Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CONVENTIONALLY PRICED LIQUID CONTAINER
WITH UNIQUE OPTICAL PROPERTIES
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to liquid containers having lenticular labels,
and more particularly
to containers having a lens or lens array formed in the sidewall of a
container.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Using lenticular effects is well known in the packaging industry, as are
lenticular labels for fluid
containers. The drawback to lenticular labels is the relative higher cost
versus that of more
conventional printing, and because the label must be thin, so do the lenses,
necessitating a high
lens count per inch, thus reducing the number of images which may be displayed
and increasing
problems for quality control.
Other lensing effects are known, such as in some liquor bottles, in order to
be noticed behind a
bar, the natural magnification of a curved bottle shows an inward facing image
on a label on the
opposite side. Many plastic water bottles have irregular surfaces so that the
water within exhibits
random lensing effects.
US Pat 5,494,445 to Sekiguchi et al discusses using a container assembly
comprising an empty
bottle with superimposed (combined) butterfly images on the back side wall and
a grid on the
opposite front side wall, having a printed transparent label as the grid, and
another printed label
on the back wall. However, this "grid" method suffers from the light loss
inherent in such a
"barrier strip" method.
US Pat 7,057,823B1 to Raymond discusses locating an image on one side of a
container, which
is imaged by, instead of a barrier strip, lenses molded into the opposite
side. However, this
requires extra glass or plastic to be used. For proper strength in a glass
container, the thickness of
the container, commonly on the order of 3/16" or more, must be at least as
thick as the narrowest
portion of the lenses, and the lenses, if covering a substantial portion of
one side, add to the
volume of material. Or, if the lenses are to be recessed to the same curved
plane as the outside of
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the bottle, this requirement makes the whole bottle thicker. In plastic
containers, which can be on
the order of 5 or 6 thousandths of an inch, lenses would also require a
substantial increase in the
amount of plastic that is normally used, and would present fabrication
problems in a blow-
molded or injection-molded container, which require a uniform wall thickness.
There are disadvantages to both Sekiguchi's and Raymond's designs and methods.
In
Sekiguchi's method, the image is inferior to lenses, and in Raymond's
technique, the
manufacturing cost is higher than normal.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides an optimally clear and bright display, by means
of shaping the
container sides in the form of the surface of lenses or lens arrays, with a
uniform thickness to the
plastic or glass, which act in conjunction with the contained clear fluid to
complete the lens
effect. The manufacturing cost is no higher than that of an ordinary container
and label allowing
injection, blow molding, or other methods and does not require printing in
register on lenticular,
fly's eye, or other types of lenses. The shape of the contour of the surfaces
of lenses or lens
arrays is substantially more articulated than those of a rounded or curved
bottle or container.
A first embodiment is a clear-sided container with at least two parallel
sides, one of which is
shaped as the surface of a lens or lens array, and whose focal plane lies at
the back of an
opposing, smooth, planar side. The opposing side may optionally have with a
slightly indented
area, to which is adhered a label, whose inner-facing side is printed with an
image corresponding
to the lens or lens array. Two such containers can be attached, planar sides
together, to create a
dual-display container, displaying images through both of its outer sides, and
the combined
indented areas may be made accessible from the bottom or side, allowing a
double-sided image
to be inserted, rather than first affixing a label to each container.
Such a dual-display container may also be formed as a single container, rather
than putting two
containers together, and made such that the clear fluid fills both halves,
thus requiring only one
mouth. In either the doubly, or singly formed, dual-display container, the
indented section may
have flat sides, or sides shaped in lens contours. If lens shaped, the
indented section may be
slightly enlarged, and the lenses have a focal plane at that of the inserted
image, with the outer
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container sides being flat for viewing. If the hollow section's sides are
flat, the outer sides of the
container are formed as lens shapes whose focal length is at the plane of the
inserted image.
In another embodiment the image is printed on a thin, flexible sheet, which is
inserted through
the mouth of the container, and with the aid of spacers formed into either the
image sheet or the
container or itself, springs open to position itself parallel to, and at the
focal plane of, the lenses
created by the sides. The container and image may be plastic or any suitable
material. The fluid
may be tinted, carbonated, or viscous, so long as it is clear enough to
exhibit optical properties
necessary.
An additional embodiment relates to lenticular or other lens array displays
rather than to
conventional, practical containers. A flat or curved, substantially planar
container, exhibiting the
same properties as the above-described containers, may be made for image
display only, with
optionally much larger lenses than are normally used in lens arrays. In any
case, cost would be
substantially reduced both in the amount of plastic used, and shipping weight
as well, since the
lens may be shipped empty, and the clear liquid such as water may be filled on
site. Such a
display container would be especially economical in the case of very large, or
very long focal
length lenses, which would normally require more plastic because of their
thickness, or
lamination to a thick spacer. Such a liquid-filled display lens also allows
insertion of a thin
image disposed at the focal plane of the lenses, which by means of attached
flotation devices,
would be virtually weightless and easily moved by means of an attached ferrous
metal piece,
activated by an external magnet on a motor shaft or otherwise moved, creating
a dramatic change
in the image with no motion necessary on the part of the viewer. Additionally,
a "cartesian diver"
method of moving the image up and down by means of applying a slight pressure
to the
container and thereby changing the buoyancy of the floating image could create
a novel toy or
display. Such a liquid-filled lens would also be useful for outdoor displays,
where sunlight would
ordinarily heat the image, but whose heat would be dramatically reduced by the
contained liquid.
Many different container shapes and configurations are possible including
round, rectangular,
oval, polygonal, and non-symmetric shapes as well, as long as the lens-shaped
sides of the clear
containers work in concert with the clear fluid contained to create the lens
effect, beyond the
natural effect produced by a rounded or curved bottle or container. Once used,
the containers
may be refilled with water or any clear liquid to display their images.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment according to the invention;
Fig. 2 is a top view of an embodiment having double containers attached back
to back, with each
container having its own mouth and discrete interior region;
Fig. 3 is a top view of an embodiment also having double containers, but
wherein the containers
are joined internally and having a single mouth, and a perspective view of the
same container;
Fig. 4 is another embodiment which has images spaced from the lens walls; and
Fig. 5 shows a schematic approximation of a single lens in a lens array, and
the path taken by
light rays when the container is filled with a clear liquid whose index of
refraction is
substantially the same as the container walls, compared to the path taken by
light rays which
travel through an empty container.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Several embodiments of the invention will be described, but the invention is
not limited to these
embodiments.
Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a substantially rectangular container "A",
whose front, or first
side is formed in the shape of the surface of a lens array, which, acting in
combination with the
clear fluid inside of it which completes its lens effect, has a focal plane at
the outside surface of
its rear, opposed or second side, at which plane is affixed a label with a
corresponding image.
Fig. 2 shows a double-container, made from two, attached containers, whose
labels just fit in the
combined, indented space between them, at the focal planes of the outer sides,
which double
container can hold two distinct liquids, such as oil and vinegar or shampoo
and conditioner,
wherein each of the two containers are accessible only from its own container
mouth. The
indented spaces may be made in such a way as to allow either affixed labels,
or a double-sided
label, inserted after assembly.
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Fig. 3 shows a single-formed version of the two attached containers, wherein
the interior spaces
of the two containers are joined and having a single mouth with a single,
double-sided label
inserted as in the double container of Fig 2.
Fig. 4 shows a container whose lensed sides focus within the container at the
plane of an inserted
image, printed on a flexible substrate, which is rolled or otherwise
compressed, so as to be able
to be inserted through the container mouth, and subsequently springs open,
disposing itself at the
focal plane of the lensed sides, by means of spacers formed into the flexible
image or the
container.
Figure 5. shows an enlarged view of a single lens element within an array, and
the paths taken by
light rays in a fluid-filled versus an empty container. The container wall "A"
is of a uniform
thickness, which, in a plastic bottle may be as thin as about 0.005". If the
container, as shown in
area "B", is empty, the light rays, "D" will pass through the wall with little
deviation to their
direction, since the change in refractive index of 1 from the outer air, to
very approximately 1.5
of the glass or plastic (somewhat higher for PET plastic, commonly used in
plastic bottles) is
reversed when the rays pass from the wall back to air inside the container.
The result is that the
rays do not focus.
However, when the container is filled with a substantially index-matching
liquid, as shown in
area "C", the thin, curved surface of the container wall acts in conjunction
with the contained
fluid as a single lens, much like a "doublet" lens made of two types of glass,
and the light rays
focus as determined by the radius of curvature of the container surface. The
container's label "E"
on the side opposite the lens array, and whose image corresponds to the lens
array and faces
inward, lies at the array's focal plane. For the sake of the illustration the
light rays are shown
traveling into the container, but of course travel in both directions and an
observer on the array-
side of the container will see label's inner image as an optical display
showing three-
dimensionality, motion, or any of those properties commonly associated with
such lens arrays.
Although several embodiments have been described, the present invention is not
limited to these
embodiments, and other variations and modifications can be made as will occur
to those in the
art. The scope of the invention is defined only by way of the following
claims.
