WO1995033659A1 - Cover for a bottle containing a beverage - Google Patents

Cover for a bottle containing a beverage Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1995033659A1
WO1995033659A1 PCT/US1995/007219 US9507219W WO9533659A1 WO 1995033659 A1 WO1995033659 A1 WO 1995033659A1 US 9507219 W US9507219 W US 9507219W WO 9533659 A1 WO9533659 A1 WO 9533659A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
cover
bottle
sheet
beverage
disposed
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US1995/007219
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Donald E. Weder
Original Assignee
Highland Supply Corporation
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Highland Supply Corporation filed Critical Highland Supply Corporation
Publication of WO1995033659A1 publication Critical patent/WO1995033659A1/en

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
    • B65D41/00—Caps, e.g. crown caps or crown seals, i.e. members having parts arranged for engagement with the external periphery of a neck or wall defining a pouring opening or discharge aperture; Protective cap-like covers for closure members, e.g. decorative covers of metal foil or paper
    • B65D41/62—Secondary protective cap-like outer covers for closure members

Definitions

  • This invention relates to covers for bottles, and, more particularly, to covers for bottles containing beverages or capable of containing beverages therein, the coverings having a bonding material thereon, and methods of using same.
  • a cover for a bottle containing a beverage.
  • the cover comprises a sheet of material formed into a shape for covering the opening of the bottle.
  • the cover may have a bonding material thereon.
  • the cover is disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle, the cover being disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle. At least a portion of the cover is bondingly connected to the outer surface of the bottle.
  • the invention similarly provides a method for covering a bottle containing a beverage, the method providing a sheet of material formed into a cover for covering the opening of the bottle, the cover having a bonding material thereon, the cover sized and shaped to be disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle.
  • the cover is disposed over the upper end of the bottle such that at least a portion of the cover is disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle, at least a portion of the cover being bondingly connecting to the outer surface of the bottle to connect the cover to the outer surface of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle.
  • Figure 1 is a perspective view of the sheet of material used to construct the cover of the present invention, showing the upper surface.
  • Figure 2 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle and a the cover of the present invention being formed about the upper portion of the bottle.
  • Figure 3 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle, the upper portion of the bottle being covered by the cover.
  • Figure 4 is a perspective view of a preformed cover of the present invention.
  • Figure 5 is a perspective view of a bottle capable of containing a beverage of the present invention.
  • Figure 6 is a perspective view of a modified embodiment of the cover shown in Figure 5, the modified cover having a skirt.
  • Figure 7 is a perspective view of the cover of the present invention disposed upon the upper portion of a bottle, the cover being crimped, forming a crimped portion just below the collar of the bottle.
  • Figure 8 is a perspective view of the cover of the present invention disposed upon the upper portion of a bottle, the cover having a plurality of crimped portion, the first crimped portion just below the collar of the bottle, and the second crimped portion spaced a distance below the first crimped portion.
  • Figure 9 is perspective view of one method of use of the present invention, showing a preformed cover being disposed on a bottle.
  • Figure 10 is a perspective view of a bottle having a cover disposed over the upper end thereof.
  • Figure 11 is a perspective view of a modified sheet of material used to construct a modified cover of the present invention, showing the upper surface and showing a plurality of notches in the sheet of material.
  • Figure 12 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle and a modified cover being formed about the upper portion of the bottle utilizing the modified sheet of material shown in Figure 11.
  • Figure 13 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle, the upper portion of the bottle being covered by the modified cover.
  • Figure 14 is a perspective view of a modified preformed cover formed from the modified sheet of material shown in Figure 11.
  • a cover which is constructed from a sheet of material 12 in accordance with the present invention for covering the opening of a bottle containing a beverage therein.
  • the sheet of material 12 may be formed into the cover 10 by disposing the sheet of material 12 over a bottle opening and forming the sheet of material 12 to form a cover 10 over the bottle opening in a manner described in detail below.
  • the cover 10 may be preformed from the sheet of material 12 and then disposed over the bottle opening to cover the bottle opening. Methods of constructing a preformed cover 10 will also be discussed in detail below.
  • the cover 10 formed over a bottle opening from a sheet of material 12 or preformed into a cover 10, has a closed upper end 14, an open lower end 16, and an outer periphery 18 which forms an outer surface 20, an opening 22 being formed in the cover 10 with a portion of the opening 22 intersecting the lower end 16 of the cover 10 forming an inner periphery 24 and an inner surface 26.
  • the cover 10 is formed ( Figures 2-3) , or, alternatively, preformed ( Figure 4) from the sheet of material 12, and once formed or preformed, will retain its shape.
  • the cover 10 is also substantially flexible, and substantially nontearable.
  • the portion of the cover 10 extending from the upper end 14 to the lower end 16 is termed the base 28.
  • the base 28 of the cover 10 may have formed therein overlapping folds 37 (only one such overlapping fold being designated with reference numeral 37 in Figure 1) .
  • the overlapping folds 37 extend at different angles and over different lengths, being generally asymmetrical and nongeometric in form.
  • the overlapping folds 37 comprise a combination of vertical angle overlapping folds, horizontal angle overlapping folds, and arbitrary angle overlapping folds, all of which permit the cover to both expand and contract substantially beyond its formed and/or preformed shape.
  • the sheet of material 12 and/or cover 10 may form any shape or size, including, but not by way of limitation, any geometric, nongeometric, asymmetrical or fanciful shape and/or size, as long as the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 acts as described in detail below to cover the opening of a bottle or container containing a beverage.
  • the cover 10 may comprise a size and/or shape which does not conform precisely or correspond precisely to the size and/or shape of a bottle and/or bottle neck and/or bottle opening which it will cover (not shown) .
  • Such alternative and differing sizes and shapes of the cover 10 may be used to create unique design appearances of the bottle using one or more covers 10.
  • the bottle 38 utilized contains a beverage (not shown) .
  • beverage as used herein means any type of liquid suitable for human consumption, including, but not by way of limitation, water, juice, soda, and any type of alcoholic beverage.
  • the bottle 38 has an upper end 40, a lower end 42 and an outer periphery 44 which forms an outer surface 46 and an opening 48 being formed in the bottle 38 with a portion of the opening 48 intersecting the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 forming an inner periphery 50 and an inner surface 52, the inner periphery 50 and the inner surface 52 defining the retaining space 54 contained within the bottle in which a beverage is retained.
  • the upper portion of the bottle 38, near the upper end 40 has a smaller outer periphery 44 as compared to the outer periphery 44 of the bottle 38 near the lower end 42.
  • the neck 56 of the bottle 38 may also comprises a collar 58 which extends about the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 near the opening 48 in the bottle 38.
  • the portion of the bottle 38 near the lower end 42 which is of a generally consistent diameter along the outer periphery 44 and the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 is the base portion 60. It will be appreciated that the majority of a beverage will be retained within the retaining space 54 of the base portion 60 of the bottle 38.
  • the bottle 38 has a plurality of contours 62 (only one contour designated by the reference numeral 62 in Figure 5) which comprises contours 62 formed within the bottle 38, and which are exposed upon the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38.
  • contours 62 includes, but not by way of limitation, convex and/or concave shaping of portions of the bottle, bottle 38.
  • the opening 48 of the bottle 38 is sized and shaped in a standard configuration known in the industry for receiving a beverage, and the beverage is retained within the retaining space 54 of the bottle 38.
  • Such bottles 38 may be made from a variety of materials. Such materials include, but not by way of limitation, glass, plastic, metal, paper, or combinations thereof.
  • Examples of bottles 38 which are used in accordance with the present invention include, but are not limited to, beer bottles, wine bottles, champagne and/or sparkling wine bottles, wine cooler bottles, soda bottles, juice bottles, water bottles, and the like.
  • the bottle 38 may comprise any size or shape. That is, the bottle 38 may form any geometric shape, nongeometric shape, asymmetrical shape, fanciful shape, and/or combination thereof.
  • the bottle 38 may have a closure device in place, such as, but not by way of limitation, a cork, a cap, a screw top, of the like (not shown) .
  • the closure device is a primary closure device, closing of the bottle to retain the beverage therein, and the cover 10 provides a secondary closure device, to hold the primary closure device in place.
  • the cover 10 may provide the primary closure device.
  • the cover 10 is formed from a sheet of material 12.
  • the sheet of material 12 generally has an upper surface 64, a lower surface 66, and an outer periphery 68.
  • the sheet of material 12 often has a thickness in a range from about 0.1 mils to about 30 mils. Frequently, the sheet of material 12 has a thickness in a range from about 0.2 mils to about 10 mils. In addition, the sheet of material 12 frequently has a thickness in a range from about 0.2 mils to about 3 mils.
  • the sheet of material 12 may be any shape, a square shape being generally suggested in Figure 1 only by way of example.
  • the sheet of material 12, however, may be square, rectangular, circular, or any geometric shape. Further, the sheet of material 12 may be any nongeometric shape, asymmetric shape, and/or fanciful shape. It will be appreciated that the shape of the sheet of material 12 does not necessarily need to conform with the shape of the opening 48 of the bottle 38. That is, for example, a round sheet of material 12 may be formed to cover a square opening 48 on a bottle 38 (not shown) . For example, the round sheet of material 12 may be formed into a square which conforms to the opening 48 and the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 (not shown) .
  • the round sheet of material 12 may be formed into a generally cylindrically shaped cover 10 with a closed upper end 14 and, when applied to the outer surface 46 of the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, will conform to the shape of the outer surface 46 of the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 by either expanding or contracting beyond its preformed shape to cover the upper end 40 and the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38.
  • This expansion and/or contraction may, in one embodiment, be permitted by the overlapping folds 37, which permit the cover 10 to expand and contract substantially beyond its preformed shape, thereby providing a flexible cover 10 for the bottle 38.
  • slits or notched portions of the cover 10 may aid in the cover 10 conforming to the upper end 40 of a bottle 38 ( Figures 11-14) .
  • the sheet of material 12 may be constructed of a single layer of a material or a plurality of layers of the same or different types of materials. Any thickness of the sheet of material 12 may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material 12 is capable of flexibility and capable of being preformed into an object, namely, the cover 10 described herein.
  • the layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 may be connected together, or laminated together, or may be separate. It will be further appreciated that the layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 need not be uniform in shape, size, or composition.
  • any thickness of the sheet of material 12 may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material 12 may be preformed into a cover 10 as described herein.
  • the sheets of material 12 shown in all embodiments herein are substantially flat before being preformed into covers 10.
  • the sheet of material 12 is constructed from two polypropylene films (a 20" x 15" sheet of Mobil 270ABW white opaque film laminated to a 20" x 15" sheet of Mobil 220AB clear film) having a thickness in a range from a less than about 0.5 mils to about 3 mils.
  • the layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 may be connected together or laminated or may be separate layers.
  • the sheet of material 12 is constructed from any suitable material that is capable of being preformed into a cover 10 and which functions as described herein.
  • the sheet of material 12 comprises paper (treated or untreated in any manner) , cellophane, foil, polymer film, metallic film, fabric (woven or nonwoven, synthetic or natural) , burlap, fiber (natural and/or synthetic) or combinations thereof.
  • polymer film means a man-made polymer such as a polypropylene or a naturally occurring polymer such as cellophane.
  • a polymer film is relatively strong and not a subject to tearing (substantially nontearable) , as might be the case with paper or foil.
  • the sheet of material 12 may vary in color. Further, the sheet of material 12 may consist of designs or decorative patterns which are printed, etched, and/or embossed thereon using inks or other printing materials.
  • inks or other printing materials An example of an ink which may be applied to the surface of the sheet of material 12 is described in U.S. Patent No. 5,147,706, entitled, “Water Based Ink On Foil And/Or Synthetic Organic Polymer,” issued to Kingman on Sept. 15,
  • the sheet of material 12 may have various colorings, coatings, flockings and/or metallic finishes, or other decorative surface ornamentation applied separately or simultaneously or may be characterized totally or partially by pearlescent, translucent, transparent, iridescent, neon or the like, qualities.
  • Each of the above named characteristics may occur alone or in combination and may be applied to the upper and/or lower surface of the sheet of material 12.
  • each surface of the sheet of material 12 may vary in the combination of such characteristics.
  • the sheet of material itself may be opaque, translucent or partially clear or tinted transparent.
  • a bonding material 70 may be disposed on at least a portion of a surface of the sheet of material 12, or the bonding material may be disposed on, for example, the inner surface 52 of the cover 10.
  • the cover 10 may be free of a bonding material 70, the bonding material 70 being instead disposed upon at least a portion of the neck 56 and/or upper end 40 and/or collar 58 of the bottle 38 (not shown) .
  • the cover 10 may have a bonding material 70 disposed both upon at least a portion of the inner surface 52 of the cover 10 and upon a portion of the neck 56 and/or upper end 40 and/or collar 58 of the bottle 38.
  • the bonding material 70 may be disposed on at least a portion of the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 and this embodiment may be shown with any of the aforementioned embodiments. As shown in Figure 2, the bonding material 70 is disposed in one embodiment adjacent the inner surface 26 of the cover 10 and extends generally between the upper and lower ends 14 and 16 respectively of the base 28 of the cover 10 and may also, alternatively, extend across the inner surface 26 of the lower end 16 of the cover 10.
  • the bonding material 70 is disposed substantially over the inner surface 26 of the cover 10, although it will be appreciated that the bonding material 70 also could be applied in spaced apart spots (not shown) , or the bonding material 70 could also be disposed in strips of bonding material (not shown) or in any geometric, nongeometric, asymmetric, and/or fanciful pattern, including covering the entire inner surface 26 of the cover 10, or, alternatively the entire outer surface 20 of the cover 10 as well as the entire inner surface 26 of the cover 10.
  • spot or “spots” as used herein includes any geometric shape of spot, including, but not limited to, what is commonly referred to as strips, as well as nongeometric, asymmetric and/or fanciful (such as a heart or daisy pattern for example) designs and/or patterns. It will be further appreciated that the bonding material 70 disposed on the bottle 38 will have the same characteristics as previously described above.
  • bonding material means an adhesive, often a pressure sensitive adhesive, or a cohesive. Where the bonding material is a cohesive, a similar cohesive material must be placed on the adjacent surface for bondingly contacting and bondingly engaging the cohesive material.
  • bonding material also includes materials which are heat sealable and, in this instance, the adjacent portions of the material must be brought into contact and then heat must be applied to effect the seal.
  • bonding material also includes materials which are sonic, sealable and fibertory sealable.
  • bonding material when used herein also means a heat sealing lacquer which may be applied to a sheet of material 12 and, in this instance, heat, sound waves, and/or vibrations, also must be applied to effect the sealing.
  • bonding material also includes securing the cover 10 by a heat seal to the cover 10.
  • One method of doing this is to contact the cover 10 with an iron or means having sufficient heat to heat seal the material of the cover 10.
  • bonding material when used herein also means any heat or chemically shrinkable material, and static electrical or other electrical means, magnetic means, and/or mechanical means (for example, but not by way of limitation, clamps, or curling type means) which can cause the material of cover 10 to take on shapes, and any type of welding methods which may weld portions of the material of the cover 10 to itself or to the bottle 38 or both the cover 10 to itself and to the bottle.
  • bonding material or means includes a cold seal cohesive adhesive.
  • the cold seal adhesive adheres only to a similar substrate, acting similarly as a cohesive, and binds only to itself.
  • the cold seal adhesive since it adheres (or coheres) only to a similar substrate, does not cause a residue to build up on equipment, thereby permitting much more rapid disposition and use to form articles and/or to seal one article to another, such as a cover 10 to the upper end 40 of a bottle 38.
  • a cold seal adhesive differs also from, for example, a pressure sensitive adhesive, in that a cold seal adhesive is not readily releasable.
  • One bonding material 70 is taught in U.S. Patent No. 5,111,638, entitled, "Method For Wrapping An Object With A Material Having Pressure Sensitive Adhesive Thereon,” issued to Weder on May 12, 1992, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
  • Other bonding materials 70 are known in the art and commercially available. Methods of applying bonding material 70 to sheet material and to items such as the bottle described herein are known in the art and commercially available.
  • the bonding material 70 may be disposed upon the sheet of material 12 before it is formed into a cover 10, or, alternatively, the bonding material 70 may be disposed upon the cover 10 after it is formed.
  • the bonding material 70 may be disposed upon either the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 by spraying, painting, brushing, lacquering, or immersing at least a portion of the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 in the bonding material 70.
  • the bonding material 70 may be disposed mechanically, or by hand, or by any other method known in the art.
  • the bonding material 70 may comprise one or more colors. Further, the bonding material 70 may form at least a portion of a design.
  • design refers to any decorative shape, whether geometric, non- geometric, asymmetric or fanciful (such as a heart shape) which is incorporated into the sheet of material 12 and/or the bottle 38.
  • the bonding material 70 described herein may be provided with at least one release strip (not shown) .
  • a release strip is used to protect the bonding material 70 disposed most frequently on the inner surface 26 of the cover 10, before the cover 10 and the inner surface 26 thereof is disposed adjacent the upper end 40 and neck 56 of the bottle 38.
  • Such a release strip is formed from sheet material and has an upper surface, a lower surface, and an outer periphery.
  • FIG. 1-3 illustrate one method of use of the present invention.
  • a sheet of material 12 and a bottle 38 as described in detail above are provided.
  • the sheet of material 12 is disposed by an operator or mechanical means over the upper end 40 of the bottle with the upper surface 64 and the bonding material 70 thereon disposed adjacent the opening 48 and the upper end 40 of the bottle 38.
  • the sheet of material 12 is centered over the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, the sheet of material 12 covering the opening 48 of the bottle 38.
  • the sheet of material 12 is then smoothed over the upper end 40 of the bottle and over any collar 58 as well as at least a portion of the neck 56 of the bottle 38, either by hand, by mechanical means known in the art, or by any method or combination of methods described herein.
  • the sheet of material 12 is smoothed over a bottle 38, it will be appreciated that the resulting cover 10 conforms to the shape and contours 62 of the portion of the bottle 38 which is covered. It will also be appreciated that to conform to the bottle 38, the cover 10 forms a plurality of overlapping folds 37 ( Figure 3).
  • the cover 10 may also form a decorative skirt 72.
  • decorative skirts are disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 4,773,182, entitled, "Article Forming System,” issued to Weder et al., on September 27, 1988, which has been incorporated previously by reference herein.
  • the sheet of material 12 may be crimped to connect to only a portion, or several portions, of the bottle 38. Such crimping is shown in Figures 7-8. Crimping sheet material is well known in the art. The crimping may be performed either after the sheet of material 12 is at least partially disposed about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 as described above, or, alternatively, the sheet of material 12 is preformed into the cover 10 with the crimping, or at least a portion of the crimping, being performed in the preforming process of making the cover 10.
  • the crimping of the sheet of material 12 or the cover 10 about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 can be performed in any portion, or multiple portions, of the sheet of material 12 or the cover 10. In a further alternative, a degree of crimping may be performed above the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 (not shown) .
  • a crimped portion 74 ( Figure 7) is formed by gathering together a portion of the sheet of material 12 or cover 10, such gathering causing adjacent portions of the inner surface 26 and/or the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 to connect together, forming a crimped portion 74 which extends generally circumferentially about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38.
  • a bonding material 70 is disposed on at least a portion of the inner surface 26 and/or the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 and/or the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 which causes adjacent portions of the cover 10 to be bonded together for forming the crimped portion 74.
  • Crimping may be accomplished by hand or with a device or a machine as may be desired in a particular application.
  • the crimped portion 74 may comprise only adjacent portions of the cover 10, or, alternatively, the crimped portion 74 of the cover 10 may engage a portion of the bottle 38 having a bonding material 70 disposed on at least a portion of the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, the bonding material 70 on the bottle 38 creating a crimped portion 74.
  • the crimped portion 74 frequently engages a portion of the bottle 38 generally near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, but the crimped portion 74 may comprise one or more crimped portions 74 (Figure 8 shows a first crimped portion 74 and a second crimped portion 74') which are crimped at any level along the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, including above the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, for cooperating to maintain the cover 10 assembled about and/or connected to the bottle 38.
  • cover 10 when the cover 10 is crimped about the bottle 38, or above the level of the bottle 38, such a crimping gathers the cover 10 and/or sheet of material 12 inward, in a diameter smaller than the uncrimped diameter of the immediately adjacent portions of the sheet of material 12 and/or cover 10, it being understood that the cover 10 has varying diameters due to the tapered shape of the bottle 38) .
  • the crimped portion 74 ( Figures 7-8) frequently extends circumferentially about the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38.
  • the crimped portion 74 may be desirable to form only at certain positions spaced circumferentially about the upper end 40 and neck 56 of the bottle 38 (not shown) . Further, it will be appreciated that the crimped portion 74 as described herein may be created via the application of a circular band applied to the outer surface 20 of the cover 10.
  • band when used herein means any material which may be secured about an object such as a bottle, such bands commonly being referred to as elastic bands, rubber bands or non-elastic bands and also includes any other type of material such as an elastic or non-elastic string or elastic piece of material, non- elastic piece of material, a round piece of material, a flat piece of material, a ribbon, a piece of paper strip, a piece of plastic strip, a piece of wire, a tie wrap or a twist tie or combinations thereof or any other device capable of gathering material to removably or substantially permanently form a crimped portion and secure the crimped portion formed in the material which may be secured about an object such as the bottle.
  • the band also may include a bow if desired in a particular application.
  • the crimped portion 74 is illustrated primarily with the embodiments shown in Figures 7-8 and described in detail herein. It will be appreciated, however, that the crimped portion 74 may be utilized with any embodiments shown and/or described herein or known to those of ordinary skill in the art.
  • Figures 9-11 illustrate another method of use of the present invention.
  • the cover 10 is preformed from the sheet of material 12 into the shape of a cover 10.
  • the preformed cover 10 shown in Figures 4 and described in detail is formed with overlapping folds 37. It will be appreciated, however, that other methods exist to preform such a cover 10.
  • the cover 10 could also be formed using a fingered holder, thereby holding the sheet of material 12 about the bottle 10.
  • a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,300,312 issued November 17, 1981, entitled, "Flower Pot Covering", which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
  • the cover 10 may also be formed by pushing at least a portion of the bottle 38 and the sheet of material 12 through a ring for forming the sheet of material 12 into a cover 10.
  • Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,733,521, issued March 29, 1988, entitled, "Cover Forming Apparatus" and U.S. Patent No.
  • the cover 10 may be formed from a metallized polymer film. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,795,601, issued January 3, 1989, entitled, “Method of Manufacturing Metallized Thermoplastic Flower Pot Cover” which is hereby incorporated by referenced herein.
  • the cover 10 may be formed with a collar, and, in one alternative, the collar may form at least a portion of the cover 10. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No.
  • the skirt of the cover 10 may be formed at different angles, and may be adjustable. Such an adjustable skirt is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,950,216, issued August 21, 1990, entitled, “Method of Forming a Flower Pot” which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
  • the cover 10 may be formed at least partially from a strip, such as a band, or a ribbon. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 5,038,933, issued August 13, 1991, entitled, "Wrapping Material For Providing a Decorative Covering", U.S. Patent No. 5, 161,348, issued November 10, 1992, entitled, "Wrapping Material For Providing a Decorative Covering", U.S. Patent No.
  • the cover 10 may also comprise a frame, such as a wire or plastic frame.
  • a frame such as a wire or plastic frame.
  • the cover 10 may further comprise a material which has self adhering properties and/or a pre-set curl therein. Such materials are disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,007,229, issued April 16, 1991, entitled, “Method of Wrapping Utilizing a Self Adhering Wrapping Material” and U.S. Patent No. 4,989,396, issued February 5, 1991, entitled, "Curl Wrap and Methods For Using Same", both of which are hereby specifically incorporated by reference herein.
  • the cover 10 may also be formed with pleated overlapping folds. Some of the pleated overlapping folds are connected together, while other pleated folds, or portions thereof, are not connected together. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No.
  • the cover 10 may also be formed having a specific, controlled pleating pattern.
  • a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,073,161, issued December 17, 1991, entitled, "Apparatus For Making a Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Controlled Pleats" and U.S. Patent No. 5, 228,934, issued July 20, 1993, entitled, "A Method of Forming a Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Controlled Pleats", both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
  • the cover 10 may be formed by having a pleating which forms broad, flat panels. Such panels permit a decorative pattern thereupon, the pattern undistorted by irregular overlapping folds, the pattern smoothly displayed on a plurality of flat panel folds.
  • Decorative pattern as used herein means any geometric, non-geometric, asymmetric or fanciful pattern, including letters and/or numbers.
  • Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,127,817, issued July 7, 1992, entitled, “Flat-Paneled Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover Die", U.S. Patent No. 5, 176,609, issued January 5, 1993, entitled, “Apparatus and Method Using Air Pressure and Vacuum to Form Flat Paneled Flower Pot Cover", U.S. Patent No.
  • the cover 10 may also be formed having one or a plurality of "fin” projections. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,221,248, Issued June 22, 1993, entitled, “Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Fins” and U.S. Patent No. 5,286,247, issued February 15, 1994, entitled, “Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Fins", both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
  • a cover 10 preformed in any manner described herein is provided, as is a bottle 38.
  • the cover 10 is disposed either by hand or by any mechanical means known in the art upon the bottle 38.
  • the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 passing through the opening 22 in the cover 10, the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 and the opening 22 therein adjacent and connecting the upper end 14 of the cover 10, the inner surface 26 of the cover 10 adjacent to and contacting the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 in the area of the neck 56 of the bottle 38.
  • the cover 10 generally covers the upper end 40 of the bottle, covering the opening 48, any collar 58 which is present on the bottle 38, and at least a portion of the neck 56 of the bottle.
  • the cover 10 connects to the bottle 38 via bonding material 70.
  • the cover 10 may conform precisely to the contours 62 of the bottle 38. As was described earlier, though, only a portion of the cover 10 may connect to the bottle 38. In this alternative, only selected portions of the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 are connected together. Such a connection creates a decorative appearance. Further, as was also previously described, one or more portions of the cover 10 may be crimped, creating crimped portions 74, either before or after being disposed upon the bottle 38 (not shown) .
  • FIGS 11-14 illustrate another embodiment and method of use of the present invention.
  • the cover 10a and the sheet of material 12a shown in this embodiment and used in this method are constructed exactly the same as the cover 10 and the sheet of material 12 shown in Figures 1-10 and described in detail previously, except that the sheet of material 12a has a plurality of notches 76 (only one of the plurality of notches designated by the numeral 76) in the sheet of material 12a, so that when the sheet of material 12a is applied to the upper end 40a of a bottle 38a, few or no overlapping folds or pleats are created in the cover 10a.
  • the sheet of material 12a may also be preformed into a cover 10a ( Figures 14) .
  • the preformed cover 10a when applied to the upper end 40a of a bottle 38a, has few or no overlapping folds or pleats therein.
  • the material adjacent each of the plurality of notches 76a overlaps to connect the sheet of material 12a into the cover 10a.
  • the cover 10a is disposed on a bottle 38a by any method described herein or known in the art.
  • the sheet of material 12 or a preformed cover 10 may be applied to a bottle 38 by any means known in the art, including but not by way of limitation, by hand or by mechanical means.
  • One apparatus for applying covers to bottles is disclosed in U.S. No. 4,162,601, issued July 31, 1979, entitled, “Secondary Closure Method and Apparatus", which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

Abstract

A cover (10) for covering beverage bottles, comprising a sheet of material (12) which is hand formed or mechanically formed over the upper end of a bottle, or which is preformed to cover the upper end of a bottle thereby retaining the beverage in the bottle. The cover may comprise folds (37), pleats, or notched overlapping portions. Methods of covering a beverage bottle.

Description

COVER FOR A BOTTLE CONTAINING A BEVERAGE
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field Of The Invention This invention relates to covers for bottles, and, more particularly, to covers for bottles containing beverages or capable of containing beverages therein, the coverings having a bonding material thereon, and methods of using same.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A cover is provided for a bottle containing a beverage. The cover comprises a sheet of material formed into a shape for covering the opening of the bottle. The cover may have a bonding material thereon. The cover is disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle, the cover being disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle. At least a portion of the cover is bondingly connected to the outer surface of the bottle.
The invention similarly provides a method for covering a bottle containing a beverage, the method providing a sheet of material formed into a cover for covering the opening of the bottle, the cover having a bonding material thereon, the cover sized and shaped to be disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle. The cover is disposed over the upper end of the bottle such that at least a portion of the cover is disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle, at least a portion of the cover being bondingly connecting to the outer surface of the bottle to connect the cover to the outer surface of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle.
Brief Description Of The Drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view of the sheet of material used to construct the cover of the present invention, showing the upper surface.
Figure 2 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle and a the cover of the present invention being formed about the upper portion of the bottle.
Figure 3 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle, the upper portion of the bottle being covered by the cover.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of a preformed cover of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a perspective view of a bottle capable of containing a beverage of the present invention.
Figure 6 is a perspective view of a modified embodiment of the cover shown in Figure 5, the modified cover having a skirt.
Figure 7 is a perspective view of the cover of the present invention disposed upon the upper portion of a bottle, the cover being crimped, forming a crimped portion just below the collar of the bottle. Figure 8 is a perspective view of the cover of the present invention disposed upon the upper portion of a bottle, the cover having a plurality of crimped portion, the first crimped portion just below the collar of the bottle, and the second crimped portion spaced a distance below the first crimped portion.
Figure 9 is perspective view of one method of use of the present invention, showing a preformed cover being disposed on a bottle.
Figure 10 is a perspective view of a bottle having a cover disposed over the upper end thereof.
Figure 11 is a perspective view of a modified sheet of material used to construct a modified cover of the present invention, showing the upper surface and showing a plurality of notches in the sheet of material. Figure 12 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle and a modified cover being formed about the upper portion of the bottle utilizing the modified sheet of material shown in Figure 11.
Figure imgf000004_0001
Figure 13 is a perspective cutaway view of the upper portion of a bottle, the upper portion of the bottle being covered by the modified cover.
Figure 14 is a perspective view of a modified preformed cover formed from the modified sheet of material shown in Figure 11.
Description Of The Preferred Embodiments
Embodiments And Methods Of Figures 1-10
Referring to Figures 1-4, designated generally by the reference numeral 10 is a cover which is constructed from a sheet of material 12 in accordance with the present invention for covering the opening of a bottle containing a beverage therein. The sheet of material 12 may be formed into the cover 10 by disposing the sheet of material 12 over a bottle opening and forming the sheet of material 12 to form a cover 10 over the bottle opening in a manner described in detail below. Alternatively, the cover 10 may be preformed from the sheet of material 12 and then disposed over the bottle opening to cover the bottle opening. Methods of constructing a preformed cover 10 will also be discussed in detail below.
The cover 10, formed over a bottle opening from a sheet of material 12 or preformed into a cover 10, has a closed upper end 14, an open lower end 16, and an outer periphery 18 which forms an outer surface 20, an opening 22 being formed in the cover 10 with a portion of the opening 22 intersecting the lower end 16 of the cover 10 forming an inner periphery 24 and an inner surface 26.
Referring again to Figures 2-4, it will be understood that the cover 10 is formed (Figures 2-3) , or, alternatively, preformed (Figure 4) from the sheet of material 12, and once formed or preformed, will retain its shape. The cover 10 is also substantially flexible, and substantially nontearable. The portion of the cover 10 extending from the upper end 14 to the lower end 16 is termed the base 28. The base 28 of the cover 10 may have formed therein overlapping folds 37 (only one such overlapping fold being designated with reference numeral 37 in Figure 1) . The overlapping folds 37 extend at different angles and over different lengths, being generally asymmetrical and nongeometric in form. The overlapping folds 37 comprise a combination of vertical angle overlapping folds, horizontal angle overlapping folds, and arbitrary angle overlapping folds, all of which permit the cover to both expand and contract substantially beyond its formed and/or preformed shape.
Materials and methods of forming a sheet of material 12 into an article, such an article including a cover 10 as disclosed herein, are disclosed in: U.S. Patent No. 4,773,182, entitled, "Article Forming System," issued to Weder et al., on September 27, 1988; U.S. Patent No. 4,897,031, entitled, "Article Forming System," issued to Weder et al., on January 30, 1990; and U.S. Patent No. 5,208,027, entitled, "Article Forming System," issued to Weder et al., on May 4, 1993; all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. This method of forming a cover 10 generally forms overlapping folds 37 into the cover 10 when a sheet of material 12, such as the one shown in Figure 1, is used.
It will be appreciated that the sheet of material 12 and/or cover 10 may form any shape or size, including, but not by way of limitation, any geometric, nongeometric, asymmetrical or fanciful shape and/or size, as long as the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 acts as described in detail below to cover the opening of a bottle or container containing a beverage. Alternatively, however, the cover 10 may comprise a size and/or shape which does not conform precisely or correspond precisely to the size and/or shape of a bottle and/or bottle neck and/or bottle opening which it will cover (not shown) . Such alternative and differing sizes and shapes of the cover 10 may be used to create unique design appearances of the bottle using one or more covers 10.
The bottle 38 utilized contains a beverage (not shown) . The term "beverage" as used herein means any type of liquid suitable for human consumption, including, but not by way of limitation, water, juice, soda, and any type of alcoholic beverage.
One type of bottle is shown in Figure 5, and is generally designated by the numeral 38. The bottle 38 has an upper end 40, a lower end 42 and an outer periphery 44 which forms an outer surface 46 and an opening 48 being formed in the bottle 38 with a portion of the opening 48 intersecting the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 forming an inner periphery 50 and an inner surface 52, the inner periphery 50 and the inner surface 52 defining the retaining space 54 contained within the bottle in which a beverage is retained. The upper portion of the bottle 38, near the upper end 40, has a smaller outer periphery 44 as compared to the outer periphery 44 of the bottle 38 near the lower end 42. This is the neck 56 of the bottle 38, the outer periphery 44 tapering from the larger diameter of the bottle near the lower end 42 of the bottle 38 to the smaller diameter near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38. The neck 56 of the bottle 38 may also comprises a collar 58 which extends about the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 near the opening 48 in the bottle 38. The portion of the bottle 38 near the lower end 42 which is of a generally consistent diameter along the outer periphery 44 and the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 is the base portion 60. It will be appreciated that the majority of a beverage will be retained within the retaining space 54 of the base portion 60 of the bottle 38.
It will be further appreciated that the bottle 38 has a plurality of contours 62 (only one contour designated by the reference numeral 62 in Figure 5) which comprises contours 62 formed within the bottle 38, and which are exposed upon the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38. The term "contour" includes, but not by way of limitation, convex and/or concave shaping of portions of the bottle, bottle 38.
The opening 48 of the bottle 38 is sized and shaped in a standard configuration known in the industry for receiving a beverage, and the beverage is retained within the retaining space 54 of the bottle 38. Such bottles 38 may be made from a variety of materials. Such materials include, but not by way of limitation, glass, plastic, metal, paper, or combinations thereof. Examples of bottles 38 which are used in accordance with the present invention include, but are not limited to, beer bottles, wine bottles, champagne and/or sparkling wine bottles, wine cooler bottles, soda bottles, juice bottles, water bottles, and the like. The bottle 38, however, may comprise any size or shape. That is, the bottle 38 may form any geometric shape, nongeometric shape, asymmetrical shape, fanciful shape, and/or combination thereof.
Further, the bottle 38 may have a closure device in place, such as, but not by way of limitation, a cork, a cap, a screw top, of the like (not shown) . In this instance, the closure device is a primary closure device, closing of the bottle to retain the beverage therein, and the cover 10 provides a secondary closure device, to hold the primary closure device in place. Alternatively, however, the cover 10 may provide the primary closure device.
Referring again to Figure 1, the cover 10 is formed from a sheet of material 12. The sheet of material 12 generally has an upper surface 64, a lower surface 66, and an outer periphery 68. The sheet of material 12 often has a thickness in a range from about 0.1 mils to about 30 mils. Frequently, the sheet of material 12 has a thickness in a range from about 0.2 mils to about 10 mils. In addition, the sheet of material 12 frequently has a thickness in a range from about 0.2 mils to about 3 mils.
The sheet of material 12 may be any shape, a square shape being generally suggested in Figure 1 only by way of example. The sheet of material 12, however, may be square, rectangular, circular, or any geometric shape. Further, the sheet of material 12 may be any nongeometric shape, asymmetric shape, and/or fanciful shape. It will be appreciated that the shape of the sheet of material 12 does not necessarily need to conform with the shape of the opening 48 of the bottle 38. That is, for example, a round sheet of material 12 may be formed to cover a square opening 48 on a bottle 38 (not shown) . For example, the round sheet of material 12 may be formed into a square which conforms to the opening 48 and the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 (not shown) . Alternatively, however, the round sheet of material 12 may be formed into a generally cylindrically shaped cover 10 with a closed upper end 14 and, when applied to the outer surface 46 of the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, will conform to the shape of the outer surface 46 of the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 by either expanding or contracting beyond its preformed shape to cover the upper end 40 and the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38. This expansion and/or contraction may, in one embodiment, be permitted by the overlapping folds 37, which permit the cover 10 to expand and contract substantially beyond its preformed shape, thereby providing a flexible cover 10 for the bottle 38. In other embodiments shown herein, slits or notched portions of the cover 10 may aid in the cover 10 conforming to the upper end 40 of a bottle 38 (Figures 11-14) .
The sheet of material 12 may be constructed of a single layer of a material or a plurality of layers of the same or different types of materials. Any thickness of the sheet of material 12 may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material 12 is capable of flexibility and capable of being preformed into an object, namely, the cover 10 described herein. The layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 may be connected together, or laminated together, or may be separate. It will be further appreciated that the layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 need not be uniform in shape, size, or composition. Finally, any thickness of the sheet of material 12 may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material 12 may be preformed into a cover 10 as described herein. Finally, it will be appreciated that the sheets of material 12 shown in all embodiments herein are substantially flat before being preformed into covers 10.
In one embodiment, the sheet of material 12 is constructed from two polypropylene films (a 20" x 15" sheet of Mobil 270ABW white opaque film laminated to a 20" x 15" sheet of Mobil 220AB clear film) having a thickness in a range from a less than about 0.5 mils to about 3 mils. The layers of material comprising the sheet of material 12 may be connected together or laminated or may be separate layers. The sheet of material 12 is constructed from any suitable material that is capable of being preformed into a cover 10 and which functions as described herein. Preferably, the sheet of material 12 comprises paper (treated or untreated in any manner) , cellophane, foil, polymer film, metallic film, fabric (woven or nonwoven, synthetic or natural) , burlap, fiber (natural and/or synthetic) or combinations thereof.
The term "polymer film" means a man-made polymer such as a polypropylene or a naturally occurring polymer such as cellophane. A polymer film is relatively strong and not a subject to tearing (substantially nontearable) , as might be the case with paper or foil.
The sheet of material 12 may vary in color. Further, the sheet of material 12 may consist of designs or decorative patterns which are printed, etched, and/or embossed thereon using inks or other printing materials. An example of an ink which may be applied to the surface of the sheet of material 12 is described in U.S. Patent No. 5,147,706, entitled, "Water Based Ink On Foil And/Or Synthetic Organic Polymer," issued to Kingman on Sept. 15,
1992, and which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
In addition, the sheet of material 12 may have various colorings, coatings, flockings and/or metallic finishes, or other decorative surface ornamentation applied separately or simultaneously or may be characterized totally or partially by pearlescent, translucent, transparent, iridescent, neon or the like, qualities. Each of the above named characteristics may occur alone or in combination and may be applied to the upper and/or lower surface of the sheet of material 12. Moreover, each surface of the sheet of material 12 may vary in the combination of such characteristics. The sheet of material itself may be opaque, translucent or partially clear or tinted transparent.
A bonding material 70 may be disposed on at least a portion of a surface of the sheet of material 12, or the bonding material may be disposed on, for example, the inner surface 52 of the cover 10. Alternatively, the cover 10 may be free of a bonding material 70, the bonding material 70 being instead disposed upon at least a portion of the neck 56 and/or upper end 40 and/or collar 58 of the bottle 38 (not shown) . In a further alternative, the cover 10 may have a bonding material 70 disposed both upon at least a portion of the inner surface 52 of the cover 10 and upon a portion of the neck 56 and/or upper end 40 and/or collar 58 of the bottle 38. In still a further alternative, the bonding material 70 may be disposed on at least a portion of the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 and this embodiment may be shown with any of the aforementioned embodiments. As shown in Figure 2, the bonding material 70 is disposed in one embodiment adjacent the inner surface 26 of the cover 10 and extends generally between the upper and lower ends 14 and 16 respectively of the base 28 of the cover 10 and may also, alternatively, extend across the inner surface 26 of the lower end 16 of the cover 10. The bonding material 70 is disposed substantially over the inner surface 26 of the cover 10, although it will be appreciated that the bonding material 70 also could be applied in spaced apart spots (not shown) , or the bonding material 70 could also be disposed in strips of bonding material (not shown) or in any geometric, nongeometric, asymmetric, and/or fanciful pattern, including covering the entire inner surface 26 of the cover 10, or, alternatively the entire outer surface 20 of the cover 10 as well as the entire inner surface 26 of the cover 10. The term "spot" or "spots" as used herein includes any geometric shape of spot, including, but not limited to, what is commonly referred to as strips, as well as nongeometric, asymmetric and/or fanciful (such as a heart or daisy pattern for example) designs and/or patterns. It will be further appreciated that the bonding material 70 disposed on the bottle 38 will have the same characteristics as previously described above.
The term "bonding material" as used herein means an adhesive, often a pressure sensitive adhesive, or a cohesive. Where the bonding material is a cohesive, a similar cohesive material must be placed on the adjacent surface for bondingly contacting and bondingly engaging the cohesive material. The term "bonding material" also includes materials which are heat sealable and, in this instance, the adjacent portions of the material must be brought into contact and then heat must be applied to effect the seal. The term "bonding material" also includes materials which are sonic, sealable and fibertory sealable. The term "bonding material" when used herein also means a heat sealing lacquer which may be applied to a sheet of material 12 and, in this instance, heat, sound waves, and/or vibrations, also must be applied to effect the sealing. The term "bonding material" also includes securing the cover 10 by a heat seal to the cover 10. One method of doing this is to contact the cover 10 with an iron or means having sufficient heat to heat seal the material of the cover 10. The term "bonding material" when used herein also means any heat or chemically shrinkable material, and static electrical or other electrical means, magnetic means, and/or mechanical means (for example, but not by way of limitation, clamps, or curling type means) which can cause the material of cover 10 to take on shapes, and any type of welding methods which may weld portions of the material of the cover 10 to itself or to the bottle 38 or both the cover 10 to itself and to the bottle. The term "bonding material or means" includes a cold seal cohesive adhesive. The cold seal adhesive adheres only to a similar substrate, acting similarly as a cohesive, and binds only to itself. The cold seal adhesive, since it adheres (or coheres) only to a similar substrate, does not cause a residue to build up on equipment, thereby permitting much more rapid disposition and use to form articles and/or to seal one article to another, such as a cover 10 to the upper end 40 of a bottle 38. A cold seal adhesive differs also from, for example, a pressure sensitive adhesive, in that a cold seal adhesive is not readily releasable.
One bonding material 70 is taught in U.S. Patent No. 5,111,638, entitled, "Method For Wrapping An Object With A Material Having Pressure Sensitive Adhesive Thereon," issued to Weder on May 12, 1992, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. Other bonding materials 70 are known in the art and commercially available. Methods of applying bonding material 70 to sheet material and to items such as the bottle described herein are known in the art and commercially available. The bonding material 70 may be disposed upon the sheet of material 12 before it is formed into a cover 10, or, alternatively, the bonding material 70 may be disposed upon the cover 10 after it is formed. The bonding material 70 may be disposed upon either the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 by spraying, painting, brushing, lacquering, or immersing at least a portion of the sheet of material 12 and/or the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 in the bonding material 70. The bonding material 70 may be disposed mechanically, or by hand, or by any other method known in the art.
The bonding material 70 may comprise one or more colors. Further, the bonding material 70 may form at least a portion of a design. The term "design" as used herein refers to any decorative shape, whether geometric, non- geometric, asymmetric or fanciful (such as a heart shape) which is incorporated into the sheet of material 12 and/or the bottle 38. The bonding material 70 described herein may be provided with at least one release strip (not shown) . A release strip is used to protect the bonding material 70 disposed most frequently on the inner surface 26 of the cover 10, before the cover 10 and the inner surface 26 thereof is disposed adjacent the upper end 40 and neck 56 of the bottle 38. Such a release strip is formed from sheet material and has an upper surface, a lower surface, and an outer periphery. One surface of the release strip is disposed adjacent the bonding material 70 on the inner surface 26 of the cover 10. It will be appreciated that the release strip is removed prior to disposing the cover over the upper end 40 and neck 56 of the bottle 38. Figures 1-3 illustrate one method of use of the present invention. First, both a sheet of material 12 and a bottle 38 as described in detail above are provided. The sheet of material 12 is disposed by an operator or mechanical means over the upper end 40 of the bottle with the upper surface 64 and the bonding material 70 thereon disposed adjacent the opening 48 and the upper end 40 of the bottle 38. The sheet of material 12 is centered over the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, the sheet of material 12 covering the opening 48 of the bottle 38. The sheet of material 12 is then smoothed over the upper end 40 of the bottle and over any collar 58 as well as at least a portion of the neck 56 of the bottle 38, either by hand, by mechanical means known in the art, or by any method or combination of methods described herein. When the sheet of material 12 is smoothed over a bottle 38, it will be appreciated that the resulting cover 10 conforms to the shape and contours 62 of the portion of the bottle 38 which is covered. It will also be appreciated that to conform to the bottle 38, the cover 10 forms a plurality of overlapping folds 37 (Figure 3).
The cover 10 may also form a decorative skirt 72. Such decorative skirts are disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 4,773,182, entitled, "Article Forming System," issued to Weder et al., on September 27, 1988, which has been incorporated previously by reference herein.
Other decorative skirts are shown and disclosed in other U.S. Patents which are incorporated by reference herein below. Alternatively, the sheet of material 12 may be crimped to connect to only a portion, or several portions, of the bottle 38. Such crimping is shown in Figures 7-8. Crimping sheet material is well known in the art. The crimping may be performed either after the sheet of material 12 is at least partially disposed about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 as described above, or, alternatively, the sheet of material 12 is preformed into the cover 10 with the crimping, or at least a portion of the crimping, being performed in the preforming process of making the cover 10. Also, the crimping of the sheet of material 12 or the cover 10 about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 can be performed in any portion, or multiple portions, of the sheet of material 12 or the cover 10. In a further alternative, a degree of crimping may be performed above the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 (not shown) . A crimped portion 74 (Figure 7) is formed by gathering together a portion of the sheet of material 12 or cover 10, such gathering causing adjacent portions of the inner surface 26 and/or the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 to connect together, forming a crimped portion 74 which extends generally circumferentially about the upper end 40 of the bottle 38. In some cases, a bonding material 70 is disposed on at least a portion of the inner surface 26 and/or the outer surface 20 of the cover 10 and/or the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 which causes adjacent portions of the cover 10 to be bonded together for forming the crimped portion 74. Crimping may be accomplished by hand or with a device or a machine as may be desired in a particular application. The crimped portion 74 may comprise only adjacent portions of the cover 10, or, alternatively, the crimped portion 74 of the cover 10 may engage a portion of the bottle 38 having a bonding material 70 disposed on at least a portion of the outer surface 46 near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, the bonding material 70 on the bottle 38 creating a crimped portion 74. The crimped portion 74 frequently engages a portion of the bottle 38 generally near the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, but the crimped portion 74 may comprise one or more crimped portions 74 (Figure 8 shows a first crimped portion 74 and a second crimped portion 74') which are crimped at any level along the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, including above the upper end 40 of the bottle 38, for cooperating to maintain the cover 10 assembled about and/or connected to the bottle 38. It will be appreciated that when the cover 10 is crimped about the bottle 38, or above the level of the bottle 38, such a crimping gathers the cover 10 and/or sheet of material 12 inward, in a diameter smaller than the uncrimped diameter of the immediately adjacent portions of the sheet of material 12 and/or cover 10, it being understood that the cover 10 has varying diameters due to the tapered shape of the bottle 38) . The crimped portion 74 (Figures 7-8) frequently extends circumferentially about the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38.
In some applications, it may be desirable to form the crimped portion 74 only at certain positions spaced circumferentially about the upper end 40 and neck 56 of the bottle 38 (not shown) . Further, it will be appreciated that the crimped portion 74 as described herein may be created via the application of a circular band applied to the outer surface 20 of the cover 10. The term "band" when used herein means any material which may be secured about an object such as a bottle, such bands commonly being referred to as elastic bands, rubber bands or non-elastic bands and also includes any other type of material such as an elastic or non-elastic string or elastic piece of material, non- elastic piece of material, a round piece of material, a flat piece of material, a ribbon, a piece of paper strip, a piece of plastic strip, a piece of wire, a tie wrap or a twist tie or combinations thereof or any other device capable of gathering material to removably or substantially permanently form a crimped portion and secure the crimped portion formed in the material which may be secured about an object such as the bottle. The band also may include a bow if desired in a particular application.
The crimped portion 74 is illustrated primarily with the embodiments shown in Figures 7-8 and described in detail herein. It will be appreciated, however, that the crimped portion 74 may be utilized with any embodiments shown and/or described herein or known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Figures 9-11 illustrate another method of use of the present invention. The cover 10 is preformed from the sheet of material 12 into the shape of a cover 10.
The preformed cover 10 shown in Figures 4 and described in detail is formed with overlapping folds 37. It will be appreciated, however, that other methods exist to preform such a cover 10.
Methods of forming paper, burlap, or cloth into such a cover 10 (such materials used with or without a generally non-permeable material, such as, but not by way of limitation, polymer film) are disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 5,076,874, issued December 31, 1991, entitled, "Process For Forming A Paper, Burlap or Cloth Flower Pot Cover", U.S. Patent No. 5,120,382, issued June 9, 1992, entitled, "Process For Forming A Paper, Burlap or Cloth Flower Pot Cover", and U.S. Patent No. 5,156,702, issued October 20, 1992, entitled, "Process For Forming A Paper, Burlap or Cloth Flower Pot Cover," all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. The cover 10 could also be formed using a fingered holder, thereby holding the sheet of material 12 about the bottle 10. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,300,312 issued November 17, 1981, entitled, "Flower Pot Covering", which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. The cover 10 may also be formed by pushing at least a portion of the bottle 38 and the sheet of material 12 through a ring for forming the sheet of material 12 into a cover 10. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,733,521, issued March 29, 1988, entitled, "Cover Forming Apparatus" and U.S. Patent No. 5,291,721, issued March 8, 1994, entitled, "Cover Forming Apparatus Having Pivoting Forming Members", both of which are hereby incorporated by referenced herein. The cover 10 may be formed from a metallized polymer film. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,795,601, issued January 3, 1989, entitled, "Method of Manufacturing Metallized Thermoplastic Flower Pot Cover" which is hereby incorporated by referenced herein. The cover 10 may be formed with a collar, and, in one alternative, the collar may form at least a portion of the cover 10. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,835,834, issued January 30, 1990, entitled, "Method of Shaping and Holding a Sheet of Material About a Flower Pot With a Collar" and U.S. Patent No. 4,901,423, issued February 20, 1990, entitled, "Method of Shaping and Holding a Sheet of Material About a Flower Pot With a Collar", U.S. Patent No. 5,077,937, issued January 7, 1992, entitled, "Apparatus For Providing a Decorative Cover For a Flower Pot Using A Collar", U.S. Patent No. 5,129,182, issued July 14, 1992, entitled, "Flower Pot Accessory", U.S. Patent No. 5,231,794, issued August 3, 1993, entitled, "Apparatus For Providing a Decorative Cover For a Flower Pot Using A Collar", U.S. Patent No. 5, 184,390, issued February 9, 1993, entitled, "Method of Shaping and Holding a Sheet of Material About a Flower Pot With a Collar", all of which are hereby incorporated by referenced herein.
The skirt of the cover 10 may be formed at different angles, and may be adjustable. Such an adjustable skirt is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 4,950,216, issued August 21, 1990, entitled, "Method of Forming a Flower Pot" which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. The cover 10 may be formed at least partially from a strip, such as a band, or a ribbon. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 5,038,933, issued August 13, 1991, entitled, "Wrapping Material For Providing a Decorative Covering", U.S. Patent No. 5, 161,348, issued November 10, 1992, entitled, "Wrapping Material For Providing a Decorative Covering", U.S. Patent No. 5,105,599, issued April 21, 1992, entitled, "Means For Securing a Decorative Cover About a Flower Pot", U.S. Patent No. 5,085,003, issued February 4, 1992, entitled, "Plant Cover/Wrap System", U.S. Patent No. 5,297,359, issued March 29, 1994, entitled, "Plant Cover/Wrap System", and U.S. Patent No. 5,307,606, issued May 3, 1994, entitled, "A Covering For Flower Pot and Floral Grouping" all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The cover 10 may also comprise a frame, such as a wire or plastic frame. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,033,232, entitled, "Flower Pot Container", and U. S. Patent No. 5,070,645, issued December 10, 1991, entitled, "Flower Pot Container," and U.S. Patent No. 5,106,449, issued April 21, 1992, entitled, "Apparatus For Forming Container Structures", all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The cover 10 may further comprise a material which has self adhering properties and/or a pre-set curl therein. Such materials are disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,007,229, issued April 16, 1991, entitled, "Method of Wrapping Utilizing a Self Adhering Wrapping Material" and U.S. Patent No. 4,989,396, issued February 5, 1991, entitled, "Curl Wrap and Methods For Using Same", both of which are hereby specifically incorporated by reference herein. The cover 10 may also be formed with pleated overlapping folds. Some of the pleated overlapping folds are connected together, while other pleated folds, or portions thereof, are not connected together. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in detail in U.S. Patent No. 5,029,412, issued July 9, 1991, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot With Pleated Skirt and/or Base", U.S. Patent No. 5,111,613, issued May 12, 1992, entitled, "Pleated Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover", U.S. Patent No. 5,181,339, issued January 26, 1993, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Pleated Skirt and/or Base", U.S. Patent No. 5,228,236, issued July 20, 1993, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Base Having Overlapping Folds Some of Which Are Connected and Some of Which Are Unconnected , U.S. Patent No. 5,152,101, issued October 6, 1992, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Pleated Base", U.S. Patent No. 5, 152, 100, issued October 6, 1992, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover Having Connected and Unconnected Segments in the Skirt", U.S. Patent No. 5,314,398, issued May 24, 1994, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Base Having Overlapping Folds Some of Which Are Connected and Some of Which Are Unconnected" and U.S. Patent No. 5,259,106, issued November 9, 1993, entitled, "Method of Making a Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Pleated Skirt", all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The cover 10 may also be formed having a specific, controlled pleating pattern. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,073,161, issued December 17, 1991, entitled, "Apparatus For Making a Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Controlled Pleats" and U.S. Patent No. 5, 228,934, issued July 20, 1993, entitled, "A Method of Forming a Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Controlled Pleats", both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
The cover 10 may be formed by having a pleating which forms broad, flat panels. Such panels permit a decorative pattern thereupon, the pattern undistorted by irregular overlapping folds, the pattern smoothly displayed on a plurality of flat panel folds. "Decorative pattern" as used herein means any geometric, non-geometric, asymmetric or fanciful pattern, including letters and/or numbers. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,127,817, issued July 7, 1992, entitled, "Flat-Paneled Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover Die", U.S. Patent No. 5, 176,609, issued January 5, 1993, entitled, "Apparatus and Method Using Air Pressure and Vacuum to Form Flat Paneled Flower Pot Cover", U.S. Patent No. 5, 254,072, issued October 19, 1993, entitled, "Flat Paneled Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover", and U.S. Patent No. 5,286,246, issued February 15, 1994, entitled, "Apparatus and Method Using Air Pressure and Vacuum to Form Flat Paneled Flower Pot Cover", all of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. The cover 10 may also be formed having one or a plurality of "fin" projections. Such a cover 10 is disclosed and described in U.S. Patent No. 5,221,248, Issued June 22, 1993, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Fins" and U.S. Patent No. 5,286,247, issued February 15, 1994, entitled, "Flower Pot or Flower Pot Cover With Fins", both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein.
In another method of use, shown in Figures 9-10, a cover 10 preformed in any manner described herein is provided, as is a bottle 38. The cover 10 is disposed either by hand or by any mechanical means known in the art upon the bottle 38. The upper end 40 of the bottle 38 passing through the opening 22 in the cover 10, the upper end 40 of the bottle 38 and the opening 22 therein adjacent and connecting the upper end 14 of the cover 10, the inner surface 26 of the cover 10 adjacent to and contacting the outer surface 46 of the bottle 38 in the area of the neck 56 of the bottle 38. The cover 10 generally covers the upper end 40 of the bottle, covering the opening 48, any collar 58 which is present on the bottle 38, and at least a portion of the neck 56 of the bottle. The cover 10 connects to the bottle 38 via bonding material 70. The cover 10 may conform precisely to the contours 62 of the bottle 38. As was described earlier, though, only a portion of the cover 10 may connect to the bottle 38. In this alternative, only selected portions of the cover 10 and/or the bottle 38 are connected together. Such a connection creates a decorative appearance. Further, as was also previously described, one or more portions of the cover 10 may be crimped, creating crimped portions 74, either before or after being disposed upon the bottle 38 (not shown) .
The Embodiments and Methods of Figures 11-14
Figures 11-14 illustrate another embodiment and method of use of the present invention. The cover 10a and the sheet of material 12a shown in this embodiment and used in this method are constructed exactly the same as the cover 10 and the sheet of material 12 shown in Figures 1-10 and described in detail previously, except that the sheet of material 12a has a plurality of notches 76 (only one of the plurality of notches designated by the numeral 76) in the sheet of material 12a, so that when the sheet of material 12a is applied to the upper end 40a of a bottle 38a, few or no overlapping folds or pleats are created in the cover 10a.
The sheet of material 12a may also be preformed into a cover 10a (Figures 14) . The preformed cover 10a, when applied to the upper end 40a of a bottle 38a, has few or no overlapping folds or pleats therein. The material adjacent each of the plurality of notches 76a overlaps to connect the sheet of material 12a into the cover 10a.
The cover 10a, either formed over the bottle 38a or preformed, is disposed on a bottle 38a by any method described herein or known in the art.
It will be appreciated that the sheet of material 12 or a preformed cover 10 may be applied to a bottle 38 by any means known in the art, including but not by way of limitation, by hand or by mechanical means. One apparatus for applying covers to bottles is disclosed in U.S. No. 4,162,601, issued July 31, 1979, entitled, "Secondary Closure Method and Apparatus", which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
Changes may be made in the construction and the operation of the various components, elements and assemblies described herein or in the steps or the sequences of steps of the methods described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

Claims

1. A cover for a bottle containing a beverage, said bottle having an upper end, a lower end and an outer surface, an opening intersecting the upper end forming an inner surface and a retaining space for retaining the beverage, said cover comprising: a sheet of material formed into a cover for covering the opening of the bottle, the cover having a bonding material thereon, the cover disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle, the cover disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle, at least a portion of the cover bondingly connected to the outer surface of the bottle.
2. The cover of claim 1 wherein the bonding material is disposed on the outer surface of the bottle.
3. The cover of claim 1 wherein the bonding material is disposed on the outer surface of the cover.
4. The cover of claim 1 wherein the beverage is contained within the bottle via a primary closure device, and wherein the cover acts as a secondary closure device.
5. The cover of claim 1 wherein the beverage is contained within the bottle via the cover which acts as a primary closure device.
6. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises a crimped portion.
7. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises a plurality of overlapping folds.
8. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises a plurality of controlled pleats.
9. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises a plurality of flat panels.
10. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises fins.
11. The cover of claim 1 wherein the sheet of material further comprises a plurality of notches.
12. The cover of claim 1 wherein the cover further comprises a plurality of notches.
13. A method for covering a bottle containing a beverage, said bottle having an upper end, a lower end and an outer surface, an opening intersecting the upper end forming an inner surface and a retaining space for retaining the beverage, said method comprising the steps of: providing a cover, comprising a sheet of material formed into a cover for covering the opening of the bottle, the cover having a bonding material thereon, the cover sized and shaped to be disposed over both the upper end and the opening of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle; disposing the cover over the upper end of the bottle such that at least a portion of the cover is disposed adjacent to the outer surface of the bottle, at least a portion of the cover bondingly connecting to the outer surface of the bottle to connect the cover to the outer surface of the bottle for retaining the beverage in the retaining space of the bottle.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the bonding material is further defined as being disposed on the outer surface of the bottle.
15. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the bonding material is further defined as being disposed on the outer surface of the cover.
16. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of disposing the cover over the upper end of the bottle, the bottle is further defined as having a primary closure device, and wherein the cover acts as a secondary closure device.
17. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of disposing the cover over the upper end of the bottle, the bottle is further defined as having the cover utilized as a primary closure device.
18. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a crimped portion.
19. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a plurality of overlapping folds.
20. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a plurality of controlled pleats.
21. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a plurality of flat panels.
22. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a plurality of fins.
23. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the sheet of material is further defined as comprising a plurality of notches.
24. The method of claim 13 wherein in the step of providing a cover, the cover is further defined as comprising a plurality of notches.
PCT/US1995/007219 1994-06-07 1995-06-07 Cover for a bottle containing a beverage WO1995033659A1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US25519194A 1994-06-07 1994-06-07
US255,191 1994-06-07

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
IT201700026867A1 (en) * 2017-03-10 2018-09-10 Tecno Label S R L Con Socio Unico Fabric covering capsule

Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
BE462119A (en) * 1943-09-29
FR388766A (en) * 1908-04-01 1908-08-21 Ferdinand Sarrail Device for capping containers for food or other preserves characterized by tabs which clip below a projecting rim
CH177531A (en) * 1934-11-29 1935-06-15 Viggo Jensen Poul Bottle cap and method of making the same.
US2298480A (en) * 1937-05-04 1942-10-13 Harold C Harvey Protective closure
DE3008097A1 (en) * 1980-03-03 1981-09-10 Friedhelm 4600 Dortmund Hecker Cap for corked bottle - consists of stretchable foil pulled down over top to form pleats around neck

Patent Citations (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR388766A (en) * 1908-04-01 1908-08-21 Ferdinand Sarrail Device for capping containers for food or other preserves characterized by tabs which clip below a projecting rim
CH177531A (en) * 1934-11-29 1935-06-15 Viggo Jensen Poul Bottle cap and method of making the same.
US2298480A (en) * 1937-05-04 1942-10-13 Harold C Harvey Protective closure
BE462119A (en) * 1943-09-29
DE3008097A1 (en) * 1980-03-03 1981-09-10 Friedhelm 4600 Dortmund Hecker Cap for corked bottle - consists of stretchable foil pulled down over top to form pleats around neck

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
IT201700026867A1 (en) * 2017-03-10 2018-09-10 Tecno Label S R L Con Socio Unico Fabric covering capsule

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