US3702203A - Container carrier - Google Patents

Abstract

A CARRIER FOR TWO OR MORE CONTAINERS HAVING A PERIPHERAL ENLARGMENT COMPRISES A STRIP-FORM BLANK COMPOSED OF TRANSVERSELY RIGID MATERIAL AND HAVING INTEGRALLY FORMED, TRANSVERSELY OFFSET HANDLE LOOPS AT OPPOSITE ENDS OF A MEDIAL STRAP PORTION. THE CARRIER IS DEFLECTED INTO A FIGURE 8 CONFIGURATION WITH THE HANDLE LOOPS OPPOSITELY DISPOSED AT THE JUNCTURE OF THE LOOPS FORMING THE FIGURE 8 AND WITH THE MEDIAL STRAP PASSING THROUGH THE HANDLE LOOPS, THEREBY TO FORM A CARRIER FOR CONVENIENTLY TANSPORTING A PAIR OF CONTAINERS. A PAIR OF THE CARRIER BLANKS

MAY BE FORMED INTO FOUR LOOPS AND JOINED TOGETHER IN A MANNER TO FORM A CARRIER FOR FOUR SIMILAR CONTAINERS.

Description

Nov. 7, 1972 F, OL MANNS 3,702,203

CONTAINER CARRIER Filed Oct. 19. 1970 l .\'VE.\'T(JR. 650265 F 47M1 I w ,yrmxx'liys n. y

United States Patent 3,702,203 CONTAINER CARRIER George F. Oltmanns, 2528 Pensacola Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60618 Filed Oct. 19, 1970, Ser. No. 81,887 Int. Cl. 365d 23/10 US. Cl. 294-87.2 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A carrier for two .or more containers having a peripheral enlargement comprises a strip-form blank composed of transversely rigid material and having integrally formed, transversely offset handle loops at opposite ends of a medial strap portion. The carrier is deflected into a figure 8 configuration with the handle loops oppositely disposed at the juncture of the loops forming the figure 8 and with the medial strap passing through the handle loops, thereby to form a carrier for conveniently transporting a pair of containers. A pair of the carrier blanks may be formed into four loops and joined together in a manner to form a carrier for four similar containers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention The present invention relates generally to a container or article carrier, and more particularly refers to a container carrier blank deflectable into a configuration capable of supporting substantial axial loads and attachable to containers having peripheral enlargements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is contemplated by the present invention to provide a container carrier blank composed of strip-form, transversely rigid material deflectable into a configuration for attachment to cylindrical containers having peripheral enlargements, depressions or ridges. The carrier blank has a medial strap portion and is characterized by a transversely offset handle loop formed at opposite end portions of the strap.

A carrier for two containers is formed by deflecting the flexible blank into a figure '8 configuration with the handle loops disposed at a juncture of the circular portions forming the figure 8 configuration. In that manner, a pair of joined loops for individually holding the containers are formed with a handle positioned between the joined containers.

Each of the handle loops has an enlarged opening formed in the offset portion thereof to provide a finger hold for gripping the handle. A retaining slot communicating with the enlarged hole via a necked portion receives the strap, In order to form the carrier blank into a carrier for two containers, one of the handle loops is passed through the enlarged opening of the other handle loop and the loop thus formed is passed through the enlarged opening of the first mentioned handle. When assembled, the strap portion is shifted into the retaining slots formed in each of the handles. Accordingly, the present invention provides a one-piece container carrier having an integral handle portion and being capable of supporting substantial 'ice axial loads due to the transverse rigidity of the carrier blank.

The formed container carrier engages the peripheral lip portion of cans or similar containers. Also, on glass or plastic jars of the type having a reduced diameter waist or an upper enlarged portion, the container carrier may support the jars by engaging the depending surface formed by the waist or the enlarged portion. For jars having a substantially straight vertical sidewall, it is contemplated by the present invention to form ridges, grooves or lugs on the container sidewalls, thereby to provide downwardly projecting surfaces to be engaged by the container carrier.

Also, a pair of container blanks may be deflected and joined in a manner to form a four-container carrier.

The carrier of the present invention may be attached to the containers subsequent to exhausting a product contained therein for converting the empty container into a convenient portable carrier for tools, miscellaneous items and the like. Also, the container carrier may be conveniently attacher by a packager to facilitate the sale of multiple containers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an isometric view, partially broken away, and illustrates an assembled container carrier embodying the features of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a carrier blank for the container carrier illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 are partial sectional views of a side- Wall of a container and illustrate various forms of lugs, ridges or grooves formed on the container sidewall for engagement with the container carrier of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, a container carrier 10, constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention, is shown attached to a pair of containers 11, 11. Each of the containers 11 may have a reduced waist as at 12 forming a downwardly projecting surface 13 against which the carrier 10 may abut in a manner to axially sup port the containers.

The containers 11 may contain a packaged product, such as coffee, a beverage, paint, etc., where the packager or retailer desires to provide a convenient carrier to facilitate marketing the packaged product in multiple units. Also, the container carrier 10 may be applied to emptied containers, thereby converting an otherwise useless container into a convenient carrier for tools, miscellaneous items and the like.

In accordance with the principles of the present invention, the container carrier 10 is constructed from a sheetform blank having a medial strap portion 14 and a pair of identical handle portions 16, 16' formed at opposite ends of the strap 14. The strap portion 14 is composed of a flexible material and is sized to have a substantial transverse rigidity for preventing the collapse thereof when the carrier 10 is subjected to substantial axial loads, such as the weight of the container 11 plus a product which may be packaged therein.

Each of the handles 16 has an offset loop 17 forming an enlarged opening 18. The opening 18 is sized to provide a finger hole to enable a users gripping the carrier manually. If desired, the configuration of the loop 17 may deviate from that illustrated in the drawings in a manner to form a handle to meet the requirements of a particular application.

A retaining slot 19 communicating with the opening 18 via a necked passageway 21 receives the medial strap portion 14 when the carrier 10 is assembled. The retaining slot 19 is disposed in alignment with the strap portion 14 and has a generally rectangular configuration sized to loosely receive the generally rectangular strap. In particular, the retaining slot 19 is formed with a bottom wall 22 spaced below a lower edge 23 of the strap 14 and a pair of top wall portions 24, 24 flanking the passageway 21 and spaced slightly above the upper edge 26 of the strap. The necked passageway 21 is only slightly greater than the thickness of the strap 14, and thus, the upper walls 24, 24 of the retaining slot 19 tend to snag the strap for preventing inadvertent displacement of the same from the retaining slot. In order to permit the assembly of more than one of the carrier blanks 10 in a configuration for supporting a multiplicity of containers, the retaining slot may have a width slightly in excess of twice the thickness of the strap 14.

An enlarged, depending web 27 extending oppositely of the handle loop portion 17 reinforces the handle in the area below the retaining slot 19, thereby enhancing the capability of the carrier 10 to support substantial axial loads.

In accordance with the present invention, the flexible carrier blank 10, as illustrated in FIG. 2, is deflected into a figure 8 configuration with the pair of handles 16, 16 disposed on opposite sides of a juncture of the pair of loops forming the figure 8, as shown in FIG. 1. The procedure for applying the carrier 10 to the containers 11 includes placing one of the pair of handles 16 through the opening 18 of the opposite handle. The loop thus formed is then pulled through the opening of the first mentioned one of the handles 16 in a manner so that the handles are oppositely located, thereby forming the figure 8 configuration. The loops formed by the strap portion 14 of the carrier are slipped over the containers 11, 11 and the handles 16 are pulled up to bring the loops firmly onto the supporting surfaces 13, 13 and to shift the mid-point of the strap 14 into the rectangular retaining slots 19 for locking the handles into their proper position.

In order to provide a snug fit on the containers 11, the carrier blank 10 is optimally dimensioned with the distance between the centers of the retaining slots 19 selected to be substantially twice the diameter of the portion of the containers gripped by the carriers 10.

As illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, it is also contemplated by the present invention to form the containers 11 without a reduced diametered waist for forming an abutment surface to be engaged by the carrier 10. In one embodiment, lugs 31 are formed on the containers 11a, as illustrated in FIG. 3. A minimum of four lugs, equally circumferentially spaced around the container 11a are required for properly supporting the containers. The lugs 31 form a depending, abutment surface 32 for engaging the upper edge 26 of the strap portion 14. Also, as shown in FIG. 4, a continuous ridge 33 may be formed around the container 11b for providing a depending or downwardly projecting abutment surface as at 34. Alternatively, the container 110, as illustrated in FIG. 5, may have a peripheral groove 36 cast or molded therein for forming a downwardly projecting abutment surface 37 to be engaged by the container carrier 10 in a manner to axially support the containers.

It is also contemplated by the present invention to utilize a pair of the carrier blanks 10 for forming a fourunit container carrier. The four-unit carrier is assembled by placing two of the carrier blanks 10 in an overlapped,

side-by-side position and then turning any one of the four handles 16 outwardly and passing the two oppositely disposed handles through the enlarged opening 18 of the outwardly turned handle. That operation is then repeated for the handle disposed initially adjacent to the first mentioned handle. Next, each of the remaining two handles is then turned outwardly and the previously formed pair of loops as well as the previously manipulated handles are passed through the enlarged openings 18 of each of the remaining handles, thereby to form four loops with the handles disposed at a juncture between the formed loops. With the handles 16 in a lowered position so that the strap portions 14 pass through the enlarged opening 18, the four loops are positioned over four similar containers so that the straps are disposed in a position to abut a downwardly projecting surface. Once the loops have been properly positioned on the containers, the four handles are pulled upwardly to force the strap portions 14 into the retaining slots 19 in a manner to lock the carrier in position. The assembly operation may be quickly accomplished by placing the pair of carrier blanks 10 in an appropriate fork jig.

Although those versed in the art might suggest various minor modifications, it should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art.

I claim as my invention:

1. A carrier for a plurality of containers which have means forming a peripheral, downwardly projecting abutment surface, comprising: means forming a flexible sheetform member having a medial strap portion and a pair of handle portions respectively formed at opposite ends of said medial strap portion, each said handle portion including a loop transversely offset of said strapportion and forming an enlarged opening sized to permit passage of one of said handle portions therethrough and to form a manually engageable grip portion, said handle portion having a strap-retaining slot formed therein in substantial alignment with said strap portion and communicating with said enlarged opening for receiving said strap portion in the assembled position, said sheet-form member being deflected into a figure 8 configuration to form a pair of loops for encircling a pair of similar containers, and said handles being disposed in a side-by-side relationship at a juncture of the loops and having said strap portion passing through said slots, said handle portion having a necked passageway communicating said enlarged opening with said retaining slot and said retaining slot being formed with a pair of locking surfaces flanking said necked passageway for preventing inadvertent, upward movement of said strap from said retaining slot.

2. A carrier as defined in claim 1 and further characterized by said strap portion having a width sized to provide substantial transverse rigidity to said strap portion.

3. A sheet-form blank composed of flexible material and being formable into a carrier for a plurality of containers, said blank comprising a medial elongated strap portion having opposite ends and a pair of handle portions formed at and extending substantially transversely of the strap opposite ends, said strap having a transverse width sized to provide substantial transverse rigidity, and each said handle including a loop portion forming an enlarged opening sized to permit one of said handles to be passed therethrough and to form a manually engageable grip portion, each said handle also including a retaining slot, extending transverse to the axis of said elongated strap portion, sized to receive said strap portion and being disposed substantially in alignment therewith and communicating with said enlarged opening.

4. A carrier for a plurality of containers, comprising handle means and elongated strap means formed from flexible sheet-form material, said strap means in elongated direction having a dimension such that it may substantially encircle a desired plurality of adjacently dis- 6 posed similarly positioned containers, said handle means References Cited farming a1 manually engageable grip portion of annular UNITED STATES PATENTS s ape an strap-receiving and retainin slot means disposed below and communicating with sfid annular-shaped 2970729 2/1961 Allen 224 55 grip portion, said slot means being of a size to receive 5 FOREIGN PATENTS an aligned intermediate portion of said strap means to 7 4 7 11/1966 Italy form a plurality of laterally aligned loops therein, each 2 17 1923 Italy 24 45 of a size to horizontally encircle and supportingly engage a respective container, with said grip portion being dis- 1 EVON C. BLUNK, Primary Examiner posed substantially at one side of the plane of the plurality O L CHERRY, Assistant Examiner of laterally allgned loops whereby such containers may depend downwardly below the respective supporting loops S L with the grip portion extending above the uppermost portions of such depending containers. 15 2416 215*100 22445 AA

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