Opening arrangement on a packing container

• US 4,986,465 A
• Filed: 11/09/1989
• Issued: 01/22/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Tetra Alfa Holdings, S.A. (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Original Assignee: Tetra Alfa Holdings, S.A. (Tetra Laval Holdings BV)
• Inventors: Carlsson, Hans, Jacobsson, Kent
• Primary Examiner(s): Elkins, Gary E.
• Application Number:
  US07/435,248
• Time in Patent Office: 439 Days
• Field of Search: 229/123.2, 229/123.3, 229/125.09, 229/125.14, 229/125.14, 220/268, 220/269, 220/270
• US Class Current: 229/123.3
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 5/727 Dispensing openings provided in the upper end-walls of tubular containers, the openings being closed by means of separate stopper or other closure elements

Abstract

An opening arrangement for a packing container includes a flexible strip having first and second parts which are connected to one another by a flexible intermediate piece. The first part of the strip has a downwardly projecting portion that fits within the hole in the packing container. The first part includes an openable part for preventing the contents from being emptied from the container until the openable part has been torn away. The second part of the strip is somewhat cup-shaped and includes a bottom surface that is sealed to the openable part of the first part so that when the cup-shaped second part of the strip is pulled backwards, the openable part will be torn away, thereby forming a pouring opening.

Claims

1. A reclosable opening arrangement for a packing container comprising:

a container wall having an opening and an insert secured in said opening, said insert having a central portion of reduced thickness;

a flexible strip having first and second parts, said first part being secured to said container wall adjacent said opening and said second part being superimposed over said opening, a cap secured on said second part and having a base and a surrounding upright side wall, said centrally lcoated portion of reduced thickness being secured to the base of the cap, and gripping means on said cap for pulling said cap away from said container wall to remove said central portion to expose a hole in said insert through which the contents of said container may be poured.

2. The opening arrangement according to claim 1, therein said first and second parts are connected by a flexible intermediate piece.

3. The opening arrangement according to claim 1, including a compressible bulge attached to and extending radially outwardly from an outer circumferential surface of the side wall, said projection being hollow and having a shoulder located on an inner surface thereof so that said cap can be positioned inside the projection and retained in place with the bulge engaging the shoulder.

4. The opening arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said first part of said strip has a pouring edge which is adapted to extend at least up to an outer edge of the wall of the container to which the arrangement is attached.

5. The spring arrangement according to claim 4, wherein said second part of said strip has a substantially L-shaped extension extending from said side wall for protecting said pouring edge, said L-shaped extension having a front leg that surrounds said pouring edge when the cap is pressed down into the projection.

6. The opening arrangement according to claim 4, including upstanding lateral walls attached to longitudinal edges of the first part, said lateral walls extending as far as the pouring edge so that said lateral walls in combination with said pouring edge define a guide for guiding the contents of the container as the contents are emptied from the container.

7. The opening arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said insert includes a radially outwardly directed flange that surrounds the opening and that is sealed to an inner surface of the container wall.

8. In a packing container having a hole extending through a wall in the container for emptying contents of the container, a reclosable opening arrangement comprising:

a flexible strip having first and second parts that are connected by a flaxible intermediate piece, said first part having a projection extending therefrom with a flange connected to and extending radially outwardly from the projection, said projection being positioned in the hole in the container wall so that said flange surrounds the hole and said flange being sealed to an inner surface of the container wall in a liquid-tight manner, said first part including a central portion of reduced thickness, said second part being cup-shaped and having a base and a surrounding upright side wall, a bottom surface of the base being secured to a top surface of the central portion of reduced thickness, and a grip-ring attached to and extending from a top surface of the base for pulling said cup-shaped second part away from said container wall to remove said central portion and thereby expose a hole in said projection through which the contents of said container may be poured, said flexible strip including means for permitting the cup-shaped second part to be retained within the projection after the central portion has been removed and the cup-shaped second part has been pushed into the projection.

9. A packing container according to claim 8, wherein said packing container is fabricated from thermoplastic-coated paper and said flexible strip is fabricated from heat-sealable material, the flange extending from the projection being heat-sealed to the inside of the container wall.

10. A packing container according to claim 8, wherein said means for permitting the cup-shaped second part to be retained in the projection includes a compressible bulge attached to and extending radially outwardly from an outer circumferential surface of the upright side wall and said projection being hollow and having a shoulder located on an inner surface thereof so that said cup-shaped second part can be pressed down into the projection and retained in place through engagement of the bulge with the shoulder.

11. A packing container according to claim 9, wherein said first part of said strip has a pouring edge which extends outwardly at least as far as an outer edge of the wall of the container to which the arrangement is attached.

12. A packing container according to claim 11, including upstanding lateral walls attached to longitudinal edges of said first part, said lateral walls extending as far as the pouring edge so that said lateral walls in combination with said pouring edge define a guide for guiding the contents of the container as the contents are emptied from the container.

13. A packing container according to claim 11, including a substantially L-shaped extension extending from said side wall of the cup-shaped second part for protecting the pouring edge, said L-shaped extension having a front leg that surrounds said pouring edge when the second part is pressed down into the projection.