MXPA99007992A

MXPA99007992A - A package for keeping products separate before use

Info

Publication number: MXPA99007992A
Application number: MXPA/A/1999/007992A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Morini Emilio
Original assignee: Bormioli Rocco & Figlio Spa; Morini Emilio
Priority date: 1997-02-28
Filing date: 1999-08-27
Publication date: 2000-02-02

Abstract

A package for keeping products separate until use comprises a container (1) provided with an upper mouth (2) inside which a capsule (3) is inserted;the capsule having a bottom (4) which is destined at the moment of use of the package to be broken by a cutting element (11). A cap (13) covers the capsule (3) and the cutting element (11), and is screwed on a sleeve (6) solidly constrained to the capsule (3). When a security strip (16) is removed the cap (13) can be screwed, placing a pressure on the cutting element (11) which causes the capsule (3) to be ruptured and a product contained therein to mix with a product contained in the container.

Description

PACKAGE TO KEEP PRODUCTS SEPARATED BEFORE USE TECHNICAL FIELD The invention relates to a package for keeping the products separate before use. For some time now, the market has offered packaged medicines in two separate phases: the first of the medicines is a powder, while the second is a liquid, and they have to be kept separate until their use. The packages for such medicinal mixtures consist of a container for the liquid and a capsule for the powders, which are put into communication just before use so that they can be mixed.

PREVIOUS TECHNIQUE One of the packages of the type described above on the market is provided with a cutting element which by means of a pressure applied thereto is inserted into the container for the liquid, which is sealed by a thin membrane; the cutting element breaks the membrane so that the powders can penetrate the container. A package of that type is described, for example, in the Italian patent of industrial invention No. 1, 066, 140, in which the cutting element is actually a hollow cylinder with an oblique section end, made in one piece with walls that close the mouth of the container. This package exhibits a removable side strip pulling along two easy-to-break parallel lines that exhibit an appendix squeegee; the user can hold this strip, whose removal makes it possible for the cutting element to make an axial movement. When it is desired to mix the powder with the liquid solvent, first remove the strip and then press the cutting element using the fingers, so that the lower part of the first powder container is broken and the powder can be mixed with the liquid . Another package of the prior art consists of a protective cap, which covers the cutting element of the container for the powder and which is intended to be removed by tearing at the time of its use, so that the cutting element can be pressed. . A package of this type is shown, for example, in the Italian application for industrial invention No. RM91A000831. The prior art includes the US patent. 4,982,875 which discloses a package consisting of a capsule inserted internally into the upper mouth of the container. The capsule opens at the top and separates from the inside of the container. The capsule has a breakable bottom. The rupture of the lower part puts the capsule in communication with the inner part of the container. A cutting element is inserted internally into the capsule. The cutting element has a lower end intended in use to break the lower part of the capsule. A lid is arranged on the container in such a manner as to cover the capsule and the cutting element. The lid exhibits a thread with which a threaded coupling is effected, coupling by means of which the lid can be moved axially downwards with respect to the container. The downward axial movement causes the lid to interact with the cutting element in order to break the lower part of the capsule. The prior art packages contain some drawbacks. First of all, in order to avoid deterioration of the powder quality, the coupling between the external surface of the cutting element and the inner surface of the powder container must be closed to guarantee a hermetic seal on the container. However, the correct realization of such coupling is especially difficult to carry out, since if the coupling is too tight, a strong pressure will have to be applied to the cutting element, which is not only difficult to do but can cause the user perform the operation wrongly, that is, by not pressing with your fingers on the lid / capsule but tilting the package upwards and pressing the lid against a solid surface. This may mean that the mixture is not obtained in the correct way, since the powder does not fall directly into the liquid but in the opposite way, giving rise to the formation of lumps which are difficult to remove from the cap-capsule. That being the case, you get a wrong mix of medicine.

In mass production of plastic objects at industrial levels, it is usually difficult to obtain size tolerances which guarantee a constantly correct and desired connection between the cutting element and the cap-capsule. A further problem in the packs of the prior art is as follows: at the time of use, after the mixing phase of the substances (powders and liquid), the container is opened to allow the mixture to be stirred. The container for the powder, which remains in the mouth of the container even after the lid has been removed, represents an obstacle that can alter the pouring of the mixture, making it irregular and discontinuous.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to eliminate the drawbacks described above by providing a package, simple in construction and economical, which guarantees the closure and security of the package before use and which makes it possible to open the package in a simple and practical way. The invention allows the container for the powder to be put in communication with the container for the liquid by means of a simple operation of screwing the first onto the latter, requiring only a small effort on the part of the consumer, who, among other things, does not It will flip the package upwards in order to break the bottom of the cap-capsule and thus avoid the problem of clods and the like. Also, at the time of use and after the mixture has been joined, the powder container can be removed from the mouth of the container, together with the lid and the cutting element, thus leaving the mouth of the container free of obstruction. An advantage of the invention is that it provides a package which is easily realizable and which is safe against liquid permeation and which guarantees that the lid of the container can not be removed, until the mixing of the two products has been achieved. . All the above objects are achieved and others in addition, with the package of the invention, as characterized in the claims that follow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Other features and advantages of the present invention will be better evidenced by the following detailed description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the invention, illustrated simply by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a vertical projection of a package mode; Figure 2 is a section made according to line 11-11 of Figure 1; Figure 3 is the section of Figure 2 with the package in a different configuration in which the products, previously separated, are now in communication; Figure 4 is the package of figure 3 with the lid detached from the container.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The package of the invention consists of a container 1, provided with an upper mouth 2, in which a capsule 3 that opens at the top is inserted internally in a slightly tight manner. The lateral surfaces of both the capsule 3 and the mouth 2, brought into contact at the time of packaging, guarantee a perfect closure against any possible leakage of the liquid from the container 1. The capsule 3 consists of a lower part 4 which is easily breakable along a peripheral line 5 easy to break. The lower part 4 of the capsule 3 separates the liquid present in the container 1 of the capsule 3 itself. When the lower part 4 is broken, the capsule 3 is placed in communication with the inner part of the container 1. A cutting element 11, which has the shape of a hollow cylindrical body, is internally predisposed in the capsule 3. The outer surface of the cutting element 11 is coupled by slight friction closure with the inner surface of the capsule 3. The lower end 12 of the cutting element 1 1 is sharpened to such an extent that it exhibits an oblique section, lower end 12 pointed which is intended in use to open the capsule 3 by means of a pressure that is applied. Figure 3 shows a package with the capsule 3 opened by the cutting element 1 1 and placed in communication with the inner part of the container 1. The package also comprises a lid 13 arranged on the container 1 in such a way that it covers the capsule 3 and the cutting element 11. The various elements making up the package are made of plastic for medicinal use, of known type and in common use. Figures 1 and 2 show the package before use, with the liquid (the solvent) in the container separated from the powder (the solute) in the capsule 3. The lid 13 is threadedly engaged directly on a thread 25 predisposed on the neck of the container 1. The capsule 3 exhibits an upper part 21 located above the mouth margin of the container 1. The internal diameter of the upper part 21 of the capsule 3 is larger than the external diameter of the cutting element 1 1 inserted sealingly the capsule 3. In the assembled configuration of figure 2 (before use), the upper part 21 of the capsule 3 can then be elastically deformed internally. The cutting element 1 1 exhibits a section 22 which in use (when the package is to be used) is intended to make contact with the internal surface of the upper portion 21 of the capsule, so as to prevent said upper portion 21 from deformed inward. An internal annular projection 23 in the cover 13 exhibits an internal diameter that is smaller than the internal diameter of the thread 14. During the axial downward movement of the capsule 13, this annular projection 23 is intended to be joined in an annular cavity provided on the upper part 21 of the capsule 3, so that the lid 13 and the capsule 3 are restricted to one another in axial movement upwards, whereby the lid 3 is removed from the container 1. Figures 1 and 2 illustrate The package before use. The package exhibits a breakable ring 26 which coaxially surrounds the container 1 and located below the lid 13. The lid 13 and the ring 26 are joined by means of the perimeter ribs 27 that are easy to break. The ring 26, which has the function of guaranteeing the safety of the package, consists of a relief 28 coupled with the container 1 in such a way that the axial movements upwards of the cover 13 are prevented or limited. The ring 26 easy to break it resists attempts to unscrew and therefore lift the lid 13 (ie, to distance it from the ring 26), while it easily breaks when the lid 13 is lowered. The ring 26 further exhibits an easy-to-break axial line 29 along which the ring 26 can be opened. In Figures 1 and 2, the ring 26 is still not broken. Figure 3 illustrates the ring 26 open along the axial line 29 and detached from the lid 13.

At the time of use, the ring 23 is detached from the lid 13 and opened by screwing the lid 13 (figure 3). During the screwing operation, the lid 13 interacts by contacting the cutting element 1 1, so that the latter is pressed downwards, breaking the lower part of the capsule. During this phase, the upper annular portion 21 of the capsule deforms inwardly, causing the internal projection 23 of the cap 13 to elastically couple into the cavity of 24 on the upper portion 21 of the capsule. This is made possible by the fact that between the upper annular part 21 elastically deformable of the capsule 3 and the external surface of the cutting element 11 there is a free space. At the end of the screwing operation of the lid 13, that free space no longer exists, since the aforementioned portion 22 of the cutting element 11 is in contact with the upper part 21 of the capsule. In the subsequent unscrewing phase of the lid 13, the capsule 3 is lifted solid to the lid thanks to the coupling between the projection 23 and the cavity 24 together with the cutting element 11. During the unscrewing phase, the upper portion 22 of the capsule 3 can no longer be deformed inwards - as in the screwing phase - since it is forced to be in contact between the section 22 of the cutting element 1 1 and the cover 13. The section 22 of the cutting element 1 1 which has the larger diameter then has the function of keeping the capsule 3 and the lid 13 solidly together during the extraction phase of the container 1. When packing, the liquid is poured into the container 1; the powder is placed in the capsule 3 which is then closed by the cutting element 1 1 with a waterproof seal. The assembly is then inserted into the mouth 2 of the container 1. Subsequently the lid 13 is inserted; this is done in such a way that the annular relief 28 is restricted in the annular cavity provided on the perimeter of the container 1. In this first conformation of the package, illustrated in figures 1 and 2, conformation in which the package is sold, the cover 13 is solidly fixed to container 1 and is partially screwed onto the container itself. The lid 13 thus has a first function of preventing fraudulent access to the package and handling the contents of the capsule 3 and the container 1. As described, at the time of use, the ring 26 is broken so that the cover 13 to container 1 only by the threaded coupling. The capsule 3 is placed in communication with the container 1 by simply rotating the lid 13, whereupon the powders leave and mix with the liquid content of the container 1. As in other packages of known type, a hammer is provided to prevent that the cutting element 11 falls into the container 1. At the end of the screwing operation of the lid 13 the annular projection 23 is inserted into the annular cavity 24 provided on the upper part 21 of the capsule 3. The second function of the lid 13 is to ensure that the operation described above requires only minimal effort on the part of the user, who will have no difficulty performing the mixing operation, since he or she will have to screw only the lid 13. In the second configuration of the package illustrated in FIG. 3, the lid 13 is still solidly fixed, thanks to the projection 23 and the cavity 24, to the capsule 3 and is free of the container 1, apart, obviously, from the ac Threading option. It is now possible and indeed extremely easy to open the container 1; it is sufficient to unscrew the lid 13, which moving axially upwards, pull the capsule 3 and the cutting element 1 1, both restricted to it. This situation, in which the container 1 is accessible and contains the medicinal substance already mixed, is illustrated in figure 4. The package has been described with reference to the pharmaceutical field, but can be used in other fields, for example cosmetics, chemistry, food and others, wherever it is necessary to market substances, not necessarily powders and liquids as described herein, but any substances that have to be kept separate until the moment of their use.

Claims

NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION CLAIMS

1. - A package for keeping the products separated before use, consisting of: a container (1) provided with an upper mouth (2); a capsule (3) inserted internally into the mouth (2) of the container (1), opened at the top, an inner part of the capsule (3) being separated from an inner part of the container (1), the capsule being provided (3) a breakable lower part (4), placing a rupture of said lower part (4) breakable to said capsule (3) in communication with the inner part of the container (1); an internally inserted element (1 1) of shower capsule (3), provided with a lower end (12) intended in use to break the lower part (4) of the capsule (3); a layer (13) is arranged on the container (1) in such a way that it covers the capsule (3) and the cutting element (1 1); wherein the one of said step (13) exhibits a thread (14) with which a thread coupling is effected, coupling by means of which the thread (13) can move axially downwards with respect to the container (1), so that said axial movement towards a low causes the step (13) to interact with the cutting element (11) in order to cut the inner part (4) of the capsule (3); further characterized in that the cover (13) internally exhibits a projection (23) intended, by effect of said axial movement towards the underside of the lid (13), to be connected to an upper part (21) of the capsule (3). which is elastically deformable in an inward direction, in such a way that it restricts the lid (13) to the capsule (3) in axial movements upwards for its removal from the container (1).

2. The package according to claim 1, which comprises means for locking in position the upper part (21) of the capsule (3), blocking means that intervene after the projection (23) has been spliced in said upper part (21).

3. The package according to claim 2, further characterized in that said means for locking said upper part (21) consist of a section (22) of the cutting element (11) shaped and arranged so as to abut against the internal surface of the top (21) of the capsule (3).

4. The package according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that said projection (23) and said upper part (21) of the capsule (3) are ring-shaped.

5. The package according to any of the preceding claims, further characterized in that the cover (13) is threaded directly on the neck of the container (1).

6. The package according to any of the preceding claims, which consists of a breakable ring (26), so arranged under the cover (13), intended to break by effect of said axial movement towards a low cover (13)

7. - The package according to claim 6, further characterized in that said ring (26) can be opened along an axial line (29) easy to break.

8. The package according to claim 6 or 7, further characterized in that said ring (26) is attached to the cover (13) along a perimeter ring easy to break.

9. The package according to any of claims 6 or 8, further characterized in that the breakable ring (26) exhibits an annular relief (28) coupled with the container (1) in such a way that prevents or limits the axial movements towards above the lid (13).