US 8,910,781 B2Granted

Container for smokeless tobacco products and related packaged product assembly and method

AssigneeR.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company

InventorsJerry Wayne Pipes, Pankaj Patel, Melissa Ann Clark, Laya Katina Palmer Horton, William Travis Lintner

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Abstract

A container configured to hold one or more units of a product is provided. The container may comprise a lid and a base. The lid may comprise a top wall and one or more lid sidewalls extending to a lower lip. A sealing member may be provided at the top wall in a channel defined therein. The base may comprise a bottom wall and one or more base sidewalls extending to an upper lip. Protrusions may extend from the base sidewalls. The lid may be moveable with respect to the base between a decoupled configuration and a coupled configuration. In the coupled configuration, the upper lip of the base may contact the sealing member of the lid to seal shut a storage compartment defined in the base. Further, the lower lip may engage the protrusions to retain the lid in the coupled configuration. A related method is also provided.

Claims19

Dependent claims

A container, comprising:

a lid, comprising:
a top wall defining an inner surface and a channel at the inner surface;
a sealing member extending around a perimeter of the top wall and received in the channel at the inner surface;
and
one or more lid sidewalls extending from the top wall to a lower lip defining a lid opening,
wherein the channel is spaced apart from the one or more lid sidewalls;
and
a base moveable with respect to the lid between a coupled configuration in which a storage compartment defined by the base is substantially sealed shut and a decoupled configuration in which the storage compartment is open, the base comprising:
a bottom wall;
and
one or more base sidewalls extending from the bottom wall to an upper lip defining a base opening, the base sidewalls comprising:
an outer portion extending from the bottom wall;
an inwardly offset portion configured to be received through the lid opening;
an angled portion extending from the inwardly offset portion to the upper lip, the angled portion defining an angle with respect to the inwardly offset portion configured to align the base with respect to the lid during coupling therebetween and further configured to position the upper lip in contact with the sealing member at the channel when received through the lid opening;
and
one or more protrusions projecting outwardly from the inwardly offset portion and configured to engage the lower lip of the lid via interference fit.

13 more elements

A method for assembling a packaged product assembly, comprising:

providing a lid, comprising:
a top wall defining an inner surface and a channel at the inner surface;
a sealing member extending around a perimeter of the top wall and received in the channel at the inner surface;
and
one or more lid sidewalls extending from the top wall to a lower lip defining a lid opening,
wherein the channel is spaced apart from the one or more lid sidewalls;
and
providing a base defining a storage compartment, the base comprising:
a bottom wall;
and
one or more base sidewalls extending from the bottom wall to an upper lip defining a base opening, the base sidewalls comprising:
an outer portion extending from the bottom wall;
an inwardly offset portion;
and
an angled portion extending from the inwardly offset portion to the upper lip, the angled portion defining an angle with respect to the inwardly offset portion;
providing a plurality of units of a product;
inserting the units of the product into the storage compartment;
and
coupling the lid to the base such that the inwardly offset portion of the base sidewalls is at least partially received within the lid sidewalls and the upper lip seals against the sealing member at the channel,
wherein coupling the lid to the base comprises biasing the upper lip against the sealing member by directing the lower lip over one or more protrusions projecting outwardly from the inwardly offset portion of the base sidewalls.

17 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.