Abstract:
Method and apparatus for forming a blow molded plastic container with a mouth and neck portion thereof which is inclined or angled with respect to the body portion of the container, including heating the neck of the container and bending the heated neck of the container.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application is a Continuation-In-Part of copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/052,841, filed Jan. 15, 2002. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    The present invention relates to a blow molded, plastic container having an inclined or angled mouth and neck portion, and a method and apparatus for preparing same.  
           [0003]    Blow molded plastic containers, such as those made from polyethylene terephthalate, are widely used for many applications, such as, for example, as containers for drinks and cleaning products. These containers customarily have a straight mouth and neck portion, that is, a mouth and neck portion that are coaxial with the body portion of the container.  
           [0004]    The preparation of these containers generally involves preparing a preform or parison with a mouth and neck portion that are coaxial with the preform body portion, holding the preform in a blow mold with the preform mouth and neck portion held coaxial with the preform body portion, and forming the desired container in the shape of the blow mold by stretching and blow molding.  
           [0005]    For many applications it is desirable to prepare such a container with a mouth and neck portion at an angle to the body portion of the container. However, it is difficult to prepare such an angled mouth and neck portion container by conventional blow molding techniques. For example, such techniques may involve expensive and inconvenient multistage operations where an injected preform is clamped, stretched and blown in the mold at one station and a blow pin is inserted into the mold for blowing and/or compression molding at another station and the neck is bent at a subsequent station or in a subsequent stage of operation. Techniques such as this increase the cost of the container and complicate processing.  
           [0006]    Alternatively, a conventional type apparatus cannot be satisfactorily used to mold a container with an angled mouth and neck portion since to do so would require the mold cavity to be aligned so that the desired angular neck is appropriately aligned with the blow pin. Significant processing problems result thereby, as well as problems with the resultant container.  
           [0007]    In addition, it is difficult to fill an angled mouth plastic container with contents using conventional equipment.  
           [0008]    Accordingly, it is a principal objective of the present invention to provide a new and improved method and apparatus for obtaining a blow molded, plastic container with an angled or inclined neck and mouth portion.  
           [0009]    It is a still further objective of the present invention to provide an improved blow molded, plastic container with an angled or inclined neck and mouth portion.  
           [0010]    It is an additional objective of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus as aforesaid which is easy and expeditious to use on a commercial scale, and which simply and conveniently provides improved containers as aforesaid.  
           [0011]    Further objects and advantages of the present invention will appear hereinbelow.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0012]    In accordance with the present invention it has now been found that the foregoing objects and advantages are readily obtained.  
           [0013]    The present invention provides a method of forming a blow molded plastic container, preferably polyethylene terephthalate although other plastic materials can be readily used, said container having a mouth and neck portion thereof which are inclined or angled with respect to the body portion of the container. The method comprises:  
           [0014]    providing a blow molded plastic container having a closed base, a body portion extending from the base, a neck portion extending from the body portion and an open mouth above the neck portion; and  
           [0015]    heating the neck of the container and bending the heated neck of the container with a holding means that holds and bends the neck of the container to provide a mouth and neck portion oriented at an angle with respect to the body of the container.  
           [0016]    Desirably, the blow molded plastic container is prepared from a parison or preform, with the resultant blow molded container having a mouth and neck portion that are straight or coaxial with the container body portion. The blow molded container with straight mouth an neck portion is then filled with contents, and the heating and bending desirably performed on the filled container. Each operation can be performed at a separate station, wherein the stations may be in-line for an efficient commercial operation. That is the blow molding operation may be performed at a first station, the filling operation performed at a second station, the heating operation performed at a third station, and the bending operation performed at a fourth station.  
           [0017]    The apparatus of the present invention forms a blow molded plastic container with a mouth and neck portion thereof which is inclined or angled with respect to the body portion of the container, and comprises:  
           [0018]    providing a blow molded plastic container having a closed base, a body portion extending from the base, a neck portion extending from the body portion and an open mouth above the neck portion;  
           [0019]    heating means for heating the neck of the container; and  
           [0020]    a holding means for holding and bending the heated neck of the container to provide a mouth and neck portion oriented at an angle with respect to the body of the container.  
           [0021]    Other features and advantages of the present invention will appear hereinbelow. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]    The present invention will be more readily understandable from a consideration of the following illustrative drawings, wherein:  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 1 is a flow sheet showing the separate stations of the present invention;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 2 is a side view of a representative blow molded container before filling and neck bending;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 3 is a side view of a representative blow molded container after filling and neck bending;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 4 is a side view showing a preform positioned in a blow mold with a stretch rod positioned in the preform and a blow nozzle positioned above the blow mold;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 5 is a side view of the filling station;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 6 is a side view showing the filled, blow molded bottle at the heating station;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 7 is a front view of the heating element of FIG. 6;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 8 is a side view of the bending station; and  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 9 is an alternate embodiment showing a side view of a filled bottle before neck bending, and FIG. 10 is a side view of the filled bottle of FIG. 9 after neck bending. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0032]    Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a flow sheet showing the separate stations for preparing the inclined or angled neck container in accordance with the present invention. Station  10  is the blow molding station wherein a blow molded, plastic container is prepared from a parison or preform, with the resultant blow molded container  20  as shown in FIG. 2 having a straight neck  22 . The container  20  has a closed base  24 , body portion  26  extending upwardly from the base, neck portion  22  extending upwardly from the body portion, and open mouth  28  above the neck. If desired, the container may have a threaded neck portion  30  and outwardly extending flanges  32  below the threaded portion. As indicated above, the neck portion  22  extends upwardly in a straight direction and is not angled or inclined. Thus, the blow molded container, which is desirably biaxially oriented, may be readily prepared on conventional equipment. The particular configuration shown in FIG. 2 is representative only and naturally any suitable or desired size or shape container may be prepared.  
         [0033]    Station  12  is the fill station wherein container  20  with its straight neck is filled with contents. This also readily uses conventional filling equipment and desirably is preformed at a separate station from station  10  and in-line with station  10 .  
         [0034]    Station  14  is the heating station wherein the neck  22  of the filled container  20  is heated in preparation for the neck bending operation. Desirably and advantageously this may also be preformed at a separate station from stations  10  and  12  and in-line therewith.  
         [0035]    Station  16  is the neck bending station wherein the heated neck  22  of the filled container  20  is bent to provide a mouth  28  and neck portion  22  oriented at an angle with respect to the body  26  of container  20 . FIG. 3 shows container  20  filled with contents  34 , with mouth  28  and neck portion  22  oriented at an angle with body  26  of container  20 , preferably at an angle of less than 45°. As clearly shown in FIG. 3, in cross section one side of upper body portion  27  includes a gradual, inclined configuration extending to the angled neck.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 4 is a side view showing the preparation of blow molded container  20 . In accordance with FIG. 4, a straight, cylindrical plastic preform or parison  36  is positioned in blow mold  38 . Parison  36  has a closed base  40 , a straight body portion  42  extending upwardly therefrom, a straight neck portion  44  extending upwardly from the body portion, and an open mouth  46 . If desired, the preform has a threaded neck portion  48  and an outwardly extending flange  50 , which aids in seating the preform  36  in the blow mold  38 . The blow mold  38  is closed on the preform firmly seating the preform in the blow mold.  
         [0037]    Stretch rod  52  is positioned within the preform and blow nozzle  54  is placed above the preform engaging open mouth  46 . If desired, the blow nozzle  54  may include downwardly extending flange  56  which is moved into engagement with the outside of neck portion  44 . In accordance with conventional procedure, stretch rod  52  is preferably fully extended in the clamped preform to extend the preform to the base of the blow mold to provide an extended preform. High pressure air is then introduced into the extended preform from blow nozzle  54  from a high pressure air source (not shown) to expand or stretch the extended preform into conformity with blow mold cavity  58  and form blow molded container  20  shown in phantom in FIG. 4, desirably biaxially oriented.  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 5 is a side view of the filling station wherein container  20  is filled with contents  34  via filling nozzle  60  which fills container  20  through the mouth  28  and straight, neck  22  in a conventional manner. Filling nozzle  60  is connected to a source of filling material (not shown) and may hold the container by the neck to firmly retain the container thereon. The base may also be retained on a moving platform (not shown) which may aid in moving the container from station to station.  
         [0039]    [0039]FIG. 6 is a side view of the heating station which desirably can be in line with and downstream of the filling station as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, wherein the neck portion  22  of the filled container  20  is heated. In accordance with FIG. 6, the filled container  20  is firmly held at the neck portion  22  by holding means  62 , which may if desired inject air into the filled container and which desirably rotates the filled container during the heating operation. Heating element  64  is positioned adjacent reflector  66  with shield  68  preferably below the reflector-heating element assembly, and the filled container  20  rotated in front of the heating element by holder  62 . If desired, heating elements can be positioned on two sides and the container base held on a moving platform (not shown) or the like, as with the other stations. FIG. 7 shows a front view of heating element  64 , reflector  66  and shield  68 . This station properly heats and conditions the neck portion for the bending operation, which is the next station in line, without adversely affecting the contents of the container.  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 8 is a side view of the neck bending station wherein the filled container  20  with heated neck  22  is held in mold  70  which is closed around the filled container. The heated neck portion  22  is engaged internally by holding means  72 , which can be the same holding element used in the heating station, and externally by bending element  74  which engages the outside of neck portion  22 , and the combination of holding means  64  and bending element  66  bends the heated neck portion  22  into the angled configuration shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 3. The filled container with bent neck is then removed from the mold, the bent neck portion cooled and allowed to set, which may be done by ambient air or a separate air stream directed at the neck portion.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIGS. 9 and 10 show an alternate embodiment wherein blow molded container  80  with straight neck portion  82  includes at least one fold portion  84  on the neck to facilitate the bending operation. Desirably, the fold portion only partly circumscribes the neck portion and the folds are at the site of the bending operation. The filled container  80  passes through the stations as with the previous embodiment, and the heated folded portion  84  is bent to engage the folds on each other to provide engaged folds  86  and the bent neck  88  as shown in FIG. 10.  
         [0042]    Preferably, the plastic is polyethylene terephthalate; however, other suitable thermoplastic plastics may be readily used alone or in combination or in a multilayered configuration. For example, polyolefins, polyethylene naphthalate, polyvinyl chloride, and others.  
         [0043]    It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the illustrations described and shown herein, which are deemed to be merely illustrative of the best modes of carrying out the invention, and which are susceptible of modification of form, size, arrangement of parts and details of operation. The invention rather is intended to encompass all such modifications which are within its spirit and scope as defined by the claims.