INTERMEDIATE BULK CONTAINER LINER

Abstract

A liner (10) is disclosed for use with a bulk container having mounting posts (20) along a top edge (18). The liner has a liner body (23) which has top wall (26), a bottom wall (27), a front wall (28), a liner rear wall (29) and two side walls (30). The liner also includes a front mounting tab (40) and a rear mounting tab (41). Each mounting tab is mounted to and extends across the vast majority of the width of the liner body. Each mounting tab has two semi-circular cuts therethrough which form liner front mounting openings (43) and (44). This orientation allows for the mounting posts to be positioned upon the curved portion of the openings to aid in distributing pulling forces upon the tabs to restrict tearing of the material along the openings.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to bulk material liners used in conjunction with intermediate bulk containers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Flexible liners are oftentimes utilized in conjunction with an intermediate bulk containers to ship large quantities of liquid, viscous, or granular products. A problem long associated with the use of such liners has been the proper filling of such liners. During the filling process the flexible liner may become folded or creased upon itself, resulting in it not expanding to its maximum volume. Furthermore, this may cause the liner to be pulled or stretched along one portion causing an uneven filling of the container or a tearing of the liner material.

One solution to the filling problem has been the utilization of a fill bridge during the filling process. A fill bridge is an elongated member which is coupled to the top of the container and extended along the top surface of the liner so that it holds the liner top fitment in place during filling. Accordingly, this requires a separate structure to be mounted to and later dismounted from the container. Furthermore, as the liner is only coupled to the bridge at one location the fitment, all the pressure during filling is likewise concentrated on the fitment and its associated welds. This concentration of force is not desired as it may cause damage to the liner at the location of the top fitment.

Another solution has been the incorporation of corner tabs, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 7,798,711. These corner tabs provide some support to the liner during filling. However, the material can still become folded upon itself as only the corners are supported. Also, the placement of the tabs on the corners creates a large force upon the tabs as it is concentrated on a relatively small area which is also the most likely to move during the filling process. This concentration and location may likely cause a rupturing or tearing of the tabs during filling.

In addition to the filling problem, flexible liners also may have draining or evacuation problems. The complete or near-complete evacuation of the contents from within the liner is difficult to achieve. This problem may again occur as a result of the liner folding upon itself or moving with the material to a location which blocks the outlet port of the liner.

Accordingly, it is seen that a need remains for an intermediate bulk container liner that can more efficiently filled and/or evacuated of its contents. It is to the provision of such therefore that the present invention is primarily directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A liner for use with a intermediate bulk container comprises a liner body having a top wall, a front wall, a rear wall opposite the front wall, a bottom wall opposite the top wall, and two side walls extending between the front wall and the rear wall. The liner also includes an elongated front mounting tab coupled to the liner body top wall adjacent the front wall. The elongated front mounting tab is coupled to and extends along a majority of the width of the top wall and is removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container. The liner also includes an elongated rear mounting tab coupled to the liner body top wall adjacent the rear wall. The elongated rear mounting tab is coupled to and extends along a majority of the width of the top wall and is removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a liner embodying principles of the invention in a preferred form, shown in an exploded configuration with an intermediate bulk container.

FIG. 2 is an assembled view of the liner and intermediate bulk container of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a portion of the liner and intermediate bulk container of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference next to the drawings, there is shown a liner 10 embodying principles of the invention in a preferred form. The liner 10 is configured to be used in conjunction with an intermediate bulk container 11, which can be in the form of a rigid or a semi-rigid container made or plastic, metal, paper or other suitable, like material.

The intermediate bulk container 11 has a front wall 13, a rear wall 14, two oppositely disposed side walls 15, and a bottom wall 16. The container front wall 13 has a fitment opening 17 adjacent the bottom wall 16. The top lip, surface or edge 18 of the front wall, rear wall, and two side walls have recesses 19 extending downwardly into each wall. Within each recess 19 is positioned a mounting post 20 which may be utilized to couple an unshown lid to the container walls 13, 14 and 15. The mounting posts 20 are preferably made of metal.

The liner 10 includes a liner body 23 which has a tubular central band or portion 24, and two oppositely disposed end caps 25 which together form a liner top wall 26, a liner bottom wall 27, a liner front wall 28, a liner rear or back wall 29 and two oppositely disposed liner side walls 30. The liner walls may be considered to be, and referenced herein as, surfaces since the walls may not be distinct from each other, since the top wall, bottom wall, front wall, and side walls may be formed integrally with each other as a single tube. As such, the walls are considered “joined” to each other regardless of the actual joining construction or lack thereof. The liner body 23 is generally box shape and can be described generally as a rectangular prism, although it should be understood that due to the bellowing of flexible plastic materials the walls of the rectangular prism are not perfectly straight and some bowing or bellowing occurs. The liner body 23 is preferably of a two or three ply construction plastic sheet or film material such as a polyethylene film with a preferred thickness of 3 to 4 mils. It should be understood that the liner body 23 may be of any conventional construction, such as that shown in the preferred embodiment, a gusseted design, a pillow design, or a tapered design sometimes referred to in the industry as a bottleneck design.

The liner body 23 includes a content inlet port or fitment 33 sealed to and extending through the liner top wall 26 and a content outlet port or fitment 34 sealed to and extending through the liner front wall 28 closely adjacent to the bottom wall 27. A top fitment cap 35 is removably coupled to the inlet fitment 33 while a bottom fitment cap 36 is removably coupled to the outlet fitment 34.

The liner 10 also includes an elongated front mounting skirt or tab 40 and an elongated rear mounting skirt or tab 41. Each mounting tab 40 and 41 is mounted to and extends across the vast majority of the width of the liner body 23, shown as approximately 90 percent of the width in the preferred embodiment but may be considered to be generally greater than approximately 70 percent of the liner width. The tabs 40 and 41 may be mounted to the liner body through conventional heat welding, or any other known attachment means such as pinching and welding the corner edge of the liner body, sonic welding, adhesives or the like. The mounting tabs 40 and 41 are preferably made of a multilayered plastic material, such as a nylon or a reinforced HDPE/LDPE material, having a material thickness of approximately 8 mils.

The front mounting tab 40 has two curved or semi-circular cuts therethrough which form liner front mounting openings 43. Similarly, the rear mounting tab 41 has two semi-circular cuts therethrough which form liner rear mounting openings 44. Each of the front and rear mounting openings 43 and 44 are configured to receive a container mounting post 20 therethrough. The front and rear mounting openings 43 and 44 are oriented so that their bends or bights are facing outwardly, i.e., they are oriented so that the front mounting tab openings and rear mounting tab openings face each other in a concave fashion. This orientation allows for the mounting posts 20 to be positioned upon the curved portion of the openings to aid in distributing pulling forces upon the tabs to restrict tearing of the material along the openings. The openings 43 and 44 are preferably placed adjacent to the corners of each tab 40 and 41 to provide a large distance between the openings of each tab.

In use, the top fitment cap 35 is removed from the inlet fitment 33 to allow air to enter the liner body 23 as the liner is manipulated to a position telescopically within the container 11. Once positioned, the liner front wall 26 is generally flush against the container front wall 13, the liner back wall 29 is generally flush against the container rear wall 14 and the remaining liner walls likewise generally flush against the corresponding container walls. The liner outlet fitment 34 is positioned through the corresponding fitment opening 17 in the container front wall 13.

The rear mounting tab 41 is then moved rearward so that its rear mounting openings 44 are pulled over the mounting posts 20 of the container rear wall 14, thereby locking the rear mounting tab 41 to the container 11. Likewise, the front mounting tab 40 is moved forward so that its front mounting opening 43 are pulled over the mounting posts 20 of the container front wall 13, thereby locking the front mounting tab 40 to the container 11. In other words, the container posts 20 are positioned within the mounting openings 43 and 44 of the mounting tabs 40 and 42, respectively. The formation of the openings 43 and 44 in a semi-circular shape enables the openings to be pulled over and captured upon the mounting posts in an easy manner. The semi-circular shape also aids in preventing a ripping or tearing of the tab material when placed under stress during filling. The proper mounting of the tabs should result in the liner top wall 26 between the tabs being taught or nearly taught.

With the front and rear mounting tabs 40 and 41 coupled to the container 11 through the mounting posts 20, the liner body 23 is maintained in a generally upright and fully extended position for filling. As liquid, or other material, is poured into the liner 10 the liner walls remain conformed to the container in an unfolded condition as the liner body 23 is supported across virtually the entire front and rear width or length of the liner top wall 26. This support along the top wall 26 translates to maintaining the liner front and back walls, 28 and 29, flat against the interior of the container front and rear walls 13 and 14. This positioning of the liner front and back walls also maintains the adjoining liner side walls 30 flat against the interior of the container side walls 15.

It should be understood that the mounting of the front and rear mounting tabs 40 and 41 along the vast majority of the width of the liner body 23 aids in maintaining the liner front and rear walls stretched and unfolded. This mounting along the width of the liner body also disperses the pulling force upon the tabs along an elongated portion of the liner body, as oppose to the corner tabs of the prior art. This dispersement aids in preventing tearing of the tab or the liner due to stresses between the tabs and the liner body 23.

Once the liner 10 is filled with material, the front and rear mounting tabs 40 and 41 may be removed from the mounting posts 20 and folded upon the liner top wall 26. The unshown lid may then be mounted upon the top edge 18 of the container using the mounting posts 20 as a guide and lock. The lid is used when the container is transported to another location or stacked one container upon another.

During the discharge of the material from the liner 10, the liner front and rear mounting tabs 40 and 41 are once again mounted upon the mounting posts 20 to maintain the position of the liner body 23. The bottom fitment cap 36 is then removed from the outlet fitment 34 so that the material may be drained from the liner 10.

The placement of the front and rear mounting tabs 40 and 41, with their extended length across the width of the liner body, aids in maintaining the liner generally uprightly and in an unfolded or uncreased condition. As the liner material is depleted from the liner, the liner walls remain upright, which prevents them from folding down upon or otherwise blocking the outlet fitment 34. Again, the extended length of the tabs disperses the pulling force thereon, thereby preventing a concentration of force which may rip or tear the tab from the liner body.

Alternatively, during the material discharge of the liner, the liner may be coupled to a device to aid the evacuation process. For example, the rear mounting tab 41 may be coupled to a rolling device that gathers the liner by rolling it about a cylinder through a rotating pulling force. These types of devices raise the liner as the material is depleted so as to funnel the material towards the outlet fitment 34.

It should be understood that the front and rear mounting tabs may alternatively be moved to a position adjacent to the liner side walls 30. As such, the term front and back walls 28 and 29 may be considered side walls 30, or visa-versa.

Also, the front and rear mounting tabs may be moved to a position mounted to the front and back walls 28 and 29, or to the side walls 30, closely adjacent the joinder of the top wall. As indicated by the phantom lined tabs 40′ in FIG. 1.

It thus is seen that a liner is now provided which overcomes problems associated with liners of the prior art. While this invention has been described in detail with particular references to the preferred embodiments thereof, it should be understood that many modifications, additions and deletions, in addition to those expressly recited, may be made thereto without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A liner for use with an intermediate bulk material container, said liner comprising,

a liner body having a top wall, a front wall, a rear wall opposite said front wall, a bottom wall opposite said top wall, and two side walls extending between said front wall and said rear wall, said top wall having a select width;

an elongated front mounting tab coupled to said liner body top wall adjacent said front wall, said elongated front mounting tab being coupled to and extending along a majority of said width of said top wall, said front mounting tab being removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container, and

an elongated rear mounting tab coupled to said liner body top wall adjacent said rear wall, said elongated rear mounting tab being coupled to and extending along a majority of said width of said top wall, said rear mounting tab being removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container.

2. The liner of claim 1 wherein said front mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting openings therethrough, each said mounting opening of said front mounting tab being configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container, and wherein said rear mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting opening therethrough, each said mounting opening of said rear mounting tab being configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container.

3. The liner of claim 2 wherein said mounting openings of said front mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape, and wherein said mounting openings of said rear mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape.

4. The liner of claim 3 wherein said front mounting tab generally semi-circular mounting openings are oriented to be concave towards a central portion of said liner body, and wherein said rear mounting tab generally semi-circular mounting openings are oriented to be concave towards the central portion of said liner body.

5. A liner for use with an intermediate bulk material container, said liner comprising,

a liner body having a top surface, a bottom surface, and four sidewall surfaces extending between said top surface and said bottom surface;

an elongated first mounting tab coupled to said liner body adjacent the joinder of said top surface to a first sidewall surface of said four sidewall surfaces, said first mounting tab includes at least one mounting openings therethrough configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container, said first mounting tab being removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container, and

an elongated second mounting tab coupled to said liner body adjacent the joinder of said top surface to a second sidewall surface of said four sidewall surfaces, said second mounting tab includes at least one mounting opening therethrough configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container, said second mounting tab being removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container.

6. The liner of claim 5 wherein said at least one mounting opening of said first mounting tab is generally semi-circular in shape, and wherein said at least one mounting opening of said second mounting tab is generally semi-circular in shape.

7. The liner of claim 6 wherein said generally semi-circular mounting opening of said first mounting tab is oriented to be concave towards a central portion of said liner body, and wherein said generally semi-circular mounting opening of said second mounting tab is oriented to be concave towards the central portion of said liner body.

8. The liner of claim 5 wherein said first mounting tab and said second mounting tab are mounted to said top surface of said liner body.

9. The liner of claim 5 wherein said elongated first mounting tab is coupled to and extends along a majority of the width of said top surface, and wherein said elongated second mounting tab is coupled to and extends along a majority of the width of said top surface.

10. A combination liner and intermediate bulk material container comprising,

an intermediate bulk material container having a bottom wall, a first side wall, a second side wall, a third side wall, and a fourth side wall, at least two of said side walls having a top edge with a pair of upwardly extending mounting posts, and

a liner having a liner body telescopically positioned within said intermediate bulk material container, said liner body including a bottom surface, a top surface, a first side wall surface, a second side wall surface oppositely disposed from said first side wall surface, a third side wall surface extending between said first and second side wall surfaces, and a fourth side wall surface extending between said first and second side wall surfaces, said liner also having an elongated first mounting tab and an elongated second mounting tab, said elongated first mounting tab being coupled to said liner top surface adjacent said first surface and extending along a majority of the width of said top surface of said liner body, said first mounting tab being removably coupled to said mounting posts of said intermediate bulk material container first side wall, and said elongated second mounting tab being coupled to said liner top surface adjacent said second surface and extending along a majority of the width of said top surface of said liner body, said second mounting tab being removably coupled to said mounting posts of said intermediate bulk material container second side wall.

11. The combination liner and intermediate bulk material container of claim 10 wherein said first mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting openings therethrough each being configured to receive one said mounting post of said first wall of said intermediate bulk material container, and wherein said rear mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting opening therethrough each being configured to receive one said mounting post of said second wall of said intermediate bulk material container.

12. The combination liner and intermediate bulk material container of claim 11 wherein said plurality of mounting openings of said first mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape, and wherein said plurality of mounting openings of said second mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape.

13. The combination liner and intermediate bulk material container of claim 12 wherein said generally semi-circular mounting openings of said first mounting tab are oriented to be concave towards a central portion of said liner body, and wherein said generally semi-circular mounting openings of said second mounting tab are oriented to be concave towards the central portion of the liner body.

14. A liner for use with an intermediate bulk material container, said liner comprising,

a liner body having a top wall, a bottom wall opposite said top wall, a first sidewall, a second sidewall opposite said first sidewall, a third sidewall extending between said first sidewall and said second sidewall, and a fourth sidewall extending between said first sidewall and said second sidewall opposite said third sidewall,

an elongated first mounting tab coupled to said liner body first sidewall adjacent said top wall, said elongated front mounting tab being coupled to and extending along a majority of said width of said first sidewall, said first mounting tab being removably coupled to the intermediate bulk material container, and

an elongated second mounting tab coupled to said a second sidewall adjacent said top wall, said elongated second mounting tab being coupled to and extending along a majority of said width of said second sidewall, said rear mounting tab being removably coupled to said intermediate bulk material container.

15. The liner of claim 14 wherein said first mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting openings therethrough, each said mounting opening of said first mounting tab being configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container, and wherein said second mounting tab includes a plurality of mounting opening therethrough, each said mounting opening of said second mounting tab being configured to receive a mounting post of the intermediate bulk material container.

16. The liner of claim 15 wherein said mounting openings of said first mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape, and wherein said mounting openings of said second mounting tab are generally semi-circular in shape.

17. The liner of claim 16 wherein said first mounting tab generally semi-circular mounting openings are oriented to be concave towards a central portion of said liner body, and wherein said second mounting tab generally semi-circular mounting openings are oriented to be concave towards the central portion of said liner body.