US2666710A - Soft plastic food package - Google Patents

Description

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 29, 1950 ATTORNEYS.

Jan. 19, 1954 L. PETERS SOFT PLASTIC FOOD PACKAGE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 29, 1950 INVENTOR. J {/Qm ATTORNEYS.

Patented Jan. 19, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SOFT PLASTIC FOOD PACKAGE Leo Peters, Evanston, Ill. Application July 29, 1950, Serial No. 176,634

3 Claims.

- advantage in packaging such'foods in non-flatsided shapes and other attractive shapes in which the upper portion of the molded food, after removal from the package, has a downwarly-inclined portion.

The particular problem which materials of this kind solves presents itself when: (1) substantially perpendicular lines are reversed or changed to horizontal direction, or (2) extreme- 1y sharp-edged contours are used in forming consumer-size compartments in retail packages for soft plastic foods and, (3) when the com partment liner is formed from a single, thin, homogeneous web of material used for packaging non-flabsided shapes.

When the perpendicularly-inclined lines of such compartments constantly recede from top to bottom, the weight of the contents on these lines presents no problem because the'lines follow the natural downward curve under pressure of the contents.

However, (1) when the perpendicular lines are reversed to point a substantial section of the compartment upward, or (2) when the perpendicular lines are changed to point a substantial section of the compartment in a general horizontal direction, then the weight of the contents acts as a deterrent to the upward sweep of this section of the compartment. And the thin flexible materials which must be used (in 'order eventually to remove the contents) will not -maintain this reversed or changed direction unless they have sufficient structural strength of their own to resist the pressure of the contents.

Similarly if sharp-edged contours are required in the shapes, it is obvious that a relatively stiff material that will not bend easily under pressure from the'contents is needed; that the soft, yielding, easy to fold and bend materials that are not of themselves self-supporting will not do.

- In the solution of the above problem, I have suggested the use of certain types of material which, while flexible, nevertheless are sufficient- 1y stiff to hold their shape without any'other supporting medium. Such thin materials, such as metal foils, serve this purpose and because of their flexibility may be peeled away from the food.- However, the use of such materials as metal foils presents in itself a problem in connection with the attachment of the liners to the consumer-size compartments and the important need of maintaining the figured liners and contents completely out of contact with the compartment walls. If the liner is permanently secured to the compartment wall, it may be necessary to use an adhesive or other means for bonding the liner to the compartment wall, or it may be necessary with some foods to use slight hand pressures to push the foods out, or it may be necessary to have the compartment wall accompany the liner in covering unused portions of the food in the refrigerator. The above apparent requirements, which seem to be part and parcel of a liner that is permanently attached to the compartments, are frequently undesirable features, and therefore a problem presents itself on how to retain the advantages of a thin flexible liner while yet avoiding what are frequently its disadvantages.

A still further problem is presented in finding means for supporting the foods and in molding the same to reverse percendicular lines in the lower portion of the mold while at the same time enabling the foods to be readily removed. In the use of certain fairly stiff materials such as metal foils, there is a tendency for the food to cling to such supports and not to be removed with the same ease that they are removed from very flexible plastic and similar films. If a pack could be provided which would enable the flexible film to be utilized for the major portion of the package while at the same time providing the stiffening support at the points where the perpendicular lines are to be reversed, the advantages of both types of packs could be obtained while at the same time utilizing the flexible film as a suspension means for protecting the molded food products during shipment, etc.

An object of the present invention is to provide a package which solves the problems enumerated above and accomplishes the desired advantages. A further object is to provide a thin and stiff, yet flexible and peelable liner draped in reverse-line or changed-line positions within and/or over the edge of the compartment and held thus by the inherent stifiness of the liner itself, the downward pressure exerted by the contents, and/or the bent and creased portion of the liner if the same is draped over the edge of the compartment Wall. A further object is to provide a thin and stiff, but flexible and peelable, liner or film which has sufficient thickness to be draped and molded in desirable shapes andstifiness to maintain it- Self in reverse-perpendicular line, and perpendicular-to-horizontal line positions against pressure from the weight of the contents, the film o1; liner being sufiiciently malleable or flexible to peel off easily from the molded contents. A still further object is to provide a single film or liner of sufficient stiffness or rigidity to enable it to remain in Whatever position it is bent so as to form and shape the soft plastic food introduced thereinto, such film, however, being bendable to enable it to be supported" by a stiff support and removable'freely therefrom, the liner or film being also readily peelable from the molded food contents. Yet another object to provide a film or liner which graspathe-compartment walls securely in reverse-line position without being sealed or bonded thereto; yet'when "partment or tube wall Hi and the upper edge of the liner may be bent outwardly and downwardly to provide an annular flange l2 which serves as sa-lhook fort-securing the liner firmly upon the age structure which is not bonded orotherwise I permanently attached to the container walls, but

which :will yet "hold the figuredsides-:ofitself and the contents suspendedfrom, but out of contact with, the compartment walls. .Azstill-fur- -therobject is to provide *a package-structure. in which h-ighlyfiexiblefilm is employed for suspending the product,-the film being :laminated with a sti'fiening support .for reversing perpendicular linesor'for changing the-lines of the "molded :product, such "combined structure permitting a ready release of. the molded food' productwithout marring or distorting the delicate lines thereof. Otherspecific objects and-advantages will appear as the specificationproceeds.

The invention is shown in illustrative embodi- -Inents by the accompanyingdrawing, in which- :Fis-urc l is-a perspective view of apackage embodying myinvention; Fig.2, ta" vertical sectional view'of one of the containers within the package; Fig. 3, a perspective?viewi'showing the removal of 'the*tube from the supporting film 'or liner; Fig. 4, "a"similar perspectiveviewshow- :ing theiremoval sofithelinert'orifilm; i Fig. 5,'a

perspective View of amodified" formof container;

Fig. '6, a vertical *sectional view of the? structure shown in 5;:Fig.z7;aperspectiveview showingthe removal of'the food 'contentsfromthe container illustrated in Figs.'r-5,261and 7; Fig. '8,

" a perspective view 50f another modified form .'Of "container; Fig. *9, a vertical "sectional View of the structure shown'in-Fig.i8; landFig. 10,'a/*

perspective view illustrating the removal of the 'food contents from :the: container illustrated in Figs. 8, 9 and 10.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs. 1 to 4 inclusive, I-provide a tube support H! which may beof cardboard, laminated board, plastic, molded pulpwood, 'or any suitable-material. The purpose or the tube" lflis to provide a support for the structure which will be described.

Supported by *tube It! is "aliner or film II "Whichmay beformed of metal foil such as,"for example, aluminum, tin, "or-"any 'of the "metal foils. it may also be'formed of treated papers which have suflicient stiffness "to retain their shape while at the sameti-mebeing bendable to permit the cup receptacle to'be inverted for these various materials.

The metal foils are particularly useiul for this Also plastic orthermoplastic films m "illustrated in'Fig. 3.

support HI. It will be understood that the sup- "-port ll-may be square, rectangular, or of any -desired..shape,. and that the material H may be readily bent to'form a tight gripping flange I2 about 'the sides of the support. The weight of the contents bearing down on the liner keeps ntherlinerfirmly heldzupon the top' of "the support While-rat i the same time the. stiffness of the :foil:orcothertmaterial: forming the liner. I causes .its-fiange to grip the top of thesupport llland the gripping thereof around the top of the sup- .port keeps it from being pulled away from the support.

Because of the stiffness of thefoikthedirection -of the downward pull; which is substantially :per-

pendicular, and the reversed direction 'on' both .sides of the wall, and the bent. and creased" position of the'foil that grips the supportythe foil iltSlfiW-l'lli tendto break before: loosening? its grip uponthe wall as long as the wall is'in the normal upright position. At the same time, the figured portions of the liner and its contents are kept freefrom contact with thecompartment walls, regardless of the jars and bumps received intransitand use.

When, however, the container is inverted to remove the contents, the foil slips loose and read ily frees itself 'fromthe wall, under the weight of the'food contents, thus leaving the liner alone, withthe contents on the receiving dish l3, as The peripheral flange [2 at the top edge of the liner or film (which becomes "the bottom edge when it is on the receiving dish I I3) now provides a' handle or gripping member which may be grasped by the consumer to peel the member H free from the contents. The foil may be retained to cover up unused portions of the food contents after the meal, the tube or support I 0' being thrown away.

I prefer to provide the container with aclosure or'fllm cover M, as illustrated best in Fig. 2, and

*preferablyone side of the film is extended later- 'trated,by'the use of adhesive or'other suitable means.

"ll-plurality of the'containers may be stacked one'uponthe other, as illustrated in Fig. 1, and

adhesive tape l5 may be securedto the various containersso as to unite them in a single, rigid, retail package.

The tape it may, if desired, be run circumferentially of the contents so as to overlap adjacent containers and thus unite them. Any other suitable meansfor releasably uniting the containers "may "be employed.

ln'the operation of the structure, the consumer 'rmay'peel away the top portion of the tape'strips ."5 $0 tree-the uppermost container. The "pulltab [5' of the uppermost cover I4 may then be drawn to remove the cover. The container may then be inverted as illustrated in Fig. 3, to allow the liner II and the food contents to fall on the dish I3. The consumer may then grasp the outerv edge portion l2 of the liner to remove it from the food contents, as illustrated in Fig. 4.

In the illustration shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7, the liner or film Ila is preferably formed of thin, flexible material which is suspended from the top of the support and is united to the top of the support by rubber cement or other suitable means. The film may be formed of thermoplastic or plastic material which flows under temperature or solvent conditions to provide a cup or container. For example, chlorinated rubber (Pliofilm), polyethylene, vinyl, acetate copolymers, vinylidene chloride, polyamids, and a large number of such well-known resins, may be used. Also, certain other sheeting material such as treated parchment papers, etc., may be employed. The above materials are used in a form which provides a highly flexible film and which suspends the food material in a resilient cup. However, the film retains mold lines. The great advantage of such film is that when the package I0 is inverted, as illustrated in Fig. 7, the film falls downwardly to permit a quick and clean separation of the food contents.

Since the flexible film Ha does not have sufficient stiffness to provide the support needed for a reverse central curve, as illustrated in Fig. 6, I secure to the central portion of film I la a strip of metal foil 11 which tends to retain its shape against the pressure of the food contents. The strip [1 is bonded by adhesive or other means to the film Ha and a central portion [3 of the film I la is maintained in the upwardly-curved direction illustrated. A cover IQ of transparent film may be sealed by a pressure sensitive adhesive to the edge of the thermoplastic film Ila, as illustrated in Fig. 6.

In the illustration given in Figs. 8, 9 and 10, a rectangular tube 20 is illustrated and a film H1) is secured thereto. The film H1) is sealed to the top of the support 20 and is provided with a cover 2! similar to cover 19 of the structure shown in Figs. 5 to 7 inclusive.

The film I lb may be formed of the same materials above described for film I la, and to the bottom of the cup thus provided by the film Ha, I secure a plate 22 formed of metal foil or any other suitable material which is both stiff and flexible and which is useful in preparing a mold having upwardlyand downwardly-extending lines. In the illustration given, the plate 22 has a bird design and supports the fihn portion 23 immediately thereabove so as to give it the same configuration. The plate 22 is secured to the film llb by adhesive or any other suitable means.

After the removal of the cover 2|, the support 20 may be inverted, as illustrated in Fig. 10, to permit the removal of the food product, which falls upon the plate l3 therebelow. As illustrated further in Fig. 10, the film portion 23 permits the molded food to fall out of the compartment by its own weight, and the plate 22 permits a peeling action to take place so that the bird design is exposed and left intact on the food.

The new package is useful in the packaging of soft plastic foods such as butter, margarine, cheese, ice cream, gelatine, liver sausage, meat pastes, jellies, and a variety of similar products.

While in the foregoing specification, I have set forth a specific structure in considerable detail, it will be understood that such details of structure may be varied widely by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

1. In a soft plastic food package, the combination comprising a thin, flexible thermoplastic film providing a reversible cup, said cup having downwardly and inwardly tapering side walls and a bottom wall having upwardly-extending portions, a support disposed about said cup, said cup being suspended from said support so that said cup can be reversed and with the side and bottom walls of said cup out of contact with said support, a soft plastic food body within said cup conforming to its shape and pressing downwardly against the upwardly-extending portions of said bottom wall so as to tend to depress said upwardly-extending portions, and a relatively stiif reinforcing sheet laminated to the bottom wall of said pocket and overlying the upwardlyextending portions of said bottom wall while terminating short of said downwardly-extending side walls.

2. The combination of claim 1 in which said reinforcing sheet and the portions of said bottom wall covered thereby are provided with a figured design having raised portions, said design being impressed on the adjacent surfaces of said food body so that said food body presses downwardly on the raised portions of said design, said reinforcing sheet substantially preventing said raised design portions from being depressed under the weight of said food body.

3. The combination of claim 1 in which said. bottom wall is provided with a centrally located upwardly-extending protuberance forming a recess in the adjacent surface of said food body so that said food body presses downwardly on said protuberance, said reinforcing sheet overlylying said protuberance and substantially preventing it from being depressed by the weight of said food body.

F Number LEO PETERS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

Claims (1)

1. IN A SOFT PLASTIC FOOD PACKAGE, THE COMBINATION COMPRISING A THIN, FLEXIBLE THERMOPLASTIC FILM PROVIDING A REVERSIBLE CUP, SAID CUP HAVING DOWNWARDLY AND INWARDLY TAPERING SIDE WALLS AND A BOTTOM WALL HAVING UPWARDLY-EXTENDING PORTIONS, A SUPPORT DISPOSED ABOUT SAID CUP, SAID CUP BEING SUSPENDED FROM SAID SUPPORT SO THAT SAID EUP CAN BE RESERVED AND WITH THE SIDE AND BOTTOM WALLS OF SAID CUP OUT OF CONTACT WITH SAID SUPPORT, A SOFT PLASTIC FOOD BODY WITHIN SAID CUP CONFORMING TO ITS SHAPE AND PRESSING DOWNWARDLY AGAINST THE UPWARDLY-EXTENDING PORTIONS OF SAID BOTTOM WALL SO AS TO TEND TO DEPRESS SAID UPWARDLY-EXTENDING PORTIONS, AND A RELATIVELY STIFF REINFORCING SHEET LAMINATED TO THE BOTTOM WALL OF SAID POCKET AND OVERLYING THE UPWARDLYEXTENDING PORTIONS OF SAID BOTTOM WALL WHILE TERMINATING SHORT OF SAID DOWNWARDLY-EXTENDING SIDE WALLS.

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