Disc removal end wall structure with safety features

Details Disc removal end wall structure with safety features Disc removal end wall structure with safety features

1977-06-28

1989-07-18

Marcus, Stephen

Receptacles

Closures

With closure opening arrangements for means

220276, 413 12, 413 14, 413 17, B65D 1734, B65D 1740, B21D 5144, B21D 5128

Patent

active

048486230

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to disc-removal, convenience-feature, sheet metal end-closure structures, to methods for fabricating and opening such structures, and to safety provisions for obstructing access to raw edge metal after opening such a closure structure.
In prior convenience-feature full-open sheet metal end closures of the disc pull-out type, after initial rupture of a portion of a peripherally-located scoreline by lifting on the handle end of a tab opener, it was necessary to pull backwardly on an open-ring of the pull-tab opener to continue severance of the remainder of the peripheral scoreline.
Past efforts to facilitate removal of end panel discs by such "pulling-out" methods included special scoreline and disc shapes (e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 3,768,392 of Oct. 30, 1973), and panel profiling techniques (e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 3,655,091 of Apr. 11, 1972 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,724,709 of Apr. 3, 1973). Also, tab openers for prior art disc pull-out structures were lanced to make initial lifting of the handle end easier (e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 4,182,460 of Jan. 8, 1980).
In such prior end closure structures, rupture of only a minor portion of the peripheral scoreline was aided by lever action of the tab opener. Pulling backwardly on the tab opener ring had to be relied on to continue severance of residual metal along the remaining major portion (about 90%) of the peripheral scoreline after such initial lever action rupture. More specifically, severance of such major portion of the peripheral scoreline had to be carried out without the assistance of any lever action mechanical advantage.
The difficulties in full-panel opening of an end wall structure resulting from such shortcomings of the prior art are overcome by contributions of the present invention.
In addition, the invention provides measures to help prevent accidental injury to a user due to the raw edge metal remaining after severing along the disc-defining peripheral scoreline. Such safety measures usually increase the difficulties experienced by most users in attempting to pull out an end wall panel. For example, shielding the raw edge of residual scoreline metal with multi-layer metal folds, as disclosed herein, can significantly increase stiffness of the removable end wall panel so that the force required to pull out a full-open disc using the prior art methods would be significantly increased.
The present invention facilitates removal of a full-open disc by providing for lever action throughout a major portion of the severance of the peripheral scoreline metal.
An integral, non-lanced tab-opener structure enables increased lever action. Further, a solid configuration hand end, free of any finger opening can be used to facilitate carrying out such lever action features and, as described in relation to later figures, to help avoid pulling backwardly on the handle end from a locatiom which lies internally of a longitudinal projection of the can side wall.
Other important contributions of the invention relate to new structures and methods for shielding the raw edge of residual scoreline metal after opening. Previously proposed safety-edge measures (e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 3,334,775 of Aug. 8, 1967 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,986,632 of Oct. 19, 1976) did not take into account the likelihood of premature damage to scoreline residual metal if significant movement of the metal adjacent to the scoreline was required subsequent to scoring. Nor were the difficulties of scoring accurately to depth, as part of the metal-folding scoreline-formation operations, contemplated.
The present invention provides for multi-layer folded-metal shielding of severed scoreline metal without detriment to accurate depth scoring or premature damage to the residual metal remaining after scoring.
These and other advantages and contributions are considered in greater detail in describing embodiments of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings; in these drawings:
FIG. 1 is a top plan (outer surface) view of an end closure structure of the invention shown with tab opener in place for opening;
FI

REFERENCES:
patent: 3684126 (1972-08-01), Reichert
patent: 3696961 (1972-10-01), Holk, Jr.
patent: 3838788 (1974-10-01), Stargell
patent: 3874553 (1975-04-01), Schultz et al.
patent: 3941277 (1976-03-01), McKinney et al.
patent: 4014455 (1977-03-01), LaCroce
patent: 4019648 (1977-04-01), Khoury
patent: 4159061 (1979-06-01), Cornelius et al.
patent: 4289250 (1981-09-01), Jordan
patent: 4386713 (1983-06-01), Baumeyer et al.
patent: 4406378 (1983-09-01), Zysset
patent: 4511299 (1985-04-01), Zysset

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