HK40022844B - Hot fill container with corner support columns - Google Patents

Description

Hot-fill container with corner support posts

Technical Field

The present application and the resultant patent relate generally to beverage containers and, more particularly, to a lightweight beverage bottle with a corner support post that provides increased rigidity in a highly aesthetic design for accommodating forces typically associated with hot fill processes.

Background

Beverages such as sports drinks, juices, tea, water and the like are often bottled by hot-fill processes to prevent microbial growth. The hot-fill process typically involves pasteurizing the beverage at about 95 degrees celsius for about 20 seconds, cooling the beverage to about 85 degrees celsius, and then injecting the beverage into the bottle. A temperature of 85 degrees is generally sufficient to sterilize the vials. A closure is then applied to the vial to create a sealed container. After filling and capping, the bottle body may then pass through a cooling channel to be cooled via water spray or other methods. The final temperature of the beverage after the cooling process may typically be below about 40 degrees celsius. Other types of hot fill processes using different times, temperatures, and equipment may be known. Different types of beverages may also require different types of bottling techniques.

During the cooling process, the beverage may shrink such that a vacuum is formed within the closed container. To help counteract the effects of such a vacuum, the bottles used in hot-fill processes are typically formed with special vacuum panels therein. The vacuum panels and the areas therebetween generally facilitate controlled deformation or deflection to accommodate the forces generated by the vacuum while maintaining the overall integrity of the bottle body. These hot-filled bottles generally require relatively complex shapes and may use significantly more thermoplastic material than cold-filled bottles and the like. As a result, hot-filled vials may be more expensive to produce in terms of both tooling and materials, and may also provide less design freedom.

Improved hot-fill containers and methods of filling such containers are therefore desired. Such an improved container can accommodate shrinkage of the beverage therein while maintaining the overall integrity of the container without the complexity, weight, and cost typically associated with hot-fill containers and the like.

Disclosure of Invention

The present application and the resultant patent thus provide a container for beverages filled during hot filling. The container may include a finish, a body section, and a base. The body section may include a plurality of support posts and a plurality of body panels. Each support post may include a first raised central section extending to the first body panel and a second raised central section extending to the second body panel.

The present application and the resultant patent further provide a method of bottling hot liquids. The method may comprise the steps of: positioning a support post having a first raised central section and a second raised central section on each corner of the container; filling the container with the hot liquid; cooling the container; forming a vacuum within the container; pulling the support posts toward each other.

The present application and the resultant patent further provide a 250 ml square container. The container may include a finish, a body section having four corners, and a base. The body section may include a plurality of support posts and a plurality of body panels. Each support post may include a first raised central section extending to the first body panel and a second raised central section extending to the second body panel.

These and other features and improvements of the present application and the resultant patent will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the several drawings and the appended claims.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a hot-fill container as may be described herein.

Fig. 2 is a front plan view of the hot-fill container of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a side plan view of the hot-fill container of fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the hot-fill container of fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a bottom plan view of the hot-fill container of fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the hot-filled container of fig. 3 taken along line 6-6.

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the hot-filled container of fig. 3 taken along line 7-7.

Detailed Description

Referring now to the drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements throughout the several views, fig. 1-7 illustrate a container 100 as may be described herein. The container 100 may be in the shape of a bottle 110 or the like. The bottle 110 may have any suitable size, shape, or configuration. The bottle body 110 may be made from an injection molded preform. The preform may be made from various types of polymer resins. These polymeric resins may include polyesters, polyolefins, polypropylenes, polycarbonates, nitrates, and copolymers thereof. Biaxially oriented polyethylene terephthalate ("PET") may generally be used. Other materials such as polylactic acid ("PLA") and the like may also be used herein. The polymer may be transparent or opaque. Other types of materials may be used herein.

In general, the bottle body 110 can include an open mouth 120, a mouth 130, a shoulder 140, a body section 150, and a base 160 in any desired size, shape, or configuration. In this example, the bottle body 110 can have a generally rectangular configuration 170. In particular, the body section 150 may have a generally square cross-section 180 along its length. Other components and other configurations may be used herein.

The open mouth 120 and finish 130 may be largely of conventional design. The mouth 130 may have one or more threads 190 thereon. The mouth 130 and threads 190 may be sized to receive a closure (not shown) thereon. The closure may be of largely conventional design.

The shoulder 140 may be largely dome-shaped in shape and expands in size and shape from the circular finish 130 down to the generally square cross-section 180 of the body section 150. Each corner 200 of shoulder 140 may have a taper 210 formed therein. Where a generally square cross-section 180 is used, the taper 210 avoids any type of sharp edge. The size, shape, and configuration of the shoulder 140 may vary.

The body section 150 may extend from the shoulder 140 to the base 160. The body section 150 may be separated from the shoulder 140 by an upper circumferential groove 220. The body section 150 may be separated from the base 160 by a lower circumferential groove 230. The circumferential grooves 220, 230 may be in the shape of indentations 240 in the sidewall 250 of the bottle body 110. The size, shape, and configuration of the circumferential grooves 220, 230 and the indentations 240 may vary. Other components and other configurations may be used herein.

Each corner 200 of the main body portion 150 may have a support post 260 formed therein. Each support post 260 may extend from the upper circumferential groove 220 to the lower circumferential groove 230. Each support post 260 may include a taper 270 around each corner 200 similar to the tapers described above. The support posts 260 may define a body panel 280 therebetween. Each support post 260 can have a first side corrugation or raised central section 290 that extends to the first body panel and a second side corrugation or raised central section 300 that extends to the second body panel. As a result, the body panel 280 has a generally hourglass shape 310 having an upper section 320 of reduced width and a lower section 330 of increased width. The raised central sections 290, 300 are also increased in size relative to the body panel 280 such that the body panel 280 may be substantially flush with the tapered portion 270 of the support column 260 about the upper and lower circumferential grooves 220, 230, but may be increased in size about the apex 340 of each corrugated or raised central section 290. In particular, the body panel 280 may be an indentation 240 in the sidewall 250 around the apex 340. The respective depths and widths of the raised central sections 290, 300 and the body panel 280 may vary. Other components and other configurations may be used herein.

The base 170 may extend from the body section 150. The base 170 may be separated from the body section 150 by a lower circumferential groove 230. The base 170 may be of conventional design and may have any suitable size, shape, or configuration. The base 170 may be of a similar design to bases typically used in cold fill processes.

Herein, the bottle body 110 may be used for a beverage size of about 250 milliliters intended for use with a standard 28 millimeter finish 130 and a standard base 170. The bottle body 110 may have an overall height of about 150 mm. However, the bottle body 110 and its features may be enlarged or reduced in size as desired. In the 250 milliliter size, the bottle 110 may use about 15 grams or less of PET material or other types of polymer resins. The body portion 150 of the bottle body 110 may have a width of about 49 mm and a length of about 88 mm. The body panel 280 may be indented about the apex 340 of each raised central section 290, 300 by about 2.4 to about 2.8 millimeters or so. Which in the present example may be about 2.6 millimeters. Different sizes and shapes may be used herein.

In use, the vials 110 may be filled in a conventional hot-fill process and capped in a conventional capping station. As the beverage in the bottle body 110 cools, the beverage will contract and begin to draw a vacuum therein. The bottle body 110 herein has improved rigidity due to the use of the support columns 260 and body panels 290 in the body section 150, as compared to conventional hot-fill containers that may be designed to accommodate a vacuum by deforming with respect to the base. In particular, the raised central sections 290, 300 of the support column 260 increase surface area so as to allow increased tension across the body panel 290 for greater stiffness in the corner 200 creation of the support column 260. The vacuum-induced pulling force on the support posts 260 thus serves to increase the overall stiffness so as to maintain the integrity and shape of the body 110. If the overall surface area under the collar is about 24,381 square millimeters and the surface area of the lower section 160 is about 15,773 square millimeters, the overall ratio of the flexed lower section 160 to the entirety of the vial 110 can be about 64.7 percent. The diameter reduction of the lower section 160 may be less than about 1.5% or so. Further, the support posts 260 may remain substantially static under increased vacuum pressure as compared to conventional bottle bodies. Labels or other types of packaging can be applied to the bottle body 110 in whole or in part in a conventional manner.

Clearly, the use of support posts 260 to reduce the amount of material provides such rigidity. Even at 250 ml sizes, conventional hot-fill vials may require additional material, particularly if the vial is vacuum-adapted through the base. Thus, the reduced amount of material provides significant savings in the cost of hot filling the bottle. Herein, the bottle body 110 may be ultra lightweight but have improved rigidity. Where less than about 15 grams of material is used for a 250 milliliter vial, the material to size ratio may thus be about one (1) to seventeen (17) or less.

It should be clear that the foregoing relates only to certain embodiments of the present application and the resultant patent. In this context, many changes and modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the general spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims and the equivalents thereof.

Claims (14)

1. A container for a beverage filled during a hot-filling process, the container comprising:

a bottle mouth;

a body section; and

a base;

the body section comprises a plurality of support posts and a plurality of body panels;

wherein each of the plurality of support posts includes a first raised central section extending to the first body panel and a second raised central section extending to the second body panel, and

wherein each of the plurality of support columns is flush with each of the plurality of body panels around an upper circumferential groove and a lower circumferential groove, and wherein a distance from a longitudinal centerline of the body panel to an axis of the container decreases continuously from the upper circumferential groove and the lower circumferential groove to around an apex of the first raised central section and the second raised central section.

2. The container of claim 1, further comprising a dome, and wherein the dome is separated from the body section by the upper circumferential groove.

3. The container of claim 1, wherein the base is separated from the body section by the lower circumferential groove.

4. The container of claim 1, wherein the plurality of support posts comprises a plurality of corner support posts.

5. The container of claim 1, wherein each support column of the plurality of support columns includes a taper around a corner.

6. The container of claim 1, wherein each body panel of the plurality of body panels comprises a region of decreasing width extending from the upper circumferential groove to the apex and a region of increasing width extending from the apex to the lower circumferential groove.

7. The container of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of body panels comprises a generally hourglass configuration.

8. The container of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of body panels comprises an indentation in a side wall.

9. The container of claim 1, further comprising four support posts and four body panels.

10. The container of claim 1, wherein the body section comprises a substantially square cross-section.

11. The container of claim 1, wherein the container comprises a 250 ml bottle.

12. The container of claim 1, further comprising less than 15 grams of a thermoplastic.

13. The container of claim 1, wherein the ratio of grams of material to milliliters of volume comprises one to seventeen or less.

14. A method of filling a container with a hot liquid, the container being according to any one of claims 1-13, the method comprising:

positioning a support post having a first raised central section and a second raised central section at each corner of the container;

filling the container with the hot liquid;

cooling the container;

forming a vacuum within the container; and

the support posts are pulled toward each other.