IE55554B1 - Flexible container to be filled with bulk material and method for its manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

The flexible container has the lifting loops (6) joined together to form a permanent lifting handle. The loops are joined together at a lift area (4) by glue or a seam. The handle can comprise a piece of material (5) which at least covers the lower part of the lift area, pref. as a woven material sleeve. The lifting area is pref. less than a sixth of the circumference of the container. The handle can be fixed by sewing.

Description

2 2s 5 r> ii 4 The present invention relates to flexible containers, and in particular to containers with at least one lifting loop including substantially all the longitudinal fibres of the container.

Containers of the above mentioned type have been used for some time and been found to be suitable for several purposes. Usually they comprise an inner bag or liner of impervious material. The container is usually first blown up by air before it is filled with free-flowing 10 bulk material.

Such a container is described in US Patent No. 4,136,723. This container has a double bottom and is equipped with two integral lifting loops each having a total width substantially equal to V4 of the container's 15 circumference such that the lifting loops comprise all of the longitudinal fibres of the container.

In EP-A-0050845 a container having four lifting loops is described, ;;which loops are direct extensions of the container's sidewalls, and each lifting loop having a 20 width of up to V4 of the container's circumference.

The containers of US-A-4136723 and EP-A-0050845 can be 3 filled by using an apparatus described in GB-Patent No. 1,505,583, and they will then remain upright on a floor or the like without any extra support. The lifting loops of the container can be placed on a hook or the like 5 before the container is blown up and filled with bulk material. The container can then be prepared for further transport, by closing the inner bag and joining the lifting loops by pressing them together and securing them in this position so that a suitable loop is obtained 10 which can easily be placed on a hook or some other lifting means.

European Patent Application No. 81108748.5 (Publication No. 0054145) of Norsk Hydro a.s. discloses a container the loops of which have been placed, one after another, 15 on specially designed lifting hooks. During the filling operation the loops are held together by tape wound around that portion of the loops which is present between the hooks. As the tape can only be applied between the hooks its length is short and not sufficient to act as a 20 protection for the loops during any subsequent lifting operation by for example the tines of a standard fork lift truck.

Using such a container, the capacity of the filling apparatus is reduced because the various ungathered 25 lifting loops have to be placed out of the way of the filling apparatus and in particular because of the time 4 it takes for an operator to "bunch" the loose material of the loops and to place the loops onto a hook.

Furthermore when the container's lifting loop is formed after filling, some drawbacks are found, since although 5 the capacity of the apparatus is somewhat increased, the total filling operation will be more labour-consuming because an extra operator is needed to form the container's loop. Further, the shape of the container makes it necessary to use filling apparatuses of a 10 special type in order to obtain efficient filling and an effective process for making such containers ready. The fact that such special filling apparatuses are not available everywhere where filling of such containers takes place, has accordingly hindered widespread use of 15 such containers.

The fact that the lifting loops each have a total width corresponding to V4 the container's circumference, means that the process of joining together the loops to form one lifting loop becomes somewhat labour-consuming. The 20 wide loops also result in certain disadvantages when the container is placed on the filling apparatus or connected to it. Accordingly, there has been a need to make these operations easier and less labour-consuming.

When fork trucks are used, special lifting devices may 25 have to be employed connected to the forks, upon which devices the lifting loop is placed. It has been found 5 that the tape used in certain cases can be damaged during further lifting and transport of the container, and that the load-carrying fibres of the lifting loop can be damaged, especially if the lifting tines of the fork 5 lift truck, used in these operations have sharp edges.

In such cases therefore there is a need for better protection of the fibres in the lifting loop and a joining arrangement which can endure the strain when lifting forks are applied.

In accordance with the invention, a method of producing an empty flexible container of the type having at least one lifting loop including substantially all the longitudinal fibres of the container, the lifting loop or loops being a direct extension of the container walls 15 characterised in that, before filling commences, the lifting loop(s) is folded or gathered and the folds or gathers held together to form a permanent lifting handle at a lifting area.

Such containers have a single lifting loop forming a 20 permanent lifting handle which,can endure the strain that they would be exposed to during use of the flexible container. Such containers can be used with any type of filling apparatus and lifting device, thereby providing the advantage that the container does not require the use 25 of special equipment. 6 In contrast, prior art forming of a lifting handle by joining the lifting loops at the filling station had been found to be rather labour-consuming and additionally it required special hooks on the filling apparatus.

Initially it was intended to make a lifting handle which would not require the use of special lifting hooks, however it was found that it would be advantageous to form the lifting handle at the same time and place as the container is formed.

If empty containers are equipped with a lifting loop forming a permanent lifting handle, the transport of such empty containers would be more expensive than that of ordinary containers because of the larger volume to be transported. However, the filling operation itself is so 15 much easier when containers equipped with permanent lifting handles are used, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages of transporting empty containers.

It can be generally said that there are two types of base material for containers with an integrated lifting loop, 20 i.e. flat-woven or round-woven textile. Round-woven textile can be joined together in different ways to obtain either a lifting loop with a seam or a lifting loop without a seam, the container in the latter case having side seams. Surprisingly, it was found that it 25 was possible to make the lifting handle in the same 7 general way for both different types of base material. During manufacture of the flexible container, that part of the base material forming the lifting loop is folded inwardly or bunched together in several layers towards 5 the centre, depending on the width of the container, and may be joined in this position at a specially defined area with glue tape or at least one seam. The width of the lifting loop is thereby reduced to a suitable dimension for forming a lifting area with a lifting 10 handle. It was further found that the total width of the lifting loop is preferably reduced so that the width of the lifting area is at maximum Vgth of the container's circumference. A lifting area with a lifting handle is then obtained which is appropriate and advantageous for 15 all operations such as filling, handling, lifting, transport and discharge of the container.

In certain cases it is desirable to avoid wear on the load-carrying fibres of the single lifting loop so formed. In this regard, the lifting handle itself is 20 preferably equipped with protection material. This material should cover at least the lower part of the lifting handle, and be long enough to protect the part of the handle which will lie against the lifting device, for instance a lifting fork, when the flexible container is 25 lifted and/or transported. The protection material may comprise a sleeve which surrounds the lifting area. The sleeve is suitably made from a strong material which can 8 endure the strains it is exposed to and which can be joined to the material of the lifting loop such that a strengthened lifting point is obtained. This sleeve preferably consists of woven material, for instance of 5 the same type which is used for the container itself.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the drawings in which: Fig. 1 shows a flat-woven base material for a flexible container in accordance with the 10 invention.

Fig. 2 shows a round-woven base material for a flexible container in accordance with the invention having lifting loop portions joined by a seam to form a lifting loop, 15 Fig. 3 shows a round-woven base material for a flexible container in accordance with the invention having a lifting loop without a seam, and Fig. 4 shows from above a container in accordance 20 with the invention, with a lifting handle.

In Fig. 1, a sheet of material 1 is shown having two halves A and B, side edges 3, and a cut 8 at each end, 9 which cuts make it possible to form a container having a double bottom. In order to form a container, the piece of material 1 is first folded inwardly along its centre line 2 to form a lifting loop 6. In particular, the 5 material 1 is collected at the middle of the folding line 2 in a lifting area 4 which is less than or equal to 1/g of the container's circumference. Preferably, it is an advantage to have a lifting area 4 which is less than 1/ΐο the circumference of the container.

After the above folding, the side edges 3 are positioned as shown by the reference number 31 in Figure 1. The lifting area 4 of the lifting loop 6 is then joined together by means of glue or preferably at least one seam. Protection means in the form of a piece of 15 material 5 is then fastened over the area 4, for instance by means of a seam. Alternatively, the protection means 5 is fastened around the area 4 in the form of a sleeve. The material 1 is thereafter folded along the line 2 such that the halves A and B mate with each other. Thereupon 20 the material is sewn along the side edges 3, and at the bottom, to form a completely finished container with a lifting loop forming a lifting handle 10, surrounded by the protecting sleeve 5. The sleeve 5 can be of woven material, for instance of the same type as that used for 25 the container itself, or of some other suitable material which is strong enough to endure the strains it will be exposed to during further handling of the container. The 10 sleeve 5 may have a special colour such that the lifting point of the container is clearly marked out, and it can for instance be employed as a colour code indicating the type of container used or the material which is to be 5 transported. Fig. 1 shows the use of a sleeve 5, however,· the permanent lifting handle 10 can as previously mentioned be made without this sleeve, that is by just joining together the lifting loop 6 in the lifting area 4.

Fig. 2 shows a round-woven base material 1, which is joined in its upper part by a seam 11, and which is cut in the upper part of the piece of material to form lifting loop portions 6 and openings 7 in which lifting devices (such as a hook or fork) can be placed, and which 15 openings 7 can also be used as filling openings for the bulk material which is to be transported or stored in the container. The lifting area 4 is then formed by folding together the loop portions 6, and joining the loop portions 6 together by means of glue or at least one 20 seam. To form a lifting loop and permanent lifting handle 10 a sleeve 5 can then be fastened to the lifting area 4 as in Fig. 1. The container1 s bottom can be formed in a known manner, and the container is then ready for filling.

In Fig. 3, a round-woven base material 1 is shown where the lifting loop 6 is already formed, and the lifting 11 area 4 is formed by bending or folding together this loop as described above. The container's side edges are joined by seams 11 which terminates somewhat below the lifting loop 6 such that openings 7 are formed. Unless 5 one desires to make the container with a special bottom, the container is now ready for filling.

In Fig. 4, a container is shown from above with the lifting loop 6 forming the lifting handle 10. A sleeve 5 is fastened to itself (not visible in Fig. 4) and around 10 the lifting handle, the sleeve 5 being fastened to the area 4 by a seam 9. The openings 7 are here shown, equally large, but the opening which is to be used for filling can be made somewhat larger than the other opening.

The container is ready for direct connection to a filling apparatus. A filling pipe is put into one of the openings 7, and the container can be blown up by air and thereupon filled with free-flowing material. During the filling operation the lifting loop can be placed on a 20 hook on the filling apparatus, but strictly speaking this is not necessary. It has in fact been found that the blown up container can stand freely and without substantial sideways support during the filling operation. As soon as the container is filled, the inner 25 bag is closed, and the container is ready for transportation. 12 An advantage of the flexible container shown in the drawings is the rational manufacture of the containers o with a permanent lifting handle. Filling of such readymade containers can be carried out guickly and easily 5 with fewer operations than is usually necessary when the lifting point has to be formed at the filling station. The filling operation itself will accordingly be simplified, as placement of the container on special lifting hooks or forming of lifting handles will not be 10 necessary. The container will thereby be ready for further transport as soon as it is filled and the inner bag is closed. The capacity of the filling apparatus can be maximised, and the total operation of filling and making the container ready for further transport will be 15 less labour-consuming.

An advantage which is obtained by use of the flexible containers is that complicated or special filling apparatuses or lifting devices are not required. Thus lifting forks can be employed which can be easily placed 20 under the well-defined lifting handle, which is strongly made to endure several handling operations of the filled container without being damaged by the handling devices. Even when especially rough lifting devices are used, the lifting handle incorporating the sleeve 5 will protect 25 the fibres in the lifting loop from wear.

Claims (9)

1. 3

2. 1. A method of producing an empty flexible container of the type having at least one lifting loop including substantially all the longitudinal fibres of the 5 container, the lifting loop or loops being a direct extension of the container walls characterised in that, before filling commences, the lifting loop(s) is folded or gathered and the folds or gathers held together to form a permanent lifting handle at a lifting area. 10 2. A method as claimed in Claim 1 characterised in that the lifting handle is equipped with protective material covering at least the lower part of the lifting area.

3. An empty flexible container of the type having at 15 least one lifting loop including substantially all the longitudinal fibres of the container, the lifting loop or loops being a direct extension of the container walls characterised in that the lifting loops(s) is folded or gathered and the folds or gathers held together to form a 20 permanent lifting handle and in that protective material is provided, arranged to cover at least the lower part of the lifting area the length of the protective material being such that the fibres of the handle are protected from wear when engaged by a tine of a standard fork lift 25 truck. 14

4. An empty flexible container as claimed in Claim 3 characterised in that the protective material is in the form of a sleeve extending around the lifting handle.

5. An empty flexible container as claimed in Claim 3 5 or 4 characterised in that the protective material acts both to hold together the folds or gathers of the handle and to protect the handle against wear.

6. An empty flexible container as claimed in any of claims 3 to 5 in which the protective material is the 10 same composition as the remainder of the container.

7. An empty flexible container as claimed in any of claims 3 to 6 characterised in that the lifting area of the handle has a width less than or equal to 1/g of the container's circumference.

8. An empty flexible container substantially as hereinbefore described with, reference to the drawings.

9. A method of providing an empty flexible container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings. 15 Dated this the 9th day of February, 1984 CRUICKSHANK & COMPANY, Agents for the Applicant 1 Holies Street, Dublin 2. c:\spe\8161