NZ280217A - Plastic container; jerrycan type with externally threaded openings at the top, the opening which is lowermost in the laid down condition having an interior screw thread - Google Patents

Description

28 0 2 17 No: 280217 Date: 12 October 1995 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT, 1953 N.Z. PATENT OFFICE 1 3 SEP 1996 RECEIVED COMPLETE SPECIFICATION A Container We, CARTER HOLT HARVEY LIMITED, a duly incorporated company of New Zealand of 640 Great South Road, Manukau City, Auckland, New Zealand, do hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: The present invention relates to improvements in and/or relating to containers, methods of forming same and related means and methods.

Containers such as jerrycans useful for carrying liquids have previously been manufactured from plastics material using blow moulding techniques. Such containers generally have an integrally formed handle which is tubular in form and has each end thereof opening into the main reservoir of the container. The provision of this hollow handle makes it difficult to easily clean the container for refilling.

Containers for allowing the dispensing of a liquid from the reservoir thereof are known. Containers that have been formed of a plasties material by a blow moulding technique have been known for such a purpose. It is usual for such containers to include a stable base and to provide at least one and preferably two closeable openings such that air can be allowed in one opening to displace the liquid being dispensed from the other opening.

It is usual for jerrycans or containers of that ilk to include a filling opening at the top thereof preferably along side a carrying handle. Such a filling opening is generally closeable by a screw cap which can have tamper evident features. With such prior art containers however the second opening if at the top of the container has hitherto simply being a screw cap closeable opening to allow air intake or alternatively has been in an internally threaded opening below the fill level on one wall of the container near the base thereof, such an internal threading lending itself to the fitting of a tap if required.

The present invention relates to a contoner which provides an alternative to any of tiie aforementioned containers and which, in its preferred forms, will provide a handled container having two top openings which are each closable by closures and one of which is capable of being fitted with an externally threaded tap or plug form.

In a first aspect the present invention consists in a container capable of being supported on a flat surface in an upright and a laid down condition, there being in and/or adjacent die top of the container when upright externally threaded openings, the construction being characterised in that that opening which will be lower most in a said laid down condition is provided with an interior (female) screw thread which enables the fitment there into or receiving there into of an externally threaded (male) plug and/or tap and/or valve structure.

Preferably both of said openings are screw engageable by screw cap closures above a designated fill level for the container.

Preferably said container includes a handle.

Preferably said handle is positioned at the top of the reservoir between said two capable openings. £80217 Preferably the internally and externally threaded opening has any one or more of the characteristics herein after described.

Preferably each of said capable openings is provided with ratchet means to co-act with a tamper evident complimentary feature of a screw closure.

Preferably said container (save possibly for adjuncts to any handle thereof) is integrally formed by a blow moulding procedure.

Preferably said container as substantially herein after described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

In our patent specification divided herefrom there is disclosed a container comprising a unitary moulded member having at least one opening into the blow moulded chamber thereof, said at least one opening being capable of closure, said moulded member having a handle element not having a hollow region in communication with said chamber, and at least one handle enhancement member engageable to and/or engaged to said handle element.

Preferably said handle element is a spine like member to be sandwiched between two handle enhancement members.

Preferably said handle enhancement members are engageable one to the other and preferably through and/or around said handle element.

Preferably the arrangement is substantially as herein after described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings.

Preferably the handle assembly (ie; the handle element and two said enhancement members) male and female has regions of the two enhancement members that are interengageable (preferably in a difficult to remove form), the interengagement preferably being through openings through said handle element formed with said container.

Preferably said container with said handle enhancement in said handle feature is also a container as previously defined as an invention hereof.

Preferably the container includes any one or more of the features herein after described.

A less preferred aspect of that present invention the container in accordance with the present invention (whether a preferred form or not) could be provided with one of its openings provided with an internal threading only provided there is provision whereby the same can be capped.

In still a further aspect the present invention consists in, in combination, a container of the present invention and caps therefor.

A preferred form of the present invention will now be described with reference to N.Z. PATENT OFFICE 3 0 JUN 1997 the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a perspective view from above of a preferred container in accordance with the present invention showing the same in an upright condition with a major capable fill opening (the closure being a tamper evident closure engaged to the external thread of the necked opening) and a smaller such capped opening, the smaller capped opening preferably being that provided with an internal (female) threading which has in place either a plug that can be screw disengaged or is adapted to receive such a plug and/or a tap and/or a valving assembly, the preferred handle assembly in accordance with the present invention being shown between said two capp; 1 openings, Figure 2 is a perspective view of the arrangements shown in Figure 1 from below showing die recesses that have been provided to allow container upon container stacking when capped and/or uncapped and which recesses allow for at least some pours from said openings when uncapped in several directions when the container is being held by the handle assembly and a grip provided by said inset base features, Figure 3 is a side elevation view of the arrangement of Figure 1 showing the external thread features of the two externally threaded necked openings and showing the integrally formed handle element which does not open into the reservoir but which provides a spine like structure for a handle assembly, Figure 4 shows to the left of the centre line the elevation of that end of Figure 3 when viewed in the direction "AA" while the other side of the centre line "BB" shows the elevation of the container of Figure 3 when viewed in the direction "BB", Figure 5 is a plan view of the container of Figures 1 through 4 but not detailing the caps thereon, but showing the nature of the configuration of the spine like handle element depicted in Figure 3 Figure 6 is an internal view of one handle enhancement member, Figure 7 is a similar view to that of Figure 6 but showing the mirror imaged other handle enhancement member, the mirror imaging however not being complete to the extent that preferably in each of the enhancement members of Figures 6 and 7 there is a mix of male and female interengagement members to be herein after described, Figure 8 shows an exterior view of the product of Figure 6 (ie, opposite to that of Figure 6), Figure 9 is a plan view of the arrangement of Figure 8 where the enhancement members of Figures 6 and 7 have been interengaged, Figure 10 is a vertical cross section of one of the interengagement members of the enhancement members of Figures 6 and 7, Figure 10 showing at a section through a male engagement member the means by which there can be plugging into a female member, 2802 Figure 11 shows a similar view to that of Figure 10 but of a female engagement member to receive the male member of Figure 10, Figure 12 shows the mating of the enhancement members of Figures 6 and 7 at such a male/female interengagement as would occur in the handle assembly as shown in Figure 1, Figure 13 is a plan view of the screw fittable tamper evident closure of the smaller of the two necked openings, Figure 14 is a cross-sectional elevation of the cap of Figure 13, Figure 15 is a plan view of the threaded neck^J opening to which the cap of Figures 13 and 14 is to fit, Figure 15 showing the blow mould created tamper evident ratchet features of the container itself to which complimentary ratchet features of the cap of Figures 13 and 14 are to interengage, Figure 15 showing both the sections of the external (male) threading to engage the cap of Figures 13 and 14 as well as the internal (female) threading of at least part of the neck region thereof to be above the fill level which is capable of receiving a male threaded plug, tap or valve assembly (not shown), Figure 16 is a view "CC" (but mirrored) of the arrangement of Figure 15 showing partly in section the internal threading of the necked opening, and Figure 17 is a view "DD" with respect to Figure 15 in elevation (but mirrored) again showing partly in section the internal threading.

In die preferred form of the present invention the container 1 is formed in a blow moulded form being preferably blown while or after having the preformed tube of plastics material (eg; HDPE) clamped to define the spine like handle feature 1 between the preferably two blow openings 2. Preferably that necked opening 3 provided with its exterior threading 4 (shown diagrammatically in Figure 3) is above the fill level of the reservoir region of the container. Also above the reservoir region 5 of the blow moulded container is the externally threaded necked opening 6 with its external thread 7 and its preferred internal threading 8 as shown in Figures 15 and 16. Preferably the container region is provided with a tamper evident component 9 to co-act with the tamper evident band or ring 10 of a cap (eg; of HDPE or other plastics material) as shown in Figures 13 and 14. Such a tamper evident interengagement is of any conventional form.

Preferably the arrangement of the threads is substantially as shown. By way of example the threading 8 is such as to allow a three quarter inch BSP fitting while the external threading 7 thereof is capable of receiving by way of example a 33 millimetre tamper evident HDPE closure as depicted in Figures 15 through 17.

This provision of the internal thread of the container (preferably a jenycan) above the nominal fill level will enable the attainment of UN approval for transportation of 28 0 S hazardous goods. Without such an internal threading above the fill level a membrane would need to have been provided which would require breakage (eg; by drilling out) in order to use a tap or any fitting. The provision therefore of this feature in conjunction with the capable external thread also above the fill level overcomes any difficulty in compliance.

The opening 6 can be tapped and the container laid down on the ledges (which also reinforce the chamber) so as to allow gravity dispensing of liquids from the container.

The handle feature of the present invention is preferably provided in a recess 11 such that the handle assembly 12 is easily receivable vithin a recess 13 while base provided recesses 14 and 15 can receive in a stacked way the capped openings 16 and 17 of a container (jenycan) as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The handle assembly 12 has the spine like handle member 1 not providing washing difficulties for the reservoir/chamber region 5 of the container yet sufficiently strong such that it can be carried when filled to the fill level (eg; for a 20 litre jenycan).

However to facilitate the carriage with the somewhat narrow handle feature 1 members as shown in Figures 6 and 7(18 and 19 respectively) (preferably of a plastics material eg; HDPE) have the male members 20 thereof received as shown in Figure 12 by the female members 21 such that each of the members 18 and 19 preferably has two male members locked into a female member of the other with the spine like handle feature 1 (see Figure 12) being carryable conveniently by a grip under the two elements 18 and 19 (see Figures 9 and 12) with sufficient flexing in the handle enhancement members 18 and 19 such that weight is transferred through on to the spine other than simply by die male members 20 (ie; there is sufficient flex to provide contact between the spine 1 and the member 19 over the gap 22).

Persons skilled in the art will appreciate that the present invention provides an alternative to existing containers and especially jerrycans and the provision of the handle and/or the closure features (preferably both a 63.5 mm externally threaded neck for closure 16) and the other closure as previously defined) allows its flexibility of use while compliance with UN requirements and allowing economic blow mould manufacture with a minimum of subsequent fabrication but then using injection moulded interengageable components. 280217

Claims (8)

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1. A container capable of being supported on a flat surface in an upright and a laid down condition, there being in and/or adjacent the top of the container when upright externally threaded openings, the construction being characterised in that that opening which will be lower most in a said laid down condition is provided with an interior (female) screw thread which enables the fitment there into or receiving there into of an externally threaded (male) plug and/or tap and/or valve structure.

2. A container of Claim 1 wherein two openings are screw engageable by screw cap closures above a designated fill level for the contain, .

3. A container of Claim 1 or 2 which further includes a handle.

4. A container of Claim 3 when dependent on claim 2 wherein said handle is positioned at the top of the reservoir between said two openings.

5. A container of any one of the preceding claims wherein the internally and externally threaded opening has any one or more of the characteristics herein before described with or without reference to any of the accompanying drawings.

6. A container of any one of the preceding claims wherein each of said capable openings is provided with ratchet means to co-act with a tamper evident complimentary feature of a screw closure.

7. A container of any one of the preceding claims wherein (save possibly for adjuncts to any handle thereof) it is integrally formed by a blow moulding procedure.

8. A container as substantially herein before described with reference to any one or more of the accompanying drawings. DATED THIS •^dayofJW^ 1997 END OF CLAIMS