ITTO20060122U1 - THERMOREGULATED CONTAINER - Google Patents

Description

DESCRIPTION of the utility model entitled:

"Thermoregulated container"

TEXT OF THE DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to thermoregulated containers, of the type comprising a container with a lid which incorporates a material with a high thermal storage capacity for the thermoregulation of the internal volume of the container, and therefore of its contents.

Such thermoregulated containers are known from patent documents Ep-A-0153 975, CH-B-375658 and EP-A-1010957.

In all these known solutions, the container consists of a container generally parallelepiped or box-shaped whose lid, containing the material with a high thermal storage capacity (typically frigories) is applied in a removable way by pressure or by interlocking.

Such known containers are expressly intended to contain solid foods (ice cream, fish products and perishable food products in general) in order to keep them at a relatively low storage temperature.

The object of the present invention is to provide a container of the type defined above whose field of application can be extended to the thermoregulation of substances in the fluid state, particularly in the food and pharmaceutical sector, in a practical, effective and functional way.

According to the invention, this object is achieved thanks to the fact that the container consists of a bottle or a flask, jar, can or the like, and said lid consists of the relative cap.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cap is designed for its separable connection to the container, typically by means of a threaded coupling: in this case, it can also be applied to existing beverage bottles or the like, replacing the normal lives with which they are usually endowed.

Alternatively, the cap containing the material with a high thermal storage capacity can be integrated into the bottle or into the bottle, jar, can or the like.

In both cases, the cap conveniently consists of a hollow body defining an annular receptacle for the aforementioned material with a high thermal storage capacity and having an axial passage in communication with the internal volume of the container. This passage is normally closed and sealed by means of a removable sealing member, for example screwed or applied by pressure to the cap.

In the event that the fluid substance contained in the bottle, or in the bottle, jar or can has to be cooled, the material with high thermal storage capacity contained in the cap will conveniently consist of a eutectic mass with accumulation of frigories, while in the case in which the fluid to be heated, a calorie-accumulating eutectic mass will be used.

The invention will now be described with reference to the attached drawings, provided purely by way of non-limiting example, in which:

Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of a thermoregulated container according to a first embodiment of the invention,

Figure 2 is a perspective view and on a larger scale of the cap of the thermoregulated container of Figure 1,

Figure 3 is an elevation view on a larger scale of the cap of Figure 2,

- figure 4 is a perspective view from below of the cap of figure 2, e

Figures 5 and 6 show two possible variants of the thermoregulated container according to the invention.

Referring initially to the embodiment shown in Figures 1-4, the thermoregulated container according to the invention consists of a bottle or jar or can 1 for food, pharmaceutical or medical use, intended to contain a fluid substance such as a semi-dense liquid for food, for example vegetable or dairy / dairy, or a drink, or a pharmacological solution and more generally organic or inorganic materials in a fluid or semi-dense state.

The container 1 is open at the top and, in the area near the edge of its opening, it is equipped with an external thread (not visible in the drawings) on which a complementary internal thread 2 (figure 4) of a lid 3 is screwed. container cap.

It should be noted that the coupling between the cap 3 and the container 1 could be, instead of a screw, of the bayonet type or even by simple pressure or interlocking.

The cap 3 is internally formed with an annular receptacle 4 within which a mass of a eutectic substance is housed, ie a substance with a high thermal storage capacity, for example with a high accumulation of frigories. This substance is of a known type and its characteristics fall within the usual knowledge of the person skilled in the art.

The eutectic mass can be inserted directly inside the annular receptacle 4, and in this case the wall of this facing towards the inside of the container 1 will be relatively thin to favor the heat exchange between this eutectic mass and the internal volume of the container, or it can be contained in a thin protective bag, and in this case the wall of the annular receptacle 4 facing towards the inside of the container 1 can be perforated or grilled.

The annular receptacle 4 defines, inside the cap 3, an axial passage 5 in communication with the interior of the container 1 and through which its contents can be made to come out. The axial passage 5 is normally closed and sealed at the top by means of a sealing member 6, removably applied to the cap 2 by means of a threaded coupling, a bayonet coupling or a simple pressure or interlocking connection, or even a tear-off connection in the case of which the container is disposable.

In use, the eutectic mass contained in the annular interspace 4 allows the contents of the container 1 to be kept at a relatively lower temperature than the ambient temperature.

Obviously, if the eutectic mass were formed by a material with a high calorie capacity, the container 1 could be thermoregulated at a temperature relatively higher than the ambient one.

To extract the fluid substance from the container 1, the cap 3 can be removed as a whole or, alternatively, it may be sufficient to separate the sealing member 6 from the cap 3 and pour the contents of the container 1 through the axial passage 5. This second This possibility is particularly advantageous if the container 1 consists of a bottle or can containing a drink (water, wine, beer or other carbonated soft drink): in this case, the drink can be consumed by the user sipping directly from the cap 3 , placing the lips around the axial passage 5, with a sensation of coolness generated by the eutectic mass contained within the annular receptacle 4.

In relation to this aspect, a use of the invention considered particularly convenient is that in which the container to which the cap 3 is applied consists of a bottle for a drink. With reference to Figure 1, it can be assumed in this case that the reference number 1 indicates, instead of a bottle or jar or can, the neck of a bottle, the body of which is not shown.

Further exemplary embodiments, expressly referring to the neck of a bottle, are illustrated in figures 5 and 6.

In the case of Figure 5, the neck of the bottle is indicated with the reference 7 and the cap incorporating the eutectic mass is indicated with the reference 3a. Also in this case the cap 3a can be screwed or directly integrated on the neck 7 of the bottle, and has an upper external thread 8 onto which a complementary internal thread (not shown) of the sealing member, indicated with 6a, is screwed.

In the case of Figure 6, the neck of the bottle is indicated with 9 and the cap with the eutectic mass, also in this case screwed onto an external thread 10 of the neck 9, is indicated as a whole with 3b. In this variant the sealing member can be omitted, and the eutectic mass can occupy the entire internal volume of the plug 3b. Obviously, with this solution the removal of the contents of the bottle will be possible only by removing the cap 3b as a whole.

In all the embodiments described above, the quantity and characteristics of the eutectic mass contained in the cap of the container will be calibrated on the basis of the characteristics and volume of the product to be cooled or heated. A relatively modest quantity in relation to the volume of the container is however considered sufficient to obtain an effective temporary thermoregulation effect.

The cap can be reused indefinitely, after the accumulation by the eutectic mass of refrigeration (placing the cap for the necessary time in a refrigerator) or calories (placing the cap inside a heater).

As already clarified above, the fluid or semi-dense substances for which the thermoregulated container according to the invention finds advantageous application are many: in addition to beverages and semi-dense food liquids or fluids in general, a particularly useful use in the medical and pharmaceutical sector can be envisaged. , for example for the correct storage of drugs for personal use such as insulin for diabetics, serums, vaccines and organic and inorganic materials generally used in the medical field.

Naturally, the details of construction and the embodiments may be widely varied with respect to what has been described and illustrated purely by way of example, without thereby departing from the scope of the present invention, as defined by the following claims.

The variants listed below can therefore be envisaged, individually or in combination with each other:

1) The conformation of the regular container can be made up of two pieces (cap and bottle) or in a single piece of refrigerated bottle with eutectic seat.

2) The eutectic product is incorporated inside the cavity in a sachet to protect against any spillage, or directly inside the plastic cavity.

3) The high position of the cold eutectic mass favors its downward fall as it has a molecular weight higher than the ambient temperature. Then the part to be cooled is hit by a passage of cold air.

4) Cooling / maintenance by contact between the contents of the bottle and the eutectic cap with possible overturning of the same.

5) Cooling / maintenance by passing the liquid contained in the bottle through the cap duct passing near the eutectic area.

6) Drinking directly from the bottle, the sensation of coolness generated between the user's mouth and the contact with the eutectic cap emerges.

7) Use both on containers / bottles already on the market and on special containers / bottles made on purpose, or with customized creations on specifications.

8) Use on any type of container / bottle, even with non-threaded coupling, and of any material made up of any type of content (e.g. food liquids, non-food liquids, dairy / dairy sectors, drugs of various uses, organic materials and not, used in the health field etc ....)

9) Possibility to modify almost instantly, or in any case in a short time, the temperature of wines or other liquids requiring certain and precise variations of cold / heat in order to preserve organoleptic properties of particular taste and aroma, with the possible insertion of a thermal probe. immersion with temperature indicator directly positioned on the eutectic cap.

10) As the product to be cooled and the desired temperature varies, it will be sufficient to vary the quantity of the eutectic material and the type of material used in the making of the cap, varying the composition and thickness of the lower or upper side or of the side walls separately.

11) The cap of the container according to the invention can be made both for maintenance / cooling and for maintenance / heating by varying the composition of the eutectic mass.

12) The cap, depending on the needs, could also be positioned on the bottom of the bottle / container.

13) The upper holding and pick-up organ can be retractable, making the upper surface planar aimed at a stable support.

Claims (7)

CLAIMS 1. Thermo-regulated container, comprising a container (1; 7; 9) with a lid (3; 3a; 3b) incorporating a material with a high thermal storage capacity for the thermoregulation of the internal volume of the container, characterized in that the container ( 1; 7; 9) consists of a bottle or a bottle, jar, can or similar, and said lid consists of the relative cap (3a; 3b). 2. Container according to claim 1, characterized in that said cap {3; 3b) can be separated from the container {1; 9). Container according to claim 1, characterized in that said cap (3a) is integrated with the container (7); 4. Container according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said plug (3; 3a) consists of a hollow body defining an annular receptacle (4) for said material with a high thermal storage capacity and having an axial passage (5) in communication with the internal volume of the vessel {1; 7) and closed by means of a removable sealing member (6; 6a). 5. Container according to claim 4, characterized in that said cap (3; 3b) is applied to the container (1; 9) by means of a threaded coupling either of the bayonet type or of the pressure or interlocking type. 6. Container according to claim 4, characterized in that said sealing member (6; 6a) is coupled to said plug {3; 3a) by means of a threaded coupling or of the bayonet type or by pressure or interlocking. 7. Container substantially as described and illustrated in the annexed drawings.