GB2435255A

GB2435255A - A double wall beverage container

Info

Publication number: GB2435255A
Application number: GB0703148A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Terence Fox; Sarah Fox
Original assignee: T & S Patents Ltd
Current assignee: T & S Patents Ltd
Priority date: 2006-02-17
Filing date: 2007-02-16
Publication date: 2007-08-22
Also published as: GB0703148D0; IE20070103A1; IES20070185A2

Abstract

A double wall container for a hot beverage comprises an inner cup having a base 12, a sidewall 14 and an open top 16. An outer sleeve 22 surrounds the sidewall. The sleeve has upper and lower circumferential regions 26, 36 continuously sealed around upper and lower circumferential regions 18, 32 respectively of the sidewall. The lower circumferential region 32 of the sidewall stands proud of the main body of the sidewall so that between its upper and lower circumferential regions the sleeve 22 is spaced from the sidewall with the air sealed in the gap 30 between the two.

Description

1 2435255 A Double Wall Beverage Container This invention relates to a

double wall container for a hot beverage, such as a double wall paper cup.

Referring to FIGS 1 to 3, a known double wall paper cup for hot beverages (EP 1 227 043A1) comprises an inner cup of conventional construction having a base 12, a circular sidewall 14 in the form of a truncated cone with a slight downward taper, and an open top 16. An outwardly displaced circumferential shoulder 18 at the top of the cup stands slightly proud of the main body of the sidewall 14, and terminates in an outwardly turned upper lip 20.

An outer truncated conical sleeve 22 surrounds the sidewall 14, the cup 10 being slid into the pre-formed sleeve 22 (FIG 2). The sleeve 22 covers substantially the entire sidewall 18 and has a circumferential inwardly turned lower edge 24. The sleeve 22 is dimensioned such that an upper circumferential region 26 of the sleeve engages snugly around the shoulder 18 of the cup just below the lip 20, while the inwardly turned lower edge 24 of the sleeve engages snugly around a circumferential region of the sidewall 14 adjacent the base 12. A band of adhesive 28 secures the upper circumferential region 26 of the sleeve to the shoulder 18.

The shoulder 18 and the inwardly turned edge 24 of the sleeve 22 define an air gap 30 between the sidewall 14 and the sleeve 22, the air gap forming a thermal barrier to heat to protect a person's hand holding the container.

A disadvantage of this known container is that special heating and bending equipment is necessary to form the inwardly turned lower edge 24 of the sleeve. Also, when the sleeve 22 is squeezed, as indicated by the horizontal arrows in FIG 3, the air in the gap 30 can escape from between the edge 24 and the sidewall 14, allowing the sleeve 22 to come into contact with the sidewall 14 and allowing substantial heat transfer to the sleeve.

It is an object of the invention to provide a container for a hot beverage in which these disadvantages are avoided or mitigated.

According to the present invention there is provided a double wall container for a hot beverage comprising an inner cup having a base, a sidewall and an open top, and an outer sleeve surrounding the sidewall, wherein the sleeve has upper and lower circumferential regions continuously sealed around upper and lower circumferential regions respectively of the sidewall, and wherein at least the lower circumferential region of the sidewall stands proud of the main body of the sidewall so that between its upper and lower circumferential regions the sleeve is spaced from the sidewall with the air sealed in the gap between the two.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG 1 (previously described) is a perspective view of a known container for hot beverages.

FIG 2 (previously described) is a perspective view of the component parts of the container of FIG 1.

FIG 3 (previously described) is a cross-sectional view through one side of the container of FIG 1, the entire side of the container being shown on the left of FIG 3 and the top and bottom being shown to a larger scale on the right of FIG 3.

FIGS 4 to 6 are views equivalent to FIGS 1 to 3 respectively of a container according to a first embodiment of the invention.

FIG 7 is a view similar to FIG 6 of a second embodiment of the invention.

In many respects the embodiments of cup according to the invention have many of the same features as the known cup of FIGS 1 to 3. Accordingly, the same reference numerals will be used for the same or equivalent features and only the differences between the embodiments and the known cup will be described.

Referring now to FIGS 4 to 6, in the cup according to a first embodiment of the invention the inwardly turned lower edge 24 of the sleeve 22 has been omitted.

Instead, near the base 12 an outwardly embossed annular region 32 is formed around the circumference of the sidewall 14 so as to stand, like the shoulder 18, slightly proud of the main body of the sidewall 14. The sleeve 22 is dimensioned such that as well as the upper circumferential region 26 of the sleeve engaging snugly around the shoulder 18, a circumferential region 34 at the bottom of the sidewall 14 engages snugly around the annular region 32. This creates an air gap 30 between the sleeve 22 and sidewall 14 as before, but does not require an inwardly turned edge at the bottom of the sleeve.

A band of adhesive 36 secures the circumferential region 34 to the annular region 36 and since this band of adhesive is, like the band 28, continuous around the inner cup, the air is hermetically sealed in the gap 30.

Thus when the sleeve 22 is squeezed, the sidewall 14 will tend to move inwardly, avoiding contact between the two and preventing heat transfer to a person's hand.

The inner cup 10 and outer sleeve 22 can be made of any suitable material such as a standard box board material or PE coated cardboard. In the former case a standard glue can be used for the adhesive bands 28 and 36, applied by glue guns while the cup is rotated. In the latter case ultrasonic bonding can be used.

In a second embodiment, FIG 7, the upper end 18' of the sidewall 14, around which the circumferential region 26 of the sleeve 22 is sealed, is not displaced outwardly to form a shoulder. In this embodiment, therefore, the width of the air gap 30, which is substantially constant in the first embodiment, tapers in the upward direction.

To allow a good circumferential seal between the upper end of the sleeve 22 and the upper end 18' of the sidewall 14, the upper end 18' of the sidewall has no taper, or less of a taper, than the main body of the sidewall.

In a modification of the above embodiments, not shown, the raised annular region 32 is not formed on the sidewall 14. Instead, a separate band of the cup material is glued continuously around the sidewall 14 where the region 32 would have been. Then, the sleeve 22 is glued to the shoulder 18 and band in the same way as it is glued to the shoulder 18 and annular region 32 in the described embodiment.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein which may be modified or varied without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

Claims 1. A double wall container for a hot beverage comprising an

inner cup having a base, a sidewall and an open top, and an outer sleeve surrounding the sidewall, wherein the sleeve has upper and lower circumferential regions continuously sealed around upper and lower circumferential regions respectively of the sidewall, and wherein at least the lower circumferential region of the sidewall stands proud of the main body of the sidewall so that between its upper and lower circumferential regions the sleeve is spaced from the sidewall with the air sealed in the gap between the two.

2. A container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lower circumferential region of the sidewall comprises an outwardly embossed annular region of the sidewall.

3. A container as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the upper circumferential region of the sidewall also stands proud of the main body of the sidewall.

4. A container as claimed in claim 3, wherein the upper circumferential region of the sidewall comprises an outwardly displaced shoulder at the top of the sidewall.

5. A container as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the sidewall comprises a truncated cone with a slight downward taper, and wherein the upper circumferential region of the sidewall comprises an upper portion of the sidewall having no taper or less of a taper than the main body of the sidewall.

6. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the sleeve covers substantially the entire sidewall.

7. A container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 4-7 of the drawings.