Abstract:
The invention describes a lid for a container comprising an edge region ( 2 ) for sealing and permanent connection to a container body comprising a body portion and a bottom, and a substantially flat central region as a panel or lid surface ( 3 ), on which at least one projecting pin-like or post-like guide element ( 7′, 7″, 8 ) is formed extending from the panel ( 3 ) towards one side or the other substantially parallel to an axis ( 9 ) perpendicular to the lid surface. The posts can guide additional elements which are intended to form a functional unit with the lid.

Description:
[0001]    This application is a divisional of co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/915,078, filed Apr. 7, 2008, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     SUMMARY 
       [0002]    The invention concerns a lid for containers comprising an edge region for—preferably sealing and permanent—connection to a container body comprising a body wall and a bottom. There are such containers for many different purposes, for example for filling with foodstuffs or beverages. The lids which serve for closure purposes can for that purpose have tear-open regions provided with a gripping tab (tab), for non-reversibly opening an outlet opening, as is known in particular from drinks cans. The invention therefore also preferably relates to sheet metal lids for closing beverage can bodies. 
         [0003]    The object of the invention is to further develop a lid for a container body, such that in manufacture of the lid means are provided thereon which make it possible to fit one or more additional elements to the lid in such a way that they can be linearly moved relative to the lid in a direction in a given relationship with the axis of the lid. Those additional elements themselves are not subject-matter of the invention. Just by way of example mention will be made of an element for securely re-closing an open opening in the lid. 
         [0004]    That object is attained in accordance with claim  1 . From the point of view of its manufacture the lid according to the invention has at least one or more guide elements in the substantially flat region (as a central planar region, panel or lid surface) which is surrounded by the edge region which serves for connection to the container body. The guide elements are in the form of pin-like or post-like guide elements and oriented substantially with their axis approximately parallel to the axis of the lid, which extends perpendicularly with respect to the lid surface (claim  2 ). 
         [0005]    As emphasised hereinbefore, a corresponding device can be reliably guidedly moved on that guide element or those guide elements, as a sealing closure element, linearly relative to the lid surface and approximately in the direction of the axis (lid axis) (claim  28 ). 
         [0006]    In that respect a guide element as a protruding element is of such a height and configuration that it is suitable for guidance purposes, that is to say it allows a stroke movement or a displacement directed away from the surface region, in the heightwise direction. There are no pre-stamped rivets out of the lid sheet metal or projections on which for example an SOT tab is permanently and possibly rotatably fitted. Those fitting rivets do not have any guide property and also are not of such a geometrical configuration. 
         [0007]    In the case of a lid with an opening delimited by an edge thereof, the at least one guide element is arranged outside the opening (claim  2 ). 
         [0008]    Depending on the respective purpose of use the guide elements can extend from the top side of the lid and/or from the bottom side of the lid, preferably inwardly relative to the interior of the container body. 
         [0009]    Further advantageous configurations of the novel lid are set forth in the appendant claims. 
         [0010]    The edge region (or also edge) extends around the central surface region. It is suitable for being fixed to the container body by a folded seam connection or bead connection. That body can be made in one piece, that is to say with a bottom, produced directly without a fold seam, on the body wall, which is often also referred to as the ‘body’. The body itself however is not subject-matter of the lid in accordance with the independent claims (claims  1 ,  2 ,  23  and  28 ). The sealing and permanent connection is afforded by the folded seam which is produced in an operation of flanging or folding the edge region of the lid on to the rim of the container body which matches it in associated relationship, that is to say the upper end of the body as the body edge. The two edges are matched to each other in such a way that the folded seam provides the sealed and permanent connection of the lid for closing the container body. 
         [0011]    A closure function and an opening function, which then possibly take place, by way of re-closure of an additional element, can be effected in such a way as to be controlled and guided by way of the guide elements associated with the sheet metal material of the lid. 
         [0012]    Regarding the position of the guide element, it is to be stated that they do not or cannot lie in the free opening, they are provided outside that relatively large opening. For that purpose there is an intermediate region which is between the edge region, as described hereinbefore in the form of a folded seam edge, and the outer edge of the free opening. The at least one pin-like or post-like guide element is provided in that intermediate region. It protrudes towards one side or the other, preferably towards the interior of the container body and thus towards that side which defines the edge region of the lid in such a way that it can be connected to the body edge by being placed thereon. By virtue of the formation of the edge region it is in most cases a channel-like curvature region. The man skilled in the art can recognise from that form of the curvature region, which side of the lid is directed towards the container and which side faces outwardly. 
         [0013]    Preferably the guide element is of a thickness which remains substantially the same. That thickness extends over the length of the guide element (claim  3 ). A preferred height is above 5 mm (claim  4 ). The cross-section of the at least one guide element can remain the same along that height. 
         [0014]    The arrangement of the at least one guide element in the proximity of the edge of the opening is to be interpreted as meaning that it is adjacent to the opening (claim  5 ). The guide element is thus markedly closer to the edge of the opening, than the connection edge region. In other words, the guide elements are displaced substantially further inwardly than outwardly, in the intermediate region. They are at the edge of the ‘free opening’ (claim  21 ). 
         [0015]    If more guide elements are fitted, for example two guide elements which are disposed in mutually opposite relationship and which extend towards the same side (claim  6 , claim  28 ), it is possible to achieve a particularly accurate parallel guidance effect. The guided element, for secure re-closure, cannot then tip, but is kept substantially parallel in its position and is reliably guided in a direction perpendicularly to the plane of the central surface region, by a removal movement and a fitting movement. 
         [0016]    A slight inclination of the guide elements is not to be excluded (claim  7 ). That inclination is oriented closer towards 90°, that is to say above 75° and below 90°, which latter would be a parallel orientation in relation to an axis perpendicular to the central region (claim  2 ). The at least one guide element can be made from sheet metal or plastic material (claims  8 ,  9  and  10 ). 
         [0017]    The lid can be manufactured jointly with the guide elements (claim  11 ). That joint manufacture in the form of a unit is preferably implemented using injection casting technology. That injection casting procedure is a representative of pressure forming with which the guide elements can be formed in position (claim  23 ) or can be formed in position (claim  12 ). 
         [0018]    In order to provide for a hold to the lid surface, a continuous plastic material layer is used, which carries the one or more guide elements, or is formed in one piece with those guide elements respectively. The connection of the plastic material layer to the lid surface (the central region in the form of a panel) provides the hold for the guide elements on the metallic lid material. That hold can be implemented by a peripherally extending strip at the edge of the opening (claim  13 ). In that respect it can be in the form of a strip at one side or two sides, in which case the arrangement can provide a U-shaped profile (claim  23 , claim  24 ). Fitting the profiled layer (claim  25 ) provides for reliable positioning and orientation of the guide elements. The layer and therewith the guide elements can then no longer be separated from the lid, without involving destruction. It will be appreciated that a plastic material layer produced by injection moulding or pressure shaping is formed in one piece with guide elements (claim  26 ). 
         [0019]    The opening is of a relatively large configuration (claim  27 ). The embracing configuration at the edge and from the interior therefore involves a comparatively large radius, in the case of a circular hole (claim  27 ). 
         [0020]    The integral mounting can also be paraphrased otherwise as ‘lockingly involving intimate joining of the materials concerned’ (claim  31 ). 
         [0021]    If a number of terms are used in relation to the guide elements such as pillar, pin or post, that is intended in each case to express the fact that this at least one guide element is suitable for permitting guided displacement in the heightwise direction, which is not only a statement of use but also a way of paraphrasing the technical function involved and thus a functional definition of such structurally designed guide elements which allow such displacement in the heightwise direction, and such ‘holding elements’ which precisely do not allow that displacement in relation to the sheet metal of the lid (claims  28  and  29 ). 
         [0022]    The state of the art in contrast does not disclose any approaches in respect of the claimed invention. DE-U 202 19 794 (Blechwarenfabrik Limburg) illustrates a stackable container with an edge region 5 for sealing and permanent connection to the container body consisting of the body 2 and the bottom 4 (the references are taken from that publication). That design has a substantially planar central region (reference 3 therein) in which there is an opening delimited by an edge, for introducing or removing the filling material (the opening is identified by reference 17 therein). Arranged in the region between the edge and the opening is at least one element with which a gripping means (reference 18 therein and FIG. 3) is held to the lid surface. Those gripping elements are only visible there in FIG. 3 and are not described in greater detail, but at best the handle portion 18 is described as being present, see page 10, last paragraph thereof, and that handle portion is mounted at a considerable spacing from the opening there, in the lid surface (referred to as the upper end). The essential concept of that publication is concerned with simplified or improved labelability of the wall and for that purpose proposes restricting the variation in cross-section to a short upper region and a short lower region, and in other respects leaving the cross-section of the container the same, see therein page 8, paragraph 1. DE-U 19 34 945 is also concerned with shaped portions in the lid surface, being shown as a plan view in FIG. 2 thereof and as a sectional view in FIG. 1 thereof. They are in the form of curved or bent beads which extend around the corners substantially in the form of a circular arc and in staggered relationship. The purpose and aim is that of stiffening the lid surface. CH-C 494 165 operates with similar stiffening means. At another location, outside the lid surface, in accordance with EP-A 1 361 164 or associated WO-A 03/089 167, there is a variation in the peripherally extending damping bead (anti-peaking bead), which is varied in respect of its width or position. Once again as a departure from the anti-peaking bead, U.S. Pat. No. 2,822,952, therein column 1, lines 53 to 70, addresses improved stackability of cans, for which purpose a wave-shaped configuration for the lid surface is used, see FIG. 4 thereof A comparable structure which however extends rather in a triangular shape in cross-section is known from U.S. Pat. No. 3,070,257, also for stacking the container or for improving stackability. GB-A 518 778 dating from the Thirties discloses a metallic container, the aim of which is to improve the ease with which the content thereof can be taken therefrom, see therein page 1, left-hand column, central paragraph; an opening, reference 4 therein, is provided, while formed around a recess in the lid surface is a channel which opens into the above-mentioned opening. A usual handle or a gripping portion is identified by reference 8 therein and is also arranged in the lid metal, see therein page 2, right-hand column, paragraph 3. 
         [0023]    Advantageous configurations of the claimed lid and the associated processes will be apparent from the description of the examples. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0024]    The invention is described in greater detail hereinafter by means of examples with reference to diagrammatic drawings in which: 
           [0025]      FIG. 1  shows a view in axial section of a container, closed with a lid which is produced in accordance with an example of the invention, 
           [0026]      FIG. 2  shows a plan view on a larger scale of the lid of  FIG. 1 , with a free opening in the panel, 
           [0027]      FIG. 3  shows a view in cross-section of the lid of  FIG. 2 , 
           [0028]      FIG. 4   a  shows a plan view of a portion of a lid surface with a filling and/or removal opening, prior to shaping of the guide elements, 
           [0029]      FIG. 4   b  shows a perspective view of the portion of the lid of  FIG. 4   a  after shaping of the guide elements, 
           [0030]      FIGS. 5   a ,  5   b  and  5   c  show perspective views of three guide elements with various examples of their cross-sectional configuration, and 
           [0031]      FIG. 6  shows a cross-section of portions of further embodiments of a lid with guide elements. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0032]      FIG. 1  shows a typical container body  4  (which can be referred to just as the ‘body’), as is usual for example made of sheet metal by deep drawing or stretching for beverages. It includes a cylindrical body wall  5  with a longitudinal axis  9  and a bottom  6  connected in one piece to the body wall. A lid which is manufactured or designed in accordance with a number of examples of the invention is connected to the container body  4  by a sealing permanent seam which is formed over the edge of the body and the edge of the cover  2 , being in the form of a folded join  2   a . A damping bead  2   b  (anti-peaking bead) is disposed between the folded join  2   a  and the panel  3 , as a surface region. 
         [0033]    The lid  1  has a ‘lid surface’ (in the form of a panel or central planar region  3 ) which is substantially flat and which is connected by the lid edge  2  by way of a damping or anti-peaking bead  2   b  (to the chuck wall). In the illustrated example the lid panel has three guide elements  7 ′,  7 ″ and  8 . The two guide elements  7  extend parallel upwardly while the guide element  8  extends from the panel  3  downwardly (or inwardly of the container). All three guide elements are arranged parallel to each other and parallel to the axis  9  of the lid  1 . They are in the form of pillars, posts or pins. They can extend over a length of between 5 mm and 15 mm. 
         [0034]    One or two of those guide elements are sufficient, for example the two pins  7 ′,  7 ″ also being directed inwardly. 
         [0035]    In the example shown in  FIGS. 1 to 3  the cross-section of the guide elements is approximately circularly round. As shown in  FIG. 5  by means of examples  31 ,  32  and  33  however, the cross-section may also be quite different. The shape of the cross-section depends on the purpose of use, that is to say the nature of the device which is to be guided at the guide elements, that device itself not being subject-matter of the invention. 
         [0036]    The cross-section remains the same over the (guiding) length of the two guide elements  7 ′,  7 ″ or  7 ′ and  8 . The axis of each guide element is at an angle α of between 75°, preferably between 80° and 90°, to the plane of the lid surface, that is to say in the limit case of the angle φ=90° (phi is 90°) the axis is substantially parallel to the axis  9  of the lid. 
         [0037]    The at least one guide element can also be oriented at less than 90° with respect to the plane of the lid surface, for example between 75° and below 90°, as symbolically shown by the angle α in  FIG. 3 . The guide element  8  or also the guide element  7 ″ is oriented at an angle of less than 90°, corresponding to that angular orientation. That applies, for a parallel orientation of the guide elements  7 ′,  7 ″, also for the guide element  7 ′ which has hitherto not been mentioned. The guide elements represent respective longitudinal axes which then no longer extend parallel, with respect to the longitudinal axis  9 . The longitudinal axis  9  has hitherto been referred to as the container axis, but is also a congruent longitudinal axis with respect to the lid, as shown in  FIG. 2  at the centre point of the lid panel  3 . 
         [0038]    The lid shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3  is produced with a filling and/or removal opening  11  which is delimited by an opening edge  10  and which is arranged eccentrically in the lid surface  3 . The two outer guide elements  7 ′,  7 ″ are arranged near the edge opening  10  and in mutually diametrally opposite relationship. Their spacing from the opening edge  10  is advantageously from 0 to 5 mm. Nonetheless they are disposed between the opening  11  and the edge flange  2 . In this case, the guide element  8  at the underside is placed in aligned relationship with the guide element  7 ″ on the outside. The opening is relatively large. In an example which is not shown, the guide elements  7 ′,  7 ″ project downwardly/inwardly,  8  becomes  7 ″ and  7 ′ is in diametrally opposite relationship. 
         [0039]    The guide elements can be produced or shaped in different ways in manufacture of the lid. 
         [0040]      FIGS. 4   a  and  4   b , by reference to the example of a lid of sheet metal, show the operation of shaping the guide elements by bending the sheet metal of the lid. For that purpose, in the illustrated example, when producing the opening  16  in the lid panel  15 , the opening being defined by an opening edge  17 , two mutually oppositely disposed sheet metal flaps  18 ′,  18 ″ are left. At the location at which they are attached to the opening edge  17 , cuts are made thereinto at both sides at  19 ′,  19 ″, leaving a bridge region  20 . The flaps are bent away at the bridge region  20  through about 90° relative to the lid surface (bend location  20   a ) and rolled in to form a respective cylinder indicated at  18   a.    
         [0041]    The guide elements can also be produced by deep drawing or the like directly from the lid material. 
         [0042]    Pressure processes, for example injection die casting or moulding processes can also be used, in the context of manufacture of the lid, for producing the guide elements. Thus, when using a plastic material, the guide elements can be applied to the material of the lid surface by using pressure and increased temperature, together with a continuous plastic material layer, by ‘pressure shaping’ thereon. The lid and the guide elements can also be shaped as a unit from a non-metallic material. 
         [0043]    As an example of one of those ‘pressure’ procedures, FIG.  6 —in section and as a portion from the metallic lid panel  40 —shows a continuous plastic material layer  43  which is applied along the edge  42  of the opening  41  in the panel  40  in production of the lid by pressure shaping, wherein the plastic material layer  43  in the illustrated example also at least partially embraces the opening edge  42  (at  43 ) and, fitted in one piece, has the at least one and preferably both guide elements  43   b ′,  43   b″.    
         [0044]    In addition—as shown in broken lines in FIG.  6 —the opening edge can also be embraced in a U-shape in cross-section so that the layer  43 , in the form of the U-shaped configuration  43   a ,  43   c , provides that the guide posts  43   b ′ and  43   b ″ are permanently mounted to the edge of the opening, which cannot be separated from the lid without destruction. That manufacturing process, involving pressure and plastic material, mounts the U-shaped profile portion  43 ,  43   c  to the opening edge  42  and therewith provides the pillars, pins or posts  43   b ′,  43   b ″ as the guide elements (for axially guided movement) on the sheet metal of the lid. The outwardly facing side  43   c  is only shown in broken line as an option in  FIG. 6 . The pillars/posts preferably project inwardly into the space I in the body. The shapes in  FIG. 5  or the pins  7 ′,  7 ″ or  8  are correspondingly also arranged ‘at the edge’  10  (in adjacent relationship with that edge). 
         [0045]    The entire lid surface with the guide elements can also be formed from plastic material and can be fixedly joined by pressure shaping to a ring portion of metal, which has the lid edge, in the above-described manner. 
         [0046]    The lid can be varied easily and with a high level of precision without involving major complication or expenditure, for any corresponding purpose of use. It is preferred for the field of closing drinks cans, which defines its panel, its size (under 60 mm in diameter) and its edge flange  2  which is suitable for the folded seam connection. Likewise the thin sheet metal thickness.