GB2329886A - Collapsible can - Google Patents

Abstract

A can of aluminium or other metal for drinks has thicker and thinner regions intermittent and interspersed in a parallel fashion formed around the wall of the can. The reduced thickness areas running in parallel with the thicker areas enable the can to fold downwards under pressure.

Description

ECO CAN Collapsible Aluminium (or other metal) Drinks Can Recycling drinks cans over the years has boomed and the amount of drink cans disposed of in recycling collection points is ever increasing.

People are asked to squash the cans before disposal to save on space within the container and minimise the amount of times the container has to be collected for emptying.

In general, if the can is crushed, it is from a sideward direction which does not reduce it to its smallest size.

Cans are not generally designed to be crushed easily by the public at this moment in time.

Space is money, to create more space by designing a can easily crushed to its smallest possible size would save money in the recycling process, transportation and collection.

The ECO CAN would also encourage people to crush the can and dispose of it or them when collecting at home for disposal.

Even if an ECO CAN is crushed to its smallest size and not disposed of, it would look less unsightly than a half flattened existing can.

The principal of the ECO CAN would give considerable space saving by being capable of crushing easily in the axial direction.

To do this the cab is pressed in manufacture, so there are a series of interspaced and intermittent parallel reduced thickness portions creating easy crushing.

Diagrams Explained:- The following are points in association with the Diagrams.

Fig. 1. This shows an aluminium blank ready to be drawn by pressing to form the wall of the can.

Fig. la At this stage, the Blank has been stamped with the intermittent parallel reduced thickness portions, scaled in size.

Fig. 2 When the can is drawn, there will be thicker and thinner areas running around and all the way down the can in a parallel fashion.

The can has strength by having a thinner area supported by a thicker one but is easily crushed downwards, helped by the parallel design.

The dark shaded portioning denotes the thicker areas and white, the thinner ones.

Fig. 3 This shows the can in its flattened disk shape after crushing by foot or by hand.

The can in this axially reduced size would benefit both at home and around town for storage and disposal of small round disks instead of half flattened cans.

Claims (2)

1. CLAIMS 1.A collapsible Aluminium (or OTHER metals) drinks can which folds down in an axial direction by having thicker and thinner parallel intermittent and interspersed areas in the can's outer wall allowing the aluminium (or other metals) can to fold downwards when pressure is applied to its top or bottom.
2. 2. A collapsible can as claimed in 1. above, whereby the design pattern of the thicker and thinner parallel intermittent and interspersed areas, makes it possible to crush the can axially.