JP2004323113A - Assemblies for packaging and application of liquid products - Google Patents

Abstract

An assembly for packaging and applying a liquid product that can be used a plurality of times with a specific head for a plurality of containers in the same procedure.
An assembly for packaging and applying a liquid product, the container having a free edge defining an opening, and intended to seal the opening so that the product does not leak. The container comprises a sealing member 40 that can be fixed to the container by snap fastening or screwing, and a coating head 30 that can be fixed to the container. The coating head has a distribution opening 36 that communicates with the inside of the container. An opening member 38 intended to break the sealing member when the head is mounted on the container to establish communication between the dispensing opening and the inside of the container, and to supply the product in response to external pressure on the head. And a deformable wall 37.
[Selection diagram] FIG.

Description

  The present invention relates to an assembly for packaging and application of liquid products, and more particularly to an apparatus for packaging and applying cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or dermatologicals. The assembly is particularly useful for the packaging and application of hair products such as lotions to prevent hair loss.

  The product for preventing hair loss is applied several times at a time.

  Such products may be packaged in self-breaking vials, such as glass vials. However, if the bottle breaks while the product is being applied, there is a danger of sharp or broken glass touching the scalp and possibly causing injury.

  Alternatively, such products can be packaged in small vials, in which a plastic dispenser head is removably secured. It is desirable that such a head be easy to attach to a bottle and be removable from the bottle for another application and attachable to another bottle.

  In another field of coating supplies, packaging and coating assemblies are well known which consist of a container with a fixed coating head. For example, Patent Literature 1 refers to a container for storing a liquid product such as a paint, in which an application head is screwed. In this document, the head is screwed onto the container when the container is opened. Therefore, when the container is closed, it is necessary to open the container first, and then screw the head, and this requires another two operations.

  Documents 2, 3, and 4 disclose coating apparatuses in which a container is sealed so as not to leak by a sealing member, and a coating head is fixed on an upper portion. In these documents, a hole is made in the sealing member when the head is attached, and the container is opened.

  However, in these documents, all the openings are sealed with a film or a heat seal or a welding film. The manufacturing costs of such a sealed container are relatively high.

  Document 5 discloses a dispensing head screwed onto the neck of a tube, initially sealed by a lid integral with the neck of the tube. The head has a sharp portion for piercing the lid when screwed onto the neck of the tube. Also, at the bottom of the head is a removable ring, which is supported by the shoulder of the tube, separating the sharp section from the lid. Before the first use, the ring is separated from the head, so that the head can continue to be screwed on the neck until the sharps reach the lid, and the lid is perforated. In order to dispense the product, the wall of the tube must be pressed to push the product into the head and be discharged through the dispensing opening. With such a configuration, the product flowing out of the head cannot be easily controlled.

  Document 6 discloses a baby bottle consisting of a container with a teat at the tip. In the initial state of the container, a metal lid is sealed by crimping the neck of the container, and a seal is further pressed between the lid and the neck to prevent leakage. Here too, the production costs of such a sealed container are relatively high. In addition, a hollow sharp tip is provided inside the teat portion of the baby bottle, which is screwed into the bottle to open substantially all the way through the lid. Since the tip extends 360 degrees, considerable friction occurs when screwing. After all, such devices are not suitable for applying products to the head of a person.

Document 7 discloses a container for a pharmaceutical product. The container is sealed with an elastic rubber-like stopper, and a head having a central tip through which a passage passes is provided on the upper part, and the tip is intended to penetrate at one point of the stopper. I have. The product is then dispensed through the tip simply by the effect of gravity by turning the container upside down. Again, such devices do not allow for easy control of the product fluid and application.
UK Patent No. 2249078 French Patent No. 2811372 U.S. Pat. No. 5,042,690 U.S. Pat. No. 4,898,923 French Patent No. 2236748 U.S. Pat. No. 3,829,992 U.S. Pat.No. 5,817,082

  Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to produce a packaging and coating assembly that does not have the disadvantages of the prior art.

  One aim of the invention is to produce such a device at a particularly low cost.

  Yet another object of the present invention is to produce a packaging and application assembly that is easy to use.

  Similarly, another object of the present invention is to produce an assembly that allows a particular head to be used multiple times in the same procedure on a plurality of containers.

  It is a further object of the present invention to produce a packaging and application assembly that can accurately and simply apply the product.

  Yet another object of the present invention is to produce a compact assembly that is particularly suitable for application of small quantities of product.

  It is likewise another object of the present invention to produce a miniature assembly of the above type that is ergonomically suitable for one-handed use.

Accordingly, the present invention relates to an assembly for packaging and applying a liquid product, comprising:
-A container with a free edge defining an opening-a closure member intended to seal the opening so that there is no leakage of the product and which can be fixed to the container by snapping or screwing-a lockable to the container Coating head having the following elements 1) Distributing opening capable of communicating with the inside of the container 2) Breaking the sealing member when the head is mounted on the container to establish communication between the dispensing opening and the inside of the container. Opening member intended to be established 3) Deformable wall to supply product to external pressure on head

  Because the closure of the container is snapped or screwed on, the assembly is easier to manufacture than if the container were sealed with a heat seal membrane.

  Furthermore, the assembly for packaging and application is relatively easy to use, since the user can perform both the attaching of the head to the container and the opening of the container in a single operation.

  The head has threads for attaching the head to the container. Therefore, it is easy to fix the head to the container or to remove it for the next use. Alternatively, the head can be snap-fastened to the container.

  The deformable wall is convex or bellows-like.

  The head is obtained by molding from a single piece. In particular, the deformable wall, which is obtained by being molded from a single piece with a single material, but alternatively, can be produced by overmolding, in particular bi-injection, of an elastomeric material. Therefore, the assembly can be manufactured at low cost because it is manufactured with a small number of parts. In fact, the assembly is only three parts: the container, the closure and the head.

  The head has a nozzle, and an opening for dispensing the product is formed at the tip of the nozzle. This allows the product to be applied accurately. The nozzle is located off the center of the head. This allows, inter alia, sufficient space along the axis of the nozzle to be produced, and a deformable wall large enough for the product to flow out.

  The sealing member has a blade shape. The blades are formed on the axial extension of one wall of the nozzle to avoid oversizing of the assembly and to facilitate mold release of the head. Thus, a relatively compact assembly is obtained.

  The sealing member includes a weak portion that is broken when the opening member touches the sealing member plug.

  The sealing member may be made of a single material or two materials. For example, a stopper has a fastening flange made of a rigid or semi-rigid thermoreversible material and a central part obtained by bi-injection of an elastomeric material. Further, the sealing member has a fastening flange made of a rigid or semi-rigid thermoreversible material and a central portion formed by a film welded to the fastening flange, such as aluminum.

  The edge of the container and / or the sealing member are provided with a rotation preventing means for restricting the rotation of the sealing member with respect to the container. For example, an uneven surface may be provided at the edge of the container so as to mesh with the uneven surface formed on the sealing member.

  The container has a concave bottom to facilitate thumb positioning. Thereby, the product can be easily applied.

The present invention, independently or in combination with the above, relates to an assembly for packaging and applying liquid products, comprising:
-A container having a free edge defining an opening-a closure member intended to seal the opening so that there is no leakage of the product and which can be fixed to the container by snapping or screwing-a lockable to the container Coating head having the following elements 1) A dispensing opening is formed at the tip, which is able to communicate with the inside of the container and is located off the center of the head. 2) The head is attached to the container. Opening member intended to break the sealing member and establish communication between the dispensing opening and the inside of the container when the container is opened

  The assembly according to the invention is particularly useful for the packaging and application of cosmetics, such as hair products, in which case it is possible that the products contain alcohol-based compounds.

  In addition to what has been described above, the present invention includes the following and describes non-limiting exemplary embodiments in light of the accompanying drawings.

  FIGS. 1-4, referred to below, illustrate an assembly 10 according to the present invention for packaging and application of a liquid product for preventing hair loss. The assembly 10 includes a container 20, on which an application head 30 is provided.

  The container 20 has a rigid bottle shape made of a thermoplastic material such as PET. Alternatively, a glass bottle may be used. For example, the capacity of the bottle is 6 ml. The bottle has a longitudinal axis X and includes an axisymmetric side wall 21 closed at one end by a bottom 22. For example, the bottom 22 is a concave wall to facilitate thumb positioning. The other end of the bottle is a free edge 23 and defines an opening 24.

  In order to mount the application head 30 on the bottle, the outer surface of the bottle near the free edge 23 has a threaded thread for complementing the complementary screwing provided on the inner surface of the application head. A thread 25 is provided.

  On the outer surface of the bottle between the thread 25 and the free edge 23 there is provided a line 26 extending parallel to the axis X, the function of which will be described below. The line 26 is provided only at a part of the outer periphery of the bottle, for example, only at two diametrically opposite positions in the annular portion of the bottle. Alternatively, the striations may be engraved on the entire outer periphery of the bottle.

  The bottle is also provided with an annular groove 27 between the striations 26 and the threads 25, which allows the plug member 40 to be mounted on the bottle, as described below.

  The application head 30 is intended to be screwed onto the neck of the bottle. To that end, the head has a fastening flange 31 provided on the inner circumference with a thread 32 interacting with the thread 25 of the bottle. Alternatively, the head may be fixed to the neck by snapping.

  As seen in FIG. 3B, above the applicator head, the flange 31 has a radial shoulder 33 with a sealing ring 34 secured against leakage on the plug member 40.

  In the fastening flange, a nozzle 35 defining an internal passage 35 passing through the opening 36 extends above the shoulder and distributes the product from the free end of the nozzle. The nozzle is formed at one edge of the head so as to be off-center with respect to the axis X. The dimensions of the internal passage 35a are selected in particular according to the viscosity of the product so that the product does not easily flow out due to the effect of gravity.

  Further, the upper part of the fastening flange 31 is sealed by a convex wall 37. The convex wall 37 is deformable so as to be depressed toward the inside of the head when pressure is applied in a direction parallel to the axis X. This deformation breaks the interfacial tension of the product inside the head and allows the product to flow toward the opening 36 where the product is dispensed.

  The plug member 40 seals the opening 24 so as not to leak before use of the bottle, and the head 30 also includes an opening member 38 for breaking the plug member 40. The opening member is a blade-shaped portion 38 extending toward the bottle direction and parallel to the axis X to a free end 39. The blade-shaped portion 38 is slightly curved and connected only through a part of the arc-shaped portion. As seen in FIG. 3A, the free edge 39 of the blade is beveled to facilitate insertion into the plug member 40. Further, as seen in FIG. 7, the free edge 39 is inclined with respect to the surface of the plug member to be broken, and gradually approaches the plug member. In the variant shown in FIG. 8, the free edge 39 has a substantially inclined first part 39a for initially cutting the plug member and a second part 39 which is less inclined than the first part for finishing. And two parts having different gradients.

  In order to limit the size of the assembly while ensuring a sufficiently deformable wall, the blade 38 is formed on an axial extension of one wall of the nozzle. This further facilitates mold release of the nozzle.

  The screws 25 and 32 preferably have a shallow slope, and when the head is screwed into the bottle, one or more revolutions are required to reach the screw-in position, thereby improving the cutout.

  The head is advantageously molded from one piece. The head can be formed of one type of thermoplastic material such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, polyamide, and the like. Alternatively, the convex wall 37 can be overmolded with respect to the rest of the head, for example, made of an elastomeric material such as Santoprene (registered trademark), especially rubber. Since the head can be washed in any case, it can be used several times.

  In the modification of FIG. 5, the convex wall 37 is replaced with a bellows-shaped 137.

  Before the coating head 30 is fixed, the bottle is sealed with a stopper member 40 made of a thermoplastic material such as PET. The closure is snapped onto the neck of the bottle. Alternatively, the plug member 40 can be screwed to the bottle.

  The plug member 40 comprises a circular wall 41 including a weak part 42 to be cut. The weak portion 42 is preferably located in an annular shape near the outer periphery of the plug member such that the opening 24 of the bottle is almost completely opened. The weak portion 42 of the wall 41 is formed by an annular portion having a smaller thickness than other portions of the wall 41. Instead of reducing the thickness of the entire annular portion, the weak portion 42 may have a variable thickness, particularly a saw-tooth shape. The thickness may be alternately varied along the annular portion at a first value having the same thickness as the wall 41 and a second value which is thinner than the first value.

  The circular wall 41 extends completely from the thin portion 42 to the fastening flange 43, which extends axially and has on its inner surface an annular bead 44 to be received in the groove 27 of the bottle. The fastening flange 43 has a striation (not shown) on its inner surface, and the striation is provided so as to mesh with the striation 26 of the bottle. This constitutes rotation prevention means capable of restricting the rotation of the plug member with respect to the bottle. Naturally, there is a possibility that the stopper member and / or the bottle may be provided with a rotation preventing function by other irregularities other than the striations. Alternatively or additionally, the inner diameter of the fastening flange may be selected relative to the outer diameter of the bottle, thereby limiting the rotational movement of the stopper relative to the bottle by fastening the stopper 40 to the bottle. it can.

  The plug member is also provided with a sealing flange 45 concentric with the fastening flange. The sealing flange 45 extends axially from the level of the circular wall 41 between the thin section 42 and the fastening flange 43 to the edge 46. The flange is arranged so as not to leak to the inner surface of the bottle. The lip 46 is slightly inclined toward the center of the flange so that the sealing flange 45 is inserted into the neck of the bottle when the plug member 40 is mounted on the bottle to facilitate centering. Further, such a shape facilitates the flow of the plug member to the production line, and in particular, prevents the parts from overlapping one another. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the edge 46 is continuous. In the modification shown in FIG. 6, the edge is formed by the tab 47, so that a more flexible edge can be formed.

  Similarly, the plug member 40 is formed of a single piece from a thermoplastic material such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polyvinyl chloride, or polyamide. The plug member is manufactured from a single material, or the circular wall 41 is manufactured by bi-injection of an elastomer material.

  According to one variant (not shown), the application head 30 can be screwed on the plug member 40, rather than on the bottle, so that the threads are formed on the outer wall of the plug member 40. Is provided. As yet another alternative, the head 30 can be snapped onto the bottle.

  In order to use the device, the user grips the bottle 20 sealed with the stopper member 40. Next, the head 30 is screwed and fixed to the neck of the bottle sealed as described above. The stopper member is provided with striations, which prevent the stopper member from rotating relative to the bottle due to friction with the striations 26 formed on the bottle. The plug member is fixed to the bottle. As seen in FIG. 3A, during screwing, the blade 38 gradually cuts off the thin annular portion 42 of the plug member until the portion breaks. The opening then connects to the inside of the bottle. As shown in FIG. 3B, at the end of the screwing, the circular wall 41 of the plug member is completely cut off and falls into the bottle. Alternatively, the circular wall 41 remains connected to the plug member by a small radial area.

  Subsequently, the user can turn the device upside down and point the nozzle at the scalp to apply the product. For example, as seen in FIG. 4, the user holds the applicator with the thumb on the bottom of the container and the index finger on the convex wall. Subsequently, the user can press the convex wall to take out the product, prompting the product to flow out and taking out the product. Subsequently, the user need only stop pressing to stop the product from flowing out. Thus, the user has complete control over the product supply. The assembly produced in this way is very ergonomic and very convenient in use, as its small size makes it suitable for use with two fingers. Since the opening is small in diameter and located at the end of the nozzle, the product flows out locally to the person's head, thereby allowing the product to be applied with sufficient control.

  After applying the contents of the bottle, the user can also turn the head 30 off the empty bottle for later reuse. In fact, the head is reusable, preferably after washing, in another bottle in the same state as at the first use.

  In the above disclosure of the invention, reference has been made to preferred embodiments of the invention. Obviously, modifications of this embodiment are possible without departing from the invention described in the claims.

1 is a perspective view of a packaging and application assembly according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the assembly of FIG. 1. FIG. 3A is a cutaway view of the packaging and application assembly of FIG. 1 in an initial state with the application head secured to the container. FIG. 3B is a cut-away view of the packaging and application assembly of FIG. 1 with the application head attached to the container. FIG. 2 is an illustration of the packaging and application assembly of FIG. 1 during use. 5 shows a second embodiment of the packaging and application assembly according to the invention. 14 shows a modified example of a bottle stopper member. 4 shows a member for opening the plug member. 14 shows a modification of a member for opening the plug member.

Explanation of reference numerals

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Assembly 20 Container 21 Side wall 22 Concave bottom 23 Free edge (container edge)
24 Opening 25 Screwing (Bottle thread)
26 line 27 groove 30 coating head 31 fastening flange 32 thread 33 radial shoulder 34 sealing ring 35 nozzle 35a internal passage 36 distribution opening 37 convex deformable wall 38 opening member (blade)
39 Free edge 40 Plug member 41 Wall (circular wall)
42 weak part 43 fastening flange 45 sealing flange 46 rim 47 tab 137 bellows-like deformable wall

Claims (18)

An assembly for packaging and applying a liquid product, the assembly comprising:
A container (20) having a free edge (23) defining an opening (24);
A closure member (40) intended to seal the opening (24) so that the product does not leak and which can be fixed to the container by snapping or screwing;
1) Distribution opening (36) that can communicate with the inside of the container
2) Opening member (38) intended to break the sealing member (40) when the head is mounted on the container to establish communication between the dispensing opening and the inside of the container.
3) Walls (37; 137) deformable to supply product to external pressure on the head
A coating head fixable to a container having the above 1) to 3);
An assembly comprising:   The assembly according to claim 1, wherein the head (30) has a thread (32) used to mount the head to a container.   Assembly according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the deformable wall is convex wall (37) or bellows-like (137).   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the head (30) is obtained by being molded from a single piece.   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the deformable wall is manufactured by over-injection of a bi-injection of an elastomeric material.   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the head (30) is made of a single material.   The assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the head has a nozzle (35), the tip of which has an opening (36) for dispensing the product.   The assembly according to claim 7, wherein the nozzle (35) is off-center from the head.   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the opening member (38) is blade-shaped.   An assembly according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the blade (38) is formed on an extension axis of one wall of the nozzle (35).   The assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sealing member (40) includes a weakened portion (42) that breaks when the opening member (38) comes into contact with the sealing member (40).   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sealing member (40) is made of a single material.   The assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sealing member (40) is made of two materials.   14. The container according to claim 1, wherein the rim of the container and / or the sealing member have anti-rotation means for limiting the rotation of the sealing member with respect to the container. An assembly according to any one of the claims.   An assembly according to any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the edge (23) of the container has a striation (26) which meshes with a striation formed on the closure (40).   An assembly according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the container (20) has a concave bottom (22). An assembly for packaging and applying a liquid product, the assembly comprising:
A container (20) having a free edge (23) defining an opening (24);
A closure member (40) intended to seal the opening (24) so that the product does not leak and which can be fixed to the container by snapping or screwing;
1) A nozzle (35) having a dispensing opening formed at the tip thereof and capable of communicating with the inside of the container and located off the center of the head.
2) Opening member intended to break the closing member (40) of the container when the head is mounted on the container to establish communication between the dispensing opening and the inside of the container. A fixing application head (30),
An assembly comprising:   Use of the assembly according to any of the preceding claims for packaging and application of cosmetics, including hair products.

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