Reservoirs with shaped, connected, and hinged spouts

Abstract

Disclosed flexible fluid reservoirs include a front sheet and a rear sheet that are sealed around their mutual perimeters to form a bladder, and include at least one fluid port in an upper portion of the front sheet. The reservoirs can include rigid structural portions in combination with flexible bladder wall portions to provide increased stiffness in desired portions of the reservoirs. Some disclosed reservoirs include a rigid spout portion that is coupled to the front bladder wall and forms the upper fluid port. Such rigid spout portions can provide a gripping portion to hold and manipulate the reservoir, can provide an enlarged surface area that connects to the bladder wall to distribute forces applied between the bladder and the spout portion, can provide a desired size, shape and orientation of the port, can help counteract torque applied while twisting the cap, and/or can help shape and flatten the bladder.

1 . A fluid reservoir comprising:
 a flexible bladder including a front sheet and a rear sheet sealed together around their perimeters;   a rigid front body coupled to the front sheet, the rigid front body defining a fill port that provides access into the flexible bladder through the front sheet;   a rigid rear body coupled to the rear sheet; and   a connector that that extends around an edge of the flexible bladder and couples the rigid front body to the rigid rear body.   
     
     
         2 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , wherein the connector is rigid and maintains a spacing between the rigid front body and the rigid rear body. 
     
     
         3 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 2 , wherein the front body, the rear body, and the connector cooperate to hold the front sheet apart from the rear sheet when no fluid is contained in the flexible bladder. 
     
     
         4 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , wherein the connector is detachable from the front body and the from the rear body, such that the flexible bladder can collapse when empty. 
     
     
         5 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , wherein the connector comprises a hinge that allows the rigid front body and the rigid rear body to pivot relative to each other. 
     
     
         6 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , wherein the rigid front body is shaped such that the fill port is tilted upwardly toward the connector. 
     
     
         7 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , wherein the rigid front body also defines a raised handle portion adjacent to the fill port that allows a user to grip the rigid front body and manipulate the fluid reservoir. 
     
     
         8 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , further comprising a cap that couples to and decouples from the fill port to selectively close and open the fill port. 
     
     
         9 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 1 , further comprising a fluid exit port coupled to the flexible bladder separate from the fill port. 
     
     
         10 . A fluid reservoir comprising:
 a flexible bladder including a front sheet and a rear sheet sealed together around their perimeters;   a rigid front body coupled to the front sheet, the rigid front body defining a fill port that provides access into the flexible bladder through the front sheet;   a cap that couples to and decouples from the fill port to selectively close and open the fill port; and   a fluid exit port coupled to the flexible bladder separate from the rigid front body;   wherein the rigid front body comprises a main portion that includes the fill port and the rigid front body further comprises one or more hinged portions that are hingedly coupled to the main portion.   
     
     
         11 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions comprise two or more hinged portions that are positioned on opposing sides of the main portion. 
     
     
         12 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions fold relative to the main portion toward the rear sheet. 
     
     
         13 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions form gripping locations at one or more sides of the main portion. 
     
     
         14 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions are coupled to the main portion via one or more curved hinges. 
     
     
         15 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions comprise two hinged portions that are coupled to the main portion via two hinges that are positioned on opposite sides of the fill port and are not parallel with each other. 
     
     
         16 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions comprise four hinged portions that are coupled to four sides of the main portion. 
     
     
         17 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the one or more hinged portions are resiliently biased toward a flexed position in which the one or more hinged portions are folded relative to the main portion toward the rear sheet and inhibit the flexible bladder from collapsing when empty. 
     
     
         18 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the main portion of the rigid front body includes one or more apertures separate from the fill port, the one or more apertures providing finger gripping locations in the rigid front body. 
     
     
         19 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 10 , wherein the main portion comprises an upper main portion that includes the fill port, and the one or more hinged portions comprise a lower main body that includes or is rigidly coupled to the fluid exit port. 
     
     
         20 . The fluid reservoir of  claim 19 , wherein the one or more hinged portions further comprises two upper lateral hinged portions hingedly coupled to lateral sides of the upper main portion and two lower lateral hinged portions hingedly couple to lateral sides of the lower main portion;
 wherein the upper lateral hinged portions can be attached to the lower lateral hinged portions via releasable fasteners to hold the rigid front body in a flexed, three-dimensional shape that inhibits the flexible bladder from collapsing when empty; and   wherein the rigid front body has a flat configuration when the releasable fasteners are not engaged.