A method of forming a container and filling the container with a product. The method includes heat-set blow molding the container from a preform and hot-filling the container with the product such that the product occupies about 95% or more of a total interior volume of the container. A headspace volume is defined between a top fill line of the product and a brim of the container. The headspace volume is less than about 5% of the total interior volume of the container. The container is capped and allowed to cool. The container is configured to shrink during cooling such that the total interior volume decreases by about 0.5% to 1.5% during cooling. A base of the container is displaced after hot-filling and capping to reduce the total interior volume by less than about an additional 0.5% to 4%. The hot-filling, capping, cooling, and displacing of the base creates a pressure change within the container.

A container filling valve may include a shuttle and a drive sleeve that are magnetically coupled. Movement of the drive sleeve may move the shuttle from a position in which the filling valve is closed to a position in which the filling valve is open. A container handling arm may include a distal end configured to hold a container and a proximal end that includes a load cell. A low flow setpoint system may be configured to arrest closing of a filling valve when that filling valve is partially closed. A pressure control system may be configured to maintain a desired pressure in a reservoir or in a flow path from that reservoir. A product recirculation system may be configured to adjust flow rate in the product recirculation system.

Machine (18, 19) for processing containers (1) including a base (7) having a high standing ring (8) and a central invertible diaphragm (9), the machine (18, 19) including: a container supporting frame (20) including a hollow support ring (21) for engaging a container base (7), a pusher (26) movable with respect of the container supporting frame (20), capable of coming into abutment with the container base (7) through the supporting frame (20), an actuator (28) for slidingly moving the pusher (26) frontwards towards the container base (7) through the supporting frame (20), and backwards, a strain gauge (29) coupled to the actuator (28) for gauging a strain applied by the actuator (28) to the pusher (26), a control unit (30) including a processor (32) connected to the strain gauge (29) and programmed for comparing a gauged strain value to a memorized strain reference value.

A valve assembly in a product channel comprises a regulating valve, a filling valve, and an elongated actuation element that is common to both. A filling-valve element that interacts with a filling-valve seat to open and close the filling valve. The regulating valve comprises an actuation element-side regulating valve element that interacts with a regulating-valve seat to control a product quantity to be filled. Both the regulating and filling valve elements are arranged on the actuation element. A driven actuator changes a position of the actuation element relative to the regulating valve seat and the filling valve seat as part of a filling operation.

A valve assembly in a product channel comprises a regulating valve, a filling valve, and an elongated actuation element that is common to both. A filling-valve element that interacts with a filling-valve seat to open and close the filling valve. The regulating valve comprises an actuation element-side regulating valve element that interacts with a regulating-valve seat to control a product quantity to be filled. Both the regulating and filling valve elements are arranged on the actuation element. A driven actuator changes a position of the actuation element relative to the regulating valve seat and the filling valve seat as part of a filling operation.

A plastic container comprises an upper portion including a finish defining an opening into the container, a lower portion including a base defining a standing surface, a sidewall extending between the upper portion and the lower portion, the sidewall defining a longitudinal axis, and at least one substantially transversely-oriented pressure panel located in the lower portion. The pressure panel is movable between an outwardly-inclined position and an inwardly-inclined position to compensate for a change of pressure inside the container. The standing surface defines a standing plane, and the entire pressure panel is located between the standing plane and the upper portion of the container when the pressure panel is in the outwardly-inclined position.

A filling station for filling containers includes a number of container holders defining respective container positions; a number of filling assemblies, each filling assembly being associated with a container holder, where each filling assembly includes a reciprocating nozzle assembly which makes a first reciprocating movement from a retracted nozzle position in which a nozzle is retracted from the container to an inserted nozzle position in which the nozzle is inserted into the container, where the nozzle moves through an opening in a lid member of a reciprocating lid assembly to be inserted into the container for filling the container with liquid; where the reciprocating lid assembly makes a second reciprocating movement towards a filling opening of the container in the container holder and back in a direction away from the filling opening, where the reciprocating lid assembly is under pretension in the direction of the container holder.

A filling station for filling containers includes a number of container holders defining respective container positions; a number of filling assemblies, each filling assembly being associated with a container holder, where each filling assembly includes a reciprocating nozzle assembly which makes a first reciprocating movement from a retracted nozzle position in which a nozzle is retracted from the container to an inserted nozzle position in which the nozzle is inserted into the container, where the nozzle moves through an opening in a lid member of a reciprocating lid assembly to be inserted into the container for filling the container with liquid; where the reciprocating lid assembly makes a second reciprocating movement towards a filling opening of the container in the container holder and back in a direction away from the filling opening, where the reciprocating lid assembly is under pretension in the direction of the container holder.

A method is described for shaping the bottom of hot-filled containers, in which the bottoms of the containers are forced inwardly from a state bulged outwardly, in particular as they cool down. Complex mechanisms for forcing the bottom inwardly are dispensable for the reason that the bottoms are forced inwardly by at least one fluid jet and/or fluid pressure wave. In addition, shaping the bottom can advantageously be carried out in a production region immediately downstream of a closer.

Provided is a method for manufacturing a container containing a content fluid, including: a molding step of stretching a bottomed tubular preform that is heated to a temperature at which the preform is stretchable so as to form the container by means of pressure of the content fluid injected into the preform through a mouth portion; a sealing step of sealing the content fluid by fitting a cap body to the mouth portion; and a pressurizing step of increasing an inner pressure of the container, wherein the container includes an invertible deforming portion that is freely invertible and deformable toward an inside of the container, and in the pressurizing step, the inner pressure of the container is increased by reducing a volume of the container by inverting and deforming the invertible deforming portion toward the inside of the container.