Envelopes – wrappers – and paperboard boxes – Paperboard box – Combined with drinking tube
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-01
2003-09-09
Elkins, Gary E. (Department: 3727)
Envelopes, wrappers, and paperboard boxes
Paperboard box
Combined with drinking tube
C229S141000, C229S404000, C383S084000, C383S906000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06616033
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
1 . Technical Field
This invention relates to disposable containers such as cups or cartons having an integral sealing flap for sealing the container to eliminate the possibility of spillage of beverages, liquids, or other substances held within the container.
2 . Related Art
Disposable containers such as cups and cartons for holding beverages have been available for many years. Such containers are commonly dispensed at fast food restaurants and convenience stores for serving beverages. Typically, these containers are sealed with a plastic lid that fits over a top opening of the container so as to close the container. These lids often include holes in which straws can be placed such that a user can drink a beverage in a cup from the straw as it protrudes through the lid and into the cup. Other types of lids used to seal or cover containers include a type of hinged panel that a user can pull back or push in so as to drink from a cup while the lid is still attached. Such lids are often used with hot beverages such as coffee or tea.
Over the years, various schemes have been suggested or adopted for ensuring a tighter or more secure fit for the lids described above. However, regardless of how loose or how tight such lids fit, they are prone to accidental or inadvertent removal. For example, if a container employing a removable plastic lid is dropped, squeezed too hard, or simply tipped over, the end result is often that the lid separates from the container, with the beverage or liquid held within the container winding up either on the ground, all over an unlucky user who had been holding the cup, or all over an innocent bystander.
The problem of dropping or knocking over cups and containers is especially common with very young children. Consequently, it is uncommon to see disposable cups with plastic lids, as described above, being used in a home with young children, as the foreseeable result of such use is often a rather large wet mess. Instead, in a home having young children, hard plastic beverage cups with screw-on lids having either a drinking spout or a hole for a straw are commonly used. However, such beverage cups are not disposable. Consequently, they require more work in that they are typically washed between uses. Further, if a lid is misplaced, they cups are of little use because of the likelihood of spillage by a young child.
Still other solutions have involved complex, and thus expensive, schemes for ensuring that lids placed on containers or cups are less likely to be inadvertently removed. However, because it is more difficult for such lids to be removed, it is also more difficult to put such lids on in the first place.
Another solution that has been used for sealing disposable containers for beverages, food or other substances involves a folding gable top. Typically, the container is filled with a beverage, food or other substance, and then the top of the container is folded together in a manner similar to that of a conventional paper milk carton. A small plastic clip or the like typically holds the top of the carton together so as to seal the carton. While this solution tends to be somewhat more secure than using a disposable plastic lid, as described above, it has several drawbacks. First, such containers tend to be more expensive to manufacture than a traditional cup or container because of the numerous folds required to create a gable top. Further, the clips that hold the top closed are rather small, and in some instances can be somewhat fragile. Consequently, if the clip is misplaced or damaged, there is no way to seal the container in order to prevent spills.
Therefore, in order to overcome the limitations of current disposable containers, what is needed is a container that can be securely sealed, after being filled with beverages, food or other substances, without relying on a removable lid. Further, once the seal is engaged, it should not be subject to inadvertent opening or removal such as by dropping or squeezing the container. Finally, the container should not rely on separate devices, such as clips, to hold the container closed or sealed.
SUMMARY
The present invention involves a spill-proof disposable container, such as a cup or carton for holding beverages, food or other substances. This disposable container satisfies all of the foregoing needs. Specifically, the container is capable of being securely sealed without the need to employ removable lids, clips or other devices. Further, the seal employed by the disposable container of the present invention is not subject to inadvertent opening by either dropping or squeezing the disposable container. In addition, the disposable container can be easily and inexpensively manufactured from conventional materials such as, for example, paper, plastic, or a polymer or wax coated paper as is commonly used for disposable drinking vessels. Further, such materials are also used in one embodiment for producing an insulating embodiment of a disposable container for holding hot or cold liquids or other substances in accordance with the present invention. Finally, the disposable container of the present invention can be manufactured in any desired size to provide any desired storage volume when sealed.
A disposable container according to present invention is embodied in a thin-walled container having an integral sealing flap. Such containers include cups or other vessels for holding beverages, food or other substances. The disposable container preferably has a truncated conical shape. One example of such a shape is a typical beverage cup commonly dispensed at fast food restaurants and convenience stores. However, any shape or size of disposable container may be used, so long as the container is sealed in accordance with the present invention. For example, in one embodiment a container having a folding gable top with an integral sealing flap is used. Regardless of the shape or style of the container, once the container has been filled, it is closed by squeezing or folding the top of the container together. The container is then sealed by folding the integral sealing flap over one side of the top of the closed container. The sealing flap is then secured using conventional adhesives, such as, for example, glue, rubber cement, or tape, that are integral to either or both the surface of the container, or the surface of the sealing flap. In addition, in one embodiment, the adhesive is reusable, so that the container may be opened, refilled, and then resealed. Further, because the volume of the container may be lessened by squeezing or folding the top of the container together, as described above, in one embodiment, a fill-line is included on either the interior or exterior surface of the container for alerting the user to a maximum volume for the sealed container.
As discussed above, unlike conventional containers using removable lids, disposable containers in accordance with the present invention are sealed with adhesive. Consequently, once sealed, such disposable containers invention are much less likely to be inadvertently opened, such as by squeezing, dropping, or knocking over the container, then are conventional containers using removable lids. Consequently, disposable containers according to the present invention can also provide a safety advantage over conventional containers by reducing or eliminating slippery puddles caused by inadvertent spills of beverages, food, or other substances contained within the disposable container. Similarly, because disposable containers according to the present invention can also be manufactured from insulating materials, hot liquids held within such containers are less likely to spill, for the aforementioned reasons, than is an identical liquid when held in a conventional container using a removable lid. Clearly, preventing the spillage of hot liquids results in a safety advantage over conventional disposable containers having removable lids by reducing the likelihood of burns or scalding when spilled hot liquid comes into contact with a victims skin.
Because the containe
Elkins Gary E.
Lyon & Harr
Watson Mark A.
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