629 results about "EMPTY CONTAINER" patented technology

A manual and automatic fluid control system and method for use in open and laparoscopic laser surgery and electrosurgery is disclosed. The system includes a manual mode along with several automatic modes which can effectuate both suction and irrigation, either individually or simultaneously. In the various automatic modes, the suction and/or irrigation is automatically activated during activation of a medical apparatus for laser surgery or electrosurgery without requiring separate activation from the surgeon or operating room staff. Several safety features for monitoring the fluid control system are also incorporated within the system such as fluid sensors for detecting the absence of irrigation fluid, pressure sensors and vacuum systems for monitoring fluid pressure, fluid sensors for monitoring fluid volume, and warning signals for detecting empty containers. All of the safety features are designed to automatically deactivate suction and/or irrigation means contained within the fluid control system upon detection of unsafe levels. Finally, specially designed suction/irrigation hand pieces are disclosed for use in connection with the fluid control system.

Systems and methods for use in processing raw material (e.g., iron bearing material) include a linear furnace apparatus extending along a longitudinal axis between a charging end and a discharging end (e.g., the linear furnace apparatus includes at least a furnace zone positioned along the longitudinal axis). Raw material is provided into one or more separate or separable containers (e.g., trays) at the charging end of the linear furnace apparatus. The separate or separable containers are moved through at least the furnace zone and to the discharging end where the processed material is discharged resulting in one or more empty containers. One or more of the empty containers are returned to the charging end of the linear furnace apparatus to receive further raw material.

A stackable nestable container has access openings in at least one of the side and end walls. The access openings are covered by a dispensable panel that can be removed for enabling access to the contents of the container. The container is therefore suitable for use in shipping goods as well as displaying the goods at a retail outlet. Upon return of empty containers, the panels do not need to be replaced and the containers can be stacked in a nested stack, separately from the lids. Then, when the containers are to be used again, new or replacement panels are fit into the access openings. The panels are of a lightweight, inexpensive material and are therefore expendable, and can even be discarded by the user when a need arises to remove or replace the panels. Also, the panels have a wide flat area on which advertising or other indicia can be printed, which is typically displayed on the sides of containers.

A process for reducing the oxygen concentration in a container prior to filling the container with a liquid by passing a hollow filling needle through a puncturable part of the container wall, in which the empty container is enclosed within an envelope which is less permeable to oxygen than the container wall. The process is suitable for use with vials having a puncturable closure.

System for feeding empty containers on a conveyor belt, namely for packaging installations, such as bottling plants. The system for feeding containers comprises a supporting surface having dimensions sufficient to accommodate a multitude of empty containers placed side by side. This supporting surface continuously moves the containers against an abutment wall. The movement of the supporting surface causes empty containers to agglomerate against the abutment wall. A pushing device is provided to selectively push out from the containers agglomeration a number of containers over a secondary conveyor belt that will lead those containers to successive processing stations, such as a filling station, capping station, labeling station etc. The pushing device is mounted relative to the supporting surface such that it moves generally parallel to the abutment wall. The movement of the pushing device pushes out of the agglomeration a row of containers that are maintained in a serial order during this movement by the abutment wall on one hand and the rest of the empty containers on the other hand.

A system and method for monitoring changes in the pressure of a fluid line upstream of an infusion pump to determine when a fluid container has emptied, and to provide a signal indicating that the container needs replacement or replenishment. The difference between averaged pressures over separate time periods is monitored to determine when the fluid container is empty. The system and method are applicable to primary and secondary fluid container setups and can detect the point where the secondary has been emptied and the primary flow has resumed.

A low-cost totally recyclable container made of corrugated cardboard for packaging a large mass of coiled welding wire is disclosed. The improved container minimizes the costs of packaging and avoids the need of large volumes for transportation and storage of empty containers to and from the welding wire manufacturing plant and at the welding plant. The container in kit form or assembled with or without the wire coil includes a wire retaining device of simple and inexpensive design to press down on the top of the coil of wire when in the container without binding against the inner walls of the container while preventing the wire which is arranged in a multitude of layers of wire loops from tangling during transportation, storage, and unwinding while providing effective means for smooth and uninterrupted payout of welding wire to automatic welding machines. The wire retaining device is secured relative to the inner wall of the container by means of plastic or metallic strips passing through peripheral openings in the retaining device, said strips being fixed to the wall at two vertically spaced points along the height of the welding wire mass. The container is fully recyclable avoiding the environmental impact caused by other packaging materials.

The invention relates to a fuel tank comprising a vessel for containing fuel and a system for evacuating the gases contained in the vessel. The system has a passage putting the inside of the vessel into communication with the outside of the vessel, and the passage is closed by a membrane suitable for allowing air and fuel vapor to pass therethrough while preventing liquid fuel from passing therethrough. The membrane is situated inside the vessel and it extends over the major portion of the top wall of the vessel.

The present invention is a reverse vending machine which accepts non-metallic and metallic beverage containers for processing. The beverage containers are inserted by the user into an intake chute, where they are then compacted, sorted, and deposited in storage bins contained in the machine. A number of additional functions are provided by the reverse vending machine, including a self cleaning system, a video screen for displaying information to users, a bar code scanner for scanning bar codes, a user ID reader, and a coupon printer for issuing coupons to users. All transaction information is processed by a computer and stored electronically. The invention automatically returns non-empty containers and containers with unacceptable or unreadable bar codes to the user. The user is also provided warning messages when the storage bins are nearly full, or when a container is jammed in the machine.

A tool and a method for cutting holes in a container wall such as in a tank, a cistern, a pipeline, a vehicle, a ship, a production like or the like that contains inflammable, explosive, or other hazardous gasses, and liquids. The tool includes means for pressurising a cutting medium and discharging said medium via a nozzle. The nozzle is arranged in an enclosing cover including a scalable safety outlet for evacuation of the container contents. The cover has means of sealed-off abutment against the container wall concerned in the area in which hole cutting is to be performed. The nozzle is arranged to be directed towards the container wall in such a way that in use the cutting medium is discharged in the form of a jet impinging against the container wall with sufficient force to cut through said wall.

The invention provides for a food container that combines food-holding capabilities with food-measuring capabilities and with food-serving capabilities. The container may include a pre-packaged base food preparation. The base food preparation is then removed from the container and a second food preparation is measured using the indicia on the container. The method of the present invention provides for removing the base food preparation from the container, adding readily-available food product, such as a liquid or a semi-solid food product, to produce the desired end food product. The amount of readily-available food product is obtained by using the indicia on the then-empty container, which indicia can be variably located on the container. Once the end food product is mixed, the end food product can be placed back into the container for consumption by the user.

The contents of successive containers for comminuted tobacco leaves are transferred onto or into a receiver (such as a belt conveyor) at a transfer station where an indexible upright manipulator carries a lifter and an evacuating device including a tilting unit. Successive containers, delivered to the transfer station by a roller conveyor or the like, are lifted by the lifter off the conveyor and the manipulator is thereupon indexed to deliver the lifted container to a location above the receiver. The tilting unit is thereupon caused to tilt the container to thus transfer, by gravity flow, the contents of the container onto an openable intercepting device at a level between the tilter and the receiver. The intercepting device is thereupon opened to permit the intercepted material to descend onto or into the receiver. The manipulator is thereupon indexed to move the emptied container to a position above a further conveyor serving to transport empty containers away from the transfer station. The multi-stage transfer of particulate material from a container above the receiver onto or into the receiver reduces the generation of dust and the likelihood of undesirable comminution of such material.

A sterile filling machine and related method are provided for sterile filling a container with a substance. The container includes a heat resealable stopper and a chamber for receiving the substance therein. The sealed, empty containers are subjected to radiation capable of penetrating through the stopper and chamber for sterilizing the container. The previously sterilized containers are then transported through an e-beam chamber, wherein an electron beam is directed onto a penetrable surface of the stopper to sterilize the penetrable surface. A needle is mounted within the e-beam chamber and moved into engagement with the stopper to pierce the sterilized penetrable surface of the stopper and inject the substance through the needle and into the chamber of the container. The needle is then withdrawn from the stopper and the filled container is transported outside of the e-beam chamber. Laser energy is then transmitted onto the penetrated surface of the stopper to fuse the stopper material and hermetically re-seal the stopper.

An apparatus for sterile filling of beverage containers has a first module and a second module. The first module rinses and sterilizes empty containers and delivers the sterilized containers to the second module. The second module fills and caps the containers with beverage product at ambient temperature in an active sterilization zone utilizing an e-beam sterilization unit.

An apparatus and method for stacking product in a container. The apparatus comprises a bi-directional conveying system configured to transport product to either end thereof. A container handling system is positioned proximate the bi-directional conveying system. The container handling system is configured to move empty containers proximate the ends of the bi-directional conveying system for sorting and/or sequencing of product therein and containers with product therein away from the bi-directional conveying system.

A computer program, database and method for the detection of fissile or radioactive material or radiation shielding material in a container works with detection devices brought into proximity to containers so that the presence of fissile or radioactive material, or shielding materials to conceal the presence of such fissile or radioactive materials, may be detected. A comparison may then be made of the output of the detector to a threshold to determine subsequent action regarding the shipping container. The threshold may be based on the output of known, dangerous radioactive materials, known legitimate contents or empty containers.

A method for pressing together empty containers, especially drinks bottles or cans made of plastic, especially PET or tinplate, comprises a housing with a fill opening and an outlet, a cutting and pressing disposed in the housing, and a device for driving and controlling the cutting and pressing unit. The cutting and pressing unit contains at least two rollers whose axes of rotation are arranged at a distance from each other. Each roller has at least two sections. Adjacent sections along the same roller have different diameters. When the rollers are mounted, the sections having the larger diameter are offset relative to each other and the peripheral surfaces thereof partially overlap with each other, forming cutting disks whose peripheral surfaces have at least one groove.