US3324993A

US3324993A - Container

Info

Publication number: US3324993A
Application number: US555482A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edward C Bruno
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1966-06-06
Filing date: 1966-06-06
Publication date: 1967-06-13
Anticipated expiration: 1984-06-13

Description

E. C. BRUNO June 13, 1967 CONTAINER Filed June 6, 1966 INVENTQR. EDWARD C. BRUNO ATTORNEYS United States Patent C 3,324,993 CONTAINER Edward C. Bruno, 1880 S. Monaco, Denver, Colo. 80222 Filed June 6, 1966, Ser. No. 555,482 11 Claims. (Cl. 206-1) This invention relates to a container and particularly to a container which can be shipped and stored in compactly lpacked, kno-ck-down form and can be rapidly and conveniently assembled from storage as required to iill orders.

There isa need to expand the delightful custom of sending ilowers great distances as a means of showing ones appreciation or remembrance -for another. In 4addition to llowers, fruits, nuts, candied fruits, fruit cakes, and the like, can also be sent in this manner. The material being sent would be packaged locally, as in the case of owers, and delivered to the person to whom they are sent by local merchants. The local merchant would select choice merchandise, usually fancy quality from his stock and package it in very attractive gift packages. Such gift packages should involve the use of a container which can be shipped `and stored in com-pactly packed, knock-- down form and which can be rapidly and -conveniently assembled in the desired sizes, as needed, from storage, preff erably without the use of elaborate `or special tools or the need for persons with special skills. However, heretofore all gift packages except for the package shown in my patent application Ser. No. 375,102 (led June 15, 1964), have been disadvantageous either because of the high cost, often in excess of twenty percent of the retail price for the container and its contents, or the unappealing and unattractive appearance. It has been discovered, however, that a container extremely attractive in appearance may be easily assembled from parts at a point remote from the place where such parts are made and that the cost of the assembled container will be much less than the twenty percent of the retail price of the container and its contents. Part of this cost 4reduction results from the fact that the vention are obtained by providing a container comprising abowl-shaped base portion, said base portion including' au upper annular portion having an outer surface the upper part of which has la substantially constant diameter, said base portion having an inner, radially extending ledge portion, said lbase portion having a 'bottom wall spaced below said ledge portion; a flexible, annular cylindrical portion, preferably formed from transparent material, 4having an inner `diameter substantially equal to the outer diameter of the upper portion of said base portion, said cylindrical portion being mounted upon said base portion by havin-g one end thereof disposed in encompassing engagement about the upper portion of said base portion; a sheet mem` ber having a plurality `of openings formed therethrough, s'aid sheet member having portions thereof mounted upon' and supported by said ledge portion; and means for securing said base portion relative to'said cylindrical portion to prevent inadvertent separation thereof. Each base portion is designed such that one base portion' will readily nest within a similar base portion to provide compact packaging thereof. The sheet member preferably has an opening formed through the center thereof and at least four uniformly, angularly displaced openings formed therethrough. The container in its preferred embodiment also includes atelescopablecap portion mounted upon the upper end of the cylindrical portion. The means for securing said base portion relative to said cylindrical portion preferably includes pressure-sensitive strips a por-l tion of each being attached to the lower part of said cylindr'ical portion and an outer surface portion of said base portion.

A more detailed description of specific embodiments of the invention is given lbelow with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded, vertical, cross-sectional view showing the various members of yone embodiment of the parts for the container may be shipped in a compact form of Ways long after the contents of the container have been i Y' consumed.

Accordingly, it is a primary object of this invention to provide an yattractive container which can be shipped to a receiver in knock-down fo-rm for compact storage and eicierit assembly in individual units as required.

Another object of this invention is to provide components for an inexpensive, easily assembled, attractive transparent container.

Another object of this invention is to provide an attractive, telescopable container.

Another object of this invention is'to provide an inexpensive attractive container that can be assembled and used without the use of adhesive materials.

Another object `of this invention is to provide an improved container including a base portion that may be y readily used in a number of ways after the contents of the container have been consumed.

Additional objects of this invention will become apparent from the followin-g description, which is given primarily for purposes of illustration, and not limitation.

Briefly stated in general terms, the objects of this incontainer constructed in accordance with this invention; FIGURE 2 is a plan view taken along line 2-2 of FIGURE 1; i

I' FIGURE 3 is an isometric view showing another embodiment of the cylindrical portion of the container;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical sectional view showing the container in FIGURE 1 assembled and packed with various items; and

FIGURE 5 is a vertical sectional view'showing a plurality of base portions in compactly stacked relationship. Referring now to the drawings, in FIGURE 1 is shown an exploded sectional View of the various members comprising a container constructed in accordance with the subject invention. The container comprises a bowl-shaped portion 14, a sheet member 16 having a plurality of openings formed therethrough, a flexible, preferably transparent, cylindrical portion 18, a telescopable cap portion 20 and pressure sensitive strips 22. The bowlshaped base portion 14 includes an upper annular portion 24 which has an outer surface the upper part 26 of which has a substantially constant diameter. Said base portion 14 also has an inner, radially extending ledge portion 28 and a vbottom wall 30 spaced below said ledge portion 28.

The ilexible, annular cylindrical portion 18 is an openend cylinder in which the walls are made of sheet niaterial which is provided with a vertical slit so that it overlaps to a suitable extent. The inside diameter of the cylindrical portion 18 preferably is made substantially equal to the outside diameter of the outer surface portion 26 of said base portionv14 so that the cylindrical portion 18 can be tted around lthe outer surface portion 26 in overlapping relationship and secured in position by pressure-sensitive adhesive tape 22, such as cellophane tape sold under the trademark Scotch Brand Cellophaiie Tape'.

Patented June 13, 1967.'

Preferably, two or more strips of tape 22 are used. Cylindrical portion 18 preferably is made from a clear or transparent sheet plastic material such as cellulose acetate, methyl methacrylate, polyethylene, so that the items packed in the assembled container present an attractive appearance from the outside of the container. For purposes of shipping, a plurality of cylindrical portions 18 are preferably compactly folded and disposed within a like member. For instance, 11 of these members in folded form fit within and substantially iill a twelfth member without any damage occurring to any of the twelve.

The telescopable cap portion 20 includes a cylindrical side portion 32 and a circular top portion 34. One or more holes 36 are preferably formed through the circular top portion 34 to provide ventilation for the items packaged in the assembled container and to prevent condensation of moisture on the inside walls of the container. Such holes also serve the purpose of attaching decorative colored ribbon or bow (not shown) on the top of the container. The inside diameter of the cylindrical portion 32 of said cap 20 is substantially equal to the outside diameter of the cylindrical portion 78 so that the cap or cover member 20 can be tightly fitted over the outside walls of the cylindrical portion 18 and in tight cont-act with the items packaged in the assembled container, as shown in FIGURE 4. Cap portion 20 can be formed of the same material of which cylindrical side portion 32 is of sutiicient length to permit telescoping thereof relative to the external mating surface o'f cylindrical portion 18 to permit easily and conveniently packaging of a combination of objects of varying, non-uniform size and shape.

Referring again to the bowl-shaped portion 14, in FIG URES 1, 4 and 5 the bowl-shaped portion 14 is shown as having the outer surface 38 of the lower part thereof as being truncately shaped. Likewise, the inner surface 40 of the lower part of said base portion is also truncately shaped. The base portion 14 also preferably includes a surface portion 42 extending radially inwardly from the outer surface of the upper part of said base portion that has a substantially constant diameter.

It will be readily appreciated that the various parts or members of the container of this invention can be cornpactly packed for shipment by stacking or intertting a plurality of like members. Thus, a group of base portions 14 is shown stacked in FIGURE 5. It will be appreciated that while a single .base portion 14 has an overall height of L, six such members which are stacked in the manner vshown in FIGURE will have an overall height of less than 3L. Thus, a large number of base portions 14 may be conveniently and easily compactly packed for shipping.

The sheet member 16 shown in FIGURES l, 2 and 4 is circular in shape and has a plurality of openings 44 uniformly angularly displaced therearound. Said sheet member 16 also preferably includes a centrally formed opening 46. Although each opening 44 may be cylindrically shaped as is opening 46, it is preferred that the surface of each opening 44 comprises the outer surface portion of a segmental part of an inverted cone, as shown. The purpose for forming the surface circumscribing e-ach opening 44 in this manner is to present a larger contact area between the sheet member 16 and the article 48 to be disposed in contact thereupon. Thus, through the use of this increased yarea of contact, there is less chance of bruising or marring the surface of article 48 which, in many instances, is a piece of fruit. The purpose for central opening 46 is to receive and hold a cylindrical shaped item 50 which may be a bottle of fruit juice or the like.

In FIGURE 3 is shown an alternate cylindrical portion 52. Cylindrical portion 52 is substantially identical to cylindrical portion 18 except that it is additionally provided with an internal band 54 or bead or boss or the like which preferably is substantially continuous is peripheral length and disposed to abut against surface portion 42 formed on said base portion 14. This arrangement provides convenient support for the band or boss portion 54 to permit a filled container to be grasped about the cylindrical portion 52 when raised or lifted without causing separation between the cylindrical 4portion 52 and the base portion 14. Suiicient interface friction exists between the contacting surfaces of cylindrical portion 52 and the base portion 14 to prevent the cylindrical portion '52 from sliding downwardly relative to the base portion 14.

Referring now to FIGURE 4, a container constructed in accordance with this invention is shown in the assembled condition and is filled with a variety of items such as spherically shaped articles 48 whichmay comprise pieces of fruit, a ibottle 50 and pieces of candy or fruit 56. The cylindrical portion 18 is secured relative to the base portion 14 by pressure sensitive adhesive tape 22 as shown. As previously explained, the cylindrical portion 52 as shown in FIGURE 3 may be substituted for the cylindrical portion 18 and the pressure sensitive tape 22 of FIGURE 4.

From the above description, it will be readily 4apparent that an inexpensive, extremely attractive knock-down container has been described. One preferred method of shipping a plurality of containers as described herein involves the stacking of twelve base portions 14 in compact arrangement in the end of the shipping container or box, the placement of twelve cylindrical portions 18 .in the central portion of said box, the stacking of six groups of cap portions 20 in the other end of the box, each group including two cap members 13, and the stacking of 12 sheet members 16 some of which will tit within one of the bowl portions 14 and the remaining of which may be conveniently packed in a number of places such as within the cap portions 20. The overall dimension of a box containing parts for -twelve such units where the cylindrical portion 18 has a length of approximately 10 inches and a diameter of approximately 7 inches, is approximately 14% x 11% x 71746 inches and has a gross weight of approximately 5 lbs.

Obviously, other modifications and variations of the container of the present invention are possible in the light of the above teachings. For example, it will be readily appreciated that the ledge portion 28 may be either continuous or intermittent in peripheral extent. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

I claim:

1. A container comprising: a bowl-shaped base portion, said base portion including an upper annular portion having an outer surface the upper part of which has a substantially constant diameter, said base portion having an inner, radially extending ledge portion, said base portion having a bottom wall spaced below said ledge portion; a flexible, annular cylindrical portion having an inner diameter substantially equal to the outer diameter of the upper portion of said base portion, said cylindrical i portion being mounted upon said base portion by having one end thereof disposed in encompassing engagement about the upper portion of said base portion; a sheet member having a plurality of openings formed therethrough, said sheet member having portions thereof` mounted upon and supported by said `ledge portion; and means for securing said base portion lrelative to said cylindrical portion to prevent inadvertent separation thereof.

2. A container as described `in claim 1 in which at least the outer surface of the lower part of said base portion is truncately shaped and said cylindrical portion is formed of a transparent material.

3. A container as described in claim 1 in which said sheet member has an opening formed through the center thereof and at least four uniformly, angularly displaced openings formed therethrough, said four openings being concentrically disposed about said centrally disposed opening.

4. A container as described in claim 1 in which said means for securing said base portion -relative to said cylindrical portion includes pressure-sensitive strips a portion of each being attached to the lower part of said cylindrical portion and an outer surface portion of said base portion.

5. A container as described in claim 1 in which said means for securing said base portion relative to said cylindrical portion includes a surface portion extending radially inwardly from said base portions outer surface of the upper part that has a substantially constant diameter, and an inner radially extending surface portion formed adjacent the lower part of said cylindrical portion, said radially inwardly extending surface portion of `said base portion and said inner radially extending surface portion of said cylindrical portion being disposed in abutting engagement.

6. A container as described in claim 1 including a telescopable cap portion mounted upon the other end of said cylindrical portion.

7. A container as described in claim 1 in which at least the outer surface of the lower part of said base portion is truncately shaped and said sheet member has an opening formed through the center thereof and at least four uniformly, angularly displaced openings formed therethrough, said four openings being concent-rically disposed about said centrally disposed opening.

8. A container as described in claim 7 in which said means for securing said base portion relative to said cylindrical portion includes pressure-sensitive strips a portion of each being attached to the lower part of said cylindrical portion and an outer surface portion of said base portion.

9. A container as described in claim 7 in which said means for securing said base portion relative to said cylindrical portion includes a surface portion extending radially inwardly from said base portons outer surface of the upper part that has a substantially constant diam. eter, and an inner radially inwardly extending surface portion formed adjacent the lower part of said cylindrical portion, said radially inwardly extending surface portion of said base portion and said inner radially extending sur.. face portion of said cylindrical portion being disposed in abutting engagement.

10. A container as described in claim 7 including a telescopable cap portion mounted upon the other end of said cylindrical portion.

11. A container as described in claim 8 including a telescopable cap portion mounted upon the other end of said cylindrical portion.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,521,184 9/1950 Paige 20G-45.35 X 3,269,578 8/1966 Lewis 206-45.34 X

LOUIS G. MANCENE, Primary Examiner.

Claims

1. A CONTAINER COMPRISING: A BOWL-SHAPED BASE PORTION, SAID BASE PORTION INCLUDING AN UPPER ANNULAR PORTION HAVING AN OUTER SURFACE THE UPPER PART OF WHICH HAS A SUBSTANTIALY CONSTANT DIAMETER, SAID BASE PORTION HAVING AN INNER, RADIALLY EXTENDING LEDGE PORTION, SAID BASE PORTION HAVING A BOTTOM WALL SPACED BELOW SAID LEDGE PORTION; A FLEXIBLE, ANNULAR CYLINDRICAL PORTION HAVING AN INNER DIAMETER SUBSTANTIALLY EQUAL TO THE OUTER DIAMETER OF THE UPPER PORTION OF SAID BASE PORTION, SAID CYLINDRICAL PORTION BEING MOUNTED UPON SAID BASE PORTION BY HAVING ONE END THEREOF DISPOSED IN ENCOMPASSING ENGAGEMENT