GB2307219A - Moulded plastics container with attached stacking rim - Google Patents

Abstract

A moulded plastics container 10 has a top wall 18 including an upstanding neck 19 defining an opening for the container and adapted to be fitted with a cap 20. A moulded plastics material top-piece 24 has an outer wall 25 with a downwardly projecting rim 26 which is adapted to surround an upper part 14 of the container. An inwardly directed bead 27 is formed on the rim 26 and the upper part 14 of the container has a corresponding groove 15, to allow the top-piece to be snap-fitted to the container. The outer wall 25 of the top-piece 24 is formed with at least two hand-holds 30 for carrying the container and the upper edge of the outer wall is substantially planar and disposed above the upper level of the container neck and cap 20, so as to form a stacking rim for another like container.

Description

MOULDED PLASTICS CONTAINER This invention relates to a moulded plastics material container.

Moulded plastics material containers are used very widely, both domestically and in the industrial environment. Such containers are made in a very wide range of sizes and it is usually necessary to provide the larger sizes with a suitable means to facilitate the handling and carrying of the containers, when loaded with some product.

When a container is manufactured by an injection moulding process, it is relatively easy to provide the container with one or more integrally moulded handles, but the moulds for the container require side actions and so are relatively complex and expensive. With other manufacturing processes, the provision of suitable handles may be significantly more difficult. Though there have been proposals for separately formed handles which must then be attached to the container, the means whereby that attachment is obtained must not reduce the strength of the container.

Moreover, where liquids or powders are to be transported in the container, the attachment must not affect the liquid-tight or powder-tight characteristics of the container.

There have been proposals for industrial containers which include a stacking rim attached to the top of the container. Such a stacking rim has a generally planar upper surface in order to allow another like container to be stood on top of a first container. However, the provision of one or more handles on the upper surface of a container may prevent the possibility of providing a stacking rim on the container. Even if a stacking rim can be arranged to extend around those handles, the ease of handling of the container is likely to be affected, because an operator will have reduced access to the handles.

It is a principal aim of the present invention to provide a moulded plastics material container which has one or more handles, provided in such a way that the strength and integrity of the container is not compromised and such that the container may also have a stacking rim, to permit the stacking thereon of a further like container.

According to the present invention, there is provided a moulded plastics material container comprising a base, a side wall and a top including an upstanding neck defining an opening for the container and adapted to be fitted with a closure, in combination with a moulded plastics material top-piece connected to the container, the top-piece having an outer wall from which depends downwardly a peripheral rim adapted to surround an upper part of the container adjacent the top, one of the rim and said upper part defining a projecting annular bead and the other of the rim and the upper part a corresponding recess which bead and recess co-operate to allow the top-piece to be snapfitted to the container, said outer wall being formed with at least two opposed apertures adapted to serve as hand-holds for carrying the container, and at least part of the upper edge of the outer wall being substantially planar and disposed above level of the container neck and closure, to serve as a stacking rim for another like container.

It will be appreciated that with the present invention, one or more handles are provided on a moulded plastics material container by way of a separate moulded plastics top-piece which is snapfitted to the container. It is relatively easy to mould the container in such a way as to provide a suitable encircling groove or rib with which the separate top-piece may interengage. This is particularly so in the case of a blow-moulded container and the moulding may be performed without compromising the strength and reliability of the container.

The top-piece may be moulded by an injection moulding process. Though this may require one or more side actions on the injection moulds, it should be possible to avoid the need for side actions. In either case the cost of the moulds for such a top-piece will be very much less than were an entire container to be made by an injection moulding process, employing complex side actions for forming suitable handles.

Most preferably, the top-piece has formed therein two hand-hold apertures, which apertures are disposed to each side of the container opening when the toppiece has been fitted thereto. A third hand-hold aperture may be formed in the outer wall of the toppiece, part way between two such apertures and opposed to the container opening.

Though the container could have almost any crosssectional shape, it is preferred for that container to be of generally rectangular horizontal cross-sectional shape, and for each hand-hold aperture to be disposed substantially centrally with respect of a side-face of the container side wall.

The upper part of the container may be stepped inwardly with respect to the major part of the container side wall. In this case, the peripheral rim of the top-piece should surround the stepped back upper part of the container and the outer surface of the outer wall may then lie substantially co-planar with the outer surface of the side wall of the container.

Of course, if the container side wall is not flat, the outer surface of the outer wall of the top-piece would then be aligned with the outer surface of the container side wall, for at least most of the peripheral length of the side wall.

Though the recess for the snap-fitting interconnection between the container and the top-piece could be formed in either the container or the toppiece, with the bead formed in the other component, it is preferred for the recess to be formed as a groove extending around the container, and for the peripheral rim of the top-piece to be formed with an inwardlydirected internal annular bead adapted to co-operate with the container groove.

It will be appreciated that the top-piece, in addition to providing the handles, serves as a stacking rim to permit the stacking of another like container on the container having the top-piece. In order to enhance the security of such stacking, it is preferred for the base of the container to include at least one portion projecting out of the general plane of the base, and for the top-piece to be configured to cooperate with said portion of another like container, when that other container is stacked on the top-piece.

For example, said portion could comprise one or more studs, ribs or feet projecting downwardly from the container base. As an alternative, one or more recesses could be formed in the general plane of the container base and in this case, the top-piece may have correspondingly formed projections to interengage in the recesses of the base of a like container stacked on the top-piece.

By way of example only, two specific embodiments of container constructed and arranged in accordance with the present invention will now be described in detail, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of the first embodiment of container, including a top-piece; Figure 2 is a rear view of the container shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a side view of the container of Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is a plan view similar to that of Figure 1 but of a second embodiment of container; and Figures 5 and 6 are perspective drawings showing the containers of Figures 1 to 3 and Figure 4.

Referring initially to Figures 1 to 3 and 5, there is shown a blow moulded plastics material container 10 having a generally rectangular horizontal crosssectional shape, but with significantly rounded corners 11 and slightly bowed side-faces 12, as best seen in Figure 1. The container has a pair of feet 13 formed in the base thereof, to serve the joint purposes of supporting the container when stood on a flat surface, and also to assist stacking, as will be described below.

Around the upper part 14 of the container side wall, there is formed a peripheral annular groove 15, the side wall of the container above the groove being stepped back slightly from the side-faces 12. The shape of the groove is defined by an upper wall portion 16 extending generally in a radial plane with respect to the container axis and a lower wall portion 17, extending at approximately 450 to that axis.

The top wall 18 of the container is formed with an upstanding externally-threaded neck 19 to which there is fitted a screw-threaded cap 20.

Fitted to the top of the container is a top-piece 24, made by an injection moulding process. This toppiece 24 has an outer wall 25 of substantially the same external shape and size as that of the container and which outer wall 25 includes a downwardly depending rim 26. An inwardly directed bead 27 is formed on that rim 26, to co-operate with the groove 15. In this way, the top-piece may be snap-fitted to the upper part 14 of the container; the profiles of the groove and bead are such that the snap-fitting of the top-piece is facilitated, but the withdrawal of the top-piece is extremely difficult.

The top-piece 24 includes an inner wall 28 connected to the outer wall by a plurality of ribs 29, the lower edge of the inner wall 28 bearing on the top wall 18 of the container. Three hand-hold apertures 30 are formed through the outer wall 25 and the inner wall 28, centrally above the three side-faces of the container spaced from the neck 19. Each hand-hold aperture defines a handle formed by the remaining part of the inner wall 28, an intermediate wall 31 and a horizontal wall 32 extending between the lower edge of the intermediate wall 31 and the lower edge of said remaining part. Reinforcing ribs 33 are provided between those walls, and a drainage slot 34 is formed in the horizontal wall 32. In this way, comfortable handles are provided for lifting a full container.

A further wall 35 extends across the top-piece 24, braced to the rear hand-hold by a pair of ribs 36, to ensure the top-piece has sufficient strength.

The outer and inner walls 25 and 28 have substantially flat co-planar upper surfaces. Moreover, the inner wall 28 is shaped so as to fit loosely around the feet 13 formed on the base of another like container, when that other container is stacked on top of the container shown in the drawings, as shown in broken lines in Figure 1. The further wall 34 is cut away as appropriate to accommodate the feet.

Figure 4 shows a modified form of container constructed and arranged in much the same manner as described above with reference to Figures 1 to 3, and like components are given like reference characters.

The container of Figure 4 has a neck 40 of a much smaller diameter than the neck of the previously described container and is fitted with a significantly smaller cap 41. Consequent upon that, the top-piece 42, though generally similar to top-piece 24, is provided with a further inner wall 43, connected to inner wall 28 by means of further ribs 44. The inner walls 28 and 43 are sufficiently spaced to permit the accommodation therebetween of the ribs 13 projecting from the base of the container.

Figures 5 and 6 are perspective views respectively of the containers of Figures 1 to 3 and Figure 4.

Insofar as is possible, the corresponding reference characters have been inserted on those Figures.

Claims (11)

1. A moulded plastics material container comprising a base, a side wall and a top including an upstanding neck defining an opening for the container and adapted to be fitted with a closure, in combination with a moulded plastics material top-piece connected to the container, the top-piece having an outer wall from which depends downwardly a peripheral rim adapted to surround an upper part of the container adjacent the top, one of the rim and said upper part defining a projecting annular bead and the other of the rim and the upper part a corresponding recess which bead and recess co-operate to allow the top-piece to be snapfitted to the container, said outer wall being formed with at least two opposed apertures adapted to serve as hand-holds for carrying the container, and at least part of the upper edge of the outer wall being substantially planar and disposed above level of the container neck and closure, to serve as a stacking rim for another like container.

2. A container and top-piece as claimed in claim 1, wherein there are two hand-hold apertures, disposed to each side of the container opening.

3. A container and top-piece as claimed in claim 2, wherein there is a third hand-hold aperture formed in the outer wall of the top-piece, part way between said two apertures and opposed to the container opening.

4. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the container is of generally rectangular horizontal cross-sectional shape, and each hand-hold aperture is disposed substantially centrally with respect to a side face of the container side wall.

5. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein said upper part of the container is stepped inwardly with respect to the major part of the container side wall, the peripheral rim of the top-piece surrounding the stepped back upper part of the container.

6. A container and top-piece as claimed in claim 5, wherein the outer surface of the outer wall is substantially co-planar with the outer surface of the side wall of the container.

7. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the upper part of the container is formed with a groove therearound serving as said recess, and the peripheral rim of the toppiece is formed with an inwardly-directed internal annular bead adapted to co-operate with the container groove.

8. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the base of the container includes at least one portion projecting out of the general plane of the base, and the top-piece is configured to co-operate with said portion of another like container when that container is stacked on the top-piece.

9. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the base of the container includes at least one recess in the general plane of the base, and the top-piece is configured to co-operate with said portion of another like container when that container is stacked on the top-piece.

10. A container and top-piece as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the top-piece includes an inner wall in the region of each hand-hold aperture, a web extending between the outer wall and the inner wall at least along the upper part of each aperture.

11. A container and top-piece substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.