LID OF A CONTAINER

Abstract

A lid for a container includes snap-fit hooks for interlocking engagement in complementing latching openings of an outwardly projecting flange of a jacket of the container, and stacking parts disposed on a lower side of the lid close to the periphery for form-fitting engagement in complementing stacking parts on an upper side of a further said lid, when the lids are stacked. The lower side of the lid and the upper side of the further lid have each a central region that forms a contact area via which compressive forces are transmissible in the presence of a contact between the contact areas of the lower side of the lid and the contact area of the upper side of the further lid.

Claims

1.-9. (canceled).

10. A lid for a container, comprising: snap-fit hooks distributed in a circumferential spaced-apart relation about a periphery of the lid for interlocking engagement in complementing latching openings distributed in circumferential spaced-apart relation about a periphery of an outwardly projecting flange of a jacket of the container to thereby establish a form-fit that prevents a movement of the lid in a direction of a vertical axis of the container; and stacking male parts or stacking female parts provided on a lower side of the lid in facing relationship to an interior space of the container and distributed about a circumference of the lid close to the periphery thereof such as to extend in a direction of the interior space of the container, when the container is closed by the lid, for engagement in complementing stacking female parts or stacking male parts on an upper side of a further said lid, when the lid and the further lid are stacked on top of one another, thereby establishing a form-fit that prevents a movement of the lid in a direction perpendicular to a vertical axis of the lid, which vertical axis of the lid is congruent with the vertical axis of the container, wherein each of the lower side of the lid and the upper side of the further lid, when stacked on top of one another, has a central region that forms a contact area via which compressive forces are transmissible in a direction of the vertical axis of the lid in the presence of a contact between the contact area of the lower side of the lid and the contact area of the upper side of the further lid.

11. The lid of claim 10, wherein the stacking male parts or stacking female parts and the contact area of the lower side of the lid have bearing faces which are located in a same plane that is perpendicular to the vertical axis of the lid.

12. The lid of claim 10, wherein the stacking male parts on the lower side of the lid have each a T-shaped cross section to define a free web for engagement in a corresponding one of slots of the stacking female parts on the upper side of the further lid.

13. The lid of claim 12, wherein the free web of each of the stacking male parts points away from the vertical axis of the lid and runs at an angle in relation to a transverse axis or to a longitudinal axis of the lid.

14. The lid of claim 13, wherein the angle is 40° to 50°.

15. The lid of claim 10, wherein the contact area in the central region on an upper side of the lid is formed by a handle to allow lifting of the lid or of the container, when closed by the lid.

16. The lid of claim 15, wherein the contact area in the central region on the lower side of the lid is formed by a lower side of a depression emanating from the upper side of the lid to enable engagement of the handle from below by hands.

17. The lid of claim 10, wherein the contact area of the lower side of the lid and the contact area of the upper side of the further lid have an elongate configuration.

18. The lid of claim 15, wherein the handle is configured to define two peripheries that establish two of said contact area on the upper side of the further lid in parallel relationship for interaction with two of said contact area on the lower side of the lid.

19. The lid of claim 10, wherein at least one of the stacking male parts on the lower side of the lid includes a recess to allow the lid to be hooked into a latching opening in the peripheral flange of the container or on an end portion of the jacket of the container.

20. The lid of claim 19, wherein the at least one of the stacking male parts has a T-shaped cross-section to define a strap, said recess being formed in the strap.

21. The lid of claim 19, wherein the at least one of the stacking male parts is disposed on a narrow side of the lid.

22. The lid of claim 10, wherein the lid has a shape of a rectangle in mutually parallel sectional planes running perpendicular to the vertical axis of the lid, said stacking male parts and stacking female parts being disposed close to the corners of the rectangle.

18. The lid of claim 22, wherein the corners of the rectangle are rounded.

Description

EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENT

[0015] The invention described above will be discussed in more detail hereunder by means of an exemplary embodiment which is illustrated in the figures in which:

[0016] FIG. 1: shows a three-dimensional view of a container having a lid according to the invention;

[0017] FIGS. 2a to 2f: show views of the lid according to the invention from FIG. 1;

[0018] FIGS. 3a and 3b: show three-dimensional views of two stacked lids according to the invention from FIG. 1;

[0019] FIGS. 4a and 4b: show vertical sections through the stacked lids from FIG. 3a;

[0020] FIG. 5: shows a plan view of the lids from FIG. 3a; and

[0021] FIGS. 6 and 7: show vertical sections to FIG. 5.

[0022] FIG. 1 shows a container 1 having a lid 2 according to the invention, in a three-dimensional view, the container 1 having a base 4 which is aligned to the vertical axis 3 of the container 1, and a jacket 5 adjoining thereto in an encircling manner. The lid 2, which has a vertical axis 6 running so as to be parallel with the vertical axis 3 of the container 1, thus closes an opening cross section (not visible in FIG. 1) toward an interior space 7 of the container 1, the opening cross section being defined by an end 8 of the jacket 5 that faces away from the base 4. Furthermore, the lid 2 has snap-fit hooks 10 which are distributed in an encircling manner and disposed so as to be mutually spaced apart on a periphery 9 and which are latched in corresponding latching openings 11 in an outwardly projecting peripheral flange 12 of the container 1 such that movement of the lid 2 in the direction of the vertical axis 3 is impossible.

[0023] The lid 2 in a central region 13 thereof has a handle 14 which is configured so as to be lug-type and U-shaped in the cross section. According to the present exemplary embodiment, a central region 15 is elongate in the direction of a longitudinal axis 16 of the lid 2. The central region 15 in the direction of a transverse axis 17 of the lid 2 has a width of only a few centimeters, corresponding approximately to the width B of the handle 14. A depression 18 which permits comfortable gripping of the handle 14 with one hand is disposed below the handle 14.

[0024] It can furthermore be seen that both the container 1 as well as the lid 2 each have, in sectional planes which run so as to be perpendicular to the vertical axes 3, 6, a cross section in the form of a rounded rectangle. Stacking female parts 21 which are composed of two elevations 22 which are positioned so as to be mutually close, a slot 23 passing through therebetween, are located on an upper side 19 of the lid 2 in four rounded corners 20, so as to be close to the periphery. Here, the elevations 22 or the slots 23, respectively, each are aligned such that the longitudinal axes thereof form an angle α of 45° to the longitudinal axis 16 and to the transverse axis 17.

[0025] FIGS. 2a to 2f show the lid 2 according to the invention from FIG. 1 in a three-dimensional plan view, a three-dimensional view from below, a plan view, a view from below, a vertical section in the direction of the longitudinal axis 16 of said lid 2, and a vertical section in the direction of the transverse axis 17 of said lid 2.

[0026] Apart from the fact that the container 1 is not illustrated, FIG. 2a corresponds to FIG. 1, the snap-fit hooks 10 thus being easier to identify. In the view of the lid 2 from below, which is illustrated in FIG. 2b, a lower side 24 of the lid 2, which in the four rounded corners 20 is in each case provided with a stacking male part 25 close to the periphery, can be seen. The stacking male parts 25 in the cross section each are molded so as to be T-shaped, thus each having one web 26 and one strap 27, the web 26 meeting the strap 27 centrically in an orthogonal manner. This geometry can be readily seen in FIG. 2d. If two or more lids 2 are stacked on top of one another the web 26 of the stacking male parts 25 of an upper lid 2 engages in the corresponding slots 23 of the stacking female parts 21 of a lower lid 2.

[0027] Moreover, in the case of two lids 2 being stacked, a contact area 28 on the upper side 19 of the lower lid 2, which is formed by two peripheries 29 of the handle 14 which is configured so as to be U-shaped, contacts a contact area 30 on the lower side 24 of the upper lid 2, which is formed by a lower side 31 of the depression 18, this contact being linear. The linear contact area 30 of the lower side 31 of the depression 18 is indicated by dashed lines 32 in FIG. 2b.

[0028] A recess 33 which is molded so as to be rectangular is incorporated into the strap 27 of the stacking male parts 25, in each case on a side which is directed toward the short peripheries 9 of the lid 2. On account thereof, the stacking male parts 25 are imparted the shape of a hook such that the former can be latched in the latching openings 11 or to the end 8 of the jacket 5 of a container 1, and such that the container 1 may also be provided with an associated lid 2 in the open state of the former. The configuration of the recess 28 is likewise readily identifiable in FIG. 2f.

[0029] Two stacked lids 2, 2′ are shown in FIGS. 3a and 3b, once in a three-dimensional plan view and once in a three-dimensional view from below. On the one hand, the upper lid 2 by way of four stacking male parts 25 thereof bears on the upper side 19 of the lower lid 2′, the web 26 of the stacking male part 25 engaging in the respective slot 23 of the stacking female parts 21, this however not being identifiable in FIGS. 3 since the view is obscured by the upper lid 2. Moreover, the upper lid 2 in the central region 13 thereof, by way of the contact area 30 of the former on the lower side 24 of the former, bears on the assigned contact area 28 on the upper side 19′ of the lower lid 2′, this likewise not being identifiable in FIGS. 3.

[0030] The contact areas 28, 28′, 30, 30′ can be seen in FIGS. 4a and 4b which show a vertical section in the longitudinal axis 16 and in the transverse axis 17 of the lids 2, 2′, respectively. It can readily be seen that the contact face 30 on the lower side 24 of the upper lid 2 is formed by linear faces on the lower side 31 of the depression 18 that bear on the peripheries 29′ of the handle 14′ of the lower lid 2′ that is configured so as to be U-shaped, the peripheries 29′ defining the contact area 28′ on the upper side 19′ of the lower lid 2′. The snap-fit hooks 10 and the stacking male parts 25 are furthermore derived from FIGS. 4a and 4b.

[0031] FIG. 5 is composed of a plan view of the lids 2, 2′ according to the invention from FIG. 3a, wherein the sectional planes VI-VI and VII-VII which are shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 are indicated. An elevation 22 of the stacking female part 21 each on the upper side 19, 19′ of the lids 2, 2′ can be identified in FIG. 6, wherein the web 26 and the strap 27 of the stacking male part 25 can furthermore be seen. The web 26 protrudes into the slot 23 of the stacking female part 21, which can be readily identified in particular in FIG. 7.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0032] 1 Container [0033] 2, 2′ Lid [0034] 3 Vertical axis of the container [0035] 4 Base [0036] 5 Jacket [0037] 6 Vertical axis of the lid [0038] 7 Interior space [0039] 8 End of the jacket [0040] 9 Periphery of the lid [0041] 10 Snap-fit hook [0042] 11 Latching openings [0043] 12 Peripheral flange [0044] 13 Central region [0045] 14, 14′ Handle [0046] 15 Central region [0047] 16 Longitudinal axis [0048] 17 Transverse axis [0049] 18, 18′ Depression [0050] 19, 19′ Upper side of the lid [0051] 20 Corner [0052] 21 Stacking female part [0053] 22 Elevation [0054] 23 Slot [0055] 24, 24′ Lower side of the lid [0056] 25 Stacking male part [0057] 26 Web [0058] 27 Strap [0059] 28, 28′ Contact area of the upper side [0060] 29, 29′ Periphery of handle [0061] 30, 30′ Contact area of the lower side [0062] 31, 31′ Lower side of the depression [0063] 32 Dashed line [0064] 33 Recess [0065] B Width [0066] α Angle