Information
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Patent Grant
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6409386
-
Patent Number
6,409,386
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Date Filed
Friday, June 8, 200123 years ago
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Date Issued
Tuesday, June 25, 200222 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
-
CPC
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US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 383 104
- 383 120
- 383 907
- 383 906
- 426 85
- D09 305
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International Classifications
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Abstract
A container for liquids or fluid products, including viscous ones, made by folding and heat-sealing a single sheet of flexible material. The single sheet is folded so as to form two mutually opposite quadrangular faces directly heat-sealed along two consecutive sides, while the third side of each one of the two faces is connected by an accordion-like portion which forms a substantially triangular base for the container and a fourth side has an additional accordion-like portion which forms a closure wall. The container has a filling opening on one of the two first sides or on the corner where they converge.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The disclosure of Italian Application Serial No. PD2000A000012 filed Jan. 24, 2000 is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a container for liquids or for fluid products, including viscous ones, obtained by folding and heat-sealing a single sheet of flexible material.
A very wide variety of containers for fluids, obtained by folding a single sheet of flexible material, is commercially available.
Despite their widespread marketing, containers of the prior art are not free from drawbacks.
In particular, they are not self-supporting when they contain liquids or granular fluids.
These kinds of substances in fact do not have a shape of their own and accordingly adapt to the container holding them, which when made of flexible material is unable to retain a preset shape.
Furthermore, currently known containers can be manufactured at costs which are sometimes not competitive and at low speeds.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The aim of the present invention is to eliminate or substantially reduce the problems of the prior art containers for liquids or fluid products, including viscous ones, obtained by folding and heat-sealing a single sheet of flexible material.
Within this aim, an important object is to provide containers having such a shape to be self-supporting.
Another object is to provide containers which have low manufacture and sale costs.
Another object is to produce containers by using know equipment.
Another object is to provide containers which can be manufactured rapidly.
This aim and these and others objects which will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a container made of flexible material, particularly for liquids or fluids, characterized in that it is made of a single sheet of flexible material which is folded so as to form two mutually opposite quadrangular faces directly heat-sealed along two consecutive sides and connected along two further sides by accordion-like portions obtained by folding said sheet, a first accordion-like portion forming, on a third side, a substantially triangular base, a second accordion-like portion forming a closure wall on a fourth side, a closable opening for filling said container being provided.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Further characteristics and advantages of the container according to the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment thereof, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1
is a perspective view of a container according to the invention;
FIG. 2
is a further perspective view of the invention;
FIGS. 3 and 4
are the two side views of a container according to the invention;
FIG. 5
is a perspective view of a container provided with an upper opening, according to a second embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 6 and 7
are perspective views of the container provided with a straw;
FIG. 8
is a perspective view of two containers according to the invention, joined along one of their sides.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to the figures, a container for liquids or fluid products, including viscous ones, according to the invention, is generally designated by the reference numeral
10
.
The container
10
is obtained by folding a single sheet so as to form two mutually opposite quadrangular faces
11
a
and
11
b.
The two mutually opposite faces
11
a
and
11
b
are directly heat-sealed to each other along two consecutive sides
12
and
13
.
A third side
14
, consecutive to the side
13
and opposite to the side
12
, connects the two faces
11
a
and
11
b
by means of a first accordion-like portion
15
which is produced by heat-sealing and subsequently folding the corresponding portions of the faces
11
a
and
11
b.
The fourth side
16
constitutes a continuous closure wall of the container
10
and is also provided with a second accordion-like portion
17
.
The third side
14
and the first accordion-like portion
15
form a substantially triangular base for the container
10
, which in combination with the second accordion-like portion
17
allows said container to self-support when filled.
The container
10
has, on the side
12
, a closable filling opening
20
.
The opening
20
allows to fill the containers
10
directly during the production process if vertical machines are used.
The container
10
can also be filled after its manufacture again by means of the opening
20
.
FIGS. 6 and 7
illustrate a container
10
provided with a straw
21
.
The straw
21
can be inserted in the container
10
through a weakened portion
22
arranged in one of the two faces
11
a
and
11
b.
Alternatively, the container
10
can be produced directly with a straw
21
arranged inside.
In the illustrated case, the straw
21
is arranged transversely, with one end
23
located at a peel-off heat-sealed portion
24
of the container
10
.
Advantageously, in this case, the peel-off heat-sealed portion
24
is located in the corner where the directly heat-sealed consecutive sides
12
and
13
converge.
Two identical containers
10
a
and
10
b
can form a double container, generally designated by the reference numeral
25
, as shown in FIG.
8
.
The two containers
10
a
and
10
b
are joined by means of their directly heat-sealed sides
13
a
and
13
b
which are consecutive to the bases
14
a
and
14
b.
The two containers
10
a
and
10
b
can be separated by means of a series of prescores
26
formed longitudinally along the joined sides
13
a
and
13
b.
In practice it has been found that the present invention has achieved the intended aim and objects.
In particular, it is evident that a container for liquids or fluid products, including viscous ones, has been provided which is capable of self-supporting when filled and of keeping a preset shape.
The container can also be manufactured at low costs and by using equipment of the known type or in any case equipment already used to manufacture containers having a different shape.
The present invention is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the inventive concept.
All the details may be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.
In practice, the materials used, so long as they are compatible with the contingent use, as well as the dimensions, may be any according to requirements.
Claims
- 1. A container made of flexible material, particularly for liquids or fluids, being made of a single sheet of flexible material which is folded so as to form two mutually opposite quadrangular faces directly sealed along two consecutive sides and connected along the two further sides by accordion-like portions obtained by folding said sheet, a first accordion-like portion forming, on a third side, a substantially triangular base, a second accordion-like portion forming a closure wall on a fourth side, a closable opening for filling said container being provided.
- 2. The container according to claim 1, wherein said closable opening is provided at the directly sealed side that lies opposite the bottom.
- 3. The container according to claim 1, wherein said first accordion-like portion on the base folds within the dimensions of said container.
- 4. The container according to claim 1, being connected to an adjacent container, separated along at least one longitudinal prescore formed along the directly sealed side consecutive to the base.
- 5. The container according to claim 1, comprising a straw arranged internally with one end at an openable portion of the two directly sealed sides.
US Referenced Citations (9)
Foreign Referenced Citations (2)
Number |
Date |
Country |
0 620 156 |
Oct 1994 |
EP |
1 464 641 |
Mar 1967 |
FR |