Beverage container

Abstract

A collapsible, disposable beverage container 10 holds an insulating sleeve 12 that carries a collapsible bag 14 for holding hot fluid. The container 10 is made of paperboard. Preferred materials for the collapsible bag are nylon and metalized flexible materials. The entire structure 10 is formed from a single sheet of paperboard that is suitably scored, cut, bent and folded to a hex-shaped structure. The structure 10 includes seven panels 20 - 26 that form a six sided hexagonal structure. The two longest panels 23 - 24 overlap. The container has a top 30 that is integral with one of the longest panels and has a central opening. The bottom flaps are either interlocked with each other, glued to each other, or held together by tongue tags that extend from the end panels into receiving slots in one or both end flaps.

1 . A liquid container for holding and dispensing a relatively large quantity of a beverage and operable to deform from a collapsed, flat storage configuration to an upright configuration, the container comprising: 
 an elongated paperboard divided into multiple panels that form sidepanels and flaps forming end panels and extending from one or more of the panels;    wherein panels between the ends of the paperboard are attached to adjacent panels along their edges by integral hinged portions of the paperboard to form a continuous multisided sided structure,    a front panel has a first end flap with a first opening for receiving a neck of a beverage bag;    two end panels overlap each other to surround a beverage bag and one of said two end panels has a second end flap with a second opening disposed in a central portion of the second end flap, said first and second openings aligned with each for receiving the neck of the beverage bag;    a flexible bag disposed inside the container panel has a narrow neck for receiving and discharging a beverage and expandable when filled with a liquid from a collapsed position to an enlarged position for holding fluid; and    an insulation sheath surrounding the flexible bag for reducing the transfer of heat between the fluid in the bag and ambient environment.    
   
   
       2 . The container of  claim 1  wherein said second end flap with the second opening has a pair of spaced apart parallel edges with one parallel edge longer than the other parallel edge; a pair of spaced apart angled edges that extend between the two parallel edges and a second opening disposed in the central portion of the end flap and the second opening encloses a locus of points defined by intersections of lines bisecting the edges of the end flap.  
   
   
       3 . The container of  claim 1  wherein the front panel and one of the two end panels each have a bottom flap and the bottom flaps overlap to support the flexible bag.  
   
   
       4 . The container of  claim 3  wherein the overlapping bottom flaps are flexibly joined together across the middle of the container to allow the container to collapse for storage.  
   
   
       5 . The container of  claim 3  wherein the overlapping bottom flaps extend across the width of the container.  
   
   
       6 . The container of  claim 5  wherein the one of the bottom flaps have one or more upwardly oriented locking tabs with receiving slots and the other panels have tongues for entering the receiving slots to hold the two bottom flaps together.  
   
   
       7 . The container of  claim 1  wherein the end panels have openings in their sidepanels aligned with each other for admitting a digit of a user to assist in pouring the beverage from the container.  
   
   
       8 . The container of  claim 1  wherein two side panels have openings for receiving opposite ends of a handle.  
   
   
       9 . The container of  claim 1  wherein the panels are an odd or an even number.  
   
   
       10 . The container of  claim 9  wherein the container comprises an odd number and the odd number is five or seven or nine.  
   
   
       11 . The container of  claim 1  wherein the panels have an odd number with a center panel being shortest in length and the end panels being longest.  
   
   
       12 . The container of  claim 11  wherein the base edge of the panels lie in a line with one another.  
   
   
       13 . The container of  claim 12  wherein the top edges of the panels between the center panel and the end panels line along a line connecting the edge of the center panel to the edge of the end panel.  
   
   
       14 . The container of  claim 11  wherein the center and the intermediate panels have the same width.  
   
   
       15 . The container of  claim 11  wherein one end panel has a width smaller than the other end panel in order to allow one end panel to overlap the other.  
   
   
       16 . The container of  claim 11  wherein the center panels has a top end flap with six sides and ears disposed on the edges of the three sides for folding into the container.  
   
   
       17 . The container of  claim 11  wherein selected panels have bottom flaps disposed along their respective bottom edges for interlocking to form a bottom end panel.  
   
   
       18 . The container of  claim 11  wherein the panels adjacent the center panel have top end flaps for cooperating with the center end flap to cover the top of end of the container.  
   
   
       19 . The container of  claim 11  wherein the two end panels adhere to each other to form a six sided container.  
   
   
       20 . A liquid container for holding a relatively large quantity of liquid and operable to deform from a collapsed, flat storage configuration to an upright configuration for holding and dispensing fluid, the container comprising: 
 a container structure comprising an elongated paperboard divided into seven rectangular panels that form sidepanels and flaps that form end panels, wherein the panels between opposite ends of the paperboard are attached to adjacent panels along their longer side by an integral hinged portion of the paperboard to form a continuous six sided structure;    the center panel being shorter than the end panels and panels between the center and the end panels varying in length from the length of the center panel to the length of the corresponding end panel;    one end panel having at one end at least one top cover flap forming a top cover of the container that slopes from the longer end panel to the shorter enter panel, the cover flap having an opening disposed in a central portion thereof;    the panels having bottom flaps at their ends opposite the top flap for forming a bottom floor of the upright container;    a flexible bag disposed inside the container panel and expandable from a collapsed position to an enlarged position for holding fluid and a neck located the top of the bag for extending through an opening in the top sloping panel to receive and discharge beverages;    an insulation sheath surrounding the flexible bag for reducing the transfer of heat between the fluid in the bag and ambient environment;    wherein the upright container has a height greater than the width of its base and the container is tilted from its normal upright position for dispensing fluid from the flexible bag.    
   
   
       21 . The container of  claim 20  wherein said top cover flap has a pair of spaced apart parallel edges with one parallel edge longer than the other parallel edge and a pair of spaced apart angled edges that extend between the two parallel edges and a second opening disposed in the central portion of the end flap and the opening encloses a locus of points defined by intersections of lines bisecting the edges of the end flap.  
   
   
       22 . The container of  claim 20  wherein the front panel and one of the two end panels each have a bottom flap and the bottom flaps overlap to support the flexible bag.  
   
   
       23 . The container of  claim 22  wherein the overlapping bottom flaps are flexibly joined together across the middle of the container to allow the container to collapse for storage.  
   
   
       24 . The container of  claim 22  wherein the overlapping bottom flaps extend across the width of the container.  
   
   
       25 . The container of  claim 24  wherein the one of the bottom flaps has one or more upwardly oriented locking tabs with receiving slots and the other panels have tongues for entering the receiving slots to hold the two bottom flaps together.  
   
   
       26 . The container of  claim 25  wherein the other end panel adheres to the one longest end panel to form a six sided container.  
   
   
       27 . The container of  claim 25  having a second opening in the two end panels for providing access for a finger and a handle extending from one intermediate panel to an opposite intermediate panel.