Patent Document

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/010,241, filed on Jun. 10, 2014, entitled CONTAINER LID, the entire disclosure of which is hereby explicitly incorporated by reference herein. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    The present disclosure relates to containers, and, more specifically, to disposable food containers and lid systems useable with the same. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Food containers, such as ice cream containers, may be used for bulk delivery of a food product from a manufacturer or distributor to a vendor or end user. For example, in the ice cream industry, ice cream is delivered to ice cream vendors in three gallon wound paper containers. At the upper end of each container is a metal strip which covers the lip of the bucket opening, and serves to maintain the shape and structural integrity of the paper container as ice cream is dispensed. Typically, these three gallon containers are provided with a paper lid which fits over the metal rim to seal the ice cream within the bucket during transportation and delivery. 
         [0004]    In some cases, the three gallon container capacity is sufficient for several days of demand for a particular product (e.g., a particular ice cream flavor). At the end of each day after initially opening the bucket, the paper lid may be replaced on the top of the bucket in order to maintain product freshness and prevent contamination. However, the paper lid delivered with the bucket may lose its shape after several uses. In some cases, a “night cover” made of plastic may be provided for overnight storage of a partially used ice cream container, rather than reusing the original paper cover. 
         [0005]    The metal rim on the upper lip of the container is typically formed as a metal strip which is folded over the lip, such that the strip mounts to the upper edge of the container with the edges of the metal strip facing downward. In one configuration, this metal strip extends around the circular periphery of the container lip (the container being generally cylindrical), with the ends of the metal strip overlapping one another. An example of this configuration is shown as container  22  in  FIG. 1  in association with other aspects of the present disclosure discussed below in the Detailed Description. While this configuration is suitable for maintaining the shape and integrity of the ice cream container, the overlapping ends of the metal strip may occasionally form a sharp edge or corner accessible to a worker scooping ice cream from the bucket. This sharp corner may pose a risk of scraping or cutting the hand or arm of the user as ice cream is scooped out of the container. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0006]    The present disclosure provides a container lid system compatible with traditional metal-rimmed paper ice cream containers which protects the user from interaction with any sharp metal edges or points. The lid system includes a protector strip disposed over the metal rim, which completely shields the user from contact with any sharp rim edges. A selectively removable and replaceable lid allows the containers to be shipped, opened and used while maintaining protection of with the rim. The lid may also serve as, or be provided with, a replaceable night cover compatible with the protected rim. Accordingly, the metal rim strip is never exposed to the user&#39;s hands or arms during use of the ice cream container, either during initial removal of the lid or when replacing and subsequently removing of the night cover. 
         [0007]    In one form thereof, the present disclosure provides a container lid system comprising: a container body defining an interior container volume with an access opening; a reinforcement strip fixed to the access opening, the reinforcement strip having an interior portion protruding at least partially into the container volume; a protector strip attached to the reinforcement strip and covering the interior portion of the reinforcement strip; a lid sized to be received over the access opening to substantially seal the interior container volume; and a tear-away strip removably affixed to the lid such that the lid is affixed to the protector strip when the tear-away strip is affixed to the lid, and the lid is removable from the protector strip when the tear-away strip is removed from the lid. 
         [0008]    In another form thereof, the present disclosure provides a container lid system comprising: a container with a container body defining an interior container volume with an access opening; a reinforcement strip fixed to the access opening, the reinforcement strip having an interior portion protruding at least partially into the container volume; a protector means for protecting a user of the container from the reinforcement strip; a lid means for substantially sealing the interior container volume; and a dislodging means for separating the protector means from the lid means, the dislodging means manipulable by a user of the container lid system to remove the lid means to access the interior container volume. 
         [0009]    In yet another form thereof, the present disclosure provides a method of manufacturing a container comprising: providing a container body defining an interior container volume with an access opening disposed at a boundary of the interior container volume; affixing a reinforcement strip to the access opening, such that an interior portion of the reinforcement strip protrudes at least partially into the container volume; attaching a protector strip to the reinforcement strip to cover the interior portion of the reinforcement strip, such that the interior portion is rendered inaccessible by a user when the protector strip is attached to the reinforcement strip; and providing a lid with a tear-away strip attached thereto, the tear-away strip removably affixed to the lid by a loop of thinned and/or perforated material corresponding to the boundary of the interior container volume. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    The above-mentioned and other features and advantages of this disclosure, and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and the invention itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of an embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective, exploded view of an ice cream container with a protector strip and removable lid in accordance with the present disclosure; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a perspective, exploded view of the ice cream container and lid system shown in  FIG. 1 , in which the protector strip is shown mounted to the upper container rim; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the ice cream container shown in  FIG. 1  with the lid system mounted thereto; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the ice cream container and lid system shown in  FIG. 3 , in which an exterior tear-away strip of the lid system is shown in the process of removal; 
           [0015]      FIG. 5  is a perspective, exploded view of the ice cream container and lid system of  FIG. 4 , in which the exterior tear-away strip is completely removed and the lid is removed; 
           [0016]      FIG. 6  is an elevation, cross-section view of the ice cream container rim and lid system of  FIG. 3 , taken along the line VI-VI of  FIG. 3 ; 
           [0017]      FIG. 6A  is an elevation, cross-section view of an alternative ice cream container rim and lid system similar to the ice cream container rim and lid system of  FIG. 6 ; 
           [0018]      FIG. 7  is another elevation, cross-section view of the container and lid system of  FIG. 6 , illustrating removal of the exterior tear-away strip and container lid; 
           [0019]      FIG. 7A  is another elevation, cross-section view of the container and lid system of  FIG. 6A , illustrating removal of the exterior tear-away strip and container lid; 
           [0020]      FIG. 8  is a perspective, exploded view of an ice cream container and lid system according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; 
           [0021]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the container and shipping lid shown in  FIG. 8 , with the shipping lid mounted to the container; 
           [0022]      FIG. 10  is a perspective view of the container and shipping lid of  FIG. 9 , in which a central portion of the shipping lid is in the process of being removed; 
           [0023]      FIG. 11  is a perspective view of the container and lid system of  FIG. 8 , in which the central portion of the shipping lid is removed and a night cover is being attached; 
           [0024]      FIG. 12  is a perspective view of the container and lid system shown in  FIG. 8 , with the night cover attached to the container; 
           [0025]      FIG. 13  is an elevation, cross-section view of the container rim and shipping lid shown in  FIG. 9 , taken along the line XIII-XIII; 
           [0026]      FIG. 14  is another elevation, cross-section view of the rim and shipping lid shown in  FIG. 13 , together with the night cover of  FIG. 11 ; and 
           [0027]      FIG. 15  is an elevation, cross-sectional view of the container rim and night cover shown in  FIG. 12 , taken along the line XV-XV. 
       
    
    
       [0028]    Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate exemplary embodiments of the invention and such exemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner. 
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0029]    The present disclosure provides a container lid system including a permanently mounted protector strip and a selectively removable cover which is compatible with the protector strip for transportation and/or storage of the container and contents. For purposes of the present disclosure, “permanently mounted” does not indicate that the protector strip is non-removable from the container to which it is attached, but rather that the protector strip may be mounted to the container prior to delivery to the end user and may remain mounted throughout use by the end user without compromising the intended use and function of the container and lid system. 
         [0030]    Turning to  FIG. 1 , container and lid system  20  is illustrated in an exploded view, with ice cream container  22 , protector strip  24  and lid assembly  26  shown. Container  22  includes a substantially cylindrical container body  28  with a closed lower end and an open upper end defining access opening  30 . Container body  28  may be of a known configuration, e.g., a wound paper board construction of a type commonly used for containing food product P such as ice cream. Reinforcement strip  32  is attached at the circular upper rim of container body  28 , and is sized and shaped to maintain the circular shape and overall structural integrity of access opening  30 . In particular, reinforcement strip  32  is a folded piece of substantially rigid sheet metal with a length slightly longer than the circumference of access opening  30 , such that when mounted to container  22  as shown in  FIG. 1 , reinforcement strip  32  has overlapping ends  34 . As illustrated in  FIG. 6 , reinforcement strip  32  has a folded, generally “P-shaped” cross-section including a downwardly extending interior portion  36  disposed along the interior wall of container body  28 , and an exterior portion  38  which curls around an upper rim or lip  40  of container  22 . Thus rim  40  and exterior portion  38  of reinforcement strip  32  protrude radially outwardly beyond the outer (cylindrical) surface of body  28  of container  22 , as illustrated. 
         [0031]    Turning back to  FIG. 1 , protector strip  24  is formed as a length of plastic or other flexible, moldable and/or pliable material, such as a polymer material, and is sized to fit over reinforcement strip  32 , as shown in  FIG. 2 . The material and geometry of protector strip  24  is chosen such that the edges and corners of protector strip  24  are not sharp and pose no threat of puncture to the skin of users of container and lid system  20 , as further described below. Protector strip  24  defines a generally P-shaped cross-section (as shown in  FIG. 6 ) which corresponds to the P-shaped cross-section of reinforcement strip  32 . Accordingly, protector strip  24  includes interior portion  42  which extends downwardly from rim  40  of container  22  into the interior cavity of container  22 . Interior portion  42  is generally linear in cross-section, and extends downwardly past the corresponding end of interior portion  36  of reinforcement strip  32 . This downward extension ensures that a user of container and lid assembly  20  removing product P via access opening  30  is not exposed to interior portion  36  of reinforcement strip  32 , and therefore is protected from any sharp edges or corners thereof, such as sharp edges or corners at overlapping ends  34  ( FIG. 1 ). Retention nubs  39  protrude radially outwardly to interact with the lower end of reinforcement strip, as illustrated, in order to form a physical barrier to accidental removal of protector strip  24 , e.g., when withdrawing one&#39;s hand from opening  30 . Protector strip  24  may also be adhesively attached to reinforcement strip  32  and/or container body  28  to the same end. 
         [0032]    The linear profile of interior portion  42  gives way at its upper end to an outwardly curving arcuate exterior portion  44 , which curves radially outwardly around upper rim  40  and exterior portion  38  of reinforcement strip  32  as illustrated. In an exemplary embodiment, the overall length of reinforcement strip  32  is substantially equal to the circumference of upper rim  40 , such that the respective ends of protector strip  24  meet at junction  46  ( FIGS. 1 and 2 ) rather than forming overlapping ends as described above with respect to reinforcement strip  32 . 
         [0033]    Referring again to  FIG. 1 , container and lid assembly  20  further includes lid assembly  26  receivable upon protector strip  24  and over upper rim  40  of container  22  to enclose access opening  30 , thereby selectively sealing the interior volume of container  22  and product P contained therein. Lid assembly  26  includes lid  48  and exterior tear-away strip  50 . As will be described in further detail below, exterior tear-away strip  50  is attached to lid  48  upon initial manufacture of lid assembly  26 , and lid assembly  26  is affixed to container  22  (and, specifically, to protector strip  24 ) such that lid assembly  26  remains permanently affixed during transportation and distribution of container  22  and lid assembly  20 . Stated another way, lid assembly  26  serves as a shipping lid when tear-away strip  50  is attached to lid  48 , in that tear-away strip  50  prevents removal of lid  48  unless and until strip  50  is permanently removed therefrom. In this way, tear-away strip  50  serves as a tamper-evident construct, because access to product P is prevented until tear-away strip  50  is irreplaceably removed from lid assembly  26 . 
         [0034]    More specifically, as shown in  FIG. 6 , tear-away strip  50  includes a radially-inwardly extending protrusion  52  positioned such that physical interaction between protrusion  52  and rim  40  of container  22  (as well as exterior portions  38 ,  44  of reinforcement and protector strips  32  and  24 , respectively) poses a barrier to lifting lid  48  away from container  22 . Moreover, tear-away strip  50  is sized and shaped to ensure that lid  48  cannot be removed from container without removal, fracture or substantial plastic deformation of tear-away strip  50 . In this way, lid assembly  26  may be said to be “permanently” or “non-removably” affixed to container  22  as long as tear-away strip  50  remains in place. 
         [0035]      FIGS. 6A and 7A  illustrate an alternative embodiment of container  20 , shown as container  20 A. Container  20 A is similar to container  20  described above, and structures of container  20 A analogous to corresponding structures of container  20  are denoted with a common reference number, except with “A” appended to reference numbers of non-identical structures. Except as otherwise set forth below, the structures of container  20 A are identical or substantially unchanged from their counterparts in container  20 , and the features, functions and uses of container and lid assembly  20  also apply to container and lid assembly  20 A. 
         [0036]    Alternative lid  48 A and tear away strip  50 A adapted for compatibility with alternative container  22 A and reinforcement strip  32 A. As shown, container  22 A has an upper rim  40 A which lacks the “rolled” structure depicted in  FIGS. 6 and 7 . Instead, rim  40 A is simply a continuation of the cylindrical wall of container  22 A terminating at an upper end. Reinforcement strip  32 A defines a U-shaped, or “flattened-P” shaped structure which is folded over rim  40 A in a generally similar fashion to reinforcement strip  32  described above. Specifically, downwardly extending interior portion  36 A is disposed along the interior wall of container body  28 A, and an exterior portion  38 A curls around lip  40 A of container  22 A. Exterior portion  38 A of reinforcement strip  32 A protrudes radially outwardly beyond the outer (cylindrical) surface of body  28 A of container  22 A, as illustrated. In one embodiment, indentation  41 A may be formed in lower portion  36 A, e.g., at intervals around the periphery of rim  40 A, in order to affix reinforcement strip  32 A to container  22 A. Similar indentations may also be made in reinforcement strip  32  (not shown). The opposing end of exterior portion  38 A may further “pinch” the material of container wall  28 A for further augment the affixation of reinforcement strip  32 A to container  22 A. 
         [0037]    Protector strip  24 A is similarly formed to protector strip  24 , and includes interior portion  42 A extending below the bottom end of reinforcement strip  32 A and a curled exterior portion  44 A along its upper end as shown. 
         [0038]    Tear-away strip  50 A includes a radially-inwardly extending protrusion  52 A, similarly configured to protrusion  52  of tear-away strip  50 . Physical interaction between protrusion  52 A and exterior portions  38 A,  44 A of reinforcement and protector strips  32 A and  24 A, respectively, poses a barrier to lifting lid  48 A away from container  22 A. This barrier ensures that lid  48 A cannot be removed from container without removal or substantial deformation of tear-away strip  50 A, such that lid  48 A may be said to be “permanently” or “non-removably” affixed to container  22 A as long as tear-away strip  50 A remains in place. Tear-away strip  50 A is removable using the same principle as tear-away strip  50 , described in further detail below. 
         [0039]    Turning to  FIGS. 4 and 7 , removal of tear-away strip  50  from lid  48  is illustrated. Tab  54  may be grasped by a user of container and lid assembly  20 , and then pulled away from lid  48  as illustrated. A thinned and/or perforated boundary  56  between tear-away strip  50  and lid  48  guides and facilitates the point of separation of tear-away strip  50  from lid  48 . In particular, thinned and/or perforated boundary  56  is sized and shaped to allow separation of tear-away strip  50  from lid  48  “by hand,” i.e., without the use of tools or mechanical advantage, by a typical user of container and lid assembly  20  including adolescent and older people. 
         [0040]    The thinned and/or perforated boundary  56  forms a loop around the entire circumference of lid assembly  26 , such that continued pulling on tab  54  continues this separation until tear-away strip  50  is completely removed from lid  48  as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . Once completely removed, the physical impediment to removal of lid  48  posed by protrusion  52  is no longer present, and lid  48  becomes selectively removable and replaceable from access opening  30  by the user of container and lid assembly  20 . In this way, the removal of tear-away strip  50  from lid  48  transitions the lid from a tamper-evident “shipping lid” structure and function to a replaceable “night cover” structure and function. 
         [0041]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , tear-away strip  50  may be removed along direction D 1  (or any direction away from container  22 ) and discarded. Lid  48  may then be lifted away from container  22  and protector strip  24  along direction D 2 . In order to provide a “snap fit” functionality to lid  48 , an inwardly extending ridge  58  may be formed along an inner surface at a lower axial end of lid  48 . As best seen in  FIG. 7 , ridge  58  is positioned to abuttingly engage the adjacent exterior portion  44  of protector strip  24 . The material of lid  48  may be chosen to be flexible enough to deform during installation and removal of lid  48 , such that ridge  58  is allowed to deflect outwardly to clear exterior portion  44  and facilitate removal of lid  48 . 
         [0042]    In an exemplary embodiment, both lid  48  and tear-away strip  50  are made from a polymer material. In another exemplary embodiment, lid  48  may be formed from a paper material, and bonded to tear-away strip  50  by welding (e.g., ultrasonic welding) to tear-away strip  50 . In still another embodiment, tear-away strip  50  and lid  48  may both be formed from a paper material, with perforation and/or material thinning to facilitate removal of strip  50  from lid  48 . 
         [0043]    With tear-away strip  50  removed, lid  48  operates as a night cover as noted above, because lid  48  is selectively removable from and reattachable to upper rim  40  of container  22  via protector strip  24 . Advantageously, the design of  FIGS. 1-7  provides a shipping cover in the form of lid assembly  26  which can be converted to a night cover by removal of tear-away strip  50 . This modularity cooperates with the provision of protector strip  24 , described in detail above, to ensure that protector strip  24  can be installed upon manufacture and/or filling of container  22 , and need never be removed by the vendor or end user from the underlying reinforcement strip  32 . Thus, the user of container and lid assembly  20  need never see or otherwise interact with any sharp metal edges which may be present on reinforcement strip  32 . Moreover, this arrangement allows for the use of an industry standard design of container  22  (i.e., a wound paper material with a metal reinforcement strip  32 ), which offer significant economies of scale, while also protecting users from any sharp edges that may be present on reinforcement strip  32 . 
         [0044]    Turning now to  FIGS. 8-15 , an alternative container and lid assembly  120  is illustrated. Assembly  120  is similar to assembly  20  described above, and structures of assembly  120  analogous to corresponding structures of assembly  20  are denoted with a common reference number, except with 100 added to reference numbers of non-identical structures. The features, functions and uses of container and lid assembly  20  also apply to container and lid assembly  120 , except as otherwise noted. For example, lid assembly  126  and its relation to lid  148  differs from lid assembly  26  and lid  48 , as described in detail below. 
         [0045]    Lid assembly  126  includes protector strip  124  having interior portion  142  and exterior portion  144  which cooperate to cover and protect reinforcement strip  32 , in similar fashion to protector strip  24  described in detail above. Moreover, lid assembly  126  is received upon and interfaces with container  22  in a substantially identical fashion as lid assembly  26  described above. However, lid assembly  126  further includes a central portion or inset  170  which is removably affixed to interior portion  142  of protector strip  124  by a thinned or perforated boundary loop  156  of material, as best seen in  FIG. 13 . 
         [0046]    When inset  170  is so affixed to protector strip  124  ( FIG. 9 ), and protector strip  124  is affixed to the upper peripheral end of container body  28 , lid assembly  126  serves as a shipping lid. That is, inset  170  seals access opening  30  from outside contaminants and user access, creating a sealed interior cavity to protect product P contained therein. Similar to assembly  20  described above, thinned boundary  156  connects interior tear-away strip  150 , to protector strip  124 . In the present embodiment, tear-away strip  150  is not a separate component from inset  170 , but rather constitutes the outer peripheral portion of inset  170 . However, it is also contemplated that tear-away strip  150  may be formed as a separate strip of material which dislodges from both inset  170  and protector strip  124 , as required or desired for a particular application. 
         [0047]    Similar to tear-away strip  50  described above, interior tear-away strip  150  provides a tamper-evident seal for the interior cavity of container  22 , in that access to product P requires destruction of the thinned boundary loop  156  via the tearing away of interior tear-away strip  150 . 
         [0048]    To remove inset  170 , a user may grasp tab  154  and pull away tear-away strip  150 , carrying inset  170  with it, as illustrated in  FIG. 10 . When the entire thinned or perforated boundary loop  156  has been torn, inset  170  becomes dislodged from protector strip  124 , as shown in  FIG. 11 , and may be removed along direction D 3  (or any suitable direction) and discarded. At this point, access opening  30  is exposed and product P may be dispensed by a user of container and lid assembly  120 . 
         [0049]    If it is desired to reseal access opening  30 , a separate night cover  148  may be provided which is sized and shaped to fit over protector strip  24  and rim  40  of container body  28  in similar fashion to lid  48  described in detail above. Specifically, night cover  148  may be advanced downwardly along direction D 4  ( FIGS. 11 and 14 ) so that inwardly extending ridge  58  forms a “snap fit” over exterior portion  44  of protector strip  124  in similar fashion to ridge  58  of lid  48  described in detail above. With night cover  148  securely fastened to container  22 , as shown in  FIGS. 12 and 15 , the interior cavity of container  22  is resealed and any remaining product P contained therein is protected from contamination and user access until night cover  148  is again removed. 
         [0050]    Advantageously, container and lid assembly  120  provides the removable inset  170  with less overall material than container and lid assembly  20 , which necessarily includes lid  48 . Container and lid assembly  120  may therefore selectively exclude night cover  148 , such as for users who anticipate or expect to use the entire contents of container  22  without needing to reseal access opening  30  (e.g., for overnight storage of left over product P). Thus, the user of cover and lid assembly  120  is presented with a potential savings as compared to container and lid assembly  20 , because the user has the option to use or avoid night cover  148  according to his or her discretion. 
         [0051]    While this invention has been described as having an exemplary design, the present invention can be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of the appended claims.

Technology Category: 7