Plastic bottle for vending machines

Abstract

A plastic bottle specially sized and configured for use in conventional vending machines. The bottle has structurally reinforced upper and lower portions providing additional strength and resistance to transversely imposed stacking and crushing forces. By internally thickening the plastic in the neck and upper shoulder portion, and in the base and lower sidewall portion, reinforcement is provided. The outer surface of the sidewall of the bottle is perfectly right-circular cylindrical in configuration, having no discontinuities such as ribs or label panels to impede smooth rolling through the can channels in a vending machine. The bottle shoulder includes one portion which is horizontal and substantially planar, and a another portion which is curved. The curved portion is particularly abrupt, providing increased contained volume and more closely resembling the corresponding portion of a can. A low profile,“finish” cap provides additional bottle volume, and provides a substantially large surface to engage the wall of the vending machine channel. A dot of adhesive is ejection applied between a lower edge of the cap and the neck of the bottle, to provide tamper proof indicator.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] Applicant has a co-pending design patent application, Ser. No. 29 / 116,819, filed Jan. 12, 2000, relating to the same general subject matter of the present application.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The invention relates generally to cap-sealed containers for consumables, such as beverages or candy, or other relatively small items. More specifically, the invention pertains to a plastic bottle having a special size, configuration, wall thickness, and rolling characteristics which allow it to be used in can vending machines, without damage or jamming. [0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art [0005] The earliest beverage vending machines were designed for use with glass bottled beverages. As many of the bottled beverages had different, and even branded physical characteristics, dedicated beverage machines were common. That is to say, only a particular brand of beverage was available in a vending machine, an...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0016] The plastic bottle of the present invention includes structurally reinforced upper and lower ends, providing additional strength to resist to laterally imposed stacking and crushing forces. Strategic reinforcement is provided by internally thickening the plastic in the neck and the shoulder portion, and in the base and the lower sidewall portion. Proportionally, the plastic in the reinforced ends is approximately four times as thick the standard bottle wall thickness, found in an intermediate sidewall portion of the bottle.

[0017] Because the reinforcement makes the plastic bottle sufficiently strong to withstand the forces generated by vertical stacking of containers in a vending machine, no circumferential sidewall ribs are necessary. Having a smooth sidewall surface with no convolutions or discontinuities, the plastic bottle of the present invention is less likely to rotate sideways, or jam, within the container feeding system of a vending machine.

[0018] A low profile cap is threadably installed over an externally threaded neck on the upper end of the cap. The weight of additional thickness of plastic in the upper end of the bottle, combined with the weight of the cap, aid in balancing the bottle so it will roll about its axis more smoothly. This characteristic of the bottle makes it less susceptible to jamming in a vending machine.

[0019] The shoulder portion of the bottle includes a sharply curved outer edge, which bends outwardly and downwardly to transition to the bottle's intermediate sidewall portion. The configuration of this curved outer edge more closely approximates the shape of a metal can, so that the plastic bottle will roll more freely and predictably in the container feeding system in a vending machine.

Problems solved by technology

However, a successful adaptation of plastic bottles for use in vending machines, has not been made.

While metal cans perform very reliably in these feeding systems, plastic bottles of conventional design do not.

There are two principal problems with prior art plastic bottles deigned for use in vending machines: (1) they roll unevenly, and therefore, have a tendency to jam in the container feeding or transport channels of the vending machine; and, (2) when stacked for storage within a vending machine, the plastic bottles crush or crack, under the cumulative weight of overlying bottles.

Unfortunately, these ribs can cause the previously mentioned uneven and erratic rolling characteristics, owing to the surface discontinuities.

This configuration does not match well with the can feeding channels within vending machines, and causes frequent jamming, as well.

However, since the overall length of the bottle and its neck cannot exceed the existing channel width, approximately an ounce of potential volume for the contained beverage is lost.

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