BACKGROUND a. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a lid for a container, a method of making a lid and a container assembly. In particular the invention relates to a lid having separable layers suitable for use on a paint container. b. Related Art

There is a general desire and need to reduce the amount of waste that is produced and a drive to recycle as much as possible. One particular area that is receiving much attention is packaging.

Containers for hazardous liquids, such as paints, are difficult to dispose of in an environmentally safe manner and very few containers are recycled due to contamination by the paint, oil or other similar substance.

Known paint pots and similar containers filled with environmentally hazardous liquids are typically made from a semi-rigid plastics material or from metal. After use, the pot remains contaminated with paint residue or similar and the entire container must be disposed of in a suitable manner depending on the type of hazardous liquid. Often the containers end up in a specialist landfill. However, the cost associated with dealing with these containers means that it is becoming increasingly difficult to dispose of them in a convenient and cost effective way.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a lid for a container that overcomes some of the problems associated with prior art containers. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a lid for covering an opening of a container, the lid comprising:

- a sealing assembly including a frame and a sealing layer, the frame comprising engagement means for repeatedly engaging with a part of said container around said opening and the frame defining and surrounding an aperture, and the sealing layer comprising a film of plastics material, the sealing layer being attached to the frame to cover the aperture; and

- a cover comprising a sheet of paperboard or plastics material, the cover extending fully across the aperture to cover the sealing layer,

wherein the cover is releasably secured to the sealing assembly so that, in use, the cover may be fully separated from the sealing assembly for disposal. The separation of the cover and sealing assembly should be such that the sealing assembly remains intact and none of the sealing layer remains attached to the cover.

Preferably the frame is made of a semi-rigid plastics material.

In some embodiments of the invention the engagement means comprises a channel for receiving a rim of the container.

It is desirable if the frame comprises a lip extending into the aperture and the sealing layer is attached to the lip.

The sealing layer may be attached to the frame by an adhesive around the complete edge of the sealing layer. Alternatively, the sealing layer may be heat welded to the frame around the complete edge of the sealing layer.

Preferably the thickness of the sealing layer is less than 200 pm. Preferably the thickness of the cover is between 0.25 mm and 2.0 mm. In preferred embodiments the cover is secured to the sealing layer by a suitable adhesive so that, in use, the cover is peelable from the sealing layer to fully separate the cover and sealing layer. In other embodiments the cover is secured to the frame by means of a retaining feature. The retaining feature may, for example, be in the form of a groove for receiving an edge of the cover.

The invention further provides a container assembly comprising a main body and a lid, the lid being according to the invention, and the main body comprising an outer shell made from a paperboard or plastics material, the shell having a base, a side wall and an opening, and an inner lining comprising a thin sheet of plastics material, a first part of the lining being adhered to an internal surface of the base and side wall of the shell by a suitable adhesive, and a second part of the lining conforming to a part of an external surface of the shell around the opening.

Preferably the shell includes a rim and the engagement means of the lid is configured to snap over the rim to seal the lid onto the main body.

The container may be filled with a variety of substances. Typically the container is filled with at least one of paint, varnish, woodcare liquid, adhesive, filler and putty.

Also according to the invention there is provided a method of making a lid for covering an opening of a container, the method comprising the steps of:

forming a frame having an engagement feature for repeatedly engaging with a part of said container around said opening, the frame defining and surrounding an aperture;

attaching a film of plastics material to the frame so that the film fully covers the aperture; and

securing a cover to at least one of the frame or the film, the cover comprising a sheet of paperboard or plastics material and the cover extending fully over the area of the aperture,

wherein the cover is releasably secured such that, in use, the cover is fully separable from the frame and film for disposal.

The separation of the cover and sealing assembly should be such that the sealing assembly remains intact and none of the sealing layer remains attached to the cover.

Preferably the frame is made of a semi-rigid plastics material.

Preferably the engagement feature comprises a channel for receiving a rim of the container.

It is advantageous if the frame comprises a lip extending into the aperture and the film is attached to the lip. In some embodiments the step of attaching a film of plastics material to the frame comprises adhering the film to the frame using an adhesive applied around the complete edge of the film. In other embodiments the step of attaching a film of plastics material to the frame comprises heat welding the film to the frame around the complete edge of the film.

In preferred embodiments the step of securing a cover to at least one of the frame or the film comprises adhering the cover to the film using a suitable adhesive so that, in use, the cover is peelable from the film to fully separate the cover and film. In other embodiments, the step of securing a cover to at least one of the frame or the film comprises the steps of forming a retaining feature in the frame and locating the cover in the retaining feature. Preferably the retaining feature is in the form of a groove in the frame for receiving an edge of the cover.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now by further described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figures 1 a to 1 e show steps in the manufacture of a container according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a container including a handle assembly and a lid according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 3 is a perspective view of two containers as shown in Figure 2 stacked one on top of the other;

Figure 4 is a detailed cross-sectional view through a part of a container according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Figure 5 is a detailed cross-sectional view through a part of two stacked containers;

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view of a lid for a container according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the lid of Figure 6 with a reinforcing cover partially removed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

This invention relates to a container having an outer layer, an inner layer and a handle. The inner layer and handle are adhered to the outer layer such that after use, the inner layer and handle may be peeled away from the outer layer for disposal. Ideally the inner layer and handle are separated from the outer layer in a single step for the convenience of a user and to encourage the user to separate the layers so that they can be disposed of and/or recycled separately. Figure 2 shows a container 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The container 10 is in the form of a paint pot or other similar container that may hold liquid or semi-liquid products, for example paint or varnish. The container may also be used to hold other products such as pastes, e.g. grout, or colloidal suspensions, e.g. hand creams. The container may be designed to contain and store hazardous or non-hazardous products such as paints, cleaning products, cosmetics and foodstuffs. The container 10 comprises a main body 12, a lid 14 and a handle 16. The main body of the container 10 has an outer layer or shell 18 made entirely from cardboard or a similar paper-based material and an inner layer or lining 20 made from a thin-film plastics material, most clearly shown in Figure 5. The lining 20 is bonded to the internal surfaces 22 of the outer shell 18 by a suitable adhesive such that after use, the lining 20 may be peeled away from the shell 18 and disposed of separately from the shell 18. Although in this embodiment the outer shell 18 is made from a cardboard or paperboard material, in other embodiments the outer shell 18 may be made from a plastics material. The outer shell 18 comprises a base 24 and a side wall 26 extending around the periphery of the base 24, the base 24 and side wall 26 thereby defining an interior volume 28 of the container 10. A top edge 30 of the side wall 26 comprises a rolled edge or rim 32 and defines an opening 34 of the container 10. In a preferred embodiment the shell 18 is made using a method known in the art and traditionally used for making disposable paper cups.

The lining 20 acts as a barrier layer preventing leaking of the contents of the container 10. The barrier properties of the lining 20 may additionally prevent moisture or gasses entering or leaving the container 10 which may spoil or degrade the contents of the container 10.

Considering paints in particular, water-based paints are typically flushed with formaldehyde, or a similar substance, immediately before being sealed within a container to prevent the growth of fungus or bacteria in the paint. Similarly, it is necessary to prevent the evaporation of volatile additives from oil-based paints. In both these example, therefore, the barrier properties of the lining 20 must be tailored to prevent gas permeation through the lining 20.

In this example the lining 20 is made from thin-film polyethylene; however, the lining 20 may be made from any suitable thin-film plastics material. In particular, it may be preferable if the lining 20 is a laminate formed of a number of plastics materials. These laminates may include a gas barrier material such as EVOH that will, amongst other things, prevent paint odours being released from the container 10. The laminates may additionally or alternatively include a nylon layer which provides tear resistance. Preferably the thickness of the lining 20 is less than 200 pm, and more particularly around 100 pm. The thinner the lining 20 the lower the cost of materials and the less waste that is formed. However, the lining 20 should be thick enough that it does not tear during the manufacturing process or during use of the container 10, e.g. when the contents are being stirred, and in particular during removal of the lining 20 from the shell 18 as described below. In a preferred method of manufacture of the container 10, illustrated in Figures 1 a to 1 e, the lining 20 is pre-formed before it is inserted into the shell 18. The lining 20 may be pre-formed by folding a flat sheet of plastics material, as described in the embodiment below. Alternatively, the lining 20 may be pre-formed using vacuum forming to create two halves of the lining that are subsequently bonded together to form the complete lining 20.

In this embodiment, to form the lining 20, a thin sheet 36 of plastics material is cut to create a flat. The plastics sheet or film 36 is then folded along a first edge 38 and bonded along second and third edges 39, 40 so as to form a bag 41 having an opening along a top edge 42, as shown in Figure 1 a. In other embodiments it may be preferable to form the bag 41 from two separate plastic sheets which are bonded together along the first, second and third edges. Preferably the sheet(s) of plastics material 36 are bonded together by being heat welded using a technique that is well known in the art. The welding process may also trim any excess plastics material from around the edges in one step, as is known in the art. Alternatively the plastics sheets 36 may be bonded together using a suitable adhesive or using any other suitable means.

The shape of the resulting lining bag 41 is designed to substantially conform to the internal shape of the outer shell 18.

Once the bag 41 has been formed, it is then fitted over the end of a male former 44, as shown in Figure 1 b. The external dimensions of the male former 44 are substantially the same as but slightly smaller than the internal dimensions of the shell 18 so that there is a close fit of the male former 44 in the shell 18 when the male former 44 is inserted into the interior volume 28 of the container 10. In particular a gap between the external surfaces of the male former 44 and the internal surfaces of the shell 18 is preferably only slightly greater than the thickness of the plastics sheet 36 used to form the lining 20. Because the lining bag 41 is made from flat sheets of a plastics material 36, the bag essentially has a 2-dimensional shape. When the bag 41 is placed over the 3- dimensional male former 44, a closed end region 46 of the bag does not, at this stage, conform to the shape of a distal end of the male former 44. In particular, pleats of excess material are formed at the end region 46 of the bag 41 , which extends across a flat surface of the distal end of the male former 44 corresponding in size and shape to the base 24 of the shell 18.

Preferably, a heat source 48 is used to heat the end region 46 of the lining bag 41 while it is in position over the end of the male former 44. The end region 46 of the lining bag 41 is heated to a temperature above the heat shrink temperature, but below the slip point temperature at which the material softens significantly. Heating the end region 46 in this way causes this part of the lining bag 41 to shrink and conform to the shape of the distal end of the male former 44.

The pre-formed lining 20 is then secured within the outer shell 18. Preferably the lining 20 is secured to the shell 18 using a suitable adhesive. The adhesive should have a low peel strength but a moderate shear strength, similar to the adhesive used on Post-It (RTM) Notes. The moderate shear strength of the adhesive means that the thin-film lining 20 will remain adhered to the internal surface 22 of the outer shell 18 during use of the container 10. Additionally, because the containers 10 may be nested during transportation or storage before filling, it is important that, when the nested containers 10 are separated from each other, the lining 20 does not get pulled away from the outer shell 18. In contrast, the low peel strength means that minimal force is required to peel the lining 20 away from the outer shell 18 after use, in order to dispose of and recycle the lining 20 and the outer shell 18 separately. Preferably the peel strength of the adhesive use to bond the lining 20 to the shell 18 is less than 0.05 N, and more preferably between 0.02 N and 0.04 N.

In a preferred embodiment, the adhesive is heat activated. The use of a heat activated adhesive means that the adhesive is only tacky when heated above a certain temperature. In this way, the lining bag 41 may be inserted into the shell 18 in a non-activated state in which the adhesive is not tacky. Once the lining 20 is correctly positioned within the shell 18, heat is then applied to either the male former 44 or around the outside of the shell 18 to increase the temperature and cause activation of the adhesive. The activated adhesive, which is tacky, then adheres the lining 20 to the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18.

In other embodiments the adhesive may be pressure activated. As such, the adhesive only becomes tacky once a sufficient pressure has been applied to it. In yet other embodiments the adhesive may be pressure and heat activated.

The advantage of using an activated adhesive is that neither the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 nor the external surfaces 50 of the lining 20 are tacky when the lining is inserted into the shell 18. This allows the lining 20 to be positioned, and re-positioned, exactly as desired before the lining 20 is finally adhered to the shell 18. In particular it allows the lining to be positioned against the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 so that there are no wrinkles or creases in the lining 20.

If either of the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 or the external surfaces 50 of the lining 20 are tacky when the lining 20 is inserted into the shell 18, the lining 20 may adhere to the shell 18 in an incorrect position. In particular, vibrations during assembly and the manufacturing tolerances of the lining 20 and shell 18 may cause incorrect adhesion of the lining 20 to the shell 18. The lining 20 would then have to be removed from the shell 18 and re-inserted if possible, or the container 10 would have to be rejected and disposed of if the lining 20 was damaged or wrongly positioned. The adhesive is preferably applied to the external surface 50 of the pre-formed lining 20. Alternatively, the adhesive may be applied to one surface of the plastics film 36 used to form the lining bag 41 prior to forming the bag.

Applying the adhesive to the plastics film 36 has the advantage that, when the lining 20 is peeled away from the shell 18, the adhesive remains on the lining 20 and not on the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18. This is a similar concept to the adhesive applied to a rear surface of a Post-It (RTM) Note so that when the Post-It (RTM) Note is separated from a surface, including another Post-It (RTM) Note, the adhesive remains on the rear of the Post-It (RTM) Note and not on the surface.

In other embodiments the adhesive may be applied to the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 once formed, or applied to one surface of the cardboard used to form the shell 18. Applying the adhesive to the shell has the advantage that the shell provides a relatively rigid substrate compared to the lining such that the adhesive may be applied more accurately and consistently.

Typically the adhesive will be a hot-melt glue. The adhesive is preferably spray applied to ensure an even coverage or coating of the adhesive over the lining 20 and/or shell 18.

When the male former 44 is fully inserted into the shell 18, the end region of the lining bag 41 , over the distal end of the male former 44, is pressed down onto the base 24 of the shell 18. Due to the dimensions of the male former 44, the male former 44 presses the lining 20 firmly against the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 over the complete area of the base 24 and side wall 26. This allows the lining 20 to be adhered to the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 as smoothly as possible. In particular, it is desirable if there are no creases or wrinkles in the lining 20. This is to prevent, for example, a stirring rod or other suitable implement catching on a crease or fold and tearing the lining 20 when the contents of the container, such as paint, are being stirred before use. Alternatively, the external diameter of the male former 44 may be made slightly smaller than the internal diameter of the shell 18. In these embodiments, the lining bag 41 , which still has the same dimensions as the inside of the shell 18, is first drawn around the male former 44 for example by the use of suction towards the male former 44. The male former 44 is then inserted into the shell 18 as described above. Once fully inserted into the shell 18, air may then be used to blow the lining bag 41 outwards away from the male former 44 and onto the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18. Alternatively, air may be drawn through the shell 18 to suck the lining bag 41 outwards onto the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18. This method prevents the lining 20 tearing as the male former 44 is inserted into the shell 18.

In some embodiments it is preferable if the male former 44 is in the form of a collapsible tool having a plurality of segments. By removal and insertion of a number of the segments the diameter of the tool may be decreased and increased respectively to ease insertion of the lining 20 into the shell 18.

Once the lining 20 has been inserted into the shell 18, the adhesive is then activated, as described above, to adhere the lining 20 to the shell 18. Once the lining 20 has adhered to the shell 18, the male former 44 is withdrawn.

Small air pockets that may still remain between the lining 20 and the shell 18 may also be removed, or minimised, in some embodiments by the use of brush means (not shown). One or more brush heads may be lowered into the container 10, and a plurality of bristles attached to the brush heads may then be swept across the internal surface of the lining 20 to smooth the lining 20 and remove any remaining air pockets.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an upper section 52 of the lining 20 protrudes from the opening 34 of the shell 18 after the lining bag 41 has been inserted into the shell 18, as shown in Figure 1 d. This upper section 52 of the lining 20 is then rolled or folded over the rim 32 of the shell 18, so that this upper section 52 surrounds an exterior surface 54 of the shell 18 proximate the rim 32. Preferably this upper section or external portion 52 of the lining 20 extends less than one third of the way down the exterior surface 54 of the shell 18. In other embodiments, however, it may be desirable if the external portion 52 of the lining 20 extends down for the full height of the shell 18 so that the external surface of the shell 18 is fully covered by the external portion 52 of the lining 20.

Heating means 56 is preferably used to shrink the external portion 52 of the lining 20 around the outside of the shell 18, as shown in Figure 1 e. The heating means 56 is preferably ring-shaped and has an internal diameter larger than the external diameter of the rim 32 of the container 10, such that the heating means 56 can completely surround an upper region of the container 10. Once the upper section 52 of the lining 20 has been folded over the rim 32, the heating ring 56 is lowered over or raised up around the container 10 so that it is aligned with the upper region of the container 10.

The external portion 52 of the lining 20 is heated to a temperature above the heat shrink temperature, but below the slip point temperature. In this way, the external portion 52 of the lining 20 shrinks and conforms to the shape of the external surface 54 of the shell 18 around the rim 32.

It is particularly important that the lining 20 conforms as closely as possible to the shape of the rim 32 of the shell 18. In this embodiment, the rim 32 is used to secure the lid 14 onto the main body 12 of the container 10 as will be described further below.

Covering the top edge 30 and rim 32 of the shell 18 with the lining 20 means that, when the container 10 is used as a paint pot, for example, as paint is poured from the container 10 the paint will not contaminate the cardboard shell 18.

Additionally, a user of the container 10 can also wipe his or her paintbrush on the edge of the container 10 without contaminating the cardboard shell 18 with paint.

Furthermore, any paint on an inner surface of the lid 14 will not contaminate an exterior surface 54 of the shell 18.

When this container 10 is used as a paint pot, it is, therefore, only the lining 20 that is contaminated with paint residue. As such, after use, the lining 20 may be removed from the shell 18 to be disposed of in a suitable manner, and the non- contaminated shell 18 may be recycled in the usual way. In this way, the amount of contaminated material that must be disposed of is significantly reduced.

In order to remove the lining 20 from the shell 18, it is first necessary to peel the heat shrunk external portion 52 of the lining 20 away from the exterior surface 54 of the shell 18 and over the rim 32. However, because this portion 52 of the lining 20 has been shrink wrapped to conform to the sides of the shell 18, it is not possible to simply fold this portion 52 of the lining 20 back over the rim 32. This is of particular importance in embodiments in which the sides wall 26 of the shell 18 is tapered such that the diameter of a rim of the shell is greater than the diameter of the shell 18 at its base.

To aid in the removal of the lining 20, the external portion 52 of the lining 20 preferably includes perforations 58, as shown in Figure 2. These perforations 58 allow a user of the container 10 to tear a portion of the shrink wrapped portion 52 of the lining 20 away from the exterior surface 54 of the shell 18 in order to subsequently peel the lining 20 away from the interior surfaces 22 of the shell 18. The perforations 58 extend around the container 10 a small distance below the rim 32 and preferably extend between one half and three-quarters of the way around the circumference of the container 10.

It should be noted that the location of the perforations 58 relative to the rim 32 should not be such that they compromise the sealing of the lid 14 when it is placed over the container 10. In particular, the perforations 58 should ideally be located below the sealing line of the lid 14 around the rim 32.

To remove the lining 20 from the shell 18, a user first tears a vertically oriented line of perforations 58 to form the end of a tab. The user then continues to pull the tab and tears along the line of perforations 58 extending circumferentially around the container 10. When the end of the perforations 58 is reached, a continued pulling force exerted on the detached portion of lining 20 then causes the remainder of the lining 20 to peel away from the exterior and interior surfaces 54, 22 of the shell 18.

Once the lining 20 has been removed, it may be disposed of and the remaining shell 18, which in this example is 100% paperboard or cardboard, can be recycled using conventional methods.

To make the lining 20 easier to remove, it may be desirable, in some embodiments, to include an outer 'tear-off strip 60 that covers and is attached to all or part of the shrink wrapped portion 52 of the lining 20 that covers the external surface of the shell 18. This is shown in Figure 4. The outer strip 60 is attached to the external portion 52 of the lining 20 so that the vertical line of perforations 58 is located in, and attached to, an end portion of the strip 60. A free end or tab of the outer strip 60 extends beyond the line of perforations 58 and is not secured to either the lining 20 or shell 18.

To remove the lining 20 from the shell 18, a user grips and pulls the tab of the outer strip 60 away from the exterior surface 54 of the shell 18 which causes the lining 20 to tear along the vertically oriented line of perforations 58. Continued pulling of the tab causes the lining 20 to tear along the line of perforations 58 extending circumferentially around the container 10. When the end of the perforations 58 is reached, between about halfway and three-quarters of the way around the container 10, the pulling force on the strip 60 then causes the remainder of the lining 20 to peel away from the exterior and interior surfaces 54, 22 of the shell 18.

Preferably the outer strip 60 is made from a paperboard material, the same as or similar to the material used to form the shell 18 of the container 10. In this way, the outer strip 60 provides an additional area on the exterior surface of the container 10 onto which information or branding may easily be printed.

Generally, the lining 20 will be formed from a transparent or translucent thin film plastics material. However, in some situations it may be desirable to use an opaque lining 20. In some embodiments a message or code, for example as part of a competition, may be printed on the interior surface 22 of the shell 18. The message and/or code would then only be revealed once the lining 20 had been peeled away and separated from the shell 18. This could be used to encourage users to separate the lining 20 and shell 18 for recycling through, for example, the chance to win a prize if a lucky number or symbol is revealed under the lining 20.

In some embodiments of the present invention it is desirable to include a handle 16 attached to the main body 12 of the container 10 to ease carrying of the container 10 during use.

Because the lining 20 forms a complete barrier layer within the container 10, it is undesirable to fully pierce the sides of the container 10 to form attachment points for a handle. Additionally, it is difficult to pierce only the shell 18 of the container 10 as this would have to be done before the lining 20 was inserted into the shell 18. The attachment point of the handle on the interior surface 22 of the shell 18 would then mean that the internal surfaces 22 of the shell 18 were not smooth making adhesion of the lining 20 to the shell 18 without creases difficult, if not impossible, in these regions. Accordingly, it is necessary to attach the handle 16 to the exterior surface 54 of the container 10.

Additionally, it is preferable to form the handle 16 from a strip of plastics material. Although this increases the amount of plastics material that must be disposed of, the greater strength of a plastics material compared to a paperboard material is necessary to support the weight of the container 10 especially when it is filled with paint for example. Preferably the handle 16 is made from polypropylene or high density polyethylene. In other embodiments, the handle may be made from a metal wire or a rope material.

The handle 16 is attached to opposite sides of the container 10 at its ends. The attachment means 62 comprise a pad element or attachment plate 64 in the form of a rectangular sheet of paperboard or plastics material. A hole 66 is formed substantially centrally through the pad element 64 and a corresponding hole 68 is also formed in an end region 70 of the handle 16. A pivot pin 72 extends through the hole 68 in the handle 16 and the hole 66 in the pad element 64 to rotatably or pivotally attach the handle 16 to the pad element 64. In this embodiment the pivot pin 72 comprises flanged ends 74 to secure the pad element 64 and the end region 70 of the handle 16 together such that one of the flanged ends 74 is located against a first surface of the pad element 64 and the second of the flanged ends 74 is located against an outer surface of the handle 16, as shown most clearly in figure 4. During manufacture of the container 10 it may be preferable if a handle subassembly is formed prior to the attachment of the handle 16 to the main body 12 of the container 10. The handle sub-assembly comprises the handle 16, and at each end 70 of the handle 16 a pad element or attachment plate 64 secured to the handle 16 by a respective pivot pin 72.

To attach the handle 16 to the main body 12 of the container 10 the pad elements 64 are positioned on opposing sides of the container 10 so that at least a part of each pad element 64 overlaps the external portion 52 of the lining 20. The overlapping region of the pad element 64 is then secured to the external portion 52 of the lining 20. The pad element 64 may be secured directly to the external portion 52 of the lining 20, or alternatively may be secured to the outer 'tear-off' strip 60 as described above.

The pad elements 64 are secured firmly to the external portion 52 of the lining 20 so that as this part of the lining 20 is peeled away from the shell 18, as described above, the handle 16 is also removed from the main body 12 of the container 10. The handle 16 can then be disposed of together with the lining 20.

In some embodiments a non-overlapping region of the pad element 64 may be lightly adhered to the external surface 54 of the shell 18 below the external portion 52 of the lining 20. The strength of the adhesion of the non-overlapping region of the pad element 64 to the external surface 54 of the shell 18 should be such that, during use, the pad element 64 remains adhered to the shell 18 and any forces are transmitted between the main body 12 of the container 10 and the handle 16 over the full surface area of the pad element 64. The strength of adhesion between the non-overlapping region of the pad element 64 and the shell 18 should, however, be such that the pad element 64 may be peeled apart from the shell 18 and fully separated from the shell 18 as the lining 20 is peeled away. Attaching the handle sub-assembly to the external portion 52 of the lining 20 has the advantage that the lining 20 and the handle 16 may be separated from the shell 18 in one action. If the handle 16 were attached to the external surface 54 of the shell 18 separately from the external portion 52 of the lining 20 then a user would need to perform two actions to remove the handle 16 from the shell 18 and to remove the lining 20 from the shell 20. This would make it less likely that a user would separate the components of the container 10 for disposal and recycling.

A lid 14 of the container 10 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to figures 6 and 7.

The lid 14 comprises a frame 76 surrounding and defining a central aperture 78. In this embodiment the frame 76 is annular and is designed to be secured to a substantially circular rim of a container 10. The frame 76 is preferably made of a rigid or semi-rigid plastics material, such as polypropylene or high density polyethylene. In a preferred method of manufacture the frame is injection moulded.

The frame 76 includes an outer engagement portion 80 and an inner lip 82. The engagement portion 80 is designed to engage with the rim 32 of the main body 12 of the container 10 and secure the lid 14 to the container 10. The engagement portion 80 is in the form of a semi-flexible curved wall 84 creating a substantially tubular channel 86 extending fully around the frame 76. A slit or gap 88 extending the length of the frame 76, in an underside of the frame 76, forms an opening 88 of the channel 86 for receiving the rim 32 of the main body 12 of the container 10 within the channel 86. In use, the curved shape of the engagement portion 80 allows the plastics material to flex so that the wall 84 snaps over and engages with the rim 32 of the main body 12 of the container 10. As such, when the lid 14 is located over the opening 34 of the main body 12 of the container 10, the curved wall 84 extends over the top of and around the outside of the rim 32, so that a free end 90 of the curved wall 84 is located under the rim 32 on the external side of the container 10.

The lip 82 of the frame 76 extends inwardly from the engagement portion 80 around the full length of the frame 76. The lip 82 includes a substantially flat upper surface 92 that extends parallel to the plane of the lid 14.

A flexible film 94 of plastics material is attached, around its edge, to the upper surface 92 of the lip 82 so that the thin film 94 of plastics material completely covers the aperture 78 in the frame 76. The thin film 94, therefore, forms a sealing layer 94 which extends over and covers the opening 34 of the container 10 when the lid 14 is secured to the rim 32 of the main body 12. The sealing layer 94 is preferably made from the same material as the lining 20, and the thickness of the sealing layer 94 is preferably less than 200 pm.

The sealing layer 94 may be secured to the lip 82 by a suitable adhesive or by heat welding. The sealing layer 94 should be attached to the lip 82 such that a seal is formed between the sealing layer 94 and the frame 76. In this way, when the lid 14 is secured to the main body 12 of a container 10, the frame 76 and sealing layer 94 together cover and seal the opening 34 of the container 10.

The lid 14 also includes a reinforcing cover 96 made from paperboard or cardboard. The cover 96 extends over the sealing layer 94 to protect the sealing layer 94 from tears or punctures. Additionally, the cover 96 is substantially thicker than the sealing layer 94 and increases the rigidity of the lid 14. The cover 96 also increases the strength of the lid 14 permitting a number of containers 10 to be stacked one on top of the other. Preferably the thickness of the cover is between 0.25 mm and 2.0 mm. In other embodiments the cover 96 may be made from a plastics material.

An edge of the cover 96 extends over and is seated on the lip 82 of the frame 76. The cover 96 is, preferably, secured to the sealing layer 94 and/or the frame 76 so that the cover 96 does not separate from the sealing layer 94 and frame 76 during use, but may be fully separated from the sealing layer 94 and frame 76 for disposal and recycling. In one embodiment the cover 96 is adhered to at least a portion of the sealing layer 94, for example around an edge region, by a suitable adhesive. In another embodiment the edge of the cover 96 is received within a or retained by a retaining feature, such as a groove or projection (not shown), in the frame 76.

In a preferred embodiment, a tab 98 extends from a part of the edge of the cover 96. In use, to separate the cover 96 from the sealing layer 94 and frame 76, a user grips the tab 98 and pulls the cover 96 upwards, away from the sealing layer 94, as indicated by the arrow in Figure 7. In embodiments in which the cover 96 is adhered to at least a portion of the sealing layer 94, pulling the tab 98 in this way peels the cover 96 from the sealing layer 94. In embodiments in which the edge of the cover 96 is retained by a retaining feature in the frame 76, pulling the tab 98 in this way disengages the cover 96 from the retaining feature.

The lid 14 is constructed in this way to minimise the amount of material of the lid 14 that must be disposed of as contaminated material. The cover 96 remains uncontaminated and can, therefore, be separated from the frame 76 and sealing layer 94 and disposed of or recycled in the usual manner. Additionally, if the cover 96 is constructed from a paperboard material, this minimises the amount of plastics material used to form the lid 14 while still creating a lid 14 that may be used to reseal the container 10 repeatedly a number of times during use.

The frame 76, therefore, forms a semi-rigid structure that may be repeatedly engaged with and disengaged from the rim 32 of the container 10. A central region of the lid 14 is sealed with only a thin film 94 of plastics material and this thin film 94 is protected or reinforced by a thicker cover 96. The cover 96 is preferably made from a paperboard material to reduce the amount of plastics material in the lid 14 and the cover 96 is easily separated from the frame 76 and film 94 for recycling.

It is additionally desirable if the container 10 may be designed to stack once filled, for storage in a warehouse, a retail outlet or in a user's home. To achieve this, the side wall of the container 10, and in particular the side wall 26 of the shell 18, preferably tapers from the top 30 to a bottom edge 100. In this way, the circumference of the container 10 at its top edge 30 is larger than the circumference of the container 10 at its bottom edge 100.

As shown in figures 3 and 5, the angle of taper is ideally such that the bottom edge 100 of one container 10' may be seated on or supported by the lip 82 of the lid 14 of the container 10" below. The bottom edge 100 of the container 10' may be seated directly on the lip 82, or another layer such as a sealing layer 94 or cover 96 may be positioned between the bottom edge 100 and the lip 82. In this way, when the containers 10 are stacked, the weight of an upper container 10' is supported by the lower container 10" via the frame 76 of the lid 14.

This invention, therefore, provides a lid for a container that overcomes some of the problems associated with prior art containers as explained above.