Patent Publication Number: US-2007095423-A1

Title: Apparatus and method for filling void in an outer container having a liquid-containing flexible package held therein

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
      Not Applicable.  
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
      Not Applicable.  
     INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISK  
      Not Applicable.  
     SPECIFICATION  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of Invention  
      This invention relates generally to flexible packages, and more particularly to apparatus and method for filling a void in the interior of a rigid container holding a large flexible package containing a liquid.  
      2. Description of Related Art  
      One common way of transporting liquid foodstuffs or other liquid products, is via the use of large, e.g., 55 gallon, flexible packages or bags. The bags can be of any suitable shape, e.g., drum shaped, parallelepiped shaped, etc. Each bag is arranged to be located within a rigid outer container, e.g., a bin, tote, carton, drum, etc., having an interior chamber corresponding in shape and volume to the filled bag. The outer container can be of any construction, e.g., heavy cardboard of one or my plies, fiberboard, press-board, wood, plastic and metal, and serves to protect the package with its content during transport.  
      In order to minimize the chances of the bag breaking after is filled the outer container must provide sufficient supporting strength for it. Moreover, the circumference of the inside of the outer container must be slightly smaller than the circumference of the bag and the filled bag should fill up the outer container completely. In particular, when the bag is filled and folded and the lid of the outer container is put in place and attached to the outer container to seal the bag within the interior chamber in the outer container, there should be no head-space between the bag and the lid. The bag may break if the bag is not supported and engaged all over by the outer container and its lid. Further still, the inside of the outer container and its lid must be smooth, e.g., there should be no sharp edges, staples, or other protrusions which may damage the bag. Since the bag will contain a large volume of liquid, e.g., 55 gallons, it will be subject to large forces, including dynamic forces caused by the shifting or sloshing of its liquid contents during transportation. Such forces dramatically increases the risk for flex-cracking and damage to the bag. By minimizing the head-space or void, the dynamic forces on the bag caused by the liquid content shifting are reduced. Viscosity of the liquid also is a factor in the resistance of the bag to force-induced damage, since packages holding high viscosity liquids can cope with some head-space better than low viscosity liquids.  
      Inasmuch as many products to be held in such bags are of a relatively low viscosity, content shifting or sloshing is a problem. Thus, it is a common practice to fill the head-space or void between the top surface of the bag and the inner surface of the outer container&#39;s lid with a filler or topping. The filler or topping is a kind of ballast and can be in the form of chips, cellular plastic, cardboard, foam-in-place, foam rubber or something else placed above the filled bag. The advantages of foam-in-place are that it safely and completely fills up the head-space and it is easy to use. Pieces of foam rubber also have the advantage of safely filling up the head-space, being easy to use and can be readily reused. However, foam rubber has some disadvantages, namely, it takes up quite a lot of storage space and can absorb water and moisture. Therefore it is very important that it is stored in good conditions. A sheet of foam rubber can also serve as the topping and it has the advantage of being easy to use, e.g., one just places it on top of the bag and attaches the lid of the outer container thereover. Chips, e.g., small pieces of cellular plastic, are as good as foam-in-place and foam rubber, but such materials are difficult to handle. Furthermore, such materials take up a lot of storage space and are inconvenient to take care of when emptying the package. There are other ways to fill up head-space, e.g., by use of cardboard, paper, etc. Such toppings are probably not as good as foam, foam rubber or chips, but are likely to be cheaper. Whatever type of topping is used, the most important thing is that there is no risk that the topping damages the bag.  
      Another type of topping that can be used is a sealed air-bags or pillows, such as those made by using the AirPouch Express 3 Void-Fill System available from Automated Packaging Systems, Inc. of Streetsboro, Ohio.  
      While the aforementioned types of devices for filling the head-space above a flexible package in a rigid container may be generally suitable for their desired purposes, they still leave much to be desired from various standpoints. For example, the contents of the container can settle, e.g., flow into some creases, etc., in the inner container, whereupon the head-space or void at the top of the bag may enlarge. The above described prior art fillers or toppers cannot accommodate such an occurrence. In particular, if the head-space does increase, the outer container must be opened and additional topping or filler added. This can result in a significant expense from the standpoint of labor involved. Also, if the liquid contents of the container include any air pockets or air space, changes in altitude may result in the increasing or decreasing of the size of the void. Thus, the use of conventional fillers or toppings may not be able to accommodate the changed void size. Moreover, the use of fillers or toppers, particularly those making use of small bodies, e.g., pellets or pieces of foam, is a time consuming, messy project.  
      Accordingly, a need exists for an apparatus and method of filling up the head-space in the outer container above the flexible package and keeping that head-space filled irrespective of changing conditions.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      In accordance with one aspect of this invention there is provided a device for use with a flexible package filled with a liquid. The filled flexible package is located within a hollow interior chamber of a rigid, outer container. The outer container has a lid arranged to be located over the filled package, whereupon some void results therebetween. The device is arranged to completely fill the void. The device comprises an inflatable chamber, e.g., a resilient bladder, and a compressed gas, e.g., air, located within the inflatable chamber, whereupon the volume of the inflatable chamber automatically expands to fill the void, irrespective of changes in the volume taken up by the filled package within the hollow interior chamber.  
      In accordance with another aspect of this invention there is provided apparatus for holding a flexible package filled with a liquid. The apparatus comprises a rigid outer container and a void-filling device. The rigid container has a hollow interior chamber and a lid. The filled package is located within the hollow interior chamber, with the lid being arranged to be located over the filled package, whereupon some void results therebetween. The void-filling device is arranged to completely fill the void and comprises an inflatable chamber e.g., a resilient bladder, and a compressed gas, e.g., air, located within the inflatable chamber, whereupon the volume of the inflatable chamber automatically expands to fill the void, irrespective of changes in the volume taken up by the filled package within the hollow interior chamber. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       FIG. 1  is an exploded isometric view of apparatus constructed in accordance with one aspect of this invention, the apparatus including a rigid outer container for holding which a flexible package containing a liquid, and an inflatable chamber for filling a void in the interior of the rigid container between the filled flexible package and the outer container;  
       FIG. 1A  is an exploded isometric view, similar to  FIG. 1 , showing an alternative embodiment of apparatus constructed in accordance with this invention;  
       FIG. 2  is a vertical sectional view of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 1  being used to take up the head-space or void in the container after the flexible package has been filled and sealed;  
       FIG. 3  is a vertical sectional view, similar to  FIG. 2 , but showing the inflatable chamber automatically expanding to fill take up any increase in the head-space void within the sealed container in the event that the contents of the inflatable package shift to take up less interior space within the outer container;  
       FIG. 4  is a view similar to  FIG. 1 , but showing an alternative embodiment of the apparatus of this invention;  
       FIG. 4A  is a view similar to  FIG. 4 , but showing still another alternative embodiment of the apparatus of this invention;  
       FIG. 5  is a vertical sectional view of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 4A  being used to take up the head-space or void after the flexible package has been filled and sealed; and  
       FIG. 6  is a vertical sectional view similar to  FIG. 5 , but showing the inflatable chamber automatically expanding to fill take up any increase in the head-space void within the sealed container in the event that the contents of the inflatable package shift to take up less interior space within the outer container; 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
      Referring now in greater detail to the figures, there is shown at  20  in  FIG. 1  apparatus constructed in accordance with one preferred aspect of this invention. That apparatus  20  basically comprises a rigid outer container  22  holding a large, flexible package, sack or bag  10  containing a liquid or liquid like material  12  ( FIG. 2 ), e.g., crushed tomatoes and their juice, and an inflatable, void-filling device  24 , e.g., a chamber. The inflatable device  24  serves to fill up the void left within the outer container  22  after the flexible package  10  has been filled, sealed and disposed within the outer container and the outer container closed or sealed. Thus, in this regard the inflatable chamber serves as a substitute for prior art means, e.g., chips, cellular plastic, cardboard, foam-in-place, foam rubber etc., for filling the head-space within the container. However, unlike the prior art, and as will be discussed in detail later, the inflatable chamber  24  of this invention also serves to automatically expand in volume to take up any additional void that may be created within the outer container, such as could occur during transportation of the filled container, due to settling or shifting of the liquid or liquid-like material within the flexible package. Such settling/shift can occur in various ways. For example, the liquid within the flexible package may flow into any unfilled areas within the container, e.g., slight folds, creases, etc., that were not completely filled with the liquid when the flexible package was initially filled and sealed.  
      In the exemplary embodiments shown in  FIGS. 1 and 1 A, the exemplary rigid outer container  22  shown basically comprises a fifty-five (55) gallon drum. The drum is of generally conventional construction, e.g., it may be formed of metal or a plastic material, except that it includes a port  26  (to be described later) enabling the filling of the inflatable chamber  24  with a compressed gas, e.g., compressed air, after the outer container is closed or sealed (as will be described later).  
      The outer container or drum  22  includes a cylindrically side-wall  28 , which is reinforced with peripheral ridges  30 , a bottom wall  32  ( FIG. 2 ) which is fixedly secured to the lower edge of the side-wall  28 , and a generally planar removable lid or cover  34 . The lid includes an annular peripheral edge  36  which is arranged to snap-fit about the periphery of the top edge of the side-wall  28  to establish an enclosed hollow interior  38  within the drum. It is in this hollow interior space  38  that the filled flexible package  10  is to be located.  
      The flexible package  10  can be made of any suitable flexible packaging material(s), e.g., a plastic film in one or more layers or plies, that is commonly used for holding large volumes of liquids or liquid-like materials in a rigid, outer container. In order to fill the flexible package, a filling port  10 A is typically provided at the top  10 B of the package, which top portion is commonly folded over itself after the package is filled, as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  
      While the embodiments of the rigid outer container  22  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 1 A are drums, it must be pointed out that such a construction is merely exemplary of various types of outer rigid containers that can be used within the teachings and spirit of this invention. Thus, the outer container can be a bin, carton, tub, etc. In fact, in  FIGS. 4, 4A ,  5  and  6  the outer containers are shown as being in the shape of a parallelepiped bin.  
      As should be appreciated by those skilled in the art the flexible package or bag  10  used with the container  22  can also be of any suitable shape, e.g., drum or cylindrically shaped, parallelepiped shaped, etc., depending largely upon the shape of the hollow interior of the container  22 . Being of a rigid, tough and hence self-supporting material, the outer container serves to support and protect the filled flexible package or bag  10  during transportation.  
      As best seen in  FIG. 2  the inflatable device or chamber  24  is arranged to be located in the head-space or void  38 A in the upper portion of the interior space  38  between the outer container&#39;s lid  18  and the top portion  10 B of the flexible container or bag  10 , in order to ensure that the flexible container is not damaged by the dynamic forces created as the liquid contents  12  tend to shift or slosh about during transportation.  
      The inflatable device or chamber  24  basically comprises a hollow inflatable bladder  40 , an inlet port  42  and a valve (not shown) located with the port  42 . The bladder  40  formed of a flexible material, and has a top wall  40 A, a peripheral side wall  40 B and a bottom wall  40 C. The bladder is arranged to be filled with a compressed gas, e.g., air, so that the bladder fills to take up the void or head-space  38 A within the outer container  22 . The material making up the bladder may be resilient, i.e., stretchable, or may be non-stretchable (as will be described later). If the bladder is formed of a stretchable material, e.g., a rubber or rubber like compound, the un-stretched volumetric capacity of the bladder is preferably of a size approximately equal to the anticipated volume of the void or head-space  38 A in the container  22 . However, such a construction arrangement is not critical, e.g., the un-stretched volumetric capacity of the bladder can be less than the anticipated volume of the head-space  38 A, since the material of the bladder, being resilient, is able to stretch to take up a greater volume of head-space.  
      The valve within the port  42  of the inflatable device  24  may be of any suitable construction to enable a compressed gas  46 , e.g., compressed air, to be introduced through the port  42  and the valve into the hollow interior of the bladder  40  to cause the bladder to expand to fill the head-space  28 A. The flow of the compressed gas into the bladder  40  is represented by the arrows in  FIG. 2 . The valve is constructed so that it closes after the compressed gas has been introduced into the interior of the bladder to preclude that gas  46  from escaping to the ambient atmosphere. In the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2  the inlet port  42  with the valve therein is located on the sidewall  40 B of the bladder  40 . In order to provide access to the inlet port  42  of the inflatable device  24 , the outer container, e.g., the drum  22 , includes the heretofore identified port  26 , through which the port  42  of inflatable device  24  extends, as best seen in  FIGS. 2 and 3 .  
      The pressure of the gas  46  introduced within the bladder  40  is chosen to be sufficiently high to enable it to expand the bladder automatically in the event that the volumetric capacity of the head-space  38 A increases after the container  22  is sealed with the filled package  10  therein. As mentioned earlier such action may occur as some previously unfilled voids, e.g., creases, in the flexible package  10  become filled, whereupon the settling of the contents  12  within the package  10  will result in an increased volume head-space. Since the bladder  40  automatically expands by the expansion of the compressed gas therein to take up this increased volume, there will be no need to open the container  22 , e.g., remove the lid  34 , to fill the container with more filler or topping as has characterized the prior art. This feature results in a considerable savings in man-power and costs for transporting the liquid materials, and without increasing the risk of damage to the flexible package which would result if the increased volume head-space was not filled.  
      If the bladder  40  is formed of a non-resilient material, its volumetric capacity should be chosen to be at least as large as the volumetric capacity of the maximum head-space  38 A that could occur in the container  22 , i.e., the bladder is chosen to be over-size. Thus, when the over-size bladder  40  is initially filled with the compressed gas  46 , the bladder will take up the volume of the then existing head-space  38 A in the container  22 , with portions of the bladder&#39;s wall folded and/or creased, since the full capacity of the over-size bladder is larger than the volume needed to initially fill the head-space  38 A. In the event that the head-space  38 A increases in volume after the initial filling of the bladder and the sealing of the container  22 , the volume taken up by the bladder  40  will automatically increase in size as a result of the expanding compressed gas  46  entering into the folded and/or creased portions of the bladder&#39;s walls. This expanding volume of the bladder automatically occurs without any portion of the walls of the bladder stretching.  
      In  FIG. 1A  there is shown an alternative embodiment  20 ′ of the apparatus shown in  FIG. 1 . The apparatus  20 ′ is basically of the same construction as apparatus  20 , except that the port  42  of the inflatable device  24 ′ is located on the top wall  40 A of the bladder  40 . Thus, in the interest of brevity the common components of the embodiments  20  and  20 ′ will be given the same reference numbers and the details of the construction and operation of such components will not be reiterated. In the apparatus  20 ′, the port. 26  in the outer container or drum  22 ′ is located in the lid  32 .  
      After shipment of the apparatus  20  or  20 ′, i.e., container  22  or  22 ′ with the filled package  10  and the device  24  or  24 ′ located therein has been completed and the contents of the package  10  are to be removed, all that is required is to deflate the expanded bladder  40 , e.g., by operating the valve in the port  42  to allow the gas  46  within the bladder to vent out through the port  42  to the ambient atmosphere. The bladder can then be removed, thereby exposing the filled flexible package  10 . The deflation of the bladder can be accomplished either before or after the container&#39;s lid  34  has been removed. In fact, it is contemplated that the bladder can be removed from the interior of the container  22  while still in its inflated condition, if such action is desired.  
      It should be pointed out at this juncture that the lid  34  of the container  22  can be modified or constructed so that the inflatable chamber  24  forms an integral portion thereof, as opposed to being a separate components as is the case in the embodiments of the apparatus  20  and  120  of  FIGS. 1 and 1 A, respectively.  
      In  FIGS. 4, 4A ,  5  and  6  two alternative embodiments  120  and  120 ′ of the apparatus of this invention are shown. Such embodiments make use of a bin-type outer container  122  and  122 ′. Of those embodiments, the embodiment  120 , shown in  FIG. 4 , makes use of a separate inflatable device  124 , whereas the embodiment  120 ′, shown in  FIGS. 4A, 5  and  6 , is constructed so that the inflatable device  124 ′ for taking up the head-space within the outer container  122 ′ forms a portion of the lid (to be described later) of that container. In the interest of brevity the common components of the embodiments  120  and  120 ′ will be given the same reference numbers and the details of their construction and operation will not be reiterated. Moreover, both of those embodiments make use of inflatable devices,  124  and  124 ′, that are similar to the inflatable devices  24  and  24 ′ described above with respect to embodiments  20  and  20 ′, respectively, except that the bladders of the inflatable devices  124  and  124 ′ are of parallelepiped shape, i.e., include a generally square or rectangular side wall, whereas the bladders of the inflatable devices  24  and  24 ′ include a cylindrical side wall. Thus, in the interest of brevity the common components of the inflatable devices  24 / 24 ′ and  124  and  124 ′, respectively, will be given the same reference numbers and the details of their construction and operation will not be reiterated.  
      Turning now to  FIG. 4  it can be seen that the bin-type container  122  is of parallelepiped shape having four, planar, side wall sections  122 A,  122 B,  122 C and  122 D, a planar bottom wall  122 E and a planar lid or cover  122 F. The side wall, bottom wall and lid of the container may be formed of any suitable rigid material, e.g., plastic, metal, wood, cardboard, press-board, etc. The side wall sections  122 A,  122 B,  122 C and  122 D make up the peripheral side wall of the container  122  and are integral with the bottom wall  122 E to form a hollow parallelepiped shaped interior  138 . Each of the side wall sections and bottom wall section may be reinforced by one or more struts  122 G, while the corners of the interior where the various side wall sections merge together may also be reinforced by respective cleats  120 H. The lid  122 F is of square or rectangular profile to fit over and seal the top of the container  122 . The lid  122 F also may include at least one reinforcing strut  122 G.  
      Since the interior space  138  within the container  120  is of parallelepiped shape it is preferred that the shape of the flexible package correspond thereto. Thus, the embodiment of the apparatus  120  makes use of a parallelepiped shaped flexible package  110 . This package is constructed similar to the package  10 . Thus, in the interest of brevity, the common components of the flexible packages  10  and  110  will be given the same reference numbers and the details of their construction and operation will not be reiterated.  
      The bladder  40  of the inflatable device  124  is arranged to be located on the top of the filled flexible package  110  within the interior  138  of the container  122  to fill up the head-space or void  138 A. Since the port  42  with the valve therein extends outward from the peripheral side wall  40 B of the bladder, one of the side wall sections, e.g., section  122 B, of the container  120  includes a inlet port  126 , similar to ports  26  and  26 ′ described above, for receipt of the bladder&#39;s port  42 .  
      The apparatus  120  is operated in the same basic manner as described above. To that end, after the flexible package  110  is filled and sealed and located within the hollow interior  138  in the container  112 , the inflatable device  124  is placed on the top of the filled flexible package and its port  42  is extended through the port  26  in the container&#39;s side wall section  122 B. The lid  112 F of the container in then placed over the inflatable device and secured in place to the container&#39;s side walls. A compressed gas  46 , e.g., compressed air, is then introduced through the inlet port  42  and the associated valve into the interior of the bladder  40  to cause the bladder to expand to fill the head-space  138 A. The valve in the port  42  prevents the gas  46  within the bladder  40  from escaping to the ambient atmosphere. As discussed earlier, the pressure of the gas  46  introduced within the bladder  40  is chosen to be sufficiently high to enable it to expand the bladder automatically in the event that the volumetric capacity of the head-space  38 A increases after the container  122  is sealed with the filled package  110  therein.  
      If the bladder  40  of the apparatus  120  is formed of a non-resilient material, its volumetric capacity should be chosen to be at least as large as the volumetric capacity of the maximum head-space  138 A that could occur in the container  122 , i.e., the bladder is chosen to be over-size. Thus, when the over-size bladder  40  is initially filled with the compressed gas  46 , the bladder will take up the volume of the then existing head-space  138 A in the container  122 , with portions of the bladder&#39;s wall folded and/or creased, since the full capacity of the over-size bladder is larger than the volume needed to initially fill the head-space  138 A. In the event that the head-space  138 A increases in volume after the initial filling of the bladder and the sealing of the container  122 , the volume taken up by the bladder  40  will automatically increase in size as a result of the expanding compressed gas  46  entering into the folded and/or creased portions of the bladder&#39;s walls. This expanding volume of the bladder automatically occurs without any portion of the walls of the bladder stretching.  
      As mentioned above the embodiment  120 ′ includes the inflatable device  124 ′ built into the lid or cover of the outer container  122 ′. To that end it can be seen that the lid or cover  150  is similar in construction to the lid  122 F, except that it includes a downwardly extending peripheral wall or flange  152  forming a recess in which the bladder  40  is located and secured. The bladder is held in place within the recess by an adhesive layer  154  on the underside of the lid  150 . Other means to hold the bladder  40  in place are contemplated.  
      In the embodiment  120  the bladder  40  is constructed so that its inlet port  42  is located on the top wall of the bladder and extends through the port  126  of the lid or cover  150 . The bladder  40  is normally in its deflated condition, such as shown in  FIG. 4 .  
      Operation of the apparatus  120 ′ is similar to the operation of the apparatus  120 . In particular, after the flexible package  110  is located, filled and sealed within the interior  138  of the container  122 ′ the lid  150 , with its deflated bladder  40 , is then disposed within the space above the filled package so that its peripheral sidewall  152  tightly engages the interior surface of the side wall sections  122 A,  122 B,  122 C and  122 D contiguous with the top edge of those sections, thereby closing off the interior  138  of the container  122 . A compressed gas  46 , e.g., compressed air, is then introduced through the inlet port  42  and the associated valve into the interior of the bladder  40  to cause the bladder to expand to fill the head-space  138 A. The valve in the port  42  prevents the gas  46  within the bladder  40  from escaping to the ambient atmosphere.  
      Emptying of the contents of the containers  122  and  122 ′ is accomplished in a similar manner to that described earlier. To that end the bladders of the inflatable devices  124 / 124 ′ are deflated by operating the valve in the associated inlet port  42 , so that the compressed gas can exit out through the valve and port to the ambient atmosphere. The lid of the container can then be removed, thereby exposing the top of the filled flexible package  110 .  
      As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, apparatus can be readily constructed utilizing the teachings of this invention to enable the efficient and safe transport of liquid materials in large flexible packages. One can readily modify existing outer containers, be they drums, bins, etc., to make use of an inflatable device constructed in accordance with this invention. For example, the outer container of a conventional drum or bin can be modified to include an access port to the interior of the container and an inflatable device, like those described above or modifications of those, can then be used with the modified container. The inflatable device can thus be reused with other containers. Moreover, if the inflatable device is made a part of the lid or cover, it can also be used and reused with conventional and unmodified drums, bins or other containers. All of these arrangements provide a distinct economic advantage over the prior art.  
      Without further elaboration the foregoing will so fully illustrate my invention that others may, by applying current or future knowledge, adopt the same for use under various conditions of service.