in the insert into the main body of liquid in the container in order to cause the production of fine gas bubbles which assists in the formation of a rich creamy foam on the liquid such as beer.

However, there remains the need to secure the insert at the desired location within the container. A number of methods have been previously proposed for such use.

In GB 2183592 and corresponding EP-A-0227213, the insert is cylindrical with a diameter less than the opening of the container but is provided with a circumferentially spaced array of radially outwardly extending flexible tabs or lugs which abut the side wall of the container and which can flex upwardly when the insert is introduced into the container and pressed downwardly. Such lugs are intended to grip the side wall of a can and thereby restrain the insert from displacement out of the desired position.However, the disadvantage of such a construction is that the flexible tabs or lugs have to be sufficiently flexible so that they can be passed into the relatively narrow neck of the container and then be able to flex outwardly to engage with the wider side wall of the container with sufficient force to ensure that the insert is retained in position despite possible subsequent mishandling of the container. This is difficult to achieve in containers where the neck is relatively narrow.

WO 91/07326 discloses a number of constructions for holding the insert at the desired location within the container. In one construction, the insert is secured in position using an adhesive or a vacuum "sucker" arrangement. In another construction, the insert has arms with flanges which are an interference fit on the internal side wall of the can. In yet another construction, internal protrusions in the side wall of the container help to retain the insert. In a further construction, flexible arms on the insert engage the inner side wall of the can to hold the insert in position. Such constructions possess the inherent disadvantage that either they require the use of an adhesive or a particular formation on the side wall of the container, or they rely on an interference fit between retainers on the insert and the side wall of the container.It is difficult to obtain an adequate adhesive connection between the insert and the side wall of a container such as a beer can because the side wall is very flexible. The use of an interference fit places great demands on the accuracy of forming the insert and its flexibility to ensure an adequately tight fit without causing damage.

GB 2218080 discloses a construction in which an insert which is of greater longitudinal extent than the cross-section of the neck is introduced into the container in a first orientation relative to the container and then the insert and the container are relatively moved to position the insert remote from the neck within the container, with the subsequent rotation of the insert as a whole within the container into a second, different orientation, relative to the first orientation and, during such movement, causing longitudinally opposite ends of the insert to engage interferingly with an interior wall of the container. Whilst such a construction can enable an interference fit of the required strength to hold the insert correctly in position, quite complicated equipment is required to effect assembly of the insert into the container.

WO 93/10021 discloses a construction in which an insert is retained in position in a can with the bottom edges of a central region of the insert contacting the base of the can by means of a pair of side flanges connected to the central region through respective intermediate portions defined by cranked arms, each side flange being connected to the respective cranked arm via a plastic web acting as a hinge and each cranked arm being connected to the central region via another plastic web acting as a hinge. In such a construction, the side flanges engage the side wall of the can and are pushed downwardly towards the base of the can. Such action causes pivoting of the intermediate region about the hinges to lock the insert in position.This type of construction is difficult to use in a necked can, particularly ones in which neck is relatively narrow, because it is necessary to use an insertion mechanism which has to expand within the can in order to engage the side flanges.

It is also known to utilise an insert having a wall-engaging ring which is connected with a central cylindrical body of the insert through tangentially extending flexible arms so that the ring can be deformed inwardly by flexing of the arms so as to permit the insert to be introduced through the relatively narrow neck of the container.

However, here again, the force with which the ring can engage the container is relatively restricted, thus leading to the risk that the insert can become inadvertently displaced within the container, particularly if the container is subsequently mishandled.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved package which can enable the above disadvantages to be obviated or mitigated.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a container containing an item which is engaged with a side wall of the container to secure it in position, wherein the item has at least one arm connected to the remainder of the insert through a (preferably integral) hinge the arm having an end region which is fixed relative to the remainder of the arm, the arm and hinge being arranged so that the arm can be pivoted about said hinge between a folded position in which the insert is of a size such that it can be introduced into the container through a neck thereof and an extended position in which the end region of the arm engages with the side wall of the container to hold the insert in position.

With such an arrangement, it will be appreciated that a relatively high engagement force can be provided between said at least one arm of the insert and the wall of the container because the insert with arm(s) extended can be oversize relative to the corresponding dimension of the container to a sufficient extent to produce the required engagement force between the insert and the container wall. Additionally, the need to use an expanding insertion mechanism which contacts the side wall-engaging end region of the or each arm can be avoided. In some designs of insert used in the present invention, there is no need for any part of the insertion mechanism to engage the arm(s).In other designs of insert used in the present invention, the arm(s) can be moved into the extended position by means of an insertion mechanism which engages a portion of the or each arm which is adjacent the hinge and which is within the projected relevant dimension (usually the diameter) of the neck of the container so that there is no need to use an expanding insertion mechanism.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, said at least one arm is engageable with a base of the container before the insert has been located at the desired position within the container so that the engagement of the arm with the base of the container and subsequent movement of the insert into its desired position automatically causes the arm to be moved into its extended position to lock the insert into place.

This obviates the need for the insertion mechanism to contact any part of the arm(s).

Preferably, said at least one arm is connected via the hinge with a wall which can be secured to another member (e.g, by snap-fitting, hot plate welding, ultrasonic welding, crimping) so as to define a hollow body of the insert. Said at least one arm may have a curved surface region shaped so as to act like a cam against the base wall of the container to move said at least one arm to its extended position about the integral hinge.

The extended position of said at least one arm is most preferably an overcentre position with respect to the integral hinge from the folded position.

Also according to the present invention, there is provided a method of introducing an insert into a container, comprising the steps of (a) providing an insert having at least one arm which is connected through a hinge to the remainder of the insert and which has an end region fixed relative to the remainer of the arm; (b) introducing the insert through an open neck of the container with said at least one arm in a folded condition; and (c) when the insert is in the container, causing said at least one arm to move about said hinge into an extended position in which the insert is held by said at least one arm within the container with the end region of the or each arm engaged against a side wall of the container.

The container used in the present invention is preferably a container for a beverage, e.g. beer, or other liquid which is to be sealed into the container which is openable.

Said insert is preferably one which is to be provided in a package to be sealed and pressurized and which contains gas and/or liquid under pressure wherein, when the pressurized container is opened, the release of pressure causes gas and/or beverage to be ejected through a restricted orifice in the insert into the main body of liquid in the container so as to promote the formation of bubbles in the liquid. However, the present invention is also applicable to containers where items such as gifts, offers, prizes or other promotional material is to be provided in the container for use and/or examination by a purchaser of the package.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a schematic view showing the assembly of a first embodiment of insert for foaming beer or other beverage into a package in the form of a can, Fig. 2 is a schematic view of a second embodiment, Fig. 3 is a schematic view of a further embodiment, and Fig. 4 is a schematic view of a fourth embodiment.

Referring now to Fig. 1 of the drawings, there is shown a container in the form of a can 10 having a curved base wall 10a and a relatively narrow neck 12 at the top thereof. The projected diameter of the neck 12 is indicated by dotted lines 12a in Fig. 1. Such can 10 is to have an insert 14 situated therein adjacent the base wall 10a and is also to be filled with beer. The insert 14, in this embodiment, is a hollow insert which is to contain gas and/or beer under pressure so that, when the can 10 is opened in use, gas and/or beverage is ejected through a fine orifice 16 in the insert so as to promote the formation of a creamy head of foam on the beer and an attractive swirl of bubbles in the body of the beer.The manner in which the beer is introduced, sealed, pressurized and pasteurized within the can is per se well known to a person with ordinary skill in the art and will not be described herein in any further detail. Additionally, the mode of operation of the insert to promote the formation of a rich creamy foam by injection of gas and/or beverage into the main body of beer in the can 10 is also per se well known and will not be described in any further detail.

The present invention is mainly concerned with the manner in which the insert 14 is held in the desired position at the bottom of the can 10.

In this embodiment, the insert 14 is moulded from polypropylene in two parts which are snap-fitted together (although other techniques may be used as noted above), such parts being a cup-shaped part 18 having the restricted orifice 16 therein, and a base part 20 which snap-fits with the part 18 so as to define an internal chamber which, in use, contains the gas and/or beverage. The orifice 16 may be provided in a top wall of the insert 14 as illustrated, or it may be provided in a side wall thereof at or adjacent the bottom wall defined by base part 20. More than one orifice may be provided in the insert e.g. as disclosed in our British Patent Application No. 9319362.1 filed 18 September 1993.

The part 20 includes a pair of oppositely directed arms 22 which are connected via respective integral hinges 24 with the remainder of the part 20. An outer end region 26 of each arm 22 is fixed relative to the remainder of the arm and is upturned and arcuately curved in plan view so as to conform to the shape of the peripheral wall of the can 10. Each outer end region 26 subtends an angle at the axis of the can 10 which is about 70" so that the width of each arm 22 is less than the diameter of the neck 12. Each arm 22 is also provided with mutually parallel ribs 28 extending longitudinally of the arm so as to increase the rigidity thereof. Each integral hinge 24 extends transversely of the direction of extent of the respective arm 22.Each arm 22 can be pivoted about its integral hinge 24 between an extended position (see Fig. la and the upper part of Fig. 1b) in which it extends substantially perpendicularly with respect to the longitudinal axis of the insert 14 and the longitudinal axis of the can 10, and a folded position (see the lower part of Fig. 1 b where only the right hand part of insert 14 is shown).

When both of the arms 22 are in the folded position, the total length of the insert 14 in plan view is less than the diameter of the neck 12 of the can 10. Thus, in this condition, the insert can be inserted by a relatively simple mechanism linearly through the neck 12 towards the base wall 10a of the can 10. Conveniently, the insertion mechanism can conveniently engage the cup-shaped part 18 of the insert 14 by means of a gripper. As the insert 14 reaches the bottom wall 10a, the inner ends of the arms 22 (i.e. those ends which lie opposite to the outer ends 26), engage against the base wall 10a (which is relatively rigid).Further movement of the insert 14 towards the base wall 10a causes the arms 22 to pivot about the respective integral hinges 24 so that they adopt their extended position and, in so doing, press tightly against the inner wall of the can 10 so as to lock the insert 14 in position at the base of the can 10. It will be appreciated that the insertion operation can be effected by a relatively simple mechanism since no orientation and subsequent reorientation of the insert 14 is required in order to fix it in position.

Additionally, the design of the insert is such that it is does not rely on resilience to hold the insert 14 in the can but relies on a much-more positive and potentially stronger outward urging of the ends 26 into firm engagement with the side wall of the can 10. The distance between the outer ends 26 of the extended arms 22 can be chosen to be greater than the diameter of the can 10 by an amount such as to ensure that the desired engagement force can be achieved.

Referring now to Fig. 2 of the drawings, similar parts to those described above in relation to Fig. 1 are accorded the same reference numerals. In this embodiment, arms 22 are connected via respective integral hinges 23 which are located under the insert 24. In this embodiment, the ribs 28 have curved cam surfaces 28a which roll on the curved base wall 10a of the can 10 to move the arms 22 from their folded to their extended positions. It will be appreciated that, when adopting the position illustrated at the bottom of Fig. 2, the arms 22 have been pivoted, in effect, overcentre relative to the hinges 24 so that the insert 14 is effectively locked iji position.

Referring now to Fig. 3 of the drawings, in the insert 14 illustrated therein, each arm 22 is pivotally connected via its inner end with the remainder of the part 20 through a respective pair of aligned integral hinges 24 located on opposite longitudinal sides of the insert 14 so that the hinges 24 of each arm 22 lie close to that axial plane of the insert which extends perpendicularly with respect to the longitudinal directions of extent of the arms 22. In such an arrangement, the insert is introduced into the can 10 with the arms 22 in their folded positions as illustrated in the upper part of Fig. 3b until the base part 20 engages against base wall 10a of can 10.Then, part of the insertion mechanism is engaged with the arms 22 at locations on the latter which are within the projected diameter 12a of the neck 12 so as to pivot them downwardly about the respective integral hinges 24 into the extended condition as shown at the bottom of Fig. 3b. If desired, the arms 22 may be moved overcentre relative to the integral hinges 24 so as to lock the insert 14 even more positively into position.

In the embodiment of Fig. 4, the arms 22, instead of being integrally formed with part 20, are integrally formed with part 18. In such an arrangement, each arm 26 has a tapered lead-in surface 30 and abutment surface 32 on strengthening rib 28. As the insert 14 is pushed into the can 10, the lead-in surfaces 30 engage the rim of the neck 12 so that the arms 22 are automatically moved into their folded positions to allow relatively unimpeded passage of the insert 14 through the neck 12. The design of the arms 22 and integral hinges 24 is such that the arms 22 are inherently biased into their extended positions and so engage against the side wall of the can. The free end 26 of each arm 22 has a pivot portion 26a which engages against the wall of the can 10 and which produces a camming action when an attempt is made to move the insert 14 upwardly (see the lower part of Fig. 4b) so that the abutment surfaces 32 of the ribs 28 abut against the periphery of part 18 and in so doing results in a relatively rigid structure which resists movement of the insert 14 away from the base wall 10a.

Claims

1. A container containing an item which is engaged with a side wall of the container to secure it in position, wherein the item has at least one arm connected to the remainder of the insert through a hinge, the arm having an end region which is fixed relative to the remainder of the arm, the arm and hinge being arranged so that the arm can be pivoted about said hinge between a folded position in which the insert is of a size such that it can be introduced into the container through a neck thereof and an extended position in which the end region of the arm engages with the side wall of the container to hold the insert in position.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hinge is an integral hinge.

3. A container as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said at least one arm is engageable with a base of the container before the insert has been located at the desired position within the container so that the engagement of the arm with the base of the container and subsequent movement of the insert into its desired position automatically causes the arm to be moved into its extended position to lock the insert into place.

4. A container as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said at least one arm is connected via the hinge with a wall which can be secured to another member so as to define a hollow body of the insert.

5. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein said at least one arm has a curved surface region shaped so as to act like a cam against the base wall of the container to move said at least one arm to its extended position about the integral hinge.

6. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the extended position of said at least one arm is an overcentre position with respect to the integral hinge from the folded position.

7. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, which is an openable container for a beverage to be sealed into the container.

8. A container as claimed in claim 7, wherein said insert is one which is to be provided in a package to be sealed and pressurized and which contains gas and/or beverage under pressure wherein, when the pressurized container is opened, the release of pressure causes gas and/or beverage to be ejected through a restricted orifice in the insert into the main body of liquid in the container so as to promote the formation of bubbles in the liquid.

9. A method of introducing an insert into a container, comprising the steps of (a) providing an insert having at least one arm which is connected through a hinge to the remainder of the insert and which has an end region fixed relative to the remainer of the arm; (b) introducing the insert through an open neck of the container with said at least one arm in a folded condition; and (c) when the insert is in the container, causing said at least one arm to move about said hinge into an extended position in which the insert is held by said at least one arm within the container with the end region of the or each arm engaged against a side wall of the container.

10. A container as claimed in claim 1, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig 1 or Fig 2 or Fig 3 or Fig 4 of the accompanying drawings.

11. A method as claimed in claim 9, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig 1 or Fig 2 or Fig 3 or Fig 4 of the accompanying drawings.

12. A container having an insert introduced therein by a method as claimed in claim 9 or 11.