Plastic container

1. A plastic container which comprises:

a hollow body of plastic material having a lower supporting base, a sidewall extending upwardly from the lower base, and an upper neck portion with an opening therein, said neck portion extending upwardly from the sidewall, and said sidewall having a lower portion and an upper portion;

a sidewall portion essentially centrally located between the neck portion and base on said sidewall and between the lower and upper sidewall portions which is depressed with respect to the lower and upper sidewall portions and which extends circumferentially around the sidewall;

wherein the lower sidewall portion includes opposed sidewall sections, with two opposed sidewall sections each including at least one lower panel having a central region and an outer boundary, with the outer boundary being depressed with respect to the central region, with the depressed outer boundary having side portions and top and bottom portions, and with said lower panels each at least in part extending substantially across a sidewall section; and

wherein the upper sidewall portion is round and includes a plurality of spaced upper panels extending in adjacent rounded succession around the circumference of the upper sidewall portion of the container, each of the plurality of spaced upper panels having a central region and an outer boundary, and the plurality of spaced upper panels comprise a plurality of circumferentially extending rows and at least two rows of the plurality of circumferentially extending rows of upper panels are staggered with respect to each other.

2. A container according to claim 1 , wherein the depressed outer boundary of the lower sidewall panels comprises a substantially continuous, channel-like structure which substantially circumscribes the central region thereof.

3. A container according to claim 2 , wherein said lower sidewall panels are essentially square with rounded corners.

4. A container according to claim 1 , wherein the container is essentially round.

5. A container according to claim 4 , wherein there are at least twelve upper sidewall panels.

6. A container according to claim 4 , wherein two opposed lower sidewall sections each include two of said lower panels.

7. A container according to claim 2 , wherein the depressed outer boundary of the lower sidewall panels include curved corner portions.

8. A container according to claim 1 , including a shoulder portion between the sidewall and upper neck portion.

9. A container according to claim 8 , wherein the shoulder portion extends generally inwardly of the sidewall.

10. A container according to claim 2 wherein each sidewall section has an outer boundary and at least part of the side portions of the outer boundary of the lower sidewall panels run adjacent the edges of a sidewall section.

11. A container according to claim 6 , wherein the two lower panels on opposed sidewall sections are side-by-side panels, and the outer boundary of each side-by-side panel includes parallel, outer boundary portions spaced from each other with said parallel outer boundary portions being generally centrally located on said sidewalls.

12. A container according to claim 11 , wherein said side by side panels are separated by a vertical land, and wherein said parallel outer boundary portions are depressed with respect to said vertical land.

13. A container according to claim 11 , including a recessed base with a plurality of outwardly extending struts.

14. A container according to claim 1 , wherein said central sidewall portion includes outwardly extending vertical columns.

15. A container according to claim 13 , including a peripheral base rim, wherein said outwardly extending struts extend between the recessed base and the peripheral base rim.

16. A container according to claim 1 , wherein the raised central area of the upper panels is a generally round raised area with a substantially flat surface.

17. A container according to claim 1 , including two additional opposed lower sidewall sections, one each of same alternating between the sidewall sections having lower panels, said additional opposed lower sidewall sections each having a panel extending from the base to the centrally located sidewall portion.