NZ286913A

NZ286913A - Container with tamper-evident lid: flange on outer edge of lid fits into channel on conatiner, channel has tear strip

Info

Publication number: NZ286913A
Application number: NZ28691396A
Authority: NZ
Inventors: Peter John Tasker; Rinaldo Gruber
Original assignee: Peter John Tasker; Rinaldo Gruber
Priority date: 1996-06-28
Filing date: 1996-06-28
Publication date: 1998-09-24
Also published as: AU2834097A

Description

<div class="application article clearfix" id="description"> CAP.PAG/KS Patents Form # 5 0 —■ H 2 0 JUN 199Z NEW ZEALAND Patents Act 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION TITLE : Tamper-Evident or -Resistant Containers APPLICATION#: 286913 FILING DATE : 28 June 1996 We,: 7) Peter John Tasker 2) Rinaldo Gruber Address: 1) 83 Wheturangi Road, Greenlane, Auckland, New Zealand 2) 8 Glen Vista Place, Glenfield, Auckland 10, New Zealand Nationality: l)New Zealand 2)New Zealand 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: - 1 - PF05.JWP FEE CODE - 1050 TAMPER-EVIDENT OR -RESISTANT CONTAINERS This invention relates to tamper-evident or-resistant containers and associated closure ^ members therefor. BACKGROUND jq There are many allegedly tamper-evident containers and/or closure members therefor. The tamper-evident feature is of particular value in the food industry as a means of inhibiting or at least making detectable, the unauthorised removal of contents of the container or, even more importantly, the insertion of contaminating substances such as poisons or unwanted drugs or the loss of sterility of the contents. Additionally, the 15 tamper-evident and/or -resistant feature is of value in the paint and other industries. However, many of such containers and/or closure members therefor fail to achieve the desired effect. 20 OBJECT It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved tamper-evident and/or -resistant container and/or associated closure member therefor. 25 STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a tamper-evident and/or -resistant container formed with an aperture through a wall thereof, the container Of) being adapted for the aperture to be closed by a closure member having a lip, rib or wall protruding around the edge thereof in a direction generally normal to the plane of the aperture, the container being formed with a groove around and close to the aperture, the groove being a close fit to the outside of the lip, rib or wall, when the container is closed by the closure member. 20 .June 1997/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms -3- According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided the above mentioned tamper-evident and/or -resistant container and the closure member. ^ Conveniently the groove is continuous and is formed by inner and outer walls closed at the bottom by a bight. Preferably the lip is in the form of a continuous wall extending substantially normally jq to the general plane of the aperture. Advantageously said outer wall substantially covers the outside surface of the lip, rib or wall when the closure member is fitted to the container. J5 Conveniently the outer wall is a close fit to the outside surface of the lip, rib or wall. Furthermore, the inside surface of the lip, rib or wall may be a close fit against the outer surface of the inner wall of the groove. Preferably, no part of the closure member, in the region of the lip, rib or wall, protrudes outwardly past said outside surface, to prevent a tool or fingernail being able to catch under such part in an attempt to remove the closure member. According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a tamper-evident and/or 25 -resistant container formed with an aperture through a wall thereof, the container being adapted for the aperture to be closed by a closure member having a lip, rib or wall protruding around the edge thereof in a direction generally normal to the plane of the aperture, the container being formed with a groove around and close to said aperture, at least part of the inside surface of the groove being a close fit to the outside of the lip, rib or wall, and an outer wall of said groove being formed with a line of weakness extending from an exposed edge of the outer wall and bounding at least one edge of an area of the outer wall overlying the lip, rib or wall, when the closure member is fitted to the container, whereby the line of weakness can be broken to enable said area of wall to be moved away from the lip, rib or wall so that the lip, rib or wall can be prised away from the container. 2: June 1997/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms -4- Preferably, two of said lines of weakness extend from the exposed edge. ^ Conveniently the line of weakness extends from the exposed edge at least as far as the bottom of the lip, rib or wall then along it and back up to the exposed edge, whereby said area is surrounded by the line of weakness and by the exposed edge, enabling the area to be broken away from the container to expose the lip, rib or wall. 10 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Various embodiments of the invention are described, by way of example only, with J 5 reference to the accompanying drawings in which:- Figure 1 is a front view of a tamper-evident and/or resistant container and associated closure member, according to the invention, 20 Figure 2 is an enlargement of part of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a side view of Figure 1, 25 Figure 4 is an enlargement of part of Figure 3 Figure 5 is a perspective view of the container and closure member shown in Figure 1, Figure 6 is an exploded perspective view of the components shown in Figure 5, 30 Figure 7 is a perspective view of a rectangular container and closure member, Figure 8 is a downwards perspective view of Figure 1, 35 Figure 9 is an enlarged section along the line IX - IX in Figure 2, 20 June 1997/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms y * ;-5- ;Figure 10 is an enlarged section along the line X - X in Figure 2, ;Figure 11 is an enlarged section along the line XI - XI in Figure 2, and ;5 ;Figure 12 is an enlarged section along the line XII - XII in Figure 2. ;DESCRIPTION ;10 ;In the drawings, a moulded plastics container 10, typically usable for food, includes a base 11 and side wall 12. ;The upper edge of the side wall 12 forms an aperture for insertion and removal of the 15 container contents. The aperture is closed by a removable closure member such as a lid 13. ;As seen particularly in Figures 9, 10 and 11, a typical lid 13 has a generally flat area 14, and a skirt 18 protruoing downwardly adjacent the outer edge of the flat area 14. The lid 13 is bounded by a wall 19 which may have an internal bead 20. The wall 19 may be of any suitable section, such as a lip. ;As shown in figure 11, the container 10 is formed with a trough 21 around the aperture. 25 The trough 21 is shaped and dimensioned to receive and retain the wall 19 of the lid 13, and comprises inner and outer trough walls 22, 23 closed at the bottom by a bight 24. The outer surface of the inner trough wall 22 is formed with a shoulder 25 under which the internal rib 20 of the lid 13 snaps. Thus the lid 13 is sealed to the container 10 along three circumferential lines or strips. These are, the rib 20 to the shoulder 25, the ;30 ;top of the inner trough wall 22 to the underside of the lid between the skirt 18 and the wall 19, and the bottom edge of the skirt 18 to an inwards shoulder 26 on the container 10. ;It will be seen, especially from Figure 11, that when the lid 13 is fully fitted to the container 10, the proximity of the top edge of the outer trough wall 23 to the upper ;20 June 19 97/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms ;-6- ;B 6 Q1X ;v.' ^ 3 ;surface plane of the flat area 14 leaves little or no part of the lid 13 which can be gripped to pull the lid 13 upwards off the container 10. This is ensured by the radius 33. Furthermore, the outer trough wall 23 overlaps the wall 19 of the lid 13, so that no tool, fingernail or the like can catch under the wall 19 to prise it upwards. ;The fit of the outer trough wall 23 against or close to the lid wall 19 inhibits the insertion of a tool down to the bottom of the wall 19. Thus the lid 13 is very jq tamper-evident and/or -resistant and not likely to be displaced accidentally during rough handling of the container 10. Inward flexure of the wall 19 is resisted by circumferentially spaced ribs 15 on the inner trough wall 22, as seen in Figure 11. ;In order that the lid 13 can be removed, when required, and in a tamper-evident and/or 15 -resistant manner a short length of the outer trough wall 23 is adapted to be broken away to reveal the bottom edge of the lid wall 19. Figures 1 and 2 show the short length of the wall 23 as a tab 27, joined to the remainder of the wall 23 by breakable iines of weakness or stress raisers in the form of notches or groves 28 in the outer or inner surface of the outer trough wall 23. ;20 ;To remove the tab 27 a thumb or finger nail or the like can be caught against the radially inner surface of the top of the tab 27 which is then thereby pushed outwards and downwards until the notches 28 break to free the sides of the tab 27. To assist this 25 operation, the upper top edge of the tab 27 is preferably locally higher than the rest of the wall 23, as seen by comparing Figures 10 and 11. The upper edge may also be flared or spaced from the lid 13. Thus, the tab 27 is more easily found, as seen in Figure 8. Stiffening ribs 29 on the tab 27 make the above operation easier. ;or\ ;In order that the tab 27 can be broken away completely the notches or grooves 28 are formed as part of a continuous notch or groove 31 which extends from the bottom of both grooves 28 round the bight 24 and up the inner trough wall 22, as seen in Figure 9. The groove 28 is completed by a horizontal length 30 at the junction of the inner trough 3_ wall 22 and the side wall 12, as seen in Figure 10. ;20 June 1997/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms ;Figure 12 shows that the groove 28 is asymmetric in section, so that when the tab 27 has been broken away, the adjacent end of the wall 23 is comparatively smooth and free of sharp edges. ;5 ;It will be apparent that, by use of the construction described above, it is very difficult to remove the lid 13 from above the container 10, at least without making the operation evident. Furthermore, until the tab 27 has been broken along the grooves 28 and jq preferably broken completely away, the bottom edge of the wall 19 is completely enclosed and is inaccessible, by virtue of the inner and outer wills 22, 23 and the bight 24. ;If preferred, all or parts of the inner wall 22 between the grooves 28 may be omitted. 75 This renders easier the tearing away of the tab 27 but leaves open the possibility of a person dislodging the lid 13 by inserting a blade or the like upwards through the hole or holes through the wall 22. ;Security of the lid 13 is enhanced by the deep penetration of the wall 19 between the walls 22, 23. ;Stress-raising notches 32 may be provided downwards into the top ends of the grooves 28, so that tearing of the grooves 28 is more easily initiated. ;25 ;Figure 7 shows that the invention is applicable to containers of rectangular and other shapes, such as oval, polygonal, and having a body of any shape and proportions. The aperture and lid 13 can be on the side or top of the container 10 if preferred. ;30 ;Furthermore, the lid 13 can be domed or of other shape but preferably is of a shape which cannot be gripped, so that the lid cannot be pulled from the container 10. ;The closeness of the wall 23 prevents the wall 19 moving outwards as long as the tab 27 is in place. Thus, even a comparatively small bead 20 holds the lid 13 to the ;20 June 1997/5777MCAP.697/BS/ms ;9 P Q 1 7 ;.s. — ^ w 3 I 0 ;container 10. The skirt 18 serves also to stiffen the lid 13, so that the inner wall 22 cannot mcve inwards, to release the shoulder 25 from the bead 20. ;Once the tab 27 has been removed, the outer wall 23 is comparatively weak and flexible. The lid wall 19 can then move outwards to allow the bead 20 to ride over the shoulder 25. ;10 ;15 ;20 ;25 ;30 ;35 ;20 June 1997/9777MCAP.697/BS/ms * </div>

Claims

<div class="application article clearfix printTableText" id="claims"> -9- 1. J 10 15 20 2. 25 3. 30 4. 35 1 WE CLAIM IS: A tamper-evident and/or -resistant container formed with an aperture through a wall thereof, the container being adapted for the aperture to be closed by a closure member having a lip, rib or wall protruding around the edge thereof in a direction generally normal to the plane of the aperture, the container being formed with a groove around and close to said aperture, at least part of the inside surface of the groove being a close fit to the outside of the lip, rib or wall, and an outer wall of said groove being formed with a line of weakness extending from an exposed edge of the outer wall and bounding at least one edge of an area of the outer wall overlying the lip, rib or wall, when the closure member is fitted to the container, whereby the line of weakness can be broken to enable said area of wall to be moved away from the lip, rib or wall so that the lip, rib or wall can be prised away from the container and in which internal faces of the groove are devoid of any aperture through which an object could be pushed to displace the closure member from the groove. A container and closure member according to claim 1 in which the line of weakness extends from the exposed edge of the outer wall, which is at the top thereof, at least as far as the bottom of the lip, rib or wall then along it and back up to the exposed edge, whereby said area is surrounded by the line of weakness and by the exposed edge, enabling the area to be broken away from the container to expose the lip, rib or wall. A container and closure member according to claim 1 or 2 in which that side of the line of weakness formed by that part of said wall which is not to be broken away is smoothly curved so that it does not form a sharp or ragged edge when said area has been broken away. A container and closure member according to any of claims 1 to 3 in which the line of weakness at said exposed edge is formed with a notch extending away from the exposed edge, whereby to assist 26 June 199B/9777KAH.690/BS/rti9 -10- area of wall down the line of weakness. / A container and closure member according to any of claims 1 to 4 in which the groove is continuous and is formed by inner and outer walls closed at the bottom by a bight. A container and closure member according to claim 5 in which the lip is in the form of a continuous wall extending substantially normal to the general plane of the aperture. A container and a closure member according to any preceding claim in which the outer wall of the groove is at least half as high from the bottom of the groove as the height of the inner wall of the groove from the bottom of the groove. A container and closure member according to claim 7 in which said outer wall substantially covers the outside surface of the lip, rib or wall when the closure member is fitted to the container. A container and closure member according to claim 8 in which no part of the closure member, in the region of the lip, rib or wall, protrudes outwardly past said outside surface, to prevent a tool or fingernail being able to catch under such part in an attempt to remove the closure member. A container and a closure member according to any of claims 1 to 9, in which one of the internal faces of the groove and said lip, rib or wall of the closure member are both provided with protrusions, shaped and located such that as the closure member is fitted to the container, said protrusion of the closure member rides over the protrusion of the container, whereby the closure member clicks into place, and in which the bottom edge of the closure member is entered into the groove of the container before the closure member protrusion starts to ride over the container protrusion. -11- 286913 11. A container and a closure member according to claim 10 in which the inner wall of the groove is provided with a plurality of vertical ribs directed radially outwardly towards the lower part of the lip, rib or wall of the closure member, when the latter is fitted to the container. 12. A tamper-evident and/or resistant container constructed and arranged and adapted to operate substantially as described herein and as shown in the accompanying drawings. 15 JAMES W PIPER & CO Attorneys for the applicant Peter John Tasker and Rinaldo Gruber 20 25 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY OFFICE OF N.Z. 22 KC3 RECEIVED 26 June 199B/9777MAK.699/BS/ras </div>