20120181246 | PANELLESS HOT-FILL PLASTIC BOTTLE - A plastic bottle base having a seating ring perpendicular to the bottle axis. A base inner portion extends upward and inward toward a center bottom wall surrounding the axis. A flexible diaphragm portion extends outward from the seating ring to join a heel portion at a substantially horizontal inflection point. The diaphragm portion is sufficiently flexible to respond to changes in bottle volume and vacuum to allow the seating ring to move upward so that the seating ring is above the heel portion of the bottle. A sidewall is defined by a small number of barrel shaped surfaces separated by indented ring segments to form a panelless plastic bottle capable of hot-filling and capping. | 07-19-2012 |