Patent Application
20150342380
The invention relates to recyclable, thermally insulated plastic containers of the type used to dispense or store food or drink products, and more particularly to a two-piece container comprising a vertically, externally ribbed inner cup and a flexible sleeve wrapped around the cup so as to span the ribs and create vertical air spaces for insulation. The sleeve may be printed and is preferably of the same material of the cup thereby to allow the entire cup to be recycled without separating the components.
Restaurants, cafeterias and other food service facilities commonly use treated paper or Styrofoam cups to dispense coffee, cocoa, soup and other hot products. A number of devices have been developed to provide thermal insulation on the outside of such cups to prevent discomfort to a consumer when the cup is filled with, for example, hot coffee or soup. One popular device is a cardboard sleeve which one can telescopically slide onto a cup from the bottom to protect the consumer's fingers from heat. Other devices include formed plastics.
Problems associated with these devices include the fact that the cups and sleeves have to be manufactured, shipped and dispensed as separate units thus adding to costs. Secondly, they are sometimes made of different materials and, to the extent they are recycled, must typically be separated and placed in separate containers for collection by recyclers.
The present invention provides a unitary, thermally-insulated container such as a single-service drink cup, designed for use in the service of hot products such as coffee, tea, soup and cocoa. The entire container is made of a plastic material such as polypropylene and includes an inner cup portion formed with vertical ribs and intermediate recesses of the sidewall thereof. Overlying the outside surfaces of the ribs is a sleeve, preferably also of sheet polypropylene. The sleeve is secured to the cup with a butt seam adhesively overlying a rib surface so that the two elements are recycled as unit. Because the sleeve overlies the ribs of the cup, there are vertical air spaces between the ribs thereby to provide insulation that protects the user against discomfort, as the result of grasping a cup filled with a hot fluid.
In the illustrative embodiment shown in the drawings and described herein, the cup body is formed with a first smooth circumferential band near the top rim and a second smooth annular band immediately below the first band but of smaller diameter to form a step. The surface of the second, lower band extends downwardly in the form of circumferentially-spaced ribs with recesses between them. The surfaces of the recesses extend downwardly into a smooth bottom band. The wraparound sleeve extends substantially from the step to the bottoms of the ribs such that the vertical air spaces are open at the bottom and closed at the tops. The entire container may be tapered and the top band may be reversely-tapered to prevent the containers from completely telescoping when stacked.
While the invention will be described herein with respect to a tapered drink cup, it may be configured for other uses and in various sizes. Other advantages, features and characteristics of the present invention will become more apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description and the appended claims with reference to the accompanying drawings, the latter being briefly described hereinafter.
The description herein makes reference to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views and wherein:
Referring to the figures, there is shown an all-plastic, thermally insulated single-service drink cup-type container 10 comprising an open top tapered cup body 12 having a circular rim 14 and attached around the outer surface thereof, a sheet plastic sleeve 16, the cup 12 and the sleeve 16 both preferably being formed of polypropylene. The cup is thermoformed using complemental male and female dies and the sheet sleeve 16 is extruded and die cut.
Referring to
Between the ribs 26, the cup has thermoformed therein parallel, vertical recesses 28 with arched tops 30 which, as shown in
As shown in
A conventional thermoformed lid (not shown) or closure may be snap-fit onto the rim 14, said closure typically but optionally being provided with drink-through features, such as simple apertures or fold-back/lock-back tabs. The topography of the lid may vary widely between low profile flat tops and crowned “Cappuccino” lids with high tops. The reverse taper-to-band 18 prevents full telescoping when the containers are stacked.
While the invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, which scope is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures as is permitted under the law.
