Hot-fillable and retortable flat paneled jar
AssigneeGraham Packaging Company, L.P.
InventorsRoger M. Prevot, Robert Andrew Stewart, Jay Arnold, Nicole Green, Marvin Lee Smith, Tracy Marie Momany
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Hot-fillable, blow molded, wide-mouth plastic containers having a pair of flex panels (11, 111, 211) for accommodating thermally induced volumetric and pressure variations while affording easy contents scoopability, and desirable labeling features. The containers are capable of being blow-molded from injection molded preforms or from extruded parisons. The containers may be hot-filled and retorted. A desirable base (27, 127, 227) for a retortable container is also disclosed.
Claims30
In a widemouth blow-molded container having a dome (23) with a finish (25, 125), a base (27, 127, 227), and a body (10) connecting the dome (23) to the base (27, 127, 227), said body (10) having an arcuate front label panel (13, 113) and an arcuate rear panel (15, 115), the improvement comprising:
- a pair of flex panels (11, 111, 211) in the body (10) for accommodating internal changes in pressure and volume in the container resulting from heating and cooling of its contents,
- said flex panels (11, 111, 211) being disposed opposite one another in said container body (11), and each flex panel (11, 111, 211) being planar, as manufactured,
- said rear label panel (15, 115) being of lesser peripheral extent than said front label panel (13, 113), and
- said flex panels (11, 111, 211) extending chordally between said front and rear panels (13, 15, 113, 115) and tapering toward one another to subtend a dihedral angle therebetween,
- whereby the flex panels (11, 111, 211) enhance contents scoopability.
A wide-mouth blow-molded container having a dome with a finish, a base, and a body connecting the dome to the base, said body having an arcuate front label panel and an arcuate rear panel, the improvement comprising:
- a pair of flex panels (11, 211) in the body for accommodating internal changes in pressure and volume in the container resulting from heating and cooling of its contents,
- said flex panels being disposed opposite one another in said container body, and each flex panel being planar, as manufactured,
- each flex panel (11, 211) being defined by an opposed pair of upper and lower U-shaped rib structures (19, 19, 219, 220), each U-shaped rib structure (19, 19, 219, 220) having a pair of vertical legs (19a) connected together by an integral peripheral brow web (19b), said brow web (19b) being angulated with respect to the planar flex panel (11, 211) and having a region of maximum intrusion extending centrally into the flex panel (11, 211) and end regions of minimum intrusion adjacent the intersection of the brow web (19b) and legs (19a),
- whereby the flex panels (11, 211) enhance contents scoopability.
A hot-fillable blow-molded wide-mouth container having a dome with a finish (125), a base (127), a substantially cylindrical body having an arcuate front label panel (113) and an arcuate rear panel (115) connecting the dome to the base (127), and a pair of flex panels (111) in the body for accommodating internal changes in pressure and volume resulting from heating and cooling of its contents, said flex panels (111) being located opposite one another in said container body, being planar, as manufactured, and extending chordally between said front label panel (113) and said rear panel (115), each flex panel (111) merging with its adjacent front label panel (113) by means of an upright arcuate wall portion (130) having a sufficiently large radius of curvature as to enable a label applied to the front panel (113) to wrap continuously onto at least a frontal marginal portion of said flex panel (111).
A blow-molded wide-mouth container hang a dome (23) with a finish (25, 125), abase (27, 127, 227), a substantially cylindrical body (10) having front label panel (13, 113) and a rear panel of lesser arcuate extent than said front panel (15, 115) connecting the dome (23) to the base (27, 127, 227), and a pair of flex panels (11, 111, 211) disposed opposite one another in the body (10) for accommodating internal changes in pressure and volume resulting from heating and cooling of its contents, said flex panels (11, 111, 211) being planar, as manufactured, and extending chordally with respect to said substantially cylindrical container body to subtend a dihedral angle therebetween to minimize internal structural interference with contents scoopability.
An extrusion blow-molded, wide-mouth retortable jar comprising:
- a substantially cylindrical body of retortable plastic material having a font peripheral panel portion and a rear peripheral panel portion of lesser peripheral extent than said front panel portion said body having at least a pair of juxtaposed chordally-extending flex panels disposed between said panel portions (211), said flex panels being planar, as manufactured, and tapering toward one another to subtend a dihedral angle therebetween,
- a base (227) having a standing ring (227a) and an upwardly inclined annular portion (227b) inwardly of said standing ring (227a), an inwardly concave central portion (227e) located above the level of said standing ring (227a), and an inwardly convex portion (227d) connecting said annular and central portions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.