EP0649683B1 - Dispensing assembly with a variable volume compression chamber and a membrane - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a distribution assembly of a fluid product, in the form of liquid or paste, allowing a aseptic storage of the product.

We know many distribution sets comprising a container, containing the product to be dispensed, and a distribution having a distribution channel communicating, on the one hand, with the container containing the product to be dispensed and, on the other hand, with the outside; a device carried by the dispensing head allows the user to distribute the product at will.

We also know, for example by FR-A-2 554 088, distribution assemblies having a compression chamber at variable volume in communication with the container; we have already proposed to realize the compression chamber by means of a membrane flexible with a domed part on which acts the user for distribution; of course, an element of fixing is provided to fix the flexible membrane on the head of distribution, the fixing element consisting of a ring having an opening from which the compression dome of the flexible membrane.

Furthermore, it is known that after the distribution of the product part of it remains in the distribution channel; this part of the product is in contact with air when the air intake from the head distribution and during storage; the product can therefore be degraded by oxidation or contaminated by air impurities and, during a subsequent distribution, the product distributed may have lost its intrinsic qualities, or even become harmful.

It has already been proposed, for example by EP-A-0 549 049, distribution assemblies comprising a closure system located at the terminal part, opening onto the outside, of the distribution channel, said system consisting of a seat and an elastic blade at less partially in contact with the seat when there is no distribution, at least partially deviating from said seat by bending under the pressure of the product to be distributed and returning by elasticity in its initial position when distribution stops; the system of closure described above with elastic blade constituting a check valve distribution, when combined with an intake valve, all consisting of the variable volume compression chamber and these two distribution and intake valves constitute a pump product distribution.

The subject of the present invention is a set of distribution of the above type in which the membrane attachment flexible, while being simple, is very reliable.

Thus, according to the invention, a distribution assembly of a liquid to pasty product comprising a container containing the product, a distribution head having a distribution channel, a membrane flexible with a domed part which defines in the head distribution a variable volume compression chamber in communication with the container, an inlet valve being placed in this communication and only authorizing the passage of the product from the container to the compression chamber, said compression chamber compression, the intake valve and a distribution valve constituting a product distribution pump, said membrane flexible being held on the dispensing head by an element of fixing consisting of a ring having an opening from which the compression dome of the flexible membrane, the distribution valve being constituted by a closure system located at the terminal part, which opens onto the outside of the distribution channel, said system of closure consisting of a seat and at least elastic wool partially in contact with the seat when there is no distribution, deviating at least partially from said seat under pressure from the product to be distributed and returning by elasticity to its initial position, when dispensing ceases, the elastic blade being molded in one part with the flexible membrane, is characterized by the fact that the ring carries an annular projection surrounding said opening, the head of distribution being provided with an annular groove receiving a groove ring that the flexible membrane has and which surrounds the dome of compression of the flexible membrane, the annular projection of the ring being inserted into the annular groove of the flexible membrane.

To further simplify the construction of the assembly, the the intake valve is advantageously molded in one piece with the flexible membrane.

The distribution valve, consisting of the elastic blade, being molded in one piece with the flexible membrane according to the invention, fixing the flexible membrane ensures the tightness of the compression chamber and that of the closing at rest by making the blade constrained elastic on its seat; it allows a conservation of the product, during the storage period, in good conditions.

Preferably, the dispensing head is mounted so that it can rotate between at least two positions, a position in which a communication between the compression chamber and the container is closed and a position where said communication is open. This allows better isolation during storage of the product contained in the container.

Preferably, the assembly includes a rigid bottle on which is fixed a support, the dispensing head being secured axially to said support and free to rotate relative thereto; advantageously, the support has a cylindrical outer skirt internally sealed in the annular space between an internal tubular part and an external tubular part which comprises the distribution head.

According to one embodiment, the wall of the skirt external cylindrical internal of the support is crossed by a skylight, the internal and external tubular parts of the dispensing head being provided respectively with a longitudinal slot and a passage located opposite, the passage opening into the compression chamber and being closable by the inlet valve, the cylindrical inner skirt internal of the support and the internal tubular part of the dispensing head communicating with the container, the longitudinal slit and the passage being placed opposite the skylight in the position of the head of distribution relative to the medium for which the communication between the compression chamber and the container is open.

According to a first variant, the container is a pocket flexible housed inside the rigid bottle and secured so tight to a sleeve extending the skirt towards the inside of the bottle external cylindrical internal of the support, the bottom of the rigid bottle having an air return orifice.

According to another variant, the container is the rigid bottle and the assembly includes a dip tube plunging to the vicinity of the lower part of the rigid bottle and being connected, at its upper part, to the internal cylindrical outer skirt of the support.

• la figure 1 est une vue générale en perspective montrant un ensemble de distribution selon l'invention ;
• la figure 2 est une vue partielle en coupe à plus grande échelle de l'ensemble de la figure 1 ;
• la figure 3 est une vue partielle en coupe d'une variante d'ensemble selon l'invention ;
• la figure 4 est une vue partielle en coupe à plus grande échelle d'une partie de la figure 3 ;
• la figure 5 est analogue à la figure 4, la tête de distribution étant en position de fermeture ;
• la figure 6 est une vue partielle de la figure 4 montrant une variante d'implantation du clapet d'admission ;
• la figure 7 est une vue en élévation d'un autre ensemble de distribution selon l'invention dans la configuration qu'il présente au cours du stockage ;
• la figure 8 représente l'ensemble de la figure 7 dans la configuration qu'il présente pour la distribution du produit.
• la figure 9 est une vue partielle en coupe d'une variante de l'ensemble de distribution selon la figure 2, à plus grande échelle que celle de la figure 2 ;
• la figure 10 est une vue partielle en coupe à grande échelle illustrant la fixation de la membrane par la bague ;
• la figure 11 est analogue à la figure 10 et illustre une variante de fixation.

The invention will be better understood by referring, by way of illustration but not limitation, to the appended drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is a general perspective view showing a dispensing assembly according to the invention;
• Figure 2 is a partial sectional view on a larger scale of the assembly of Figure 1;
• Figure 3 is a partial sectional view of an overall variant according to the invention;
• Figure 4 is a partial sectional view on a larger scale of a portion of Figure 3;
• Figure 5 is similar to Figure 4, the dispensing head being in the closed position;
• Figure 6 is a partial view of Figure 4 showing an alternative layout of the intake valve;
• Figure 7 is an elevational view of another distribution assembly according to the invention in the configuration it has during storage;
• Figure 8 shows the assembly of Figure 7 in the configuration it presents for the distribution of the product.
• Figure 9 is a partial sectional view of a variant of the dispensing assembly according to Figure 2, on a larger scale than that of Figure 2;
• Figure 10 is a partial sectional view on a large scale illustrating the fixing of the membrane by the ring;
• Figure 11 is similar to Figure 10 and illustrates an alternative attachment.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, a set of dispenser according to the invention comprises a rigid bottle 1 having a neck 2 carrying at its outer periphery a snap bead 4.

The bottle 1 is adapted to receive a support 10 for a distribution head 20.

The support 10 has cylindrical skirts concentric circular section extending from a wall transverse 10A, on either side of said wall; said skirts extend relative to this wall 10A either towards the bottle 1, to which cases they are said to be internal, ie on the side opposite to the bottle 1, to which if they are said to be external; support 10 has two skirts external, namely an external skirt 12 and an internal skirt 13, and two inner skirts, namely an outer skirt 15 and an inner skirt 14; the internal internal skirt 14 has at its lower part a bead snap cooperating with the snap bead 4 of the neck 2 of the bottle 1 for securing, in the axial direction, the support to the bottle 1; in addition, anti-rotation fins 5 placed axially between the collar 2 and said internal inner skirt 13 also prevent the support 10 to rotate relative to the bottle 1; this joining of support 10 and of the bottle 1 is made in leaktight manner thanks to a annular sealing lip 11 carried by the support 10 and applied against the upper edge of the neck 2 of the bottle 1.

The dispensing head 20 has a generally cylindrical shape of revolution with truncated upper part; more precisely, the head of distribution 20 has a cylindrical outer casing 22, of circular section, the lower part of which is slammed on a crown breakdown 16 carried by the support 10; thanks to this arrangement, the dispensing head 20 is held axially with respect to said support 10 while being able to rotate relative to said support 10.

At the top, the dispensing head 20 has a flat surface 20A extending in a plane perpendicular to the plane of Figure 2 and inclined on the axis of the bottle 1; this plan is interrupted in the center of the dispensing head 20 by a recess 50 bordered by a semi-cylindrical wall 20D extending to a bottom 20B transverse and intended, as described below, to constitute a compression chamber 50.

The dispensing head has two tubular parts extending towards the support 10, an external tubular part 24 and a internal tubular part 23; the internal cylindrical outer skirt 13 of the support 10 is housed in a sealed manner in the annular space included between said inner 23 and outer 24 tubular portions; similarly, the external tubular part 24 of the dispensing head 20 is housed with tightly in the annular space between the skirts internal external 13 and external 12 of support 10; this montage in baffle ensures good sealing of the chamber 50 relative to the support 10 despite the rotational mounting of the dispensing head 20 on said support 10.

In the example shown in Figures 1 and 2, the container containing the product to be distributed is a flexible pocket 8 housed at the interior of the bottle 1, tightly secured, for example by heat sealing, to a sleeve 19 of the support 10, extending from the transverse wall 10A and extending towards the bottle 1 the outer skirt internal 13 of the support 10.

The dispensing head 20 is mounted to rotate relative to to the support 10 between at least two positions: a position in which a communication between the room 50 and the interior of the flexible pocket 8 is closed, and a position where said communication is opened ; for this purpose, the wall of the internal external skirt 13 of the support 10 is crossed by a skylight 18, and the internal tubular parts 23 and external 24 of the dispensing head 20 are provided respectively a longitudinal slot 26 and a passage 27 located opposite; the passage 27 opens into the chamber 50 to the right of the bottom 20B. The skirt internal external 13 of the support 10 and the internal tubular part 23 of the dispensing head 20 communicating with the pocket 8, when the longitudinal slot 26 and passage 27 are placed opposite the skylight 18, as shown in Figure 2, communication is established between the chamber 50 and the pocket 8; when the head of distribution 20 is rotated, relative to the support 10, so that this coincidence is no longer assured, said communication is closed.

The dispensing head 20 carries at its upper part a flexible membrane 30 covering the flat part 20A of the head distribution 20; at its highest end, the flexible membrane 30a a bevel profile defining an elastic blade 31 applied to the end of the flat part 20A into which the part opens terminal, which opens to the outside, of a distribution channel 21 passing through the dispensing head 20 and the other end of which opens out in room 50; said chamber 50 is bordered externally by a dome 32 presented by the membrane 30 in line with the bottom 20B; the flexible membrane 30 has an annular groove 34, surrounding the base dome 32, which is received in a corresponding annular groove 25 hollowed out in the flat part 20A of the dispensing head 20; this arrangement allows the membrane 30 to be perfectly positioned by relative to the dispensing head 20 and in particular the elastic blade 31; it also allows effective fixing of the membrane 30; In this effect, according to the invention, a ring 40 having a opening 42 for the passage of the dome 32 has an annular projection 41 force-fitted into the annular groove 34 of the membrane 30; the ring 40 thus having a generally L-shaped section, it has a flange extending parallel to the flat surface 20A in particular at the level of the elastic blade 31 and which plays the role of a member for stressing the blade 31 applied to its seat 20A, thus ensuring a perfect seal at rest when the closure of the distribution channel 21 relative to the outside.

Figures 10 and 11 show examples of profiles of annular grooves 25 and 34 and of annular projection 41 having given good results; according to the variant of Figure 10, the groove annular 25 which is provided with the dispensing head 20 has a section of generally rectangular shape and receives a part of shape complementary to the flexible membrane 30 defining a groove 34 having a section of general shape also rectangular; the projection annular 41 of the ring 40 is bordered by annular faces 41A, 41B slightly tapered, approaching towards the flat part 20A the dispensing head 20; the angle of the cone is for example the angle of draft usually used in molding techniques. According to the variant of FIG. 11, the annular groove 25 has a shaped section general trapezium whose large base is on the side of the back of the throat 25; the groove 34 of the flexible membrane 30 has a shape complementary, also trapezoidal, and the annular projection 41 of the ring 40 carries at its free end an annular protuberance 141 which, when the ring 40 is in place, creates a force component transverse tightening the sides of the groove 34 of the membrane 30 against the under flanks of the groove 25 of the head of distribution 20.

By arranging at the right of way 27 an intake valve 33 authorizing only the passage of the product contained in the pocket 8 towards chamber 50, a distribution pump is thus made up of simple way, the elastic blade 31 playing the role of the valve distribution associated with chamber 50 with variable volume; this simplicity is increased when, as shown in FIG. 2, the valve 33 is molded in one piece with the elastic membrane 30; the scope annular 41 being provided eccentric with respect to the opening 42, it thus spares 20C coming from the root of the valve 33 stress the valve 33 in application on its seat 20B, thus improving distribution efficiency. But, of course, the inlet valve can be independent of the membrane 30, as the shows figure 9 on which said valve is constituted by a valve with ball 133 disposed in passage 27; we can also note on this figure the presence of a U-shaped channel 20E dug in the span plane 20A of the distribution head 20 downstream of the distribution channel 21; channel 20E allows the product to be guided out of the distribution 21, guidance all the more useful as the product distributed is liquid.

The bottom of the bottle 1 is pierced with an orifice 3 for recovery of air facilitating the shrinking of the flexible pocket 8 as the distribution of the product it contains; at rest, after use, the product fills the bag 8 and the chamber 50; after removing the overcap 6 that includes the assembly and put the dispensing head 20 in the position it occupies in FIG. 2, a pressure exerted on the dome 32 pushes the product through the distribution channel 21, which product lifts the blade 31 and is dispensed; when the action on the dome 32, the blade 31 returns to its seat; during the movement of return of the dome 32 to its rest position, the valve 33 is raised in letting product pass to chamber 50; pocket 8 follows this transfer of product without constraint due to the entry of air through the orifice 3. For the storage of the assembly, the distribution head 20 is rotated relative to support 10 until closing the communication between chamber 50 and pocket 8; the overcap 6 is then put in place and the product is stored securely.

Figures 3 to 5 show an overall variant of distribution according to the invention; this variant is of the kind described above, the parts which constitute it and which are identical or play the same role as those of the previous variant bear the same reference; this variant differs from the variant previous in that it is the rigid bottle 1 which constitutes the container containing the product to be distributed; a dip tube 7 connected to its part greater than the internal external skirt 13 of the support 10 dives to the vicinity of the bottom of the bottle 1; at the top of the bottle, means are provided for venting the volume top of the bottle 1 located above the product it contains; these means for venting consist of an axial groove 17 formed on the inner surface of the outer outer skirt 12 of the support 10 and opening into the bottle 1, and through another groove axial 28 formed on the outer surface of the tubular part outside 24 of the dispensing head 20 and opening outside the bottle 1; the position of the axial grooves 17 and 28 is such that the setting the atmosphere takes place, or not, depending on whether the communication between the chamber 50 and the bottle 1 is open (Figure 4) or closed (Figure 5).

According to Figure 6, the suction valve 33 takes place in a rebate 29 formed on the surface of the bottom 20B; rebate 29 a a shape corresponding to that of the valve 33 and ensures better transverse holding of said valve 33, which increases the longevity of this one.

Of course, the good performance over time of the product contained in the container of the distribution sets that come to be described requires that the user, after use, turn the head distribution 20 relative to support 10 to close the communication between the container and the chamber 50; this operation is not natural, as is that which consists of depositing the overcap 6 on the bottle 1; the variant of FIGS. 7 and 8 shows a distribution assembly provided a keying function authorizing the placing of the overcap only if the above communication is closed; for this purpose, the bottle 101 carries a support 110 of a dispensing head 120 rotatably mounted on the support 110 along a plane inclined relative to the axis of the bottle 101; in the position of the head 120, illustrated in FIG. 7, for which said communication is closed, the support 110 and the head 120 have concordant cylindrical external contours allowing the installation a perfectly cylindrical overcap 106; as seen on the Figure 8, in the dispensing position, the axes of the support 110 and the head 120 form an angle between them and it is not possible to style the entire overcap 106; it should be noted that in this position of distribution, product distribution is facilitated, the user having the bottle 101 in hand.

It should be noted that the ring 40 can be produced by superinjection of a rigid material on the flexible membrane 30.

Claims (9)

1. Assembly for dispensing a liquid to pasty product, which includes a container (1, 8, 101) holding the product, a dispensing head (20, 120) having a dispensing channel (21), a flexible diaphragm (30) possessing a part in the form of a dome (32) which defines, in the dispensing head (20, 120), a variable-volume compression chamber (50) in communication with the container (1, 8, 101), an inlet valve (133) being placed in this communication and allowing the product to pass only from the container (1, 8, 101) to the compression chamber (50), the said compression chamber (50), the inlet valve (33) and a dispensing valve constituting a pump for dispensing product, the said flexible diaphragm (30) being held against the dispensing head (20, 120) by a fixing element consisting of a ring (40) possessing an opening (42) from which the compression dome (32) of the flexible diaphragm (30) emerges, the dispensing valve consisting of a closure system located at the terminal part, which opens onto the outside, of the dispensing channel (21), the said closure system consisting of a seat (20A) and of a springy leaf (31) at least partially in contact with the seat (20A) when there is no dispensing, moving away at least partially from the said seat (20A) under the pressure of the product to be dispensed and coming back, by elasticity, into its initial position when the dispensing ceases, the springy leaf (31) being moulded as a single piece with the flexible diaphragm (30), characterized in that the ring (40) bears an annular projection (41) surrounding the said opening (42), the dispensing head (20, 120) being provided with an annular groove (25) receiving an annular groove (34) which the flexible diaphragm (30) possesses and which surrounds the compression dome (32) of the flexible diaphragm (30), the annular projection (41) of the ring (40) being inserted into the annular groove (34) of the flexible diaphragm (30).
2. Assembly according to Claim 1, characterized in that the inlet valve (33) is advantageously moulded as a single piece with the flexible diaphragm (30).
3. Assembly according to either of Claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the dispensing head (20, 120) is mounted so as to rotate between at least two positions, a position in which a communication between the compression chamber (50) and the container (1, 8, 101) is closed and a position in which the said communication is open.
4. Assembly according to Claim 3, characterized in that it comprises a rigid bottle (1, 101) to which a support (10, 110) is fixed, the dispensing head (20, 120) being rendered axially integral with the said support (10, 110) and free to rotate with respect to it.
5. Assembly according to Claim 4, characterized in that the support (10, 110) possesses an internal cylindrical outer skirt (13) housed in a sealed manner in the annular space lying between an internal tubular part (23) and an external tubular part (24) which the dispensing head (20, 120) possesses.
6. Assembly according to one of Claims 3, 4 and 5, characterized in that a port (18) passes through the wall of the internal cylindrical outer skirt (13) of the support (10, 110), the internal (23) and external (24) tubular parts of the dispensing head (20, 120) being respectively provided with a longitudinal slot (26) and with a passage (27), these facing each other, the passage (27) emerging into the compression chamber (50) and being able to be closed off by the inlet valve (33), the internal cylindrical outer skirt (13) of the support (10, 110) and the internal tubular part (23) of the dispensing head (20, 120) communicating with the container (1, 8, 101), the longitudinal slot (26) and the passage (27) being placed so as to face the port (18) in that position of the dispensing head (20, 120) with respect to the support (10, 110) for which the communication between the compression chamber (50) and the container (1, 8, 101) is open.
7. Assembly according to either of Claims 5 and 6, characterized in that the container (8) is a flexible bag housed inside the rigid bottle (1, 101) and rendered integral, in a sealed manner, with a sleeve (19) prolonging the internal cylindrical outer skirt (13) of the support (10, 110) towards the inside of the bottle (1, 101), the bottom of the rigid bottle (1, 101) including an air-uptake orifice (3).
8. Assembly according to either of Claims 5 and 6, characterized in that the container is the rigid bottle (1, 101) and the assembly comprises a dip tube (7) going down to near the lower part of the rigid bottle (1, 101) and being connected, at its upper part, to the internal cylindrical outer skirt (13) of the support (10, 110).
9. Assembly according to either of Claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the ring (40) is produced by injection overmoulding of a rigid material over the flexible diaphragm (30).

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