U.S. patent application number 13/127663 was filed with the patent office on 2011-10-13 for container for packaging.
Invention is credited to Giovanni Mondini.
Application Number | 20110247961 13/127663 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42235634 |
Filed Date | 2011-10-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110247961 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Mondini; Giovanni |
October 13, 2011 |
CONTAINER FOR PACKAGING
Abstract
This utility model regards trays or containers made from
thermoplastic material for food packaging. Some trays or containers
have partitions that divide them into two, three or more
compartments on the same level, to hold different products, but
they are all sealed with the same sealing film. This invention aims
at obviating the above limits and issues, with an innovative method
of packaging and sealing several different or identical food
products. This invention is intended to meet the requirement of
packaging several products in the same container or tray, without
coming into contact with one another during shelf-life or,
different portions of the same product that can be opened and used
in sequence and at different times.
Inventors: |
Mondini; Giovanni; (Cologne
Bresciano, IT) |
Family ID: |
42235634 |
Appl. No.: |
13/127663 |
Filed: |
October 6, 2009 |
PCT Filed: |
October 6, 2009 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/IT09/00450 |
371 Date: |
June 24, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
206/561 ;
220/503 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 25/08 20130101;
B65D 1/34 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
206/561 ;
220/503 |
International
Class: |
B65D 1/36 20060101
B65D001/36 |
Claims
1. A container comprising: a thermoplastic body including at least
two compartments, one of said at least two compartments being an
uppermost compartment being above another of said at least two
compartments being a lower compartment for containing different or
identical packed products on different levels, wherein said
compartments on different levels are sealed individually and can be
opened at different times to use the packed products, from the
uppermost compartment down to the lower compartment, wherein each
of said compartments can remain individually sealed until actually
unsealed.
2. The container as in claim 1, wherein said at least two
compartments are defined in height by a number of steps along the
side walls of the container, with an intermediate step every two
subsequent compartments starting from the lower compartment, one
step and/or stacking notches on the uppermost compartment, and a
closing surface defined by the top edge of the container body.
3. The container as in claim 2, where each lower compartment is
closed and sealed individually by a corresponding element or
closing cover positioned and sealed on the/each intermediate step,
and the upper compartment is closed and sealed by a closing cover
or element positioned and sealed on the edge of the tray or
container body.
4. The container as in claim 3, where the closing element of each
lower compartment is a pre-punched film or thermoformed lid, and
the closing element or lid of the uppermost compartment is an
element produced by a non-stop coil.
5. The container as in claim 1, where said superimposed
compartments have different capacities.
6. The container as in claim 1, where the lower compartment is
divided into different compartments.
7. The container as in claim 1, where the body is rectangular.
8. A container comprising: an individually sealed first
compartment; and an individually second compartment on a different
level than said first compartment, wherein said first compartment
and said second compartment can be opened at different times and
can remain individually sealed until actually unsealed.
Description
[0001] In packaging food products, especially for large-scale
distributors, different shapes and sizes of thermoplastic trays or
containers are already widely used. They are produced using single
or multi-layer film thermoforming or injection moulding. In
general, these trays or containers have only one compartment for
one product and are sealed by means of a sealing film positioned
and fixed on the corresponding edge.
[0002] However, these containers entail some problems due to the
complexity of simultaneously putting food into the different food
compartments, which may have completely different features and
volumes, requiring specific packaging machines. In addition, when
removing the sealing film, all the compartments are opened and all
the food products are exposed even when they are not to be used or
consumed at the same time.
[0003] This objective is reached by means of a thermoplastic
container or tray according to claim 1, configured with different
superimposed compartments for layers of different or identical
products. The compartments on the different levels are sealed
individually so that they can be opened and the packaged products
accessed, first the top one and then the lower compartments, so
that each compartment remains sealed until actual time of use.
[0004] The packaging of products in different compartments on
different levels offers the advantage, content being equal, of
limiting the space occupied by the container when it is horizontal,
compared to other known containers for the simultaneous packaging
of different products, such as the above-mentioned
multi-compartment containers which occupy more horizontal space.
This method also reduces costs compared to monolithic packaging
that can contain other packs that are also sealed.
[0005] The container proposed herewith is convenient in particular,
but not only, for the packaging of fresh food products, such as
salami, cold meats, cheese or speciality foods in a controlled
atmosphere. It can be rectangular in shape for packaging cold meats
or circular or oval depending on the type of product and, for
instance, in case of food that has to be separated from its
seasoning. Especially with tomato-based seasoning or sauces which
are highly oxidizing, the separation from other ingredients allows
an increase in shelf-life. This is a strategic condition for the
success of packaging and cost determination as well as for an
increase in quality and fragrance.
[0006] This invention will be described below in greater detail,
with reference to the attached diagrams where:
[0007] FIG. 1 shows an example of a rectangular, empty, container
divided into several superimposed compartments with parts of
compartment sealing films;
[0008] FIG. 2 shows a partial cross-section of the container in
FIG. 1; and
[0009] FIGS. 3 and 4 show other shapes of a multi-compartment
container. The container in question can be rectangular, circular
or oval in shape and is always made up of a body (11) in
thermoplastic material obtained with known moulding or forming
processes. The container body (11) is configured to have at least
two compartments (13, 14) internally, on as many levels, and a top
edge (12). The body (11) has a lower or bottom compartment (13) and
at least an upper compartment (14).
[0010] Although the drawings show a container with two single
superimposed compartments (13, 14), there could also be three or
more, and the bottom compartment (13) could be divided, if
necessary, into different compartments (15) as shown in the example
in FIG. 4.
[0011] The compartments are, in any case, defined in height by the
corresponding steps along the side walls of the container--FIG. 2,
with an intermediate step (16) every two consecutive compartments
starting from the lower compartment (13), one step and/or stacking
notches (17) on the upper compartment and a closing surface (18)
defined by the edge (12) of the container body (11).
[0012] Compartments can have different or identical capacities and
will be filled up individually and closed in sequence, starting
from the lower one (13) to the last upper one (14) through a series
of operations to be carried out using a normal filling and
heat-sealing line with stations positioned in sequence, one per
each product. This is not possible for currently known
multi-compartment containers.
[0013] The/each intermediate step (16) is therefore for support and
sealing the sealing and closing element or cover (19), at the end
of the filling process, of the compartment beneath the upper one.
This closing element (19) shall be obtained by thermoforming or
simply by pre-punched coil film. In turn, the top compartment,
after the desired product has been delivered, is closed with
another final sealing element (20), which has tear-tape (21),
positioned and sealed on the sealing surface (18) on the edge level
(12), for instance by using a traditional coil film sealing and
cutting head (22)--FIG. 2.
[0014] The use of "peel-off" material for the container or
intermediate and final sealing films usually available can improve
product usability.
[0015] In particular, the container in FIG. 3 can be adopted for
the packaging of main courses with vegetables, while the container
in FIG. 4 can be used for the packaging of pizza with different
garnishes separately packed in the different lower
compartments.
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