Bottles and jars – Closures – Having warning means or means impeding closure removal
Reexamination Certificate
1999-03-31
2001-03-20
Shoap, Allan N. (Department: 3727)
Bottles and jars
Closures
Having warning means or means impeding closure removal
C215S219000, C215S223000, C215S305000, C215S330000, C215S334000, C220S281000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06202869
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a) Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to medicine containers having lockable closures, and more particularly, to such containers wherein the lockable closures are both child-resistant and adult (or senior) friendly.
b) Description of Prior Art
The Poison Prevention Packaging Act went into effect in 1970 requiring that certain harmful packaged materials, including poisons, certain chemicals, and medications be contained in child-resistant containers (or CRC's). In response to this act, and public demand, there have been a multitude of containers offered to package such dangerous materials. Among these containers include the “Clic-Loc” closure which requires a user to rotate the cap with respect to the container until two marks (arrows) align, at which point a finger tab may be moved upward and the cap pried from the container to an open position.
Another type of CRC is a “push and turn” type and includes a cap having an outer shell and an inner sealing retainer. The outer shell freely rotates about the inner sealing retainer until a predetermined downward force is applied by the adult user. The downward force engages the outer shell with the inner retainer and must be maintained throughout the opening procedure. The retainer includes conventional threads and once engaged with the outer shell, its rotation by the adult user will open the container.
Although these conventional containers discourage children from gaining access to the medicine or chemicals located within the container while providing fair access to adults, the operations required to open these containers have proven to be very difficult to perform by elderly, disabled, inured or by those otherwise lacking in hand coordination.
A problem with the conventional “push and turn” containers is that during opening, the user must force the cap towards the container body to ensure that the outer skirt remains engaged with the inner retainer, while the cap is rotated away from the container body. This opposing mechanical action required to open the conventional “push and turn” child-resistant containers is very uncomfortable to the user and only adds to the difficulty and frustration in opening the container. The user ends up “fighting” against his own action, as he opens the container.
Owing to the difficulties in opening conventional child-resistant containers, many users may deliberately leave the container or package open so that they may readily access their medicine in the future. An obvious problem resulting in leaving a medicine container open or effectively open (i.e., disabling any child resistant lock) is that children also may gain access to the medicine. Each year, approximately 130,000 people are treated in hospital emergency rooms for accidental poisoning resulting from prescription drugs, and certain over-the-counter drugs, such as aspirin, and of these poisonings, about 50 children die.
Recently, there has been interest in supplying a new type of container called “senior-friendly” containers (SFC's) to those adults who have difficulty in manipulating conventional CRC's or even regular, non-child resistant containers. For the most part, these senior-friendly containers have provisions which allow the elderly (or those otherwise lacking in hand coordination) to easily open the container, but unfortunately do not also include child-proof features to prevent access of the drugs to children.
On Jun. 15, 1995, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted to revive the test-procedures used under the Poison Prevention Packaging Act to make packaging easier to open by adults between the ages of 50 and 70, while maintaining its child resistance. The CPSC recognizes that child-resistant containers requiring two or more mental steps to be opened may sufficiently discourage children from accessing the container's dangerous contents.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide a closure adapted to fit a container which overcomes the problems and deficiencies of the prior art.
It is another object of the invention to provide a container having a lockable closure which includes provisions to prevent easy access to children, while allowing quick and easy access to the elderly (or those otherwise lacking in hand coordination).
It is another object of the invention to provide a container having a lockable closure which may be activated or de-activated, as desired by the user.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a container wherein a leverage handle is provided to assist in opening the container once it has been unlocked.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A child-resistant/senior-friendly container includes a body having an opening and a cap assembly. The cap assembly is made up of a retainer that is adapted to thread onto the body and thereby selectively closes the opening, and an outer skirt which is loosely fitted around the retainer. The skirt includes at least one grasping member which is pivotal between a disengaged position wherein the skirt may freely rotate with respect to the retainer and an engaged position wherein the skirt engages a portion of the retainer. In the engaged position, a user may unscrew (or otherwise rotate and release, e.g., in the case of a bayonet-type closure) the retainer from the body by rotating the surrounding skirt. The retainer cannot be rotated when the grasping member is located in the disengaged position.
According to another embodiment of the invention, a handle is attached to the skirt, preferably between two opposing and pivotal grasping members. In this embodiment, a user may squeeze the grasping members together against the handle to their engaged position and then use the leverage afforded by the handle to easily rotate the skirt and retainer from the opening of the body.
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patent: 5170900 (1992-12-01), Maneral
patent: 5344035 (1994-09-01), Manera
patent: 5509550 (1996-04-01), DeJonge
patent: 5524779 (1996-06-01), Faile
patent: 5579932 (1996-12-01), Drozd et al.
patent: 5597083 (1997-01-01), Childers et al.
patent: 5676268 (1997-10-01), King
Eloshway Niki M.
Shoap Allan N.
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