Container
Patent No. US10604296 (titled "Container") on Apr 19, 2010. The application was issued on Mar 31, 2020.
What is this patent about?
'296 is related to the field of containers, specifically those used for storing liquids or solids. The background acknowledges the popularity of easy-open-end metal containers, particularly for beverages. However, metal forming is limited in design flexibility and cost-prohibitive for creating new shapes. Plastic containers offer greater design freedom but traditionally lack the convenient pop-top opening feature.
The underlying idea behind '296 is to combine the advantages of both materials by using a plastic container body with a metal lid incorporating a pop-top opening mechanism. This allows for complex and attractive container shapes through plastic molding while retaining the consumer-preferred easy-open functionality of a metal lid.
The claims of '296 focus on a container comprising a plastic container body with a specific shape (truncated spherical) and a metal lid. The container body has a convex sidewall, a base, and a circular neck with a lip. The metal lid includes a weakened/scored area and a pivoting arm for easy opening, similar to a traditional pop-top can.
In practice, the plastic container body can be manufactured using blow molding techniques with materials like PET resin. The metal lid, pre-scored and fitted with the pull-tab arm, is then attached to the plastic body, sealing the contents. The user opens the container by pivoting the arm, which deforms the weakened area in the metal lid, creating an opening to access the contents.
This design differentiates itself by offering a container with the design flexibility of plastic and the convenience of a metal pop-top. The specific shape of the container body (truncated sphere) and the features of the base (depression) contribute to the overall structural integrity and user experience. The combination of materials and opening mechanism provides a unique solution compared to all-metal or all-plastic containers.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical Landscape
In the early 2010s when ’296 was filed, beverage and food packaging was characterized by a technical divide between metal and polymer materials, at a time when easy-open functionality was typically implemented using all-metal aluminum or steel cans. While systems commonly relied on standardized cylindrical metal geometries to withstand internal pressures and facilitate high-speed filling, software and hardware constraints in metal forming made the creation of complex, non-cylindrical ergonomic shapes non-trivial and cost-prohibitive. Consequently, the industry maintained a separation between the structural versatility of blow-molded resins and the standardized mechanical sealing of metal pull-tab lids.
Prosecution Position
The examiner allowed the application because the prior art did not demonstrate a container where the side walls and the flat base are specifically shaped to create a truncated spherical interior. Furthermore, the examiner noted that the prior art failed to show this specific internal geometry in a container body made of resin through a blow-molding process, where the side wall remains unbroken and continuous from the circular top neck down to the horizontal base.
Claims
This patent contains 4 claims, with claims 1 and 4 being independent. Independent claims 1 and 4 are directed to a container with a specific shape and features, including a convex sidewall, a circular neck, and a lid. The dependent claims elaborate on the materials used in the container's construction and a feature of the base.
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US10604296
- Application Number
- US12762934A
- Filing Date
- Apr 19, 2010
- Publication Date
- Mar 31, 2020
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO, Google Patents