5431A-AU-D1 AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 5 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT 10 ORIGINAL Name of Applicant(s): JoEllen HENDERSON 15 Actual Inventor(s): JoEllen HENDERSON Address for Service: FRASER OLD & SOHN Patent Attorneys PO Box 560 20 MILSONS POINT NSW 1565 Invention Title: A Closure for a Container Details of Parent Application: 2013 200 941 25 Dated 18 February 2013 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best 30 method of performing it known to us: 1 5431A-AU-D1 A CLOSURE FOR A CONTAINER Field of the Invention The present invention relates to containers in which food for lunch is stored. 5 Background Art Such containers, sometimes referred to as a lunch pail, are generally fabricated from a plastics material such as PVC, and have a generally rectangular configuration with either a hinged or a snap on lid. The entire lunch is normally located within the one container and so there are generally sandwiches, sometimes a piece of fruit, and 10 sometimes a drink. If the drink is in a can, then the drink may be frozen to provide a means of maintaining the lunch cool during hot weather. In the absence of this stratagem, a "freezer brick" (or generally rectangular plastic housing filled with water or similar liquid) may be used to similar effect. 15 The thin plastic walls of the container do not provide very good thermal insulation and therefore the cooling effect, if any, may be rapidly lost in the hours between leaving home after breakfast, and having lunch. In addition, the contents of the container are free to move about and this may result in the fruit coming into repeated contact with the walls of the container, or a drink or freezer brick coming into 20 repeated contact with fruit, either of which results in bruising of the fruit. The problem of external forces bruising the fruit can be ameliorated to some extent by using a container of pliant material such as the lunch purse disclosed in US Design Patent No. D533,752 (Lown). However, the fruit can still be bruised by the other 25 contents of the purse. Furthermore, if the fruit is cold, having been taken from the fridge and being placed directly in the container, and/or a freezer brick is used, then condensation may form from the water vapour present in the air within the container. This is a particular 30 problem in tropical latitudes. The result is that a paper napkin within the container, for example, may become sodden or even sandwiches, biscuits and the like may become soggy, or less than crisp. US Patent No. 6,851,274 is representative of this prior art. 2 5431A-AU-D1 Genesis of the Invention The genesis of the present invention is a desire to ameliorate to at least some extent the abovementioned difficulties by the provision of a cruciform closure for a container which is useful for the carriage of fruit. 5 Summary of the Invention In accordance with an aspect of the present invention there is disclosed a closure for a container having a flexible wall defining an opening of the container, said closure comprising an even multiplicity of substantially equal length releasable press fastener 10 strips arranged around the interior of said opening in end to end configuration whereby adjacent pairs of said fastener strips can be releasably fastened to each other to form a corresponding spoke of a multiple spoke closure for said opening. Brief Description of the Drawings 15 Several embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the container of a first embodiment illustrating the base of the container; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the container of Fig. 1 showing the open mouth 20 of the container; Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the container of Figs. 1 and 2 but showing the mouth in its closed configuration; Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IV - IV of Fig. 2; Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view through the thermal pouch taken along the line 25 V-Vof Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a container of a second embodiment; and Fig. 7 is a similar perspective view of a container of a third embodiment. Detailed Description 30 As seen in Figs. 1 to 5, a container 10 of a first embodiment is illustrated which has a circular base 11 and a cylindrical side wall 12 which are preferably fabricated from neoprene material and stitched together by means of stitches 13. As best seen in Fig. 2, the container 10 has a mouth 15 around the interior of which eight strips 16 of hook and eye fastener material such as those sold under the Registered Trade Mark 3 5431A-AU-D1 VELCRO are sewn or otherwise adhered to the interior of the wall 12. The strips 16 are arranged in end to end configuration and the odd numbered strips have hook material whilst the even numbered strips have eye material, such that each adjacent pair of strips have opposite material and can therefore adhere to each other. 5 This is the situation illustrated in Fig. 3 where the mouth 15 is formed into a cruciform configuration 18 having four spokes 19. The abutting fastened pairs of strips 16 thereby close the container mouth 15. 10 As seen in Figs. 2 and 4, the container 10 is preferably manufactured from sheet neoprene material which is fabricated as a sandwich 21 having an interior 22 formed from foam neoprene and outer layers 23, 24 formed from fabric such as cotton. As seen in Figs. 1 and 5, the container 10 of generally cylindrical configuration is 15 provided with a thermal pouch 3 which is shaped as a disc and fabricated from two layers of thin flexible PVC material which are heat sealed around the periphery 4 of the pouch 3. The sealed periphery 4 provides a liquid tight seal which maintains a water like liquid 5 within the pouch 3. For example, the liquid 5 can be a mixture of trimethylene glycol and water. An airspace 6 is also preferably included within the 20 thermal pouch 3 to allow for expansion of the water as a result of either freezing or heating. The diameter of the pouch 3 is arranged to be just less than the internal diameter of the wall 12 so that there is a loose interference fit between the pouch 3 and the wall 12. 25 In use, the thermal pouch 3 is first frozen and then pushed into the container 10 so as to abut the thermal pouch 3 against the base 11. The loose interference fit between the pouch 3 and the container 10 means that the container 10 can be tilted, tipped over or even inverted without dislodging the pouch 3 but if mildly shaken or otherwise disturbed the pouch 3 can be manually pulled from the container 10. 30 With the frozen pouch 3 abutting the base 11, a piece of fruit 8 such as an apple, orange, peach or nectarine or like piece of fruit having a size approximately equivalent to a tennis ball, can be placed within the interior of the container 10 and the mouth 15 closed by being placed into its cruciform configuration illustrated in Fig. 3. 4 5431A-AU-D1 In the closed configuration, the neoprene sandwich material from which the container is made provides a number of benefits. Firstly, the material is shock absorbing and thus the fruit 8 is prevented from bruising as a result of exterior shocks applied to the 5 container 10. Secondly, the fruit 8 because of the size of the container 10 is held stationary relative to the container 10 and thus the fruit 8 is not subjected to bruising by rolling about and coming into contact with the side walls or other contents of the container 10, as is the case with the prior art plastic lunch pails. Similarly, the thermal pouch 3 does not move relative to the container 10 and fruit 8 and thus the thermal 10 pouch 3 is restrained and does not itself cause any bruising of the fruit 8. In addition, the thermal pouch 3 being initially frozen, maintains the piece of fruit cool until lunchtime. Furthermore, any condensation which may be created by the cold thermal pouch 3 is absorbed by the fabric 23 forming the interior surface of the 15 wall 12. As a consequence, if a paper napkin, not illustrated but conventional, should happen to be packed into the container 10 along with the fruit 8, then the napkin would not become soggy because of condensation produced by the cold thermal pouch. 20 Turning now to Fig. 6, a second embodiment of the present invention is illustrated which takes the form of a container 30 in which a portion of the side wall 12 is extended upwardly so as to form a flexible cover 31. Two VELCRO strips 36 are provided one on the exterior of the side wall 12 and one on the interior of the cover 31. When the strips 36 are engaged, then the cover 31 closes the mouth 15 of the 25 container 30. In all other respects, the container 30 is substantially similar to the container 10. Turning now to Fig. 7, a third embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in which a container 40 has two extensions 41, 42 of its wall 12, the extensions 41, 42 30 being opposite each other and each being provided with an elongate slot 44 so that the extensions 41, 42 form handles 51, 52 which can be easily grasped. On the interior surface of each of the extensions 41 and 42 is a corresponding VELCRO strip 46 which enables the mouth 15 of the container 40 to be opened and 5 5431A-AU-D1 closed. In the closed configuration the slots 44 are adjacent and thus may be easily grasped by the fingers of one hand and the strips 46 are engaged to close the mouth 15. In order to open the mouth 15 the extensions 41, 42 are grasped and pulled in opposite directions. In all other respects the operation of the container 40 is the same 5 of the container 10. The foregoing describes only three embodiments of the present invention and modifications, obvious to those skilled in the art, can be made thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention. 10 For example, the thermal pouch 3 can be heated by being microwaved or being placed in hot water. Such a heated thermal pouch 3 can be placed within the container 10, 30, 40 and thereby used to warm, or keep warm, the contents of the container. For example, a baby's bottle of relatively small volume can be located within the 15 container 10, 30, 40 and maintained at an elevated temperature for a long period of time in this manner. The containers 10, 30, 40 are easily able to be washed and allowed to dry so that in this way the containers can be kept clean, even if soiled through use. The preferred 20 thickness of the neoprene from which the containers 10, 30, 40 are made is either 3mm or 5mm. Furthermore, although the closure used to close the mouth 15 of the container 10 uses eight strips 16, thereby giving rise to four spokes 19, other arrangements can be used. 25 For example, six strips 16 results in three spokes 19 and a Y-like configuration of spokes, and ten strips 16 results in five spokes 19. The term "comprising" (and its grammatical variations) as used herein is used in the inclusive sense of "including" or "having" and not in the exclusive sense of 30 "consisting only of'. 6