Bottles and jars – Closures – Frangible member or portion
Reexamination Certificate
1998-08-26
2001-10-30
Newhouse, Nathan J. (Department: 3727)
Bottles and jars
Closures
Frangible member or portion
Reexamination Certificate
active
06308848
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a plastic screw cap with tamper-evident ring.
Caps of the above type are already known commercially and comprise a cylindrical cup which is internally threaded in order to be screwed onto the top of the container (bottle).
A so-called tamper-evident ring is coupled to the rim of the cup by means of breakable bridges and is internally provided with engagement elements constituted by flaps or by a collar which, when the cap is applied so as to close the container, engage under an annular raised retention portion of the container. By unscrewing the cap, the flaps or the collar abut against the annular raised portion and retain the ring, while the resulting axial traction force breaks the bridges.
Conventional caps entail the problem of ensuring that during application to the container the flaps or collar can widen or otherwise be elastically deformed in order to pass over the raised retention portion of the bottle and then close again below said raised portion, so as to allow the separation of the tamper-evident ring during the unscrewing of the cap and clearly indicate that the container has been opened.
However, in currently commercially available caps the tamper-evident ring, in order to ensure that the teeth or collar remain engaged below the annular raised portion of the container during unscrewing and can thus ensure the breaking of the bridges, has an excessively rigid structure and therefore passing over the raised portion when the cap is applied to the container is critical.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The aim of the present invention is to provide a plastic cap which is capable of substantially obviating the shortcomings of conventional caps.
This aim is achieved by a plastic screw cap of the type composed of a cylindrical cup provided with an internal thread and with a tamper-evident ring which is coupled to the rim of the cup by means of a plurality of bridges forming a fracture line, said ring having a retention means for retaining it below an annular raised portion of a container whereto the cap is applied, incisions being formed on the outside of said tamper-evident ring, said incisions do not cross the entire thickness of the ring and allow an elastic radial expansion of the ring, such as to pass beyond said annular raised portion during the application of the cap to the container.
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Josif Albert
Modiano Guido
Newhouse Nathan J.
O'Byrne Daniel
Sacmi Cooperativa Meccanici Imola S.c.r.l.
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