Easy-open Container With Nondetached Tab

Abstract

An easy-open container of the type used to receive beverages or other commodities, having a tear-type opening tab which remains attached to the container after opening. The opening tab portion is defined in a container surface to bend along a predetermined line when the tab is torn to open the container. A handle member having an opening therein is attached to the tab and becomes folded over the container surface to be disposed onto the aperture made in the container surface when the container is opened. The opening within the handle member permits pouring or drinking from the container, and protects against inadvertent contact with rough edges of the opening in the container. The tab and handle remain attached to the opened container.

Description

This invention relates in general to containers and in particular to containers of the easy-opening type.

Containers of the easy-opening or "pop-top" type enjoy widespread acceptance and use as containers for beverages and other commodities, both foodstuffs and non-foodstuffs. The typical easy-open container, particularly as used on a beverage container, includes a tab which is defined on a surface of the container by a suitable metal-weakening operation, or which is alternatively defined on a separate member inserted into an opening in the container surface. A pull ring is attached to the tab. The container is opened by the simple and well-known expedient of grasping the pull ring and exerting force outwardly of the container surface, with the result that the tab is torn along the defined weakened area to leave an opening in the container.

Unfortunately, the tab and ring removed from the container immediately become an article of potential litter and pollution. The tear tab and attached pull ring are completely separated from the opened container, and are typically discarded on the ground or elsewhere in the vicinity of the location where the container was opened. Since the torn-out tabs typically have rough edges caused by the metal-tearing opening operation, these discarded tabs are a substantial hazard to the safety of others and are unsightly and a source of pollution.

The problem of the unwanted container tear-tab has not gone unrecognized in the art, and a number of solutions have been proposed in an attempt to overcome this problem. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,442,416, for example, there is shown a container in which the tear-tab and pull ring remain attached to the opened container. Unfortunately, the torn-away tab must first be displaced upwardly of the container top and must then be positioned to dispose the pull ring downwardly along the length of the container. In addition to being relatively expensive to manufacture, this proposed container top has the additional disadvantages of leaving an unprotected container opening having a shape which is not conducive to consuming the container contents directly from the container, and of requiring opening steps which are unfamiliar to the person experienced with the conventional pop-top container.

It has also been proposed in the prior art to provide a push-in type of container opening, as found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,355,058, which remains with the container. Containers of this type have not met with commercial acceptance, however, inasmuch as such containers tend to be excessively difficult to open manually and since the opened tab member tends to obstruct free access to the contents of the container

U.S. Pat. No. 3,618,815 shows yet another approach to the problem. The container device of that patent, however, requires multiple and relatively expensive manufacturing steps to insure that the necessary arrangement of one-way bending and weakening is provided, and this device still does not provide a substantially completely unobstructed container opening.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved easy-open container.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an easy-open container with an improved nondetached opening tab.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide an easy-open container in which tear edges are shielded from casual contact by a user.

Other objects and many of the attendant advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the following disclosure of an embodiment of the invention, with reference taken to the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 shows a fragmentary plan view of an unopened container according to a disclosed embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 shows the container embodiment of FIG. 1, in opened condition;

FIG. 3 is a section view taken along line 3--3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a section view showing the disclosed container embodiment in partly-opened condition; and

FIG. 5 is a section view taken along line 5--5 of FIG. 2, showing the container in fully opened condition.

Stated in general terms, an easy-open container with a nondetached tab according to the present invention has a tab defined on a surface of the container by a weakened region to be deformable from the surface along a predetermined bend line, and has a handle device attached to the tab at a location which permits metal-severing force to be exerted onto the tab when the handle is raised upwardly from the container surface. An opening is provided on or adjacent the handle at an appropriate location, relative to the bend line, to permit the opening to become disposed on top of the aperture formed in the container surface by removal of the tab, as the handle is moved in a direction to bend the tab back beneath the surface of the container. The opening in the pull handle then functions as an opening through which the contents of the container are accessible.

More particularly and with reference taken to the disclosed embodiment of the invention as shown in the Figures, there is shown generally at 10 a container of the beverage-can variety and having a side wall 11 interconnected with a pair of end members (one of which is shown at 12) to define the container. The end member 12 is joined to the side wall 11 to form the chime 13 in a manner conventional to the art. The end member 12 includes a tab 14 defined on the end member by a region 15 of structural weakness relative to the remainder of the end member. The weakened region 15 may be provided on the end member 12 by any conventional metal-working process such as coining, embossing, or the like, and functions to define the tab 14 for subsequent tear-away removal from the end member to leave an aperture 16 extending through the end member and into the interior of the container. The weakened region 15 terminates at a pair of spaced-apart ends 20 and 21 which are preferably provided with reverse-direction twists to positively define the maximum extent of the tab 14. As will become apparent, moreover, the distance between the spaced-apart ends 20 and 21 defines a bend line 22 along which the tab 14 bends upon tearing removal along the region 15.

The weakened region 15 includes an intermediate portion 23 which has maximum spacing from the bend line 22 and which is, in the disclosed embodiment, positioned adjacent to the chime 13 of the container. This intermediate portion 15 is shown in the disclosed embodiment as being of relatively blunt shape, although it will be understood that the intermediate portion 15 may alternatively be provided with other shapes such as a relatively circular shape or a pointed shape somewhat in the form of an apex of a triangular tab.

An opening member 24 having at least a contacting portion 25 shaped in conformity with the outline shape of the tab 14, as defined by the weakened region 15, is suitably connected to the tab 14. The connection between the opening member 24 and the tab 14 is provided, in the disclosed embodiment, with a rivet-like fastener 26 which is a tab portion deformed outwardly from the tab 14 to be received in an appropriate hole within the opening member 24. It will be evident to those skilled in the art, however, that fastening interconnection between the opening member 24 and the tab 14 can be accomplished by other techniques such as conventional riveting, adhesive bonding, or the like.

An opening handle 30 is connected to the opening member 24 along the interconnecting web 29 to extend to a location spaced apart from the tab 14. The handle 30, in the disclosed embodiment of the present invention, is positioned on the opposite side of the bend line 22 from the tab 14, and the handle 30 is advantageously provided, through a manufacturing operation such as stamping and the like, as part of a unitary, integral piece which includes both the opening member 24 and the handle. An opening 31 is disposed in the handle 30, and this opening 31 may be provided with an annular rim 32 which extends substantially normal to the opening 31 around at least a portion of the periphery of that opening. The outermost end 33 of the handle 30 is crimped and extends a distance outwardly from the surface 12, as especially shown in FIG. 3, to enable a person to grasp the handle 30 and lift this handle in a direction away from the surface 12.

Considering the operation of the embodiment as described thus far, it will be understood that FIG. 3 shows the relevant portions of the container before opening commences. To open this container, a person grasps the end 33 of the handle 30 and lifts the handle upwardly in a direction away from the end member 12. This force applied to the handle 30 is transmitted along the interconnecting web 29 to be applied to the opening member 24 as a force which urges the tab 14 away from the end member 12 and toward the interior of the container. The force applied to the tab 14 is concentrated on the weakened region 15 by the opening member portion 25 which contacts the tab at a location closely proximate to the weakened region, with the result that tearing or severing of the weakened region 15 commences, typically but not necessarily at a point along the intermediate portion 23. As soon as tearing commences along the weakened region 15, the handle 30 is moved further away from the surface 12, as indicated by the arrow 34 in FIG. 4, and the resulting continued application of force through the opening member 24 to the tab 14 causes tearing of the weakened region 15 to occur in a progressive manner along both sides of the tab 14 until the weakened region is completely severed out to the ends 20 and 21.

The tab 14 now remains attached to the remainder of the end member 12 along a strip of material which comprises and is defined by the bend line 22. As the handle continues to be moved in the direction 34, the tab 14 is bent away from the end member 12 in the direction shown by the arrow 35, and the handle 30 is moved in a semi-circular arc until a position is reached as shown in FIG. 5, whereat the tab 14 is folded under the end member 12 and the handle 30 is now disposed over the aperture 16 formed by tearing removal of the tab 14.

The location of the opening 31 associated with the handle 30 is selected, with respect to the bend line 22, so that the opening 31 is aligned with the aperture 16 when the handle is in the fully-open position as depicted in FIG. 5. Moreover, the over-all size and configuration of the handle 30 to preferably chosen to be at least of sufficient extent to surround and cover portions of the aperture 16 which are relatively close to the chime 13 and which are not in alignment with the opening 31, so as to reduce or eliminate the likelihood of spills caused by drinking or pouring of the contents within the container 10. Of course, it will be understood that a portion of the aperture 16 adjacent the bend line 22 preferably remains uncovered and provides venting to the container interior for smooth and continuous pouring or consumption of a liquid contents thereof.

Since container end members 12 are typically made of metals such as aluminum or steel, the handle 30 of an opened container has a natural tendency to be deflected to a position away from the position closely surrounding the aperture 16 because of the resilient nature of the deformed metal along the bend line 22. Since it is desirable to maintain the handle 30 in the fully-lowered position depicted in FIG. 5, the handle 30 includes provision for retention in this fully-opened position. For example, a portion of the rim 32 associated with the opening 31 is deformed as at 38 to become engaged with a corresponding location 39 on the periphery of the aperture 16. Retaining engagement between the member 38 and the location 39 is obtained by gentle pressure, which may be applied downwardly to the handle 30 with the thumb or fingers of the person opening the container, so that the retaining member is positioned beneath the end member 12 at the location 39 to retain the handle 30 in closely surrounding relation with the end member and with the opening 31 in the handle closely disposed over the aperture 16 in the end member, as depicted in FIG. 5.

It can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 5 that the aperture 16 of the opened container is completely surrounded by the extent of the handle 30, so that the rough or sharp edges provided by tearing removal of the tab 14 are protected from casual or inadvertent contact by a person drinking from the container. At the same time, the tab 14 is disposed within the interior of the container 10 to a location with is completely removed from the path of contents flowing from the container through the aligned aperture 16 and opening 31, so that this tab 14 does not impede such flow. The retained position of the handle 30, moreover, insures that the tab 14 is retained in the position shown in FIG. 5, thereby preventing unwanted movement of the tab back into a position which obstructs flow of the contents from the container. Most importantly from an ecological standpoint, nothing has become removed from the container as a consequence of the opening process and so there is no separate tab-pull ring to be discarded immediately after the container is opened.

The easy-opening container according to the present invention is opened in a manner substantially similar to present pop-top containers, with the opening procedure for the present container requiring only the additional movement of the handle 30 in a semi-circular direction for concurrently bending the tab within the can and placing the handle 30 in position over the aperture 16.

As an alternative to the retention of the handle 30 provided by the retaining member 38, retaining engagement can be provided between other portions of the handle and correspondingly-located other portions of the container. For example, the end 33 of the handle could be extended to a location which engages the inner wall of the chime 13 when the container is in the opened position. Moreover, the opening 31 in the handle may, if desired, be substantially completely peripherally surrounded by the annular rim 32, although alternative construction of the handle may eliminate most if not all of this rim. It is preferred that the structure of the handle, when in the closed position shown in FIG. 2, not extend outwardly of the end member 12 beyond a plane occupied by the outer edge of the chime, so that the handle does not interfere with the stackability of the container.

Although the disclosed embodiment of the invention is described in the context of beverage containers, it will be apparent that the non-detached tab arrangement and the other elements and advantages of the present invention are equally applicable to containers in general, without regard to the contents of the container.

It will be understood that the foregoing relates only to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and that numerous alterations or modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A container having an easy-open feature, comprising:

a container member including a surface;

a tab defined on said surface of said container member by a region of predetermined weakness in said surface to undergo severing along said region and subsequent deformation away from said surface along a predetermined nonseverable bend line in response to the application of force to said tab;

handle means attached to a location on said tab and extending therefrom to be disposed adjacent said surface at a location whereat movement of said handle means in a direction away from said surface applies force to said tab to sever said region of predetermined weakness and bend said tab along the bend line away from said surface; and

said handle means having an opening therein in predetermined spaced relation to dispose said opening in proximate alingment with the aperture which remains in said surface by severing and bending of said tab.

2. The container as in claim 1, further comprising means on said handle means for retaining said handle means in position to maintain said opening in said alignment with said aperture.

3. The container as in claim 1, further comprising retaining means disposed on said handle means in position for operative engagement with said surface to retain said opening in alignment with said aperture.

4. The container as in claim 1, further comprising retaining means on said handle means adjacent said opening therein and disposed for entry into said aperture and engagement with an edge portion of said aperture when said handle means is moved to dispose said opening in alignment with said aperture.

5. In a container member having a surface;

tab means defined in said surface by a region of relative weakness which is severable to permit said tab to be bent away from said surface along a predetermined nonseverable bend line to leave an aperture in said container member;

handle means extending from said tab means to a location across said bend line from the tab means, said handle means normally being disposed in proximate relation with said location and being movable to apply force to said tab means to sever said region of weakness and to bend said tab means along said bend line to an extent which displaces said tab means away from said aperture and which places said handle means in position adjacent said aperture; and

means on said handle means for retaining said handle means at said position adjacent said aperture.

6. The container member as in claim 5, wherein said means for retaining comprises a member disposed on said handle means in position to extend into retaining relation with a location at the periphery of said aperture when said handle means is moved to said adjacent position.

7. The container member as in claim 5, wherein:

said handle means has an opening disposed therein in predetermined spaced relation to said bend line to place said opening in alignment with said surface aperture when said handle means is moved to said adjacent position; and

said handle means includes a surface area surrounding said opening and of sufficient extent to substantially cover the portion of said aperture not aligned with said opening when said handle means is moved to said adjacent position

8. The container member as in claim 7, wherein said means for retaining comprises a member disposed on said handle means adjacent said opening to extend into retaining relation with a peripheral location defining said aperture when said handle means is moved to said adjacent location.

9. The container member as in claim 7, wherein said means for retaining comprises a retaining member disposed on said handle means and extending outwardly of said surface in proximately normal relation with said opening, said retaining member being on said handle means in predetermined spaced relation with said bend line to place said retaining member in engaging contact with a portion of the edge defining said aperture when said handle means is moved to said adjacent position.

10. The container member as in claim 5, further comprising:

an opening member connected to said tab means and having a portion disposed on said tab means adjacent at least a portion of said region of weakness; and

means interconnecting said opening member and said handle means to enable force to be applied through said portion of the opening member to the region of weakness in response to said movement of the handle means.

11. In a container member having a surface:

tab means defined in said surface by a region of relative weakness which is severable to permit said tab to be displaced away from said surface along a predetermined nonseverable bend line to provide an aperture in said container member;

handle means attached to said tab means on a first side of said bend line and having an end extending to a location across said bend line from said first side;

said end of said handle means normally being disposed in proximate relation to said location and being movable in a direction away from and around said bend line to an opened position where said tab is displaced away from said surface and said end of said handle means is disposed adjacent said surface on said first side of said bend line; and

locking means positioned on said handle means for entry into said aperture and for retained engagement with the peripheral edge of said aperture when said handle means is moved to said opened position.