Bottles and jars – Closures – Closure pivoted about receptacle opening
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-10
2001-07-10
Garbe, Stephen P. (Department: 3727)
Bottles and jars
Closures
Closure pivoted about receptacle opening
C215S341000, C220S849000, C222S546000, C264S328800
Reexamination Certificate
active
06257431
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a dispensing cap intended to be fitted to a container containing a fluid product to be dispensed, and to a dispensing assembly equipped with this cap. It is equipped with a stoppering system which can be opened for dispensing the product, and closed for keeping it.
2. Discussion of the Background
Containers fitted with caps of this kind are customarily used in various fields, for storing and dispensing liquid products, for example in the fields of cosmetics, foodstuffs, household, pharmacy or personal hygiene. These products are, in particular, shampoos, antiseptics, household cleaners, or washing-up products. Thanks to the use of a cap of this kind, on the one hand, it is possible, to prevent the product from spilling out during transport and storage and, on the other hand, the product is protected from dirt from the outside. Furthermore, by using such a cap the user can easily and in a controlled way dispense the product contained in the container.
More particularly, the present invention relates to a cap comprising a product-dispensing orifice and a hinged lid, the system for stoppering the orifice consisting of a pip borne by the lid and designed to close this orifice.
The pip introduced into the dispensing orifice needs to fulfil several functions; it must guarantee a good seal; the force required to open it must be reasonable; and, upon opening, an explosive noise must not be produced. These qualities need to be provided throughout the use of the product. Now, with the materials such as polyethylene or polypropylene, commonly used for injection-moulding such caps, dimensional adjustment is very tricky because the tolerances need to remain tighter than 0.05 mm, especially as there is a risk of additional deformation occurring during removal from the mould. Furthermore, under intense use, and through wear of the pip and/or of the orifice, this pip no longer enters the orifice with friction, and leaks of product can therefore occur.
A dispensing cap of the kind mentioned hereinabove is described, for example, in FR-A-2,662,144. This document describes a dispensing cap comprising a dispensing orifice and a hinged lid equipped with a hollow pip, intended to stopper the dispensing orifice when in the storage position, this pip being in the form of a cylindrical skirt. According to this document, the dispensing orifice is made in a flat portion, at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the cap, this portion being made of thermoelastic rubber.
This cap of the prior art has the drawback that when the lid is closed, a relatively high amount of force is needed to engage the pip in the dispensing orifice. This is because during the closure operation, the pip is in contact with the edge of the orifice, and before it engages in the orifice, it pushes the said rubber portion back.
There is also known, from U.S. Pat No. 5,169,035, a cap similar to the aforementioned cap, the dispensing orifice being made by an annular component made of elastomer, which is clipped into an opening in the upper face of the cap and is able to be plugged by a pip carried by the lid articulated to the cap.
Although the cap according to U.S. Pat. No. 5,169,035 makes it possible to obtain leaktight stoppering of the dispensing orifice by the pip, it does have the following drawbacks: on the one hand, the annular elastomer component has to be quite thick to allow it to be held in the opening of the cap; and on the other hand, the choice of elastomers that can be used for producing the annular piece is limited. This is because with a view to both flexible and leaktight engagement of the pip in the dispensing orifice it would be desirable to use so-called “soft” elastomers (that is to say elastomers with a hardness of less than about 60 Shore A). Now, to ensure that the annular elastomer component is held correctly in place in the opening of the cap, this material has to have a hardness in excess of 60 Shore A, which is prejudicial to the desired flexible operation and desired sealing of the cap. Furthermore, using such a material, the dimensional tolerances on the pip and the tolerances on positioning it with respect to the dispensing orifice may not be very well met. Finally, to mount the annular elastomer component in the orifice from inside the cap is a relatively complicated operation requiring special appropriate tooling.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a first object of the present invention to provide a dispensing cap which operates flexibly when being opened or closed, under good conditions of sealing and the cost of which is competitive.
A second object of the invention is to provide a dispensing cap for which it is easy to adjust the tolerances on the dimensions of the pip and/or of the dispensing orifice and any moulding/demoulding defects of which can be compensated for. It is a further object of the invention to create a particularly well sealed stoppering system, which resists wear throughout the life of the product and operates flexibly, and is easy to open and close. Furthermore, the invention also targets the use of orifices of non-circular cross-section, hitherto unknown in the aforementioned fields of use.
The objects mentioned hereinabove are achieved by depositing a coating of elastomeric material on the outer wall of the pip. Depositing this coating, assuming it is achieved by duplex-injection or by overmoulding onto the pip, is easier to achieve than producing, as in the prior art, a dispensing orifice made in a region made of elastomer. Furthermore, producing a coating on the outer wall of the pip makes it possible, on the one hand, to produce this coating as a thin layer, and therefore make a saving on material, and, on the other hand, to use particularly flexible elastomers (with a hardness of less than 60 Shore A), which makes the cap flexible to use and provides a perfect seal.
Thus, a first aspect of the invention relates to a dispensing cap intended to be fitted to a bottle containing a fluid product, comprising a body provided with a dispensing orifice and with a hinged lid articulated to the body about an axis, the body and the lid being made of a rigid or semi-rigid material, this lid being provided with a plugging pip intended to plug the dispensing orifice, in the storage position. According to the invention, a coating of elastomeric material is arranged on the outer wall of the pip, to produce a perfect seal between the pip and the orifice when the lid is closed in the said storage position.
Another aspect of the invention consists of a dispensing assembly comprising a container of a product, equipped with a cap in accordance with the first aspect.
In general, the container equipped with such a cap consists of a fairly flexible bottle, or alternatively a compressible tube. As a preference, the container has a neck onto which the dispensing cap is fixed by screwing, snap-fastening, overmoulding, welding or any other known means.
The product to be dispensed can flow out under its own weight and is, for example, shampoo or a body milk with a viscosity generally within a range from 50 mPa.s to
5
Pa.s or alternatively a powdered product.
The dispensing orifice may have a circular, oval, polygonal or elongate cross-section, the cross-section section of the pip complementing that of the orifice. Thanks to the invention, it is conceivable for orifices, especially those with a non-circular cross-section to be produced, without this resulting in sealing problems.
Thanks to the flexibility of the coating, minor defects in the positioning of the pip with respect to the orifice can be compensated for. The same is true, for differences in respective diameters of the orifice and of the pip. In particular, when there is the desire to make orifices of non-circular shape, for example in the shape of a star or flat strip, a good seal can be obtained by arranging a coating of elastomeric material on the external wall of the pip, while at the same time ensuring that the opening and closing of the dispensing
Garbe Stephen P.
L'Oreal
Merek Joe
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
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