Graham Packaging Company, L.p.

Mott's LLP

Constar International, Inc.

Seungyeol Hong

Richard K Ogg

David Murray Melrose

Paul V Kelley

John E Denner

George Harrell

John Vlah

Gregory A Trude

Michael R Mooney

Satya Kamineni

Jennifer L Isfahani

Chhaya Dagli

Jonh Denner

A blow molded plastic container is provided. The container has a body section having a substantially non-circular cross-sectional shape, the body section having an enclosed bottom portion that forms a bottom end of the container and substantially flat side portions extending upwardly from the bottom end; a finish defining an opening; and a dome extending from the body section to the finish. The dome includes at least one stiffening structure formed by an inwardly indented, vertically extending groove.

Rectangular container having a stiffening groove

Rectangular container having a vertically extending groove

A thin-walled, non-round plastic container having a body portion with generally rectangular sidewalls and a base. The body portion having a label mounting area extending between an upper label bumper and a lower label bumper on at least two of the adjacent sidewalls. The label mounting area includes a vacuum panel on a first sidewall, and a plurality of ribs, which may be on a second sidewall.

Rectangular container with vacuum panels

Container portion

A resealable closure system that includes a neck having a finish and a closure. The system includes mechanisms for sealing the container and maintaining the container in a closed position, which may be the same. The system can also include a means for preventing the closure from detaching from the container. The finish has an end that includes a post, an opening and a retaining ring, a recess defined by the retaining ring, and a shoulder. The closure slides onto the neck and has a sleeve that is about the same outside size as the neck. The sleeve has a stop on its interior surface. The top part of the closure has a receptacle to receive the post on the finish.

Resealable closure system

Container

The present invention provides an improved blow molded plastic non-round container having generally rectangular sidewalls that are adapted for hot-fill applications. The hot-fill container has two adjacent sides one with a vacuum panel and the other with a series of ribs in the label mounting area on the sidewalls. The opposing sidewalls are symmetric relative to the vacuum panel and rib shape and placement. The ribs and vacuum panel cooperate to resist container upon filling and cooling and also improves bumper denting resistance, ease of manufacture and light weight capability.

Rectangular container with cooperating vacuum panels and ribs on adjacent sides

Bottle

A blow-molded plastic bottle body for use in containing hot-filled beverages. The bottle body has a dome with various interactive functional zones. For example, some of the zones are primarily responsible for accommodating vacuum absorption, while other zones are primarily intended to rigidify the container such as by providing column strength to improve container top loading capability. Although each zone may have a primary function, each zone also aids adjacent zones in providing their functions. Thus, the entire dome, and not merely selected locations, reacts in a progressive manner to the forces generated by the hot-fill process on the bottle body. Preferably, the bottle body is slender and capable of readily being gripped by a single hand, and preferably the flex panels in the dome accommodate at least 90% of the total vacuum absorption required by the bottle.

Blow molded slender grippable bottle having dome with flex panels

Blow molded slender grippable bottle dome with flex panels

Upper portion of a bottle

Growing community of inventors

Plainfield, IL, United States of America

Seungyeol Hong