Hot fillable plastic container with integrated handle

Abstract

A container for the packaging of a still beverage or other unpressurized liquid, the container being formed from a thermoplastic material and having a body portion with a closed bottom, a neck portion, tapering inwardly as it extends upwardly from the body portion and a closure, receiving finish portion spaced from the body portion and extending from the neck portion. The container has an integral gripping feature that does not require an opening that extends laterally through the container, the gripping feature being formed by spaced, opposed gripping panels that extend laterally into the container from an edge thereof. In a first embodiment, the container body portion has a generally oval cross-section with a larger, part-circular end, and a smaller part-circular opposed end, with the gripping panels extending into the container in the body portion from the opposed end. In a second embodiment, the container has a generally circular body portion and the gripping panels extend into the container in the neck portion. In either embodiment, the gripping panels need not be spaced apart by more than 2½ in., even in a container designed for the packaging of at least 64 oz. of a liquid.

1 - 18 . (canceled)  
   
   
       19 . A hot-fillable container sufficiently large to contain at least 48 ounces of a hot-filled liquid and having an integral hand grip, the container comprising: 
 a generally cylindrical body portion that is generally circular in cross section, the body portion having a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart, inwardly projecting panels for partial collapsing to accommodate shrinkage of a hot filled liquid as it cools in the container;    a generally frusto-conically-shaped neck that tapers inwardly as it extends upwardly from the body portion toward a closure-receiving finish portion, the neck portion being noncircular in lateral cross section and including a smaller diameter end portion having a pair of spaced-apart, opposed inwardly extending gripping panels in the neck portion which do not extend to a longitudinal centerline of the container, and which gripping panels are spaced apart by no more than 2.5 inches.    
   
   
       20 . The container of  claim 19  wherein a ratio of spacing between the opposed gripping panels, as measured between depths of the gripping panels, to a major lateral diameter of the container, does not exceed 0.55.  
   
   
       21 . The container according to  claim 20  wherein the ratio is at least 0.35.  
   
   
       22 . The container according to  claim 20  wherein the ratio is approximately 0.41.  
   
   
       23 . The container according to  claim 19  wherein the liquid is a hot-filled beverage.  
   
   
       24 . The container of  claim 19  wherein the container is sufficiently large to package 48-64 ounces of liquid.  
   
   
       25 . The container of  claim 19  wherein the container is sufficiently large to package at least 64 ounces of liquid.  
   
   
       26 . The container of  claim 19  wherein the body portion has a diameter of at least 4.25 inches.  
   
   
       27 . The container according to  claim 19  wherein the container is a single-piece blow-molded preform container of thermoplastic material.  
   
   
       28 . The container according to  claim 19  wherein the container is a blow-molded container of a thermoplastic selected from the group consisting of polyesters, polyolefins, polyethylene napthalates, nitriles and copolymers thereof.  
   
   
       29 . The container according to  claim 19  wherein the container is a multilayer container.  
   
   
       30 . The container according to  claim 29  wherein the multilayer container includes one or more layers of PET an oxygen barrier material and recycled PET material.