U.S. patent application number 10/750296 was filed with the patent office on 2005-06-30 for shrink sleeved bottle.
This patent application is currently assigned to Unilever Home & Personal Care USA. Invention is credited to Falk, Nancy A..
Application Number | 20050139568 10/750296 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34701181 |
Filed Date | 2005-06-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050139568 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Falk, Nancy A. |
June 30, 2005 |
Shrink sleeved bottle
Abstract
The present invention is directed to a container which has a
handle and having a shrink sleeve that covers the body of the
container. More particularly, the shrink sleeve has a cut-out such
that the sleeve covers the body of the container, but does not
cover the handle.
Inventors: |
Falk, Nancy A.; (Livingston,
NJ) |
Correspondence
Address: |
UNILEVER INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY GROUP
700 SYLVAN AVENUE,
BLDG C2 SOUTH
ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS
NJ
07632-3100
US
|
Assignee: |
Unilever Home & Personal Care
USA
|
Family ID: |
34701181 |
Appl. No.: |
10/750296 |
Filed: |
December 31, 2003 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
215/12.2 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 23/10 20130101;
B65D 23/0878 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
215/012.2 |
International
Class: |
B65D 023/08; B65D
023/02 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A container having a base, a top part, sides, and a handle
located on a side of the container, said container being
shrink-sleeved, said sleeve comprising a cut-out allowing a user to
grip the handle and wherein the sleeve does not cover the
handle.
2. A container according to claim 1, wherein said cut-out has a
fringe maintained flush against the container.
3. A container according to claim 1, wherein the cut-out is
maintained flush against the container by an adhesive.
4. A container according to claim 1 wherein the sleeve covers at
least 30% of the outer surface of the container.
5. A container according to claim 1 wherein the sleeve covers at
least 50% of the outer surface of the container.
6. A container according to claim 1 wherein the sleeve covers at
least 65% of the outer surface of the container.
7. A container according to claim 1 wherein the sleeve covers at
least 80% of the outer surface of the container.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention is directed to a container which has a
handle and having a shrink sleeve that covers the body of the
container. More particularly, the shrink sleeve has a cut-out such
that the sleeve covers the body of the container, but does not
cover the handle.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] A wide array of containers are used in a wide array of
industries for various types of goods such as foods, home and
personal care, automotive fluids etc. Such containers typically
have labels which are stuck onto the container. Such labels are
typically used not only for decoration but also to display usage
instructions or information on the composition of the content for
example. These labels typically cover only a portion of the
container and therefore leave must space on the container where
more decorations may be placed or other indicia in attempt to bring
the consumer's attention to the product or make the product
pleasant looking to the consumer. Additionally, legislation, in
order to look after the consumer's interest and health concerns as
well as for other reasons, continues to require manufacturers to
provide more information about products on the outer packaging.
[0003] Shrink sleeve packages have been developed to enable more
space to provide product information or simply to decorate the
packaging. However, many of these types of shrink sleeved
containers do not account for containers having a handle. Some
embodiments do account for handled containers, however they call
for the shrink sleeve to cover the handle of the container.
Covering the handle of the container with the shrink sleeve causes
numerous problems in production as well as in use by the consumer.
In production, the requirement to align the sleeve perfectly with
the container handle leaves little room for error as a slight shift
on the sleeve may result in the sleeve being on the side of the
handle rather on a front face as typically intended. Additionally,
a sleeve that covers the handle may be uncomfortable for the
consumer during use. Shrink sleeves have a tendency to unwrap on
their edges, especially when constantly pulled up around the edges
such as when handle by a consumer. A sleeve on the handle is
especially susceptible to this since the container is constantly
picked up by the handle. Additionally, when the sleeve covers the
handle a seam may provide discomfort when gripping the handle.
[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide a container
with a handle which has a display surface and which is easy to
assemble and which is comfortable for the consumer during use.
[0005] Other objects of the present invention will become apparent
to those skilled in the art by reference to the specification.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention is direct to a container having a
base, a top part, sides, and a handle located on a side of the
container, said container being shrink-sleeved, said sleeve
comprising a cut-out allowing a user to grip the handle, wherein
said cut-out has a fringe maintained flush against the container
and wherein the sleeve does not cover the handle.
[0007] All numerical ranges and percentages in this specification
and claims are intended to be modified by the term about.
[0008] As used herein, the term "comprising" means that a specified
material or element is present, optionally together a further
material or element, and includes including, made up of, composed
of, consisting and/or consisting essentially of.
[0009] For a more complete understanding of the above and other
features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made
to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments and
to the accompanying drawing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a container according to the
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The invention relates to a container having a labeling means
where the means of labeling is a shrink sleeve. The term container
hereby should be understood generally to include any type of
packaging for holding products, such as a container for fluid
products, fluid products.
[0012] The container 2 has a base 4. By a base it should be
understood a part of the container on which the container is left
to stand upright. The base should have a surface suitable to hold
the container in a stable position on a flat supporting surface.
For example, the base may be flat, or may be formed from a molded
tripod, or from a flat ring.
[0013] The container further comprises a top part 6. The top part
is typically the part of the container opposed to the base. The top
is commonly the part of the container which provides an exit for
the content of the container.
[0014] The container also comprises sides 8. The sides are the
surfaces which generally speaking are joining the top and the base
of the container. Typically, when the container is upright, the
sides are substantially vertical and perpendicular to the base. In
some containers, the sides have an exit for the content of the
container.
[0015] The container comprises a handle 10 located on a side of the
container. This makes the container different from containers
without handles and also from container with a handle on the top
part. The handle according to the invention is normally forming a
recess in the vertical direction when the container is upright, the
recess being such that a user may slide the hand in the recess to
hold the container by the handle.
[0016] The container is shrink-sleeved. Shrink sleeving consists in
enveloping a part of the container in a thermoplastic tube like
sleeve, the sleeve being heated to shrink and fit onto the
container.
[0017] The shrink sleeve 12 may be comprised of any material known
for such purposes. Typical thermoplastic materials used for shrink
sleeving include polyvinylchloride (PVC), polyestertetraphtalate
(PET), oriented polypropylene (OPP) and oriented polystyrene
(OPS).
[0018] The sleeve 12 also comprises a cut-out 14 which is
positioned where the handle is located when the sleeve is applied
to the container. This will allow the user to grip the handle
without the shrink sleeve interfering. The cut-out should be large
enough such that the entire handle may fit through the shrink
sleeve once the sleeve is applied to the bottle.
[0019] Preferably, the cut-out has a fringe 16 maintained flush
against the container. This is to avoid to have the fringe of the
cut out to hang loose in the recess area. Indeed, this would be
incommode for a user, or even dangerous if such fringe has sharp
edges. The fringe may be maintained flush against the container by
any means known such as by an adhesive.
[0020] Preferably the sleeve covers at least 30% of the outer
surface of the container, in order to provide for a sufficient
surface for indicia such as product information and container
decoration. More preferably, the sleeve covers at least 50% of the
outer surface of the container, even more preferably 65%, and most
preferably at least 80% of the outer surface of the container. It
should be understood the "outer surface of the container" hereby
comprises the whole outer surface, including the outer surface of
the base, or of the handle for example.
[0021] It should be understood of course that the specific forms of
the invention herein illustrated and described are intended to be
representative only as certain changes may be made therein without
departing from the clear teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly,
reference should be made to the following appended claims in
determining the full scope of the invention.
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