Abstract:
A package that has a flat base that is attached to a first capsule. The capsule has a straw placed therein that may be flattened and folded. A secondary capsule is attached to the base to cover the rest of the straw. The secondary capsule has a tab and overlaps the first capsule. The secondary capsule may be pulled away from the base to allow the straw to be removed therefrom and making further pulling impossible or very difficult and thus enabling the secondary capsule to remain attached to the package.

Description:
BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     For many years beer and carbonated soft drinks have been sold in cylindrical aluminium cans. The can top comprises an opening, device, or pop-top. Previously, the pop-top was so constructed as to separate from the can top after opening, forming an unwanted piece of metal scrap. Later, this device was designed so as to remain attached to the top after the can was opened. This, since a separate piece of metal scrap was no longer produced, was a major advantage from an environmental point of view, considering the great number of cans of drink consumed out of doors, it was an extremely valuable improvement. 
     After a can of beer or soft drink has been opened, the drink is usually poured into a glass. However, soft drinks in particular are often drunk through a straw inserted into the opening made in the top of the can. Indeed, many cans of soft drink are sold for immediate consumption, and although it is possible to drink direct from the can, a glass or straw is often provided for the purpose. Clearly, however, this is difficult if the cans are to be sold to the public in special vending machines. 
     The purpose of this invention is to furnish a soft drinks can of the type that has now been available on the market for many years with an easily detachable straw shielded against the dirt by a protective device that cannot in itself become an unwanted piece of scrap. This is achieved in that a specially designed package containing a flattened, folded straw is secured to the bottom of the can, which, as viewed from the outside, affords a concavity suitable for the purpose. A variant of the invention may be applied to drink packages or cartons having a large flat surface. The characteristics of the invention are set forth in the claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the following paragraphs, the invention will be described in greater detail with reference to a set of drawings illustrating embodiments of the invention. 
     FIG. 1 illustrates the principles of a package intended for a soft drinks can viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a folded straw viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a package for a soft drinks can viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates a package containing a straw intended for a soft drinks can viewed in section from the side. 
     FIG. 5 illustrates the package of FIG. 3 viewed across the section A—A. 
     FIG. 6 illustrates three packages attached to a single backing sheet. 
     FIG. 7 illustrates a package, viewed from the side, attached to the bottom of a can, the can itself being viewed in section. 
     FIG. 8 illustrates the package of FIG. 7 viewed from above. 
     FIG. 9 illustrates the package of FIG. 7 opened. 
     FIG. 10 illustrates the package of FIG. 8 opened. 
     FIG. 11 illustrates a package for a soft drinks carton with a flat surface viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 12 illustrates two of the packages of FIG. 11 viewed from above. 
     FIG. 13 illustrates the packages of FIG. 12 viewed across the section B—B. 
     FIG. 14 illustrates an opened package viewed from the side attached to a soft drinks carton. 
     FIG. 15 illustrates the package of FIG. 14 viewed from above. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     FIG. 1, which illustrates the principles of the package, shows the various parts and layers of the package as if they were separated from each other, and for the sake of clarity, their thickness has been exaggerated. The package is intended to contain a flattened, folded straw and is intended for attachment to the bottom of a standard can, which, viewed from the outside, affords a concavity suitable for that purpose. 
     In FIGS. 1-10, the numeral  1  is used to designate a base of plastic foil, the underside of which is covered in its entirety by pressure-sensitive adhesive  2 . The adhesive is covered with a removable protective sheet  3  treated with silicone. A principal capsule of plastic foil, here generally designated  4 , is pressed into shape from flat foil so as to form a cavity  5 . The inner end  6  of the principal capsule is open, whereas its outer end  7  is closed. The principal capsule is here welded to the base  1  across a narrow zone  8 , the principal capsule being so formed as to have projecting flanges  9  along each side of the cavity  5 . These flanges are securely welded to the base  1 , their perimeter  10  corresponding to that of the base. This latter, however, is not strictly necessary. 
     A secondary capsule of plastic foil is here generally designated by the numeral  11 . This capsule, too, has been pressed into shape from flat foil so as to form a cavity  12 . The inner end  13  of the secondary capsule is open, whereas its outer end  14  is closed. The plastic foil has here been folded at its outer edge  15  so as to furnish the secondary capsule with a floor  16 , the free edge  17  of which, before the secondary capsule was folded at its outer edge  15 , was welded to the base  1  across a narrow zone  18 . The secondary capsule overlaps the principal capsule and, above the latter, comprises a tab  19  by which the secondary capsule can be pulled away from the base  1 . The underside of the tab is dotted with a small patch of pressure-sensitive adhesive  20 . The secondary capsule, along each side of the cavity  12 , is so formed as to have projecting flanges  21  lying against the base  1 . The underside of these flanges is so weakly welded to the base  1  that it breaks or gives way when the package is opened. The perimeter of the flanges corresponds to that of the base, although this is not strictly necessary. Welding may be carried out in two narrow zones, one on each side of the cavity  12 , or else the flap surfaces may be welded in their entirety. The flaps of the folded-in floor  16  must not be welded to the base  1 ; only the free edge zone  18  may be so welded. 
     FIG. 2 shows a straw having an outer diameter of 5 millimeters and a material thickness of 0.13 millimeters, which is a size commonly encountered in this context. The straw has been flattened and folded into a bundle having a width of 8 millimeters and a length of 39 millimeters. The height of the bundle, stowed in the protective package, if the latter is flat, might be 3 millimeters, although capsules  4  and  11  may be so designed as to enable the bundle to be highest in tile middle and lower at either end. 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a package containing a straw. 
     FIG. 4 illustrates the package of FIG. 3 seen in section from the side. 
     FIG. 5 illustrates the package of FIG. 3 seen across the section A—A. 
     FIG. 6 illustrates three packages attached to a single backing sheet  3 . Here, superfluous material between and outside the packages has been removed. 
     FIG. 7 illustrates a package, viewed from the side, attached to the bottom of a can, the can itself being viewed in section. Owing to its flexibility, as it is placed in position the plastic foil base  1  shapes itself so as to lie snugly against tile concave surface of the can bottom. 
     FIG. 8 illustrates the package of FIG. 7 viewed from above. The base  1 , as are the lateral flanges  9  and  21 , is wider towards tile centre of the package. On attaching the package to the can, the lateral flanges may be firmly pressed against the can itself. Less pressure may be applied to the zone above the folded straw. 
     FIG. 9 illustrates the package of FIG. 7 opened. The package is opened by pulling the tab  19 . On opening, the tab first breaks away from the primary capsule  4  as the weak attachment ensured by the pressure-sensitive adhesive  20  is ruptured. As pulling continues, the welding between the flanges  21  of the secondary capsule and the base  1  breaks as the flanges and base are split apart. When the secondary capsule has been pulled up as far as illustrated in the figure, it can be pulled no further since the floor  16  is securely welded to tile base at  18 . As the base  1  is glued to the can over a considerable area outside the welded zone  18 , the base cannot be split apart from the can, regardless of whether the tab is pulled straight up, from the front or from behind. Now that about half of the folded straw has been freed, it is easy to take it out of the principal capsule  4 . The opened secondary capsule  11  may then be folded back into position and attached to the primary capsule by means of the pressure-sensitive adhesive  20  on the underside of the tab. Once removed, tile inherent tension of the straw causes it to unfold and spring more or less into shape. The straw is then lightly rolled between index finger and thumb to remove the folds and restore the straw to its original roundness. 
     In FIGS. 11-15, a base provided with pressure-sensitive adhesive is designated by the numeral  22 . This base is covered with a protective sheet  23  treated with silicone. To the base  22  is attached a principal capsule  24  firmly welded to the base  22  at the zones  25  outside its internal cavity  26 . On top of the capsule there is a small spot of pressure-sensitive adhesive  27 . A secondary capsule  28  has projecting flanges  30  on each side of its internal cavity  29  and a large surface  31  outside its closed end. The secondary capsule has a tab  32  and overlaps the primary capsule. The flanges  30  are weakly welded to the base  22 , whereas zone  31  is strongly welded to the base. The zones  26  and  29  house a straw  33  that has been flattened and folded. The straw is pointed at one end. 
     FIG. 11 illustrates a package viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 12 illustrates two packages attached to a backing sheet. 
     FIG. 13 illustrates the packages of FIG. 12 viewed across the section B—B. 
     FIG. 14 illustrates an opened package containing a folded, flattened straw, the package being attached to a soft drink carton viewed from the side. 
     FIG. 15 illustrates the package of FIG. 14 viewed from above. 
     The package is opened by pulling the tab  32  such that the welding between the secondary capsule and the base  22  gives way. Once this has happened, further pulling is impossible, or at least very difficult. As already mentioned, the secondary capsule is firmly welded to the base at zone  31 , and the separation of the base  22  from the drink carton is rendered more difficult in that a large zone  31  of the secondary capsule is outside the internal cavity  29  and the base  22  is firmly glued to the drink carton. 
     Once the secondary capsule has been opened as illustrated in the figure, it is simple to grasp the folded straw and remove it from the primary capsule. The straw is restored to its original roundness by grasping it between the thumb and index finger and the fold disappears. Instead of welding the capsules to the base, they may be glued. An arrangement may also be envisaged whereby the secondary capsule is provided with two lines of perforations that will break when the package is opened, rather than having the package break at the places where the flanges  30  of the capsule are welded to the base  22 . 
     The straw is here illustrated flattened, and tile fold may of course be of some other type, e.g. it may be of a smaller diameter and be round, and it may be provided with the familiar bellows-like fold. After the straw has been removed the tab  32  may be re-attached to the principal capsule by means of the pressure-sensitive adhesive  27 . 
     The capsules of which the package is comprised, like the base, may instead of plastic foil be made of plastic-coated paper. If tile capsules are made of foil, the foil may be completely transparent, lightly coloured or opaque. 
     If, in particular, the secondary capsule is of very thin plastic, it may be useful to stiffen the tab by folding it double or by some other means. 
     The underside of the package need not be attached with pressure-sensitive adhesive. Instead, hot-melt adhesive, for example, may be applied when the package is attached to the carton, either on the straw package or directly on the drink carton. 
     The package intended for soft drink cans may be applied in connection with the manufacture of the cans; or, it may be applied in the filling premises, either before or after the cans have been filled. If the package is to be applied after filling, a suitable approach would be to turn the cans bottom up using known technology, to attach the straw packets, and thereafter to turn the cans the right way up. All this may be achieved while the cans are moved at speed through the filling room. 
     In the case of cans, it is important to ensure that the straw is so placed as not to hinder the passage of tile can through the filling room or the packing of cans into six-packs. The present package does not represent such a hindrance. It is also important that it be possible to leave the package untouched if the straw is not to be used. It is thus not possible to position the package on the can top. 
     There are several methods of manufacturing a straw package suitable for cans. A suitable approach might first be to weld a principal capsule ( 4 ) stamped out of foil to a plastic web ( 1 ) to which is applied pressure-sensitive adhesive ( 2 ) and a backing sheet ( 3 ), then to introduce the straw, flattened and folded into a bundle, its free end first. Alternatively, the straw may be folded in a zigzag shape. The floor ( 16 ) of the secondary capsule, at its free edge ( 17 ), is then securely welded to tile plastic web ( 1 ), the secondary capsule is folded back ( 15 ) and its flanges ( 21 ) are weakly welded to the plastic web ( 1 ). At this stage, any superfluous material may be removed from the backing sheet ( 3 ). The packages held on the backing web ( 3 ) may be wound up into a roll of large diameter from which the packages can be fed out and rapidly attached to the drink packages. 
     To succeed in commercial terms, it is essential that the packages can be applied to existing can types, which are manufactured in enormous quantities. 
     While the present invention has been described accordance with preferred compositions and embodiments, it is to be understood that certain substitutions and alterations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the following claims.