Improvements in Metallic Cans or Cases for Storing Tobacco, Snuff, Food, and other substances.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 2nd June, 1898-Accepted, 20th Aug., 1898
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Metallic Cans or Cases for Storing Tobacco, Snuff,
Food, and other substances.
We, EMMA JANE HUTCHIN, Widow, of Alton Villa, Sandrock Road, Liscard,
and WILLIAM CONSTABLE, Gentleman, of The Beeches, Seabank Road, Liscard,
both in the County of Chester, as executors of George Hutchin, deceased, of Alton
Villa, Sandrock Road, Liscard aforesaid, and WILLIAM CONSTABLE aforesaid, on
my own behalf, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement:-
This invention relates to cans or cases for tobacco, snuff, paint, food etcetera,
which shall be airtight and which shall be provided with means for opening them
when it is required to get at the contents.
Hitherto the opening has been effected by making the top of the can of tagger
tin plate, and affixing to the under side of a loose cover a sharp pointed cutter,
which when pushed home perforated the tagger tin top, and by turning the cover
round cut it off. In order to prevent the loose cutter being pressed down acci-
dentally and the top of the box thereby punctured, a pad or packing had either
to be placed on the top of the can before the loose cover was put on, or the cutter
was made movable, care having to be taken that when the cover was put on, the
cutting point was turned away from the tagger top, or located beyond the margin
thereof. The disadvantages of these arrangements were in the one case, that the
pad or packing had to be removed before the top or case could be cut away, and
in the other, that in order to use it the cutter had to be moved into a position
where it would penetrate the tagger plate. The object of the present invention
is to render the use of a pad, or a cutter that is movable, unnecessary.
The present invention will be understood from the following description,
reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which,
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the can and cover separated;
Figure 2 a similar view of a slight modification.
Referring first to Figure 1, A is the body of the metallic can or case which
contains the tobacco or other material or substance. It is formed of a suitable
shape having its mouth closed by a tagger tin plate, tin foil or other top B that
can be punctured, soldered or otherwise secured thereto. Over this, an outer
loose fitting lid C is placed which can be rotated by hand when in place. The
can or case is filled by preference through an opening in the bottom, or this open-
ing may be elsewhere, and the opening closed by soldering a piece thereto.
Inside the outer loose fitting lid C is formed or attached a sharp pointed cutter or
blade D, this blade being a fixture and arranged vertically. It can be formed by
cutting out two sides of a triangle and bending the tongue thus formed downward
in a vertical direction. The tagger tin or other top B which closes the mouth of
the can is dished or concaved at E just a little deeper than the length of the
pointed blade D, the bottom of this dished portion or concavity being therefore
somewhat below the extremity of the blade. This dished or concave part will

page_text: therefore allow clearance for the blade, and enable the outer lid to be put on and
remain on the can, without its blade in any way injuring or cutting the sealed
lid, so long as the blade rests in the concavity. If however the outer or loose
lid C be rotated by hand, its blade will as soon as it clears the concavity com-
mence to cut through the tagger or other top, and by turning the loose lid a
complete revolution, will cut away the greater part of the tagger top and enable
the can to be opened. The lid however remains uncut at the concavity, thus
forming a hinge for the severed disc, on which it can be turned or folded back
to get at the contents of the can. It will be seen that this partly severed disc,
as well as the outer loose lid, form covers for protecting the contents of the can
after it has been opened.
Figure 2 shows a slight modification in which the can or case A has its mouth
closed the same as before by a tagger tin plate or other top B soldered or other-
wise secured thereto, and over which a loose lid C fits which can be rotated by
hand when in place. On the underside this outer lid is a pointed cutter or
blade D which is arranged not vertically as before, but horizontally, or in a
plane parallel with the tagger or other top B of the can. The cutter is a fixture.
The tagger or other top which closes the mouth of the can is dished or formed
with a circular trough F and the radius of this circular trough is somewhat less,
than the distance of the end of the blade D from the centre of the outer loose
lid C. In the edge of the circular trough at one point there is an embayment G
adapted to receive the point of the cutter D that is attached to the loose lid C.
This embayment therefore will allow clearance for the cutter D, and enable the
outer lid to be put on and remain on the can without this cutter in any way
injuring or cutting the sealed lid, so long as the cutter rests in the embayment G.
If however the outer lid be rotated by hand the cutter which is attached to this
outer lid will as soon as it clears the embayment cut through the tagger or other
top all round the vertical edge H except at the embayment where the top remains
uncut, thus forming a hinge for the partly severed disc.
In thus describing the invention we wish it to be understood that we do not
confine ourselves to the exact details described, as it is obvious that once given the
general idea alterations may be made without departing from the principle of
the invention; thus for example instead of using an outer loose lid to which the
cutter is attached, we may attach the cutter simply to a ring which can be rotated
by hand to cut open the can.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is: -
1. In metallic cans or cases for tobacco, snuff, paint, food and other substances
in which the tops of the cans are closed by tagger tin plate or other puncturable
tops, and provided with loose fitting covers rings or their equivalent, having on
the under side sharp pointed cutters or blades which will cut through the tagger
tin or other top by turning them round; preventing the pointed cutters acci-
dentally puncturing the tagger or other top by forming the tagger tin plate or
other tops of the cans with concavities or embayments, so arranged as to allow
clearance for the cutters and enable the loose lids or their equivalent to be put
on and remain on the cans, without the cutters in any way accidentally injuring
or cutting the sealed lids so long as the cutters rest in the embayments or con-
cavities, substantially as described.
2. In cans or cases for tobacco, snuff, paint, food and other substances having
their tops closed by tagger tin plates or the like and provided with loose fitting
rotatable covers or their equivalent, providing said covers or their equivalent on
the under side with fixed pointed cutters, and in forming the tagger tin plate tops
with embayments or concavities deep enough to clear the pointed ends of the
cutters, substantially as and for the purpose described.
3. In cans or cases of the kind described for tobacco; snuff, paint, food, and

page_text: other substances, forming the cutters on the loose lids or their equivalent, by
cutting out of the material of such lids or their equivalent two sides of a triangle,
and bending down the pointed tongues thus formed so that they will project from
the underside and in the direction required substantially as set forth.
Dated this 1st day of June 1808
W. P. THOMPSON & Co.,
Of 6, Lord Street, Liverpool, Agents for the Applicants.