Patent ID: 6378736
Filing Date: 2002-04-30
Classification: B65D

Abstract:
A collapsible container for holding fuel for an automobile, said container comprising:a bottle, said bottle having a bottom wall, and a top wall, said bottle having a peripheral wall extending between and integrally coupled to said top and bottom walls, said top wall having a bore therein, said peripheral wall being corrugated such that pleat folds are defined, said pleat folds having ridge and valley lines oriented generally perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of said bottle, said bottle having a generally circular cross-section taken transverse to said longitudinal axis, said bottle being formed from resiliently flexible material, said resiliently flexible material being plastic; wherein said bottle may be moved between an extended position and a collapsed position; a lip portion, said lip portion being fixedly coupled to and extending away from an edge of said bore, said lip having an exterior surface, said exterior surface of said lip having threads thereon; a cap for removably closing said bottle, said cap having top portion and a generally cylindrical wall integral therewith, said top portion of said cap having a bore therethrough, said cylindrical wall having an interior surface, said interior surface of said cap having threads thereon, wherein said cap may be removably coupled to said lip portion, said cap being generally circular; a plug for sealing said bore in said cap, said plug having a shape adapted to fit in said cap, said plug having a first portion and a second portion fixedly coupled to each other such that said second portion is generally centrally located on said first portion, said first portion being generally disc-shaped, said second portion being generally disc-shaped, said second portion having a diameter generally equal to a diameter of said bore in said cap, said first portion having a diameter greater than said diameter of said second portion; a funnel portion for directing flow of the fuel from the bottle and into the automobile, said funnel portion having a base portion, and a top portion, said base portion being generally planar, said base portion having a bore therethrough, said top portion being hollow, said top portion being integrally coupled to an edge of said bore in said base portion, said top portion being generally frusto-conical, wherein an end of said top portion generally adjacent to said base portion has a diameter greater than an opposite end of said top portion; and a ventilation assembly mounted adjacent the bottom wall, said ventilation assembly comprising a bore in said side wall to ventilate said bottle, said bore being generally adjacent to said bottom wall of said bottle, said bore having a removable plug therein; wherein the peripheral wall of said bottle has a bottom portion located adjacent to the bottom wall of said bottle, the bottom portion of said peripheral wall being substantially cylindrical, said ventilation assembly being mounted on the bottom portion of said peripheral wall.