Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D1/00—Rigid or semi-rigid containers having bodies formed in one piece, e.g. by casting metallic material, by moulding plastics, by blowing vitreous material, by throwing ceramic material, by moulding pulped fibrous material or by deep-drawing operations performed on sheet material
  • B65D1/09—Ampoules
  • B65D1/095—Ampoules made of flexible material
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/05—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes for collecting, storing or administering blood, plasma or medical fluids ; Infusion or perfusion containers
  • A61J1/06—Ampoules or carpules
  • A61J1/067—Flexible ampoules, the contents of which are expelled by squeezing
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/1412—Containers with closing means, e.g. caps
  • A61J1/1425—Snap-fit type
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/1475—Inlet or outlet ports
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/18—Arrangements for indicating condition of container contents, e.g. sterile condition
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
  • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
  • B65D81/00—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents
  • B65D81/32—Containers, packaging elements, or packages, for contents presenting particular transport or storage problems, or adapted to be used for non-packaging purposes after removal of contents for packaging two or more different materials which must be maintained separate prior to use in admixture
  • B65D81/3261—Flexible containers having several compartments
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/1412—Containers with closing means, e.g. caps
  • A61J1/1431—Permanent type, e.g. welded or glued
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61J—CONTAINERS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR MEDICAL OR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES; DEVICES OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR BRINGING PHARMACEUTICAL PRODUCTS INTO PARTICULAR PHYSICAL OR ADMINISTERING FORMS; DEVICES FOR ADMINISTERING FOOD OR MEDICINES ORALLY; BABY COMFORTERS; DEVICES FOR RECEIVING SPITTLE
  • A61J1/00—Containers specially adapted for medical or pharmaceutical purposes
  • A61J1/14—Details; Accessories therefor
  • A61J1/1468—Containers characterised by specific material properties

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a container for fluid products, particularly suitable for containing products used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, medical or dental field, but also in foodstuffs or the like.
• the use is known of containers made of polymer material for packaging one or more doses of fluid products, whether pastes, gel or liquids; depending on the number of doses present, the known containers can be of the single-use or reclosable and pluridose type.
• a containment body containing a predetermined dose of product with a substantially tubular and elongated shape, that has an extremity provided with a neck, at the top of which is defined a product dispensing mouth.
• the opposite extremity of the containment body has an opening suitable for introducing the product, which is closed after filling, for example by welding.
• Closing means associable in a removable way with the container at the neck, allow the dispensing mouth to be closed.
• the containment body and the closing means can be made separately, using forming methods such as injection moulding, and afterwards be assembled together or, alternatively, they can be made in a single piece and then separated before being used by a user.
• the containment body furthermore, has a pair of fins suitable for making it easier for a user to grip the container and which extend, diametrically opposite one another, from the outer side surface of the containment body itself.
• the known containers can be produced in single units or associated the one with the other in series (strips); in this latter case, the fins of the containment bodies of two successive containers are temporarily associated the one with the other at predefined pre-breaking lines.
• a first type of known container envisages for example the use of a cap having a portion fixed to the neck, during the moulding phase and along pre-established breaking areas, to close the dispensing mouth.
• the cap also comprises a cavity suitable for housing the neck of the container, having a shutter element for occluding the dispensing mouth, and initially turned towards the outside, in the opposite direction with respect to the portion initially fixed to the neck.
• the container is opened for the first time by detaching the cap from the dispensing mouth at the breaking areas and, after the product has been used, the container is closed again by turning the cap upside down and fitting the neck in the cavity, with the positioning of the shutter element inside the dispensing mouth.
• the particular shape of the cap results in the possible exposure of the cavity and of the shutter element to external polluting agents before the first use of the container, and does not therefore guarantee the integrity of the product during subsequent uses.
• a second type of reclosable container made in a single body, which comprise closing means having a shutter element, of the type of a pin or the like, fitted sealed inside the dispensing mouth, and deformable or breakable elements connecting, without interruption, the closing means to the container body.
• Such deformable or breakable elements are suitable for indicating to the user the possible presence of product contaminations due to any tampering and/or accidental opening of the product, thus performing a safety-seal function.
• a third type of container is also known in which the closing means and the containment body are made in separate pieces, subsequently assembled together.
• the closing means of such containers generally comprise a handle having a shutter element, of the type of a pin or the like, that can be seal-fitted inside the dispensing mouth, and an annular collar fixable coaxially, by means of interlocking, welding or gluing, at the neck of the containment body.
• the handle is associable in a removable way at the outer surface of the collar by means of an opportune weakened area, composed, e.g., of pre-breaking lines, of tearable bridges, of reduced cross sections, etc.
• the handle, the collar and the pin are therefore made in a single piece, separately from the containment body, and the collar is subsequently fixed to the neck by interlocking, welding or gluing, with the dispensing mouth being closed by means of the pin.
• the main object of the present invention is to provide a container for fluid products, particularly pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, foodstuffs or the like, that can be used in a practical, easy, functional and rapid way and, at the same time, has particularly compact and reduced overall dimensions.
• Another object of the present invention is to provide a container for fluid products, particularly pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, foodstuffs or the like that allows to overcome the mentioned drawbacks of the background art in the ambit of a simple, rational, easy, effective to use and low cost solution.
• the present container for fluid products comprising at least a hollow body for containing at least a fluid product, at least a neck which extends from said body and which has at least a dispensing mouth for dispensing said product, and closing means with a handle which integrally supports at least a shutter element for shutting said dispensing mouth, said closing means comprising at least an annular collar which is associated with said handle along at least a pre-established breaking area and which is associable with said neck, characterized in that said container comprises at least a partition defined inside said body and suitable for subdividing the inner volume of said body in at least two compartments suitable for containing at least two of said fluid products, said neck having at least two of said dispensing mouths which are closable by at least two of said shutter elements respectively.
• figure 1 is an axonometric view of a strip of containers according to the invention
• figure 2 is an exploded view of a container according to the invention before the assembly
• figure 3 is an axonometric view, from another angle, of the container according to the invention
• figure 4 is an axonometric view of the container according to the invention after the opening of the dispensing mouths before use
• figure 5 is a cross section view along the V - V track plane of figure 4.
• Embodiments of the Invention With particular reference to such figures, by 1 is globally indicated a container for fluid products, particularly pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, foodstuffs or the like.
• fluid products in this treatise by the term fluid products is not only meant liquid products but also viscous products, e.g., in the paste or the gel state, and powdered products, in particular very fine powders having great flowability.
• the container 1 comprises a hollow body 2 that is intended to contain at least a fluid product.
• the body 2 has a substantially tubular and elongated shape on the outer surface of which are defined a pair of gripping fins 3 associable in a removable way with the gripping fins 3 of one or more adjacent containers 1, so as to form a strip S of containers 1 (figure 1).
• neck 4 extends having at least a dispensing mouth 5, 6 for the fluid product to come out.
• the neck 4 is substantially cylindrical, with a diameter smaller than that of the rest of the body 2, and is aligned coaxially with respect to it.
• an opening 7 for the introduction of the fluid product is defined at the extremity of the body 2 opposite the neck 4; the closing of the opening 7 (e.g., by welding the lips of the opening itself) is done once the product has been introduced.
• the closing of the dispensing mouths 5, 6, on the other hand, is done by means of specific closing means 8 having a handle 9 that supports integral at least a shutter element 10, 11 fittable in the dispensing mouths 5, 6.
• the handle 9 has a substantially plate shape and has side edges which in the strip layout (figure 1) are associable with the handles 9 of one or more adjacent containers 1.
• the closing means 8, furthermore, comprise an annular-shaped collar 12, which is associated with the handle 9 along a series of pre-established breaking areas
• the pre-established breaking areas 13 are composed, e.g., of a pair of tearable bridges which connect the handle 9 to the outer surface of the collar 12 and which are arranged on diametrically opposite parts of the collar 12.
• the collar 12 can be fitted around the neck 4 and is made integral with it.
• interlocking coupling means 14 are placed between the neck 4 and the collar 12 in the particular embodiment of the invention shown in the figures, e.g., between the neck 4 and the collar 12 in the particular embodiment of the invention shown in the figures, e.g., between the neck 4 and the collar 12 in the particular embodiment of the invention shown in the figures, e.g., between the neck 4 and the collar 12 are placed interlocking coupling means 14,
• a partition 16 suitable for subdividing the inner volume of the body 2 into two or more compartments 17, 18 intended to contain an equal number of fluid products distinct the one from the other.
• the partition 16 subdivides the body 2 exactly into a first compartment 17 and into a second compartment 18 and, to allow the two fluid products contained in it to come out, the neck 4 has a first dispensing mouth 5 and a second dispensing mouth 6 distinct the one from the other, for the closing of which are therefore provided two shutter elements 10, 11 associated with the handle 9.
• Alternative embodiments of the present invention cannot however be ruled out in which two or more partitions 16 are present to define three or more compartments 17, 18 for containing three or more fluid products; obviously in this case the neck 4 has three or more dispensing mouths 5, 6 reclosable with an equal number of shutter elements 10, 11.
• the shutter elements 10, 11 are defined by respective pins insertable to misure inside the dispensing mouths 5, 6 and substantially parallel with each other and with the longitudinal direction of the body 2. It is further specified that the shutter elements 10, 11, the handle 9 and the collar 12 are made in a single body, e.g., by means of forming methods such as injection moulding, using polymer materials of the polyethylene or polypropylene type. Similarly, the body 2 and the partition 16 are also made in a single monolithic body, which is obtainable by means of the same forming methods as the closing means 8 inside a separate mould.
• the body 2 and the partition 16 are therefore initially separated by the closing means 8, as shown in the figure 2, and the container 1 is assembled subsequently by interlocking the collar 12 on the neck 4 while at the same time fitting the pins 10, 11 in the dispensing mouths 5, 6.
• the partition 16 extends along the entire length of the body 2, from the neck 4 as far as the opening 7.
• the tubular walls of the body 2 are subdivided into a first substantially curved wall 19, which together with the partition 16 delimits the first compartment 17, and a second substantially curved wall 20, which together with the partition 16 delimits the second compartment 18; the first and the second walls 19, 20 are clearly shown in figure 3.
• the partition 16 is at least in part bent on itself.
• the partition 16 is shaped substantially corrugated and its extension in length is substantially equal to the length of the walls 19, 20 of the body 2. This particular layout of the partition 16 means that when the body 2 is squeezed, the walls 19, 20 and the partition 16 can be locally stretched along a direction transversal to the body 2 and the walls 19, 20 can be moved into contact substantially coinciding with the partition 16.
• the container according to the invention can be opened without any problem and, if need be, be closed again.
• the particular solution of providing a partition inside the containment body permits obtaining a container that is able to contain two or more fluid products that can be dispensed at the same time in a practical, easy and functional way by the simple and immediate squeezing of the containment body.

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• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Pharmacology & Pharmacy (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Veterinary Medicine (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Ceramic Engineering (AREA)
• Hematology (AREA)
• Details Of Rigid Or Semi-Rigid Containers (AREA)
• Closures For Containers (AREA)
• Tubes (AREA)
• Package Specialized In Special Use (AREA)
• Medical Preparation Storing Or Oral Administration Devices (AREA)
• Packages (AREA)
• Medicinal Preparation (AREA)
• Cosmetics (AREA)

Priority Applications (5)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

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ID=40718903

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Cited By (6)

Families Citing this family (8)

Citations (6)

Family Cites Families (4)

• 2008
  • 2008-07-30 IT ITMO2008A000206A patent/IT1391448B1/it active
• 2009
  • 2009-07-21 CN CN2009801290719A patent/CN102105362B/zh not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 2009-07-21 US US13/055,988 patent/US20110132928A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2009-07-21 EP EP09786030A patent/EP2313320B1/en not_active Not-in-force
  • 2009-07-21 WO PCT/IB2009/006293 patent/WO2010013106A1/en active Application Filing
  • 2009-07-21 ES ES09786030T patent/ES2398771T3/es active Active
  • 2009-07-21 JP JP2011520611A patent/JP2011529424A/ja active Pending

Patent Citations (6)

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