The disclosed embodiments relate generally to bulk containers for flowable materials, and in particular, to bulk containers having improved sidewalls.
Cylindrical containers, such as drums, do not maximize floor and pallet space for storage and transport. It would be desirable to provide a container in a rectangular shape to maximize storage of material on the footprint of a standard pallet.
Conventional rigid containers, such as drums, for the storage and transportation of flowable or fluid materials are bulky and heavy even when not in use. It would therefore be desirable to provide a lightweight container constructed of cardboard or the like. One drawback associated with the use of cardboard is the tendency of cardboard to deform from a rectangular cross section toward a circular cross section.
It is known to provide reinforcements to prevent such deformation but reinforcements can be complex heavy and expensive. It is also known to provide the container with additional layers of cardboard to increase the strength of the container. One drawback associated with cardboard containers having increased layers is the difficulty associated with bending the increased thickness of the corner into a stable corner. The additional thickness of the material prevents the formation of a sharp corner, causing the material to bias the corner toward a more rounded corner. It is also known to remove material in a generally v-shape to facilitate the bending of the material to create a corner. One drawback associated with removing material is the weakness of the resulting corner associated with the reduction of material.
Another drawback associated with the removing material is the additional time and expense associated with the extra step of removing the material.
Yet another drawback associated with removal of material to form a corner is the precision required to provide the desired corner without removing too much material and leaving the corner subject to failure.
It is also known in the art to crease the material to form a corner. While such a crease may work for cardboard structures having a thinner sidewall, for thicker containers having three or more layers of corrugation, it is often difficult to provide a crease sufficient to create a corner that does not bias toward an open, rounded, and weaker orientation. It would therefore be desirable to provide a lightweight, flexible container having increased wall thickness with a corner that is strong and resists bias toward an open configuration.
The present invention includes a collapsible container having an outer container and two U-shaped inserts. The outer container has four outer walls while the first and second inserts have three walls each. One wall of each of the inserts is secured to the interior of the outer container while the remaining two walls are opened outward into contact with the interior of the outer container. The features and advantages described in the summary and the following detailed description are not all-inclusive. Many additional features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art in view of the drawings, specification, and claims presented herein.
The present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
A collapsible container for containing flowable materials is shown generally as (10) in
As shown in
As shown in
To construct the collapsible container (10), the sheets (40 & 42) are creased in a manner such as that known in the art and adhesively secured to one another with the adhesive being applied in the interstice between the sheets (40 & 42) in a manner such as that known in the art. Thereafter, the third inner panel (32) of the first insert (16) is folded inward and the first insert (16) is provided within the outer container (12) in a manner such as that shown in
Once the inserts (16 & 18) have been provided within the outer container (12) in a manner such as that shown in
The inner panels (28-38) are preferably about the same dimensions. The third inner panel (32) has at least 50%, more preferably at least 75%, and most preferably at least 85% the surface area of the fourth inner panel (34). Similarly, the fourth inner panel (34) has at least 50%, more preferably at least 75%, and most preferably at least 85% the surface area of the third inner panel (32). Once the inserts (16 & 18) have been positioned within the outer container (12), as shown in
As shown in
The liner (62) is also provided with a top cap (72). The opening (74) in the top of the collapsible container (10) allows a large fuel head (not shown) to enter the collapsible container (10) coupled to the top cap (72) and fill the liner (62) with flowable materials (64). As the liner (62) fills with flowable materials (64), such as fruit juice concentrate, tomato paste, or the like, hydrostatic pressure forces the liner (62) against the second inner panel (30), the third inner panel (32), the fifth inner panel (36) and the sixth inner panel (38) and downward against the bottom (14). This hydrostatic pressure presses firmly against the panels preventing the second inner panel (30) and the fifth inner panel (36) from becoming dislodged from the outer container (12), the third inner panel (32) from becoming dislodged from the fourth inner panel (34), and the sixth inner panel (38) from becoming dislodged from the first inner panel (28). The more flowable material (64) added to the liner (62), the greater pressure on the panels and the less likely that the panels will become dislodged.
While the top (76) of the collapsible container (10) may be bowed slightly outward once the liner (62) has been filled with flowable material (64), the additional reinforcement of the inserts (16 & 18) prevent the panels (20-26) from bowing outward into a circular orientation. As shown in
The lid (78) may be provided with any size opening to allow access to the top cap (72) by the fill head or any desired apparatus, even after the lid (76) has been secured over the collapsible container (10). Although the outer container (12) may be of any suitable dimensions, in the preferred embodiment, the bottom (14) is dimensioned to fit on a standard 48-inch long and 40-inch wide stringer pallet (82). If desired, the bottom (14) of the collapsible container (10) may be secured to the pallet (82) by hydrostatic force and/or the bottom (14) may be adhesively or otherwise secured to the pallet (82).
By providing the inserts (16 & 18) within the outer container (12) and adhesively securing the first inner panel (28) and fourth inner panel (34) to the outer container (12), the collapsible container (10) obtains the benefit of increased sidewall thickness while reducing the problems associated with folding panels of a similar thickness adhesively secured to one another. This allows the corners (84, 86, 88 and 90) to bend into the desired configuration of the collapsible container (10) more readily, without having to be provided with costly corner cutouts or the like.
Although the invention has been described with respect to a preferred embodiment thereof, it is to be understood that it is not to be so limited since changes and modifications can be made therein which are within the full, intended scope of this invention as defined by the appended claims.