Drinking straw and method for manufacturing a drinking straw

Abstract

A drinking straw comprises a tubular body (21) intended to define a passage for a liquid product and a tip portion (22) intended to pierce a pierceable portion of a container to allow consumption of the liquid product, wherein said tip portion (22) is bounded by two stiffness promoting elements (25) obtained by bending and permanently deforming said tubular body.

Claims

1. A drinking straw for use with a liquid product in a container, the drinking straw comprising: a tubular body configured to define a passage for the liquid product; a tip portion configured to pierce a pierceable portion of the container to allow consumption of the liquid product; and two stiffness promoting elements, bounding the tip portion, obtained by bending and permanently deforming the tubular body; wherein the drinking straw comprises a first bending line, a second bending line and a third bending line along which the tubular body is bent and permanently deformed to obtain the stiffness promoting elements; wherein the first bending line and the second bending line are arranged on opposite sides of a longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw and the third bending line is arranged on the longitudinal symmetry plane; wherein the stiffness promoting elements comprise a first rib and a second rib that are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw and converge at a pointed end of the tip portion; and wherein the first rib is delimited by the first bending line and the third bending line and the second rib is delimited by the second bending line and the third bending line.

2. A drinking straw according to claim 1, wherein the drinking straw comprises a fourth bending line and a fifth bending line along which the tubular body is bent and permanently deformed.

3. A drinking straw according to claim 2, wherein a third rib is defined between the fourth bending line and the fifth bending line.

4. A drinking straw according to claim 3, wherein a first stiffening area is defined between the first bending line and the fourth bending line and a second stiffening area is defined between the second bending line and the fifth bending line.

5. A drinking straw according to claim 4, wherein the first stiffening area is interposed between the first rib and the third rib and the second stiffening area is interposed between the second rib and the third rib.

6. A drinking straw according to claim 1, wherein the stiffening promoting elements are joined to each other to define a piercing body.

7. A drinking straw according to claim 6, wherein the first rib is permanently attached to the second rib.

8. A drinking straw according to claim 1, wherein the drinking straw comprises a suction hole arranged on a plane which forms at an angle with a reference plane perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the tubular body, such that the tip portion is provided with a pointed end that is arranged on a longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw.

9. A method for manufacturing a drinking straw for use with a liquid product in a container, the method comprising: providing a tubular body configured to define a passage for the liquid product; providing a tip portion on the tubular body, wherein the tip portion is configured to pierce a pierceable portion of the container to allow consumption of the liquid product; and bending and permanently deforming the tubular body to form two stiffness promoting elements that bound the tip portion by compressing the tubular body along a first direction perpendicular to a longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw so as to form a first bending line, a second bending line and a third bending line; wherein the first bending line and the second bending line are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw and the third bending line is arranged on the longitudinal symmetry plane; wherein the stiffness promoting elements comprise a first rib and a second rib that are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane of the drinking straw and converge at a pointed end of the tip portion; and wherein the first rib is delimited by the first bending line and the third bending line and the second rib is delimited by the second bending line and the third bending line.

10. A method according to claim 9, further comprising: compressing the tubular body along a second direction parallel to the longitudinal symmetry plane so as to form a fourth bending line and a fifth bending line.

11. A method according to claim 9, further comprising: joining the stiffness promoting elements together to define a piercing body.

Description

(1) The invention will be better understood and carried out with reference to the enclosed drawings, which show some exemplifying and non limiting embodiments thereof, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is cross section showing a pierceable portion of a container;

(3) FIG. 2 is a side view of a know drinking straw;

(4) FIG. 3 is a front view of the drinking straw of FIG. 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is a side view of a first embodiment of a drinking straw according to the invention;

(6) FIG. 5 is a front view of the drinking straw of FIG. 4;

(7) FIG. 6 is a side view of a second embodiment of a drinking straw according to the invention;

(8) FIG. 7 is a front view of the drinking straw of FIG. 6;

(9) FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of a drinking straw according to the invention;

(10) FIG. 9 is a schematic view that shows the steps of a method for manufacturing the drinking straw of FIGS. 6 and 7.

(11) FIGS. 4 and 5 show a first embodiment of a drinking straw 20.

(12) The drinking straw 20 comprises a tubular body 21 intended to define a passage for a liquid product.

(13) The drinking straw 20 further comprises a tip portion 22 intended to pierce a pierceable portion of a container to allow consumption of the liquid product packed in the container.

(14) The drinking straw 20 comprises a suction hole 23 arranged on a plane P which forms and angle α with a reference plane R perpendicular to a longitudinal axis A of the tubular body 21.

(15) In this way, the tip portion 22 is provided with a pointed end 24 that is arranged on a longitudinal symmetry plane S of the drinking straw 20.

(16) The tip portion 22 is bounded by two stiffness promoting elements 25 obtained by bending and permanently deforming the tubular body 21.

(17) In particular, the tubular body 21 is bent and permanently deformed along a first bending line 26, a second bending line 27 and a third bending line 28.

(18) The first bending line 26 and the second bending line 27 are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane S and the third bending line 28 is arranged on the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(19) The first bending line 26 and the second bending line 27 are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(20) The stiffness promoting elements 25 comprise a first rib and a second rib 30 that are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane S and converge at the pointed end 24.

(21) The first rib 29 and the second rib 30 are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(22) The first rib 29 is delimited by the first bending line 26 and the third bending line 28.

(23) The second rib 30 is delimited by the second bending line 27 and the third bending line 28.

(24) FIGS. 6 and 7 show a second embodiment of a drinking straw 20.

(25) The drinking straw 20 according to the second embodiment differs from the drinking straw 20 according to the first embodiment in that the tubular body 21 is also bent and permanently deformed along a fourth bending line 31 and a fifth bending line 32.

(26) The fourth bending line 31 and the fifth bending line 32 are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(27) The fourth bending line 31 and the fifth bending line 32 are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(28) A third rib 33 is defined between the fourth bending line 31 and the fifth bending line 32.

(29) The third rib 33 extends across the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(30) The third rib 33 is symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(31) A first stiffening area 34 is defined between the first bending line 26 and the fourth bending line 31.

(32) A second stiffening area 35 is defined between the second bending line 27 and the fifth bending line 32.

(33) The first stiffening area 34 is interposed between the first rib 29 and the third rib 33.

(34) The second stiffening area 35 is interposed between the second rib 30 and the third rib 33.

(35) The first stiffening area 34 and the second stiffening area 35 are arranged on opposite sides of the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(36) The first stiffening area 34 and the second stiffening area 35 are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal symmetry plane S.

(37) FIG. 8 shows a third embodiment of a drinking straw 20.

(38) The drinking straw 20 according to the third embodiment differs from the drinking straw 20 according to the first embodiment in that the stiffening promoting elements 25 are joined to each other to define a piercing body 36.

(39) In particular, the first rib 29 is permanently attached to the second rib 30.

(40) According to a possible variant, the first rib 29 and the second rib 30 are heat-sealed to each other. This may be obtained, for example, by means of ultrasonic sealing.

(41) According to another possible variant, the first rib 29 and the second rib 30 are glued to each other.

(42) The piercing body 36 has a width W that is twice the thickness T of the tubular body.

(43) In this way, the piercing body 36 has an increased stiffness.

(44) FIG. 9 shows in a schematic way a method for manufacturing the drinking straw of FIGS. 6 and 7.

(45) The method comprises a first step during which the tubular body 21 is compressed along a first direction X perpendicular to the longitudinal symmetry plane S. In this way, the tubular body is bent and permanently deformed so as to form the first bending line 26, the second bending line 27 and the third bending line 28.

(46) The method further comprises a second step during which the tubular body 21 is compressed along a second direction Y parallel to the longitudinal symmetry plane S. In this way, the tubular body is bent and permanently deformed so as to form the fourth bending line 31 and the fifth bending line 32.

(47) A method for manufacturing the drinking straw of FIGS. 4 and 5 may comprise only the first step disclosed above.

(48) A method for manufacturing the drinking straw of Figure may comprise the first step disclosed above and a second step during which the stiffness promoting elements 25 are joined to each other to define the piercing body 36.

(49) In particular, during the second step the first rib 29 is permanently attached to the second rib 30.

(50) The second step may comprise the step of heat sealing, for example ultrasonically heat sealing, the first rib 29 and the second rib 30 to each other.

(51) The second step may comprise the step of gluing the first rib 29 and the second rib 30 to each other.

(52) Owing to the invention, it is possible to increase the stiffness of the drinking straw, in particular of the tip portion of the drinking straw. In this way, a user can break the pierceable portion of a container much more easily than in the case of known drinking straws.

(53) In addition, owing to the invention, it is possible to highly enhance the stiffness of the drinking straw without correspondingly increasing the cost of the drinking straw. This because the increased stiffness is obtained by bending and permanently deforming the tubular body so as to form the stiffness promoting means. In other words, the increased stiffness in not obtained by using a stronger (and more expensive) material compared with the known drinking straws, but by providing the tubular body with stiffness promoting means. In this way, a more effective piercing action may be obtained using the same material (and therefore at substantially the same cost) as the known drinking straws.

(54) Moreover, the increased stiffness of the drinking straw is advantageous not only when breaking the pierceable portion, but also during handling and transportation of the drinking straw. The stiffer drinking straw according to the invention, in fact, is much more resistant and less subjected to damages and deformations.