Dispenser-applicator device for disposable drinking cup lid elements

Abstract

 Dispenser-applicator device for disposable drinking cup lid elements, comprising the combination of:

a) a dispenser device with magazine (10) arranged to hold an ordered pile of lid elements (11);

b) a device to pick up and apply the lid elements (12) capable of co-operating with said dispenser device to pick up said lid elements from said ordered pile one at a time and force fit them onto the inside of the top of truncated con-shaped disposable drinking cups.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a dispenser-applicator device for lid elements for disposable drinking cups.

[0002] It is known that in premises serving drinks in disposable drinking cups, for example made of paper or plastic, it is usual to apply a lid element to the filled cup, said lid element usually being provided with a central hole through which to pass a drinking straw.

[0003] In a typical business such as a "fast food" shop or the like, the customers are usually served with hundreds of filled cups, and the operator is forced to apply the lid elements, usually in the form of a "cap", manually.

[0004] A dispenser-applicator device for lid elements for disposable drinking cups is known from document WO 95/03972 to Continental Cup Company Pty., Ltd., published on 9 February 1995, entitled "Apparatus for fitting a lid to a container". This document foresees the use of lid elements provided with tongues that engage with an applicator device, which is provided with means for engaging the tongues and with a suction cup. The system described in this document involves high manufacturing costs for the lid elements due to the presence of the tongues, and somewhat unsatisfactory connection of the single lid elements on the applicator device due to the need to use the suction cup.

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a device to pick up and apply lid elements for disposable drinking cups that is easy to use, reduces the amount of labour required, and renders the operation of applying the lid element on the filled cup faster.

[0006] According to the present invention a device of the type mentioned above is provided, having the characteristics indicated in the characterising portion of the claims.

[0007] The present invention will now be described with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, and with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

figure 1 shows an elevation view, partially in section and partially cut away, of the device according to the present invention:

figures 2 and 2A show a section view of the device according to the present invention on insertion of the lid element, and an enlarged section view of a detail thereof, respectfully;

figure 3 shows a partial plan view of the pick-up part of the dispenser-applicator device;

figure 4 shows a section view along plane IV-IV of figure 3;

figure 5 shows a partial section view of the insertion element of the dispenser-applicator device; and

figures 6 and 7 show, respectively, a section view and a plan view of a typical drinking cup and of a lid element according to the present invention.

[0008] With reference to figure 1, the dispenser-applicator device comprises two basic elements; a dispenser device and magazine indicated as a whole in 10, which houses a pile of lid elements 11, and a pick-up and applicator device for the lid elements, indicated as a whole in 12.

[0009] The dispenser device and magazine 10 comprises a base 13, to which are fixed a plurality of column elements 14, 15, 16 and 17, arranged to retain a plurality of lid elements 11 piled one on top of the other, and forming a guide for a crown portion 18 of the pick-up and applicator device 12, which will be illustrated in greater detail hereafter.

[0010] The pick-up and applicator device basically comprises the above mentioned crown element 18, a plate element 19 integral with a shaft 20, on the upper end of which is fixed a knob 21. A sleeve element 22 is slidingly mounted on the shaft 20. As will be seen from the following, the crown element 18 is provided with means, not shown in figure 1, to grip the lid elements 11 one at a time by applying pressure in the direction of the arrows F1, while the plate element 19 provides for insertion of the lid elements 11 when, after knob 21 has been pressed in the direction of the arrown F2, the plate 19 inserts the lid element 11 onto the cup.

[0011] Before proceeding with the description and with reference to figures 6 and 7, an illustration will be given, respectively, of a typical disposable drinking cup with which the device according to the present invention is destined to co-operate, and of a typical lid element to be inserted in the cup.

[0012] As can be seen from figure 6, a typical drinking cup, for example made of paper, comprises a body 30 substantially shaped like a truncated cone, provided with an overturned lip 31, and a raised band 32 essentially formed by a convex rib curving outward from the body 30 and which in practice defines a cavity in which to house and retain a lid element of circular shape indicated with 33 in figure 7. Sizing of the diameter of the lid element 33, and the geometry of the raised band 32 are such that the lid element 33 can be inserted into position by means of a limited pre-set pressure so that the combined elasticity of both the cup element 30 and the lid element 33 co-operate to hold the lid element 33 in position once it has been inserted.

[0013] The lid 33 is provided, in a substantially central position, with a cut 34 having a tongue 35 that is not completely cut, so that the cut portion may be pushed inwards into the filled cup in order to allow the passage of a conventional drinking straw (not shown).

[0014] On examining figures 1, 2 and 2a together it can be seen that the crown element 18 is provided with a stepped portion 40, arranged to house the plate element 18 in a position reaching to the dotted line 41, at a distance from the edge 42 of the crown element 18 slightly less than that of the thickness of the lid elements 33. In this way, when the crown element 18 with the plate element 19 is housed within it, a space 43 is formed corresponding with slightly less than the thickness of one of the lid elements 33. The arrangement is such that when the elements 18 and 19 are in the position indicated in figure 1, and pressure is exerted in the direction of the arrows F1, pick-up takes place by a combined mechanical action of elasticity and plastic deformation of the elements 33, so that only one of them is captured, that is to say the one on the top of the pile of lid elements 11. In this way, when the pick-up and applicator group 12 is lifted using the handle 22, one and only one of the lid elements 33 is also lifted up from the relative pile.

[0015] Once the pick-up and applicator device bearing with it one lid element 33 has been lifted from the magazine device 12, it will carry one lid device 33 with it. At this point, the device 12 is applied to the mouth of the drinking cup 30. The overturned lip 31 of the cup 30 will rest against a step 44 of the cup element 30 (see figure 2a) . At this point, pressure brought to bear in the direction of the arrow F2 on the knob 21, will cause the rod 20 to slide inside the handle 22, so that the plate 19 will detach the lid element 33 from the hollow 40, and will bring it into forced contact with the raised band 32 in the cup 30. In this way, the lid element 30 is force fitted into the raised band or rib 32 of the cup, remaining locked in position due to the effect of the elasticity of the materials.

[0016] At this point the operator holding the filled cup on which the lid element 33 has been applied can use the straw to deform the tongue 35, in order to insert the drinking straw (not shown).

[0017] It should be noted that the double movement of the handle element 22 and the knob element 21 is of fundamental importance for operation of the device according to the present invention in order to perform in sequence the operation of capture and pick-up of one of the lid elements 33, and after that, by acting on knob 21, to insert the lid element by pressure into the rib 32 in the cup 30.

[0018] In figures 3, 4 and 5 the crown element 18 and the plate element 19 are shown in greater detail.

[0019] As can be seen, the crown element 18 is provided with four indentations 45, 46, 47, 48, destined to cooperate with the columns 14, 15, 16 and 17 in the magazine container in order to center and position the element 18 inside the structure indicated generally in 10 and to guide the vertical movement of the group 12 during the operation of capturing and picking-up one of the lid elements 33.

[0020] The inner part of the crown element 18 is provided with surfaces 48, 49, 50, 51 broken by slots 52, of which only one is indicated with a number in the drawing. These slots define an internal circumference, just a little smaller than the external circumference of the lid elements 33, and calculated in such a way that in cooperation with the elasticity and deformability of the material of which the lid elements 33 are formed, the lid elements 33 are held in a safe but non-permanent manner in the area now defined by the element 18. In the rest position, that is to say when the device 12 rests on the pile of elements 11, inside the area described above is positioned the plate element 19, which has an outer circumference smaller than that defined by areas 48, 49, 50, 51 in order to ensure relative movement between the border of element 19 and element 18 in order to allow free sliding after activation of knob 21 to perform the actual operation of positioning and force fitting the lid element 33 inside the rib 32 on the cup 30.

[0021] In a preferred embodiment, the cup 30 and the lid elements 33 are made of cardboard, treated if necessary, of the type normally used for the manufacture of containers for use with foodstuffs, as is well known from the state of the art.

[0022] The actual form of the areas 48, 49, 50, 51 can clearly be subject to variation, according to the type of material and the mechanical coefficients of said material, as will be clear to a person skilled in the art. Furthermore, the element 22 and the knob 21 are shown as elements sliding freely with respect to each other, the relative movements of which take place as a result of the manual operations of picking up and inserting the lid element 33 to be inserted in the cup 30. To ensure greater correctness in the sequence of operations, a spring may be provided, not shown in the figures, so as to guarantee in all cases that the operations of pick-up and application of the lid element 33 inside the cups 30 takes place in the correct sequence.

[0023] This spring may be advantageously positioned between the top end of the element 22 and the base of the knob 21, so as to encourage the element 22 and the knob 21 to move away from each other.

[0024] It should also be noted that the rib 32 in the upper portion of the cup 30 to hold the lid element 33 in a fixed fit, must be considered a precaution to ensure a positive mechanical blockage between the edge of the lid element 33 and the rib 32. Should positive mechanical blockage not be required, the rib 32 may be omitted and connection may take place by an interference fit between the edge of the element 33 and the conical inner surface of the cup.

Claims

1. Dispenser-applicator device for disposable drinking-cup lid elements, characterized by the fact that it comprises the combination of:

a) a dispenser device with magazine arranged to hold an ordered pile of lid elements;

b) a device to pick up and apply the lid elements capable of co-operating with said dispenser device to pick up said lid elements from said ordered pile one at a time and force fit them onto the inside of the top of truncated con-shaped disposable drinking cups.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterized by the fact that said dispenser device with magazine comprises a base having a plurality of equidistant columns arranged in a circle to house and retain in an ordered manner a pile of lid elements; the arrangement of said column elements co-operating with said pick-up and application device to act on slots corresponding to said solumns and formed on a crown portion of said pick-up device to ensure centered pick-up of the first lid element from the pile.

3. Device according to claims 1 and 2, characterized by the fact that said pick-up and application device comprises a crown element provided with a cavity of dimensions congruent to those of the external dimensions of said lid elements, and a coaxial plate inside said cavity, the arrangement being such that in the pick-up condition the space between said crown element and said plate has a depth smaller than or equal to the thickness of one of said lid elements, so that by means of a manual pressure action one lid element at a time is picked up from said pile.

4. Device according to claim 3, characterized by the fact that said plate is installed in a sliding manner with respect to said crown to move along a perpendicular axis for a limited distance in order to allow unblocking of the lid element captured by said crown and its force fitting into said conical upper portion of the cup.

5. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that said plate is installed integral with a shaft coaxial with the plate and the crown and terminating in a knob at the top; said shaft having in an intermediate setion between said crown and said knob with lost motion floating assembly.

6. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that between said knob and said handle a spring is arranged to work under compression, said spring being arranged in such a way as to encourage the top part of said handle and the bottom part of said knob to move away from each other.

7. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that said lid element is installed by interference fit on the conical inner surface of the drinking cup.

8. Device according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized by the fact that said drinking cups have at the top a hollow ribbing with the hollow toward the inside of the cup to ensure positive mechanical assembly inside the cup itself.

Drawing