Container and method for preventing leakage therefrom through isolating deformation in the container

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6722519
  • Patent Number
    6,722,519
  • Date Filed
    Monday, August 19, 2002
    22 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, April 20, 2004
    20 years ago
Abstract
A container and method for preventing leakage therefrom through isolating deformation in the container caused by external forces. The container comprises a container wall having an opening therein, the opening capable of receiving a closure bushing with a sealing member wedged between the closure bushing and the container wall, and a weakened portion of the container wall not in wedged engagement with the sealing member capable of bending in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the container wall in wedged engagement with the sealing member.
Description




FIELD OF INVENTION




The present invention relates generally to containers and, more particularly, to a container and method for preventing leakage therefrom through isolating deformation in the container.




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




It is known in the art to provide containers for storing and transporting all types of materials. Such containers are typically in the shape of drums, but any number of configurations could be used so long as a reliable and resealable opening to the interior of the container is provided for filling and emptying the contents therein. Containers that hold liquids are particularly troublesome in that openings must be reliably mounted and sealed to the container to prevent leakage therebetween during transport and especially after being subjected to some type of external force applied to the container opening.




Conventional containers of this type typically include a sheet metal wall having a bunghole or opening for emptying or filling the container. The opening is usually defined by a closure bushing having an internally-threaded neck that can received an externally-threaded plug for sealing the opening and thus the contents of the container. The container wall typically includes an upwardly extending collar which surrounds the closure bushing.




When the closure bushing is fitted within the container wall collar, the closure bushing base flange is firmly pressed against the interior of the container wall collar with a sealing member compressed or wedged therebetween to provide the required seal. A second closure bushing flange is then flanged over the collar of the container opening so that the sealing ring can be held firmly wedged with pre-tension in this position. Therefore, when the closure bushing is secured within the container wall collar, the sealing member is wedged between the two parts and deformed, and because the sealing member material, such as rubber, retains its resiliency, the sealing member will insure a permanent seal.




The required closure seal is maintained so long as the sealing member is held firmly wedged between the closure bushing and container wall collar. However, as soon as the wedging reduces, the risk of leakage occurs between the container wall collar and the closure bushing. Such a reduction of the wedging can occur if the drum falls from a certain height onto a hard surface with the closure down. The closure bushing and upwardly extending container wall collar, which project upwardly relative to the rest of the container wall, may be pressed inwardly or bent in this case and could result in the closure bushing and the container wall collar being forced apart. Further, because containers are typically made of sheet metal, any bending or deformation of the container wall or upstanding container wall collar could result in the closure bushing and the container wall or container wall collar being forced apart permanently, thereby permitting leakage of liquid therebetween.




As a result, if the container wall or container wall collar is deformed to the extent that proper wedging is reduced, the seal cannot be maintained and leakage will likely occur. Currently, the prior art has attempted to solve this problem by reinforcing the seal between the closure bushing and the container wall collar. One such reference is U.S. Pat. No. 5,853,100 issued to Kars that discloses a drum with drum closure method that attempts to prevent leaking due to the deformation or compromise of the first seal by providing a second seal between the collar and the closure bushing or insert. As a result of the position of the additional seal between the collar and the insert, the '100 patent attempts to ensure that a proper seal is maintained even if the insert is pressed inwards relative to the collar as the result of a fall.




However, because the nature and extent of damage caused by external forces is unpredictable, utilizing a second seal will not likely prevent leakage in all cases, particularly when the external force impacts the closure bushing and container wall collar at an angle. In such a case, the container wall or container wall collar may be deformed to such an extent that both seals are compromised. Therefore, there is a need in the art to provide a container and container closure assembly that will maintain its seal wedge during the application of an external force that could cause container wall or container wall collar deformation.




BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




This object is achieved through permitting the container wall or portion of the container wall collar to deform in a predetermined portion thereof in response to an external force in order to maintain proper sealing wedge.




It is a further object of this invention to provide a method for preventing leakage from a container closure assembly by providing a weakened portion in the container wall or portion of the container wall collar to deform in a predetermined manner in response to an external force in order to maintain proper sealing wedge.




The forgoing and other objects of this invention are achieved by providing a container comprising a container wall having an opening therein, the opening capable of receiving a closure bushing with a sealing member wedged between the closure bushing and the container wall, and a means for permitting a portion of the container wall not in wedged engagement with the sealing member to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the container wall in wedged engagement with the sealing member. The means for permitting the container wall to bend in response to an external force may be accomplished by providing the container wall with a weakened portion that is more susceptible to deformation caused by external forces and therefore can absorb deformation which may have effected the sealing wedge. The weakened portion may be annular in shape so as to absorb external forces applied to the container wall or container wall collar from any angle. Such weakened portion could comprise a portion of prior stressed or bent container wall as well as a notch formed in the container wall.




The present invention will be more fully described in the following written description with reference to the accompanying drawings.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING





FIG. 1

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of a prior art closure showing a sealing wedge failure due to the deformation effects of an external force.





FIG. 2

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of the prior art closure of

FIG. 1

prior to application of an external force.





FIG. 3

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of a closure of the present invention showing the sealing wedge maintained after the application of an external force.





FIG. 4

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of the closure of

FIG. 3

prior to the application of an external force.





FIG. 5

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the present invention showing the sealing wedge maintained after the application of an external force.





FIG. 6

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of the closure of

FIG. 5

prior to the application of an external force.





FIG. 7

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the present invention showing the sealing wedge maintained after the application of an external force.





FIG. 8

is a fragmentary, cross-sectional view of the closure of

FIG. 7

prior to the application of an external force.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION




The invention is described herein with regard to drum containers used for storing and transporting liquids. The preferred embodiment as described herein is directed to steel drums, commonly 55-gallons in size. However, the description of the embodiments herein should in no way limit the scope of the claims presented. It would be obvious to one skilled in the art that this invention could be used for any container, whatever the configuration and composition, to transport materials of any composition and still fall within the scope of the appended claims.




Reference is now made to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2

show a fragmented, cross-sectional view of a typical 55-gallon container, herein a drum, commonly used in the art for the shipping and storage of industrial liquid products. In the particular container closure assembly illustrated, the drum head or container wall


10


is provided with at least one threaded closure bushing


12


to facilitate filling and dispensing of the container contents. Normally, two closures are used having varied dimensions such as 50 mm and 20 mm sized diameters. Because both closures can utilize the same construction, for the sake of simplicity, only one closure is shown herein.




Turning to the construction of the container closure assembly in

FIGS. 1 and 2

in greater detail, a closure bushing


12


is provided with an upstanding neck


14


having an outer cylindrical surface and an internal screw thread


16


for threaded reception of a closure plug


18


having an external screw thread


20


. The lowermost end of the neck


14


is surrounded by a laterally-extending, polygonal-shaped base


22


having a bottom surface and a top surface joined to the neck outer surface. As is common in the art, the base outer edge is formed in the shape of an octagon having eight flats and eight points. The base


22


of the closure bushing


12


extends laterally into a container wall embossment or recess to tightly confine the base


22


. The recess is of the same configuration as the base


22


so at to ensure that the closure bushing


12


will not rotate during insertion or removal of the plug


18


. While containers in the art typically utilize an octagonal-shaped recess and base, it should be noted the invention described below could be equally well employed in any container utilizing another configuration or torque-resisting construction. A resilient sealing member


24


surrounds the lower end of the closure busing neck


14


and is placed within the closure bushing pocket defined by the base


22


and closure bushing neck


14


. The sealing member


24


is of common annular construction and made of typical resilient material such as rubber.




As is known in the art, the closure bushing


12


is inserted into an upwardly-extending container wall collar


34


terminating in an opening. A vertical flange


28


projects upwardly, as clearly seen in the drawings, where it is curled radially outwardly over the container wall collar


34


. The bead


30


encases the upper portion of the container wall collar


34


to provide the required pressure or wedge between the container wall


10


and the closure bushing


12


, in the course of which sealing member


24


is compressed therebetween. The resultant effect is that sealing member


24


is held under pre-tension to form an appropriate seal between closure bushing


12


and container wall collar


34


. Additional sealing members can be placed on other portions of the closure bushing as known in the art to further ensure the proper seal.




However, when there are great deformations, for example, those which occur as the result of the container falling with the closure facing down, the closure bushing


12


of the prior art construction can be depressed within the container and result in a deformation of the container wall


10


shown at FIG.


1


. If the closure bushing


12


is pressed greatly inwards, the resultant deformation of the container wall


10


may result in the base


22


depressed a great distance from the container wall


10


. All or a great part of the pretension in sealing member


24


is consequently lost, as shown by arrow A in

FIG. 1

, which could give rise to leakages.




With regard to the present invention, and directed particularly to

FIGS. 3 and 4

, much of the structure of the present invention is similar to that of the prior art. Therefore, like elements are labeled with like reference numerals to provide simplicity of description. However, this invention is directed to and includes means for permitting a portion of the container wall, not in wedged engagement with the sealing member, to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the container wall in wedged engagement with the sealing member. Therefore, the invention disclosed herein, and covered by the appended claims, could utilize the structure of the prior art having such means for permitting a portion of its container wall to bend as required. Such a construction could include the prior art structure having an annular notch located on the recess wall of the upstanding collar and still fall within the scope of the appended claims. Such an invention is not shown or described in the prior art.





FIG. 4

shows the preferred embodiment of the present invention wherein a container closure assembly


32


comprises a closure bushing


12


provided with an upstanding neck


14


having an outer cylindrical surface and an internal screw thread


16


for threaded reception of a closure plug


18


. The lowermost end of the neck


14


is surrounded by a laterally-extending, polygonal-shaped base


22


having a bottom surface and a top surface joined to the neck outer surface. At least one sealing member


24


surrounds the lower end of the closure busing neck


14


.




The container wall


10


includes an upwardly-extending container wall collar


34


which is integral therewith. It should be noted, however, that this invention is not limited to containers having an upwardly-extending container wall collar only. As described herein, this invention could be utilized where the closure bushing is mounted directly to a flat container wall and still fall within the claims as presented herein. Further, it is acknowledged that the container wall collar


34


is typically integrally formed with the container wall


10


. Therefore, the disclosure herein acknowledges that the upwardly-extending container wall collar


34


can be described in its broadest sense as a portion of the container wall


10


. Thus, these terms my be used interchangeably within the following description.




With particular reference to

FIGS. 4 through 6

, the container wall


10


includes an upwardly-extending container wall collar


34


integral therewith and defining an opening within the container wall


10


. The opening is capable of receiving a closure bushing


12


for providing access to the interior of the container for insertion and removal of materials. The container wall collar


34


comprises a recessed wall


36


connected to the container wall


10


by a first annular wall


38


to define a first recess area


40


. It is within this first recessed area


40


that closure bushing base


22


is nested during wedging of the closure bushing. A second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


is connected to the recessed wall


38


to define a second recess area


44


capable of retaining and wedging at least one sealing member


24


. A third, inwardly sloped, annular wall


46


is connected to the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


by a first upwardly extending flange


48


, wherein the third, inwardly slope, annular wall


46


and the flange


48


define a third recess area


50


capable of retaining and wedging at least one sealing member, which may be the same sealing member


24


retained in the second recess area


44


. Finally, a second, upwardly extending flange


26


is connected to the third, inwardly sloped, annular wall


46


to form the container opening. The container wall or the container wall collar includes means for permitting a portion of the collar


34


or container wall


10


to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the collar


34


in wedged engagement with the sealing member


24


as described in detail below.




The closure bushing


12


is fixed to the container wall collar


34


by wedged insertion. The closure bushing


12


is inserted through the container wall collar


34


through the interior of the container. The closure bushing


12


, having at least one sealing member


24


, is pressed towards the container wall collar


34


, in the course of which sealing member


24


is compressed, and vertical flange


28


is flanged over flange


26


. The resultant effect is that sealing member


24


is held under pre-tension to form an appropriate seal between closure bushing


12


and container wall collar


34


. With the construction as described, the container closure assembly is formed with two recessed areas


44


,


50


retaining at least one sealing member


24


in wedged engagement and a means for permitting a portion of the collar


34


or container wall


10


to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the collar


34


in wedged engagement with sealing member


24


.




With regard to describing the means for permitting a portion of the collar


34


or container wall


10


to bend in response to an external force, the disclosure herein only describes those means in reference to the container wall collar


34


. However, the means described herein could likewise be utilized directly on the container wall


10


and accomplish the purpose of the invention. Also, the means for permitting a portion of the container wall collar or container wall to bend in response to an external force is located on a portion thereof that is not in wedged engagement with said sealing member. This is because the container wall collar


34


or container wall


10


should deform at a predetermined point so as not to deform the portion of the container wall collar or container wall in wedged engagement with the sealing member.




As shown in

FIGS. 4 through 8

, means for permitting bending in the container wall collar


34


could comprise a weakened portion of the container wall collar


34


therein that is more susceptible to deformation caused by external forces. Such a weakened portion could be a portion made from a material different from the rest of the container wall collar to make the portion more susceptible to deformation. Likewise, the weakened portion could be constructed, formed, or bent so that the portion is structurally weaker than the rest of the container wall collar. Further, the weakened portion could be located at a particular point on the container wall collar perimeter. The preferred embodiment of the invention utilizes the weakened portion as an annular weakened portion about the closure opening.





FIGS. 5 and 6

, a second embodiment of the invention, show such a weakened portion indicated by B wherein the weakened portion deforms and the sealing wedge is maintained. Such a weakened portion could be the result of the material used therein, the geometry of the construction, or the prebending of the container wall collar. Nevertheless, this second embodiment shows an alternate construction that permits deformation of the container wall collar


34


annular to the portion of the container wall collar


34


in wedged engagement with sealing member


24


.




Referring now to the preferred embodiment shown in

FIGS. 3 and 4

, the weakened portion is formed by a notch or prebent portion adjacent the second recess area


44


. The weakened portion is preferably created by the formation of an annular notch


54


located on the exterior surface of the container wall collar


34


so that the container wall collar


34


will bend inwardly at the notch


54


in response to an external force. Preferably, the notch is a V-shaped indentation, although other suitably shaped indentations could be utilized either on the interior or exterior surface of the container wall depending upon the deformation desired.




Notch


54


is located on an exterior portion of the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


not in wedged engagement with the sealing member


24


. Directly opposite the notch is a gap


56


, shown only in

FIG. 4

, formed between the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


, the sealing member


24


, and the base


22


. This gap permits the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


to deform into a predetermined area that will enhance the wedge applied to sealing member


24


. Therefore, the container wall collar


34


can deform in a predetermined fashion that will enhance the wedging of the sealing member rather than that destroy or deteriorate the wedge and still absorb the impact of the external force. To further insure proper deformation, the second, inwardly-sloped, annular wall


42


may include a pivot


58


, shown in

FIG. 4

, located radially outwardly from the notch


54


to engage the closure bushing base


22


during application of an external force so as to force the notch


54


to deform inwardly into gap


56


.




Referring now to a preferred embodiment shown in

FIGS. 7 and 8

, the container wall


10


includes an upwardly-extending collar


34


integral therewith and defining an opening within the container wall


10


. The opening is capable of receiving a closure bushing


12


for providing access to the interior of the container for insertion and removal of materials. The container wall collar


34


comprises a recessed wall


36


connected to the container wall


10


by a first annular wall


38


to define a first recess area


40


. It is within this first recessed area


40


that closure bushing base


22


is nested during wedging of the closure bushing. A second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


is connected to the recessed wall


38


to define a second recess area


44


capable of retaining and wedging at least one sealing member


24


. Finally, flange


26


is connected to the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall


42


to form the container opening. Although the collar


34


in

FIGS. 7 and 8

does not show the third, inwardly sloped, annular wall


46


, the first upwardly extending flange


48


, or the third recess area


50


as shown in

FIGS. 4 through 6

, it is contemplated by the present inventor that the collar


34


may further include these features.





FIGS. 7 and 8

further show a weakened portion preferably created by the formation of an annular notch


72


located on the exterior surface of the recessed wall


36


of the container wall collar


34


. The container wall collar


34


will bend inwardly at the notch


72


in response to an external force. Preferably, the notch is a V-shaped indentation, although other suitably shaped indentations can be utilized either on the interior or exterior surface of the container wall


10


or container wall collar


34


depending upon the deformation desired.





FIG. 8

further shows the deformation of the container wall collar


34


at the notch


72


. The bending of the collar


34


at the notch


72


creates a pivot


74


on the internal wall of the collar


34


so as not to deform the portion of the container wall collar


34


or container wall


10


in wedged engagement with the sealing member


24


.




Therefore, in operation, as an external force is exerted to the container closure assembly from any direction, the container wall collar


34


and sealingly engaged closure bushing


12


can move relative to the container wall


10


through the deformation of the weakened portion of the container wall collar


34


. Such a weakened portion will be the first portion to deform upon the issuance of an external force and therefore absorb the forces that could potentially damage the sealing wedge. Therefore, if a force acts upon the container closure assembly to such an extent so as to cause deformation therein, deformation of the container wall collar occurs at the predetermined weakened area, but not at the expense of the overall seal.




The present invention also comprises a method for preventing leakage from a container closure assembly wherein the method comprises providing a weakened portion in a container wall, substantially as described above, wherein the weakened portion is not in wedged engagement with the sealing member. Therefore, the weakened portion will bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of the container wall in wedged engagement with the sealing member. As described above, the weakened portion preferably is annular to the opening. The weakened portion could comprises a portion of the container wall that is prebent to weaken the portion. Preferably, the weakened portion comprises a notch located on a portion of the second, inwardly sloped, annular wall not in wedged engagement with the sealing member.




The invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment. Obviously, modifications and alternations will occur to others upon a reading and understanding of this specification. The claims as follows are intended to include all modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the claims or the equivalents thereof.



Claims
  • 1. A container comprising:a container wall; a collar extending upwardly from said container wall and defining an opening, said opening capable of receiving a closure bushing with at least one sealing member wedged between said closure bushing and a portion of said collar, said collar comprising: a recessed wall connected to said container wall by a first annular wall to define a first recess area; and means for permitting said container wall or a portion of said collar not in wedged engagement with said sealing member to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of said collar in wedged engagement with said sealing member.
  • 2. The container of claim 1 wherein said means for permitting bending in said collar comprises a weakened portion of said collar more susceptible to deformation caused by external forces.
  • 3. The container of claim 2 wherein said weakened portion comprises a notch.
  • 4. The container of claim 3 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall or said first annular wall.
  • 5. The container of claim 4 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall.
  • 6. The container of claim 5 wherein said notch is located on an exterior portion of said recessed wall.
  • 7. A container comprising:a container wall; a collar extending upwardly from said container wall and defining an opening, said opening capable of receiving a closure bushing with at least one sealing member wedged between said closure bushing and a portion of said collar, said collar comprising: a recessed wall connected to said container wall by a first annular wall to define a first recess area; and a notch on said container wall or a portion of said collar not in wedged engagement with said sealing member to bend in response to an external force so as not to deform the portion of said collar in wedged engagement with said sealing member.
  • 8. The container of claim 7 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall or said first annular wall.
  • 9. The container of claim 8 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall.
  • 10. The container of claim 9 wherein said notch is located on an external portion of said recessed wall.
  • 11. A container closure assembly comprising:a container wall; a collar extending upwardly from said container wall and defining an opening, said collar comprising: a recessed wall connected to said container wall by a first annular wall to define a first recess area; a closure bushing comprising an internally threaded neck held within said collar and a radially outwardly extending base extending from the lowermost end of said internally threaded neck, said base nested within said first recess area; a plug having an exteriorly threaded portion for threaded engagement with said internally threaded neck to provide closure to said closure assembly; at least one sealing member wedged between said closure bushing and said collar; and means for permitting a portion of said collar not in wedged engagement with said sealing member to bend in response to an external force.
  • 12. The container closure assembly of claim 11 wherein said means for permitting bending in said collar comprises a weakened portion of said collar more susceptible to deformation caused by external forces.
  • 13. The container closure assembly of claim 12 wherein said annular weakened portion comprises a notch.
  • 14. The container closure assembly of claim 13 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall or said first annular wall.
  • 15. The container closure assembly of claim 14 wherein said notch is located on a portion of said recessed wall.
  • 16. The container closure assembly of claim 15 wherein said notch is located on an external portion of said recessed wall.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/071,602, filed Feb. 8, 2002.

US Referenced Citations (8)
Number Name Date Kind
3098579 Wheaton Jul 1963 A
3208775 Stap et al. Sep 1965 A
3946894 Simkus Mar 1976 A
3987929 Mineo Oct 1976 A
4117949 Dwinell Oct 1978 A
4706836 Greck Nov 1987 A
5052576 Budenbender Oct 1991 A
5853100 Kars Dec 1998 A
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number Date Country
489896 Aug 1938 GB
763857 Jul 1954 GB
943146 May 1962 GB
Continuation in Parts (1)
Number Date Country
Parent 10/071602 Feb 2002 US
Child 10/224287 US