JP2000142663A - Triangular compound container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide non inclining triangular compound container which is provided with a compound bottom cover, a thin film cover, and an outward curl bead edging top edge part capable of receiving an insertion type top cap, which has the required ratio of volume capacity to material, which also has a big surface area for indicating a letter and/or a figure, and which can be repeatedly produced on a high speed manufacturing line by the conventional bead edging equipment or curling equipment. SOLUTION: The triangular shape compound container 10 is provided with a compound bottom cover, a thin film cover and an outward curl bead edging top edge part able to receive an insertion type top cap 18. The compound container 10 divides six circular segments positioned symmetrically cross sectionally and has outward swelling curved side walls and curved angle corner parts at least some of whose radii are different. For the container, the best form is a combination of a triangular shape and a circular shape cross sectionally.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a triangular composite having a composite bottom lid and an outwardly curved and beveled top edge which is open to receive a thin film lid and a snap-on top lid. For containers.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Hitherto, for packaging food and other products such as detergents, cleansers, baking powders, etc., usually consist of a predetermined material layer including a paper body layer, a liner layer and a label layer. Composite containers have been used.
These composite containers include a composite bottom lid that can be made of the same material or a combination of different materials as the container. These containers are also closed at the top by various top lids, such as membrane lids, which together with the bottom lid advantageously provide a hermetically sealed container and top lid. The preferred structure is a thin film manufactured by conventional curling equipment, curled and beaded outward on a composite container, and secured to itself by heat sealing, adhesive, etc. to seal the container. Includes a top edge for receiving the lid. A fitting-type upper lid can be fitted to the outer curled bead top edge of the composite container.

[0003] Johnson et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,892,351 to Johnson (hereinafter Johnso).
(referred to as the 'n'351 patent) is a representative prior art cylindrical composite container having an outer curled and beaded open top edge. The beaded edge is
Receiving the membrane lid and snap-in top lid. Johnson '
Cylindrical containers, such as in the '351 patent, are effectively curled by conventional curling devices because the curling force is substantially evenly distributed around the periphery of the open upper edge. is there.

[0004]

However, conventional curling devices are not effective in curling containers having sharp corners and flat side walls. This is because curling forces are not evenly distributed, and line breaks occur at straight portions of the container shape, such as near corners. Also, even if curling is actually achieved, it cannot be achieved repeatedly on a high-speed production line with reasonable tolerances.

[0005] Round containers, such as cylindrical containers, are desirable because material costs can be saved by the volume capacity of the container relative to the packaging material required to form the container. However, other shapes provide a substantial "advertising portion" and are desirable to expose additional areas on the outer wall of the container when placed on a shelf or other retail display. is there. Similarly, shapes other than cylindrical containers may allow for more efficient placement in shipping cardboard boxes and on retail shelves. However, as mentioned above,
Providing the desired outer curled bead top edge for a composite container having sharp corners is conventionally used to form such an edge as well as to form such an edge. It has proven difficult, if not impossible, because of the device, because these containers have sharp corners. This difficulty is exacerbated for composite containers having a significant body wall thickness. Sharp corners prevent proper curl formation or cause breaks along the beaded top edge because they do not allow for an even distribution of curl forces. This, on the one hand, hinders the formation of a hermetic seal between the beading edge and the membrane lid. In addition, containers with sharp corners do not provide an outer curled bead top for such containers with conventional curling equipment. This problem is exacerbated with thicker walled containers and containers having multiple layers.

Prior art attempts to curl the open top edge of containers having sharp corners are described in US Pat. No. 5,752,646 to Sandstrom. The Sandstrom '646 container is a typical prior art container having a curled open top edge and sloping sidewalls. The slope of the sidewall facilitates curling due to the direction of the curl force on the outwardly sloped sidewall. However, such containers require additional time to manufacture and are costly, since each container must be individually wound or drawn. In contrast, containers with non-inclined sidewalls are formed from molded tubes that have a finite length and are cut into individual lengths to form several containers.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a non-inclined triangular composite container having a composite bottom lid and an outer curled beaded top edge capable of receiving a thin film lid and a nested top lid. is there.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a triangular composite container having a desired volume to volume ratio while having a large surface area for displaying characters and / or graphics.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, these and other objects are to provide a symmetrical arrangement in a transverse cross section and at least some having different radii.
This can be achieved by providing a composite container having three outwardly bulging sidewalls and curved corners, each defining three circular segments. Preferably, the composite container is substantially a combination of a triangular shape and a circular shape in a transverse cross section,
Each of the side walls has a common predetermined radius in a transverse cross section, and each of the corners has a common predetermined radius in a transverse cross section.

Preferably, the corner radius is an acute angle range of a predetermined size which is tangent to the curved side wall. Similarly, the radius of the side wall is the tangential inter
section) or a predetermined size that does not form a negative intersection,

[0011] According to the configuration of the triangular composite container, a conventional beading or curling device can be used to form the beading top edge. In addition, the combination of triangular and circular shapes provides an easy grip that is not present in round or rectangular or square containers. This easy grip is provided by bulging or curved walls and corners that easily fit into the curved palm of the user gripping such a container.

While some of the objects and advantages of the present invention have been described above, other objects and advantages will become apparent by reference to the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. .

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the accompanying drawings, a preferred embodiment of a triangular composite container 10 is shown. Composite container 1
0 is a composite bottom cover 12, a thin film cover 16 and a fitting type top cover 1
8 having a top edge 14 which is open to receive the outer edge 8 and is curved outward.

The composite container 10 can be comprised of multiple layers, usually including a liner layer 20, a body or cardboard layer 22, and a label layer 24. The liner layer 20 may be an aluminum foil coated with a polymer (eg, polyethylene) on a paper substrate, a plastic or metallic film coated with a polymer (eg, polyethylene) on a paper substrate, or a paper substrate. Plastic film or metallic film, a hot melt adhesive sealable liner, or the like. The body layer 22 may comprise one or two layers of recycled or unused paper. Preferably,
The two body layers 26, 28 form the body layer 22. The label layer 24 can be a paper layer, an aluminum foil-coated paper layer, a polyethylene-coated paper layer, a plastic film layer, or the like. The composite container 10 preferably has a body wall thickness of 0.01 inches to 0.05 inches, for example, about 0.03 inches. This thickness will vary depending on the desired container application and container dimensions, eg, corner radius. The composite container 10 can also consist of a single layer of packaging (not shown) that can be a pre-laminated coated printed cardboard layer or body layer, coated with a polyethylene seal layer.

The composite container 10 is formed by being wound in a spiral shape, by being formed in a spiral shape,
Alternatively, it may be formed by being drawn straight out. Preferably, the composite container 10 is tensioned in a straight line, with each layer individually wrapped around a mandrel to form a tube having an axially extending seam. The formed tube can then be cut to the desired length depending on the container application. The cut tubing can then be applied to Bacon et al., Entitled "Methods and Apparatus for Forming Outer Curl Lips on Container Body". No. 5,431,619 to U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,619, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the seams of the individual layers are staggered. As shown in FIG. 5, the liner seam 36, the inner body seam 38,
The outer body layer seam 40 and the label layer seam 42 each extend parallel to each other in the axial direction. However, which 2
The two seams also do not match. Rather, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the liner seam 36 is positioned near a central portion of one of the three curved sidewalls 30.
The position of the seam in this arrangement is desirable so as not to interfere with the curling operation of the bead edge portion 14 of the composite container 10. The inner body layer seam 38 may then be positioned radially away from the liner layer seam 36 and the outer body layer seam 40 may be positioned radially away from the inner body layer seam 38. The seams can be matched, but are preferably staggered to avoid certain weakened areas extending along the axial direction of the composite container 10. Next, the label layer seam 42 is the second body layer seam 4
It is located at a distance from zero, preferably near one of the curved corners 32. The label layer seam 42 so positioned does not interfere with any character or graphic design on the label layer 24. If the composite container 10 is spirally wound (spirally rou
nd) or spirally wound (convolutely
round), each seam is in an alternating relationship (s
Preferably, they are positioned in a taggered relationship.

The composite bottom lid 12 can be composed of the same composite material used for the container 10, but may be composed of other materials. The bottom lid 12 is generally cup-shaped and can be secured to the container 10 by a portion that is integrally curled at the bottom of the container 10 and by heat sealing, adhesive, or other desired means. The bead top edge 14 on the container 10 is formed by a conventional bead or curling device known to those skilled in the art to create an outer curled bead top edge. The thin film lid 16 includes a plastic film layer,
It may be composed of any desired thin film material, such as a composite material such as an aluminum foil layer, an adhesive layer, a paper layer, and may be secured to the bead top edge 14 by heat sealing, adhesive or other desired means. . The snap-on top 18 can be injection molded from low density, linear low density or high density polyethylene, or thermoformed from various plastic film materials and fitted to the beaded top edge 14 of the container 10. It can be a conventional configuration utilizing a downwardly extending skirt having a shape fixed around it. Resulting composite container 10
Are suitable for packaging food and other products as described above and can be hermetically sealed.

In accordance with the present invention, the composite container 10 has outwardly bulging curved side walls 30 and curved corners 32 to define six circular segments symmetrically arranged in a transverse cross section. are doing. At least some of these circular segments have different radii. As shown in FIG. 3, the side walls 30 have a common predetermined radius R1 in the transverse section, and the corners 32 have a common predetermined radius R2 in the transverse section. Preferably, the composite container 10 is a substantially circular and triangular combination in a transverse cross section. A curve is a straight line or a line having no bend, or a bend having no corners. Thus, as seen in FIG. 3, the combination of triangular and circular shapes in cross section, the six circular shapes that define the transverse cross section of the outwardly bulging curved side wall 30 and the curved corner 32 of the composite container 10. Provided by segment.

Preferably, as shown in FIG. 3, the range of the corner radius R2 is an acute angle of a predetermined size tangent to the curved side wall 30. Further, it is preferable that the radius R1 of the side wall 30 is a predetermined size so as not to form a departure direction or a concave intersection.

A typical container of standard inner volume may be constructed with a corner radius R1 of at least 0.70 inches and a side wall radius R2 of at least about 2 inches, for example, about 4 inches. Of course, the side wall radius R2 varies depending on the size of the container. The internal length of the container along axis A is about 9.49 inches, and the internal width of the container along axis B is about 2.86 inches. Also, the inside height of the container 10 (from the top of the bottom lid 12 to the bottom of the membrane 16) is about 9.61 inches. This typical triangular composite container 10 has an interior volume of about 57.57 cubic inches, which is approximately the same as a round or cylindrical container having a volume of about 3.18 cubic inches. is there. Although the illustrated composite container 10 has an equilateral triangular shape, other triangular containers are within the scope of the invention. For example, the side walls 30 have different lengths and different radii, and the curved corners 3
2 may have different radii.

[0021]

Accordingly, the present invention provides a novel configuration and shape for a triangular composite container 10 having a composite bottom lid 12, which results in a container that is easily gripped by the user, as well as a thin film 16 and fitting. An outer curled beaded top edge 14 is provided which can receive a top lid 18 which is repeatedly manufactured on a high speed production line by conventional beading or curling equipment. Can be done.

The present invention has been described in considerable detail with respect to its preferred embodiment. However, changes and modifications may be made within the spirit and scope of the invention as described in the foregoing detailed description and as defined in the appended claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a triangular composite container constructed according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view of the composite container of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing various radii used to form the walls and corners of the container.

FIG. 4 is a partial sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 3;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Triangular composite container 12 Composite bottom lid 14 Opened outer curled ball top edge 16 Thin film lid 18 Fitting type top lid 20 Liner layer 22 Body layer or cardboard layer 24 Label layer 26 Body layer 28 Body layer 30 Curved side wall 32 curved corner 36 liner layer seam 38 inner body layer seam 40 outer body layer seam 42 label layer seam

Continued on the front page (72) Inventor James W. Lowry, USA, 29501 South Carolina, Florence, Brittany Drive 1519 Sea Huntington Drive, 1037 (72) Inventor Ted M. Westpard, United States, 29501 South Carolina, Florence, Prince Olston Cove 708 F-term (reference) 3E033 AA06 BA09 BA10 BA13 BA15 BB08 CA02 CA03 DA04 DA08 DC10 DD05 EA04 GA01

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. An arcuate top that is open and outwardly curved and has a combined circular and triangular shape and is capable of receiving a composite bottom lid, a membrane lid and a snap-on top lid. A triangular composite container having an outwardly bulging curved side wall and a curved corner defining six circular segments in a transverse cross-section and having at least some different radii. . 2. The triangular composite container according to claim 1, wherein the curved corners are in an acute angle range. 3. The triangular composite container according to claim 1, wherein said side wall has a common predetermined radius in a transverse cross section, and said corner has a common predetermined radius in a transverse cross section. 4. The triangular composite container according to claim 3, wherein the corner radius is a predetermined size that is tangent to the curved side wall. 5. The triangular composite container according to claim 3, wherein the radius of the side wall is a predetermined size that does not form a departure intersection. 6. The triangular composite container of claim 1, wherein the outer curled bead top edge is substantially continuous. 7. The triangular composite container according to claim 1, wherein said circular segments are symmetrically arranged. 8. The triangular composite container of claim 1, wherein said composite container includes a liner layer and a body layer, each having a non-overlapping seam. 9. The triangular composite container of claim 8, wherein said liner layer seam and said body layer seam extend axially along the length of said composite container. 10. The triangular composite container of claim 9, wherein said liner layer seam is positioned near a central portion of one of said curved side walls.