(19) |
|
|
(11) |
EP 2 161 206 B1 |
(12) |
EUROPEAN PATENT SPECIFICATION |
(45) |
Mention of the grant of the patent: |
|
07.09.2011 Bulletin 2011/36 |
(22) |
Date of filing: 26.05.2009 |
|
(51) |
International Patent Classification (IPC):
|
|
(54) |
Dome top for metal containers allowing closure with a crown cap
Kuppelaufsatz für Metallbehälter, der ein Verschließen mit einem Kronkorken zulässt
Calotte de dôme pour récipients métalliques permettant une fermeture avec une capsule
|
(84) |
Designated Contracting States: |
|
AT BE BG CH CY CZ DE DK EE ES FI FR GB GR HR HU IE IS IT LI LT LU LV MC MK MT NL NO
PL PT RO SE SI SK TR |
(30) |
Priority: |
05.09.2008 IT MI20080280 U
|
(43) |
Date of publication of application: |
|
10.03.2010 Bulletin 2010/10 |
(73) |
Proprietor: Cabagaglio Packaging s.r.l. |
|
23900 Lecco (IT) |
|
(72) |
Inventor: |
|
- Tizzoni, Lorenzo
23900 Lecco (IT)
|
(74) |
Representative: Petruzziello, Aldo et al |
|
Racheli S.R.L.
Viale San Michele del Carso, 4 20144 Milano 20144 Milano (IT) |
(56) |
References cited: :
GB-A- 463 950 US-A- 4 313 545
|
GB-A- 488 427
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Note: Within nine months from the publication of the mention of the grant of the European
patent, any person may give notice to the European Patent Office of opposition to
the European patent
granted. Notice of opposition shall be filed in a written reasoned statement. It shall
not be deemed to
have been filed until the opposition fee has been paid. (Art. 99(1) European Patent
Convention).
|
DESCRIPTION
[0001] The present invention refers to an element defined herein as a 'dome-shaped' for
use as the upper body in the production of metal containers with two or more parts
provided with a crown cap.
[0002] Metal containers formed by two or more parts for packaging of liquids and semi-liquids,
including foodstuffs, are increasingly widely available on the market. They are an
improvement over glass containers in that they avoid damage due to the fragility of
the material and allow considerable savings on transport and packaging thanks to their
light weight.
[0003] Metal containers for packaging of olive oil formed by a plurality of parts the upper
body of which comprises a threaded area so as to accept screw-on closure caps are
known to the art. These metal containers with screw-on caps must be provided with
safety devices against tampering with the cap. It is therefore necessary to provide
on the upper body a groove suitable to accommodate the safety anchoring. This requires
the upper body to be constructed in successive steps on a progressive series of dies
and thus a long manufacturing operation. Furthermore, production of the upper parts
comprising threaded areas requires a manufacturing process in a plurality of steps
resulting in a greater amount of time taken.
[0004] GB 488427 (A) discloses a dome-shaped member constituting the upper body for metal containers
with two or more parts comprising a circular base, a tubular neck tapering outwards
toward said base, a mouth and an area situated above the neck wherein the area comprises
a peripheral annular ridge in the shape of a ring situated beneath the mouth adapted
to interconnect with a crown cap, said member being obtained by drawing a metal disc
cut from a sheet of tinplate material and subsequent pressing.
[0005] US 4313545 (A) discloses a metallic pressure vessel or container, made of a thin aluminum or aluminum
alloy sheet coated with a resin suitably, used for a small size beer container. The
vessel is composed of (a) a main body member of bottomed cylindrical form, and (b)
a lid member, for covering the former body, which is made into an inverted bowl shape,
with a mouth portion integrally formed for being crowned thereon, and provided with
a plurality of small wave like patterns consisting of continuous and smooth hills
and valleys. Those two parts are generally made by multiple deep-drawing processes
and joined together by the double seaming method.
[0006] GB 463950 (A) discloses a bottle of metal wherein the neck for crown cap is turned inwardly at
the mouth to provide a sealing surface 10 and is provided externally with an annular
groove 14 affording a shoulder having a sloping undersurface beneath which shoulder
the projections on a crown seal are adapted to engage, the interior surfaces of the
bottle being protected by a coating extending into the seamed joints connecting the
parts.
[0007] Object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the prior art relating
to metal containers formed by multiple parts by providing a practical versatile and
cheap upper body that is able at the same time to ensure a good closure.
[0008] These objects are achieved according to the invention with the characteristics listed
in appended independent claim 1.
[0009] Advantageous embodiments of the present invention are apparent from the dependent
claims.
[0010] The upper member (or dome-shaped member) for multiple-part metal containers according
to the invention comprises a circular base, a tapered and tubular neck enlarging towards
said base, a mouth and an area situated above the neck in a distal position with respect
to the circular base, which comprises a ring-shaped end suitable to couple with a
crown cap closure and to retain said cap after pressure has been exerted, said ring
being positioned beneath the mouth.
[0011] Further characteristics of the invention will be made clearer by the detailed description
that follows referring to a purely exemplifying and therefore non limiting embodiment
thereof, illustrated in the appended drawings, wherein:
Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an upper member (dome top) according to the
invention in which one part has been partially sectioned;
Figure 1a is an enlargement of the detail circled in Figure 1;
Figure 2 is an exploded view of a multiple part container in which a crown cap, the
dome-shaped upper member of Figure 1, and a central body can be identified before
assembly.
Figure 3 is an assembled view of the container of Figure 2.
[0012] With reference to Figure 1, the dome-shaped member according to the invention, denoted
by reference numeral 1, comprises a tubular neck 2 which tapers outwards towards the
circular base 3, away from the mouth 7.
[0013] The circular base 3 consists of a ring 8 which integrates a flange 9 the outer rim
10 of which is curved outwardly downwards and partially bent towards the inside of
the dome top 1.
[0014] Above the neck 2 there is an area 4 which comprises a peripheral annular ridge 5
(ring) situated beneath the mouth 7. Beneath the ring 5 is a throat or recess 13.
[0015] The ring 5 protrudes outwards with respect to the throat 13 in a radial direction
with respect to the axis of the member 1 giving rise to an area 11
as shown in fig. 1a adapted for anchoring of the teeth of crown caps once closing pressure is exerted.
In this manner anchoring of the teeth of the crown cap to said ring 5, and thus to
the dome-shaped member 1, is ensured.
[0016] The upper rim 12 of the ring 5 is curved outwardly downwards and its free end bent
towards the inside of the dome 1.
[0017] The throat 13 is joined to the neck 2 by means of a truncated conical area 6.
[0018] A flange 9 of the circular base 3 is used for subsequent coupling of the dome top
1 to the other parts generally used to form metal containers as shown in Figure 2
and as will be better described hereunder.
[0019] The circular base 3 can be of various diameters according to the dimensions of the
other parts of the metal container. A preferred diameter is, for example, about 65
mm measured as the outside diameter of the ring 8 of said base.
[0020] The upper member 1 may be made of electrolytic tinplate, plain or lithographed. What
is meant by tinplate is a steel plate coated with a film of tin by means of an electrolytic
process.
[0021] Alternatively, the upper element can be made of another metal such as aluminium,
tin free steel, plain or possibly coated with paints or polymer films, such as, for
example, polyethylene films, polypropylene films, etc. These materials can also be
lithographed.
[0022] The upper member is preferably made of tinplate or tin free steel coated with polymer
films.
[0023] The upper member 1 is obtained by means of process which comprises the stage of forming
the neck by drawing a metal disc cut from a sheet of tinplate material, subsequent
pressing and rolling.
[0024] With reference to figure 2, the member 1, once formed, is then coupled with the central
body 14 and a bottom (not illustrated in the figure), and a crown cap 16 giving rise
to a multiple-part metal container as illustrated in Figure 3. The central body 14
may be a single piece integral with the bottom.
[0025] Coupling of the parts is carried out so as to form a container using methods known
to the art, for example, by mechanically clamping the rim 10 of the flange 9 of the
dome-shaped member 1 to the upper edge 15 of the central body 14 and/or by means of
welding etc.
[0026] The central body 14 and thus the relative bottom may be either cylindrical or of
different shapes. For example, the central body 14 can be parallelepiped in shape
with a quadrilateral outline preferably with equal sides. In this case a connection
will have to be provided between the circular base 3 and the central body 14.
[0027] Numerous changes and modifications of detail can be made to the present embodiments
of the invention without thereby departing from the scope of the invention as set
forth in the appended claims.
1. A dome-shaped member (1) constituting the upper body for metal containers with two
or more parts comprising a circular base (3), a tubular neck (2) tapering outwards
toward said base, a mouth (7) and an area (4) situated above the neck (2), the area
(4) comprising a peripheral annular ridge in the shape of a ring (5) situated beneath
the mouth (7) adapted to interconnect with a crown cap (16), said member (1) being
obtained by drawing a metal disc cut from a sheet of tinplate material or tin free
steel and subsequent pressing, characterized in that the member (1) is formed after drawing and pressing by subsequent rolling, in that beneath the annular ridge (5) there is provided a throat (13), the ring (5) protruding
outwards with respect to said throat (13) in a radial direction with respect to the
axis of the member (1), and in that said ring (5) has its upper rim (12) curved outwardly downwards and its free end
bent towards the inside of the dome-shaped member (1) and forming an area (11) as
shown in Figure 1a adapted for anchoring of the teeth of a crown cap.
2. A dome-shaped member according to claim 1, characterised in that said circular base (3) consists of a ring (8) which integrates a flange (9) the outer
rim (10) of which is curved outwardly downwards and partially bent towards the inside
of the dome-shaped member (1).
3. A dome-shaped member according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that said throat (13) is joined to the neck (2) by means of a truncated conical area (6).
4. A dome-shaped member according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said circular base (3) as a diameter of about 65 mm measured as the outside diameter
of the ring (8) of said base.
5. A dome-shaped member (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the tinplate is plain or lithographed; or the tin-free steel is plain or coated with
paints or polymer films, preferably polyethylene films or polypropylene films, optionally
lithographed; preferably the upper member is made of tinplate or tin-free steel, coated
with polymer films.
6. A dome-shaped member (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that said rim (10) of the flange (9) of the circular base (3) is adapted to couple to
the upper rim (15) of the central body (14) of metal containers.
7. A multiple part metal container comprising a central body (14) with a bottom and an
upper body (1) closed by a crown cap (16), characterised in that said upper body is the dome-shaped member (1) as defined in any one of claims 1 to
6.
1. Kuppelförmiges Glied (1), das den oberen Körper für Metallbehälter mit zwei oder mehr
Teilen bildet, umfassend eine kreisförmige Basis (3), einen röhrenförmigen Hals (2),
der nach außen zu der Basis hin konisch zuläuft, eine Mündung (7) und einen Bereich
(4), der sich über dem Hals (2) befindet, wobei der Bereich einen ringförmigen Umfangsgrat
in Form eines Rings (5) umfasst, der sich unter der Mündung (7) befindet und dazu
geeignet ist, sich mit einem Kronkorken (16) zu verbinden, wobei das Glied (1) durch
Ziehen einer Metallscheibe, die von einer Platte aus Weißblechmaterial oder zinnfreiem
Stahl abgeschnitten ist, und anschließendes Pressen erhalten ist, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Glied (1) nach dem Ziehen und Pressen durch anschließendes Walzen ausgebildet
ist, dass unter dem ringförmigen Grat (5) eine Kehle (13) vorgesehen ist, wobei der
Ring (5) bezüglich der Kehle (13) nach außen in einer radialen Richtung bezüglich
der Achse des Glieds (1) vorsteht, und dass der obere Rand (12) des Rings (5) äußerlich
nach unten gekrümmt ist und sein freies Ende zur Innenseite des kuppelförmigen Glieds
(1) hin gebogen ist und einen Bereich (11) wie in Figur 1a gezeigt ausbildet, der
zum Verankern der Zähne eines Kronkorkens geeignet ist.
2. Kuppelförmiges Glied nach Anspruch 1, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die kreisförmige Basis (3) aus einem Ring (8) besteht, in den ein Flansch (9) eingegliedert
ist, dessen äußerer Rand (10) äußerlich nach unten gekrümmt ist und teilweise zur
Innenseite des kuppelförmigen Glieds (1) hin gebogen ist.
3. Kuppelförmiges Glied nach einem der Ansprüche 1 oder 2, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die Kehle (13) mithilfe eines kegelstumpfartigen Bereichs (6) mit dem Hals (2) verbunden
ist.
4. Kuppelförmiges Glied nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 3, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass die kreisförmige Basis (3) einen Durchmesser von ungefähr 65 mm aufweist, der als
Außendurchmesser des Rings (8) der Basis gemessen ist.
5. Kuppelförmiges Glied (1) nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 4, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass das Weißblech unbedruckt oder lithographiert ist; oder das zinnfreie Stahl unbedruckt
oder mit Farben oder Polymerfolien, vorzugsweise Polyethylenfolien oder Polypropylenfolien,
beschichtet, optional lithographiert ist; vorzugsweise das obere Glied aus Weißblech
oder zinnfreiem Stahl, mit Polymerfolien beschichtet, hergestellt ist.
6. Kuppelförmiges Glied nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 5, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass der Rand (10) des Flanschs (9) der kreisförmigen Basis (3) zum Ankuppeln an den oberen
Rand (15) des mittleren Körpers (14) von Metallbehältern geeignet ist.
7. Mehrteiliger Metallbehälter, umfassend einen mittleren Körper (14) mit einem Boden
und einem oberen Körper (1), der durch einen Kronkorken (16) verschlossen ist, dadurch gekennzeichnet, dass der obere Körper das kuppelförmige Glied (1) ist, wie es in einem der Ansprüche 1
bis 6 definiert ist.
1. Elément de calotte de dôme (1) constituant le corps supérieur de récipients métalliques
avec deux ou plusieurs parties comprenant une base circulaire (3), un col tubulaire
(2) conique vers l'extérieur en direction de ladite base, une embouchure (7) et une
surface (4) située au-dessus du col (2), la surface (4) comprenant une strie annulaire
périphérique sous la forme d'une bague (5) située en-dessous de l'embouchure (7) adaptée
pour s'interconnecter avec une capsule (16), ledit élément (1) étant obtenu en étirant
une découpe de disque métallique à partir d'une tôle de matériau en fer blanc ou d'acier
sans étain et le pressage consécutif, caractérisé en ce que l'élément (1) est formé après étirage et pressage par un roulage consécutif, en ce que en-dessous de la strie annulaire (5), une gorge (13) est prévue, la bague (5) faisant
saillie vers l'extérieur par rapport à ladite gorge (13) dans une direction radiale
par rapport à l'axe de l'élément (1), et en ce que ladite bague (5) a son bord supérieur (12) incurvé vers l'extérieur vers le bas et
son extrémité libre pliée en direction de l'intérieur de l'élément de calotte de dôme
(1) et formant une surface (11) comme montré sur la figure 1a adaptée pour l'ancrage
des dents d'une capsule.
2. Elément de calotte de dôme selon la revendication 1, caractérisé en ce que ladite base circulaire (3) consiste en une bague (8) qui intègre une bride (9) dont
le bord extérieur (10) est incurvé vers l'extérieur vers le bas et partiellement penché
en direction de l'intérieur de l'élément de calotte de dôme (1).
3. Elément de calotte de dôme selon la revendication 1 ou 2, caractérisé en ce que ladite gorge (13) est jointe au col (2) au moyen d'une surface tronconique (6).
4. Elément de calotte de dôme selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 3, caractérisé en ce que ladite base circulaire (3) présente un diamètre d'environ 65 mm mesuré comme étant
le diamètre extérieur de la bague (8) de ladite base.
5. Elément de calotte de dôme (1) selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 4, caractérisé en ce que le fer blanc est uni ou lithographié ; ou l'acier sans étain est uni ou revêtu avec
des peintures ou des films polymères, de préférence des films polyéthylènes ou polypropylènes,
optionnellement lithographiés ; de préférence l'élément supérieur est réalisé en fer
blanc ou en acier sans étain, revêtu de films polymères.
6. Elément de calotte de dôme (1) selon l'une quelconque des revendications 1 à 5, caractérisé en ce que ledit bord (10) de la bride (9) de la base circulaire (3) est adapté pour s'accoupler
au bord supérieur (15) du corps central (14) de récipients métalliques.
7. Récipient métallique à parties multiples comprenant un corps central (14) avec un
fond et un corps supérieur (1) fermé par une capsule (16), caractérisé en ce que ledit corps supérieur est l'élément de calotte de dôme (1) tel que défini dans l'une
quelconque des revendications 1 à 6.
REFERENCES CITED IN THE DESCRIPTION
This list of references cited by the applicant is for the reader's convenience only.
It does not form part of the European patent document. Even though great care has
been taken in compiling the references, errors or omissions cannot be excluded and
the EPO disclaims all liability in this regard.
Patent documents cited in the description