Container with sealing flange

Abstract

A container has a container body having an interior (18) delimited by a bottom wall (20), a neck (22) opposite the bottom wall (20), and side walls (24, 26, 28, and 30) extending between the bottom wall (20) and the neck (22). The neck has an outwardly extending projection (32) for mating with an inwardly extending projection (34) of the cap. The neck also has an inwardly cantilevered sealing flange (36) having a sealing surface and having a first end (40) connected to an upwardly extending step (42) to form an articulated interface with the upwardly extending step, and a second end (44) positioned on an opposite side of the protrusion (32) relative to the bottom wall (20), the first end (40) being connected to the upwardly extending step (42) to form an articulated interface with the upwardly extending step (42), and the second end (44) being positioned on an opposite side of the protrusion (32) relative to the bottom wall (20). The sealing barrier (14) has a second end defining an access opening (46) to the interior (18) of the container, the sealing flange (36) extending away from the bottom wall (20) at an inclined angle such that the sealing flange (36) is pivotable about an articulated interface with the step (42) and towards the bottom wall (20) during sealing of the sealing barrier (14) onto a sealing surface (38) of the sealing flange (36).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Containers having a sealing flange, and in particular, containers having an inwardly extending sealing flange having a generally rectangular sealing surface, are described herein. Background Art

[0002] Containers are usually formed by injection molding or blow molding. Common containers made by blow molding can have a variety of cross-sectional shapes, such as rectangular or circular. However, usually, blow molded containers have a circular neck that defines a circular access opening, even when the container has a roughly rectangular cross section. The circular neck and circular access opening can facilitate the attachment of a threaded cap or a snap-fit ​​cap. The threaded cap or the snap-fit ​​cap may include an internal sealing film that is used to form a seal to the circular neck to block the circular access opening. Alternatively, the sealing film can be directly sealed to the circular neck. However, blow molded containers with a roughly rectangular or roughly square neck and sealing surface present complex problems for the sealing of the container, while circular necks and sealing surfaces do not have such problems. For example, the blow molding process can result in an uneven distribution of material, particularly in the corners. Summary of the invention

[0003] A container has a container body having an interior defined by a bottom wall, a neck opposite the bottom wall, and a side wall extending between the bottom wall and the neck. The container body may be blow molded. The neck has an outwardly extending protrusion for mating with an inwardly extending protrusion of a lid. The neck also has an inwardly cantilevered sealing flange for sealing attachment of a sealing barrier. The sealing flange has a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to an upwardly extending step to form a hinged interface with the upwardly extending step, the first end being positioned on the opposite side of the protrusion relative to the bottom wall, and the second end defining an access opening to the interior of the container. The sealing flange extends away from the bottom wall at an oblique angle so that during sealing the sealing barrier to the sealing flange, the sealing flange can pivot around the hinged interface with the step and toward the bottom wall. The sealing flange presents a non-circular sealing surface, such as a generally rectangular shape.

[0004] In one aspect, the access opening is non-circular. For example, the access opening can be generally rectangular, such as generally square. The sealing flange can have a width extending from the first end and the second end. The width of the sealing flange can be constant around the access opening, or the width can vary around the access opening.

[0005] In one aspect, the sealing flange has four substantially linear sections and four corner regions. The substantially linear sections may each have a central portion having an increased height relative to the bottom wall compared to the corner regions. In other words, the substantially linear sections may be arcuate.

[0006] In one aspect, the sidewall of the container body defines a generally rectangular perimeter of the container body.

[0007] In one aspect, the container body can have a generally rectangular cross-section parallel to and spaced apart from the bottom wall at one or more locations along the height of the side wall.

[0008] In one aspect, the sidewall of the container body defines a hollow handle spaced apart from the remainder of the container body by a through opening.The hollow handle may be in communication with the interior of the container body at one or both ends of the handle.

[0009] In one aspect, the container body is formed by blow molding.

[0010] In one aspect, the container body is formed by blow molding; and a pair of diagonally opposite corners of the sealing flange have pinch lines extending at 50% or less of the width of the sealing flange at each of the pair of corners.

[0011] In one aspect, a method of forming a container includes blow molding a container body.

[0012] In one aspect, the container includes a sealing barrier that seals to the sealing flange to seal the interior of the container body.

[0013] In one aspect, the container includes a lid that is removably attached to the neck of the container and covers the access opening and the sealing barrier. The lid may have a top wall and a depending skirt. The skirt may have an inwardly extending protrusion that is configured to cooperate with an outwardly extending protrusion of the neck of the container body to secure the lid to the neck of the container body, such as by a snap fit.

[0014] In one aspect, a method of forming a container may include positioning a sealing barrier against a sealing flange of a container body; and then applying heat and pressure to the sealing barrier to cause the sealing flange to pivot inwardly about a hinged interface with a step portion and seal the sealing barrier to the sealing flange. The method may include filling the container with a hygroscopic beverage powder prior to the steps of positioning the sealing barrier and applying heat and pressure to the sealing barrier. The method may also include removably attaching a lid relative to a neck of the container to cover an access opening after the steps of filling the container with the hygroscopic beverage powder, positioning the sealing barrier, and applying heat and pressure to the sealing barrier.

[0015] A method for sealing a blow molded container using a flat sealing head surface is described, the blow molded container having a generally polygonal sealing surface, the generally polygonal sealing surface having a plurality of segments extending between adjacent corner regions, the plurality of segments having a sealing barrier, wherein the generally polygonal sealing surface is positioned on an opposite side of a lid locking protrusion compared to a bottom wall of the container, the generally polygonal sealing surface extends at an inward and upward angle relative to the flat sealing head surface, and wherein the generally polygonal sealing surface is closer to the flat sealing head surface in the region of the plurality of segments than in the corner region prior to sealing, the generally polygonal sealing surface deflecting toward the bottom wall of the container during sealing of the sealing barrier using the flat sealing head surface. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is a top perspective view of a generally rectangular container having a container body with a sidewall, a neck and a handle and a lid attached to the neck of the container body;

[0017] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A bottom perspective view of the container showing a bottom wall of the container body;

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A rear elevation view of a container;

[0019] Figure 4 yes Figure 1 A front elevation view of a container;

[0020] Figure 5 yes Figure 1 an exploded view of a container of , showing a container body, a sealing barrier and a lid;

[0021] Figure 6 yes Figure 1 A front elevation view of a container body;

[0022] Figure 7 It is along Fig.10 A partial cross-sectional view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 1 and showing the neck of the container body and the sealing flange of the neck;

[0023] Figure 8 is similar to Figure 7 , but additionally showing a sealing barrier on a sealing surface of a sealing flange sealed to a neck and a cap attached to the neck of a container body;

[0024] Fig. 9 yes Figure 1 a top perspective view of a container body of a container of , showing a sealing flange and an access opening defined by the sealing flange;

[0025] Fig.10 yes Figure 1 a top plan view of a container body of the container; and

[0026] Fig.11 is a diagrammatic representation of the variation in height of the sealing flange relative to the bottom wall around the periphery of the access opening. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] A container 10 having a container body 12, a sealing barrier 14, and a lid 16 is described herein, and aspects thereof are Figures 1 to 11 The container body 12 may be formed by blow molding.

[0028] The container body 12 has an interior 18 defined by a bottom wall 20, a neck 22 opposite the bottom wall 20 which may be non-circular, and side walls 24, 26, 28 and 30 extending between the bottom wall 20 and the neck 22. Figure 8 As shown, the neck 22 has an outwardly extending protrusion 32 for mating with an inwardly extending protrusion 34 of the lid 16. The neck 22 also has an inwardly cantilevered sealing flange 36, which presents a non-circular sealing surface 38, such as a generally rectangular shape, and has a first end 40 connected to an upwardly extending step 42 to form a hinged interface with the upwardly extending step, the first end being positioned on the opposite side of the protrusion 32 relative to the bottom wall 20, and a second end 44 defining the periphery of an access opening 46 leading to the interior 18 of the container, the sealing flange 36 extending away from the bottom wall 20 at an inclined angle so that during sealing of the sealing barrier 14 to the sealing surface 38 of the sealing flange 36, the sealing flange 36 can be pivoted about the hinged interface with the step 42 and toward the bottom wall 20.

[0029] Turning now to the details of the container body 12, the bottom wall 20 includes a generally rectangular periphery having four corners 20a, 20b, 20c and 20d, wherein generally linear sections 20e, 20f, 20g and 20h extend between each of the corners 20a, 20b, 20c and 20d. The generally linear sections 20e, 20f, 20g and 20h need not be completely linear, but may be arched, and in the illustrated example, are arched outwardly. Sidewalls 24, 26, 28 and 30 extend upwardly from the periphery of the bottom wall 20 to the neck 22 of the container body 12. There are four sidewalls 24, 26, 28 and 30, including a left sidewall 24, a front sidewall 26, a right sidewall 28 and a rear sidewall 30. Adjacent ones of the side walls 24, 26, 28 and 30 meet at rounded corners 24a, 26a, 28a and 30a. Optionally, a notch 48 may span some or all of the side walls 24, 26, 28 and 30, such as for placement of a label.

[0030] The bottom wall 20 , side walls 24 , 26 , 28 , and 30 , and the neck 22 define an interior 18 of the container 10 having an access opening 46 through the neck 22 , as will be described in greater detail herein.

[0031] An adjacent pair of side walls (such as the left side wall 24 and the rear side wall 30 as shown) may have a through opening 50 therebetween so that a handle 52 is formed adjacent one of the corners 30a of the container body 12. The handle 52 may have an upper end 54 adjacent the neck 22 and a lower end 56 adjacent the bottom wall 20. The handle 52 may be hollow and communicate with the remainder of the interior at its upper end 54 and / or lower end 56. For blow molding the container body 12, a slidable insert may be used with the mold to form the handle opening 50. However, instead of the handle 52, a narrow area without an opening may be used to provide a gripping location.

[0032] The neck 22 of the container body 12 is configured for removably attaching a lid 16, such as a snap-on lid. To this end, the neck 22 includes an outwardly extending protrusion 32 that is spaced apart from the side walls 24, 26, 28, and 30 by a recessed portion or groove 58. The protrusion 32 may be curved. The lid 16 includes a top wall 60 and a depending skirt 62. The skirt 62 has an inwardly extending curved protrusion 34 that is configured to cooperate with the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22 of the container body 12 to secure the lid 16 to the neck 22 of the container body 12. When the lid 16 is pressed onto the neck 22 of the container body 12, the inwardly extending protrusion 34 of the lid 16 contacts the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22 of the container body 12. As shown in FIG. Figure 8 As shown, further movement of the cap 16 onto the neck 22 of the container body 12 causes the skirt 62 of the cap 16 and the inwardly extending protrusion 34 to flex outwardly away from the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22 of the container body 12 until the inwardly extending protrusion 34 of the skirt 62 of the cap 16 passes over the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22 of the container body 12 and is received in the recessed portion 58 of the neck 22. Removal of the cap 16 can be accomplished by pulling the cap 16 away from the neck 22 of the container body 12 to slide the inwardly extending protrusion 34 of the skirt 62 of the cap 16 over the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22 of the container body 12.

[0033] The neck 22 of the container 12 is also configured for sealingly attaching the sealing barrier 14 to block the access opening 46. More specifically, as Figure 7As shown, the neck 22 includes a sealing flange 36 to which the sealing barrier 14 is sealed. As described above, the sealing flange 36 includes a first end 40 and a second end 44. The first end 40 is connected to an upwardly extending step 42, which is positioned above the outwardly extending protrusion 32 of the neck 22, on the opposite side of the outwardly extending protrusion 32 relative to the sidewalls 24, 26, 28 and 30 of the container body 12. The first end 40 of the sealing flange 36 forms a hinged interface with the step 42. The second end 44 of the sealing flange 36 defines the periphery of an access opening 46 leading to the interior 18 of the container body 12. The sealing flange 36 extends away from the bottom wall 20 at an oblique angle. In other words, the first end 40 of the sealing flange 36 is closer to the bottom wall 20 of the container body 12 than the second end 44 of the sealing flange 36.

[0034] The sealing flange 36 is cantilevered inwardly. Optionally, the perimeter of the access opening 46 may be surrounded in projection by the maximum perimeter of the side walls 24, 26, 28 and 30 taken from parallel planes. The sealing flange 36 has a width extending between its first end 40 and second end 44. Although preferably linear or flat in width or a large portion thereof, the sealing flange 36 may not be completely linear or flat. The sealing flange 36 extends continuously around the perimeter of the access opening 46. The sealing flange 36 has four generally linear sections 36a, 36b, 36c and 36d and four corner areas 36e, 36f, 36g and 36h.

[0035] The sealing barrier 14 may be formed of any suitable material, such as a laminate foil, a laminate film, etc. The sealing barrier 14 has a heat sealant layer on the bottom side, such that applying heat and pressure on the top side opposite the bottom side causes the heat sealant layer to adhere to the sealing surface 38 of the sealing flange 36. The heat and pressure may be applied, for example, using a sealing platen having a flat sealing surface. Induction sealing may also be used.

[0036] During the sealing of the sealing barrier 14 to the sealing surface 38 of the sealing flange 36, the pressure applied to the sealing barrier 14 and therefore to the sealing flange 36 may cause the sealing flange 36 to pivot inwardly about the hinged interface with the step 42. Not all portions of the sealing flange 36 need to pivot inwardly about the hinged interface to the same extent. This may be due to the fact that the sealing flange 36 is not uniformly formed around the entire periphery of the access opening 46. For example, the container body 12 may shrink after blow molding, with some areas shrinking more than other areas. Although such shrinkage changes may be slight, this may be sufficient to produce, for example, a change in the height of a given portion of the sealing flange 36 relative to the height of another portion of the sealing flange 36 relative to the bottom wall 20. By intentionally designing the flexure or pivoting of the sealing flange 36 about the hinged interface with the step 42, these changes can be accommodated during sealing to ultimately result in a flatter sealing area of ​​the sealing surface 38 on the sealing flange 36 for sealing of the sealing barrier 14.

[0037] In a particular example, the step 42 may have a height h, the sealing flange 36 may have a projected width pw, and the sealing flange 36 may have an inclination angle θ relative to a plane parallel to the bottom wall 20. In addition, there may be a radius r at the hinged interface of the step 42 and the sealing flange 36. In an exemplary embodiment, these variables may have the following values, but other values ​​may also be suitable:

[0038] h 0.5mm 0.4-0.7mm pw 4mm 3-5mm θ 18 degrees 12-22 degrees r 0.5mm 0.4-0.7mm

[0039] As described above, variations in the sealing flange 36 may result in non-uniformity of the perimeter of the sealing flange 36 around the access opening 46, such as due to blow molding techniques. For example, unlike containers having a circular cross-section or footprint, a blow molded container having a generally rectangular cross-section or footprint may have thickened sidewalls adjacent to the corner regions rather than between the corner regions. This may result in shrinkage and other variations that may affect the height of the sealing flange 36 above the bottom wall 20 around the perimeter of the access opening 46. Thickened sidewalls adjacent to the corner regions may result in adjacent portions of the sealing flange 36 being less flexible than portions of the sealing flange 36 at mid-span between adjacent corner regions. To address these challenges with flexing of the sealing flange 36 adjacent the corner regions 24a, 26a, 28a, and 30a of the side walls 24, 26, 28, and 30 and the neck 22, the generally linear sections 36e, 36f, 36g, and 36h of the sealing flange 36 each have a central portion having an increased height relative to the bottom wall 20 as compared to the corner regions 36a, 36b, 36c, and 36d of the sealing flange 36. Fig.11Schematically shown in FIG, which is not drawn to scale, but shows that the central portion of the generally linear sections 36e, 36f, 36g and 36h is higher than the corner regions 36a, 36b, 36c and 36d. Therefore, for the four central portions and the four corner regions 36a, 36b, 36c and 36d, there will be four peaks and four valleys. Of course, other curves or shapes can be used to achieve this. Advantageously, when pressed by the sealing platen via the intermediate sealing barrier 14, the sealing flange 36 will be more flexed in the central region of the generally linear sections 36e, 36f, 36g and 36h than in the corner regions 36a, 36b, 36c and 36d, but the sealing flange 36 is still less rigid or has less resistance to pivoting around the hinged interface in the central region of the generally linear sections 36e, 36f, 36g and 36h than in the corner regions 36a, 36b, 36c and 36d. The result is a more uniform sealing surface 38 of the sealing flange 36 , which may lead to a more consistent seal between the sealing flange 36 and the sealing barrier 14 .

[0040] Adding the handle 52 to the container body 12 limits the location of the mold parting line and, therefore, the location of the pinch-off area. Fig.10 As shown, with the handle 52 at the intersection of the two side walls 24 and 30, the mold parting line extends from the adjacent corner area 36a to the diagonally opposite corner area 36c. The pinch-off line extends over a portion of the mold parting line, and as the pinch-off area is removed, the pinch-off lines 36i and 36j may remain on the sealing flange 36 adjacent to the two corner areas 36a and 36c. The pinch-off line may result in an uneven surface on the sealing flange. Preferably, the length of the pinch-off lines 36i and 36j is reduced, such as to no more than 50% of the width of the sealing flange 36 at this point, such as by shortening the pinch-off area through mold design so that the pinch-off area does not extend over the entire sealing flange 36 adjacent to the two corners 36i and 36j.

[0041] The container 10 described herein may be suitable for accommodating hygroscopic beverage powders. In one non-limiting example, the container 10 may have a footprint of about 138 mm by about 138 mm and a height of about 169 mm, and the opening 50 for the handle 52 may have a maximum height of about 105 mm. Of course, other dimensions may also be used for containers of different sizes. For example, the footprint may be between 100 mm and 200 mm on each side thereof, such as a generally square or rectangular shape. The height may be between 125 mm and 225 mm, and the handle opening may have a maximum height of about 50% to 75% of the container height. However, these are non-limiting examples.

[0042] It should be understood that the terms bottom wall and side wall do not require a single surface, such as a single flat or curved surface, but may be formed by multiple connected or relatively connected surfaces. It should also be understood that the terms generally rectangular and generally square do not require a perfect rectangle or a perfect square, for example, do not require a 90 degree intersection. Such terms include easily identifiable corner areas with extended sections between the corner areas, which sections do not have to be completely straight, but may have some curvature, undulation or arcuate. This is in contrast to an elliptical or circular shape.

Claims

1. A container, comprising: a container body having an interior defined by a bottom wall, a neck opposite the bottom wall, and a side wall extending between the bottom wall and the neck; The neck portion has an outwardly extending protrusion and an inwardly cantilevered sealing flange, the outwardly extending protrusion being used to cooperate with the inwardly extending protrusion of the lid, the inwardly cantilevered sealing flange presenting a non-circular sealing surface and having a first end and a second end, the first end being connected to an upwardly extending step portion to form a hinged interface with the upwardly extending step portion, the first end being positioned on an opposite side of the protrusion relative to the bottom wall, the second end defining an access opening to the interior of the container, the sealing flange extending away from the bottom wall at an inclined angle so that during sealing of the sealing barrier to the sealing flange, the sealing flange can pivot about the hinged interface with the step portion and toward the bottom wall.

2. The container of claim 1, wherein the access opening is non-circular.

3. The container of claim 1, wherein the access opening is generally rectangular.

4. The container of claim 3, wherein the sealing flange has four generally linear segments and four corner regions.

5. The container of claim 4, wherein the generally linear segments each have a central portion having an increased height relative to the bottom wall compared to the corner regions.

6. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the side wall of the container defines a generally rectangular perimeter of the container body.

7. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the side wall of the container body defines a hollow handle spaced apart from the remainder of the container body by a through opening.

8. The container according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the container body is formed by blow moulding.

9. The container according to claim 4, wherein: The container body is formed by blow molding; and A pair of diagonally opposite corner regions of the sealing flange has a pinch-off line extending by 50% or less of a width of the sealing flange at each of the pair of corner regions.

10. A method of forming a container according to any one of claims 1 to 11, the method comprising blow moulding the container body.

11. The container according to any one of claims 1 to 10, further comprising a sealing barrier that seals to the non-circular sealing surface of the sealing flange to seal the interior of the container body.

12. The container of any one of claims 1 to 11, further comprising a lid removably attached relative to the neck of the container and covering the access opening.

13. The container of claim 12, wherein the lid has a top wall and a depending skirt, the skirt having an inwardly extending protrusion, the inwardly extending protrusion being configured to cooperate with the outwardly extending protrusion of the neck of the container body to secure the lid to the neck of the container body.

14. A method of forming a container according to claim 11, the method comprising: positioning the sealing barrier against the sealing surface of the sealing flange of the container body; and then Heat and pressure are applied to the sealing barrier to pivot the sealing flange inwardly about the hinged interface with the step and to seal the sealing barrier to the sealing surface of the sealing flange.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising filling the container with a hygroscopic beverage powder prior to the steps of positioning the sealing barrier and applying heat and pressure to the sealing barrier.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising removably attaching a lid relative to the neck of the container and covering the access opening after the steps of filling the container with hygroscopic beverage powder, positioning the sealing barrier and applying heat and pressure to the sealing barrier.

17. A method for sealing a blow molded container using a flat sealing head surface, the blow molded container having a generally polygonal sealing surface, the generally polygonal sealing surface having a plurality of segments extending between adjacent corner regions, the plurality of segments having a sealing barrier, wherein the generally polygonal sealing surface is positioned on an opposite side of a lid locking protrusion compared to a bottom wall of the container, the generally polygonal sealing surface extends at an inward and upward angle relative to the flat sealing head surface, and wherein the generally polygonal sealing surface is closer to the flat sealing head surface in the region of the plurality of segments between corner regions than in the corner regions before sealing, the generally polygonal sealing surface deflecting toward the bottom wall of the container during sealing of the sealing barrier using the flat sealing head surface.

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