AU2004299185B2

AU2004299185B2 - Reclosable metal container

Info

Publication number: AU2004299185B2
Application number: AU2004299185A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Paul Robert Dunwoody; Philip Alan Marriott; Sudesh Kumar Nayar; Andrew Philip Pavely
Original assignee: Crown Packaging Technology Inc
Current assignee: Crown Packaging Technology Inc
Priority date: 2003-12-17
Filing date: 2004-11-22
Publication date: 2011-08-04
Anticipated expiration: 2024-11-22
Also published as: RU61259U1; EP1697222B8; CN2913201Y; WO2005058716A1; ES1064008Y; ES2389770T3; EP1697222A1; ES1064008U; CA2548274A1; JP4647619B2; JP2007514617A; NZ547501A; BRPI0417528A; CZ16877U1; HU3282U; HRPK20060248B3; TNSN06152A1; EP1697222B1; AU2004299185A1; HRP20060248A2

Abstract

A reclosable metal container in the style of a bottle-shaped can has a conventional can body (1) of steel or aluminium to which a metal neck component (10) is seamed. A sleeve (20) of plastics fits over the neck component and a detent (21) inside the sleeve clips it onto the seam. The upper edge of the sleeve is fixed in place by a curl (15) on the upper edge of the neck component. By using a separate neck component and hiding the seam under a sleeve, conventional sizes and material gauges can be used for the can body. Thicker material may be used for the neck component in order to withstand necking forces. Threads (25) for closing the container are provided on the sleeve.

Description

WO 2005/058716 PCT/EP2004/013215 RECLOSABLE METAL CONTAINER This invention relates to a reclosable metal container such as a can of steel or aluminium. In particular, but not exclusively, it relates to a bottle shaped can for packaging beverages. 5 So-called "bottle cans" have been proposed in patent applications such as JP-A-2003165539, for example, in which a container body is closed at one end by a can end seamed to the body to form a base, and at the opposite end is necked inwardly to form a shoulder. A portion of 10 the can body extends away from the free edge of the shoulder into a cylindrical portion which is threaded so as to be closed by a screw closure. Alternative proposals for bottle cans use plastic collets to provide a thread for reclosing the can instead 15 of threading the metal neck. US-A-2,864,529 describes an overcap for a metal containers having a cone or raised top, the overcap covering a seam which joins the cone to the body of the container. DE 29980137 U describes a plastic component 20 which covers the seam between a neck component and a can body. JP 10 167356 A describes a shoulder cover for fixing a cap which is removeably mounted on a container body. Whilst these current proposals are workable in 25 theory, there are, in practice, a number of practical problems. Necking of the container body sufficiently to provide a neck finish for reclosing may involve up to 56 necking stages. Because of its material properties, this is not usually possible if the container is made of steel 30 of conventional thickness (for example 0. 08 mm) . In order -2 to withstand necking forces, the steel would need to be thicker than is conventional and therefore less economic to use. Furthermore, less metal exposure is acceptable with steel than with aluminium. 5 Non-standard sizes of can bodies may need to be used since a standard 355 ml capacity can with a plastic screw threaded neck would be too tall for manufacturing lines. Embodiments of the invention seek to overcome these problems and to provide a bottle can which enables standard 10 tooling to be used, irrespective of the desired neck finish. A reclosable beverage container comprising: a metal can body having a base and a side wall, a metal neck component seamed to a free end of the metal can body, the metal neck component formed as a one 15 piece unit including a generally frusto-conical portion and a cylindrical portion joined to the frusto-conical portion by a shoulder, and a sleeve which fits over the metal neck component and covers the seam between the neck component and the metal can 20 body; wherein, (i) the sleeve is of a plastics material, and extends over the cylindrical portion of the neck component, the generally frusto-conical portion of the neck component, and a portion of the side wall, (ii) the sleeve is at least 25 partially supported by the seam and the shoulder, and (iii) the sleeve is threaded to allow reclosability of the container. It should be noted that the term "generally frustoconical" is intended herein to mean both a precise 30 frustoconical shape and shapes which reduce the cross sectional area of the container such as a stepped shoulder portion. The can body is typically a standard beverage can body which can be mass-produced using regular beverage can 35 manufacturing lines. Different neck finishes can be offered by a range of neck components and plastic sleeves. The can body may be made from steel or aluminium of thin gauges such as 0.1 mm for aluminium, 0.08 mm for steel . The neck component may be of thicker material and 5 provides barrier properties to prevent, for example, passage of gas which may affect the product in the container. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the sleeve includes a detent for fixing the 10 sleeve onto the seam. This detent provides a seal to prevent water ingress. Ideally the open end of the sleeve may be retained by a curl on the neck component, Generally the can body has a small necked-in region at the end to which the neck component is seamed. The sleeve 15 may extend over this region on the can body so as to fit against the can body side wall and resist water ingress. The sleeve may be profiled so as to correspond to the shoulder shape on a conventional plastic bottle. In this embodiment the neck component includes a support 20 region between the frustoconical and cylindrical portions. This support region may be a second cylindrical portion of larger diameter than the first cylindrical portion such that the first cylindrical portion supports the threaded part of the plastic sleeve and the second 25 portion supports a part of the sleeve which is profiled to a shoulder shape. Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the drawings, in which: WO 2005/058716 PCT/EP2004/013215 -4 Figure 1 is a schematic side section of a first embodiment of container according to the invention; and Figure 2 is an enlarged side section of the shoulder and neck region of the container of figure 1. 5 Figure 1 shows a container comprising a can body 1, neck component 10 and sleeve 20. The can is a typical beverage can body comprising a side wall 2, necked at its upper end 3, and an integral domed base 4. The can body is made of sheet metal, typically steel or aluminium in 10 the range of 0.25 mm to 0.35 mm thick with walls reduced in thickness during manufacture. Neck component 10 comprises a metal support having a generally frustoconical part 11 and a cylindrical portion 12. As best shown in figure 2, a second 15 cylindrical portion 13 is joined to the first cylindrical portion by a shoulder 14. The neck component terminates in a flange or, ideally, curl 15 at its upper end which holds the plastic sleeve 20 in position. The sleeve thus also hides the cut edge of the neck component. At its 20 lower end the neck component is fixed by a double seam 16 to the can body 1. If the container is closed by a plastics closure having a bore seal, the bore seal will impart further cut edge protection. In this instance the cut edge of curl 15 25 would be trapped between the sleeve 20 and the bore seal of the closure. The sleeve 20 has a curved sheath 23 with a hook shaped detent 21 which clips onto the seam 16. Annulus 22 provides further location of the sleeve over the seam. 30 The sleeve of figures 1 and 2 is thus fixed in position -5 by the detent 21 and neck component flange 15. In this embodiment, the sleeve 20 has a cylindrical upper portion 24 which is threaded 25. Below thread 25 the upper portion includes a neck support ring 26 for handling 5 purposes. For aesthetic reasons the sleeve may be shaped so as to blend into the side wall of the can body. The sleeve may be made of thin plastics so that extra support for the curved shape is provided by shoulder 14 of the neck 10 component. Throughout this specification and the claims which follow, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise', and variations such as "comprises" and "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion 15 of a stated integer or step or group of integers or steps but not the exclusion of any other integer or step or group of integers or steps. The reference in this specification to any prior publication (or information derived from it), or to any 20 matter which is known, is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgment or admission or any form of suggestion that that prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter forms part of the common general knowledge in the field of endeavour to which this 25 specification relates.

Claims

1. A reclosable beverage container comprising: a metal can body having a base and a side wall, 5 a metal neck component seamed to a free end of the metal can body, the metal neck component formed as a one-piece unit including a generally frusto-conical portion and a cylindrical portion joined to the frusto-conical portion by a shoulder, and a sleeve which fits over the metal neck component and 10 covers the seam between the neck component and the metal can body; wherein, (i) the sleeve is of a plastics material, and extends over the cylindrical portion of the neck component, the generally frusto-conical portion of the neck component, and a 15 portion of the side wall, (ii) the sleeve is at least partially supported by the seam and the shoulder, and (iii) the sleeve is threaded to allow reclosability of the container.

2. A container as defined in claim 1, in which the sleeve 20 includes a detent for attaching the sleeve onto the seam.

3. A container as defined by claim 1, wherein the shoulder is substantially perpendicular to the cylindrical portion. 25

4. The container as defined in claim 2, wherein the shoulder is substantially perpendicular to the cylindrical portion.

5. A container as defined in claim 1, wherein the sleeve is circumferentially continuous. 30

6. A container as defined in claim 1, in which the sleeve does not alter flow from the metal container. -7

7. A container substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings and/or Examples. 5