Owens-brockway Glass Container Inc.

Rexam Healthcare Packaging Inc.

Graham Packaging Company, L.p.

Other

Graham Packaging Plastic Products, Inc.

Brian John Chisholm

Brian John Brozell

Susan L Smith

Edward A Grant

Ludovic Valette

Joseph E Olsavsky

Olivier Dangmann

Cedric Charretton

Michael J Lonsway

Eva Mifsud

Carol Ann Click

Jessica Rose Bryant

Gregory A Geisinger

Edward A Ordway

Douglas W Abbott

David Hoadley

Trent Jones

Patrick M O'Connell

Louis Osika

Patrick Matthew Oconnell

Eva Misfud

Kirk W Rudolph

Frederic Jolly

A container gripper comprises a housing and a petal assembly configured to be carried in the housing assembly. The petal assembly includes a petal holder and a plurality of circumferentially-spaced rigid articulating petals having upper ends pivotably coupled to the petal holder and lower ends configured to be guided by the lower housing of the housing assembly. The petal assembly further includes a travel brace configured to limit the translation of the petal holder, and a return spring between the travel brace and the petal holder.

Container gripper

A method of manufacturing a glass container in preparation for direct digital printing includes forming a glass container having a glass wall and applying a primer coating to the glass container. The primer coating is applied by directing an atomized spray of an aqueous primer composition onto the glass container over an adherent base layer, such as a hot-end coating, which deposits the primer coating, followed by heating the primer coating with a heat source such as a flame. Upon being heated, the clarity of the primer coating is increased. As a result, a decorative marking may be printed onto the glass container without having to pretreat the glass container in a way that involves pyrolytically depositing a layer of silicon dioxide onto the glass container prior to printing.

Method for applying a primer coating to glass containers

This disclosure describes substrate(s) having a three-dimensional (3D) feature formed thereon and methods of forming the features. One method involves applying a first layer of UV-curable material on a surface of the glass container around a circumference of the container and curing the first layer of UV-curable material to produce a first cured material layer that forms at least a portion of a first 3D feature. The method further comprises applying a second layer of UV-curable material on the surface of the glass container, spaced apart from the first 3D feature, around the circumference of the container, and curing the second layer of UV-curable material to produce a second cured material layer that forms at least a portion of a second 3D feature. The portion of the glass container between the first and second 3D features has a circumference less than that of the first or second 3D features.

Three-dimensional printing on glass containers

A glass container that includes a base defining a hole, and methods of manufacturing and using the glass container, is disclosed. The glass container is manufactured by providing the container and cutting a hole in a wall of the container. The hole may be cut into the wall by any technique in which glass material is separated from the wall including by mechanical shearing, thermal energy, and/or fluid impingement. To use the glass container, a deformable blow-out plug may be inserted into the hole to fluidly seal the hole, a liquid beverage may be introduced into the container, a closure may be coupled to the container to close the container and provide a pressurizable package, and thereafter the package may be internally pressurized by introducing a pressurizing gas into the package.

Producing holes in glass containers

A container closure. The closure comprises a pressure closure assembly and an outer release shell configured to be coupled thereto. The assembly comprises a relief valve and an inner shell having a base wall, a pressure relief slot, and an outer skirt extending away from the base wall and including first and second portions. The release shell includes a first portion having a base wall configured to overlap a portion of the inner shell base wall, and a tab corresponding to the slot of the inner shell. The first portion further includes an outer skirt extending away from the first portion base wall and configured to wrap around the first portion of the outer skirt. The release shell further includes a second portion having a base wall configured to overlap a portion of the inner shell base wall, and an outer skirt extending away from the second portion base wall.

Pressure retention closure

An apparatus for sealing a foil liner to a container. The apparatus comprises a seal head that includes a body having a first end, a second end, and an axis extending through the first and second ends. The body further includes a sealing surface at the second end thereof facing away from the first end. The seal head further includes fluid path(s) for passing fluid through and out of the seal head and onto the foil liner. A method for sealing a foil liner to a container is also provided wherein a sealing surface of a seal head is aligned with a sealing surface of the container, wherein a peripheral edge of the foil liner is disposed between the sealing surfaces of the seal head and the container. Fluid is then passed through fluid path(s) in the seal head and out of the seal head and onto the foil liner.

Sealing foil liners to containers

This disclosure describes container(s) having an ultraviolet (UV)-cured matrix and methods to create the same. The glass container according to this disclosure has a bottom and a body extending in a direction away from the bottom along a longitudinal axis. The body has a surface having an UV-cured matrix including UV-curable varnish drops arranged in a plurality of layers and having voids existing therebetween to form a porous matrix structure. A method of printing a UV-cured matrix on a glass container is also disclosed that includes identifying a plurality of locations on a body of the container where the UV-cured matrix will be formed, determining a height value of the UV-cured matrix at each location, applying at least one varnish layer to the body according to an assigned grayscale or numeric value at each location, and applying UV light to cure each respective varnish layer.

Three-dimensional printing of a porous matrix on a container

This disclosure describes substrate(s) formed with a three-dimensional (3D) feature thereon, and method(s) of printing the same. One method includes identifying a plurality of locations on a substrate surface where the three-dimensional feature will be formed, determining a height value of the three-dimensional feature at each location, assigning a grayscale value to each location based on the height value, and applying ink to the substrate surface at each location according to the assigned grayscale value.

This disclosure describes container(s) having an ultraviolet (UV)-cured matrix and methods to create the same. For example, a glass container according to this disclosure has a bottom and a body extending in a direction away from the bottom along a longitudinal axis. The body has a surface having an UV-cured matrix including UV-curable varnish drops arranged in a plurality of layers and having voids existing therebetween to form a porous matrix structure. One method to form the glass container is to apply a layer of UV-curable varnish to an outer surface of the glass container as a plurality of varnish drops, so as to establish a plurality of voids between the varnish drops, cure the layer of UV-curable varnish, apply one or more additional layers of UV-curable varnish, and cure the additional layer(s) of UV-curable varnish, wherein all of the varnish drops and the voids form the UV-cured matrix.

A method of sealing a foil liner to a hot-filled container includes the steps of aligning a liner engagement surface of a seal head with a liner sealing surface of the container when the container is in a first position, wherein at least a peripheral margin of the foil liner is disposed between the liner engagement and sealing surfaces of the seal head and the container, respectively; applying heat between the seal head and the container to heat and attach the foil liner and the sealing surface of the container, resulting in a sealed package; rotating the sealed package from the first position to a second position; and applying fluid onto at least a portion of the sealed package to cool a head space of the sealed package. The head space is disposed between an inner surface of the container and a product packaged in the sealed package.

Cooling sealed packages after hot filling and sealing

A hood for depositing vaporized metals on glass container surfaces includes a vaporized metal source that produces vaporized metal; an enclosure, receiving one or more glass containers, comprising at least one side wall and at least one center section having a top above the glass containers; and one or more conduits that fluidly communicate the vaporized metal to an opening in at least one of the top of the center section and the side wall using one or more conduit fans.

Vaporized metal application hood

A glass container includes a base, a body extending axially from the base, and a neck finish extending from the body, the neck finish having an axial sealing surface, wherein at least a portion of the axial sealing surface extends both axially downwardly and radially outwardly. Also disclosed is a package including a glass container and a closure assembly.

Vacuum release seal for a closure and container package

A package that includes a container and a container closure having a vacuum-indicating pull tab. The container includes a longitudinal axis extending therethrough, a mouth, and a sealing surface. The container closure includes a seal membrane sealingly and removably coupled to the container sealing surface to seal the container, and a pull tab configured to extend from the seal membrane. Manipulation of the pull tab provides an indication of the presence or absence of a vacuum in the package.

Container closure with vacuum-indicating pull tab

A system for preventing dripping from filler nozzles providing matter to containers includes a manifold defining a bore extending therethrough and a channel in communication with the bore. The system further includes a nozzle ring supported within the bore of the manifold and defining a bore configured to receive a filler nozzle. The nozzle ring defines an air gap between an inner surface of the nozzle ring and an outer surface of the filler nozzle and a channel extending between the inner surface of the nozzle ring and an outer surface of the nozzle ring and in communication with the channel in the manifold. Negative pressure introduced into the channel in the manifold draws matter from the filler nozzle through the channels in the nozzle ring and manifold.

System for preventing dripping from nozzles in a container filling system

An apparatus for inspecting the integrity of a seal of a package that includes a container and a seal membrane carried by the container. The apparatus comprises a conveyor configured to move the sealed package along a path and including a vacuum plenum section configured to create a sub-atmospheric pressure that is applied to the seal membrane of the sealed package as the package moves through the vacuum plenum section. The apparatus further comprises an imaging sensor configured to generate one or more images of the seal membrane following the application of a sub-atmospheric pressure thereto at the vacuum plenum section. The apparatus still further comprises an electronic processing device configured to process the one or more images of the seal membrane generated by the imaging sensor, and to evaluate the integrity of the seal of the package based on the one or more images.

Growing community of inventors

Sylvania, OH, United States of America

Brian John Chisholm