GB2339766A

GB2339766A - A container suitable for fruit and vegetables and the like

Info

Publication number: GB2339766A
Application number: GB9916629A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Corrado Guardigli
Original assignee: Infia SRL
Current assignee: Infia SRL
Priority date: 1998-07-23
Filing date: 1999-07-16
Publication date: 2000-02-09
Also published as: ES1043737U; DE29912621U1; GB9916629D0; FR2781457A3; FR2781457B3; ES1043737Y

Description

2339766 An improved container preferably for fruit and vegetable products

The present invention relates to a container f or items, in particular fruit and vegetable products, made of a plastic material by thermoforming.

At present, the containers used for fruit and vegetable products are made of plastic and obtained by thermoforming, where the plastic material is pressed by a suitably shaped mobile compression piston into the matching cavity of a mould opposite.

The known types of containers obtained by thermoforming basically comprise a base element and a lid element which can be attached to said base container element to open and close the latter. The base element comprises a substantially horizontal lower wall, from which substantially vertical side walls extend upwards, defining, with the substantially vertical side walls extending downwards from a substantially horizontal upper wall of the lid element, the side walls of said container.

Fruit and vegetable products are normally packed in 2 trays or containers of this kind while still slightly unripe, and are then sent to sales points in refrigerated vehicles and, usually, stored in special refrigeration cells before they are made available to the consumer.

The cold storage chain created between the field from which the products are harvested and the display counter at the sales point is designed to slow the ripening of the fruit and vegetable products as much as possible, so as to supply the consumer with good quality, well-preserved products.

One problem in this sector concerns the effectiveness of the refrigeration measures in the cold storage cells and refrigerated vehicles. To refrigerate the product contained in such cells, cold air is injected into the storage cell and, upon contact with the product, lowers the temperature of the latter and slows the ripening process. The cold air is normally blown from above, with a substantially transversal direction of flow.

In the containers currently used, referred to above, to allow the air to reach the product inside the container, there are holes in the upper and lower horizontal parts. However, since said holes 3 extend in a direction substantially parallel with the direction of flow of the cold air, they do not allow said air to pass easily. Moreover, since the containers are normally stacked on top of one another, the passage of air through the holes in the horizontal surfaces is also hindered by the limited spaces between the horizontal surfaces of the containers. As a result, optimum refrigeration of the fruit and vegetable products is not achieved in such containers - especially in stacked containers further away from the source of the cold air - and operators in the sector suffer economic losses due to excessive ripening, or even rotting, of batches of the fruit and vegetable products.

Another requirement which is particularly important in this sector is that the cost of production of the containers must be kept as low as possible, so that it does not affect the cost of the fruit and vegetable products. The processes for obtaining such thermoformed containers, which currently fulfil this requirement, must therefore be kept as simple as possible, so that they do not raise costs and, as a result, cancel out the economic advantages derived from such technology.

The present invention relates to a container 4 according to claim 1, for items, in particular fruit and vegetable products, made of a plastic material by thermoforming. The container comprises a base element and a lid element which can be attached to the base element. The base element comprises a substantially horizontal lower wall, from which side walls extend upwards in a substantially vertical direction, defining, together with the substantially vertical walls extending downwards from a substantially horizontal upper wall of the lid element, the side walls of the container as a whole. The container is characterised in that at least the base element or the lid element has one or more lateral openings.

The provision of lateral openings allowing the passage of air through the sides of the container, that is to say, having a profile which opens at a right angle to the transversal flow of the current of cold air, allows the air to enter the container more easily, therefore allowing improved, more effective refrigeration of the fruit and vegetable products.

The secondary claims refer to preferred and advantageous embodiments.

Further advantages and technical characteristics of the present invention are described in more detail below, with reference to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention without restricting the scope of the inventive concept, and in which:

- Figure 1 is a side view of a first preferred embodiment of the present container in the assembled condition; - Figure 2 is a side view of the base only of the first preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 3 is a side view of the lid only of the first preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 4 is a top view of the lid only of the first preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 5 is a side view of a second preferred embodiment of the present container in the assembled condition; - Figure 6 is a front view of the lid or covering element only of the second preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 7 is a side view of the lid only of the second preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 8 is a top view of the lid only of the second preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 9 is a front view of the base element only 6 of the second preferred embodiment of the container; - Figure 10 is a side view of the base only of the second preferred embodiment of the container; Figure 11 is a top view of the base element only of the second preferred embodiment of the container.

Figure 1 illustrates a first preferred embodiment of the container 10 for fruit and vegetable products made according to the present invention.

The container 10 comprises a base element 12, cup shaped and with a quadrangular profile, and a lid element 14, again cup-shaped and with a quadrangular profile, but inverted, it being possible to attach the latter to and remove it from the base container element 12 so as to close and open the container. The base and lid elements are obtained by thermoforming a thermoformable plastic material.

As is also shown in Figure 2, the base element 12 basically comprises a substantially horizontal lower wall 16, from which side walls extend upwards in a substantially vertical direction, constituting shorter opposite side walls 18, 20 and, at right angles to these, longer opposite side walls, only 7 one of which, labelled 22, is shown in the drawings.

Figures 3 and 4 show that the lid element 14 comprises a substantially horizontal upper wall 32, from which there extend downwards in a substantially vertical direction, shorter opposite side walls 24, 26 and, at right angles to these, longer opposite side walls 28, 30.

The side walls 24, 26, 28, 30 of the lid 14 fit, as shown in Figure 1, onto the side walls 18, 20, 22 of the base element 12, so that together they define the side walls of the container 10 as a whole.

In the known way, the lid 14 has corner notches 31 which form a snap-on connection, at said corners, with a horizontal upper edge 33 of the base element 12. A projection 35 on the lid 14 constitutes a tab for respectively attaching the lid 14 to and removing it from the base element 12.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, between the side walls 24, 26, 28, 30 and the horizontal wall 32, the lid element 14 has a peripheral connecting portion, in the form of a slanting perimetric band 36. This straight, slanting shape allows the perimetric band to be made using the 8 minimum of plastic material constituting the container.

To allow improved aeration of the inside of the container, openings 34 are envisaged, which extend on the connecting portion 36 and also facilitate the passage of the air flowing transversally to the container.

Although, as indicated above, the connecting portion preferably has a straight, slanting shape, said portion 36 could have any profile, for example, a convex or upwardly rounded profile. In the present invention, said connecting portion could also extend along only part of the edge of the container.

Obviously, although not expressly illustrated, a similar connecting portion and relative aeration openings could also be present between the horizontal lower wall 16 and the side walls 18, 20, 22 of the base element 12. In this case, the openings on the connecting band of such a base element 12 would also allow the drainage of any liquids, for example, those used to wash the fruit, from the container.

As indicated, the openings 34, in the present preferred embodiment of the lid 14, are made in the 9 longer opposite sides, although they could extend, at equal intervals, around the entire perimeter of the connecting portion on the lid element 14.

As illustrated, the openings 34 are preferably of an extended elliptical shape, the longer side substantially extending to the opposite edges of the connecting band 36 or close to them. Moreover, the openings 34 on the opposite sides are aligned and coaxial with one another, thus facilitating the passage of the current of cold air through the container and towards other containers stacked nearby.

Close to and, in particular, between the openings 34, stiffening ribs 38 are envisaged, preferably in the form of upwardly-projecting deformations in the connecting band 36.

In Figure 4, the numerals 37 indicate holes for the passage of air made in the horizontal wall 32 of the lid element 14. Similar holes are made in the horizontal lower wall 16 of the base element 12.

The openings 34 in the connecting portion 36 could also extend onto the horizontal wall 32 and/or the corresponding vertical walls 24, 26, 28, 30 of the lid element 14. A similar extension of the openings onto the lower wall 16 and the side walls 18, 20, 22 of the base element 12 could also be envisaged.

The elements 12 and 14 of the container are made by moulding a plastic material and the openings 34 and holes 37 are obtained in a single punching operation, using punches that extend from a single mobile support element.

Figures 5 to 11 illustrate a second preferred embodiment of the container 100 for fruit and vegetable products made according to the present invention. in the drawings illustrating the second preferred embodiment, the same reference numbers have been used to indicate elements that are similar to those of the first embodiment described above.

With reference to Figure 5 in particular, the container 100 comprises a base element 12, cup shaped and with a quadrangular profile, and a lid element 14, again cup-shaped and with a quadrangular profile, but inverted, it being possible to attach the latter to and remove it from the base container element 12 so as to close and open the container. The base and lid elements are obtained by thermoforming a thermoformable plastic material.

As is also shown in Figures 9 to 11, the base element 12 basically comprises a substantially horizontal lower wall 16, from which side walls extend upwards in a substantially vertical direction, constituting longer opposite side walls 18, 20 and, at right angles to these, shorter opposite side walls 22 and 23.

Figures 6 to 8 show that the lid element 14 comprises a horizontal upper wall 32, from which there extend downwards in a substantially vertical direction, longer opposite side walls 24, 26 and, at right angles to these, shorter opposite side walls 28, 30.

The side walls 24, 26, 28, 30 of the lid 14 fit, as shown in Figure 5, onto the side walls 18, 20, 22, 23 of the base element 12, so that together they define the side walls of the container 100 as a whole.

In the known way, the lid 14 has corner notches 31 which form a snap-on connection at said corners, with a horizontal upper edge 33 of the base element 12. A projection 35 (shown in Figure 8) on the lid 14 constitutes a tab which can be used to disengage the lid 14 from the base element 12 when the container is opened.

In the preferred embodiment illustrated, between 12 the side walls 24, 26, 28, 30 and the horizontal wall 32, the lid element 14 has a peripheral connecting portion, in the form of a curved perimetric band 136 with convex part facing the outside of the container. In the present invention, this connecting portion could also extend along only part of the edge of the container. To allow improved aeration of the inside of the container, openings 134 are envisaged, which extend on the connecting portion 136 and facilitate the passage of the air flowing transversally to the container.

As illustrated, the openings 134 extend onto the upper horizontal wall 32.

The lid element 14 also has a plurality of stiffening ribs, labelled 138 as a whole and distributed right around it. The air openings 134 are made between some of the stiffening ribs 138.

As shown in the drawings, the stiffening ribs 138 on the lid element 14 are curved inwards to form grooves in the outer surface 14' of the lid element 14, so as to improve air flow over the outer surface of the container where the ribs are made, thus enhancing the cooling effect of the air channelled into the container through the lateral openings 134.

13 Looking in more detail, the stiffening ribs have a lower part 138', which extends onto the side walls and an upper part 13811, which extends onto the connecting portion 136 of the lid element 14. The parts 138' and 138" of the ribs extend into each other, and differ in width at the point where they meet. The difference in the width of the ribs 138 at the point where the lower part 138' meets the upper part 138" produces a structural break between the upper part 1381, and the lower part 138'.

Thus, the part 138" of the rib which extends at the top onto the curved connecting portion 136 provides added flexural strength when the container is stacked and pressed down by the containers on top of it, while the part 136, provides added compression strength to prevent the vertical walls of the lid from collapsing. in other terms, the lower part of the rib 138, forms a structural node with high flexural strength for the upper part 138" and enhances the stiffness of the latter. In this way, the present container can support heavy loads and it is therefore possible for heavy individual containers to be stacked or to make higher stacks of containers.

As shown in Figures 5 to 8, there is alsoa 14 recessed connecting edge 141 running right around the lid element 14, between the side walls 24, 26, 28, 30 and the curved connecting portion 136.

The base element 12 has on its side walls 18, 20, 22, 23 a plurality of stiffening ribs 139, distributed around it, in at least some of which there are openings 135 to allow air to flow through the side walls into the container. These openings are made in the side walls 18, 20, 22, 23 of the base element and extend a short way on the peripheral portion of the horizontal wall 16 of the base element 12 of the container 100.

The openings 135 in the base element 12 also serve to drain liquids out of the container, for example, is the liquids used to wash the fruit.

As illustrated, the stiffening ribs 139 on the base element 12 are curved inwards to form grooves in the surface defining the body of the base element 12.

The side walls 18, 20, 22, 23 of the base element 12 also have another set of stiffening ribs 140, these ribs being curved outwards to form protrusions on the surface of the container. The stiffening ribs 140 are distributed around the base element between at least some of the inward curving stiffening ribs 139.

As illustrated, the openings 134 and 135 preferably have an elongated, basically elliptic shape and are aligned and coaxial with each other, so as to facilitate the flow of cold air through the container and into the adjacent containers in the stack.

The numerals 137 in Figure 11 indicate holes for the passage of air made in the horizontal lower wall 16 of the base element 12. Similar holes are made in the horizontal wall 32 of the lid element 14.

The elements 12 and 14 of the container are made by thermoforming a plastic material and the openings 134 and 135 and the holes 137 are obtained in a single punching operation, using punches that extend from a single mobile support element.

The thermoformable elements used for the present invention can be made using simple, economical moulds.

In the second preferred embodiment, the provision of openings for the lateral passage of air, that is to say, openings whose profile opens, at least partly, at right angles to the direction of the cool air f low, enables the cool air to f low into 16 the container more easily and therefore enhances the effect of the cool air on the fruit and vegetable products.

Moreover, since the stiffening ribs on the lid element are curved inwards to form grooves, the cooling air which flows over the sides of the container in a direction parallel to them, is not obstructed in any way by the ribs and can easily flow into the container through the lateral openings which are made on the outermost surface of the surface of the container.

The present invention may be subject to numerous variations, all encompassed by the original design concept. Moreover, all parts may be substituted with technically equivalent elements.

17

Claims

Claims

A container for items, in particular fruit and vegetable products, made of a plastic material by thermoforming, the container comprising a base element that has a substantially horizontal lower wall from which side walls extend upwards in a substantially vertical direction; and a lid element which can be attached to the base element to close the container, said lid element having a substantially horizontal upper wall, from which there extend downwards substantially vertical side walls that fit onto the side walls of the base element, so that together they define the side walls of the container as a whole, the container being characterised in that at least the base element or the lid element has one or more lateral openings to allow the passage of air through the sides of the container.
The container according to claim 1, characterised in that at least the base element or the lid element has a peripheral connecting portion between the side walls and the respective horizontal wall, and characterised also in that 18 the lateral openings extend onto said connecting portion.
3) The container according to claim 2, characterised in that the connecting portion is in the form of a slanting perimetric band.
4) The container according to claim 2 or 3, characterised in that the connecting portion has stiffening ribs on it, close to the lateral openings.
5) The container according to claim 4, characterised in that the lateral openings on the connecting portion extend onto the horizontal wall.
6) The container according to any of the foregoing claims from 2 to 5, characterised in that the lateral openings on the connecting portion extend onto the corresponding vertical walls.
7) The container according to claim 1, characterised in that, at least the lid element has distributed around it a plurality of stiffening ribs, in that the lateral openings for the passage of air 19 through the sides of the container are made between at least some of the stiffening ribs on the lid element and in that the stiffening ribs on the lid element are curved inwards to form grooves in the surface of the lid element itself.
8) The container according to claim 7, characterised in that at least the lid element has between its side walls and its horizontal wall a peripheral connecting portion in the form of a perimetric, curved band.
9) The container according to claim 8, characterised in that the lateral openings and the stiffening ribs on the lid element extend onto the connecting portion.
10) The container according to claim 9, characterised in that the lateral openings extend onto the substantially horizontal wall of the corresponding element of the container.
11) The container according to any of the foregoing claims from 7 to 10, characterised in that the stiffening ribs distributed around the corresponding element of the container extend onto the side walls of the element.
12) The container according to claim ill characterised in that the stiffening ribs on the side walls and the stiffening ribs on the connecting portion extend into each other and differ in width at the point where they meet.
13) The container according to any of the foregoing claims from 7 to 12, characterised in that there is a recessed connecting edge between the side walls and the curved connecting portion.
14) The container according to claim 7, characterised in that the side walls of the base element have a plurality of stiffening ribs distributed around the base element, the air openings being made between at least some of these stiffening ribs.
15) The container according to claim 14, characterised in that the stiffening ribs on the base element are curved inwards to form grooves in the base element itself.
21 16) The container according to claim 14 or 15, characterised in that one or more of the lateral openings extend onto the substantially horizontal wall of the base element of the container.
17) The container according to any of the foregoing claims from 14 to 16, characterised in that the side walls of the base element have a plurality of stiffening ribs which are curved outwards to form protrusions on the surface of the container; said outward curving stiffening ribs being distributed around the base element and being made between at least some of the innward curving stiffening ribs.
18) The container according to any of the foregoing claims, characterised in that the air openings made in opposite sides of the container are aligned and coaxial with one another.
19) The container according to any of the foregoing claims, characterised in that the horizontal wall of at least one of the elements of the container has air holes made in it.