RECLOSABLE METAL CONTAINER

CONTENANT METALLIQUE REFERMABLE

English Abstract

A reclosable metal container in the style of a bottle-shaped can has a
conventional can body (1) of steel or aluminium to which a metal neck
component (10) is seamed. A sleeve (20) of plastics fits over the neck
component and a detent (21) inside the sleeve clips it onto the seam. The
upper edge of the sleeve is fixed in place by a curl (15) on the upper edge of
the neck component. By using a separate neck component and hiding the seam
under a sleeve, conventional sizes and material gauges can be used for the can
body. Thicker material may be used for the neck component in order to
withstand necking forces. Threads (25) for closing the container are provided
on the sleeve.

French Abstract

L'invention concerne un contenant métallique refermable présentant une forme de bouteille, qui comprend un corps (1) de boîte conventionnel en acier ou en aluminium, sur lequel est serti un composant (10) formant un col métallique. Un manchon (20) de plastique vient s'adapter sur la partie col, et un cliquet (21) formé à l'intérieur du manchon, permet d'encliqueter ce dernier dans le joint du serti. Le bord supérieur du manchon est maintenu en place par un rebord incurvé (15) formé dans le bord supérieur du col métallique. L'utilisation d'un composant séparé pour le col et le recouvrement du serti par le manchon permet d'utiliser un corps de boîte de présentant des dimensions et une épaisseur de matériau conventionnels. Un matériau plus épais peut être utilisé pour former le composant col afin que ce dernier résiste aux forces de striction. Le manchon comporte des filets (25) permettant la fermeture du contenant.

Claims

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CLAIMS:
1. A reclosable container comprising:
a metal can body having a base and a side wall,
a metal neck component seamed to a free end of the can body, the
neck component comprising a generally frustoconical shoulder portion and a
cylindrical portion, the cylindrical portion terminating in a flange or curl,
and
a sleeve which fits over the metal neck component and covers the
seam between the neck component and can body;
wherein the sleeve is of plastics material, extends over the cylindrical
portion of the neck component, is threaded to allow reclosability of the
container and
is held in position by the flange or curl.
2. A container according to claim 1, in which the sleeve includes a detent
for fixing the sleeve onto the seam.
3. A container according to claim 1 or claim 2, in which the neck
component includes a support region between the frustoconical and cylindrical
portions.
4. A reclosable beverage container comprising:
a metal can body having a base and a side wall,
a metal neck component seamed to a free end of the metal can body,
the metal neck component formed as a one-piece unit including a generally
frusto-
conical portion and a cylindrical portion joined to the frusto-conical portion
by a
shoulder, and
a sleeve which fits over the metal neck component and covers the
seam between the neck component and the metal can body;

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wherein (i) the sleeve is of a plastics material, and extends over the
cylindrical portion of the neck component, the generally frusto-conical
portion of the
neck component, and a portion of the side wall, (ii) the sleeve is at least
partially
supported by the seam and the shoulder, and (iii) the sleeve is threaded to
allow
reclosability of the container.
5. A container as defined in claim 4, in which the sleeve includes a detent
for attaching the sleeve onto the seam.
6. A container as defined by claim 4 or 5, wherein the shoulder is
substantially perpendicular to the cylindrical portion.
7. A container as defined in one of claims 4, 5, or 6, wherein the sleeve
is
circumferentially continuous.
8. A container as defined in one of claims 1 to 7, in which the sleeve does
not alter flow from the metal container.

Description

WO 2005/058716 CA 02548274 2006-06-06PCT/EP2004/013215
RECLOSABLE METAL CONTAINER
This invention relates to a reclosable metal
container such as a can of steel or aluminium. In
particular, but not exclusively, it relates to a bottle-
shaped can for packaging beverages.
So-called "bottle cans" have been proposed in patent
applications such as JP-A-2003165539, for example, in
which a container body is closed at one end by a can end
seamed to the body to form a base, and at the opposite
end is necked inwardly to form a shoulder. A portion of
the can body extends away from the free edge of the
shoulder into a cylindrical portion which is threaded so
as to be closed by a screw closure.
Alternative proposals for bottle cans use plastic
collets to provide a thread for reclosing the can instead
of threading the metal neck.
US-A-2,864,529 describes an overcap for a metal
containers having a cone or raised top, the overcap
covering a seam which joins the cone to the body of the
container. DE 29980137 U describes a plastic component
which covers the seam between a neck component and a can
body. JP 10 167356 A describes a shoulder cover for
fixing a cap which is removeably mounted on a container
body.
Whilst these current proposals are workable in
theory, there are, in practice, a number of practical
problems. Necking of the container body sufficiently to
provide a neck finish for reclosing may involve up to 56
necking stages. Because of its material properties, this
is not usually possible if the container is made of steel
of conventional thickness (for example 0.08 mm). In order

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to withstand necking forces, the steel would need to be thicker than is
conventional
and therefore less economic to use. Furthermore, less metal exposure is
acceptable
with steel than with aluminium.
Non-standard sizes of can bodies may need to be used since a
standard 355 ml capacity can with a plastic screw threaded neck would be too
tall for
manufacturing lines.
This invention seeks to overcome these problems and to provide a
bottle can which enables standard tooling to be used, irrespective of the
desired neck
finish.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a
reclosable container comprising: a metal can body having a base and a side
wall, a
metal neck component seamed to a free end of the can body, the neck component
comprising a generally frustoconical shoulder portion and a cylindrical
portion, the
cylindrical portion terminating in a flange or curl, and a sleeve which fits
over the
metal neck component and covers the seam between the neck component and can
body; wherein the sleeve is of plastics material, extends over the cylindrical
portion of
the neck component, is threaded to allow reclosability of the container and is
held in
position by the flange or curl.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided
a reclosable beverage container comprising: a metal can body having a base and
a
side wall, a metal neck component seamed to a free end of the metal can body,
the
metal neck component formed as a one-piece unit including a generally frusto-
conical
portion and a cylindrical portion joined to the frusto-conical portion by a
shoulder, and
a sleeve which fits over the metal neck component and covers the seam between
the
neck component and the metal can body; wherein (i) the sleeve is of a plastics
material, and extends over the cylindrical portion of the neck component, the
generally frusto-conical portion of the neck component, and a portion of the
side wall,
(ii) the sleeve is at least partially supported by the seam and the shoulder,
and (iii) the
sleeve is threaded to allow reclosability of the container.

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It should be noted that the term "generally frustoconical" is intended
herein to mean both a precise frustoconical shape and shapes which reduce the
cross-sectional area of the container such as a stepped shoulder portion.
The can body is typically a standard beverage can body which can be
mass-produced using regular beverage can manufacturing lines. Different neck
finishes can be

WO 2005/058716 CA 02548274 2006-06-06PCT/EP2004/013215
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offered by a range of neck components and plastic
sleeves. The can body may be made from steel or aluminium
of thin gauges such as 0.1 mm for aluminium, 0.08 mm for
steel. The neck component may be of thicker material and
provides barrier properties to prevent, for example,
passage of gas which may affect the product in the
container.
According to a preferred aspect of the invention,
the sleeve includes a detent for fixing the sleeve onto
the seam. This detent provides a seal to prevent water
ingress. Ideally the open end of the sleeve may be
retained by a curl on the neck component. Generally the
can body has a small necked-in region at the end to which
the neck component is seamed. The sleeve may extend over
this region on the can body so as to fit against the can
body side wall and resist water ingress.
The sleeve may be profiled so as to correspond to
the shoulder shape on a conventional plastic bottle. In
this embodiment the neck component includes a support
region between the frustoconical and cylindrical
portions. This support region may be a second cylindrical
portion of larger diameter than the first cylindrical
portion such that the first cylindrical portion supports
the threaded part of the plastic sleeve and the second
portion supports a part of the sleeve which is profiled
to a shoulder shape.
Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be
described, by way of example only, with reference to the
drawings, in which:

WO 2005/058716 CA 02548274 2006-06-06PCT/EP2004/013215
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Figure 1 is a schematic side section of a first
embodiment of container according to the invention; and
Figure 2 is an enlarged side section of the shoulder
and neck region of the container of figure 1.
Figure 1 shows a container comprising a can body 1,
neck component 10 and sleeve 20. The can is a typical
beverage can body comprising a side wall 2, necked at its
upper end 3, and an integral domed base 4. The can body
is made of sheet metal, typically steel or aluminium in
the range of 0.25 mm to 0.35 mm thick with walls reduced
in thickness during manufacture.
Neck component 10 comprises a metal support having
a generally frustoconical part 11 and a cylindrical
portion 12. As best shown in figure 2, a second
cylindrical portion 13 is joined to the first cylindrical
portion by a shoulder 14. The neck component terminates
in a flange or, ideally, curl 15 at its upper end which
holds the plastic sleeve 20 in position. The sleeve thus
also hides the cut edge of the neck component. At its
lower end the neck component is fixed by a double seam 16
to the can body 1.
If the container is closed by a plastics closure
having a bore seal, the bore seal will impart further cut
edge protection. In this instance the cut edge of curl 15
would be trapped between the sleeve 20 and the bore seal
of the closure.
The sleeve 20 has a curved sheath 23 with a hook-
shaped detent 21 which clips onto the seam 16. Annulus 22
provides further location of the sleeve over the seam.
The sleeve of figures 1 and 2 is thus fixed in position

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by the detent 21 and neck component flange 15. In this
embodiment, the sleeve 20 has a cylindrical upper portion
24 which is threaded 25. Below thread 25 the upper
portion includes a neck support ring 26 for handling
purposes.
For aesthetic reasons the sleeve may be shaped so as
to blend into the side wall of the can body. The sleeve
may be made of thin plastics so that extra support for
the curved shape is provided by shoulder 14 of the neck
component.

Representative Drawing