JP7263010B2 - A regular priced liquid container with unique optical properties - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to liquid containers having lenticular labels, and more particularly to containers having lenses or lens arrays formed in the sidewalls of the container.

In the packaging industry, it is well known to utilize the lenticular effect, such as lenticular labels for fluid containers. A disadvantage of lenticular labels is their relatively high cost relative to normal printing costs. Both the labels and the lenses must be thin, requiring a large number of lenses per inch. Therefore, the number of images that can be displayed is reduced and quality control problems are increased.

Other lens effects are known, for example, on a portion of a liquor bottle, where the natural magnification effect of a curved bottle causes the inward image of the label on the opposite side to appear prominently behind the bar. ing. Many plastic water bottles have an irregular surface and the water inside exhibits a random lens effect.

US Pat. No. 5,494,445 to Sekiguchi et al. describes using a container assembly with an empty bottle. The empty bottle of the container assembly has a butterfly image superimposed (combined) on the back wall and a grid on the opposite front wall. Empty bottles have a transparent label printed as a grid and another printed label on the back wall. However, this "grating" method suffers from optical losses inherent in such as "barrier strip" methods.

US Pat. No. 7,057,823 B1 to Raymond discusses placing an image on one side of the container and projecting it with a molded lens on the opposite side instead of a barrier strip. However, this requires the use of additional glass or plastic. For proper strength of the glass container, the thickness of the container should generally be on the order of 3/16 inch or greater and at least as thick as the narrowest part of the lens. A lens adds to the bulk of the material if it covers most of one side. Alternatively, if the lens were recessed to the same plane of curvature as the outside of the bottle, this requirement would make the overall bottle even thicker. In plastic containers, which can be about 5000 or 6000ths of an inch, the lens substantially increases the amount of plastic normally used and also requires uniform wall thickness for blow molded or injection molded containers. may cause manufacturing problems.

Both the Sekiguchi and Raymond designs and methods have disadvantages. With Sekiguchi's method, the image is inferior to that of the lens, and with Raymond's technology, manufacturing costs are higher than normal.

In the present invention, by forming the side surface of the container with plastic or glass and the surface shape of a lens or lens array having a uniform thickness, the side surface of the container cooperates with the clear fluid contained therein to produce a lens effect. Provides an optimally clear and bright display to complete. Manufacturing costs can be scaled to lenticular lenses, fly-eye lenses, or other types of lenses without exceeding the manufacturing costs of ordinary containers and labels that can be injection molded, blow molded, or otherwise formed. does not require combined printing. The surface contour of a lens or lens array is substantially more contiguous than that of a rounded or curved bottle or container.

A first embodiment is a clear-sided container having at least two parallel sides. One of the at least two parallel sides is formed as a surface of a lens or lens array. The focal plane of the lens or lens array lies behind the opposite smooth flat sides. The opposing side may optionally have a slight recessed area to which the label is adhered. The inward facing side of the label is printed with an image corresponding to the lens or lens array. Laminating two such containers flat side-to-side creates a dual display container that allows images to be displayed through both outer sides thereof. The bonded recessed area may be accessible from the bottom or side to allow for the insertion of double-sided images rather than first labeling each container.

Such dual display containers may be formed as one container rather than two containers laminated together. Only one mouth is required by being made to fill both halves with clear fluid. In a dual display container formed in either double or single form, the recessed portion may be flat sided or sided formed in the shape of a lens profile. In the case of a lens shape, the concave portion may be slightly enlarged, the lens having a focal plane at that of the inset image, and the outside of the container being flat for viewing. If the hollow portion is flat-sided, the outer surface of the container is formed into a lens shape, the focal length of which lies in the plane of the inset image.

In other embodiments, the image is printed on a thin flexible sheet. The flexible sheet is inserted through the mouth of the container and, with the support of spacers formed either on the image sheet or on the container or itself, opens by reverting so that the sides are parallel to the lens to be created and the It fits in the position of the focal plane of the lens to be created. The container and image may be plastic or any suitable material. The fluid may be tinted, carbonated, or viscous, provided it is clear enough to exhibit the required optical properties.

Further embodiments relate to lenticular or other lenticular array displays rather than conventional utility containers. Flat or curved substantially flat containers exhibiting the same properties as the containers described above can be made for the purpose of image display only, using any lens larger than those used in conventional lens arrays. may In any case, the lenses will be shipped empty and can be filled with clear fluids such as water on-site, thus substantially reducing costs in both the amount of plastic used and the shipping weight. Very large lenses or lenses with very long focal lengths usually require more plastic due to their thickness or lamination to thick spacers, in which case such display containers It will be especially economical. Such liquid-filled display lenses can also be inserted to place the thin image in the focal plane of the lens. The thin image is virtually weightless and easily moved using attached ferrous metal strips that are moved or displaced by external magnets on the motor shaft using attached levitation devices, allowing the viewer to Dramatically changes the image without requiring any movement on the part of the . In addition, changing the buoyancy of floating images through the 'floater' method, in which images are moved up and down by applying slight pressure to the container, may create new types of toys or displays. Such liquid-filled lenses would also be useful for outdoor viewing. In that case, sunlight would normally heat the image, but the entrapped liquid would significantly reduce that heat.

Circular, if the lenticular sides of the clear container work in concert with the contained clear fluid to produce a lens effect that exceeds the natural effects that rounded or curved bottles or containers produce. Many different container shapes and configurations are possible, including rectangular, oval, polygonal, and asymmetric shapes. After one use, the container may be refilled with water or any clear liquid to display the image.

1 is a perspective view of an embodiment according to the invention; FIG. A view from the top of an embodiment that is a double container attached back-to-back, each container having its own mouth and separate interior regions. FIG. 2A is a top view of an embodiment of a double container with one spout, with containers connected inside, and a perspective view of the same container. Fig. 10 is another embodiment having an image spaced from the lens wall; Schematic approximation of one lens in a lens array and the path followed by light rays when the container is filled with a clear liquid having substantially the same index of refraction as the container wall, and the path followed by light rays through an empty container. A comparison with the route is shown.

While some embodiments of the invention are described, the invention is not limited to these embodiments.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a generally rectangular container "A". Its front or first side is shaped to the surface of a lens array and cooperates with the clear fluid in container "A" to achieve its lens effect. The first side has a focal plane behind it, the opposite side, ie the outer side of the second side, to which a label with a corresponding image is applied.

Figure 2 shows a double container consisting of two glued containers. The labels of the two containers fit snugly into the joined recessed space between the two containers at the focal plane of the outer surface. A double container can hold two different liquids, such as oil and vinegar or shampoo and conditioner, each of the two containers being accessible only through its own container mouth. The recessed space may be made so that either a stuck label or a double-sided label can be inserted after assembly.

FIG. 3 shows a single mold for two joined containers. Like the double container in FIG. 2, with one double-sided label inserted, the inner spaces of the two containers are connected and have one mouth.

FIG. 4 shows a container with a lenticular side that focuses the plane of an inset image printed on a flexible substrate within the container. The flexible substrate can be rolled or otherwise compressed and inserted through the mouth of the container. The flexible image or spacers formed in the container then open by recoil and are placed in the lateral focal plane which will become the lens.

FIG. 5 shows a magnified view of one lens element in the array and the path followed by a ray in an empty container versus the path followed by a ray in a container with fluid. The container wall "A" is of uniform thickness and may be as thin as about 0.005 inches in a plastic bottle. When the container is empty, as shown in area "B", ray "D" passes through the wall with little deviation from its direction. This means that the index of refraction of the outside air, which is 1, changes to about 1.5 for glass or plastic (slightly higher for PET plastic, which is commonly used in plastic bottles), so that the ray passes through the wall, This is because it returns to its original state when it returns to the air in the container. As a result, the rays are out of focus.

However, when the container is filled with a substantially index-matched liquid, as shown in region "C", the thin curved surface of the container wall cooperates with the contained fluid to form two glass types. Acts as a single lens much like a "double" lens. The rays are focused as determined by the radius of curvature of the container surface. The container label "E" and its image on the opposite side of the lens array face inward and are located in the focal plane of the array, corresponding to the lens array. For illustration purposes, the rays are depicted as traveling into the container, but of course they travel in both directions. A viewer on the array side of the container sees the inner image of the label as a stereoscopic, animated, or optical display representing any of these properties commonly associated with such lens arrays.

Although several embodiments have been described, the invention is not limited to these embodiments and is capable of other modifications and variations that may occur to those skilled in the art. The scope of the invention is defined only by the following claims.

Claims (27)

A container for containing a substantially transparent or clear liquid,
The container has a width and comprises clear first and second sidewalls having a uniform thickness less than the width of the container, the second sidewall defining an outer surface and an inner surface of the second sidewall. and an inner surface and an outer surface formed to the surface contour of a plurality of lenses and/or lens arrays on both of Having a concave lens shape, when the container is empty, rays passing through the second sidewall are focused on a focal plane located on the first sidewall when viewed outside the container and through the second sidewall. a substantially transparent or clear liquid disposed between said first sidewall and said second sidewall and having a refractive index substantially similar to that of said first sidewall and said second sidewall; When the container is filled with the substantially transparent or clear liquid contacts the inner surface of the second sidewall having the concave lens shape, light rays passing through the second sidewall are directed to the outside of the container. at a focal plane located substantially on said first sidewall when viewed through said second sidewall, said liquid completing a lens effect to form an image on said focal plane. Focusing the light rays, the curved outer surface of the second sidewall cooperates with the contained liquid so that the light rays passing through the second sidewall and the contained liquid are at the focal plane on the first sidewall. A container that acts as a single lens or lens array that is focused on. A container according to claim 1,
At least one outer surface of the container is formed as a lens or lens array, the focal plane of the outer surface being on the outer surface of the opposite smooth flat side thereof, and a label having an image on the side and an image on the inside thereof. container to which is attached. A container according to claim 2,
A container in which two container sides are attached to each other to form a dual container. A container according to claim 3,
The side surface is recessed and includes a label, and the container is capable of holding two different types of substantially transparent or clear liquids accessible from two separate container mouths. A container according to claim 3,
The dual container is a container that is filled in both halves with the liquid and molded together so that the container has only one mouth. A container according to claim 1,
A container in which the outer surface of the container is formed with the surface contour of a lens or lens array, and the lens effect of the outer surface is completed by the substantially transparent or clear liquid contained therein. A container according to claim 6,
An inset image is printed on a thin flexible substrate with an ink that is insoluble in the contained substantially transparent or clear liquid, the substrate forming on itself or on the sides of the container when inserted through the mouth of the container. The container opens by restoring outward to a shape that is placed in the focal plane of the lenticular side by the support of the spacers applied. A container according to claim 1,
A flat or curved, substantially flat, liquid-filled container is a container that functions primarily as a display lens or lens array, rather than as a normal utility liquid container. A container according to claim 1,
The focal plane lies on the outer surface of the opposite smooth flat sides of the container. A container according to claim 1,
A container in which the focal plane lies on the side of the container. 11. A container according to claim 10,
A container in which the image is provided with a flotation device so that the image can be inserted and moved in the focal plane of the side of the lens in the substantially transparent or clear liquid . 12. A container according to claim 11,
A container in which the image can be moved by at least one of magnetic or variable buoyancy means. A container for containing a substantially transparent or clear liquid,
The container comprises a clear first sidewall and a clear second sidewall, the second sidewall contouring a plurality of lenses and/or lens arrays on both the outer surface and the inner surface of the second sidewall. wherein the outer surface has a convex lens shape, the inner surface has a concave lens shape corresponding to the convex lens shape, and when the container is empty, the second Light rays passing through the side wall are not focused onto a focal plane located on the first side wall when viewed outside the container through the second side wall and between the first side wall and the second side wall. When the container is filled with a substantially transparent or clear liquid disposed and having an index of refraction substantially similar to that of the first sidewall and the second sidewall, the substantially transparent or clear liquid The liquid contacts the inner surface of the second sidewall having the concave lens shape, and light rays passing through the second sidewall are substantially on the first sidewall when viewed through the second sidewall outside the container. wherein said liquid completes a lens effect to focus light rays onto an image of said focal plane, said curved outer surface of said second sidewall comprising: acting in conjunction with the contained liquid as a single lens or lens array such that light rays passing through the second sidewall and the contained liquid are focused to a focal plane on the first sidewall;
The container defines a label location area in the focal plane to hold the label with the image. 14. A container according to claim 13,
A container comprising two said containers attached to each other. 15. A container according to claim 14,
The two containers define separate internal liquid containment regions that are not in liquid communication, and the containers have two mouths. 15. A container according to claim 14,
The two containers define two internal liquid- containing regions in liquid communication, and the containers have a mouth. 15. A container according to claim 14,
A container wherein the label location area is located between the two containers. 18. A container according to claim 17,
The label location area is a container holding a label having images on both sides. 14. A container according to claim 13,
The label location area is a container defined by a recessed area of the container. 14. A container according to claim 13,
A container wherein the label comprises an image printed with insoluble ink, the label being a thin flexible substrate configured to be inserted through the mouth of the container. 21. A container according to claim 20, comprising:
A container wherein the substrate is folded for insertion through the mouth of the container and unfolds to be essentially flat after insertion and spread out in the focal plane. 22. A container according to claim 21, comprising:
The container has spacers that position the substrate at the focal plane. 14. A container according to claim 13,
The lens defines a focal plane on the side of the container with the contained liquid . 14. A container according to claim 13,
A container wherein the distance between said first sidewall and said second sidewall is substantially less than the width and height of the sides of said container. 14. A container according to claim 13,
A container wherein the label location area is accessed from outside the container to allow insertion of a label after the container is formed. 14. A container according to claim 13,
The container has magnetic properties and the label can be moved by an external magnet. 14. A container according to claim 13,
A container comprising a device for varying the position of the label within the label position area.

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