Tamper evident lid

Abstract

An improved tamper evident lid for a container is provided. The lid includes an annular sidewall with an upper section and a lower section connected together by a weakened portion. The lid includes one or more tamper evident locking components for securing the lid to the container. Each locking component extends inward from an interior surface of the lower sidewall section with a top wall that connects the locking component to the upper sidewall section. The lid includes a void space defined into the exterior of the annular sidewall and corresponding to each locking component. Each locking component forms a continuous enclosure separating the void spaces from the interior of the lid and preventing leakage of contents through void spaces. The void spaces and the weakened portion create a line of weakness that can provide visual evidence of tampering once the lid has been secured to a container.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This Application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62 / 804,871, filed on Feb. 13, 2019, to Michael Liming et al., entitled “Improved Tamper Evident Lid,” currently pending, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates generally to lids for containers and particularly to an improved tamper evident lid, which in addition to providing evidence of tampering, also prevents spillage or leakage of contents.BACKGROUND[0003]Tamper evident lids are often used to enclose and secure containers for food items and other contents. These lids incorporate locking features that restrict the ability to remove the lid from the container without deforming the lid or providing evidence of tampering. One problem with current tamper evident lids is that they do not provide an effective seal around the perimeter of the container opening and thereby allow excess co...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention is about an improved tamper-evident lid for containers. The lid has a tamper-indicating feature that indicates if the lid has been previously removed from the container. The lid has an annular sidewall with a weakened portion that creates a line of weakness around the lid. The lid also has locking components that operate in connection with the weakened portion to indicate if the lid has been tampered with. The locking components have a void space that is enclosed within the sidewall and is continuous with the weakened portion. The lid can be placed on a container and secured underneath the container's rim. The lid cannot be removed from the container without deforming the sidewall and providing evidence of tampering. The technical effects of the invention are improved security and tamper-evident features for containers.

Problems solved by technology

These lids incorporate locking features that restrict the ability to remove the lid from the container without deforming the lid or providing evidence of tampering.

One problem with current tamper evident lids is that they do not provide an effective seal around the perimeter of the container opening and thereby allow excess contents within the container to leak out or otherwise exit the container through the lid.

As shown, the contents within the container (such as ice cream) can easily leak or ooze out of the locking features in the tamper evident lid due to the gaps and spaces extending from the interior of the lid and through the outer sidewall.

Another problem with current tamper evident lids is that they present several manufacturing difficulties.

In particular, the construction of the locking features in current tamper evident lids require the forming tool parts to contact and slide across one another during the molding of the lid, which causes excessive wear on the forming components of the manufacturing process.

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