Claims
- 1. A flip top cap for a container comprising:
a cylindrical base, said base being attachable to an orifice of the container; an annular lip formed in the base and extending upward from the base, said annular lip having an inside surface and an outside surface; said inside surface of said lip defining an opening in the base such that when the base is attached to the container, the opening provides a passageway from the inside of the container to the outside of the container, said passageway having a diameter defined by the orifice of the container such that the passageway provides for the free flow of the contents from the container through the orifice of the container and through the passageway; a flip top lid hingedly coupled to the base such that the flip top lid is movable between a first position and a second position, said first position being substantially parallel the base such that the lid covers the opening sufficient to contain any contents in the container, said second position being away from the opening such that the flip top cap does not substantially obstruct the pouring of the contents from the container; said flip top lid having a cylindrical lid wall having inside and outside surfaces, said inside surface engaging said outside surface of said lip when said lid is in the first position to form a seal for sealing the contents within the container without any part of the flip top lid contacting the inside surface of the lip; said annular lip and said cylindrical lid wall together substantially define the size of the flip top cap between the opening and an outermost surface of the flip top cap; wherein the base and the flip top lid are formed from a single piece of material which also forms a single piece living hinge; and a thumb flip lever formed in the flip top lid opposite the hinge for flipping the flip top lid to the second position.
- 2. The flip top cap of claim 1 wherein the lid wall has a pair of wall edges in the proximity of the hinge adapted to make contact with the hinge when the lid is in the first position to seal the contents within the container.
- 3. The flip top cap of claim 1 wherein the cap is adapted to attach to the container such that the hinge is opposite the side of the container from which the contents will be poured.
- 4. The flip top cap of claim 1 wherein the cap is a single piece injection molded cap.
- 5. A method of providing a closure to a beverage container comprising the steps of:
providing a container having an orifice formed in the container for dispensing any contents of the container; providing a cylindrical shaped threaded coupling formed at the orifice; providing a cylindrical base adapted to attach to the threaded coupling, said cylindrical base having a height corresponding to the length of the threaded coupling and having a thickness substantially the same as the thickness of the threaded coupling such that when the cylindrical base is attached to the threaded coupling the base substantially conforms to the shape and dimensions of the threaded coupling; providing a single piece injection molded flip top cap including the cylindrical base and a lid hingedly coupled to the cylindrical base and having an opening formed in the base in communication with the orifice of the container, said opening being as large as the orifice of the container such that the opening does not inhibit the free flow of the contents through the orifice of the container, said lid having a first position substantially parallel to the base such that the lid covers the opening sufficient to contain the contents within the container, said lid having a second position away from the base; attaching the cap to the container in the proximity of the orifice; moving the lid to the first position when it is desired to seal the contents within the container; and moving the lid to the second position when it is desired to remove the contents from the container.
- 6. A method of claim 5 wherein the container is a beverage container.
- 7. A method of claim 6 wherein the beverage container is a milk jug.
- 8. A combination of a beverage container and a flip top cap for the beverage container comprising:
a container having a cylindrical shaped orifice wall defining an orifice; a cylindrical base, said base being attachable to the orifice of the container, said cylindrical base having an inside surface and an outside surface, said inside surface having threads adapted to secure to said container, said outside surface forming a skirt, said outside surface being only slightly larger than the cylindrical shaped orifice wall of the container and substantially defining an outermost dimension of the flip top cap such that the cylindrical base substantially conforms to the shape of the cylindrical shaped orifice wall; an opening formed in the base to provide a passageway from the container through the base when the base is attached to the container, said passageway being as large as the diameter of the orifice of the container such that when liquids are poured from the container the flip top cap does not obstruct the flow of liquid through the orifice; a flip top lid hingedly coupled to the base such that the flip top lid is movable between a first position and a second position, said first position being substantially parallel the base such that the lid covers the opening sufficient to contain any contents in the container, said second position being away from the opening such that the flip top cap does not substantially obstruct the pouring of the contents from the container, said flip top lid having a round top surface and an outside cylindrical wall formed at the edge of the round top surface, wherein said cylindrical wall engages the cylindrical base in the first position to form a seal between the base and the lid and wherein there is no structure extending downward from the top surface of the lid within the outside cylindrical wall; and wherein the base and the flip top lid are formed from a single piece of material which also forms a single piece living hinge.
- 9. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein the base is threadably attached to the container.
- 10. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein the container includes a handle.
- 11. The flip top cap of claim 10 wherein the cap is adapted to be attached to the container such that the hinge is on the same side of the container as the handle.
- 12. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein the container is a blow molded container.
- 13. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein the container is a paper container.
- 14. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein the container is a beverage container.
- 15. The flip top cap of claim 14 wherein the beverage container is a milk jug.
- 16. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein said skirt has a height corresponding to the length of threads formed on the container.
- 17. The flip top cap of claim 8 wherein said opening is large enough that said cylindrical base does not effect the flow of liquid through the orifice of the container.
- 18. A flip top cap for a container comprising:
a cylindrical base, said base being attachable to an orifice of the container, the cylindrical base being positioned below the orifice of the container when the base is attached to the container such that the base does not obstruct the free flow of the contents from the container through the orifice of the container; a flip top lid hingedly coupled to the base such that the flip top lid is movable between a first position and a second position, said first position being substantially parallel the base such that the lid, covers the orifice of the container, said second position being away from the orifice of the container such that the flip top cap does not substantially obstruct the pouring of the contents from the container; a removable tamper proof ring disposed between and coupled to the base and the flip top lid to secure the flip top lid in the first position; wherein the base, the flip top lid, and tamper proof ring are formed from a single piece of material which also forms a single piece living hinge.
- 19. The flip top cap of claim 18 further comprising an annular seal formed on the flip top lid for sealing the flip top lid to the orifice of the container by engaging a mating annular grove formed on the orifice of the container.
- 20. The flip top cap of claim 18 wherein the cylindrical base and flip top lid are disposed in a spaced relation forming a gap between the base and flip top lid when the flip top lid is in the first position.
- 21. The flip top cap of claim 20 wherein the removable tamper proof ring is disposed in the gap.
- 22. The flip top cap of claim 18 wherein the cylindrical base and flip top lid each have top and bottom edges, wherein the removable tamper proof ring is attached to the top edge of the cylindrical base and to the bottom edge of the flip top lid.
- 23. The flip top cap of claim 18 further comprising a second removable tamper proof ring coupled to the base.
- 24. The flip top cap of claim 18 wherein the orifice of the container includes an inside surface, the flip top cap further comprising an annular sealing ring formed on the flip top lid for engaging the inside surface of the orifice of the container to seal the contents within the container.
- 25. The flip top cap of claim 18 wherein the living hinge includes a pair of opposing angled hinged members, wherein the angled hinge members define a gap between the base and the flip top lid when the flip top lid is in the first position.
- 26. The flip top cap of claim 25 wherein the angled hinged members are each rigid.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO A RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This is a continuation-in-part of copending application Ser. No. 08/471,743 filed on Jun. 6, 1995.
Continuations (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09409533 |
Sep 1999 |
US |
Child |
09898959 |
Jul 2001 |
US |
Parent |
08684018 |
Jul 1996 |
US |
Child |
09409533 |
Sep 1999 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
08471743 |
Jun 1995 |
US |
Child |
08684018 |
Jul 1996 |
US |