Clamp ring for lid
AssigneePerimeter Solutions LP
InventorsFrank H. Parker, Jr., Robert J. Dodson, Jr., Stiles Jackson, Adam Heimbuecher, Mark Willmore, Eric Linder, Brett Klaas, Brett Waters
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A claim ring for a lid, components thereof, and associated methods. The clamp ring is configured to maintain a lid on a mouth of a container to form a seal therebetween. The clamp ring includes a clamping mechanism including a wheel and a pull. The wheel is turnable to pull the pull to draw end portions of the clamping ring toward each other. A tool receiver can be engaged by a tool and turned by the tool to turn the wheel with the mechanical advantage of the tool.
Claims20
A clamp ring for maintaining a lid on a mouth of a container, the clamp ring comprising:
- a collar including an arcuate collar body including opposite first and second end portions, the arcuate collar body defining an inner arcuate channel arranged to receive the lid and the mouth of the container;
- and
- a clamping mechanism supported by the collar, the clamping mechanism including a pull, a linkage, a track, and a wheel, the pull including a generally rigid bar having a segment connected to the first end portion of the arcuate collar body by the linkage, the rigid bar engageable by the wheel, the linkage pivotably connected to the segment of the rigid bar by a first pivot connection and to the first end portion of the arcuate collar body by a second pivot connection, the wheel being turnable to pull the segment of the rigid bar toward the wheel to pull the first end portion of the arcuate collar body closer to the second end portion to change the collar from an unclamped configuration to a clamping configuration, and the track configured to guide travel of the pull in a generally linear travel path along a travel axis as the wheel pulls the rigid bar,
- wherein the clamping mechanism is configured such that when the collar is in the unclamped configuration a linkage axis extending between pivot axes of the first and second pivot connections is askew with respect to a longitudinal axis of the pull, and when the collar is in the clamping configuration, the linkage axis is more codirectional with respect to the longitudinal axis of the pull and the travel axis than in the unclamped configuration.
A method of maintaining a lid on a container with a clamp ring, the claim ring including a collar and a clamping mechanism supported by the collar, the collar including opposite first and second end portions, the clamping mechanism including a pull, a linkage, a track, and a wheel, the pull including a generally rigid bar engageable by the wheel and having a segment connected to the first end portion of the collar by the linkage, the linkage pivotably connected to the segment of the rigid bar by a first pivot connection and to the first end portion of the collar by a second pivot connection, the method comprising:
- installing the clamp ring in an unclamped configuration on the container such that an arcuate channel of the clamp ring is located adjacent a mouth of the container and the lid on the mouth of the container;
- actuating the clamping mechanism of the clamp ring to draw the first and second end portions of the collar toward each other to change the clamp ring from the unclamped configuration to a clamping configuration, the arcuate channel of the clamp ring in the clamping configuration receiving the lid and the mouth in the arcuate channel and pressing the lid against the mouth to form a seal therebetween, wherein actuating the clamping mechanism comprises turning a wheel to pull the segment of the rigid bar to draw the first and second end portions of the collar toward each other;
- guiding, with the track, travel of the pull in a generally linear travel path along a travel axis as the wheel pulls the rigid bar;
- and
- pivoting, as the wheel pulls the rigid bar, the linkage about the first and second pivot connections, wherein when the clamp ring is in the unclamped configuration a linkage axis extending between pivot axes of the first and second pivot connections is askew with respect to a longitudinal axis of the pull, and when the clamp ring is in the clamping configuration, the linkage axis is more codirectional with respect to the longitudinal axis of the pull and the travel axis than in the unclamped configuration.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.