AU2006212178A1

AU2006212178A1 - A container closure

Info

Publication number: AU2006212178A1
Application number: AU2006212178A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Eugene Carley; Adrian Mccarthy; Finbarr Twohig; Victor Twohig
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-02-10
Filing date: 2006-02-10
Publication date: 2006-08-17
Also published as: IES20060091A2; BRPI0606936A2; CN101151193A; JP2009525923A; NZ560509A; CA2597501A1; WO2006084903A1; MX2007009734A; EP1846304A1; US20080314858A1

Description

WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 "A Container ClosUre" Introduction 5 The present inve.ntion relates. to a container closure and in pairticular to a, contmainer closure-, for mounting arn a container of' the type comprising a conta-iner body inl fluid corm)mication with a bored conitaijner opening for the, delivery of liquid from the inteol'r oif The contaiiner, thec closure comprising a bored closure body having a closure outlet at one lend and a closure inlet atf the other end, the closure body 10 mounting a plurality of exterior ribs for engag-qement with the interior wlsof the container o pening, Many people, particularly the younge r generation, drink beverages- from bottle-s or containers. rather than first pouring the contents of the conta.,iner or bottleO into a 15 g [lass-, This has, become a very popular practice and is pmailarly prevalent inl establishments w-he~re drink Is sodto the public, such as barts and lounges , or Indeed, particularly whnsold for consumption in the open air or in large areas weethe patrons are not se ated. Thus, at, events in particular, it is not uncommon to see mny people drinking directly out oif the contaiiners. 20 A pairticulair problem that Is sometimes encountered is the problem of the 'spiking of drinks, This problem has manifested itse4Llf in various. ways in that people, have hlad their drink spiked by the introduction therein of unwanted substances. Indeed, there has ben cosdrbepublicity rec ently about what is called "dalie rape drugs', 25 her person's dInk is adleae by som sbtnewhcsutaC makes the person, particularly girls, vulnerable nd forget what happened over a relively short period of timec, such as 24 hors, During that 24 hours,, the person may hive been raped or otherwise interfered with. 30 Eve n le~avingj out the probe emns of such datec rape. ti(r emr other problems in thatJ pe ople,, do noat want substances intoduced into their drink, whether it be by wa y of deliberate attempts to cause the person harm or simply by an idea that it would inl some w ay funny to do so.

WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 -2 Another probe lem associated vith drini<.iri directly from btolles or other coratinrsr IS Vvlcils disease, This, is ai potentally fatal disease carried in the urine and/or faeces of rats whicAwen deposited on the top of bottles (such as whien stored in cel-lars), canl b e transmitted to humans, whien the contntsar drunk directly out of the? bottles.

5 It is a thelrefore, One object of the present invention to provide ai contlainer closure which gossoea toar o veromn latest the above problem s, and/o rwhc will provide the pulic and/or industry with a Useful choice. tO lit is acnwegdthat the termi 'corifsfai may, under varying jurisdictions, be provided wiAth either an exclusive or inclusive meaning. For the purpose of tis specification, arid unless, otherwise noted explicitly, the term comprise shalt have an inclusive meaning - i~e. that it may be take n to mean an inclusion of notl only the . listed components it directly references, but also other noni-specifieid components. 15 Accordingly, the term 'c-omprise 4 is to be attributed with as, broadernerpeaina posbewithin any given jurisdiction aiid this rationiale should also be used when the terms comprisede' and/or 'comprisig are Used. Further aspects,- of the present invention will become apparent form thec ensuing 20 description which is given by way of example only. Statements of Invention According to the invetion, theme is provided a container closure for mounting on a 25 container of the type Comprising a container body in fluid comuication wi1th a bored cota iner opening fo th eieyo Iqi from the interior of thle containler, the I ~~ J fo 1Cd OriO iJl closure comprising a bored co)sure body having a closure ou20et at oneC end anda closure inlet at the other end, the close body mounting a plurality of exterior rbs for engag~eent wit1h the interior walsif the container opening characterised in that the 30 closure comprises- a closure. gate whichi extends b)etwveen the interior wialls of the closure body, the clos-ure gate formed from a' plurality of closure flaps whiich pivot between a Closed p osition against a closure stop to seal the container to an openly position allowig liquid to e-xit the conVtiner through the closure outlet, the closure, further comprising a container venting tube hiyng an ventingtbear neta one end I ) kbi Ile a WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 -3, adaventing tube air outlet at the other end, the venting tube being arranged such thlat when liquid exits the conltainer through the Closure the liquid is directed away from the venting tube air Inlet to allowv air to center the venting) lube' air ilet and pa1S through the vernn tujbe, and out through the ventig tube air outlet into the1 iterior of 5 the container without being restricted by the, liquid exiting the closure, Suich a closure is partic-ularly adi~vantageous as it will prevent the entry, of liquid or Other contamfiants into the. container. Additionally, the provision of the ventingI tube will eniable air to flow into the container which will prevent the formation of a vacuum 10 within the container, which winble persons drinkilng from the conitainer to be able to drink- for longer penfods froml thec cont~ainer without hlavAng to' Stop, The) closure also provides a barrier bectween the bottle being drunk out of and the mouth Of the personl dfinlking from the. conitainer, which &ill remove the likelihood of 15 coCntaminlanlts or germs. Such as WVeilb disease, being passed from the botleli top to the drinker, Such a barrie~r b-)etween the bttle willl also serve- an anti-spill function preve-nting liquid being accidentally spilled fromi the bottle. The closure will also miimise the I kelihood of a-- drinker's teeth b eing acienal chpedihecs whien the container is a glass bottle., 20 In oine embodimenTt of the invention, the,- closure is mounted onl the conltainler and compri ses a tamper evident seal between itself and the container, The proviso ioni of a tamp)er evident seal will1 also provide a means to alert dikr 25 when the clore has, beeni tampered or otherwivse. interfered w,-ith. ln one emibodiment of the invention, the closure b ody is plug-lke for insertion into the conlt a ine10r open,11i ng 30 In one embodiment of the invention, the closure flaps, are provided by a disc shapeod film out of which have cut, a plrality of notches, In One embodiment of th e invention, the closure stop is formed from a substantially rigid disc Shaped member out of which have be- en cut a plurality of substantially WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 triangular wedge shaped portions, The closure stop is thus provided by a peripheral rim cot of wicrh extend, toward the centre of the disc~ shaped member, a plurality of substantially rigi radial bands. 5 In one embodimient of the invention, the closure flaps povided by the flexible disc sqhaped film and the closure stop together form a one-wiay valve within the container Closure. In one embo~diment of the invention, the , venting lube, has, a dowinwardly extending 10) portion which e~xtendCs from below, the closureC Oile substanntially verticaOlly through thei closure body breaking through an interior wall of the closure body just beneath a closure rim to the venting tubie air inlet. In one embodiment of the invention, a venting lujbe air valve is fixedA to the e~nd of the 15 venting tujb,. In Oo embodiment of the- invention thle venting tube air valve Comprises a valve closure device provided by ball bearing, n av lsr eiertiigsel 20 Detalled Descdqtion of the Invention The invention will be) more clarly understood from tefollowving description of somle embovdiments thereof, given by wvay of examyple only, with referene to the accompanlying drawings, in wich:d 2 5 Fig, 1 shows,- a perspective side view , of a container closure according to the invention: Fig, 2 shows a cut-aw, ay perspective side view. of the container closuLre shownir 30Figi:1 Fig, 3 shows; an exploded viwof the container closure shoawn in Fig, 2: Fi J. 4I shows a se"ctional viewv, of the container closure shown-a in Fig. 1: WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 -5. Fig. 5 shows a plan viwOf a conlguralin Of closuretC flaps aCCOrding to) the0 5 Fig. 6 show&s a plan view, of a c-onfigujratIon of ai closure slop accoarding to the invention; Fig. 7 sho-ws a planl vie'w Similar to Fig. 6 of an alternative c"onstruction of closure Stop: 10 Fig. S shows perspective viewvs of a Configuration Of valve closure device, retainling shell accordig to the invention; Fig., 9 shows a perspective views similar to Fig. 8 of an ailtertive. 15 constructionin of valve closure device reta iningsel Fig. '10 shows a perspective View, Of a conlfiguraonl Of aI closure- outlt sleeve' aIccording to the iniventh, n: 20 Fig. 11 -showsv" a p'erspective viewv of a confiuratian of closure Sealing cap according to the invention: Fig, 12 shows, a perspective viewi of a configuration of an air guide according to the invenlion; 25 Fig, 13 shows a sectional view. of a furlter hollow, pipe according to the invention, and Fig'. 14 shows a sectional view- of a re-eptacle used for storing the clost re 30 according to thie inve'ntion. Referring initially to Figis. 1 to 4t, there is shown a container closure, indicated generally by the reference numeral 1I for mounting on a container 2 of the- type comprising a contaiiner body, indicated generally by the reference numeral 4. in) fluid WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 communicatin with a boed container opening 6 for the delivery of liquid from the interior of the container 2, With specific reference now to Fig, 2, the cosure I comprises a bored closure body, indicated generally by the refeence numeral 8, having~ a closure MIOu 10 at one end and a closure inlet 12 at the other end, the 5 closure body 8 mounting a plurality of exterior ribs 14 for engagement with te interior wals of tle container Opening 6, Ieally, the body 8 is farmed of rubber or other resilient or elastic materaL. It should be appre iated tait when liquid is being consumed or expelled from the container 2 it wilflow from the closure inlet 12 through the bared closure body B and out of the closure outlet 10 in the direction 10 genra-lly indicated by arrow 16, It should further be appreciated that the Closure body 8 is also plug-like for insertion into the container opening 6. The closure I further comprises a closure gate, indicated genelly by the reference numeral 18, which extends between the interior walls of the closure body B, and it 15 formed from a plurality of closure flaps 20 which pivot between a closed position against a closure stop 22 to seal the container 2 to an open position allowing liquid to exit the container 2 through the closure outlet 10, In particular, when in the open position the flaps 20 will pivot outwards In the direction of The arrow 16, At the same time, if iquid or other unwantd substances are poured against the closure flips 20 20 from outside the container, the movement of the closure flaps 20 against the closure stop 22 will prevent the liquid ortnanted substances passing beyond the flaps 20 into the contlaine r. In the instance shown, and with brief reference now to Fig. 5, in which parts similar to 25 those described already are Identfed by the same referee numerals, the closure flaps 20 ae provided by a flexible disc shaped film 24 out of which have cut a plurality of notches 26. which notches extend from near the centre of the film 24 to its outer rm. Additionally, and as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, and again with parse similar to those described already identified by the same reference numerals, the closure stop 30 22 is formed from a substantially rigid disc shaped member 28 out of which have ben cut a pjluraity of trianguar wedge shaped portions 30 to form a peripheral rim '4 having a plurality of substantially rigid radial arms 32 extend t, and meet t the centre of te disc shaped member 28, It should be apprecated that the closure fLaps 20 in conjunction wilh the closure stop 22 together form a one-way valve Aithin WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 the container closure 1, It will hovedr be appreciated tha then y vav 1ay be any other suitable valve mechanism allowing lquid to pass out of the container but resisting e entry of liquid into the ctainer, such as for example a diaphragm valve, 5 With reference now to Fig, 3, there is shown an exploded view of the closure, again identified by the same reference numeral 1 with pads similar to those described a )rea dy identified by the samwe reference numerals. As shown, the closure outlet 10 incorporate ,s a cfosure outlet ridge 36 onto which the closure stop 22 is munted As shownYr the closure stop 22 extends, vwhen in position in the closure 1, between the 10C interior walls of the closure body 8 across the closure ouJtlet 10 The flxbedisc shaped film 24 is then placed over the upward facing surface 23 of tht closure stop 22 sio that he closure flaps 20 then extend over the close stop 22. A hollow closure outlet leeve 25 (see Fig. 10 also) is then secured around the closure outet 10 and seas on a closure rim 50 to secure the film 24 and the closure stop 22 in 15 position over the closure outlet 10. A closure sealing cap 27 (see Fig. 11) is then optionally laced over the cloure outlet sleeve 25 to fully seal the closure 1 and the conta Iner 2, Also shown is a h container venting tube 38 having a ventitu air inlet 40 at 20 one end 42 ad a venting tbe air outlet 44 at the other end 46. In the instance the en be 38 has a downwardly extending portion which extends from below the closure inlet 12 substantially vertically through the closure body B breaking through an Interior wall of the closure body 8 just beneath the closure rim 50 to the venting tube air ilect 40, A venting tube air valve, indicated generally by the 25 reference numeral 48. is fixed to the end 46 of the venting tube 38, The venting tube air valve 48 comprise s a valve cAosure device which, in the instance shown IS provided by ba bearing 52, and a valve closure device remaining shell 54 having a pIluraity of venting holes 56 (see Figs. R a d 9), The venting tbe 38 is arranged within he closure 1 such that when liquid exits the continer 2 through the closure 1 the liquid is directed a oay from the ventig tube air inle 40 to allo air to enter the vexing tube ar inlet 40 and pass through te venting tube 38 and out through te venting tube air outlet 44 into te interior of the container 2 without being restmied by the liquid exiting the closura 1. Accordingly, when the WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 container 2 is upended and the contents are being drunk air will pass into the air 4inlt 40 nd through te venting tube 38 causing the ball bearing 52 to be pushed away from air outlet 44. When the container 2 is removed fam the drinkers mouth the ball bearing 52 vjil seat on the air outlet 44 of te ve noting tube 35 preventing liquid going 5 up through the ventling tube 35 A hollow air guide or diffuser 58 (see Fig, 12) may also be fixed to the venting tube otet 44 to further increase te air flow thragh the lube 38 and minimise te likelioAd that liquid MAY accidentally fow, Up through the venting tube 38. Such an air diffuse',r 56, whien mounted to the venting tube outlet 44 retain te bal bearing 52 to complete the one way vale and 10 misdirect tepressre of liquid pushing on the venting tube 38 to control the air bubbles passing through the liquid in the container, It will also prevent excessive gassing in carbonated drinks. A further hollow pipe, such as the straw 60 shown in Fig, 13, may also optionally b~e secured to the end of the venting tube 38 to let air travel to the end of the container 1 so that carbonated liquid within the container to 15 prevent excessive gassing of the liquid. The cldsur 1 may itself bi stored in a receptacle, such as the vial 62, shown in Fig, 14. 20 The closure 1 may also comprise a tamper evident seal baatn Rtself and the container 2. It is enviged that the liquid dispenser according to the prsent invention may be permanently fitted as part of a closure or alternatively, it may be retrofitted 25 immediately rbr to selling the beveag.It is also envisaged that the body 2 may be provided with suitable indica such as advertising or the like The invention is not limited to the embodiment hereinbfore described but may be varied in both construction and detail within the scope of the clims 30

Claims

1. A container closure (1) for mounting on a container (2) of the type comprising a container body (4) in fluid communication with a bored container opening (6) 5 for the delivery of liquid from the interior of the container (2), the closure (1) comprising a bored closure body (8) having a closure outlet (10) at one end and a closure inlet (12) at the other end, the closure body (8) mounting a plurality of exterior ribs (14) for engagement with the interior walls of the container opening (6) characterised in that the closure (1) comprises a 10 closure gate (18) which extends between the interior walls of the closure body (8), the closure gate (18) formed from a plurality of closure flaps (20) which pivot between a closed position against a closure stop (22) to seal the container (2) to an open position allowing liquid to exit the container (2) through the closure outlet (10), the closure (1) further comprising a container 15 venting tube (38) having an venting tube air inlet (40) at one end (42) and a venting tube air outlet (44) at the other end (46), the venting tube (35) being arranged such that when liquid exits the container (2) through the closure (1) the liquid is directed away from the venting tube air inlet (40) to allow air to enter the venting tube air inlet (40) and pass through the venting tube (38) 20 and out through the venting tube air outlet (44) into the interior of the container (2) without being restricted by the liquid exiting the closure (1).

2, A container closure (1) as claimed in claim 1, in which the closure (1) is mounted on the container (2) and comprises a tamper evident seal between 25 itself and the container (2).

3, A container closure (1) as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2. in which, the closure body (8) is plug-like for insertion into the container opening (6), 30

4. A container closure (1) as claimed as claimed in any preceding claim, in which Ihe closure flaps (20) are provided by a disc shaped film (24) out of which have been cut a plurality of notches (26).

5. A container closure (1) as claimed as claimed in any preceding claim, in which WO 2006/084903 PCT/EP2006/050857 10 the closure stop (22) is formed from a substantially rigid didsc shaped (28) out of which have been cut a plurality of triangular weidge Shaped portions (30). 5

6. A container closure (1) as claimed in clam 4 or claim 5, in which the closure flaps (20) provided by the flexible disc shaped film (24) and the closure stop (20) toehrform a one-wvay valve wti the container closure (1).

7. A container closure_ (1) as claimed in as claimed fi any preceding clim, in 10 which the ventfing tuboe (38) has a dowinwardly extending portion wh-ich extends from below, the closure inlet (12) substantially vertically through the closure b ody (8) breakirng through an interior wa,,ll of the closure body (8) bene(,ath a closure rim (590) to, the venting tube air inlet. (40). 15

8. A containeor closure (1) as claimed in as claimed in any precedingq claim, in which a venting tueair valve (48) is fixed to the end (48) or the venting tube

9. A container closure (1) a's claimed in claim 8, in whiich the;, venting tube' air 20 valve (418) compriseos a valve closure device provided by ball bearing (52), and a valve closure device retaining Shell (54),