Patent Publication Number: US-2004040959-A1

Title: Decorative container

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] The invention relates to the field of rigid decorative containers for articles such as cosmetics. More particularly, the invention relates to containers having a removable or openable lid and which provide an appealing visual aspect when a group of multiple identical containers are arranged together.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002] Decorative containers are useful for marketing of consumer items such as cosmetics, in which it is important to provide articles in eye-catching containers or packaging. For example, perfume bottles represent an art form in themselves. There also exist a wide variety of decorative containers, with and without removable or openable lids, suitable for small articles. An important aspect of such containers for commercial purposes is that they be suited for setting up an attractive in-store display for catching the eye of customers. This is particularly important in the case of small containers for retail items such as a container for a cosmetic, since on their own such containers may be too small to be noticed by a customer. Hence, there is a need for a container which is both visually distinctive and which is suitable for arranging in a set of identical containers to form an eye catching display. While one may arrange a display comprising an array of simple rectangular cases or containers, this is so common as to not be particularly eye catching. It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a decorative container suitable for arranging in a set of identical members to form an eye catching and attractive arrangement. For this purpose, a set of identical containers may be provided which when placed in a group forms an attractive three dimensional pattern.  
       [0003] It is also a desirable feature of a container for consumer articles that it be capable of inexpensive mass production, for example by common plastic molding techniques.  
       [0004] A further desirable feature of a container is the provision of a removable lid which is simple to use, easy and inexpensive to manufacture, and has good retention to the container body.  
       [0005] The field of containers for small articles is, of course, ancient and replete with examples of lidded containers. By way of an illustrative example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,052 to Vajtay discloses a box including an open-ended tubular sleeve having a rectangular cross section into which rectangular, hollow insert closure boxes can be inserted. Narrow elongated slots on the sleeves end walls are able to receive a tab on the closure box so that the boxes can be locked into place thereby closing the sleeve.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0006] An object of the present is to provide an improved decorative container for consumer articles, especially small articles, and which presents a decorative appearance particularly when a group of identical containers are arranged in end-to-end or side-by-side relationship. A further object is to provide a decorative container for holding articles having an improved removable lid.  
       [0007] The invention consists of a decorative container body having a base and generally vertical opposed side walls and end walls, the side walls being characterized by a continuously curving configuration such as a wave-like shape. Preferably the entirety of each side wall is continuously curving and forms an S-shape when viewed in plan. The opposed end walls are preferably flat. Preferably the end walls are substantially aligned with each other, although some degree of offset is acceptable; that is, the end walls preferably both form a substantially right angle relative to an imaginary vertical plane bisecting the elongate axis of the container and passing through both end walls. However, it is envisioned that the end walls may be disposed at an angle other than 90° relative to the central plane or that they may take on a shape other than flat, such as curved.  
       [0008] The side walls are fully parallel to each other, as are the end walls. That is, the spacing between the side walls remains the same at all positions, and the same is true of the end walls. Because the end walls are parallel to each other, multiple identical containers may be placed next to each other in an end-to-end abutting array to form a grouping of containers having the appearance of a unitary object. The overall appearance is that of an elongate structure with continuously waving side walls. The overall effect can be quite dramatic.  
       [0009] A further aspect of the invention consists of an open-topped container having an improved removable cap or lid. Preferably, the lid has a flat, plate-like top. Depending tabs on either end of the lid extend into the interior of the container body and contact the side walls of the container body. Each tab may fit within a recess set into the container wall. A mating protrusion and aperture arrangement between the tab and the corresponding wall provides a releasable fastener or clasp for the lid for snap-locking the lid to the body. The protrusions may extend from the tabs, and mate with recesses within the container body, or vice-versa.  
       [0010] Concerning directional references in the present patent specification (including claims), reference is made to terms such as up, down, lower, upper, etc. These references are for convenience of description only. It will be understood that the container of the present invention may be placed in any orientation. The directional references used herein refer to the container placed in the ordinary, upright position, with the base resting on a horizontal surface and the container opening upwardly, as shown in the accompanying drawings.  
       [0011] Having thus generally characterized the invention, the invention will now be further illustrated by way of a detailed description and drawings of one embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0012]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the invention with the cap in place;  
     [0013]FIG. 2 is a perspective view as in FIG. 1, showing the cap removed;  
     [0014]FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the container body and cap, taken along lines  2 ( a ) of FIG. 2;  
     [0015]FIG. 4 is a perspective view, illustrating a group of containers arranged in a decorative display; and  
     [0016]FIG. 5 is a plan view, from above, of a further arrangement of multiple containers according to the present invention arranged in a different decorative display. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
     [0017] Referring to FIGS.  1 - 3 , the container  10  according to the invention consists of a container body  12  and a removable lid  14 . The container body comprises a substantially flat, plate-like base  16 , substantially vertical sidewalls  18  and substantially vertical end walls  20 . The container is preferably elongate; that is, the side walls are longer than the end walls. The side walls  18  curve continuously along their length when seen in plan, in a generally wave-shaped configuration such as S-shaped configuration. For the present purposes, an S-shaped curvature of the side walls is particularly suitable by virtue of its simplicity and eye-catching nature. In order to permit a continuous appearance when multiple containers are arranged together, in an end-to-end array, the opposed side walls  18  on either side of the container are fully parallel to each other. That is, the walls are spaced an equal distance apart at all points and if they were to be placed against each other, they would fully contact each other with no gaps. The end walls  20  are also fully parallel to each other. In the preferred embodiment, the end walls are substantially flat. However, if desired, they may take on a curved or other configuration provided that opposed end walls remain fully parallel to each other.  
     [0018] The lid  14  includes a flat, plate-like upper surface  22  the size and shape of which is essentially identical to the base  16 . Preferably the peripheral edges  24  of the lid  14  are flush with the walls of the container for a smooth appearance. In order to accommodate the S-shaped curving side walls, the lid  14  and base  16  each have a generally S-shaped configuration when viewed in plan from above or below.  
     [0019] The lid  14  is secured to the container body  12  in a snap-lock engagement by a pair of depending tabs  26  extending downwardly from opposed ends of the lid  14 . The tabs  26  may take on any desired configuration, the tabs being shown as generally semi-circular in the illustrated embodiment herein. The tabs  26  are recessed slightly from the edge  24  to permit them to fit within the interior of the container body. The lid  14  +is releasably retained to the container body by means of projections  28  extending outwardly from the outerface of each tab  26 , which fit within corresponding recesses  30  within each end wall of the container body. It will be seen that this arrangement of mating projection and recess may be reversed, with a projection extending from the container body and a corresponding recess extending into the tab  26 . The shape of the projections  28  and resilience of the tabs  26  are suitable for retaining the lid snugly to the container body, while still permitting release by a gentle upward tug on the lid. Depending on the nature of the anticipated contents and use of the container, the tabs and projection/recess arrangement may be arranged to require a greater or lesser amount of force to open or close. For example, if child-proofing is required a relatively greater amount of required force may be selected to release the clasp.  
     [0020] The overall size of the container may vary widely, depending on the intended purpose of the container. For example, if the container is for retaining small cosmetic items, the dimensions of the container may conveniently range from between 4 and 10 cm. in either height or length and 1 to 8 cm. in width. It will be seen that these ranges are not intended to limit the scope of the invention but are merely presented by way of an example.  
     [0021] The container according to the present invention may be fabricated from a single material such as a rigid moldable plastic. Alternatively, the base and/or lid may be made from a different material from the side walls in order to provide visual interest or improved structural qualities. The container in its entirety or any one or more of the base, side walls and lid may be transparent, semi-transparent or opaque. As well, any of the surfaces of the container may be imprinted with any type of message, lettering or, design or logo,this feature being particularly desirable for the cosmetics industry. The lid may be the same colour as the body or contrasting.  
     [0022] Multiple containers  10  according to the present invention may be arranged in various eye-catching configurations, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. As seen in FIG. 4, any number of identical containers may be placed in end-to-end relationship on a flat display surface. The result is a visually attractive arrangement in which the side walls  18  appear to form a continuous wave-like pattern. The effect may be enhanced by selection of materials having a shimmering or partly transparent appearance. As seen in FIG. 5, multiple containers  10  may be placed in either or both side-to-side or end-to-end abutting relationship to achieve a similar effect.  
     [0023] Having described the present invention by way of a general description as well as a detailed description of one preferred embodiment thereof, it will be seen that the present invention is not limited in its scope to the features described in the above detailed description. Rather, the present invention includes within its scope the features and elements set forth in the accompanying patent claims, as well as elements which are the equivalent thereto.