Stelvin/Cork Glass Wine Bottles

Abstract

A glass bottle includes a body with a neck coupled to a neck finish, which has either exterior threads for receiving a first type of closure including a threaded closure of a type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork, or an exterior shoulder for coupling by a cork-type plug closure press. In both cases, the neck has both external (L and K) dimensions adjacent to the neck finish for receiving a threaded closure of the type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork, and a cylindrical interior passage having an internal diameter (D) extending over a cork spec distance (C) for receiving a cork-type plug closure. A method of molding the bottle is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A glass bottle, comprising: a body with a neck coupled to a neck finish, said neck finish having either exterior threads for receiving a first type of closure including a threaded closure of a type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork or an exterior shoulder for coupling by a cork-type plug closure press, said neck having both external (L and K) dimensions adjacent to said neck finish for receiving a threaded closure of the type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork, and a cylindrical interior passage having an internal diameter (D) extending over a cork spec distance (C) for receiving a cork-type plug closure.

2. A plurality of bottles, wherein at least one of the plurality of bottles has a body and a neck finish for receiving the first type of closure and at least one other of the plurality of bottles has the same body but a different neck finish for receiving the second type of closure, and wherein the plurality of bottles are produced by a method of molding bottles using a glassware machine, that includes the steps of: at a blank mold stage, using a neck ring mold to blow mold parisons having either, but not both, cork-type plug neck finishes or threaded neck finishes for receiving either, but not both, of a first type of closure or a second type of closure different from the first type of closure, wherein the first type of closure includes a cork-type plug closure and the second type of closure includes a threaded closure of a type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork; and at a blow mold stage, using a blow mold to blow mold the parisons into bottles with necks having external L and K dimensions to receive the second type of closure and using the same blow mold to blow mold the parison into bottles with necks having a cylindrical interior with an internal diameter (D) extending over at least a cork spec distance (C) to receive the first type of closure, wherein different neck ring molds for forming the different neck finishes are employed at the blank mold stage depending on the type of neck finish being formed, but the same body and neck blow mold is used at the blow mold stage, to produce glass wine bottles having either but not both the cork-type plug neck finish or the threaded neck finish but otherwise having the same bottle body and neck to facilitate change-over of a production line between different types of bottles.

3. A plurality of bottles, wherein at least one of the plurality of bottles has a body and a neck finish for receiving the first type of closure and at least one other of the plurality of bottles has the same body but a different neck finish for receiving the second type of closure, wherein the plurality of bottles is produced by a method, using a glassware machine, of molding first and second types of glass bottles for use with either a first type of closure or a second type of closure different from the first type of closure, wherein the first type of closure includes a cork-type plug closure and the second type of closure includes a threaded closure of a type having a metal shell with internal threads and a skirt crimpable to a container neck to simulate foil that covers a cork, comprising the steps of: forming, at a blank mold stage, a glass parison having a completed cork-type plug neck finish contoured for receipt of the first type of closure; transferring the glass parison to a blow mold stage; blow molding, at a blow mold stage, the glass parison into the first type of glass bottle having the completed cork-type plug neck finish contoured for receipt of the first type of closure and having a body and a neck with external dimensions (L and K) to receive the second type of closure and with a cylindrical internal diameter (D) extending over at least a cork spec distance (C) to receive the first type of closure; reconfiguring the glassware machine from the first type of bottle to the second type of bottle by changing neck rings at the blank mold stage, but leaving blow molds at the blow mold stage unchanged; forming, at the blank mold stage, another glass parison having a completed threaded neck finish contoured for receipt of the second type of closure; transferring the other glass parison to the blow mold stage; and blow molding, at the blow mold stage, the other glass parison into the second type of glass bottle having the completed threaded neck finish contoured for receipt of the second type of closure and having the same body, and the same neck with the external dimensions (L and K) to receive the second type of closure and with the cylindrical internal diameter (D) extending over at least the cork spec distance (C) to receive the first type of closure, wherein different neck ring molds for forming the different neck finishes are employed at the blank mold stage depending on the type of neck finish being formed, but the same body and neck blow mold is used at the blow mold stage, to produce glass wine bottles having either but not both the cork-type plug neck finish or the threaded neck finish but otherwise having the same bottle body and neck to facilitate change-over of a production line between different types of bottles.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] The disclosure, together with additional objects, features, advantages and aspects thereof, will best be understood from the following description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0008] FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a glass wine bottle adapted to receive a Stelvin-type threaded closure in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0009] FIG. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 2-2 in FIG. 1.

[0010] FIG. 3 is an elevational view of a glass wine bottle adapted to receive a cork-type plug closure in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0011] FIG. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 in FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrates a glass wine bottle 20 having a body 22, a neck finish 24 and a neck 26 extending between the neck finish and the body. Neck finish 24 is adapted for use in conjunction with a Stelvin-type threaded closure, and includes one or more external thread segments 27. Key dimensions for the neck and neck finish include the L dimension from the top surface of the neck finish to the wide spot in the neck, and the K diameter across the wide spot in the neck. (The designations L and K are standard designations in the glass container industry.) The K dimension is across the portion of the neck where the skirt of the Stelvin-type closure is crimped. Bottle 20 also has an overall height 28 between the neck finish top surface and the base of the container. Neck finish 24 has a cylindrical internal diameter D.

[0013] FIGS. 3-4 illustrate a cork-type glass wine bottle 30 having the same body 22 and neck 26 as bottle 20 in FIGS. 1-2. The neck finish 32 of bottle 30 includes an external shoulder 34 for gripping by a cork press, and an internal diameter D for receiving a cork-type plug closure. The diameter D extends for at least a distance C into the neck finish and neck, this distance C sometimes being referred to as the cork spec. Bottle 30 including neck 26 and neck finish 32 have the same dimensions L, K and D as does the bottle 20 of FIGS. 1-2. The overall height 36 of bottle 30 typically would be slightly less than the height 28 of bottle 20 because of the lesser height of neck finish 32.

[0014] Thus, a glassware machine can be reconfigured from one bottle 20 or 30 to the other by simply changing the neck rings that mold the neck finish at the blank stage while leaving the blow molds at the mold stage unchanged.

[0015] There thus have been disclosed a method of making a glass wine bottle, and a resulting bottle, that fully satisfy all of the objects and aims previously set forth. The disclosure has been presented in connection with exemplary embodiments, and modifications and variations have been discussed. Other modifications and variations readily would suggest themselves to persons of ordinary skill in the art in view of the foregoing description. The disclosure is intended to embrace all of such modifications and variations as fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims.