CLOSURE ASSEMBLY, SYSTEM AND METHOD OF USE
A closure assembly (100) for a container (200) is provided. The closure assembly (100) includes a frame (105) configured to couple to a container (200); an interior lid hingedly coupled to the frame (105) along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid (110) includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane (300) housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane (300) defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member (120) fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane (300), wherein the tab member (120) defines a channel groove (125) configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles. The assembly further includes a cover panel (150) hingedly coupled to the frame (105) along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position.
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This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/022,189, filed May 8, 2020, the contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.
FIELDThe disclosed subject matter relates to a device, system and method of a dispensing articles from a container system.
BACKGROUNDContainers can be configured for dispensing sheets of material, such as nonwoven articles used for cleaning, sanitizing, or personal use. Such articles can be circular, oval or rectangular in shape, and can be stored as a roll and the like, and can be stored perforated or separably connected in a container. The material can be packaged dry or can be packaged moistened with a cleaning solution or lotion, for example to produce wet wipes. Conventional containers for such material can include boxes, stand-up containers, canisters or the like, and can be configured as a unitary piece with an orifice to dispense the sheets of material therethrough. Such containers can be rigid, or can be made from a relatively flexible material. The containers can have an opening through which the materials may be removed. Furthermore, the opening may be covered by a lid, such as a hinged cover or adhesive strip that can be opened or closed repeatedly. An example of such containers can be found in U.S. Publication No. 2014/0048553, entitled “Dispenser,” and in the U.S. Publication No. 2014/0103058, entitled “Wipes Dispenser and Disposal,” the contents of each of which is incorporated by reference in their entireties. Typically, these containers are disposable and cannot be refilled with tissue by the consumer.
A disadvantage of such containers is that removal of material can deform the lid assembly, which can cause the closure mechanism of the lid assembly to become loose and/or can decrease the effectiveness of the lid orifice to control dispensing of material.
Further deformation can cause such closure mechanisms to fail, thus preventing the lid from being secured in a closed position over the container. In some conventional containers, the lids have been known to entirely detach from the container.
Another disadvantage of such containers is that the orifice size can affect the dispensing of the material. That is, an orifice that is too small can cause individual sheets of material to tear when pulled out through the orifice. On the other hand, an orifice that is too large can cause the sheets of material to clump or rope when pulled out through the orifice or can cause unnecessary moisture release from the package itself.
Thus, there remains a continued need for improved containers, including lid assemblies for containers for dispensing sheets of material, including wipes. The presently disclosed subject matter satisfies these and other needs.
SUMMARYThe purpose and advantages of the disclosed subject matter will be set forth in and are apparent from the description that follows, as well as will be learned by practice of the disclosed subject matter. Additional advantages of the disclosed subject matter will be realized and attained by the devices particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof, as well as from the appended drawings.
To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the disclosed subject matter, as embodied and broadly described, the disclosed subject matter includes a closure assembly, lid, container system, and method of dispensing articles.
According to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, a closure assembly for a container is provided. The closure assembly includes a frame configured to couple to a container; an interior lid hingedly coupled to the frame along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles; and a cover panel hingedly coupled to the frame along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position.
According to another embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, a lid for a container is provided. The lid comprises a lid rim that defines an opening; a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough; and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles.
In accordance with another aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a container system is disclosed comprising a container, a plurality of articles therein, and the closure assembly as described herein.
In accordance with another aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method of dispensing articles from a container system is further provided. The method includes providing a container system as described herein; transitioning the cover panel to the assembly open position and the lid to the open position; inserting a plurality of articles into the container; transitioning the lid to the closed position; pulling a leading article of the plurality of articles through the zone; and selectively inserting the leading article through the channel grove to separate the leading article from a next article in the plurality of articles.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description and drawings are examples and are provided for purpose of illustration and not intended to limit the scope of the disclosed subject matter in any manner.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, are included to illustrate and provide a further understanding of the devices of the disclosed subject matter. Together with the description, the drawings serve to explain the principles of the disclosed subject matter.
The subject matter of the application will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of the disclosed subject matter, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The examples herein are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosed subject matter in any manner. The disclosed subject matter will be described in conjunction with the detailed description of the system.
The term “about” or “approximately” means within an acceptable error range for the particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, which will depend in part on how the value is measured or determined, i.e., the limitations of the measurement system.
The presently disclosed subject matter provides closure assembly, lid, container system, and method of dispensing articles. According to an embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, the closure assembly includes a frame configured to couple to a container; an interior lid hingedly coupled to the frame along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles; and a cover panel hingedly coupled to the frame along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position. According to another embodiment of the disclosed subject matter, a container system is provided including the closure assembly coupled with a container.
Solely for purpose of illustration,
The cover panel 150 and the lid 110 are individually hingedly coupled to the frame 105 along a first longitudinal side thereof. The cover panel is movable between an assembly open position and an assembly closed position, and the lid 110 is movable between a closed position and an open position. As depicted in
As shown in
An embodiment of the lid rim 115 with the flexible membrane 300 therein is shown as an isolated unit in
The flexible membrane is pliable enough to permit a user to insert their fingers through the membrane at the slot gap and to pull an article from the container therethrough, and strong enough to retain a wipe between the first and second portions such as when the cover panel is in the assembly closed position. As such, the flexible membrane has a first configuration with the first portion and second portion separated by the distance dimension of the slot gap, as shown in
As best shown in the back view of
As depicted in
As best shown in
As noted above, the cover panel 150 and the lid 110 move independently of one another but share the same longitudinal axis for rotation. The lid 110 can be moved between the open and closed position with unrestricted movement. The cover panel 150 can be biased towards the assembly closed position such that the cover panel 150 moves toward the frame when the cover panel is released from the assembly open position. The cover panel can be spring loaded to provide the biasing of the cover panel in the assembly closed position.
As shown in
In accordance with another aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a container system is disclosed comprising a container 200, a package 300 of articles therein, and the closure assembly as described herein. The container can be any suitable container that can contain objects, such as a package of articles therein, and that can be coupled with the frame of the closure assembly. The container can be coupled with the frame in any suitable arrangement, such as for purposes of example by threading or snap fit arrangement. As best shown in the embodiment of
The container 200 can receive the package 400 containing a plurality of articles. The package can be any suitable package such as a flexible wrap package that contains sanitizing wet wipes, as shown for purposes of example in
In accordance with another aspect of the disclosed subject matter, a method of dispensing articles from a container system is further provided and as furthermore discussed above in relation to the aspects of the disclosed subject matter.
Alternatively or additionally thereto, a base of the container can support the container system alone as shown in
The closure assembly, including any of the components thereof, can be made of any suitable material to enable the device to function as described herein. For example, components of the assembly not otherwise specified herein can be made of a polymer, copolymer or resin, such as HDPE—High Density Polyethylene, LDPE—Low Density Polyethylene, LLDPE—Linear low-density polyethylene, PS—Polystyrene, PVC—Polyvinyl chloride, PP—Polypropylene, ABS—Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene, PET or PETE—Polyethylene terephthalate, PC—Polycarbonate, SAN—Styrene acrylonitrile, POM—Polyoxymethylene, Acrylic, Nylon, and combinations or blends thereof. Furthermore, the assembly or components of the device can comprise metal, glass or ceramic. The components can be made of the same material or can be made of different material.
The assembly can be constructed by any suitable method. Examples of such methods includes, but is not limited to, overmolding, injection molding, thermoforming, compression molding, transfer molding, machining, additive manufacturing/three dimensional printing, and the like and other suitable methods are contemplated herein.
The container system can be any color, or a plurality of colors. For example, a closure assembly having an orange cover panel can be indicative of a product contained therein having bleach. The device can furthermore include patterns and texture to be more aesthetically pleasing to consumers or to communication certain kind of information to a consumer. The texture processing can include brail, engraving, embossing, and debossing. The system can furthermore be plated, coated, and painted. The container system can further be coated such as with clear or tinted coatings as known in the industry. The system can also be painted, coated with polymers, sprayed, and dipped. The system can additionally include in mold labeling, adhesive labeling, hot stamping, printing, and water transfer films.
While the disclosed subject matter is described herein in terms of certain embodiments and representative examples, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and improvements can be made to the disclosed subject matter without departing from the scope thereof. Additional features known in the art likewise can be incorporated. Moreover, although individual features of one embodiment of the disclosed subject matter can be discussed herein or shown in the drawings of the one embodiment and not in other embodiments, it should be apparent that individual features of one embodiment can be combined with one or more features of another embodiment or features from a plurality of embodiments.
In addition to the various embodiments depicted and claimed, the disclosed subject matter is also directed to other embodiments having any other possible combination of the features disclosed and claimed herein. As such, the particular features presented herein can be combined with each other in other manners within the scope of the disclosed subject matter such that the disclosed subject matter includes any suitable combination of the features disclosed herein. Furthermore, although reference is made to a system for integrating a package with a container throughout this disclosure, other suitable container-like devices can be integrated using the system and method disclosed herein, such as a disposable container attachable directly to the frame. Thus, the foregoing description of specific embodiments of the disclosed subject matter has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosed subject matter to those embodiments disclosed.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the system and method of the disclosed subject matter without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosed subject matter. Thus, it is intended that the disclosed subject matter include modifications and variations that are within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
Claims
1. A closure assembly for a container, comprising:
- a frame configured to couple with a container;
- a lid hingedly coupled to the frame along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles; and
- a cover panel hingedly coupled to the frame along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position.
2. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the flexible membrane includes a first portion and a second portion separated by a distance dimension of a slot gap defining the zone, wherein the first portion and section portion are configured to retain an article therebetween.
3. The closure assembly of claim 2, wherein the first portion and the second portion cooperate together to permit a plurality of articles to be pulled therethrough without causing a separation of individual articles from the plurality of articles.
4. The closure assembly of claim 2, wherein the flexible membrane has a first configuration with the first portion and second portion separated by the distance dimension of the slot gap, wherein a separation force exerted on the first portion and the second portion expands the slot gap into a second configuration and upon removal of the separation force, the first and second portion transition back to the first configuration.
5. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the flexible membrane includes a first portion and a second portion, wherein the first portion and section portion overlap with each other and are configured to retain an article therebetween.
6. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the membrane comprises at least one of silicone rubber, thermoplastic elastomer, thermoplastic polyurethane, polyester, and polyethylene.
7. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the tab member is rigidly disposed to the lid rim and disposed opposite the first longitudinal side of the frame.
8. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the tab member is positioned between the cover panel and the membrane.
9. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the tab member further includes a flexible orifice at an end of the channel groove, wherein the flexible orifice separates the leading article from the plurality of articles without removing material liquid from the leading article and retains a next article therein after the leading article is removed.
10. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the frame further includes an interior surface, the interior surface having a frame latching member extending outwardly therefrom, wherein the frame latching member includes a frame projection; and
- wherein the lid includes a sidewall extending downwardly from a perimeter of a bottom surface of the interior lid, the sidewall defining a cavity configured to receive the frame projection therein to lock the lid with the frame in the closed position.
11. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the cover panel is biased towards the assembly closed position.
12. The closure assembly of claim 1, wherein the cover panel and the lid move independently of one another.
13. The closure assembly of claim 1, further comprising a closure retarding system configured to retard movement of the cover panel when the cover panel transitions from the assembly open position to the assembly closed position.
14. The closure assembly of claim 13, wherein the closure retarding system includes a rotary damper.
15. A lid for a container of articles disposed therein, the lid comprising:
- a lid rim that defines an opening;
- a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough; and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles.
16. A container system comprising:
- a container;
- a closure assembly having: a frame configured to couple to the container, a lid hingedly coupled to the frame along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles, and a cover panel hingedly coupled to the frame along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position; and
- a plurality of articles receivable within the container, wherein a leading article of the plurality of articles is accessible in the container through the flexible membrane when the cover panel is in the assembly open position.
17. The container system of claim 16, wherein the container is at least partially transparent and product information of the plurality of articles is viewable through the container.
18. The container system of claim 17, wherein articles are selectively fed through the membrane alone or selectively fed through the membrane and the tab member.
19. The container system of claim 17, wherein the articles are wet nonwovens.
20. The container system of claim 17, wherein the plurality of articles are contained in a package and the package comprises a flexible package of wet wipes therein.
21. A method of dispensing articles from a container system, comprising
- providing a container,
- a closure assembly having: a frame configured to couple to the container, a lid hingedly coupled to the frame along a first longitudinal side thereof and movable between a closed position and an open position, wherein the lid includes a lid rim that defines an opening, a flexible membrane housed within the opening of the lid rim, wherein the flexible membrane defines a zone configured to permit a plurality of articles to feed therethrough, and a tab member fixedly coupled to the lid rim and extending above the membrane, wherein the tab member defines a channel groove configured to receive a leading article of the plurality of articles therein and separate the leading article from the plurality of articles, and a cover panel hingedly coupled to the frame along the first longitudinal side thereof and movable between an assembly closed position and an assembly open position, and
- a plurality of articles receivable within the container, wherein a leading article of the plurality of articles is accessible in the container through the flexible membrane when the cover panel is in the assembly open position;
- transitioning the cover panel to the assembly open position and the lid to the open position;
- inserting the plurality of articles into the container;
- transitioning the lid to the closed position;
- pulling a leading article of the plurality of articles through the zone; and
- selectively inserting the leading article through the channel grove to separate the leading article from a next article in the plurality of articles.
Type: Application
Filed: May 6, 2021
Publication Date: Jul 13, 2023
Applicant: PROFESSIONAL DISPOSABLES INTERNATIONAL, INC. (Woodcliff Lake, NJ)
Inventor: Gerard Anthony CAHALAN (New Milford, CT)
Application Number: 17/997,699