EP0166664A2 - Plastic protecting capsule - Google Patents

Abstract

The capsule comprises a tubular sleeve (18), smooth on the inside, gripping the head (2b) of a plug (2) with which a handle (3) is associated by means of two diametrically opposite pivots (3a, 3b). The sleeve is provided with notches (19) which are open upwards in order to receive the pivots, whilst the teeth (22) of the ring (20) interact with the outer catches (13) of the sealing member (1). The join between the teeth (22) and the sleeve (18) is thus broken when the plug (2) is unscrewed. <IMAGE>

Description

The present invention relates to a capsule ensuring the authenticity of the contents of a tank containing in particular a liquefied petroleum gas such as butane, and provided with a shutter comprising a central bore in which is arranged a check valve and which opens out to the outside by a threaded part intended to receive a plug with transport handle, which at the time of use is dismantled and replaced by a gas intake head intended for the supply of any device. Part of the shutter protrudes out of the tank and its periphery comprises a series of notches which are, in the current technique, intended to allow the fitting and tightening of the shutter in a tapped hole in the tank. Such a shutter is described in document FR-A-1 330 155.

Currently, to prevent unauthorized filling of liquefied gas tanks of the type concerned and to guarantee the consumer the reliability and safety of said tank as well as the origin of the gas charge, a band is applied to its area surrounding the shutter. Guarantee adhesive which passes through the handle of the cap. The presence of such a strip does not absolutely guarantee consumers that the tank has not been unlawfully filled by unauthorized third parties. Thus the guarantee bands of the kind currently used can, if precautions are taken, be detached from the tank without being broken, so that they can be reused improperly. In addition, tapes of this type can be printed fairly easily and at a fairly low cost price by counterfeiters.

The improvements which are the subject of the present invention aim to remedy the aforementioned drawbacks of the guarantee strips and to make it possible to produce a protection device capable of assuring consumers that the tank they have purchased has not been filled. illegally. For this purpose, the protection device according to the invention must have very specific characteristics and in particular: it must break following the unscrewing of the cap of the tank so that it is destroyed and can no longer be used; it must not be able to be easily reproduced by persons who may normally have to fill tanks illegally; finally it must advantageously be able to be mounted automatically on existing normal tanks.

Document FR-A-1 381 270 is known which describes a tamper-evident plastic closure cap made up of two parts separated by a zone of reduced resistance of the plastic material. The upper part is provided with internal threads cooperating with the thread of a neck of a bottle, while the lower part, established in the form of a ring, has on its internal face flexible strips suitably inclined, of such that they are liable to fold back during the screwing of the capsule, by disappearing in the passage of successive ramps formed on the outside of the neck considered. When unscrewing, the slats abut against the cut sides determined by each ramp with its neighbor, thus preventing any violation of the capsule by unscrewing, because this operation causes the rupture of the zone of least resistance.

In accordance with the present invention, to obtain a tamper-evident capsule of the kind described in the document above, use is made of the radial notches carried by the periphery or notches of the protruding part of the obturator of the reservoir and the peripheral zones which separate as cut sections such as those described in French document FR-A-1 381 270.

The problem posed, as regards the protection of the contents of the liquid gas tanks, does not consist in avoiding the unscrewing of a capsule, but in not allowing that of a metal plug screwed into the threaded bore of the shutter, said plug being provided with a handle articulated to it by means of two diametrically opposite pins.

The protective capsule according to the invention, produced in plastic material, comprises a tubular sleeve for enclosing the head of the plug per se known with which the handle is associated by means of two diametrically opposite pins, said sleeve being provided with notches open upwards arranged in a diametrically opposite manner so that the pins pass through, while the strips are intended to cooperate with the external notches of the usual shutter into which the plug is screwed, so that unscrewing the handle causes the rotation of the sleeve and the rupture of the zone of least resistance, because the ring remains angularly fixed.

Thus, a user in the presence of a reservoir provided with a torn capsule can doubt the authenticity of its content.

According to a preferred embodiment of the above arrangement, the slats are made in the form of small inclined teeth, so that each of them operates in the manner of a pawl relative to a ratchet wheel which is shown by the notched periphery of the part of the shutter located outside the tank.

According to an advantageous arrangement, the inclined teeth are distributed in two diametrically opposite series determining between them two large free spaces. As the notches of the periphery of the shutter are in odd number, none of them is diametrically opposite with respect to another, so that at the end of screwing in the cap, if a series of teeth is engaged in a corresponding series of notches, the other series of teeth is supported on the peripheral zone of the flange of the shutter separating the successive notches.

• Fig. 1 est une vue éclatée montrant l'obturateur usuel d'un réservoir de gaz sous pression et son bouchon muni d'une poignée de manoeuvre et de portage, ainsi qu'une capsule établie conformément à l'invention.
• Fig. 2 montre le bouchon à l'état monté dans l'obturateur d'un réservoir, la capsule suivant l'invention étant inserrée entre eux.
• Fig. 3 est une vue par dessous d'une capsule établie conformément à l'invention.
• Fig. 4 est une vue semblable à celle de fig. 3, mais montrant la capsule associée à la collerette de l'obturateur du réservoir.
• Fig. 5 illustre à plus grande échelle la capsule suivant l'invention associée au bouchon avant la mise en place de celui-ci dans l'obturateur du réservoir.
• Fig. 6 est une vue semblable à celle de fig. 5, mais montrant les pièces au moment de la fin du vissage du bouchon.
• Fig. 7 est une vue semblable à celle de fig. 6, mais montrant la capsule déchirée après le début du dévissage du bouchon.

The appended drawing, given by way of example, will allow a better understanding of the invention, the characteristics which it presents and the advantages which it is capable of providing:

• Fig. 1 is an exploded view showing the usual shutter of a pressurized gas tank and its cap provided with an operating and carrying handle, as well as a capsule established in accordance with the invention.
• Fig. 2 shows the cap in the state mounted in the shutter of a reservoir, the capsule according to the invention being inserted between them.
• Fig. 3 is a view from below of a capsule established in accordance with the invention.
• Fig. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 3, but showing the capsule associated with the collar of the tank shutter.
• Fig. 5 illustrates on a larger scale the capsule according to the invention associated with the stopper before the latter is put into place in the shutter of the reservoir.
• Fig. 6 is a view similar to that of FIG. 5, but showing the parts at the end of the screwing of the cap.
• Fig. 7 is a view similar to that of FIG. 6, but showing the torn capsule after the beginning of the unscrewing of the cap.

The shutter 1 illustrated in fig. 1 has been described in document FR-A-1 330 155 of the present Applicant and therefore does not have to be described in detail. However and as illustrated in fig. 2, it includes a bottom 5 provided with perforations 6 and a bore 8. Its upper part has a flange 7 crimped relative to the shutter 1. In the bore 8 of the bottom 5 is arranged a ball 9 loaded by a spring 10 in the direction of a seat 11, so that the gas contained in the tank cannot escape until the ball 9 is pressed. The upper part of the shutter 1 is produced under the form a flange 12, the periphery of which is hollowed out with notches 13 fifteen in number and which are separated by zones 14 representing portions of the cylinder.

The plug 2 comprises a threaded body 2a and a head 2b with respect to which a handle 3 is articulated by means of two diametrically opposite pins 3a, 3b which engage in corresponding holes in said head so that the handle can pivot around of a transverse axis relative to this head 2b.

The capsule according to the invention comprises first of all a tubular sleeve 18 with a smooth inner face and which is provided with two diametrically opposite notches 19 open towards its free edge. The inside diameter of the sleeve 18 is at play nearly equal to that of the head 2b, so that it can be easily engaged inside the sleeve with its pins placed at the bottom of the notches 19 whose width corresponds to the play to the diameter of each pin.

The capsule 4 also has a ring 20 of larger diameter than the sleeve 18, so that between its internal wall 20a and the external wall of the sleeve 18 is a space in which is formed a zone of least resistance 21 connecting the ring and the sleeve 18. This zone of least resistance is produced by means of teeth 22 coming from the internal face 20a of the ring 20 and which extend over the entire height of the latter. As illustrated in fig. 3, the teeth are inclined, that is to say that they have a triangular shape in profile in plan. One of their faces 22a is normally oriented to the wall 20a of the ring 20, while their other face 22b is oblique. This oblique face is oriented in such a way that during the screwing of the stopper and the capsule, the oblique faces attack the edges of the notches 13 and jump them in the manner of a ratchet relative to a ratchet wheel, the latter being represented by the notches 13 and the zones 14 of the periphery of the flange 12. On the contrary, when unscrewing ge, it is the normal face 22a of each tooth which comes to bear against the corresponding lateral face of each notch 13. It is observed that the ring also has a tab 20b intended to receive an identification or marking engraving.

As can be seen in fig. 3, there are two sets of teeth 22, each having six. These teeth are located diametrically opposite each other. Given that there are fifteen notches 13, these are separated by an angle of 24 °, so much so that none of them is diametrically opposed to another, but on the contrary that they present between them an offset of twelve degrees. Thus, at the end of screwing, the teeth 22 of a series fall into the corresponding number of notches 13, while the teeth of the other series remain in abutment against the zones 14 of the periphery of the flange 12 located between the notches 13. Thus, it is ensured that at the end of screwing the plug 2 into the shutter 1, the teeth of a series are oriented in the worst case at an angle of 12 ° relative to the notches 13. Thus , in case someone tries to unscrew the plug, in these conditions, it would only make an angular displacement of 12 ° maximum, before the teeth 22 of one of the two series fall into the notches corresponding 13. Such an angular displacement does not cause any substantial loosening of the cap, such loosening having no influence on the closing of the reservoir, since in fact the seal is not made at the level of this cap, but at that of the ball 9 in the shutter 1.

According to an advantageous and more general embodiment, the teeth of one series are angularly offset with respect to those of the other series by an angle equal to half the angle determined by two successive notches 13 of the shutter 1. C 'is thus that the teeth 22 of one series are offset by 9 ° relative to those of the other series if there are 20 notches on the flange 12 of the shutter 1 (notches offset by 18 °).

The teeth 22 cooperate over the entire height of the ring 20 with the inner face of the latter. On the contrary, the assembly of the sleeve 18 and of these teeth is carried out only on the end of the latter. As the ends of the teeth are pointed and their sharp edges 22c are oblique, the common area between the teeth 22 and the sleeve 18 is extremely reduced (FIGS. 6 and 7).

• De manière automatique, le bouchon 2 est engagé dans la capsule 4 suivant une certaine orientation afin que les tourillons 3a, 3b de sa poignée 3 pénètrent dans les encoches 19 (fig. 5). Puis, au moyen d'un mandrin approprié, l'ensemble de la capsule et du bouchon est amené au-dessus de l'alésage taraudé 17 de l'obturateur 1. Le mandrin est mis en rotation de manière que le bouchon 2 se visse dans ledit alésage. En fin de course de vissage, les pièces 1, 2 et 4 occupent la position illustrée en fig. 2.

The installation on a tank is carried out as follows:

• Automatically, the plug 2 is engaged in the capsule 4 in a certain orientation so that the pins 3a, 3b of its handle 3 penetrate into the notches 19 (fig. 5). Then, by means of a suitable mandrel, the whole of the capsule and the plug is brought above the threaded bore 17 of the shutter 1. The mandrel is rotated so that the plug 2 is screwed in said bore. At the end of the screwing stroke, the parts 1, 2 and 4 occupy the position illustrated in fig. 2.

When a user wants to have access to the gas contained in the reservoir 16, he unscrews the cap by taking the handle 3 in his hand. The faces 22a of the teeth abut against the corresponding lateral face of the notches 13, so that the ring 20 is immobilized in rotation relative to the flange 12 of the shutter 1. The unscrewing force which causes the rotation of the ring 18 of the capsule 4 produces the rupture of the very weak connections existing between the teeth 22 and the sleeve 18 as illustrated in fig. 7, so that the latter and the ring 20 are visibly separated.

A tamper-evident capsule was thus produced comprising the desired characteristics. Indeed, it tears during the operation of unscrewing the plug 1 so that it is no longer reusable. It can be easily produced by injection molding, but it is nevertheless necessary to have a tool to make it. expensive which is beyond the reach of those who usually fill tanks unauthorized. Finally, it mounts automatically during the closing operation of the reservoir once it has been filled. And above all, the capsule according to the invention, by being compatible with existing closures, avoids replacing them with new closures incorporating the sought-after tamper-evident function.

Claims (5)

1. Protective plastic capsule, of the type comprising a ring (20) connected to a body (18) by a zone of least resistance (21), the ring (20) comprising flexible inclined strips (22), characterized in what the body is made in the form of a tubular sleeve (18) for enclosing the head (2b) of a plug (2) known per se, with which a handle (3) is associated by means of two pins (3a , 3b) diametrically opposite, said sleeve (18) being provided with notches (19) open upwards, arranged in diametrically opposite manner so that the pins pass through them, while the lamellae of the ring are intended to cooperate with the notches outside (13) of a conventional shutter (1) into which the plug (2) is screwed, so that unscrewing the handle (3) causes the rotation of the sleeve (13) and the rupture of the zone of least resistance. 2. Capsule according to claim 1, characterized in that the lamellae consist of teeth (22), one of which (22b) of the lateral faces is inclined and the other (22a) is radial. 3. Capsule according to claim 2, characterized in that the teeth (22) are distributed in two series, the teeth of one series being diametrically opposite with respect to those of the other series, while the notches (-13 ) are in odd numbers. 4. Capsule according to claim 2, characterized in that the teeth (22) are distributed in two series, the teeth of one series being angularly offset from those of the other series by an angle equal to half of the angle determined by two successive notches (13) of the shutter 1. 5. Tank equipped with a shutter intended to cooperate with a gas intake head, said shutter being outside of its use closed by a stopper with handle, characterized in that once filled, it is provided with a protective capsule according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

Images