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EP1360995A1 - Unite de soupape et recipient - Google Patents

Unite de soupape et recipient Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1360995A1
EP1360995A1 EP01936848A EP01936848A EP1360995A1 EP 1360995 A1 EP1360995 A1 EP 1360995A1 EP 01936848 A EP01936848 A EP 01936848A EP 01936848 A EP01936848 A EP 01936848A EP 1360995 A1 EP1360995 A1 EP 1360995A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
bellows
main body
container main
shaft
piston
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Withdrawn
Application number
EP01936848A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP1360995A4 (fr
Inventor
Kiyoshi Advanex Inc. CHIKASHIGE
Akira Advanex Inc. MIZUOCHI
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Advanex Inc
Original Assignee
Advanex Inc
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from JP2001037273A external-priority patent/JP3399930B2/ja
Priority claimed from JP2001143822A external-priority patent/JP3739669B2/ja
Application filed by Advanex Inc filed Critical Advanex Inc
Publication of EP1360995A1 publication Critical patent/EP1360995A1/fr
Publication of EP1360995A4 publication Critical patent/EP1360995A4/fr
Withdrawn legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B05—SPRAYING OR ATOMISING IN GENERAL; APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL
    • B05B—SPRAYING APPARATUS; ATOMISING APPARATUS; NOZZLES
    • B05B11/00—Single-unit hand-held apparatus in which flow of contents is produced by the muscular force of the operator at the moment of use
    • B05B11/01—Single-unit hand-held apparatus in which flow of contents is produced by the muscular force of the operator at the moment of use characterised by the means producing the flow
    • B05B11/10—Pump arrangements for transferring the contents from the container to a pump chamber by a sucking effect and forcing the contents out through the dispensing nozzle
    • B05B11/1028—Pumps having a pumping chamber with a deformable wall
    • B05B11/1035—Pumps having a pumping chamber with a deformable wall the pumping chamber being a bellow
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B05—SPRAYING OR ATOMISING IN GENERAL; APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL
    • B05B—SPRAYING APPARATUS; ATOMISING APPARATUS; NOZZLES
    • B05B11/00—Single-unit hand-held apparatus in which flow of contents is produced by the muscular force of the operator at the moment of use
    • B05B11/01—Single-unit hand-held apparatus in which flow of contents is produced by the muscular force of the operator at the moment of use characterised by the means producing the flow
    • B05B11/10—Pump arrangements for transferring the contents from the container to a pump chamber by a sucking effect and forcing the contents out through the dispensing nozzle
    • B05B11/1042—Components or details
    • B05B11/1059—Means for locking a pump or its actuation means in a fixed position
    • B05B11/106—Means for locking a pump or its actuation means in a fixed position in a retracted position, e.g. in an end-of-dispensing-stroke position

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a valve unit and a container which are used as a pump type container for, for example, shampoo or the like to be used in a household context.
  • a pump type container has been used as a container for storing, for example, shampoo or detergent or the like which is used in a household context.
  • This pump type container is composed of a container main body and a valve unit which is inserted into this container main body so as to be attachable thereto and detachable therefrom.
  • the valve unit is normally made so that, when a piston portion is pressed, the piston portion returns and the liquid is sucked up from the container main body, and, when next the piston portion is pressed, the liquid is expelled from a discharge end of the piston portion.
  • valve unit 1 consists of a pipe type valve main body 2 which is inserted into a container main body not shown in the figures so as to be attachable thereto and detachable therefrom, and a piston portion 3 of a pipe type in the form of a letter "L".
  • the piston portion 3 is slidably inserted within the valve main body 2, and a liquid reception section 6, which connects to the atmosphere via the piston portion 3, is formed between a sucking aperture 4 of the valve main body 2 and a piston 5 at the tip portion of the piston portion 3. Furthermore, on the side of the sucking aperture 4 of this liquid storage portion 6, there is provided a first check valve B which only permits flowing in of liquid to the liquid storage portion 6 side from the container main body side, while furthermore, between the discharge end of the piston portion 3 and the discharge side of the liquid storage portion 6, there is provided a second check valve G which only permits flowing out of liquid to the piston portion 3 from the liquid storage portion 6; and a coil spring 7 is inserted between the piston 5 and the first check valve B. In addition, due to this coil spring 7, the piston 3 comes to be biased with respect to the valve main body 2 in the direction to increase the volume of the liquid storage portion 6.
  • FIG. 12 shows a state in which the piston portion has been pushed in
  • FIG. 13 shows a state in which the piston portion 3 has returned.
  • the present invention has been performed in consideration of these circumstances, and it takes as its objective to provide a valve unit and a container, for which the work of assembly is easy and which can be manufactured at low cost, which moreover can be recycled easily, and which prevents escape of liquid even if they fall over.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 1 is a valve unit (10) which is inserted into a container main body (12) and sucks out liquid within the container main body (12) to the outside of the container main body (12), characterized in that: a sucking up pipe (21) which is inserted into the container main body (12) is provided; a bellows (22) of a zigzag shape which can return in its extension direction, is connected at an upper portion of this sucking up pipe (21) so as to communicate therewith; a pipe type shaft case (16) is connected at an upper portion of the bellows (22) so as to communicate therewith; a pipe type piston shaft (30) is inserted into an upper portion side of the shaft case (16) so as to be shiftable with respect to the shaft case (16); a piston head (20) is connected to an upper tip portion of the piston shaft (30) so as to be communicated therewith; a first check valve (23) which permits liquid only to flow in from the interior of the container main body (12) to the interior of the bellows (22), is provided at
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 2 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 1, characterized in that the engagement portion (35) which is provided between the shaft case (16) and the piston shaft (30), is composed of an engagement groove (34) which is formed upon a one of the shaft case (16) and the piston shaft (30) and an engagement projection (33) which is formed upon the other one thereof, and at least one of these is formed in a tapered shape, so that this piston shaft (30) and this shaft case (16) are engaged together by being mutually rotated in a one relative rotational direction, while this engagement is released by them being rotated in the opposite direction.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 3 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 2, characterized in that a pressed in section (22b) is formed at an upper portion of the bellows (22); the bellows (22) and the shaft case (16) are connected together so as to be mutually communicated by the pressed in section (22b) being pressed into the shaft case (16); a guide groove (16a) is formed upon the shaft case (16); and a rib (22c) which engages to the guide groove (16a) is provided upon the pressed in section (22b) of the bellows (22).
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 4 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 1, characterized in that an opening portion of the container main body (12) is formed by a bush cap (15) which is attached to the container main body (12) and moreover into which the shaft case (16) is inserted, and in that an air hole (18) is formed in the bush cap (15) which connects together a gap between this bush cap (15) and the shaft case (16) and the interior of the container main body (12).
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 5 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 4, characterized in that the piston head (20) is connected to the piston shaft (30) in a state of having some play therebetween, and; between the bush cap (15) and the shaft case (16) which is inserted into it, a stopper portion (32) which prevents the rotation of the shaft case (16) in the circumferential direction without impeding its shifting in the insertion direction, is provided.
  • valve unit (10) described in Claim 6 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 1, characterized in that a valve body (28) of the second check valve (24) comprises a bowl shaped portion (28a) which is open facing the downstream side.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 7 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 1, characterized in that the sucking up pipe (21), the first check valve (23), the bellows (22), and the second check valve (24) are formed as a unit.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 8 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 7, characterized in that the piston head is connected to the piston shaft (30) in a state of having some play therebetween, and; portions of the sucking up pipe (21), the first check valve (23), the bellows (22), and the second check valve (24) which are formed as a unit are fixed to a case (17) which is disposed so as to be fixed in the opening portion of the container main body (12) and moreover to cover over the bellows (22).
  • the container described in Claim 9 is characterized in that it comprises a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 1, and a container main body (12) to which this valve unit (10) is fitted so that it may be freely attached and removed.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 10 is a valve unit (10) which is inserted into a container main body (12) and sucks out liquid within the container main body (12) to the outside of the container main body (12), characterized in that: there are provided a sucking up pipe (21) which is inserted into the container main body (12); a bellows (22) of a zigzag shape which can return in its extension direction and which is connected to an upper portion of this sucking up pipe (21) so as to communicate therewith and which can return in its extension direction; a piston portion (40) which is connected to an upper portion of the bellows (22) so as to communicate therewith, which expands and compresses the bellows (22), and which sucks up liquid within the container main body (12) via the sucking up pipe (21) out from the container main body (12); and wherein a first check valve (23) which permits liquid only to flow in from the interior of the container main body (12) to the interior of the bellows (22), is provided at the upstream of the bellow
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 11 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 10 , characterized in that the bellows (22) is formed so that the ratio (d1/d2) of this trough radius d1 and this ridge radius d2 is formed as (0.90 ⁇ 0.05) X/3.
  • the valve unit (10) described in Claim 12 is a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 10, characterized in that: the piston portion (40) is made up from a pipe type shaft case (16) which is connected to an upper portion of the bellows (22) so as to communicate therewith and guards the opening portion of the container main body (12), a pipe type piston shaft (30) is inserted into an upper portion side of the shaft case (16) so as to be shiftable with respect to the shaft case (16), and a piston head (20) is connected to an upper tip portion of the piston shaft (30) so as to communicate therewith; an engagement portion (35) which engages the piston shaft (30) to the shaft case (16) so as to be attachable thereto and detachable therefrom, is provided between the shaft case (16) and the piston shaft (30); a holding portion (39) which engages to the opening portion of the container main body (12) and is fixed thereto, is provided to the piston head (20); and the piston shaft (30) is made so that it does not interfere with the second check valve (24) when the engagement portion (35) is engaged
  • the container (11) described in Claim 13 is characterized by comprising a valve unit (10) as described in Claim 10, and a container main body (12) to which this valve unit (10) is fitted so as to be freely attached and removed.
  • valve unit and the container of the present invention will be explained in detail.
  • FIG. 1 is a figure showing an embodiment of the valve unit of the present invention and of a container which incorporates it; in FIG. 1, the reference symbol is the valve unit, while the reference symbol 11 is the container.
  • the container 11 is one which is made up by the valve unit 10 being fitted to the container main body 12, in which shampoo in liquid form or the like is stored.
  • This container main body 12 is an element shaped as a tube with a bottom, and is formed from synthetic resin, with an external threaded portion 13 being formed at an upper opening portion 12a thereof.
  • a bush cap 15 made from synthetic resin is attached to the opening portion 12a by an internal threaded portion 14 with which it is provided being screwingly engaged with the external threaded portion 13, and, by this bush cap 15 being attached, the valve unit 10 comes to be fitted to the container main body 11.
  • the bush cap 15 is an element which comprises an external tube portion 15a formed with the external threaded portion 13, and an internal tube portion 15b which is inserted into the opening portion 12a of the container main body 12 and is fitted thereto, it is one for which the hole (not shown in the drawing) of the internal tube portion 15b defines an opening of the container main body 12, and herein the shaft case 16 of the valve unit 10 is inserted and is capable of sliding movement.
  • a case 17 which is made from synthetic resin is fitted in the opening portion 12a of the container main body 12, and is fitted facing the interior of the container main body 11, and the bush cap 15 is fitted in the opening portion 12a via this case 17.
  • the internal tube portion 15b is one which is screwingly attached to the internal surface of the case 17 and is fixed thereto.
  • air holes 18 which connect together the gap between the internal tube portion 15b and the shaft case 16, and the interior of the container main body 12, are formed in the internal tube portion of this bush cap 15 and the case 17.
  • an external threaded portion 15c which constitutes an engagement between it and a piston head which will be described hereinafter.
  • the valve unit 10 is an assembly which comprises the case 17, a bellows unit 19 which is made from synthetic resin and which is arranged in this case 17 in the state of being inserted therethrough, and a piston head 20 which is made from synthetic resin and is attached to this bellows unit 19.
  • the bellows unit 19 is an element for being inserted into the container main body 12 and for sucking out the liquid within the container main body 12 to the exterior of the container main body 12.
  • a sucking up pipe 21 which; as shown in FIG. 2, is inserted within the container main body 12.
  • This sucking up pipe 21 is an element at a lower end thereof is formed a sucking up end 21a by cutting at a sloping angle.
  • a zigzag shaped bellows 22 is connected to the upper end side of this sucking up pipe 21 in a connected through state, so as to be able to extend and to return in its extension direction.
  • This bellows 22 is one which is made from low density polyethylene, and is made so as to be easily compressed by being pressed upon so that its internal volume is reduced, and also, when the pressing force is released, so as easily to return to its original state, in other words so as easily to return in its extension direction, so that its internal volume expands; and it is endowed with a predetermined spring constant, and its interior constitutes a liquid inhalation section.
  • this bellows 22 when it is in its compressed state as shown in FIG. 3(a), and its volume when it has returned from its compressed state as shown in FIG. 3(b), in other words when it is in its initial extended state in which no pressing force is being applied, will be termed its liquid inhalation capacity X [units cc].
  • this X may be one of a 1 cc type, or one of a 3 cc type, or the like. It should be understood that, if the liquid is a shampoo, a 3 cc type or the like is desirably utilized as the bellows 22, since the amount of shampoo which is normally used in one time of hair washing is around 6 cc.
  • the thickness of the tube body which constitutes its zigzag shape is made to be greater than or equal to 0.1 X [units mm], and moreover less than or equal to 0.4 X [units mm]; and, desirably, it is made to be greater than or equal to 0.5 X/3 [units mm], and moreover less than or equal to 1.0 X/3 [units mm].
  • X denotes the liquid inhalation capacity, as previously described.
  • the angle ⁇ subtended by the outer surfaces of the ridge portions 22d upon the zigzag shape of the bellows 22, in the state in which the bellows 22 is not being subjected to any pressing force and is in its initially extended state as shown in FIG. 3(b), is made to be 80° ⁇ 15°.
  • the bellows 22 By making the bellows 22 from low density polyethylene (such as, for example, Novatec LL (a trademark) which is a linear type low density polyethylene made by Nippon PolyChem Co. Ltd.), and by keeping each of its thickness and the angles ⁇ of its ridge portions 22d in the above-described range, this bellows 22 comes to be one which functions excellently, since, when it has been shortened, in other words has been compressed by being pressed, it returns to its original state (extends) upon release of the pressing force, without interposition of any metallic coil spring as in the prior art.
  • low density polyethylene such as, for example, Novatec LL (a trademark) which is a linear type low density polyethylene made by Nippon PolyChem Co. Ltd.
  • the thickness of the bellows 22 is less than 0.1 X [units mm], then the elastic restoration force becomes insufficient since it is too thin, and this is not desirable, since the response after the bellows 22 has been compressed, in other words the time period until it returns to its original state after the pressing force has been released, becomes longer than the range of time period which is desired.
  • this thickness exceeds 0.4 X [units mm]
  • the angle ⁇ subtended by the outer surfaces of the ridge portions 22d of the bellows 22 is less than 65°, then the elastic return force becomes insufficient and the response becomes slower than the range of time period which is desired, which is not desirable.
  • it is greater than 95° then the pressing force when compressing the bellows 22 exceeds the range of pressing force which is desired, which is not desirable either.
  • the liquid within the container main body 12 is one which is of a type which is used by pressing a plurality of times, and, if for example the liquid is a shampoo and the liquid inhalation capacity of the bellows 22 is one of a 1 cc type or a 3 cc type or the like, then, in the zigzag shape, the ratio (d1/d2) between the outer diameter of the trough portions 22e, in other words the trough diameter d1, and the outer diameter of the ridge portions 22d, in other words the ridge diameter d2, is desirably made to be (0.9 ⁇ 0.05) X/3.
  • the ratio (d1/d2) between the trough radius d1 and the ridge radius d2 is set to be within this range, as is shown by sample experiments which will be described hereinafter, the response after the bellows 22 has been compressed becomes quick, and accordingly, if the liquid within the container main body 12 is to be used by pressing a plurality of times, in particular the convenience of use is improved.
  • the shaft case 16 is fixed to the upper end side of this type of bellows 22 by being pressed thereinto, as shown in FIG. 2.
  • a first check valve 23 is provided at the upstream side of the bellows 22, in other words between the sucking up pipe 21 and the bellows 22, and permits only the flow in of liquid from the container main body 12 to within the bellows 22.
  • a second check valve 24 is provided at the downstream side of the bellows 22, in other words between the bellows 22 and the shaft case 16, and permits only the flow out of liquid from within the bellows 22 to the side of the piston head 20.
  • the first check valve 23 is formed as one unit with the sucking up pipe 21, and is formed as provided with a valve chamber 25; while the second check valve 24 is one which is formed as one unit with the connection portion 22a of the upper end of the bellows 22, and is formed as provided with a valve chamber 26.
  • a pipe type pressed in section 22b is formed in the connection portion 22a of the upper end of the bellows, further to upper portion thereof.
  • This pressed in section 22b is an element which is pressed into the shaft case 16 and is fixed to the shaft case 16, as previously described.
  • ribs 22c which, as will be described hereinafter, engage to the guide grooves 16a of a shaft case 16.
  • valve bodies 27, 28 which can be inserted from the sucking up end 21a of the sucking up pipe 21, or from the upper opening side of the pressed in section 22b of the bellows 22.
  • These valve bodies 27, 28, in this example, are both elements which are made from synthetic resin, and which are formed to have bowl shaped portions 27a (28a) which open facing towards the downstream side (the shaft case 16 side). It should be understood that, with regard to these valve bodies 27, 28, provided that they are ones which can close the lower apertures 25a (26a) of the valve chambers 25 (26), they are not limited to this shape, and ones of a spherical shape or a hemispherical shape or the like are also acceptable.
  • Both the valve body 27 for the first check valve 23 and the valve body 28 for the second check valve 24, as shown in FIG. 4, are elements which are formed with rod portions 27b (28b) extending to the upstream side on the outer sides (the lower sides) of the central portions of the bowl shaped portions 27a (28a), and the attitude of the bowl shaped portions 27a (28a) comes to be stabilized due to these rod portions 27b (28b).
  • the bowl shaped portions 27a are elements whose outer peripheral surfaces are formed as arcs, and these outer peripheral surfaces are made so as closely to contact to the inner peripheral surface of the valve chamber 31.
  • these bowl shaped portions 27a, 28a they are elements whose sealing characteristics are enhanced by their thickness being made thin, or by forming them from a soft material.
  • a notched portion 27c shaped as a letter "V" is formed in the circumferential edge of the bowl shaped portion 27a of the valve body 27 for the first check valve 23. And, due to this type of structure, when the first check valve 23 is in the opened state, the valve body 27 comes to allow escape of liquid or of air from the notched portion 27c. Furthermore, in the second check valve 24, a pair of projecting portions 29, 29 are formed on the downstream side within its valve chamber 26, and, due to this, the valve body 28 comes not to be able to float upwards higher than these projecting portions 29, 29.
  • valve body 28 it would be possible to employ some other construction instead of these projecting portions 29, 29; for example, it would also be acceptable to make the cross sectional shape of the valve chamber 26 itself to be a special cross section such as an elliptical shape, a quadrilateral shape, a triangular shape or the like, such that the valve body 28 cannot float upwards.
  • the shaft case 16 is a pipe type element which, by being pressed into the pressed in section 22b of the bellows 22 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, is fixed in a state of being communicated to these, and a piston shaft 30 is shiftably inserted into the upper end side of its upper portion.
  • a larger diameter portion 31 is formed at the vicinity of the central portion of its outer peripheral surface of the shaft case 16, in the state of extending outwards therefrom.
  • This larger diameter portion 31, as shown in FIG. 1, is an element which functions as a stopper for ensuring, by contacting against the lower end surface of the internal tube portion 15b of the bush cap 15, that it cannot rise up higher than this. Furthermore, as shown in FIG.
  • a projection 32a which projects out to the outside is formed in the upper end side of the outer peripheral surface of the shaft case 16, while on the other hand a guide groove 32b is formed in the inner surface of the hole portion of the bush cap 15 which this projection 32a contacts, so that it engages with the projection 32a and guides it in the upwards and downwards direction, in other words from the upper surface side of the bush cap 15 towards its downward surface side.
  • the projection 32a and the guide groove 32b according to this type of structure constitute a stopper portion 32 which does not hinder the shifting of the shaft case 16 in the insertion direction, while it prevents rotational movement in their circumferential direction.
  • a pair of engagement projections 33 are formed upon the piston shaft 30, and are positioned in mutually opposite positions upon its outer peripheral surface central portion, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
  • These engagement projections 33 are elements whose lower surface sides are made as tapered surfaces 33a, as shown in FIG. 6, and, as shown in FIG. 7, they are formed so as to engage to engagement grooves 34 which are formed upon the upper tip portion of the inner peripheral surface of the shaft case 16 so as to be attachable thereto and detachable therefrom, and the engagement section 35 of the present invention is constituted by these engagement projections 33 and engagement grooves 34.
  • the engagement grooves 34 are made with tapered surfaces 34a upon the sides of their upper surfaces, and thereby, as will be described hereinafter, when the piston shaft 30 is rotated and its engagement projections 33 are engaged to the engagement grooves 43 of the shaft case 16, in the initial phase of this engagement state the engagement projections 33 and the engagement grooves 34 have some play between them due to the tapering surfaces 33a and the tapering surfaces 33b, while, by further turning from this state, the play is eliminated and the engagement projections 33 and the engagement grooves 34 come to be tightly engaged together.
  • this structure provides for these engagement projections 33 and engagement grooves 34 to be engaged together by rotating the piston shaft 30 and the shaft case 16 in one direction, while this engagement may be released by rotating them in the opposite direction.
  • the guide grooves 16a which engage with the ribs 22c along the longitudinal direction are formed upon the inner peripheral surface of the shaft case 16, it is arranged for the engagement projections 33 as well to be able to be engaged upon these guide grooves 16a so as to be capable of free sliding movement.
  • the engagement projections 33 come to be so that they are engaged in free sliding movement to the guide grooves 16a, and, due to this structure, the engagement projections 33 do not interfere with the inner peripheral surface of the shaft case 16, and it is arranged for them to be able to shift freely upwards and downwards within the shaft case 16.
  • the lower tip portion of the piston shaft 30 is arranged to be formed in a shape and of dimensions which correspond to the internal surface shape of the bowl shaped portion 28a of the valve body 28 of the second check valve 24, while a small diameter portion 36 for attaching the piston head 20 is formed at its upper tip portion.
  • the piston head 20 is the letter "L" shaped element which is fitted at the upper tip portion of the piston shaft 30, in other words, at the upper tip portion of the bellows unit 19 which is made from the structure shown in FIG. 2, and is able to revolve freely by the application of a predetermined force without being fixed thereto in a state of being fitted to the small diameter portion 36 with some play, as shown in FIG. 1, in other words when the piston shaft 30 is thus fixed. Furthermore, a discharge hole 37 which is connected to a hole (not shown in the figures) in the piston shaft 30, is formed in this piston head 20, and the open end of this discharge hole 37 constitutes a discharge aperture 38 for discharging liquid.
  • this piston head 20 upon its lower inner peripheral surface, there is formed an internal threaded portion 39 which is helically engaged to the external threaded portion 15c of the bush cap 15, and due to this, the piston head 20 comes to be engaged to the bush cap 15 and fixed it, as shown in FIG. 9.
  • the internal threaded portion 39 of the piston head 20 and the external threaded portion of the bush cap 15 constitute engagement portions which implement engagement between the piston head 20 and the bush cap 15 which in practice constitutes the opening portion of the container main body 12.
  • piston portion 40 of the present invention is made up from the piston head 20 made in this manner, the piston shaft 30, and the shaft case 16.
  • valve unit 10 which constitutes an embodiment of the present invention is assembled by forming the sucking up pipe 21, the first check valve 23, the bellows 22, and the second check valve 24 which constitute the bellows unit 19 in a unitary manner by blow forming or the like, by assembling the shaft case 16 and the piston shaft 30 to these by pressing in or the like, and then, further, by fitting the case 17 to this bellows unit 19 in a state of being clipped over it, and, by fitting the piston head 20 to the piston shaft 30, along with fitting the bush cap 15 with this case 17 in a fixed state.
  • the piston head 20 is rotated in a predetermined direction in its state in which it is pulled in the upwards direction, and the piston shaft 30 is turned along therewith and its engagement projections 33 are engaged with the engagement grooves 34 of the shaft case 16.
  • a degree of play is present for the initial rotational (initial engagement)
  • the piston head 20 is turned in advance in the predetermined direction, in other words is turned in the direction opposite to the direction which engages together the previously described engagement projections 33 and engagement grooves 34, and the piston shaft 30 is rotated along therewith and releases the engagement together of its engagement projections 33 and the engagement grooves 34 of the shaft case 16.
  • the piston head 20 is pressed downward as shown in FIG. 9, and this piston head 20 is received in the bush cap 15. Furthermore, the piston head is rotated in the predetermined direction, and its internal threaded portion 39 is helically engaged with the external threaded portion 15c of the bush cap 15, and thereby the piston head 20 is engaged to the bush cap 15.
  • the action of the piston head 20 may be performed without any hindrance, since the piston head 20 is connected to the piston shaft 30 in a state wherein some play is present between them.
  • the second check valve 24 is closed due to the piston head 20 being screwingly attached and engaged to the bush cap 15 as previously described, and because of this, even when for example the container main body 12 has been inverted, flow out of the liquid in the container main body 12 is prevented.
  • valve unit 10 having this type of structure, and in the container 11 which incorporates it, it is possible to suck out the liquid within the container main body 12 by compression of the bellows which itself functions as a member for storing liquid, accordingly a member for storing the liquid becomes no longer necessary, as it is when using a coil spring, and thus it is possible to reduce the number of elements and the number of assembly processes.
  • the thickness of the bellows 22 is made to be of a predetermined thickness which corresponds to its liquid inhalation capacity X, and moreover the outer surfaces of the ridge portions 22d are made to subtend angles ⁇ of 80° ⁇ 15°, thereby the bellows 22 comes to be made with a desired compressibility without the use of any coil spring made from metal, and accordingly the bellows 22 sucks liquid out from within the container main body 12 in a desirable manner. Therefore it becomes possible to avoid the obstacles such as occur with the prior art in the case in which a coil spring is used, that problems occur with the work of assembly and that disassembly upon recycling is difficult. Furthermore it is also possible to reduce the number of parts and the number of processes during assembly.
  • the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment; various changes of implementation are possible.
  • the stopper portion 32 was provided between the bush cap 15 and the shaft case 16 so as to prevent rotational movement in the circumferential direction of the shaft case 16 without hampering shifting in its through direction, however, it would also be acceptable, instead of this, to arrange for a portion of the sucking up pipe 21, the first check valve 23, the bellows 22, and the second check valve 24 which were formed as one unit, such as the portion where the first check valve 23 is formed for example as shown in FIG. 1, to be pressed into and fixed to the lower aperture 17a of the case 17.
  • the engagement portion 35 in the above-described embodiment it is composed of the engagement grooves 34 and the engagement projections 33, for example, however, it would also be acceptable to make this engagement portion 35 as an external threaded portion and an internal threaded portion. In other words, it would also be acceptable to form the engagement grooves as an internal threaded portion, and to form the engagement projections as an external threaded portion.
  • this structure it is arranged for the piston shaft 30 and the shaft case 16 to be engaged together by being relatively mutually rotated in one direction, while this engagement is resealed by rotating the m in the opposite direction.
  • piston portion 40 it need not only be made from the shaft case 16, the piston shaft 30, and the piston head 20; it would also be acceptable to add various other elements, or, instead of these elements, to employ other elements.
  • bellows 22 Four types of bellows 22 were made with grade UE320 of Novatec LL (a trademark) made by Nippon PolyChem Co. Ltd., which is a linear type low density polyethylene.
  • Each of these four types of bellows had a liquid inhalation capacity X [units cc] of 3 cc, and the angle ⁇ subtended by the outer surfaces of the ridge portions 22d upon the zigzag shape of the bellows 22 was approximately 80°, while the thickness of the tube body which defined the zigzag shape (the difference in thickness between the ridge portions 22d and the trough portions 22e) was in the range 0.5 ⁇ 1.0 mm. It should be understood that, with these bellows, the number of the ridge portions 22d was 15, while the distance between the summits of adjacent ridge portions 22d, in other words the widths of the trough portions 22e, was 4 mm.
  • valve unit described in Claim 1 is made so that there is provided a bellows which functions as a member which itself stores liquid, and so that it is possible for the liquid to be sucked out of the interior of the container main body by the extension and compression of the bellows, thus it becomes no longer necessary to provide a member for storing the liquid such as in the case when a spring is used, and accordingly it is possible to reduce the number of parts and the number of assembly processes.
  • the engagement portion which is provided between the shaft case and the piston shaft is composed of an engagement groove which is formed upon a one of the shaft case and the piston shaft and an engagement projection which is formed upon the other one thereof, and at least one of these is formed in a tapered shape, so that this piston shaft and this shaft case are engaged together by being mutually rotated in one relative rotational direction, while this engagement is released by them being rotated in the opposite direction; thereby, by the operation of rotation, it is possible easily to perform engagement of the engagement portion and the release of its engagement, and due to this it is possible to provide excellent operability.
  • a valve body of the second check valve comprises a bowl shaped portion which is open facing the downstream side, when the liquid flows in reverse (which is undesirable), the bowl shaped portion of the valve body receives the pressure force of the liquid and quickly comes to shift in the closing direction. Furthermore, during transportation or the like when the unit is not being used, if the engagement of the engagement portion is released, and moreover the piston head is engaged to the opening portion of the container main body by its engagement portion and is fixed thereto, then, due to the valve body of the second check valve being provided with the bowl shaped portion, its inner side becomes easy to be pressed by the lower end of the piston shaft, and accordingly it is possible more reliably to fix the second check valve in the closed state.
  • the thickness of the bellows is formed in a predetermined manner in correspondence to its liquid inhalation capacity X, and moreover the angle ⁇ which is defined by the outer surfaces of its ridge portions is a predetermined angle; therefore, it is arranged for the expansion and compression of the bellows to be performed in a desirable manner without the use of a coil spring made from metal, and accordingly, since the bellows sucks out the liquid in the container main body in a desirable manner, it is possible to avoid problems during the assembly work or difficulties in disassembling the unit when it is to be recycled which are caused in case of the use of a coil spring such as in the prior art, and furthermore it is also possible to reduce the number of parts and the number of processes during assembly.
  • the bellows is one which is formed so that the ratio (d1/d2) of its trough radius d1 and its ridge radius d2 is formed as (0.9 ⁇ 0.05) X/3, it is possible to make the response (the responsiveness) of the bellows as it returns after having been compressed be fast, and accordingly, in a case such as when a plurality of discharge action of liquid discharge by the bellows are to be performed, it is possible particularly to improve its convenience of use.
  • the piston portion is made up from a pipe type shaft case which is connected to an upper portion of the bellows so as to communicate therewith and guards the opening portion of the container main body, a pipe type piston shaft which is inserted into an upper portion side of the shaft case so as to be shiftable with respect to the shaft case, and a piston head which is connected to an upper tip portion of the piston shaft so as to communicate therewith; an engagement portion which engages the piston shaft to the shaft case so as to be attachable thereto and detachable therefrom, is provided between the shaft case and the piston shaft; a holding portion which engages to the opening portion of the container main body and is fixed thereto, is provided to the piston head; and the piston shaft is made so that it does not interfere with the second check valve when the engagement portion is engaged, and so that, when the engagement portion is not engaged and moreover the piston head is engaged to the opening portion of the container main body by its holding portion and is fixed thereto, the second check valve is fixed in its closed state; therefore, during normal

Landscapes

  • Containers And Packaging Bodies Having A Special Means To Remove Contents (AREA)
  • Closures For Containers (AREA)
  • Reciprocating Pumps (AREA)
EP01936848A 2001-02-14 2001-06-05 Unite de soupape et recipient Withdrawn EP1360995A4 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (5)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP2001037273 2001-02-14
JP2001037273A JP3399930B2 (ja) 2001-02-14 2001-02-14 バルブユニット及び容器
JP2001143822 2001-05-14
JP2001143822A JP3739669B2 (ja) 2001-05-14 2001-05-14 バルブユニット及び容器
PCT/JP2001/004724 WO2002064264A1 (fr) 2001-02-14 2001-06-05 Unite de soupape et recipient

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1360995A1 true EP1360995A1 (fr) 2003-11-12
EP1360995A4 EP1360995A4 (fr) 2006-07-19

Family

ID=26609392

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP01936848A Withdrawn EP1360995A4 (fr) 2001-02-14 2001-06-05 Unite de soupape et recipient

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EP (1) EP1360995A4 (fr)
WO (1) WO2002064264A1 (fr)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1923142A3 (fr) * 2006-11-14 2008-09-24 Gotohti.Com Inc. Connexion de tube d'inclinaison de chambre de piston autoclavable
EP1486261A4 (fr) * 2002-03-15 2009-04-22 Advanex Inc Unite de pompe et contenant
WO2009003974A3 (fr) * 2007-06-29 2009-06-18 Rpc Bramlage Gmbh Distributeur de pâtes liquides ou pâteuses
US7695122B2 (en) 2005-05-17 2010-04-13 Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha Ink feeding apparatus and ink jet recording apparatus
WO2019102106A1 (fr) * 2017-11-21 2019-05-31 Promens Sa Dispositif de distribution avec chambre de dosage à soufflet et clappet d'entrée bi-injectés

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
TWM559852U (zh) * 2018-01-23 2018-05-11 Horng Chang Metal Industrial Co Ltd 食用液體容器按壓裝置

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
AU7091794A (en) * 1993-06-24 1995-01-24 Procter & Gamble Company, The Pump device with collapsible pump chamber having integral shipping seal
US5462208A (en) * 1994-08-01 1995-10-31 The Procter & Gamble Company Two-phase dispensing systems utilizing bellows pumps
US5561901A (en) * 1994-10-06 1996-10-08 The Procter & Gamble Company Assembly process including severing part of integral collapsible pump chamber
JP3691930B2 (ja) * 1996-07-29 2005-09-07 株式会社資生堂 容器用ポンプ
JP3566818B2 (ja) * 1996-09-26 2004-09-15 株式会社吉野工業所 液体注出容器

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1486261A4 (fr) * 2002-03-15 2009-04-22 Advanex Inc Unite de pompe et contenant
US7695122B2 (en) 2005-05-17 2010-04-13 Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha Ink feeding apparatus and ink jet recording apparatus
EP1923142A3 (fr) * 2006-11-14 2008-09-24 Gotohti.Com Inc. Connexion de tube d'inclinaison de chambre de piston autoclavable
WO2009003974A3 (fr) * 2007-06-29 2009-06-18 Rpc Bramlage Gmbh Distributeur de pâtes liquides ou pâteuses
WO2019102106A1 (fr) * 2017-11-21 2019-05-31 Promens Sa Dispositif de distribution avec chambre de dosage à soufflet et clappet d'entrée bi-injectés

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2002064264A1 (fr) 2002-08-22
EP1360995A4 (fr) 2006-07-19

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