Stock material or miscellaneous articles – Hollow or container type article
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-10
2004-01-27
Rice, Kenneth R. (Department: 3627)
Stock material or miscellaneous articles
Hollow or container type article
C428S035700
Reexamination Certificate
active
06682790
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The invention relates to a method for manufacturing flexible container liners made of thermoplastic plastics by means of vacuum forming, swaging or blow molding, having edges running regularly. The container liners are for use with Intermediate Bulk Containers that may be rigid, semi-rigid, flexible intermediate bulk containers (FIBC), or collapsible.
Such methods have been known for a long time and when manufacturing small containers, as a rule no problems occur. This is also true for the manufacture of large containers of cubic shape when applying vacuum forming, swaging or blow molding methods as far as in doing so, rigid containers are produced having a large wall thickness. However, if the wall thickness is minimized in order to thereby form flexible foldable container liners, particularly at the corners thin portions occur. This frequently results in leakages which cannot be permitted.
For blow molding, it has to be attempted to blow up the molding from a preform or parison out of the ring nozzle of the extruder. In this case, the wall thickness only permits a minimization for favorable form relationships. Otherwise here too, weak portions result with the danger of leakage. There is a possibility for the traditional swaging to apply male molds. However, they can only be used for open trough-shaped dies.
In the so-called twinsheet method, as described for example in EP-0 579 737 A1, molding is realized in the two die molds substantially by using a vacuum. The closed die does not permit auxiliary molding devices such as male molds. Therefore, for larger molding the swaging depth is limited.
At the lowest portions, it can only be achieved with a general minimization of the wall thickness as compared to other portions of the wall of the container. The problem, that it is extremely difficult to obtain a uniform wall thickness over the total area of a cubic container, mainly concerns the corner regions.
Therefore, in DE-40 22 591 A1, it has been attempted to limit the weak portions at least in that the sheet material used is subjected, with its molecular orientation, to a particularly calculated curvature in the region of the corners. However, the apex also remains only in an approximately crowned corner mold and is limited to relatively large wall thicknesses for safety reasons already for smaller containers having a maximum content of up to 30 liters.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is based upon the object to design the corner region to be sufficiently thick mainly for larger container liners, also for generally smaller wall thickness of the container liner, and to adjust it to the rest of the sheet appearance.
According to the invention, this is achieved in that the edges are molded into the internal of the container liner contrary to their final arrangement. When manufacturing cuboid-shaped containers, the corners of the cuboid are molded towards the inside. That means from the molding technology point of view, the corner regions are molded in the hollow of the container opposite to its arrangement according to the method of manufacturing. The corners can be formed in a pyramid shape, whereby the edges of the pyramid can comprise roundings, the radii of which can preferably be 10 mm and more. Generally, the edges can comprise curvatures. The pyramid shaped [indents] indentations or inverted corners are, as a rule, formed synmuetrically/diagonally into the cavity of the mold and are provided with suitable radii. The corners can also be formed in the shape of ball segments, the radii of which can be 10 mm and more. The suitable radius depends on the size of the container liner.
With the inventive method, the forming of the corners is displaced to the center of the mold. Thereby, a larger amount of swagble thicker sheet material at this point hits the molding displaced towards the inside. With a suitable selection of the transition zones in the wall of the mold, a very uniform distribution of sheet mass is possible. It has to be noted that all corners of the container liner are formed in the same way and that the radius of the curvature of the surfaces resulting with the comer region directed towards the inside substantially have the same radius of curvature.
After removal from the mold, the shape of the container is obtained by [excrescensing] reconfiguring the corners to a noninverted configuration. The entire container liner manufactured according to the invention including its corner regions comprises a substantially uniform wall thickness. Thereby it is achieved that for the Procedure of Permission for the transport of fluids according to UN standards on rails, roads and by sea, no problems occur.
The inventive method is suitable for the manufacture of container liners of any size. However, it is particularly suited for the manufacture of large container liners, particularly container liners with a content of more than 50 liters, preferably with a content of more than 100 liters. The container liners can be particularly used for the transport of fluids or powders in supporting casing, but also without it. The method is particularly suited for the manufacture of flexible plastic container liners which can be inserted into foldable and collapsible pallet containers and which store and transport liquid products. In a known way, paperboard constructions as well as supporting structures consisting of wood, metal or rigid plastics or the like are used as casing. A casing made of woven polypropylene material (FIBC) can also be used.
With the inventive method, the edges of cylindrical containers can also be molded correspondingly.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a flexible thermoplastic container liner, wherein the liner has at least one edge, wherein the liner is produced by a process having the steps of: molding the liner in a mold wherein the at least one edge is inverted; removing the liner from the mold; and reconfiguring the at least one edge to be noninverted.
According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a process for producing a flexible thermoplastic container liner, wherein the liner has at least one edge, the process having the steps of: molding the liner in a mold wherein the at least one edge is inverted; removing the liner from the mold; and reconfiguring the at least one edge to be noninverted.
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Frommer & Lawrence & Haug LLP
Rice Kenneth R.
LandOfFree
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