Coating implements with material supply – Supply container and independent applicator – Applicator includes container closure or overlies material
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-10
2001-12-18
Walczak, David J. (Department: 3751)
Coating implements with material supply
Supply container and independent applicator
Applicator includes container closure or overlies material
C401S126000, C401S122000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06331085
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to container-applicator systems for materials which are applied to the human skin. In one important specific aspect, to which detailed reference will be made below for purposes of illustration, the invention is particularly directed to container-applicator systems for cosmetics such as creams, powders, liquids and gels. However, in a broader sense the invention may also be embodied in systems for applying other types of materials, such as medicinal ointments or the like, to the skin.
Many cosmetic materials that, unlike lipstick bullets or eyebrow pencils, are flowable or otherwise non-self-sustaining in shape, are packaged and sold in a container which holds a body of the material and from which the material is transported and applied to a user's skin by an applicator device. Commonly, the applicator is provided at the end of a stem carried by a cap which seats on and closes the mouth or opening of the container, the applicator being immersed in the contained body of cosmetic material when the cap is in the container-closing position. The cap serves as a handle for the user when the applicator, bearing a quantity of the cosmetic material, is withdrawn from the container and applied to the skin.
Examples of cosmetic applicators known and employed in present-day commercial practice include twisted-in-wire brushes with radially protruding, relatively short, stiff bristles; brushes with relatively long, soft flexible bristles anchored at one end; swabs; and flocked tips. In some instances, a flexible elastomeric wiper is mounted in the container opening so as to engage the applicator as the applicator is withdrawn through the opening, for removing excess cosmetic material that may be carried by the applicator from the body of material within the container.
While such applicators are generally satisfactory, they have various drawbacks including the possibility that components such as fibers or adhesive may become detached and incorporated in the cosmetic applied to the skin, sometimes causing an allergic reaction. Also, the design of these known devices may be more or less difficult to tailor to particular application requirements. In addition, while the use of a wiper may prevent grossly excessive quantities of cosmetic material from being transported and applied to the skin, the known applicators do not generally afford the ability to achieve precise metering of individual application quantities.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention broadly contemplates the provision of a container-applicator system for material to be applied to the human skin, comprising, in combination, a container for holding a body of the material, the container having an opening; a flexible wiper mounted in the opening; and an applicator insertable into and withdrawable from the container through the opening for transporting a quantity of the material from the container and applying the transported quantity of material to a user's skin, the wiper engaging the applicator to remove excess amounts of material therefrom as the applicator is withdrawn through the opening, the applicator comprising a generally cylindrical elastomeric tip with a long axis, the tip including a distal end portion having a distal extremity with at least one material-holding concavity formed therein and having a rim.
As a further particular feature of the invention, in important embodiments thereof, the distal extremity of the distal end portion of the applicator tip has a single, cup-shaped, material-holding concavity formed therein, the concavity having a rim.
In some currently preferred embodiments of the invention, the rim of the concavity lies substantially in a plane at an oblique angle to the long axis of the applicator tip. As used with such a tip, the wiper is a flexible annular member which engages the rim of the concavity as the applicator tip is withdrawn through the opening so as to remove any excess of the material projecting from the concavity, whereby the concavity and the wiper cooperatively meter the amount of the material transported from the container by each withdrawal of the applicator therefrom.
The invention, in addition, broadly embraces embodiments in which the plane of the concavity rim is at an angle of anywhere from 0° to 90° to the long axis of the applicator tip, as well as embodiments in which the concavity rim does not lie substantially in a plane, and embodiments in which there are a plurality of concavities and/or in which the concavity or concavities are, for example, elongated rather than cup-shaped.
Also, in currently preferred embodiments, the applicator tip has a proximal shank portion formed integrally with the distal end portion, and the system further includes a stem having a distal opening in which the shank portion is fixedly inserted, advantageously or conveniently by staking. The container commonly has a neck portion in which the opening is formed, and the applicator further includes a cap seatable on the neck, a proximal end of the stem being secured to the cap such that the stem extends from the cap through the opening and into the container when the cap is seated on the neck portion.
By appropriate selection of material properties, the applicator tip may be made sufficiently flexible to be soft and to deform readily under manual pressure when applied against a user's skin, thereby to aid in delivering and/or spreading a cosmetic or other product.
In some instances, the applicator tip is formed by bi-injection molding with elastomers of respectively different durometer such that the shank portion of the applicator tip has a higher durometer than the distal end portion. This difference in durometer between shank portion and distal end portion enables optimization of the properties of the two portions for their respective functions of mounting in the stem and flexibly applying material to the skin. One such bi-injection molded tip has a higher-durometer shank portion formed with a distally projecting core portion surrounded by the lower-durometer distal end portion so that the applicator tip is externally soft to the touch but is stiffened by the core to enhance precision of application.
Container-applicator systems of the present invention can be used for the application to the human skin of a wide variety of materials which are more or less non-self-sustaining in shape, including, without limitation, creams, powders, liquid and gels. Non-limiting examples of such materials are cosmetics and medicinal ointments.
The design of the applicator tip incorporated in the system of the invention can readily be tailored for particular applications. Thus, the cup depth and profile can be selected to provide a metered amount of product for a specific application, as required, with the profile being varied to suit the required application characteristics of the product to be applied, and the cup depth also being varied to any depth required. Again, the elastomer used can be varied, e.g. in durometer, to match the requirements of application while remaining soft and comfortable against the skin; in addition, the surface texture can be varied to match the requirements of the product being applied (matte, smooth, grained, etc.). Bi-injection molding of the contacting distal surface and proximal shank portion can be employed to produce an applicator of varying durometer to better exploit the materials being used (soft tip/stiff shank portion, etc.). It will be understood that with bi-injection molding, the applicator tip can be made with more than one material, i.e., using multiple materials in different areas of the tip.
The application surface angle (angle of the plane of the concavity rim to the long axis of the applicator tip) can be varied as well, to match the application requirements of the product, the ergonomic requirements of the user, or both. This angle, as noted above, can be varied between 0° and 90° (perpendicular) relative to the long axis of the applicator tip.
The applicator contains no fibers, adhesives or ot
Malvar Michael
Schrepf Volker
Cooper & Dunham LLP
Henlopen Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Walczak David J.
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