EP3480126A1 - Thermoformed container with demoulding facets - Google Patents

Abstract

The container (10) comprises a thermoformed body (12) having a side wall (12 ' ), a bottom (14) and an opening (10 ' ) opposite the bottom. The side wall has at least one convex portion (11A, 11C) forming a wedge that extends in height. The convex portion has at least one facet (13A, 13C) forming a flat. A pressure exerted on this facet located near the opening, tends to deform the side wall to promote the demolding of the contents of the container.

Description

The present disclosure relates to a container comprising a thermoformed body having a side wall, a bottom and an opening opposite the bottom, the side wall having at least one convex portion forming a wedge that extends in height.

In particular, a container of this type is used to contain a food product, in particular a gelled dessert cream type product, introduced hot into the container, and then cooled. The product being introduced hot, the container acts as a mold whose product perfectly matches the inner shape. Furthermore, at the bottom of the container, may be previously disposed another product, in particular a liquid, which can act as a topping when the contents of the container is removed from the mold. For example, the first product may be an egg custard cream, and the second product caramel or grout. In general, the contents of the container, whether it is one or more products, tends to adhere to the inner wall of the container according to a suction effect.

It may be advantageous to consume the contents of the container out of the latter, after unmolding this content on a plate or the like.

However, the demolding requires to stop the aforementioned suction effect. Thus, it is known to provide containers whose bottom has a breakable part, which can be broken to create an air intake opening in the bottom of the container, or whose bottom has a hole covered with a tongue which can be detached to discover this orifice.

The manufacture of containers of this type, with a breakable or detachable part is relatively expensive. In addition, the containers thus obtained may have areas of weakness or risks of leakage.

The present disclosure therefore aims to improve this state of the art by providing a container substantially free of the aforementioned drawbacks, and allowing easy demolding of its contents.

Thus, the present disclosure relates to a container comprising a thermoformed body having a side wall, a bottom and an opening opposite the bottom, the side wall having at least one convex portion forming a wedge which extends in height, wherein said convex portion forming a corner has at least one flat facet forming a flat which forms a horizontal section a rope for the arc formed by the convex portion, this arc being removed in the region where the rope is present and said at least one facet extends to the bottom from an initial area in the vicinity of the edge of the opening.

The plane facet forming a flat in the convex portion forms a pressure zone. The user wishing to demold the contents of the container can thus seize the latter by its side wall by exerting on the facet a pressure towards the inside of the container. This pressure deforms the convex portion, whose radius of curvature is modified and this deformation propagates so that gaps are created between the inner face of the side wall and the contents of the container, allowing the air to pass and to stop the effect of sucker mentioned above. Because of its flat shape, the facet constitutes on the one hand a natural support zone for the user and, on the other hand, forms a relatively rigid zone whose lateral edges are connected to the rest of the convex portion by zones. of inflection, which favors the propagation of the deformation and the creation of the aforementioned gap. The initial area of the facet is located near the edge of the opening. Thus, the facet defines, in the vicinity of the edge of the opening, a bearing area for the fingers of the user, the bearing area being wide enough for the fingers to apply. Thus, from the vicinity of the edge of the opening, the facet has a width corresponding substantially to the contact width of a human finger on a flat surface. This width is for example at least 0.5 cm, or even at least 0.8 cm.

Optionally, the side wall has at least two facets forming flats on two opposite convex portions of the wall.

These two facets forming flats constitute two areas of natural support, for example for the thumb and index of users.

Optionally, the height difference between the initial zone and the edge of the opening is between 0 and 30% of the height of the side wall, preferably between 0 and 10% of the height of the side wall.

Generally, the notion of "near the edge of the opening" is appreciated relative to the high level of the contents of the container, when it is normally disposed, the bottom being down. Thus, in particular, the facet extends, towards the edge of the opening, at least substantially to the level of the surface of the contents of this container. Thus, the deformation carried out by the abovementioned support is exerted on the level of the surface of the contents of the container and directly allows the air situated above this content to penetrate into the interstices created between this product and the inner face of the container. side wall. Depending on the level of filling, the precipitated values, between 0 and 30% and preferably between 0 and 10% correspond to this level or, in any case, are sufficiently close to it so that the deformation created by the pressure on the facet (s) spreads to the level of the surface of the contents of the container.

Preferably, the facet has a width of at least 0.5 cm, or even at least 0.8 cm, at least in an area located at a distance from the opening which represents at most 30%, or even at most 10% of the height of the the side wall.

Thus, in the immediate vicinity of the opening, the facet has a width sufficient for the user to deform the flat by exerting a support with the fingers, so that this deformation immediately affects the edge of the opening and facilitates the deformation of the whole of this edge so as to promote the detachment of the product contained in the container relative to its side wall and, thus, facilitate demolding.

Optionally, said at least one facet is perpendicular to the plane of the opening.

Optionally, the side wall has at least one flared portion in the direction towards the opening and the at least one facet is formed in said flared portion.

Optionally, the body has a generally pyramidal shape, and said at least one facet has a triangular shape, the tip is turned towards the bottom.

Optionally, the body has a plurality of gadroons, at least one of the gadroons having a flattening which forms said at least one facet.

A gadroon is an example of a convex portion forming a wedge extending in height. Once the product is demolded, it will present ribs corresponding to the internal shapes of the gadroons. However, other forms may be provided, in particular a shape simple to generally square section with slightly rounded corners. In this case, said at least one facet is formed in one of the corners.

Optionally, said at least one facet has a height, measured perpendicular to the plane of the opening, at least substantially equal to 1 cm and a width, measured parallel to the plane of the opening, at least substantially equal to 0.5 cm.

Optionally, said at least one facet has a flat surface of at least 25 mm ² , or even at least 50 mm ² .

Optionally, said at least one facet has at least one rough zone.

• la figure 1 montre, en perspective, un récipient selon un premier mode de réalisation, au moment de son ouverture ;
• la figure 2 montre, également en perspective, le récipient ouvert et retourné contre une assiette ;
• la figure 3 montre la phase de démoulage du contenu du récipient ;
• la figure 4A est une vue en coupe dans le plan IVA-IVA de la figure 2 ;
• la figure 4B est une vue en coupe dans le plan IVB-IVB de la figure 3 ;
• les figures 5, 6 et 7 sont des vues analogues aux figures 1, 2 et 3 pour un autre mode de réalisation ; et
• la figure 8 est une vue en coupe dans le plan VIII-VIII de la figure 6.

The description refers to the accompanying drawings which show, by way of example, embodiments of the container according to the present disclosure.

• the figure 1 shows, in perspective, a container according to a first embodiment, at the time of its opening;
• the figure 2 shows, also in perspective, the open container and turned against a plate;
• the figure 3 shows the demolding phase of the contents of the container;
• the Figure 4A is a sectional view in the IVA-IVA plane of the figure 2 ;
• the Figure 4B is a sectional view in the IVB-IVB plane of the figure 3 ;
• the Figures 5, 6 and 7 are views similar to Figures 1, 2 and 3 for another embodiment; and
• the figure 8 is a sectional view in plan VIII-VIII of the figure 6 .

The Figures 1 to 4 show a container 10 comprising a body 12 which is thermoformed, this body having a side wall which, in this case, has a substantially square four-sided horizontal section 12A, 12B, 12C and 12D, a bottom 14 and an opening 10 ' opposite to the substance. A lid 16, for example a heat-sealed lid is disposed across this opening 10 'to close the container. The body 12 has a horizontal rim 12 "which delimits the above-mentioned opening 10. The lid is, for example, heat-sealed on this rim, By convention, the opening 10 'defines a horizontal plane.

In this case, the side wall 12 'has a horizontal section of generally square shape, as can be seen in particular on the Figures 4A and 4B . More specifically, on the Figure 4A it is understood that it is a square section with four faces 12A, 12B, 12C and 12D, and rounded corners 11A, 11B, 11C and 11D, except for the presence of the facets described below. The radius of curvature in these rounded corners may be relatively small, for example of the order of a few millimeters, in particular 4 to 10 mm.

These corners extend along the height of the container, in a direction from the bottom to the opening, and form convex portions of the side wall. Of particular interest are corners 11A and 11C which each have a facet forming a flat, respectively 13A and 13C. These facets form planar portions which, seen in horizontal section, form somehow strings for the arcs formed by the convex portions of the corners 11A and 11C, these arcs being removed in the region where the strings are present. These two facets 13A and 13C are formed on the two opposite corners 11A and 11C. To unmold the contents of the container, the cover 16 is removed as suggested on the figure 1 , the container is inverted by placing its opening 10 'against a plate, then, as shown in FIG. figure 3 inward pressure is exerted on the facets 13A and 13C. These facets being diagonally opposite, this amounts to pressing them towards one another. In doing so, as we see on the Figure 4B the square formed by the section of the container is deformed, the opposite corners 11A and 11C having facets 13A and 13C tending to approach each other as indicated by the arrows P, while the other opposite corners 11B and 11D tend to move away as indicated by the S arrows. This results in a lozenge shape that tends to loosen the contents of the container from the inner side of the side wall with formation of interstices I. Air can pass in these interstices as indicated by the arrows F on the figure 3 , allowing the demolding of the product.

We see that in this case the facets 13A and 13C extend to the edge of the opening 10 'of the container, that is to say to the flange 12. "Thus, the initial zone 13' of the facets corresponds to the junction zone between the flange 12 "and the side wall 12 'of the container.

These facets present in this case substantially triangular shapes forming isosceles triangles whose tip is turned towards the bottom of the container. In this case, the facets extend about one quarter to one third of the height of the container from its opening. For example, the height H of a facet is of the order of about 2 cm. In the case of a triangle shape, the height of the facet is considered to be its largest dimension in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the opening 10 'of the container materialized by the plane of the rim 12. It is interesting that this height H is at least substantially equal to 1 cm The width of the facets, measured parallel to the plane of the opening, is for its part at least substantially equal to 0.5 cm, in this case it may be In the same way, in the case of a triangle shape, the width of a facet is considered to be its largest dimension in the width direction, parallel to the plane of the opening. flat surface of at least 25 mm ² , or at least 50 mm ² .

It is understood in this case that the side wall of the container is flared in the direction from the bottom 14 to the opening 10 '. In this case, the body 12 has a generally pyramidal shape and, as indicated, the facets have triangular shapes whose tip is turned towards the bottom. The flared shape can promote the aesthetics of the container, and also promote demolding. However, it is interesting that the facets are perpendicular to the plane of the opening, as is the case in the example shown. It can be chosen that the facets are of relatively small dimensions so that their impact on the shape of the content of the demolded container is not very visible. This impact is virtually invisible when the facets are close to the edge of the opening so that, once the contents of the demolded container, they will be at the base of this content unmolded on the plate.

We now describe the Figures 5 to 8 , on which elements similar to those of Figures 1 to 4B are designated by the same references, increased by 100. The container 110 comprises a body 112 with a side wall 112 ', a bottom 114, and a flange 112' defining an opening 110 'across which a cover or In the present case, the body 12 has a plurality of gadroons, respectively 111A, 111B, 111C and 111D, in this case four gadroons, each forming a convex portion forming a wedge which extends according to the height of the container. In its current part, each gadroon has the shape of a substantially semi-circular base portion of the cylinder, disregarding the presence of the facets which will be described below. The base of each gadroon joins the bottom 114 by a rounded portion forming for example a portion of sphere. Thus, in sectional view as on the figure 8 , the side wall has a four-petal flower shape, each petal being formed by a gadroon. The gadroons are interconnected by portions 115 which are in this case each materialized by a vertical line located towards the middle of each side of the side wall.

In this case, each of the gadroons has a flattening which forms a facet. Thus, the side wall has four facets, 113A, 113B, 113C and 113D which, for each gadroon, substantially horizontal section form the string of an arc whose curved arc portion, corresponding to the continuity of the godron, is removed . Each of the facets extends towards the bottom from an initial zone 113 'located near the edge of the opening 110'. In this case, the initial zone is substantially located at the top level of each gadro, substantially corresponding to the filling level of the container.

Each of the facets extends in a vertical plane, perpendicular to the plane of the opening 110 '. The facets may have a shape, particularly towards the part of the gadroons near the bottom, which contributes to the aesthetics of the container and the demolded contents of the latter. The body of the container may be flared or not towards the opening. The flare can be very light so as to be barely noticeable to the eye. The height H of the facets is here of the order of 70 to 80% of the total height of the side wall, this height H being for example of the order of 5 to 6 cm. The width L of the facets is optionally at least substantially equal to 0.5 cm.

When, as indicated on the figure 7 pressure is exerted on the diagonally opposite facets 113C and 113A, the facets are brought closer to each other in the direction of the arrows P indicated on FIG. figure 8 . At the same time, the flutes 111B and 111D tend to move away from each other in the direction of the arrows S, thus forming gaps between the contents C of the container and the inner face of the side wall, allowing thus the demolding of this content.

As we see on the Figures 5 to 7 the facets 113A, 113B, 113C and 113D may have at least one rough zone Zr. This area may cover the entire surface of the facet considered or, as in this case, cover an area substantially corresponding to the contact surface with the fingertips of a user. The rough zone naturally forms a support zone for the fingers, its roughness facilitating finger contact without sliding and making it attractive for the user, who thus naturally places his fingers on this area in order to demold the contents of the container. The roughness of this area is understood as opposed to the surface condition of the remainder of the side wall of the container. For example, the roughness of the rough zone is 5 to 20 times greater than that of the rest of the surface of the side wall, considered smooth. In particular, the arithmetical mean roughness Ra of the rough zone Zr is between 10 and 20 μm, preferably of the order of 14 μm.

Claims (12)

A container (10; 110) comprising a thermoformed body (12; 112) having a side wall (12 ';112'), a bottom (14; 114) and an opening (10 ': 110') opposite the bottom; lateral having at least one convex portion (11A, 11C; 111A, 111B, 111C, 111D) forming a wedge which extends in height,
characterized in that said convex wedge portion has at least one plane facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) forming a flat section forming a horizontal section a rope for the arc formed by the convex portion, said arc being removed in the region where the string is present and in that said at least one facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) extends to the bottom (14; 114) from an initial area (13 ';113') located near the edge of the opening (10 ';110'). The container of claim 1, wherein the side wall (12 '; 112') has at least two facets (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) forming flats on two opposite convex portions of the wall. Container according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the difference in height between the initial zone (13 '; 113') and the edge of the opening (10 '; 110') is between 0 and 30% of the height of the side wall, preferably between 0 and 10% of the height of the side wall (12 '; 112'). A container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said at least one facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) is perpendicular to the plane of the opening (10 '; 110'). A container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the side wall (12 '; 112') has at least one flared portion in the direction towards the opening and the at least one facet (13A, 13C; 113A , 113B, 113C, 113D) is formed in said flared portion. The container of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the body (12) has a generally pyramidal shape, and said at least one facet (13A, 13C) has a triangular shape, the tip is turned towards the bottom. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the radius of curvature of the corner formed by the convex portion (11A, 11C) is between 4 and 10 mm. A container according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the body (112) has a plurality of flutes (111A, 111B, 111C, 111D), at least one of the flattened gadroons forming said at least one facet (113A, 113B, 113C, 113D). A container according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein said at least one facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) has a height (H), measured perpendicularly to the plane of the opening (10 ' 110 '), at least substantially equal to 1 cm and a width (L), measured parallel to the plane of the opening, at least substantially equal to 0.5 cm. Container according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) has a width of at least 0.5cm, or at least 0.8cm, at least in one zone located at a distance from the opening (10 ', 110') which represents at most 30%, or at most 10% of the height of the side wall (12 '; 112'). A container according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein said at least one facet (13A, 13C; 113A, 113B, 113C, 113D) has a planar surface of at least 25mm ² , optionally at least 50 mm ² . The container of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein said at least one facet has at least one rough zone (Zr).

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