Bottles and jars – Neck – Frangible neck
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-15
2001-05-29
Shoap, Allan N. (Department: 3727)
Bottles and jars
Neck
Frangible neck
C215S050000, C215S213000, C215S256000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06237789
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to burglar-proof containers.
By container, we mean any hollow body with its locking system, such as, for instance: bottles, vials, vessels and/or other tanks. They are normally designed for launching quality products on the market, often under reputed names such as alcohols and/or spirits, champagnes and/or fine wines, perfumes and/or cosmetics, chemicals, farm-products or pharmaceuticals, sometimes of hazardous usage.
It is known that such containers are sometimes, unfortunately, reused by third parties, for launching products on the market that not only differ from those of origin, but often show lower quality, leading to the consumer's disappointment.
In this context, various devices have been designed with a view to enabling to detect whether such containers have been opened and to making them burglar-proof, seals are for instance provided between the neck of a bottle and its stopper, so that the seal will be broken when the bottle is opened.
Thus, among others, European Patent no 94 4402 006.4, published on Mar. 15 1995 under no. 0 642 984 A1, discloses an “Opening indicating device for bottles with stoppers, comprising means linking by a frangible area to a ring connected to the neck in a burglar-proof manner, so that the said means break at the location of the frangible area when they are brought from a protection position in which they oppose the removal of the stopper, to a stopper releasing position.
If this type of device enables to detect an opening, causing such a seal to break, it obviously does not prevent any possible reuse of the said bottles, without detecting such an intrusion.
Besides, French Patent no 89 17563, published on Jun. 28, 1991 under no. 2 656 281, discloses a “burglar-proof sealing device for a fragile vessel, comprising a sealing or supersealing system made of a ductile material, fixed to the said vessel and having an opening means, for example a line of fracture or a tearing line covering a crimping retainer; this device also comprises a wafer, acting as an antifraud seal, fixed simultaneously to the said sealing or supersealing system and to the vessel.” This wafer, of reduced resilience, normally less than that of the vessel properly speaking, breaks during any attempted opening, by breaking the fixture of this sealing plate; if such were not the case, this attempted opening would cause the vessel itself to break, in an erratic, undefined and uncontrolled, even hazardous, manner.
Conversely, the container subject matter of the present invention, is really burglar-proof, because its opening forcibly implies elimination of the upper section of the neck of the said container, in a predefined, controlled, safe and final manner, making any reuse of the said container totally impossible, thanks to the obvious detection of this elimination.
The burglar-proof container, subject matter of the present invention, which comprises a hollow body with its closing system, is characterised in that this hollow body comprises a means integral with the neck of the hollow body, provided at a certain distance from the top of the mouth.
This means which constitutes a line of fracture of the neck of the hollow body and which will be broken at the opening of the container, is tapered and arranged at a certain distance from the top of the mouth of the hollow body, according to the invention: for example in the form o at least one recess, more or less circular, as a groove and/or a scratch, partial or total.
If, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, this taper is machined when manufacturing this hollow body; the said groove or scratch can also be provided at a later stage, even when closing the container, using a tool such as a diamond.
The hollow body making up the said containers can be obtained from various materials (such as: glass, quartz, crystal, preferably: ceramics, porcelains, etc.) according to any technique known by the man skilled in the art, in relation to the material implemented and to the application contemplated, such as, for example: moulding, rotational moulding, forming; thermoforming, casting, centrifugal casting, spinning, extrusion, blow-moulding, machining or others.
The closing system, subject matter of the invention, which comprises a stopper and a capsule, commonly called a supersealing, possibly burglar-proof, capsule, is characterised in that the resilience of this capsule, in its weakest point of possible fracture, is greater than that of the line of fracture, a means destroyed when opening the container properly speaking.
The skirt of the stopper, usually made of cork, but which can also be of plastic material, is frequently topped with a head of relatively hard material, known, such as a thermosettable synthetic resin; this head is often decorated, especially for products with reputed names.
The burglar-proof supersealing capsule, possibly known in itself, is made of a material having mechanical characteristics necessary to meet the resilience defined above and enable final shaping when applied onto the neck of the container, according to any technique known in itself by the man skilled in the art.
This material, which is generally metallic, among others, light alloys, for instance aluminum, tinplate, possibly steel, can also be of a thermosettable synthetic material, known in itself, possibly translucent.
When this capsule is placed on the neck of the container, the lower section of its skirt must be fixed in a manner sufficiently integral with the said neck, possibly sealed, so that the said capsule is burglar-proof, as defined above; this fixture will be provided on the external face of the neck of the vessel and preferably in the vicinity of the said breakage means of this neck, as illustrated for example on the figures and in the embodiments below, according to any technique known by the man skilled in the art, among others, using high adhesive characteristic glues.
The line of fracture, constituting the opening means of the container according to the invention is broken, and the upper section of its neck is subsequently eliminated thanks to various mechanical and/or physical processes, known in themselves; among others, the processes indicated thereunder, for explanatory purposes and non limiting, which can be implemented separately or in combination, according to the case, as well as by any other process, equivalent in practice.
1. This breakage of the said means can be obtained by a pressure applied on the inner face of the neck and to the outside, in its upper section, more especially in the vicinity of the line of fracture, as illustrated on
FIGS. 1
,
2
and/or
3
, appended.
This internal pressure can thus be provided via an element (see ref.
5
) particularly arranged between the upper section of the neck (see ref.
2
) and the stopper (see ref.
3
); whereas the said element consists of, among others:
either of an elastic synthetic resin, having a hysteresis close to zero, such as a silicon for instance,
or a mechanical spreading device, so that any pressure applied to such an element, such as a shock, onto the upper section of the supersealing capsule (see ref.
6
) will be propagated almost integrally onto the internal face of this upper section of the neck (see ref.
2
), thereby causing the said line of fracture to break (see ref.
4
) and the separation of the upper section of the neck.
2. This breakage can also be obtained by a traction, torsional and/or rotational load, applied from the outside onto the upper section of the neck; whereby this load is imparted manually or, possibly, using a tool intended for this purpose, such as pliers.
3. This breakage can also be obtained by degrading the line of fracture, caused for instance by a friction liable to damage the structure of this line, possibly by abrasion, during a rotational load applied onto the supersealing capsule, among others.
4. This breakage can also be obtained by a thermal shock, applied in the vicinity of the line of fracture, by a heat conducting element, preferably metallic, such as among others aluminum,
Arent Fox Kintner & Plotkin & Kahn, PLLC
Eloshway Niki M.
Shoap Allan N.
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