ES2401258T3 - Container that can be closed repeatedly - Google Patents

Abstract

Container (1) that can be repeatedly closed, comprising: - a container body (2) for a fluid product, said container body having a mouth (3); and - a closure (4) for closing said mouth (3), said closure (4) comprising a tubular wall (41) having a first end from which a closing wall (42) extends, said closure having first means ( 43) of connection arranged inside said tubular wall (41) for connection to second means (31) disconnecting said mouth (3); said closure (4) assuming a first closure configuration in which said closure wall (42) closes said mouth (3) and is connected to said mouth (3) along an area of facilitated fracture (5) whose breakage determines the separation of said closure (4) and the opening of said mouth (3); said closure (4) assuming a second closure configuration in which said facilitated fracture zone (5) is haroto and said closure (4) has been reversed with respect to said first closure configuration, and wherein said wall (42 ) of closing closes said mouth (3) and said first means (43) of connection of said closure are connected to said second means (31) of connection of said mouth; characterized in that it comprises a cover (6) that closes at least partially a second end of said tubular wall (41) in said first closing configuration, said second end being opposed to said first end, to protect a defined space inside said tubular wall (41), said said closing wall space (42) and / or said first connection means (43) comprising.

Description

Container that can be closed repeatedly

Background of the invention

The invention relates to a container that can be repeatedly closed according to the preamble of claim 1, specifically, to contain fluid products (liquid, pasty, creamy, oily, powder, granular, etc.).

Specifically, although not exclusively, it is possible to use the container in the food, pharmaceutical or cosmetic field to form packages that have a part made of flexible material that forms a container body and a part made of rigid material that forms an integrated structure comprising a mouth and a detachable closure by fracturing the mouth at the time of the first opening of the container and which, if inverted, can be coupled to the mouth to close the container body, also repeatedly.

Specifically, reference is made to a container that can be repeatedly closed of the type described in the preamble of the first claim.

A container of the type mentioned above is known, for example, from patent publications US 5,290,105, US 4,512,475, WO 2009/037534 and US 5,897,009.

One of the drawbacks of containers that can be repeatedly closed from the prior art is to ensure the hygiene of a container, especially when it is repeatedly closed.

Hygiene can be compromised by the fact that, before separating the cap and, therefore, before opening the container for the first time, the outer surface of the cap is exposed to the atmosphere, with a consequent risk of contamination. When the cap is used in an inverted configuration to close the container again, at least part of the outer surface could contaminate the product contained in the container.

Summary of the Invention

An object of the invention is to overcome the aforementioned drawback of the prior art.

An advantage of the invention consists in making a container that can be repeatedly closed, which has a simple structure and is cheap and easy and immediate to use.

Another advantage is to make known a container that ensures the hygiene of the contained product, also against possible fraudulent manipulation.

All these and other objectives and advantages are achieved by a container made according to one or more of the claims shown below.

Brief description of the drawings

It is possible to improve the compression and implementation of the invention by referring to the attached drawings, which

show some embodiments thereof by way of non-limiting example. Figure 1 shows a schematic section of a container that can be repeatedly closed that is not yet It has opened for the first time.

Figure 2 is an enlarged detail view, in partial section, of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a view from the right of Figure 2, with the closure 6 in closure configuration. Figure 4 is a top view of Figure 2, with the closure 6 removed for clarity purposes. Figure 5 is a section V-V of Figure 2.

Detailed description

Referring to FIG. 1, a container that can be repeatedly sealed comprising a container body 2 for a fluid product is generally indicated as 1. The fluid product may comprise a product in a liquid, pasty, creamy, oily, powdered, granular state, etc. The fluid product may comprise a food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic product, etc.

The container body 2 has a mouth 3 for the passage of the fluid product and a closure 4 for closing the mouth 3, shown in enlarged form in Figure 2.

The closure 4 comprises a tubular wall 41 having a first end (the lower end, referring to the

Figure 2) from which a closing wall 42 extends.

The closure 4 also has first connection means arranged inside the tubular wall 41 for connection to second connection means of the container body. The first connection means comprise in this case an internally threaded surface 43 of the tubular wall 41 and the second connection means comprise an externally threaded surface 31 of the mouth 3, which can form a threaded connection with the internally threaded surface 43 mentioned above. .

The closure 4 is configured so that it can assume a first closure configuration (Figure 2), in which the closing wall 42 closes the mouth 3 and in which the closure 4 is connected to the mouth 3 along a Zone 5 of facilitated fracture, whose rupture causes the separation of the closure and the opening of the mouth 3.

In the same way as in the case illustrated, the facilitated fracture zone 5 can have an annular shape and surround one end of a part 32 of the tubular neck of the mouth 3. With the breakage of the fractured zone 5 facilitated, an opening is opened in the aforementioned end of the tubular neck portion 32 for the output of the fluid product.

The facilitated fracture zone 5 comprises an annular part of material that extends continuously to connect an edge of the wall 42 and an edge of the wall 32 and that has a relatively thin thickness. In the same way as in the specific case, the facilitated fracture zone 5 can form a barrier that is impervious to fluids to protect the product contained inside the container body 2.

In the same way as in the case illustrated, the tubular wall 41 can have an external surface provided with edges (for example, cords, in the same way as in the specific case) to facilitate its manual clamping by a user.

The tubular neck portion 32 has the externally threaded surface 31.

The closure 4 is configured to be able to assume a second closure configuration (not shown and inverted with respect to that of Figure 2), in which the facilitated fracture zone 5 has been broken and the closure has been inverted 180 ° with respect to The first closing configuration. In this second closure configuration, the closing wall 42 (inverted 180 °) continues to close the mouth and the connection means 31 and 43 (threads) are connected to each other to connect the closure 4 and the mouth (removably) 3.

The closure 4 comprises a lid 6 which, in the first closure configuration, allows at least partially closing a second end (the upper end, referring to Figure 2) of the tubular wall 41, opposite the first end mentioned above having the closing wall 42 and the fracture zone 5 provided. When the second end is closed (in a broken line in Figure 2), the cover 6 protects a defined space inside the tubular wall. This space inside the tubular wall, protected at least partially by the cover, comprises the closing wall 42 and / or the first connection means (the internally threaded surface 43 of the tubular wall 41).

In the same way as in the illustrated example, the cover 6 can be connected to the tubular wall 41 by a joint 7 which, in the same way as in the illustrated example, can be arranged outside the tubular wall 41, so that the cover 6 can assume an open configuration (in a continuous line in figure 2) in which (in the second closing configuration that is inverted with respect to that of figure 2) the tubular neck part 32 of the mouth can be introduced inside the tubular wall 41 of the closure 4. Therefore, the cover 6 can assume an open configuration in which it does not interfere with the coupling between the closure 4 and the mouth 3. At least in the closed position of the tubular wall 41, the cover 6 is arranged on the opposite side of the wall 41 with respect to the side on which the facilitated fracture zone 5 is located.

The cover 6 may have an annular protuberance 61 configured to be connected, by means of an elastic joint connection, to a corresponding annular cavity disposed at an upper edge of the tubular wall 41 (as shown in a broken line in Figure 2).

In the same way as in the illustrated example, the closing wall 42 may comprise an external surface 44 with a shape of increasing width, for example, a conical shape, having a first end with a minimum diameter and a second end with a diameter maximum, the first end being located in the zone 5 of facilitated fracture.

In the same way as in the case illustrated, the container body 2 may comprise a pair of flexible sheet elements that are firmly connected to each other along respective perimeter wings 21. For example, it is possible to use sheets of material that can be welded to form a container body as described in EP 493723 (of the same applicant).

The mouth 3 may comprise the tubular neck portion 32 for the passage of the fluid product and may comprise a connecting portion 33 which, for example, is integral with the tubular neck portion 32.

The joining part 33 may be as described in EP 493723. The joining part 33, which surrounds at least

a part of the tubular neck part 32, is inserted between the perimeter wings of the two sheet elements and is firmly attached to them.

The tubular neck portion 32 internally defines a conduit 34 for the passage of the fluid product.

The tubular wall 32, the closing wall 42 and the first connection means (the threaded surface 43) are integrated into a single structure made by plastic molding (for example, by injection molding). In the same way as in the illustrated example, this structure may comprise the entire tubular wall 41 and / or the connecting part 33. In the same way as in the illustrated example, this structure can comprise the cover 6 and the joint 7, which can be formed together by molding inside a mold made of plastic in the open configuration (continuous line in Figure 2).

It is possible that the first connection means comprise, instead of comprising a screwed connection, a plug element as described in EP 493723 (where the plug element is indicated in the figures as 4).

The first connection means could also comprise an elastic joint connection system (for example, of the pressure closure type) or other systems known and not illustrated herein, of removable type, to allow opening and closing the mouth 3 repeatedly.

In an example not shown, it is possible to provide a cover that covers the tubular wall 41, in the same way as the cover 6 described above, and that is connected to the wall 41 (with or without the presence of the joint 7) by means of frangible connection that must be broken to allow the opening of the lid 6 and, therefore, free access to the interior of the tubular wall, specifically, to allow repeatedly closing the mouth 3 by introducing the part 32 of the tubular neck into the wall tubular 41.

Such frangible connection means would form a tamper device that could indicate the first opening of the lid. The frangible connection means may comprise a single frangible element (for example, a flange that is integral with the cover 6 and fixed by a hook tooth in a hollow seat that is integral with the closure 4, or a single connection bridge between the cover 6 and the closure 4, or a continuous annular part of material with a thin thickness completely disposed between the cover 6 and the closure 4), or a series of frangible elements (for example, a plurality of connecting bridges arranged between the lid 6 and closure 4). The frangible connection means mentioned above can be carried out directly in a molding stage of plastic material (for example, injection molding) and / or by one or more material removal operations (for example, by cutting) and / or by applying a additional connection material (for example, an adhesive substance) between the cover 6 and the closure 4.

In another example not shown, it is possible to use a cover covering the tubular wall 41, in the same way as the cover 6 described above, and comprising a film (removable film) applied to the edge of the wall 41 and easily removable (by example, pulling the film by hand, possibly using a clamp).

The lid 6 can be connected to the closure 4 so that it remains attached to the closure also during the opening stage (in the same way as in the illustrated example, in which the joint 7 continues to hold the open lid 6 attached to the closure 4), or so that it is removed from the container 4 and can be reattached thereto, for example, by means of a threaded connection between a threaded surface (for example, an internal surface) of the lid 6 and a threaded surface (for example, a surface external) of closure 4.

It is also possible that the cover 6 is connected to the closure 4 by means of an elastic pressure closure connection connection located outside the tubular wall 41 (instead of being located inside, in the same way as in the illustrated example) , with an open or closed annular shape, and with a non-annular shape (for example, with a single joint element), with or without articulation 7.

Claims (10)

1. Container (1) that can be repeatedly closed, comprising:

-

a container body (2) for a fluid product, said container body having a mouth (3); Y

-

a closure (4) for closing said mouth (3), said closure (4) comprising a tubular wall (41) having a first end from which a closing wall (42) extends, said closure having first means (43) ) of connection arranged inside said tubular wall (41) for connection to second connection means (31) of said mouth (3);

said closure (4) assuming a first closure configuration in which said closure wall (42) closes said mouth

(3)

 and is connected to said mouth (3) along a zone (5) of facilitated fracture whose breakage determines the separation of said closure (4) and the opening of said mouth (3);

said closure (4) assuming a second closure configuration in which said facilitated fracture zone (5) has been broken and said closure (4) has been reversed with respect to said first closure configuration, and wherein said wall

(42)

 said closure (3) closes and said first means (43) for connecting said closure are connected to said second means (31) for connecting said mouth;

characterized in that it comprises a cover (6) that closes at least partially a second end of said tubular wall (41) in said first closure configuration, said second end being opposed to said first end, to protect a defined space inside said tubular wall (41), said space comprising said closing wall (42) and / or said first connection means (43).

2.

Container according to claim 1, wherein said lid (6) is connected to said tubular wall (41) by a joint (7) disposed outside said tubular wall (41), so that the lid (6) can assume an open configuration without interference in which it allows said mouth (3) to be introduced into said tubular wall (41).

3.

 Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said first connection means (43) comprise an internally threaded surface of said tubular wall (41) and said second means

(31) of connection comprise an externally threaded surface of said mouth (3). 4. Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said lid (6) is provided with means (61) of elastic joint connection for removable connection to said tubular wall (41).

5.

 Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said closure and said lid are connected to each other by a tamper-proof device.

6.

 Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said lid comprises a removable film applied to an edge of said second end.

7.

Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said closing wall (42) comprises an external surface (44) with a shape of increasing width having a first end with a minimum diameter located in said facilitated fracture zone (5) .

8.

 Container according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said container body (2) comprises a pair of flexible sheet elements that are firmly connected to each other along respective perimeter wings (21), and wherein said mouth (3) comprises a tubular neck part (32) for the passage of the fluid product and a connecting part (33) that is integral with said tubular neck part (32) and disposed outside it, said part being introduced (33) of union between said perimeter wings and firmly joining them.

9.

Container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said tubular wall (41), said wall

(42) of closing and said first connection means (43) are integrated in a single structure made by molding plastic material. A container according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said facilitated fracture zone (5) has an annular shape and surrounds one end of a neck part (32) of said mouth (3).