Abstract:
The present invention is directed to a carton including a lid and a container having a reinforcing ring that cooperatively engages the top portion of the container in a rib-and-groove snap-lock fit. The reinforcing ring is coextensive with the opening of the container and has a band located on the interior of the container, and exposes no sharp edges. The ring is butted against the inside of the container wall and the top edge of the container wall. An edge of the ring lies on the top edge of the container wall and is inwardly recessed from the wall thus preventing the ring from protruding beyond the container wall and eliminating interference with adjacent containers or the risk of injury to fingers or hands.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates generally to containers and more particularly to an improved construction for a ring or rim used to reinforce and protect the upper edge of a large paperboard container particularly useful for food such as ice cream. 
         [0003]    Paperboard containers are used in a variety of packaging applications, including the packaging of foods. Such a container can have a generally round mouth and can also have a general cylindrical sidewall. Relatively large diameter paperboard containers having a large capacity, several gallon capacity for example, are widely used to package food products in bulk quantities. In some cases these containers are also used on an ongoing basis to store and dispense the food product, such as in the case of the retail sale of ice cream. The edges of these large containers are susceptible to being dented, frayed and torn and are typically lacking in hoop compression strength or bending resistance at the open mouth. To address this issue, a metal reinforcing ring is ordinarily applied to the upper edge of the container to provide it with the necessary strength or bending resistance and protection to prevent the deterioration of the container opening. 
         [0004]    These metal reinforcing rings that have been used in the past are applied to the container by crimping rolls that roll a portion of the ring over the top edge of the container. The ring is held in place on the container by an edge of the rolled portion which bites into the container wall. The ring extends along the inside surface of the container and terminates in a lower edge which lies against the inside surface of the container wall. Although this type of reinforcing ring functions well to strengthen and protect the edge of the container, it has not been entirely satisfactory in all respects. Other types of rings with varying configurations and methodologies for crimping, curling and curvature of the edges have also failed to be satisfactory in similar respects. 
         [0005]    Most notably, the lower edge of the ring may present an exposed edge which can cut the fingers, hands or arms of persons reaching into the container. In addition, the manner in which the ring is fastened on the top of the container is lacking. The fastened ring has an edge that protrudes beyond the outside surface of the side wall of the container, thus creating an outer lip that can catch on other containers or objects placed adjacent to the container. As a result, apart from the inconvenience encountered in the placement of the container, the ring can also become dislodged or torn away from the container. The loss of the ring detracts from the structural integrity of the upper rim area of the container. A metal ring can also be permanently deformed. 
         [0006]    There is therefore a need for a container construction with a top ring that provides versatility by reinforcing and protecting the upper edge of a container, while presenting less of a permanent deformation potential or hazard to persons who reach into the container. Even further there is a need for a ring that is easily installed, and the presence of which will not adversely impact the placement of the container in close proximity to other containers or enclosures. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    The present invention addresses these needs and overcomes the limitations of the prior art. More specifically, the present invention is directed to an improved ring which is applied to the container in a manner to reduce exposed sharp edges and deleterious surfaces or edges. The ring is also held in place more securely and with less manufacturing effort, than the metal rings that have been used in the past. In a preferred embodiment, the ring does not appreciably protrude beyond the sidewalls of the container and thus does not interfere with the container placement or present the risk of having the ring detached from the container. 
         [0008]    The present invention provides, among other things, a reinforcing ring partially located over a container edge, the ring cooperatively engaging the top portion of the container in a rib and groove snap-fit mechanical interlock. The container has a side wall with a top portion and a bottom portion, wherein the top portion defines an open mouth. The top portion of the container has a folded edge that forms an internal downwardly facing shoulder extending around the interior perimeter. The bottom portion of the side wall has a folded edge that is attached and preferably sealed to a depending skirt of a bottom wall to form a container bottom. 
         [0009]    The reinforcing ring has a through opening coextensive with the opening of the container side wall. A portion of the ring rests against the inside surface of the container side wall creating a reduced diameter neck with an exposed band portion. The band portion of the ring, located on the interior of the container exposes no sharp hazardous edges. 
         [0010]    The ring is butted against the inside of the container side wall and the top edge of the container wall. The edge of the ring that lies on the top edge of the container side wall is located such that the ring does not protrude appreciably beyond the container side wall and is thus not susceptible to catching on adjacent containers, cutting or otherwise injuring persons. 
         [0011]    Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following detailed description and drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0012]    The present invention is further described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which show various constructions and implementations of the present invention. However, it should be noted that the invention as disclosed in the accompanying drawings is for illustrative purposes only. The various elements and combinations of elements described below and illustrated in the drawings can be arranged and organized differently to result in constructions which are still within the spirit and scope of the present invention. The accompanying drawings form a part of the specification and are to be read in conjunction therewith and in which like reference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views: 
           [0013]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a paperboard container equipped with a polymeric ring applied to the top portion of the container in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the container shown in  FIG. 1  but without the ring; 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of a portion of the container and the ring shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
           [0016]      FIG. 4  is a top plan view of the ring of the present invention; 
           [0017]      FIG. 5  is a bottom plan view of the ring of the present invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 6  is a cross sectional view of the ring and 
           [0019]      FIG. 7  is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view of the ring. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0020]    The detailed embodiment of the present invention is described herein. It should be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiment is merely exemplary and that the invention may be embodied in a variety of forms. Therefore, the illustrated drawings  FIGS. 17  and description herein should not be construed to limit or otherwise set forth the scope of the invention but rather to provide a basis for the claims and to teach the making of an embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0021]    Referring now to the drawings in more detail and turning initially to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , numeral  5  generally designates a carton of a type which may be used to package food items in bulk quantity such as ice cream. Such carton can be large enough to hold several gallons of product or many pounds. The carton  5  includes a container  10  that may be formed of any suitable material including metal, paper or plastic and may take on a variety of shapes and sizes. The embodiment of the invention described herein involves a container  10  formed with paper board. The container  10  as described herein has a wall structure which as shown has a generally cylindrical or tubular body, with an opening  13  at the top and a closed bottom  15 . The carton  5  includes a lid  6  having a top closure panel  7  and a side skirt  8  that surrounds an upper portion of side wall  12 . The lid  6  may be made of material similar to the side wall  12  as described below. The container base  10  has a generally cylindrical side wall  12  formed from paperboard or a similar material. There is a bottom wall  22  which is attached in any suitable manner to define a storage compartment. Further, the container  10  may also have the lid  6  fitted thereon and retained in place by friction and/or a tamper resistant closure as are known in the art. The container  10  includes a top portion  14 , a bottom portion  16  and a reinforcing ring  26  located at the top portion  14 . The ring  26 , which will be discussed in greater detail later herein, provides compressive and tensile reinforcement to deformation of the opening  13  of the side wall  12  without presenting a hazard of injury to users of the container  10 . The ring  26  and side wall  12  as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  are cooperatively and preferably mechanically inter-engaged in a manner that is facilitated by novel features of the present invention. Specifically, there is a snap-lock engagement of a rib and groove located on either one of the side wall  12  or the ring  26  to effect mounting of the ring  26  to the side wall  12 . The description that follows focuses on a configuration wherein the groove receives the rib therein, however, it should be understood, and it is contemplated, that other configurations can achieve the snap-lock connection. 
         [0022]    Turning initially to further features of the container  10 ,  FIG. 2  illustrates a cross-sectional view of the container  10 , and some of the features therein. As shown, the top portion  14  of the side wall  12  is folded over inwardly and around the perimeter of the side wall  12  in a conventional manner to form a rib  17  (shown in  FIG. 3 ) with a first shoulder  18  and a top rim portion  32  also forming a shoulder, the shoulders facing oppositely of one another. The shoulder  18  faces generally downwardly toward the bottom portion  16 . In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the bottom portion  16  of the container  10  is also folded inwardly and around the perimeter of the container  10  in a conventional manner, to form a u-shaped bottom groove  20 . The generally circular bottom wall  22  includes a fold that creates a depending skirt  24 . As shown, the skirt  24  is positioned within the groove  20 . The skirt  24  is attached to the side wall  12  in the groove  20  on both side faces of the skirt  24  and the seam therebetween sealed in any one of several conventional manners, thereby attaching the bottom wall  22  to the side wall  12 . As would be understood by one skilled in the art, the two portions may be sealed as with a bead of thermoplastic material or adhesive or sealed by other means, such as ultrasonic welding The side wall  12  and bottom wall  22  may be formed as an integral unit by injection molding. Regardless of the method utilized to form the side wall/bottom wall assembly, there is a resulting seal of the bottom wall  22  to the side wall  12  of the container  10  to define a storage chamber for receiving product therein. In some applications, a layer of material, such as a thermoplastic is applied to the inner surface and edges of the container wall  12  and the inner surface of the bottom wall  22 . This added material traditionally prevents wicking of the contained substance into and possibly through the paper board of the container  10 . The side wall  12  may be made of two layers of helically wrapped layers of paper board with one layer overlapping the edge seam or butt joint of the other layer. 
         [0023]    Turning next to the features of the ring structure  26 , preferably molded of a polymeric material, which is applied to the top portion  14  of the side wall  12  for the purpose of strengthening the top portion  14  and protecting the edge  32  of the side wall  12 . The ring  26  defines a central opening or mouth  40 . When the ring  26  is attached to the side wall  12 , the mouth  40  is coextensive with the opening  13 . It should be understood that the ring  26  may be made from any one of a number of materials having similar characteristics to a polymeric product and yielding similar handling safety, food safety, attachability, and formability. Generally, the ring  26  is formed from a suitable material such as polymer or other substances having adequate strength to reinforce the top portion  14  and upper edge,  32  of the side wall  12 , and present non-cutting edges in the normal use. The ring  26  is best described with reference to  FIGS. 4 and 5 . 
         [0024]      FIG. 4  illustrates a top plan view of the ring  26 .  FIG. 5  illustrates the bottom plan view of the ring  26  and shows a plurality of cavities  48  between inner and outer axially aligned rings, the inner ring being referred to as ring or band  44  and the outer ring including skirt  34  and a plurality of webs or brace portions  46  alternately located around the inner perimeter of the skirt  34 . The cavities  48  are separated by webs  46  extending between band  44  and skirt  34 . In the illustrated embodiment of the present invention, a material conservation technique is implemented wherein instead of providing a solid thick band  44 , a thinner layer of plastic is utilized in conjunction with the webs  46  to provide adequate rigidity for the ring  26 , while reducing the amount of material required to form the ring  26 . 
         [0025]      FIG. 6  illustrates a cross-section of the ring  26 .  FIG. 7  further illustrates an enlarged view of the ring  26  and the details of the construction of an embodiment of the present invention. As shown, the ring  26  comprises the interior peripheral band  44  forming a perimeter of the mouth  40  and, as shown, a round opening, and has a surface  43  slightly downwardly and inwardly inclined from a generally horizontal top ledge  42 . As used herein, vertical and horizontal orientations are based on the container  10  being in its normal upright orientation. The ledge  42  is in turn adjacent to an outwardly extending flange  28  and faces generally upwardly. The flange  28  forms a downwardly facing shoulder  30 . Adjacent to the shoulder  30  and radially inward of the flange  28  is a peripherally and preferably circumferentially extending and depending skirt  34 . Extending radially outwardly of the skirt  34  is a flange  36 , which extends around the perimeter of the skirt  34 . The flange  36  has an upwardly facing shoulder  38  also extending preferably around the entirety of the skirt  34 . It should be understood that either or both of the flanges  28 ,  36  may extend around the entire perimeter of the ring  26 , or a portion thereof so long as a seal is formed between the ring  26  and the side wall  12  and securement of the ring  26  to the side wall  12  can be effected. Consequently, the shoulders  30 ,  38  may also be continuous or non-continuous around the perimeter of the ring  26 . 
         [0026]    In the embodiment described herein, the combination of the skirt  34 , shoulder  30  and shoulder  38  define a peripheral and preferably circumferential groove  52 . The earlier described cavities  48 , are defined by the band  44 , the top ledge  42  and the anterior side of the skirt  34  along with the webs  46 , which are peripherally interspersed throughout. The webs  46  provide a support between the band  44  and the anterior side of the skirt  34 , and help rigidify the ring  26  against radial compression or tension deformation of the ring  26  and side wall  12 . Importantly, the band  44  and ledge  42  present non-cutting edges and thus reduce the risk of a cut to a person reaching into the container  10 . Having thus described the ring  26  and its various features as well as those of the container  10 , we turn next to the cooperative combination of the two pieces, which is best described by reference to the illustration of  FIG. 3   
         [0027]    In  FIG. 3 , a cross-sectional view of the side wall  12  and ring  26  of the present invention is illustrated. In operation, and as shown, the ring  26  cooperatively engages the top portion  14  of the side wall  12 . When installed, a portion of the ring  26 , specifically the shoulder  30 , rests upon the edge  32 , which functions as a shoulder, of the container  10  limiting relative axial movement of the ring  26  to side wall  12  in one axial direction. Another portion of the ring  26 , the circumferential groove  52 , cooperatively receives the rib  17  and the shoulder  18  therein. This locates the shoulder  38  below the shoulder  18  to effect the snap lock mounting. 
         [0028]    The ring  26  is attached in a cooperative snap-lock rib-and-groove inter-engagement with the side wall  12 . In the embodiment of the invention described herein, there is a cooperation of the surfaces defining the circumferential groove  52  (as shown in  FIG. 7 ) of the ring  26  and the rib  17  of the side wall  12 . The shoulder  38  engages the shoulder  18  to secure the ring  26  in place and to the side wall  12  in a mechanical manner eliminating the need for crimping or gluing. 
         [0029]    Installation of the ring  26  is achieved by a mechanical insertion of the ring  26  into the opening  13  of side wall  12 , with the application of some minimal downward and axially directed force. As previously discussed, the ring  26  and the top portion  14  of the container have a rib-and-groove fit. In other words, either one of a peripheral outer region of the ring  26  or an inner region of the top portion  14  of the side wall  12 , i.e. the inner surface of the opening  13 , presents a rib while the other presents a groove. There is an interference fit of one region to the other, wherein each also reinforces the other. In other words, and for example, the inserting and locking the ring  26  into the side wall  12  provides an interference fit, wherein the ring  26  reinforces the side wall  12  at the top portion  14 , and the side wall  12  reinforces and helps to maintain the shape of the ring  26 . The rib  17  and at least some of the surfaces defining the groove  52  form a seal and the shoulder  30  and edge  32  can help effect sealing while also limiting axial movement of the ring  26  relative to the side wall  12 . 
         [0030]    The embodiment described herein discloses a groove in the ring  26  and a rib in the container top portion  14 . However, it should be understood that other configurations of the rib and groove are contemplated and within the scope of the present invention. For example, the rib may be formed on the ring  26  while the groove is located in the interior of the opening of the side wall  12 . The rib and/or groove irrespective of where they are located may also be non-continuous about the perimeter of either of the ring or container surfaces. Even further, ribs and grooves may exist in an alternating pattern on each surface. 
         [0031]    The flange  36  is first inserted into the container  10  as a leading edge. The flange  36  contacts the rib  17  of the container and displaces it outwardly somewhat towards the interior of the side wall  12  of the container  10 , thus allowing the ring  26  to be inserted within the opening  13  of the side wall  12 . As the ring  26  progresses into the opening of the container, the rib  17  remains compressed between the third flange  36  and the side wall  12  of the container until the shoulder  38  passes the shoulder  18  of the rib  17 . At this point, the rib  17  contracts into place in the groove  52  and its shoulder  18  overlies the third shoulder  38 . A feature of the present invention is that the groove  52  is dimensioned with a height H that approximates or exceeds the height H 1  of the rib  17 , thus permitting the shoulder  18  to be located generally in alignment with and in opposition to the shoulder  38 , and within the groove  52 . Interengagement between the shoulder  18 ,  38  prevents removal of the ring  26  from attachment to the side wall  12 . Another feature is that the shoulder  30  of the ring  26  engages the edge  32  of the container, resisting any further downward motion of the ring  26  relative to the side wall  12 . 
         [0032]    The shoulder  30  is further dimensioned and shaped to rest on top of the edge  32  without appreciably extending beyond the outer face of side wall  12 . In some embodiments, the ring  26  is slightly larger than the exterior surface of side wall  12 . In some embodiments it is slightly larger by 0.010-0.030 inches. In other embodiments, the ring  26  is preferably flush to below flush recessed from the exterior surface of side wall  12 . This permits the chime of carton  5  to be reduced to about the thickness of skirt  8  facilitating positioning of one carton  5  next to another carton  5  reducing the risk of dislodging a lid  6 . 
         [0033]    From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure. It will be understood that certain features and sub combinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and sub combinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims. Since many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is also to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. 
         [0034]    The constructions described above and illustrated in the drawings are presented by way of example only and are not intended to limit the concepts and principles of the present invention. As used herein, the terms “having” and/or “including” and other terms of inclusion are terms indicative of inclusion rather than requirement.