Process for making a stretch-blow moulded container having an integrally moulded handle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9555573-B2
Application number	US-87336810-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 1, 2010
Priority date	Sep 4, 2009
Publication date	Jan 31, 2017
Grant date	Jan 31, 2017

Abstract

The present invention relates to a process for making a container having an integral handle, comprising the steps of:
a) providing a preform ( 1 ) in a mould cavity ( 2 ); b) stretch-blow moulding the preform ( 1 ) to form an intermediate container ( 3 ); c) applying one or more inwardly moving plugs ( 5 ) to form one or more concave gripping region(s), whilst maintaining the pressure within the intermediate container ( 3 ) above 1 bar and whilst the temperature of the material in the gripping region of the intermediate container is at a temperature below the glass transition temperature, T g ; d) releasing excess pressure within the container, preferably prior to withdrawing the plug ( 5 ) from within the container; and e) ejecting the finished container( 6 ) from the mould cavity ( 2,4 ).

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A process for making a container having an integral handle, comprising the steps of:
a) providing a preform in a mould cavity ;
b) stretch-blow moulding the preform to form an intermediate container;
c) applying one or more inwardly moving plugs to plastically deform a portion of the intermediate container to form one or more concave gripping region(s), whilst maintaining the pressure within the intermediate container above 1 bar and whilst the temperature of the material in the gripping region of the intermediate container is at a temperature below the glass transition temperature, T g , wherein the intermediate container has an intermediate surface area of grip and the gripping region in the finished container has a gripping region surface area, wherein the intermediate surface area of grip is smaller than the gripping region surface area;
d) releasing excess pressure within the container; and
e) ejecting the finished container from the mould cavity.

2. The process according to claim 1 , wherein in step c) the temperature of the material in the gripping region of the intermediate container is maintained at a temperature between the glass transition temperature, T g , and about 6° C.

3. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the preform is a polyethylene terephthalate perform.

4. The process according to claim 3 , wherein the glass transition temperature, T g of polyethylene terephthalate is about 81° C.

5. The process according to claim 1 , wherein throughout step c) the material in the gripping region of the intermediate container is biaxially orientated.

6. The process according to claim 1 , wherein step b) is carried out in a blow moulding cavity, and wherein step c) is carried out in a separate deep drawing cavity, and wherein the intermediate container is transferred from the blow moulding cavity to the deep drawing cavity between these two steps.

7. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the outer profile of the plug corresponds to the interior profile of the concave gripping region.

8. The process according to claim 1 , wherein there is provided means for interlocking the opposing concave gripping regions against each other such as to substantially eliminate any relative movement when gripped.

9. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the gripping region of the finished container comprises deep grip palm rest, x,; deep grip finger rest, y; deep grip recess depth, z, and preferably wherein the sum of x +2y +2z is greater than about 107 mm, and preferably the depth of the deep grip recess is greater than about 20 mm (z >about 20 mm).

10. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the step of releasing excess pressure within the container occurs prior to withdrawing the plug from within the container.

Assignees

• Gerlach Christian Gerhard Friedrich
• Etesse Patrick Jean-Francois
• Procter & Gamble

Inventors

• Gerlach Christian Gerhard Friedrich
• Etesse Patrick Jean-Francois

Classifications

• B29K2027/06

  PVC, i.e. polyvinylchloride · CPC title

• B29K2067/046

  PLA, i.e. polylactic acid or polylactide · CPC title

• B29C49/06

  Injection blow-moulding · CPC title

• B29K2025/00

  Use of polymers of vinyl-aromatic compounds {or derivatives thereof} as moulding material · CPC title

• B29C49/4815

  by means of movable mould parts · CPC title