TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] The present invention relates to a bottle for aseptic filling having a spout (mouth)
portion, a shoulder portion, a body portion and a bottom portion.
BACKGROUND ART
[0002] As a method of filling a plastic bottle with liquid, there is an aseptic (germfree)
filling method which fills a bottle with liquid under an aseptic condition. With this
aseptic filling method, it is possible to avoid exposure of the plastic bottle to
a high temperature. Thus, a plastic bottle filled by such aseptic filling method (to
be referred to as "aseptic filling bottle" hereinafter) can have low heat resistance,
and can be formed as a thin and lightweight bottle.
[0003] However, when a bottle is formed thin and lightweight, there arises a problem of
corresponding reduction in its strength. Thus, in a case where its inside is filled
with carbonated beverage for instance, rise of inner pressure occurs due to outgassing
of carbonate inside, which may cause reversal (buckling) of the bottom portion. With
occurrence of such buckling, the bottle can no longer stand on its own, thus making
its distribution impossible. To cope with problem, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application
No.
2012-140156 Publication Document (Patent Document 1) proposed a bottle that can suppress occurrence
of bottom portion buckling by provision, at the center of the bottom portion, of a
dome-shaped receded portion receded to the inner side.
BACKGROUND ART DOCUMENT
PATENT DOCUMENT
[0004] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application No.
2012-140156 Publication Document
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED BY INVENTION
[0005] A plastic bottle filled with contents may not only be stored at a room temperature
or in refrigeration, but also may be stored at an elevated temperature or stored under
refrigeration, with heating or freezing of its contents. However, in the case of such
heated storage or refrigerated storage, expansion occurs in the contents due to heating/refrigerating,
which can cause buckling of the bottom portion. Moreover, in the case of adoption
of such arrangement as proposed by Patent Document 1, there was another problem of
difficulty of weight reduction.
[0006] Therefore, there is a need for an aseptic filling bottle that can suppress buckling
of its bottom portion even at the time of heated storage or refrigerated storage.
SOLUTION
[0007] An aseptic filling bottle relating to the present invention, the aseptic filling
bottle including a spout portion, a shoulder portion, a body portion and a bottom
portion;
wherein the bottom portion includes a grounding portion to be placed in contact with
a surface on which the bottle is put, a central portion that projects to an inner
side of the bottle as its extends radially inwards from the grounding portion, a dome
portion which projects to more inner side of the bottle than the central portion,
and a receded groove portion that extends radially from the dome portion;
wherein a bottom inner side projection height of the central portion at a dome portion
side circumferential edge thereof is set greater than a half of a height from the
grounding portion to a border between the body portion and the bottom portion; and
wherein the receded groove portion, at a position corresponding to the radial center
position of the grounding portion, has a depth ranging from 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm.
[0008] Based on a finding made by the present inventors, by not forming the center of the
central portion alone in the form of a dome projecting to the bottle inner side, but
by configuring the central portion entirely, with keeping the dome shape at its center,
from the dome portion side circumferential edge to the grounding portion to project
to the bottle inner side as it extends to the radial inner side, the strength of the
bottle bottom portion can be further increased. According to a further finding made
by the present inventors, when the maximum projection height of the central portion,
namely, its projection height to the bottle inner side at the dome portion side circumferential
edge, is set greater than a half of the height of the bottom portion, the effect of
strength increase can be further enhanced.
[0009] In addition, with the above-described configuration, according to the arrangements
devised by the present inventors, i.e. the arrangement of forming the central portion
to project to the bottle inner side as it extends radially inwards from the grounding
portion and the further arrangement of setting the projection height to the bottle
inner side at the dome portion side circumferential edge greater than a half of the
height of the bottom portion (i.e. the height to the border between the body portion
and the bottom portion), the strength of the bottom portion can be enhanced effectively.
With this, the buckling of the bottom portion at the time of refrigerated storage
can be effectively suppressed.
[0010] Moreover, the receded groove portion formed radially from the central portion provides
further reinforcement of the bottom portion, and since the receded groove portion
has a depth ranging from 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm at a position corresponding to the radial
center position of the grounding portion, the strength of the bottom portion can be
even more enhanced. In addition, with this depth setting, buckling of the bottom portion
can be suppressed also even when the bottle is heated.
[0011] Next, preferred embodiments of the aseptic filling bottle relating to the present
invention will be explained. It is understood, however, that the range of the present
invention is not limited by the preferred embodiments described below.
[0012] According to one preferred embodiment, the central portion is formed arcuate.
[0013] With this arrangement, by forming arcuate the central portion to be projected to
the bottle inner side, compared with an arrangement of forming the central portion
linear from the grounding portion to the dome portion circumferential edge, pressure
applied to the central portion can be made uniform, so that the strength of the bottom
portion can be increased even more effectively. With this, the buckling of the bottom
portion at the time of refrigerated storage can be suppressed even more effectively.
[0014] According to a further preferred embodiment, the receded groove portion extends from
the dome portion to a circumferential edge on more radial outer side than the grounding
portion.
[0015] With this arrangement, as the receded groove portion for reinforcing the strength
of the bottom portion is caused to extend long from the dome portion to the circumferential
edge, the strength of the bottom portion can be even more increased.
[0016] According to a further preferred embodiment, in the body portion, there is formed
at least one receded rib which extends around a circumferential face of the body portion.
[0017] With the above-described arrangement, volumetric expansion of contents at the time
of refrigerated storage can be absorbed to a certain extent by the receded rib provided
in the body portion. Thus, the force applied to the appropriate portion due to the
volumetric expansion can be reduced, so that the buckling of the bottom portion at
the time of refrigerated storage can be suppressed effectively.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018]
- Fig. 1
- is a front view of an aseptic filling bottle,
- Fig. 2
- is a bottom view of a bottom portion of the aseptic filling bottle,
- Fig. 3
- shows a III-III section in Fig. 2, and
- Fig. 4
- shows a IV-IV section in Fig. 2.
MODES OF EMBODYING THE INVENTION
[0019] Embodiments of an aseptic filling bottle relating to the present invention will be
explained with reference to the drawings. An aseptic filling bottle 1 relating to
this embodiment includes a spout (mouth) portion 2, a shoulder portion 4, a body portion
5 and a bottom portion 6. The bottom portion 6 includes a grounding portion 10 that
comes into contact with a surface on which the bottle is put, a central portion 12
that progressively projects to the inner side of the bottle main body as it extends
from the grounding portion 10 to the center of the bottom portion 6, a dome portion
13 that projects more to the bottle inner side than the central portion 12, and a
receded groove portion 14 that extends radially from the dome portion 13. The central
portion 12 is configured such that a bottle inner side projection height D1 of this
central portion 12 at a dome portion side circumferential edge 12a thereof is set
greater than a half D2 of a height measured from the grounding portion 10 to the border
between the body portion 5 and the bottom portion 6. Moreover, the receded groove
portion 14, at a position corresponding to the radial center position of the grounding
portion 10, has a depth D3 ranging from 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm. With these arrangements,
buckling of the bottom portion at the time of refrigerated storage can be effectively
suppressed. Next, the aseptic filling bottle relating to this embodiment will be explained
in details.
[0020] The aseptic filling bottle 1 relating to this embodiment (to be referred to simply
as "bottle 1" hereinafter), as shown in Fig. 1, includes the spout portion 2 as a
spout or a mouse for dispensing liquid and a bottle main body portion 3 to be filled
with the liquid. The bottle main body portion 3 includes the shoulder portion 4, the
body portion 5 and the bottom portion 6. The shoulder portion 4 is a portion whose
diameter increases progressively toward a bottom face direction continuous with the
spout portion 2 and has a shape formed of combination of polygonal panels of various
shapes. The body portion 5 is a cylindrical portion continuous with the shoulder portion
4. The bottom portion 6 is a portion in the bottle main body portion 3, where the
circumferential face of the bottle main body portion 3 has its diameter progressively
decreasing toward the bottom face. Namely, in the instant embodiment, the position
of the border between the body portion 5 and the bottom portion 6 is a position in
the height direction where the diameter of the bottle main body portion 3 begins to
decrease toward the bottom face.
[0021] Here, the bottle 1 relating to the instant embodiment is a bottle for use in an aseptic
(germfree) filling method for filling liquid inside a bottle under an aseptic condition.
The aseptic filling method allows avoiding exposure of a plastic bottle to a high
temperature. So, the heat resistance performance of the bottle 1 can be low and this
bottle is formed as a thin and lightweight bottle. The bottle 1 can be molded integrally,
e.g. by the biaxial stretch blow molding method with using a thermoplastic resin such
as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, etc. as a principal material.
[0022] The bottle 1 relating to this embodiment, as will be described below, is configured
to withstand filled contents expansion when the filled (charged) liquid is frozen.
Thus, as contents to be filled in the bottle 1, e.g. non-carbonated beverage such
as mineral water, tea, soft drink, or juice, which may be stored under a refrigerated
state are particularly preferred. However, the bottle may be used suitably also with
a carbonated drink (beverage) or a food article such as sauce.
[0023] The body portion 5 is of a straight body type and in this body portion 5, there are
formed a plurality of receded ribs 7 that extend around its circumferential face.
Each receded rib 7 has a shape receded or concave to the inner side in the radial
direction (the direction toward a center axis X of the bottle 1 and along its horizontal
direction) and the width and the depth of each receded rib 7 are formed approximately
constant over the entire circumference. These receded ribs 7 function not only as
reinforcing ribs for reinforcing the lateral face strength of the bottle 1, but also
as portions extendible in the vertical upper direction of the bottle 1 for absorbing
possible volumetric expansion of the contents liquid at the time of refrigerated storage.
[0024] Incidentally, as such receded ribs 7, it will suffice to provide at least one at
any position of the body portion 5. Preferably, two or more such ribs 7 will be formed
in the body portion 5. More preferably, at least one will be formed at a lower part
of the body portion and a plurality will be formed at an upper part of the body portion.
Incidentally, if at least one is formed at the body portion lower part and the body
portion upper part respectively, this will allow smooth and easy extension in the
vertical upper direction of the bottle 1 for absorbing the volumetric expansion of
the contents liquid at the time of refrigerated storage. So, the bottle 1 can stand
straight on its own without tilting and also no deformation or break of the bottle
will occur, either. Further, as shown in Fig. 1, advantageously, the receded rib 7
may be formed to be receded/concave to the radially inner side and along the entire
circumference.
[0025] As shown in Figs. 1 through 4, the bottom portion 6 has an annular grounding portion
10 to be placed on (in contact with) a surface on which the bottle is put such as
a desk surface and includes also a circumferential edge portion 11 which is a portion
on the radially outer side of the grounding portion 10, a central portion 12 that
is a radially inner side portion relative to the grounding portion 10 and a dome portion
13 that is provided at the central portion 12 and that projects to more bottle inner
side than the central portion 12. The central portion 12 has such a shape that projects
to the inner side (the upper side in Fig. 1) of the bottle 1 as it extends to radially
inner side from the grounding portion 10 and is formed arcuate from the grounding
portion 10 to the dome portion 13. Further, as shown in Fig. 3, the central portion
12 is configured such that the bottle inner side projection height D1 of this central
portion 12 at the dome portion side circumferential edge 12a thereof is set greater
than the half D2 of the height measured from the grounding portion 10 to the border
6a between the body portion 5 and the bottom portion 6. Moreover, the dome portion
13 is provided in a trapezoidal shape as seen in its vertical section.
[0026] In the bottom portion 6, there are formed a plurality (eight in this embodiment)
of the receded groove portions 14 extending from the dome portion 13 to the circumferential
edge portion 11 equidistantly in a radial pattern. With these receded groove portions
14, the strength of the bottom portion 6 is increased. With the provision of these
receded groove portions 14, the circumferential edge portion 11 and the central portion
12 are divided into a plurality (eight in the present embodiment) in the circumferential
direction (the direction around the center axis X of the bottle 1). As shown in Fig.
4, an end portion 14a of each receded groove portion 14 on the side of the circumferential
edge portion 11 extends to the border 6a between the body portion 5 and the bottom
portion 6. Further, preferably, the receded groove portion 14 is configured such that
the receded groove portion 14, at a position corresponding to the radial center position
of the grounding portion 10, has the depth D3 ranging from 5.0 mm to 10.0 mm (6.6
mm in this embodiment). If it exceeds 10.0 mm, the depth will be excessive to invite
impairment of the outer appearance of the bottle 1 or to invite need for design change
of some other portion.
[0027] As described above, in the bottle 1, the arrangement of not only forming the dome
portion 13 at the center of the bottom portion 6, but also configuring the entire
central portion 12 from the dome portion 13 to the grounding portion 10 to project
to the bottle inner side as extending to the radially inner side, the arrangement
of setting the projection height at the dome portion side circumferential edge 13a
greater than the half of the height of the bottom portion 6, and the arrangement of
forming arcuate from the grounding portion 10 to the dome portion side circumferential
edge 13a together serve to effectively increase the strength of the bottom portion
6. Moreover, the strength of the bottom portion 6 is further increased by the receded
groove portions 14 that extend from the dome portion 13 to the circumferential edge
portion 11. With this, there is ensured strength sufficient to effectively suppress
buckling of the bottom portion 6 due to volumetric expansion of the contents at time
of refrigerated storage.
[0028] Table 1 below shows comparison of three-times tests of a conventional bottle and
the bottle 1 relating to the present embodiment. As shown, with the conventional bottle,
unlike the bottle 1 relating to the present embodiment, the depth of the portion corresponding
to the depth D3 shown in Fig. 3 (the depth at the position of the receded groove portion
14 corresponding to the radial center of the grounding portion 10) is below 5 mm.
[Table 1]
|
Embodiment |
Conventional |
filling amount (ml) |
650 |
490 |
N=1 |
Pass |
Pass |
N=2 |
Pass |
Failure |
N=3 |
Pass |
Failure |
- Pass:
- The bottle stands stably after refrigeration.
- Failure:
- The bottle does not stand stably after refrigeration.
[0029] As can be seen from Table 1, the bottle 1 relating to the present embodiment is more
stable in the case of the large-volume bottle having a filling amount of 650 ml, this
means the suppression of buckling of the bottom portion 6. In this way, it may be
understood that with the bottle 1 relating to the present embodiment, strength sufficient
to suppress the buckling of the bottom portion 6 due to volumetric expansion of the
contents at time of refrigerated storage (and also heated storage) is ensured.
[Other Embodiments]
[0030] Lastly, other embodiments of the aseptic filling bottle relating to the present invention
will be explained. Incidentally, the arrangements/configurations disclosed in the
respective following embodiments can be used in any combination with the arrangements/configurations
disclosed in the other embodiments unless no contradiction occurs resulting therefrom.
- (1) In the foregoing embodiment, there was explained an example in which the body
portion 5 is configured as a straight body type. However, the present invention is
not limited thereto. For instance, the body portion 5 may be provided with a constricted
portion, in addition to the straight body portion.
- (2) In the foregoing embodiment, between the respective receded groove portions 14,
a receded small groove portion smaller than the receded groove portion 14 may be provided
additionally from the grounding portion 10 to the circumferential edge portion 11.
With this, the strength of the bottom portion can be further increased.
- (3) Further, regarding the other arrangements/configurations too, it is understood
that the embodiments disclosed in this detailed disclosure are only illustrative in
all respects thereof, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.
One skilled in the art could easily understand that appropriate modifications will
be possible within the scope not departing from the spirit of the invention. Therefore,
it is as a matter of course that other embodiments with such modifications not departing
form the spirit of the invention are also included in the scope of the present invention.
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
[0031] The present invention is applicable to e.g. a plastic bottle filled with contents
liquid by an aseptic filling method.
DESCRIPTION OF SIGNS
[0032]
1: aseptic filling bottle
2: spout portion
4: shoulder portion
5: body portion
6: bottom portion
7: receded rib
10: grounding portion
11: circumferential edge
12: central portion
13: dome portion
14: receded groove portion
D1: projection height of central portion at dome portion side circumferential edge
to bottle inner side
D2: a half of height from grounding portion to border between body portion and bottom
portion
D3: height at position in receded groove portion corresponding to radial center of
grounding portion