Ergonomic container

Abstract

A container has a side wall defining therein a hollow space, a bottom connected to the side wall, a top opposite the bottom, and a handle. The side wall has an exterior surface. The top connects to the side wall and has a dispensing orifice. The handle has a first end and a second end opposite the first end, and the first end is connected to the exterior surface of the side wall. When the container is completely filled to form a filled container, the filled container has a center of gravity. A line drawn from the first end to the center of gravity and a line drawn from the second end to the center of gravity form therebetween a handle angle of from about 80° to about 150°.

1 . A container for containing a pourable product, the container comprising:
 A. a side wall defining therein a hollow space, the side wall having an exterior surface;   B. a bottom connected to the side wall;   C. a top opposite the bottom, the top connected to the side wall, the top comprising a dispensing orifice; and   D. a handle comprising a first end and a second end opposite the first end, the first end connected to the exterior surface of the side wall,
 wherein when the container is completely filled to form a filled container, the filled container has a center of gravity, wherein a line drawn from the first end to the center of gravity and a line from the second end to the center of gravity form a handle angle of from about 80° to about 150°. 
   
     
     
         2 . The container according to  claim 1  wherein the handle angle is from about 85° to about 120°. 
     
     
         3 . The container according to  claim 1 , the handle having an inner handle midpoint half way between the first end and the second end, wherein
 a tilt angle is formed by a first tilt line perpendicular to a plane formed by the bottom extending toward the top from the center of gravity and a second tilt line connecting the inner handle midpoint and the center of gravity, wherein the tilt angle is from about 5° to about 65°.   
     
     
         4 . The container according to  claim 3  wherein the tilt angle is from about 10° to about 55°. 
     
     
         5 . The container according to  claim 1 , the handle comprising an inner handle surface extending from the first end to the second end, the inner handle surface proximal to the exterior surface of the container, wherein there is defined
 (i) a first end distance;   (ii) a midpoint distance; and   (iii) a second end distance,   wherein there is a minimum distance among the first end distance, the midpoint distance, and the second end distance, and wherein the minimum distance is less than or equal to about 75 mm, and wherein there is a maximum distance among the first end distance, the midpoint distance, and the second end distance, and wherein the maximum distance is from about 100% to about 125% of the minimum distance.   
     
     
         6 . The container according to  claim 1 , the handle having an inner handle midpoint half way between the first end and the second end, wherein a cross-section of the handle taken by a line connecting the center of gravity and the inner handle midpoint has a circumference of from about 60 mm to about 90 mm. 
     
     
         7 . The container according to  claim 6 , wherein the handle comprises a cross-section shape selected from the group consisting of a circle and an oval. 
     
     
         8 . The container according to  claim 1 , the handle having an inner handle midpoint half way between the first end and the second end, wherein when the handle is gripped with adjacent fingers contacting each other; wherein there is defined
 (1) a first end muscle force;   (2) a second end muscle force; and   (3) a midpoint muscle force,   wherein the first end muscle force, the second end muscle force and the midpoint muscle force are each ≦about 0.50 mV/kg.   
     
     
         9 . The container according to  claim 8 , wherein difference between the first end muscle force and the second end muscle force is less than about 25%. 
     
     
         10 . The container according to  claim 1 , wherein a straight distance between the first end and the second end is from about 80 mm to about 120 mm. 
     
     
         11 . The container according to  claim 1 , wherein the handle comprises a frictional surface. 
     
     
         12 . The container according to  claim 1 , the handle having an inner handle surface, wherein the inner handle surface further comprises a soft material selected from the group consisting of a rubber, a flexible polymeric film, a paper and a mixture thereof. 
     
     
         13 . The container according to  claim 1 , wherein the second end connects to the exterior surface. 
     
     
         14 . The container according to  claim 1 , wherein the handle protrudes from the external surface at the first end and wherein the second end is a free end.