CN109890708B

CN109890708B - Double-layer tamper-evident closure for a container neck, system comprising a container and said closure and method for manufacturing said closure

Info

Publication number: CN109890708B
Application number: CN201680089539.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 雷诺德·加莱; 菲利普·纽什鲍姆; 米歇尔·鲁西; 罗曼·萨瓦贾诺
Original assignee: Societe des Eaux Minerales dEvian SA SAEME
Current assignee: Societe des Eaux Minerales dEvian SA SAEME
Priority date: 2016-09-23
Filing date: 2016-09-23
Publication date: 2020-12-25
Anticipated expiration: 2036-09-23
Also published as: EP3515829A1; ES2911700T3; EP3515829B1; PL3515829T3; WO2018055429A1; CN109890708A

Abstract

The present invention relates to an improved container (e.g., bottle) cap that is a single-use, leak-proof closure, clearly indicating evidence of illegal opening and reuse, with a dual-layer tamper-evident device. The cap is a screw-on cap (1) for a neck (2) of a bottle (3) comprising an upper portion (4) removable from the neck (2) and a lower portion (2) not removable from the neck. The lower non-removable portion (5) is a tamper-evident band (TEB) connected to the bottom edge (12) of the skirt (11) of the cap by means of annular, regularly distributed frangible bridges (13) designed to break when the bottle is opened by unscrewing and removing the upper portion (4) of the cap (1). By means of an additional lower mark (18), said TEB also shows any damage to the lid (1) before the first opening of the container (3).

Description

Double-layer tamper-evident closure for a container neck, system comprising a container and said closure and method for manufacturing said closure

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a cap for closing the neck of a container, preferably a bottle, which is adapted to contain water or other liquid for human consumption (hereinafter collectively referred to as drinking water).

More specifically, the cap according to the invention is a screw cap made by moulding (for example injection moulding or compression moulding) of a plastic material, for example a polyolefin (for example polypropylene, High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE), Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE)) and mixtures and/or alloys thereof.

The container is typically a bottle, such as a plastic ISBM bottle (ISBM: Injection Stretch Blow Molding). The constituent material of these bottles is typically a thermoplastic polymer, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyethylene furan dicarboxylate (PEF). These bottles are used to contain a beverage (e.g., water).

The lid comprises a removable upper portion (opened by screwing) and a non-removable portion, which is a tamper-evident band TEB.

Systems comprising such a lid, containers closed with said lid and methods of manufacturing said lid are all encompassed by the present invention.

Background

Containers, particularly bottles, are susceptible to being misfilled. Illegal filling involves filling an empty container with a counterfeit liquid (e.g., drinking water) with a genuine registered trademark. In view of the questionable quality of the infringing liquid, such criminal acts are not only detrimental to the brand image of the brand owner, but also constitute a significant health risk.

To combat this situation, some tamper evident containers for drinking beverages have been developed.

In this respect, WO2011064489(a1) discloses a cap 1 for screwing onto a neck 2 of a bottle, said cap being open at its lower end and closed at its upper end by a bottom wall 10, at the outer periphery of which a tubular skirt 11 is centred on the axis X-X and has a circular bottom extending axially downwards. During the first legal unscrewing of the cap 1, the skirt 11 is adapted to be divided into two distinct portions, an upper portion 121, of the same material as the bottom wall 10; and a lower portion 122, initially connected to the upper portion 121 by a peripheral line of weakness 20, the peripheral line of weakness 20 being located axially in the extension of the skirt. The skirt 11 also comprises a peripheral break-off section 28 distinct from the break-off line 20. The breaking segment 28 is clearly bordered by the breaking line 26 so as to form, between the breaking line 26 and the breaking segment 28, a strand 32 extending along the periphery of the skirt 11 in the direction of the axis of the skirt 11, wherein each of the two peripheral ends or an extension of said strand is joined in an indestructible manner to a first one of the removable and non-removable skirts, while the extension or each of the two peripheral ends of said strand is joined to a second one of the skirts by a breakable bridge, said breakable bridge being adapted to successively resist failure when the breaking line has broken during the first opening of the lid, and then to break after plastic deformation of the strand, and thus to separate the removable and non-removable skirts from each other.

CN102514807B describes a double-score line anti-counterfeit bottle cap, which comprises an upper sleeve (1) and a lower sleeve (2), wherein the upper sleeve and the lower sleeve are connected by an upper score line. And a lower cutting line is arranged below the upper cutting line in parallel. A fracture zone (3) is formed between the upper and lower score lines. The upper score line is composed of a plurality of upper cuts (4) and upper connecting points (5) arranged in a cross. The lower score line is composed of a plurality of lower cuts (6) and lower connecting points (7) arranged in a cross. The upper connecting point (5) is longitudinally corresponding to the lower incision (6), and the lower connecting point (7) is longitudinally corresponding to the upper incision (4). When the bottle cap is opened by the primary legal method, the fracture belt between the two score lines is fractured under the shearing force in the opposite directions of the upper sleeve and the lower sleeve, so that the fracture belt is separated from the bottle cap or is obviously deformed. Thus, the upper and lower sleeves are not recoverable and the fractured zone can no longer be connected to the upper sleeve. This is a simple and obvious visual modification to inform the user that the container has been previously opened.

The tamper evidence of the closures according to the above prior art comprises a tamper-evident band (TEB) consisting of superimposed breaking lines. But such tamper-evident bands are only used to alert the consumer to the first opening of the bottle.

The problem is that an illicit wishing to fill a bottle with counterfeit products, before the bottle is normally opened for the first time, can skillfully destroy the cap without damaging the TEB. This breaking may be accomplished by removing the lid with a resilient tool of plastic material. Instead of or in addition to this mechanical action, an offender may attempt to expand the lid by heating (steaming).

Therefore, there is an urgent need for an anti-counterfeiting system comprising a cap and a bottle, which on the one hand complicates the destruction of the bottle by an offender before the first opening thereof and, on the other hand, indicates said previous destruction to the consumer in a clear way.

Objects of the invention

In the above background, the present invention is directed to achieving at least one of the following objectives:

the cap makes it possible to prevent damage to the bottle by means of an insertion tool, possibly also by deforming the plastic material of the cap by heating the cap, in order to remove the cap without damaging the TEB.

1. An improved container (e.g., bottle) closure is provided that greatly complicates counterfeiting, including removal of the closure, filling the container with counterfeit liquid, and replacing the closure hermetically without leaving a visible trace of the previous removal.

2. An improved cap for a container, such as a bottle, is provided that enables prevention of damage to the bottle prior to its first opening, which damage is done by insertion of a tool, and possibly also by removal of the cap without breaking the TEB by heating the cap to deform the plastic material of the cap.

3. An improved tamper evident closure is provided which clearly indicates first opening and any unauthorised opening prior to first opening and any re-use.

4. An improved plastic injection molded closure for a plastic injection molded container, such as a bottle, which is a single use, leak-proof closure.

5. An improved tamper-evident closure is provided which achieves at least one of the objects 1 to 4 and has tamper-evident means which makes opening of the closure easier.

6. An improved tamper-evident closure is provided which achieves at least one of the objects 1 to 5 and has a tamper-evident device which enables a waterproof or non-waterproof reclosure after first opening.

7. An improved tamper-evident closure is provided which achieves at least one of the objects 1 to 6 and which enables the appearance of the closure to be made more attractive.

8. An improved tamper evident closure is provided which achieves at least one of the objects 1 to 7 and which is economical and easy to manufacture by means of an injection process.

9. A system is provided that consists of a container (e.g., a bottle) and a screw cap defined in at least one of the targets 1-8.

10. A container (preferably a bottle) or a preform for manufacturing said container by blow moulding is provided, said container being designed to be closed by a cap as defined in at least one of the objects 1 to 8.

11. A method for manufacturing a cover as defined in at least one of the objects 1 to 8 is provided.

12. There is provided a method for bottling containers, preferably bottles, having a cap as defined in at least one of the objects 1 to 8.

13. There is provided a method for legitimately opening a container (preferably, a bottle) filled with a genuine article and closed by a cap as defined in at least one of the objects 1 to 10.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention aims to achieve the above object.

To this end, according to a first aspect, the present invention provides a screw-on cap for the neck of a container, preferably a bottle, comprising an upper portion removable from the neck and a lower portion non-removable from the neck, the non-removable lower portion being a tamper-evident band (TEB);

the neck has an exterior face comprising, in succession from an open top end downwards: at least one thread, a locking ring and a support ring;

the removable upper portion of the lid comprises:

-a top wall

-an annular skirt extending downwards from the top wall and having a bottom edge which is connected to the non-removable lower portion of the cap when the cap is secured on the neck after bottling;

the TEB

Connected to the bottom edge of the skirt by annular, preferably regularly distributed, frangible bridges;

having an inner face with at least one upper shoulder extending inwardly for abutment against a locking ring of the neck during initial opening of the container by screwing on a non-removable upper part of the cap, the initial opening of the container involving rupture of a connecting bridge which is an upper sign of the initial opening of the container;

→ wherein said TEB indicates on the one hand the first legitimate opening of the container and on the other hand any damage to the lid before the first legitimate opening of the container;

→ wherein the TEB includes some additional lower indicia below the indicia of first legitimate opening of the container that was breached prior to first legitimate opening of the lidded container.

This particular double layer tamper evident indicia of the closure adds to the consumer's sense of security and ensures the authenticity of the container closed by the closure.

These markings undoubtedly reveal the destruction and attempted destruction prior to the first legitimate opening of the container, as well as the first conventional opening of the container.

These double marks are very easy to manufacture and do not increase the economic burden of the manufacturing process of the cap.

The cap according to the invention combines a typical tamper-evident band (TEB) comprising a breaking line defining a frangible bridge with a previous evidence of tampering, which is located below the known breaking line of the TEB and also hinders any illegal mechanical and/or thermal removal of the cap.

The closure according to the present invention is an improved container (e.g. bottle) closure which is a single-use, leak-proof closure which clearly indicates illegal opening and re-use, with tamper-evident means which makes opening of the closure easier and enables a reclosure which is not waterproof after first opening. The invention provides greater security against abuse and infringement.

According to a preferred embodiment, and in order to prevent insertion of a tool for illegal removal of the cap before the first opening of the container, the inner circumferential surface of at least one, preferably each, additional lower mark is set back (interval I) inwardly with respect to the outer circumferential end of the neck locking ring. Said spacing I is as minimal as possible, while enabling the cap to be placed on the neck of the container after filling thereof during bottling on an industrial production line.

In this regard, the inner annular surface of at least one, preferably each, additional lower indicium is preferably located at a minimum clearance distance d of the outward facing surface of the neck, said distances being defined in increasing order of priority as follows:

d≤3mm；d≤2mm；d≤1mm；d≤0.5mm；d≤0.01mm。

in one variant, the invention relates to a plastic-formed screw cap for the neck of a container, preferably a bottle,

the cover includes:

-a top wall

-an annular skirt extending downwardly from the top wall and having a bottom edge; and

-a tamper-evident band (TEB) connected to the bottom edge of the skirt by annular, preferably regularly distributed, frangible connecting bridges;

the neck of the container is integral with the rest of the container and has a top edge which defines the opening of the container and which is in sealing contact with the lower face of the lid top wall in the closed position, i.e. initial position, of the lid before the container is first legitimately opened by screwing on the upper removable portion of the lid, said first legitimately opened involving the rupture of a connecting bridge which is an upper sign of said first legitimately opened;

→ wherein the TEB comprises a top ring and a bottom ring, the bottom ring being connected to the top ring by at least two annular, preferably regularly distributed, additional frangible bridges;

→ wherein, in the initial position, both the frangible bridge and the additional frangible bridge are below the top edge of the neck,

→ where the TEB top ring between the frangible bridge and the additional frangible bridge is intact after the first legal opening.

The cap according to the invention does not comprise an in-hole fitment, in particular an in-hole non-return pouring fitment (one-way valve), which is fixed within the container neck and within the cap and is an additional component between the cap and the container, so that the lower face of the top wall of the cap is not in sealing contact with the top edge of the rim in the initial position of the cap closing the container.

Possible structural features of the double-layer frangible bridge of the lid according to the invention, the height h of the top ring of the TEB⁵Is smaller than the height h of the skirt (11)¹¹Preferably h⁵≤[h¹¹/2](ii) a More preferably h⁵≤[h¹¹/3]。

Preferably, the cap comprises at least one lower shoulder extending inwardly from the inner face of the TEB and intended to be close to, preferably abut against, the top face of the groove of the neck during the first opening of the container. Such a feature prevents damage with the tool.

Advantageously, the upper shoulder and/or the lower shoulder comprise a plurality of projections, for example annular and regularly distributed.

According to an advantageous feature of the invention, the trace given by the upper mark indicating the first opening of the container and the additional lower mark indicating the breakage of the container is visible to the naked eye.

It is a feature of the present invention that the additional lower indicia are mechanically and/or thermally deformable and include:

■ according to a first embodiment, at least one additional frangible bridge connecting the lower part of the TEB to the upper part of said TEB,

■ and/or according to the second embodiment, at least one outwardly, preferably radially, extending rib.

Advantageously, the additional frangible bridges and/or the outwardly, preferably radially extending ribs:

■ are annularly and preferably regularly distributed around the TEB,

■ and/or parallel to the axis Y-Y of the lid.

To improve the mechanical strength of the additional lower marked frangible additional bridges, the bottom and/or top of the at least one additional frangible bridge comprises lugs extending outwardly from the lower portion of the TEB and/or from the upper portion of the TEB, each additional bridge preferably being located between the lower and upper lugs.

In the case where the mould for making the cap comprises an injector of the punch-and-slide stroke type, it is preferred that the cap comprises at least two undercuts, advantageously two diametrically opposite undercuts, each undercut consisting of at least three upper lugs and three corresponding lower lugs, for example three in the upper and lower layers, to form superimposed structural protruding units designed for improving mechanical properties, said cap preferably comprising two superimposed structural protruding units, advantageously diametrically opposite.

Also in this case, according to the second embodiment described above, preferably at least three outwardly extending ribs are grouped to form a single structural projection unit, designed to improve mechanical properties, the cover preferably comprising two single structural projection units, advantageously diametrically opposed.

Notably, the upper-marked bridges and/or the lower-marked additional bridges are separated from each other by openings, preferably the projections of which on a plane are independent rectangles, trapezoids or ellipses.

In a particular embodiment adapted to manufacture the openings of the cap by compression moulding during the entire manufacturing process of the cap, instead of by subsequently cutting the moulded cap without openings, after bottling at least one of said openings may be partially closed by a counter bridge extending from the lower side of the opening upwards from the bottom or downwards from the upper side of the opening. The counter bridges make it possible to prevent the impact of the opening, in particular during the mounting of the cap on the container during bottling to close the filled container.

According to an advantageous feature of the invention, the cap is a (e.g. compression, injection) moulded plastic cap made of a thermoplastic material selected from polyolefins (preferably polypropylene, High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE), Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE)) and mixtures and/or alloys thereof.

Advantageously, the lid according to the invention may further comprise a plurality of ribs extending parallel to the central axis (a) of the outer surface of the skirt of the removable upper part of the lid.

According to a second aspect, the invention relates to a system comprising a screw cap according to at least one of the preceding claims and a container (3), preferably a bottle.

According to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a container, preferably a bottle, or a preform for manufacturing said container by blow moulding, comprising a neck opening designed to be closed by a cap according to at least one of any preceding claim, said container preferably being made of polyester, advantageously polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyethylene furandicarboxylate (PEF).

According to a fourth aspect, the invention relates to a method for manufacturing a cap (1) according to the invention, comprising the following steps:

-moulding a lid having a top wall and a preformed skirt in a mould cavity;

-possibly, cutting the preformed skirt to form an annular opening, so as to obtain a frangible bridge defining the skirt of the removable portion of the cap (1), the upper and lower portions of the TEB or the non-removable portion of the cap;

-demolding the lid.

Advantageously, the annular opening between the upper frangible bridges and the annular opening between the lower frangible bridges are made by means of one tool that cuts the preformed skirt of the cap at two different heights simultaneously, or with two tools that cut the preformed skirt of the cap at two different heights in succession.

According to a fifth aspect, the present invention relates to a method for bottling containers (preferably bottles) having a cap according to the present invention, comprising the steps of:

-providing a container, preferably a bottle;

-filling the container with a liquid;

-providing the lid with a prefabricated skirt;

-closing the container with a lid;

-possibly cutting the preformed skirt to form an annular opening, so as to obtain a frangible bridge;

-packaging the closed container.

Since the present invention provides a device for preventing illegal opening of a container (preferably, a bottle) containing genuine goods (preferably, a beverage), the invention further comprises, in a sixth aspect thereof, a method for legal opening of a container (preferably, a bottle) containing genuine goods and closed by a cap according to the present invention.

The method mainly comprises the following steps:

i. grasping with fingers a lid, in particular a removable upper portion of the lid, more particularly a skirt of said upper portion;

rotating the cap in the unscrewing direction so that at least the upper shoulder of the TEB inner face abuts against the locking ring of the neck and breaks the upper frangible bridges;

removing the cap from the neck.

Definition of

In accordance with the terminology herein, the following non-limiting definitions must be considered as constituting the description herein:

each singular and plural can be referred to one another.

"closing position or initial position of the cap" is the position in which the cap is screwed into the neck of the bottle and closes said bottle hermetically before the first legal opening.

"first-time legal opening" or "first-time opening" is the regular, finished opening of a container by the consumer, usually before first use, by unscrewing the cap from the container (e.g. a bottle).

"bottle" is intended to mean any container for liquids (in particular water-like beverages): bottles, pitchers, drinkers (fountains), barrels, particularly suitable for beverage dispensing (home & office delivery, HOD), for example, with a capacity of between 10 and 21 litres.

"thermoplastic" refers to plastic thermoplastic homopolymers or copolymers which become pliable or plastic above a certain temperature and return to the solid state upon cooling.

"shaping" means any shaping technique of thermoplastic raw materials, such as extrusion blow molding, extrusion of profiles and sheets, injection blow molding, injection molding (gas-assisted), injection stretch blow molding insert molding, rotomolding, compression molding.

For convenience, the terms "upper", "top", "lower" and "bottom" herein correspond to a direction generally parallel to the axis Y-Y of the lid and the container and refer to a system comprising a lid closing the container standing by its base on a horizontal support that is the bottom; the terms "inwardly" and "outwardly" herein are given with reference to the interior and exterior of the lid and container.

Detailed Description

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following disclosure of particular embodiments of the invention, given by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

figure 1 is a perspective view of a lid according to a first embodiment of the invention, with a double-layer frangible bridge as a first-opening and breaking mark;

figure 2 is a front view of the cover of figure 1;

figure 2A is a cross-sectional view in a radial plane according to line a-a of the lid of figure 2;

figure 2B is a cross-sectional view according to a non-radial plane of line B-B of the lid of figure 2;

figure 3 is a front view of the cover of figure 1;

figure 3C is a cross-sectional view according to line C-C of the lid of figure 3;

figure 3D is a cross-sectional view of the lid according to figure 3, line D-D;

figure 4 is a front view of a system comprising a cap according to figure 1 screwed tightly onto a bottle neck;

figure 4E is a radial section in the plane of line a-a of the lid according to figure 4;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged detail view of the system/bottle shown in FIG. 4E;

figure 6 is a perspective view of a lid according to a second embodiment of the invention, with a layer of frangible bridges as first opening indicia and a layer of ribs as breaking indicia;

figure 7 is a front view of the cover of figure 6;

figure 7A is a cross-sectional view in a radial plane according to line a-a of the lid of figure 7;

figure 7B is a cross-sectional view according to a non-radial plane of line B-B of the lid of figure 7;

figure 8 is a front view of the cover of figure 6;

figure 8C is a cross-sectional view according to line C-C of the lid of figure 8;

figure 8D is a cross-sectional view according to line D-D of the lid of figure 8;

figure 9 is a front view of a system comprising a cap according to figure 1 screwed tightly onto the neck of a bottle;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged detailed view of the system/bottle shown in FIG. 9E;

figure 11 is a front view of a cap according to a variant of the first embodiment of the invention, with gripping ribs on the skirt of the cap.

Figure 12 is a front view of a lid according to a variant of the second embodiment of the invention, with gripping ribs on the skirt of the lid.

Figures 13A-13C are front views in partial section of a system constituted by a cap according to the first embodiment and closing the neck of the bottle from a starting position before first opening (figure 13A) to a release position of the cap (figure 13C), in which the cap can be removed and the frangible bridges broken to mark the first legal opening.

Fig. 14A and 14B are front views of a system constituted by a cap according to the first embodiment, which closes the bottle neck before and after breaking by means of a tool and/or by thermal action, respectively; the destruction occurs before the first opening.

Fig. 15A and 15B are front views of a system constituted by a cap according to a second embodiment, which closes the neck of the bottle respectively before and after breaking by means of a tool and/or by the action of heat, the breaking occurring before the first opening.

In the drawings, like reference characters designate the same or similar elements.

Fig. 1, 11 and 6, 12 show two embodiments of a screw cap 1 for closing an opening of a container 3, for example a plastic bottle, which is suitable for containing a product, and in particular for containing a liquid product, for example water, optionally flavoured and/or carbonated water, soda, fruit juices, dairy liquid products or other liquid products.

The bottle (3) shown on figures 4, 4E, 9E, 12 comprises a neck 2 for defining an opening for pouring the product.

First embodiment

In the first embodiment shown (fig. 1, 2A, 2B, 3C, 3D, 4E, 5, 11), the cap 1 exhibits rotational symmetry about a central axis Y and comprises a substantially annular shaped shell comprising an upper portion 4 removable from the neck 2 of the bottle 3 and a lower portion 5 not removable from the neck 2.

The removable upper portion 4 and the non-removable lower portion form a whole that snaps, by deformation, onto the neck 2 of the bottle 3 after the filling of the bottle 3, to close it during the bottling industry. The non-removable lower part 5 is a tamper-evident band (TEB) connected to the upper part 4 by frangible bridges 13 and its inner face 14 has several inwardly extending shoulders 15 distributed annularly.

TEB5 comprises a top ring 5^tAnd a bottom ring 5^bConnected to the top ring 5 by two additional frangible bridges 18, annular and regularly distributed^t。

In the initial position, the frangible bridges 13 and the additional frangible bridges 18 are both at the top edge 2 of the neck 2^tBelow.

As shown in fig. 2B and 5, the top ring 5^tHeight h of⁵Is measured from the top of the lower bridge 18 to the top of the upper bridge 13, and has a height h¹¹From the inner surface of the bottom edge 12 of the skirt 11 to the top of the skirt 11 (fig. 2B and 4E), which corresponds to the radial face of the upper face of the top wall 10 of the cap 1. E.g. h⁵≈h¹¹/3。

Furthermore, the neck 2 has an outer face 2 ° comprising, from the open top end 6 downwards, successively a thread 7, a locking ring 8 having a peripheral end 20, and a support ring 9. Thus, during the first opening of the bottle 3 by screwing on the cap 1, the shoulder 15 of the cap 1 abuts against the locking ring 8 of the neck 2, which involves the breaking of the frangible bridges 13 and the separation of the upper 4 and lower 5 portions of the cap. The TEB remains on the neck 2 of the bottle 3 as a mark of first opening, while the upper part 4 is removed. The upper part 4 can then be screwed back onto the neck 2 again. The broken bridge 13 indicates visually and when unscrewed again that the first opening has taken place.

The result of the first legal opening of the bottle 3 is illustrated with reference to figures 13A-13B-13C, which show the dynamics of a conventional first opening by unscrewing the cap, including the breaking of the frangible bridges 13, which enables the cap to be removed (figure 13C). The cap 1 of fig. 13A is in its closed position, i.e. its initial position. Fig. 13B shows an intermediate position of the cap 1 after partial unscrewing. The shoulder 15 of the inner face 14 of the cap 1 abuts against the locking ring 8. Fig. 13C shows a further step in which unscrewing has been further completed and the frangible bridges 13 are broken. After such breaking, unscrewing further until the cap 1 is removed from the neck 2.

Each shoulder 15 of the cap 1 according to the first embodiment of the invention described herein has a bevel 15 extending downwards and inwards, at an angle of from 10 ° to 60 °, for example 30 ° with respect to the perpendicular to the axis Y-Y. This chamfer is adjacent to the chamfer of the lower edge of the locking ring 8, which is the abutment of the shoulder 15.

In addition, the removable upper portion 4 comprises a top wall 10 and an annular skirt 11 extending downwards from the top wall 10 and having a bottom edge 12 connected to the non-removable lower portion 5 of the lid 1 by a frangible bridge 13. The outer surface of the skirt 11 of the cap 1 according to this first embodiment is a grip portion for screwing the cap on. As shown in the variant of fig. 11, the grip of the cap can be improved by means of a plurality of ribs 35 extending parallel to the central axis Y and evenly distributed on the outer surface of the skirt 11. Inner face 11 of skirt 11¹Having a thread 17 designed to cooperate with a complementary thread 7 of the external face of the bottle neck 2.

As shown in fig. 4E and in order to provide intimate contact between the cap 1 and the neck 2 of the bottle 3, the top wall 10 has an annular crown 30 extending downwardly perpendicular to its inner surface 31. The crown 30 defines a groove 32 having an annular sealing lip 33. For improved tightness, on the one hand, an annular projection 34 is provided on the outer surface of the free end of the crown 30, and on the other hand, an annular sealing lip 35. In other embodiments, the tight attachment of the cap 1 to the neck may be provided in any other suitable manner.

According to the example shown in fig. 4E, the frangible bridges 13 are distributed substantially regularly over the circumference of the cap 1. Said bridges 13 are separated by openings 24, the projection of which openings 24 on a plane may be rectangular (see for example the variant in fig. 11); or almost rectangular, because the opening is partly closed by an annular counter bridge 25, as shown in fig. 1, 2A, 2B, the bridge 25 extending upwards in the Y-Y direction. According to a variant not shown, the counter-bridges 25 may extend downwards forming the upper edge of the opening 24.

These counter bridges 25 prevent compression of the TEB when the cap is snapped onto the bottle 3, thereby plugging the filled bottle 3 in the bottling line.

At the first opening, under the inner shoulder 15 of the locking ring 8, where it abuts against the neck 2, TEB5 has, in addition to the frangible upper mark 13, some additional lower marks 18 formed by annular and regularly distributed bridges 18, which bridges 18 connect the lower part 40 of TEB5 to the upper part 41.

As with the frangible upper bridge 13, the lower bridge 18 is separated by a rectangular (in elevation) opening 24 (see fig. 11), or by a rectangular (in elevation) opening 24 partially closed against a bridge 25 (in elevation 2A and 2B). The openings 24 have the same function as homologues of the upper openings between the upper bridges 13.

These additional lower references 18 are designed to indicate any damage to the system consisting of the bottle 3 and the closure 1 filled with a genuine product before the first opening. Whether broken by mechanical and/or thermal action, the bridge 18 will significantly deform or break.

The TEB5 not only carries an additional lower marker 18 for damage, but is also designed to prevent any damage prior to first opening. In this purpose, firstly there is a lower level shoulder 16 extending inwardly from the lower, inner face 14 of the TEB, and secondly an additional, lower marked, inner annular face 19 (i.e. a frangible additional bridge 18) as close as possible to the opposite, outer face 2 ° of the neck 2, and set back inwardly relative to the outer peripheral end 20 of the locking ring 8 of the neck 2.

The tamper-proof lower shoulders 16 are advantageously regularly and annularly distributed at the bottom edge of the TEB5 (see e.g. fig. 1). As shown in fig. 4E and 5, the shoulder 16 is received in the neck recess 22:

its bottom face is the top face of the support ring 9 of the neck 2,

the back 26 of the groove 22 is closer to the inside of the neck 2 than the outer face 2 of the neck 2 facing the additional bridge 18,

and its top face 21 is delimited outwards by the above-mentioned external face by 2 °.

To prevent the removal of the entire cap 1 by a misuse tool, the inner end 27 of each shoulder 16 advantageously comes into contact or almost into contact with the back 26 of the neck recess 26 before the first opening.

Furthermore, the upper face 28 of each shoulder 16 is preferably intended to be close to (e.g. abut against) the top face 21 of the groove 22 of the neck 2 during the first opening of the container 3.

With respect to the shoulders 16, it should also be emphasized that each space between two adjacent shoulders 16 is aligned along an axis parallel to the axis Y-Y of the cap 1, just above which an additional connecting bridge 18 is located. According to an alternative not shown in the drawings, the shoulder 16 may be replaced by a single shoulder 16, which is an inwardly extending ring of axis Y-Y.

Any damage is also complicated by the fact that:

the inward spacing (I) between the inner annular face 19 of each additional lower marker (i.e. frangible bridge 18) and the outer peripheral end 20 of the locking ring 8 is shown in figure 5.

The inner annular face 19 of each additional lower indicium 18 (i.e. frangible bridge 18) is at a minimum clearance distance d from the outward face 2 ° of the neck 2. For example, d is 0.01 +/-10%.

Figures 1 and 2 show the lugs 23 at the bottom and the lugs 23 at the top of each additional frangible bridge 18 (additional lower reference numerals)¹. These lugs 23 extend outwardly from the lower and upper portions of TEB5, respectively, as a reinforcement of cap 1 for manufacture and bottling, but without compromising the tamper-proof function of these additional lower labels 18.

It should also be noted that the cap 1 shown in figures 1, 2, 3D comprises two radially opposite superposed structural protruding units 23⁰¹、23¹¹The protruding unit of the superposed structure is composed of three upper lugs 23¹And the accumulation of three corresponding lower lugs at 23 deg.. These protruding units 23⁰¹、23¹¹Is a useful undercut, especially when the lid 1 is made by slip forming.

Before the first opening, the cap 1 according to this first embodiment is protected against illegal opening by any tool that might be used to try to remove the entire cap 1 and might perform any illegal interaction, such as the illegal filling of the bottle contents of genuine products being replaced by counterfeit products. Fig. 14A and 14B show a mark left by the tool 50, which an infringer has tried to insert the tool but not succeeded between the TEB5 of the cap 2 and the bottle neck 2 (left side of fig. 14A and 14B), or which is left by heating the cap 1 (right side of fig. 14A and 14B).

As shown in fig. 14B, the lower mark (i.e., the connecting bridge 180) is broken (left side: mechanical destruction) and/or deformed (right side: thermal destruction).

Second embodiment

The lid 1 according to the second embodiment shown (fig. 6, 7A, 7B, 8C, 8D, 9E, 10, 12) is identical to the lid 1 according to the first embodiment described herein above, except for the following aspects:

several inwardly extending shoulders 15 of the inner face 14 of the cap, which during the first opening serve to abut against the locking ring 8 of the neck 2 and involve the breaking of the frangible connecting bridges 13 and the separation of the upper and

lower portions

4, 5 of the cap, are replaced by a single shoulder 15;

the additional lower mark → TEB5, the frangible bridges 18, is replaced by outwardly and radially extending ribs 180;

→ two diametrically opposed superposed structural projection units 23⁰¹、23¹¹Corresponding to two diametrically opposed single structural projection units 181.

The single shoulder 15 of the cap 1 according to the second embodiment of the invention as described herein also has a 15 deg. chamfer as in the first embodiment.

The outwardly and radially extending ribs 180 are regularly circumferentially distributed. They also have a triangular cross-section, as shown in fig. 6 and 8D. Their height (in a direction parallel to the axis Y-Y of the cap 1) substantially corresponds to the height of the lower part of the TEB 5. These ribs are sensitive to mechanical and/or thermal actions that can be used to illegally remove the entire lid 1 before first opening.

Each of the two diametrically opposed single structural projection units 181 results from the aggregation of three ribs 181. The two diametrically opposed protruding units 181 are undercut, which is useful in particular when the cap 1 is manufactured by slip forming.

Before the first opening, the lid 1 according to this second embodiment is protected against illegal opening by any tool that can be used to try to remove the entire lid 1, and any illegal activities that may be carried out, such as filling: the contents of the bottle of genuine product are replaced with counterfeit products. Fig. 15A and 15B show a mark left by the tool 50, which an infringer has tried to insert the tool but not succeeded between the TEB5 of the cap 2 and the neck 2 of the bottle (left side of fig. 15A and 15B), or which is left due to heating the cap 1 (right side of fig. 15A and 15B).

As shown in fig. 15B, the lower mark (i.e., the rib 180) is deformed.

Variants of fig. 11 and 12

The cap 1 of fig. 11 comprises a first opening upper marking constituted by the frangible bridges 13 and an additional breaking lower marking constituted by the frangible bridges 18 on the one hand and by the outwardly and radially extending ribs 180 on the other hand.

In this variant, the connecting

bridges

13 and 18 are made by cutting a preformed cap shaped, more precisely by cutting a preformed skirt 110.

The cap 1 of fig. 12 comprises an upper first-opening index constituted by the frangible bridges 13 and an additional lower-breaking index constituted by an outwardly and radially extending rib 180, the height of which is greater than that of the index rib 180 of the variant of fig. 11.

In this variant, the connecting bridges 13 are made by cutting a preformed cap, in other words a preformed skirt 110, which is shaped.

The cap 1 of fig. 11 and 12 also has a plurality of ribs 40 extending parallel to the central axis YY and evenly distributed on the outer surface of the skirt 11. The ribs 40 are used to facilitate the handling of the cap 1 by bottling plants and consumers on industrial bottling lines.

Raw materials

For the cap 1 it is for example a thermoplastic polymer, such as High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), and for the bottle 3 it may be a thermoplastic polymer, such as PET.

Other objects than lids 1

The invention also relates to a system of caps 1/bottles 3, such as shown in figures 4 and 9. The container may be different from the bottle 3. It can be a preform for the manufacture of the injection/blow moulding of bottles, or a bottle filled and closed by the entire cap 1.

Method of manufacturing a closure

The cap according to the invention can be obtained by a compression moulding process, in which the cap 1 is obtained directly, or by a two-step injection moulding process, in which a prefabricated cap is made, comprising a shell made of a top wall and a prefabricated skirt. The prefabricated skirt does not delimit the opening 24 connecting the

bridges

18, 13. These missing elements are then realized by cutting the preformed skirt.

Variants

The present invention has disclosed a cap 1 with rotational symmetry having a circular top wall 10, an annular skirt 11 of circular cross section. However, the invention is not limited thereto and the lid 1 may be of any other suitable shape, the top wall 10, the skirt 11 and the double layer indicia being adapted accordingly.

Claims

1. A screw cap (1) for a neck (2) of a container (3), said screw cap comprising an upper portion (4) removable from said neck (2) and a lower portion (5) not removable from said neck (2), said lower portion (5) being a tamper evident band,

the neck (2) has an outer face (2 °) comprising, in succession downwards from an open top end (6): at least one thread (7), a locking ring (8) and a support ring (9);

the upper part (4) of the lid (1) comprises:

a top wall (10) and

an annular skirt (11) extending downwards from the top wall (10) and having a bottom edge (12) connected to the lower portion (5) of the cap (1) when the cap (1) is secured to the neck (2) after bottling;

the tamper-evident band

-a bottom edge (12) connected to said skirt (11) by an upper frangible bridge distributed annularly;

-having an inner face (14) with at least one upper shoulder (15) extending inwards for abutting against a locking ring (8) of the neck (2) during the first opening of the container (3) by screwing the upper portion (4) of the cap (1), the first opening of the container (3) involving the rupture of an upper frangible bridge, which is therefore an upper sign of the first legal opening of the container (3);

wherein the tamper evident band indicates on the one hand a first legitimate opening of the container (3),

on the other hand any damage to the lid (1) before the first legitimate opening of the container (3);

wherein the tamper evident band comprises some additional lower indicia of the lid (1) being broken prior to the first legitimate opening of the container (3) below the indicia (13) of the first legitimate opening of the container (3).

2. Screw cap (1) according to claim 1, wherein at least one additional lower marked inner annular surface (19) is set back inwards with respect to the peripheral end (20) of the locking ring (8).

3. A screw cap (1) according to claim 2, wherein the inner annular surface (19) of at least one additional lower mark is located at a minimum clearance distance d of the external face (2 °) of the neck (2), said distance being defined as:

d≤3mm。

4. screw cap (1) according to claim 1, wherein the trace given by the upper mark for the first opening of the container (3) and by the additional lower mark for the breaking of the container (3) is visible to the naked eye.

5. Screw cap (1) according to claim 1, comprising at least one lower shoulder (16) extending inwardly from the inner face (14) of the tamper band for approaching the top face (21) of the groove (22) of the neck (2) during the first opening of the container (3).

6. Screw cap (1) according to claim 5, wherein said upper shoulder (15) and/or lower shoulder (16) comprise a plurality of protrusions.

7. A screw cap (1) according to claim 1, wherein said additional lower markings are mechanically and/or thermally deformable and comprise:

at least one lower frangible bridge connecting a lower portion of the tamper band to an upper portion of the tamper band,

and/or at least one outwardly extending rib (180).

8. Screw cap (1) according to claim 7, wherein said lower frangible bridges and/or said outwardly extending ribs (180):

are annularly distributed around the tamper-evident band,

and/or parallel to the axis Y-Y of the cap (1).

9. A screw cap (1) according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the bottom and/or top of the at least one lower frangible bridge of the additional lower indicia comprises a lug (23) extending outwardly from a lower portion of the tamper evident band and/or from an upper portion of the tamper evident band.

10. Screw cap (1) according to claim 7, wherein the upper and/or lower frangible bridges are separated from each other by openings (24), at least one of the openings (24) being partially closed by a counter bridge (25) extending from the lower side of the opening (24) upwards from the bottom or downwards from the upper side of the opening (24).

11. Screw cap (1) according to claim 1, wherein the container (3) is a bottle.

12. Screw cap (1) according to claim 1, wherein said tamper evident band is connected to the bottom edge (12) of said skirt (11) by regularly distributed upper frangible bridges.

13. A screw cap (1) according to claim 2, wherein each additional lower marked inner annular surface (19) is set back inwardly with respect to the peripheral end (20) of the locking ring (8).

14. A screw cap (1) according to claim 3, wherein each additional lower marked inner annular surface (19) is located at the minimum gap distance d.

15. Screw cap (1) according to claim 5, wherein said at least one lower shoulder (16) abuts against a top face (21) of a groove (22) of the neck (2) during the first opening of the container (3).

16. Screw cap (1) according to claim 6, wherein said protrusions are annularly and regularly distributed.

17. Screw cap (1) according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the ribs (180) extend outwardly in mirror image and/or the ribs (180) are regularly distributed around the tamper evident band.

18. A screw cap (1) according to claim 9, wherein each lower frangible bridge is located at a lower lug (23 °) and an upper lug (23 °)¹) In the meantime.

19. A screw cap (1) according to claim 10, wherein the projection of the opening onto a plane is an independent rectangle, trapezoid or ellipse.

20. A screw cap (1) according to claim 3, wherein said distance d is defined as: d is less than or equal to 2 mm.

21. A screw cap (1) according to claim 20, wherein said distance d is defined as: d is less than or equal to 1 mm.

22. A screw cap (1) according to claim 21, wherein said distance d is defined as: d is less than or equal to 0.5 mm.

23. A screw cap (1) according to claim 22, wherein said distance d is defined as: d is less than or equal to 0.01 mm.

24. A system comprising a container (3) and a screw cap (1) according to any of claims 1-23.

25. System according to claim 24, wherein the container (3) is a bottle.

26. A container (3) or a preform for manufacturing the container by blow moulding, comprising a neck opening designed to be closed by a cap (1) according to any one of claims 1-23.

27. A container (3) or preform according to claim 26, wherein the container is made of polyester; the polyester comprises polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyethylene furan dicarboxylate (PEF).

28. A method for manufacturing a cap (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 23, comprising the steps of:

moulding a lid (1) having a top wall (10) and a prefabricated skirt in a mould cavity;

cutting said preformed skirt to form an annular opening (24), so as to obtain upper and lower frangible bridges defining a skirt (11) of an upper portion of said cap (1), an upper and lower portion of a tamper-evident band or a lower portion (5) of said cap (1);

demoulding the lid (1).

29. Method according to claim 28, wherein the annular opening (24) between the upper frangible bridges on the one hand and the annular opening (24) between the lower frangible bridges on the other hand are made by means of a tool that cuts the preformed skirt of the cap (1) at two different heights simultaneously or with two tools that cut the preformed skirt of the cap (1) at two different heights in succession.

30. Method for bottling containers (3) having caps (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 23, comprising the steps of:

providing a container (3);

filling the container (3) with a liquid;

-providing the lid (1) with a prefabricated skirt;

closing the container with the lid (1);

cutting the preformed skirt to form an annular opening (24), so as to obtain an upper frangible bridge and a lower frangible bridge;

packaging the closed container (3).