Collapsible bottle

Abstract

A collapsible bottle for enteral feed has a thin-walled body extending axially from a base to a neck and having a front, a back and two sides that define a width dimension of the bottle. The body has a shoulder region adjacent to the neck, a hip region adjacent to the base and a waist region therebetween and the circumference of the bottle in the waist region is less than the circumference of the bottle in both the hip region and the shoulder region. The bottle is provided with hinge columns that extend between the hip region and the shoulder region at the sides of the bottle. The hinge columns provide the wall of the body with a region of increased stiffness in the axial direction while facilitating bending of the wall about the hinge column.

Claims

1.-23. (canceled)

24. A collapsible bottle for liquid enteral nutrition, comprising a body extending axially from a base to a neck and having a front, a back and two sides that define a width dimension of the bottle, wherein the bottle can stand upright on its base with the base being provided with an integrally formed tab for also hanging the bottle neck-down, the body having a shoulder region adjacent to the neck, a hip region adjacent to the base and a waist region therebetween, wherein a circumference of the bottle in the waist region is less than a circumference of the bottle in both the hip region and the shoulder region, the bottle further comprising hinge columns extending at the sides of the bottle in at least the waist region, the hinge columns providing the wall of the body with a region of increased stiffness in the axial direction while facilitating collapse by bending of the wall about the hinge column.

25. The bottle according to claim 24 wherein the bottle comprises polyethylene (PE).

26. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the body consists of a PE/EVOH/PE laminate.

27. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the wall in the waist region has an average thickness at the front and back that is at least 1.4 times thicker than an average thickness at the sides.

28. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the wall thickness in the waist region of the front and back panel is between 0.2 mm and 0.6 mm.

29. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the hinge columns are inwardly protruding curved wall sections and wherein the wall sections are curved to a radius of between 1 mm and 5 mm over an arc of at least 90.

30. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the width of the bottle at the waist region is at least 3% less than at the shoulders or the hips.

31. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the hinge columns extend throughout the waist region and terminate adjacent to a widest location of the shoulder region and hip region respectively and wherein the hinge columns extend over at least half of the height of the bottle.

32. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the neck is provided with a screw thread to receive a closure.

33. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the body is of thermoplastic material, blow-moulded from an extruded parison.

34. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the body is arranged to collapse from an initial volume to a final volume when the interior of the bottle is subjected to an under pressure of less than 60 mBar, the final volume being less than 30% of the initial volume.

35. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the body is arranged to collapse when the interior of the bottle is subjected to an under pressure, whereby collapse occurs asymmetrically from one side towards the other side.

36. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the body is arranged to collapse when the interior of the bottle is subjected to an under pressure, whereby in the collapsed state, the hinge columns remain open for passage of fluid between the shoulder region and the hip region.

37. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein in a partially collapsed state when the volume of the bottle is 20% of its initial volume, the bottle retains a stable form that can stand upright on its base.

38. The bottle according to claim 24, comprising a quantity of enteral feeding solution within the body and a screw closure sealed to the neck.

39. A mould having a form corresponding to the bottle according to claim 24.

40. The mould according to claim 39, comprising two mould sections that join together to form a seam at the location of the front and back of the bottle.

41. A method of manufacturing a collapsible bottle for enteral feed, the method comprising: extruding a tubular parison of thermoplastic material; blowing the parison within a mould to form a thin-walled body extending axially from a base to a neck and having a front, a back and two sides that define a width dimension of the bottle, the body having a shoulder region adjacent to the neck, a hip region adjacent to the base and a waist region therebetween, the bottle further comprising hinge columns extending between the hip region and the shoulder region at the sides of the bottle, the hinge columns providing the wall of the body with a region of increased stiffness in the axial direction while facilitating bending of the wall about the hinge column in use, during collapse of the bottle.

42. The method according to claim 41, wherein the bottle is a bottle according to claim 24.

43. The bottle according to claim 24, wherein the bottle is adapted to dispense a liquid and wherein the liquid exits the bottle without air entry such that the bottle collapses in the region between the hinge columns.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] The features and advantages of the invention will be appreciated upon reference to the following drawings of a number of exemplary embodiments, in which:

[0026] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a bottle for enteral feed according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] FIG. 2 shows a cross-section through the waist region of the bottle of FIG. 1;

[0028] FIG. 2A is a detail of part of the cross-section of FIG. 2;

[0029] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the bottle of FIG. 1 during administration of enteral fluid; and

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a cross-section through the waist region of the bottle of FIG. 3;

[0031] FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the bottle of FIG. 1 in an almost collapsed configuration;

[0032] FIG. 6 shows a cross-section through the waist region of the bottle of FIG. 5;

[0033] FIGS. 7A to 7C show cross-sections through a conventional bottle during collapse;

[0034] FIG. 8 shows a cross-section through the waist region of a bottle according to an alternative embodiment of the invention; and

[0035] FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of a mould for producing a number of bottles according to the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

[0036] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a bottle 1 for enteral feed according to the present invention. The bottle 1 comprises a thin-walled body 2 having a base 4 and a neck 6. The body 2 has a front 8, a back 10, a left side 12, a right side 14. The body 2 has a shoulder region 16 adjacent to the neck 6, a hip region 18 adjacent to the base 4 and a waist region 20 between the hip region 18 and the shoulder region 16. The bottle 1 further includes hinge columns 22 that extend between the hip region 18 and the shoulder region 16 along the sides 12, 14 of the bottle 1, as will described further below. A tab 24 is integrally formed with the base 4 and connected thereto at a living hinge 23. A screw closure 28 is applied to the neck 6. A seam 25 can be seen extending up the front 8 of the bottle 1, aligned with the tab 24. The seam 25 also extends down the back 10.

[0037] FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view through the bottle 1 at the waist region 20, taken in direction II-II in FIG. 1. As can be seen in FIG. 2, the wall 26 at this section is a generally oval shape having a flattened front 8 and back 10. The hinge columns 22 at the left and right sides 12, 14 are in the form of hemispherical grooves that are concave with respect to the outer surface of the bottle 1. The remainder of the cross-section is convex. In the illustrated embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the bottle 1 has a volume of 650 ml and the width and depth at the waist region 20 are approximately 85 mm and 55 mm respectively.

[0038] FIG. 2A is an enlarged view of the hinge column 22 of FIG. 2. The wall 26 has a thickness t of around 0.3 mm. This thickness is constant around the whole circumference of the waist region to a tolerance of +0.1 mm. In fact, measurements have shown that the thickness varies from around 0.4 mm at the front 8 and back 10 to a value of around 0.2 mm at the left side 12 and right side 14. The wall 26 is formed of inner and outer layers 30, 32 of polyethylene with a barrier layer 31 of EVOH therebetween. At the hinge column 22, the wall 26 is curved inwards with a radius r of 2.0 mm over an arc of around 180.

[0039] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the bottle 1 of FIG. 1 during administration of enteral fluid through an administration set 34. The bottle 1 is suspended upside-down by tab 24 from a support 36. The bottle 1 is in a partially collapsed condition. Also visible in this view are recesses 38 in the base 4, which are shaped to receive and retain the tab 24 when it is folded flat about the living hinge 23. The orientation of the tab 24 across the base 4 of the bottle 1 allows the tab 24 to be relatively large and yet still fit within the recesses 38 for storage. A larger tab 24 is more convenient for hanging.

[0040] FIG. 4 shows a cross-section through the waist region 20 of the partially collapsed bottle 1 along line IV-IV of FIG. 3. As can be seen, the bottle 1 has collapsed at the right side 14 but is not collapsed at the left side 12. The hinge column 22 at the right side 14 has facilitated this collapse by allowing the wall 26 to bend at this point around the hinge column 22. Despite this collapse, the hinge column 22 maintains its concave shape and acts as a relatively rigid elongate reinforcement along the right side 14 of the bottle 1, preventing the bottle 1 from buckling or folding at this point about the cross-section.

[0041] FIG. 5 shows a perspective view of the bottle 1 of FIG. 1 in a further stage of collapse when around 80% of the liquid in the bottle 1 has been administered. At this point, the waist region 20 has collapsed completely but the hip region 18 and the shoulder region 16 retain their shape and some fluid may remain in the hip region 18. Furthermore, the column strength of the hinge columns 22 ensures that the bottle 1 remains relatively straight and if administration is discontinued at this point, the bottle 1 is relatively stable and can be stood on its base 4.

[0042] FIG. 6 shows a cross-section through the waist region 20 of the bottle 1 of FIG. 5 along line VI-VI. In this case, the wall 26 has collapsed completely and the front 8 and back 10 engage one another. Nevertheless, the hinge columns 22 remain partially open allowing fluid to pass between the hip region 18 and the shoulder region 16 should this be required.

[0043] FIG. 7A shows a cross-section of a similar sized bottle 101, looking towards the hip region 118. The bottle 101 has a plain oval waist region 120 without hinge columns or other variations in the cross-section. In FIG. 7B, the bottle 101 is shown partially collapsed. In this case, the bottle 101 collapses completely at the right side and the wall 126 loses its structural strength in the axial direction of the bottle 101. This tends to cause the bottle 101 to fold or bend at its waist region 120 with respect to the hip region 118. In FIG. 7C the bottle 101 has further collapsed to the point that the waist region 120 is flattened. In this state, the waist region 120 has hardly any axial rigidity and can fold and distort uncontrollably. Furthermore, as the waist region 120 is completely collapsed it can no longer allow fluid to pass.

[0044] FIG. 8A is a cross-section of a bottle 201 according to a second embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, instead of being concave, the hinge columns 222 are convex. FIG. 8B shows the bottle 201 in collapsed state, illustrating how the hinge columns 222 remain open to allow passage of fluid and ensure structural strength along the sides of the bottle 201.

[0045] FIG. 9 shows in schematic perspective view a mould 50 for producing a bottle as shown in FIG. 1. Other items required for performing blow moulding are omitted for the sake of clarity although the skilled person will understand that in this view, connection for a blow pin may be provided at an underside of the mould 50. The mould 50 comprises two mould-halves 52, 54 of which mould-half 54 is partially cut-away to better envisage the mould cavities 56A-D. In the illustrated embodiment, four mould cavities 56A-D are provided although it will be understood that a larger or lesser number is also contemplated. The mould-halves 52, 54 meet at a joint 58.

[0046] According to the invention, the cavities 56A-D are oriented with respect to the mould halves 52, 54 so that the joint 58 is aligned with a tab portion 60, which forms the tab 24 during moulding. The cavities 56A-D are therefore located side-by-side such that bottles 1, formed within the cavities 56A-D will have their fronts 8 and backs 10 facing each other and the seam 25 will be formed by the joint 58 across these fronts 8 and backs 10. This side-by-side orientation is advantageous in terms of enabling multiple bottles to be formed in a single mould and also in ensuring that the tab is aligned with the minor dimension of the bottle.

[0047] Thus, the invention has been described by reference to certain embodiments discussed above. It will be recognized that these embodiments are susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms well known to those of skill in the art. In particular, the hinge columns may be distinct from the schematically illustrated designs and may vary over their length and also between the left side and the right side of the bottle.

[0048] Modifications in addition to those described above may be made to the structures and techniques described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, although specific embodiments have been described, these are examples only and are not limiting upon the scope of the invention.