EP0810906B1

EP0810906B1 - Discharge apparatus for flowable media

Info

Publication number: EP0810906B1
Application number: EP96903977A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Karl-Heinz Fuchs; Stefan Ritsche
Original assignee: Erich Pfeiffer GmbH; Ing Erich Pfeiffer GmbH
Current assignee: Aptar Radolfzell GmbH
Priority date: 1995-02-09
Filing date: 1996-02-03
Publication date: 1999-08-18
Anticipated expiration: 2016-02-03
Also published as: NO973664D0; NO973664L; JP3776125B2; JPH10513400A; EP0810906A1; WO1996024439A1; DK174347B1; AU692362B2; FI111815B; ES2138321T3; CA2212307C; DK92497A; BR9607514A; FI973263A; AU4787196A; FI973263A0; CA2212307A1

Description

FIELD OF USE AND PRIOR ART

The invention relates to a discharge apparatus for flowable media having a basic body for receiving a medium reservoir and a thrust piston pump, which has a pump piston displaceably in a piston between a starting position and a pump stroke end position, as well as a pump chamber connected to a discharge opening of the apparatus by means of a discharge channel and defined by a pump cylinder also forming the medium reservoir and containing the pump piston.

WO 91/13689 shows a discharge apparatus for single use in partial strokes according to the generic part of

claims

1, 12 and 14.

Such a discharge apparatus is described in European patent 311 863 (= US patent 4 964 069) of the present applicant. The patent specification discloses and protects the pump cylinder and a resilient stop constructed in the manner of a snap - locking means cooperating in such a way that prior to the discharge of a partial stroke a specific actuating pressure must be applied by the operator, so that after overcoming this pressure point the discharge of the liquid takes place with a certain minimum force and speed.

This construction ensures that e.g. on atomizing the medium the pressure from the first instant is sufficient for atomization purposes and that the pump is actuated up to its end, i.e. performs the complete stroke and the entire content of its medium reservoir, which simultaneously forms the pump cylinder, is discharged in one or two strokes. Such single or double dosing or proportioning devices are advantageous for the dispensing of medicaments, which are particularly critical with respect to proportioning, contamination, preservation or other criteria.

WO 92/00812 of the applicant also discloses the use of medium reservoirs for a single discharge stroke, which are sealed by a plug simultaneously serving as the piston, the plug being perforated by a needle for actuation purposes. The medium reservoir is received in a sleeve, which has external projections and which cooperate with corresponding projections on the inside of a casing basic body in the manner of a snap fastening. On actuation it is firstly necessary to overcome the static friction, before said beads slide on the faces against which they engage, so that a pressure point must be overcome.

PROBLEM AND SOLUTION

The object of the invention is to so further develop such a discharge apparatus in particular with a view to preventing an accidental double use or incomplete actuation, whilst avoiding the resulting contamination or proportioning problems.

The tamper-evident closure according to the invention can in an embodiment of the invention be formed by at least one material bridge between at least one pump portion movable with the pump cylinder and a casing portion connected to the basic body. The material bridge is advantageously formed by a one-piece construction of the casing and pump portions.

Therefore a predetermined breaking point is created between the mutually movable parts of the discharge apparatus, whose intactness is a sure sign that the charge of filling of the medium reservoir is unopened and unused. The user can establish this e.g. optically or by a slight turning of the actuating part. To facilitate checking window cutouts can be provided or parts of the pump can be made from transparent material. It is also possible to use a plastics material, which discolours in the case of a breaking deformation. Marks on the movable portion and the casing would also be possible. The material bridge is preferably formed between an actuating sleeve retaining and optionally partly receiving the pump cylinder serving as the medium reservoir and an inner portion of a base casing part provided with actuating shoulders. The actuating shoulders serve as a support for two fingers, the thumb pressing on the actuating sleeve. An adequate force can be applied in order to shear or tear off the material portion. As a result of the force applied simultaneously an adequate actuating force is produced for a reliable actuation of the pump.

The material bridges can e.g. be provided on the outer circumference of the actuating sleeve and between the latter and a ring surrounding said sleeve, which is in turn fixed to the facing part, i.e. to the casing, by snapping in. This makes it possible to manufacture the actuating sleeve separately from the casing. However, the material bridges could also be shaped onto the casing and the circular fastening element could be fixed to the facing, movable part, the pump cylinder or the actuating sleeve, by engagement or in some other way.

According to a feature of the invention, the element which is shaped onto the pump part via the material bridges, encloses a projection of the housing from the outside. In this case, the element covers the connecting gap between the pump part and the housing completely and provides not only an optical and functional merge between pump part and housing but prevents also every possibility of manipulation of the tamper-evident connection. It should be preferably provided that the snap-in connection is secured against drawing off, such that it is destroyed if someone tries to draw off the pump cylinder from the housing. In this case, the material bridges and the tamper-evident closure shall break.

It is especially preferred that the element is a ring with a L-shaped cross section consisting of a substantially radial bottom ring part and an adjacent jacket. The inside of the jacket is preferably provided with a snap profile. This snap profile can cooperate with a correspondingly shaped profile at the ring or ring segment shaped projection in snap acting manner.

These and further features can be gathered from the claims, description and drawings and the individual features, both singly and in the form of subcombinations, can be implemented in an embodiment of the invention and in other fields and can represent advantageous, independently protectable constructions for which protection is hereby claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings, fig. 1 to 5 show, for better understanding, a predecessor design of the present invention in order to explain some basic feature used in the present invention, namely

Fig. 1: a longitudinal section through a discharge apparatus with a tamper-evident closure,
Fig. 2: a view in the direction of the arrow II in Fig. 1,
Fig. 3: a detail from Fig. 2, but shown in section,
Fig. 4: a section along line IV in Fig. 2,
Fig. 5: a partial longitudinal section through a discharge apparatus with a shaped on tamper-evident closure ring.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described in greater detail hereinafter relative to fig. 6 and 7 of the drawings, wherein show:

Fig. 6: a longitudinal section through the embodiment of the invention,
Fig. 7: a top view of the embodiment of Fig. 6.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The discharge apparatus 11 shown in Fig. 1 has a two-part basic body 12. It contains a base casing part 13, which has an epaulette-like shape with two actuating shoulders 14 and a jacket 15 connected thereto. The base casing part is flat or flat-oval and has its greatest extension in the drawing plane, whereas it has smaller dimensions transversely thereto. The jacket 15 is longer on the right and left-hand sides in Fig. 1 and has on its two sides roughly parallel to the drawing plane a cutout 16, which is open to the bottom.

On the base casing part 13 is injection moulded in one piece an actuating sleeve 17, namely on the lower, inside of a connector 18 projecting upwards from the part 13. The one-piece connection between the base casing part 13 and the actuating sleeve 17 takes place by means of material bridges 19, as shown in Figs. 2 to 4. The gap 20 between the outer edge of an upper flange 21 of the actuating sleeve 17 and an inner flange projection 22 in the interior of the connector 18 is bridged in the represented embodiment by three thin connecting webs, which have a triangular shape and whose tip is shaped on the web 22, so as to form predetermined breaking points. From the manufacturing standpoint, as a result of correspondingly small recesses, which scarcely exceed the dimensions of a normal flash, they can be formed on the separating face between two plastic injection moulded parts, which on the one hand form the space 23 in the interior of the jacket 15 and on the other the space in the connector 18. Correspondingly the three uniformly, circumferentially distributed material bridges 19 are located in a plane formed by the inside and bottom of the actuating shoulders 14 on the one hand and the upper edge of the flange 21 on the other.

The actuating sleeve 17 has inner ribs 24, which roughly take up 3/4 of the length of the sleeve, considered from its bottom 25. On the same is supported the bottom 26 of a pump cylinder 27, which has the shape of a roughly cylindrical, bottom closed sleeve made from glass and having an upper side flange 28. It simultaneously forms the reservoir for the medium 29 to be discharged and the pump cylinder. Its inner circumferential surface consequently forms the piston runway 30 for a piston 31, which is constructed in the form of a rubber or similar elastic material piston plug. In longitudinal section it has a H-shape and is a thick-walled tube, whose outer jacket forms the piston runways, with a central closure web 32 transversely closing the tube interior, so that at the top and bottom, connecting onto the closure web 32 depressions 33 are formed, which can be roughly conical.

The piston plug 31 is located on the hermetically sealed medium 29. Filling takes place with or without air inclusions. The pump cylinder is inserted with slight pressure in the upper part of the actuating sleeve and extends with its largest part over and beyond the actuating shoulders 14 through the connector 18 and into a connector portion 34, which can also be constructed as an adaptor. It is a finger-like portion, which has a substantially cylindrical or slightly conical shaft with an upper, spherical rounding running in the direction of the pump axis 35. In the centre of said rounding is provided the discharge opening 36 in the form of a conventional spray nozzle. However, the discharge opening could also be provided for some other discharge form, e.g. for a dosed delivery of a liquid or pasty medium, or could have other shapes, so as to permit better adaptation of the delivery to the shape of any body opening. Therefore it is also advantageous to manufacture the connector portion 34 separately from the base casing part and is fixed thereto by a snap fastening 37 with e.g. three tabs engaging in openings and provided with a barb-like head, the connector portion being centred on the connector 18. In order to prevent a removal of the connector portion 34, the snap fastening can be constructed in self-locking manner. A protective sleeve 38 protects the connector portion against contamination.

In the interior of the connector portion there is a piston rod portion 39, which has an inner discharge channel 40 and is inserted in the sleeve 41 shaped inwards on the upper end of the connector portion 34. In said piston rod portion 39 is inserted a ram 42 in the form of a downwardly inclined cut-off, hollow steel needle, e.g. by injecting or pressing into an opening provided with corresponding retaining ribs.

With the exception of the steel needle 42, the piston plug 31 made from rubbery materials and the glass pump cylinder/medium reservoir, all pump parts are plastic injection mouldings.

During manufacture in the component surrounding the base casing part 13 and the actuating sleeve 17 the pump cylinder 27 is inserted from above in the receptacle 43 formed in the actuating sleeve 17. Said cylinder 27 contains the medium 29 tightly sealed through the piston plug 31.

This is followed by the mounting of the connector portion, on which have been preassembled the piston rod portion and the ram 42 and it engages in the base casing part and is fixed via the snap fastening 37. Thus, after fitting the protective sleeve 38, the discharge apparatus is assembled. For use purposes, following the removal by the user of the protective sleeve 38, the discharge apparatus is taken up between three fingers, two fingers resting on the shoulders 14 and the thumb on the bottom 25 of the actuating sleeve 17. The thumb engages in the window-like cutout 16 and consequently has an adequate actuating clearance. The discharge opening 36 is directed onto the corresponding point and by a powerful pressure on the actuating sleeve the actuating pressure is built up to such an extent that the predetermined breaking points formed by the material bridges 9 tear or shear and the actuating sleeve can be moved upwards together with the pump cylinder. As a result of the prior, powerful pressure build-up this takes place with a high speed, which ensures a speedy performance of the discharge stroke taking place. The pump cylinder is moved upwards against the ram 42, so that the latter pieces the central web 32 of the piston plug, but as a result of the elasticity of the piston plug material is immediately resealed on the outer face. Only through the inner channel of the ram constructed as a hollow needle can the medium escape upwards through the discharge channel 40 and the discharge opening 36 and is delivered there in sprayed or correspondingly proportioned manner. The lower edge of the piston rod portion 39 can engage on the upper face of the piston plug 31 and consequently produce a direct pressure connection with the piston, which runs downwards along the piston runway 30 and conveys the medium to the discharge opening. The length of the needle should be such that it does not project over the lower boundary of the piston plug 31, so that an almost complete discharge of the in certain circumstances very expensive medium is ensured.

Thus, the discharge apparatus offers a possibility of discharging sensitive and expensive materials in a planned and precisely dosed manner. Through the tamper-evident closure operating with material destruction it is possible at any time to check intactness and it is ensured that there is a complete delivery of the medium with an adequate actuating pressure. The apparatus is simple to manufacture and fit, whilst can easily be adapted to different circumstances, e.g. by different adaptor shapes. Following actuation the unit comprising the pump cylinder 27 and actuating sleeve is loose and can optionally be drawn out in the downwards direction. The pump cylinder 27 with the pump plug 31 can be removed, so that the remainder, with the exception of the small needle, is made from one type of material, optionally plastic and can be correspondingly disposed of.

Fig. 5 shows in longitudinal section a detail of an embodiment, in which the casing 13 and connector portion 34, are constructed in one piece. The same reference numerals are used for the same parts and reference is made to the previous description of said parts and their function.

On the actuating sleeve 17, which receives the container 27, is provided on the outside a fastening element 60 in the form of an all-round ring with a L-shaped cross-section. It is connected to the actuating sleeve 17 by several material bridges 19, which are so constructed and dimensioned, that they tear away under the actuating pressure and consequently separate the ring from the actuating sleeve. The fastening element 60, actuating sleeve 17 and material bridges 19 are injection moulded from plastic in one piece.

The fastening element 60 is fixed to the casing 13 by a snap connection 61. The fastening element is centred with its axial leg on the inside of the connector portion 35, whereas the outwardly directed leg latches in a depression at the transition between the actuating shoulder 14 and the connector portion 34.

During assembly the actuating sleeve is introduced together with the container 27 forming the pump cylinder. An assembly tool can press the lower engagement face 63 of the actuating element 60 in Fig. 5, so that engagement of the latching connection 61 takes place without any risk of damage to the tamper-evident closure formed by the material bridges 19. However, if the user moves the sleeve upwards, the material bridges 19 tear and the actuating sleeve, together with the pump cylinder/container 27, can perform the pump stroke in the previously described manner. The actuating sleeve 17 is guided on the one hand in the circular fastening element 60 (between the torn off material bridges) and on the other on the inner webs 62 of the connector portion 34. An outer flange of the container/pump cylinder 27 is also guided in this way, which prevents tilting of the actuating means. The material bridges 19 can also be constructed as split or through film connections.

The fastening element 60 has a certain amount of axial and radial clearance in the latching connection 61. This makes it possible to intentionally or unintentionally turn the actuating sleeve 17 without destroying the tamper-evident closure. However, the latching connection must be sufficiently strong that on drawing off the actuating sleeve 17 in the downwards direction the tamper-evident closure tears. This ensures that there have been no undesired manipulation of the content of the proportioning device.

Thus, a tamper-evident closure has been provided, which requires a higher, material-destroying actuating force in order to unseal the medium reservoir 27, than would be needed in the case of a simple needle. This is aided by the frictional force between the guide flange 47 and the retaining clips 44 which, after overcoming the static friction, pass into the sliding state and therefore release a larger proportion of the expended actuating force for actuation and overcoming the other resistances.

Figs. 6 and 7 show a prefered embodiment which has the same structural and functional features as the embodiment of Fig. 5. Here also the same reference numerals are used for the same parts and reference is made to previous description of those parts and their function.

The element 60 which is connected to the actuating sleeve 17 by the material bridges 19, is a ring with an L-shaped cross section. Accordingly it has a bottom ring 70 which has at its inner side the material bridges 19 connecting the bottom ring 70 integrally with the actuating sleeve 17. Parallel and concentric with the actuating sleeve 17 is a jacket 71. At the inner surface of the jacket 71 there is provided a snap profile 72 which can e.g. consist of a barbed ring projection (see the enlarged detail in the dash-dotted circle in Fig. 7).

The element 60 covers a housing projection 61, which is ring-shaped and surrounds the middle housing opening 74, in which the pump cylinder 27 and its actuating sleeve 17 is contained. The projection 61 projects from the housing 13 to below. The projection 61 can have a ring or tubular shape or be in the shape of several segments arranged in ring-shaped manner. At its outside it has a counter profile 63 matching to the snap profile 72 of the jacket.

Its snap action is provided such that during mounting of the unit actuating sleeve/

pump cylinder

17, 27 in the housing opening 74 the element 60 is fixed by snap action at the housing projection 61 and covers the latter. The power needed for snapping-on is such that during snapping-on the material bridges will not be over-stressed. If, however, a power in the counter direction is exerted which could lead to a withdrawal of the actuating sleeve 17 to below, the barbed shape of the snap means 72, 73 provide that the material bridges 19 will be destroyed, thereby clearly evidencing tamper.

While in the embodiment of Fig. 5 the housing has a housing jacket 15 projecting to below, the embodiment of Figs. 6 and 7 provides actuating shoulders 14 having the shape of flat housing projection (Fig. 7) projecting laterally far past the main portion 34 of the housing in two opposite directions. It has a generally oval shape. It enables a safe grip of the apparatus between two fingers when pressing the thumb on the lower bottom 25 of the actuating sleeve. Ribs 65 which are to be seen from Fig. 7 in the in shape provide good grip and stiffening, especially by a peripheral edge rib 77 projecting to above.

Thereby material will be saved without impairing stability, which is of great importance for a single use product. Further the lower surface of the actuating shoulder 14 can be used for attaching markings, for instance batch numbers. The actuating sleeve 17 can also be used for lables or other visual marks.

At the outer circumference of the actuating sleeve 17 there is provided a second ring-shaped element 76 at the distance a from the lower surface 63 of element 70. Like element 70, the second element 76 is also moulded in one piece with the actuating sleeve via material bridges 19b which may be of the kind as shown in Figs. 2 to 4. They may however be somewhat stronger than those of element 60.

This embodiment provides a double stroke discharge device, i.e. a discharge or spray device which is able to discharge two exactly proportioned charges after each other. The ring-shaped element 76 terminates the operation after the first part of the stroke equivalent to the distance a. At this end of this part of the stroke the operation force (counter pressure of the liquid etc.) and the force for breaking the material bridges 19 are adding up. It is therefore unlikely that the user overruns the second ring unintentionally.

After this stop which is usually half the way of the complete stroke the user can break also the material bridges 19b by an increased pressure on the pump part. When breaking the material bridges 19b, the ring-shaped element 76 abuts the contact surface 63 of element 60.

After the first part of the stroke of this two stroke discharge apparatus, the container or pump cylinder 26 is open via the hollow needle 36. For the use of a nasal spray, this embodiment is however very advantageous for applying a medicine into both nostrils consecutively but in even proportion. The second stroke is thereby also tamper-proof.

It is to be noted that the embodiment of Fig. 6 provides a closed and uncomplicated discharge apparatus which is easy to operate and to pack.

Claims

Discharge apparatus for flowable media comprising a basic body (13), at least partly receiving

a pump unit having:

a pump chamber connectable to a discharge opening (36) via a discharge channel (40), the pump chamber being bounded by a pump cylinder (27) and a pump piston (31);

the pump cylinder (27) forming the medium reservoir;

the pump piston (31) being displaceably guided in the pump cylinder (27);

the pump cylinder (27) being at least partly contained in an actuating sleeve (17),
characterized by

a tamper-evident closure which can be destroyed by an actuating force,

including at least one breakable material bridge (19) between the pump unit and the ring shaped fastening element (60),

the fastening element (60) being via the at least one material bridge (19) integral with the pump unit; said fastening element being fitted to the basic body (13) by surrounding an outer projection (61) of the basic body (13),

cooperating snapping means (72, 73) being provided at the outside of the projection (61) and on the inside of the fastening element (60).
Discharge apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the fastening element (60) is a ring with L-shaped cross section consisting of a bottom ring portion (70) and a substantially cylindrical jacket portion (71).
Discharge apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising at the inner side of the jacket portion (71) a snap profile (72) cooperating with a correspondingly shaped snap profile (73) at the outside of the projection (61).
Discharge apparatus accorting to anyone of claims 1 to 3, wherein the snapping means (72, 73) are barb-like to provide a smaller holding force in snapping-in direction than in a direction opposite thereto, in which opposite direction the holding force being greater than a force to break the at least one material bridge (19).
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 4, wherein a guide for the pump portion being formed by inner webs (62) of the basic body (13).
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 5, wherein the fastening element (60) has an engagement face for an assembly tool, excerting a force for engaging the snapping means (72, 73).
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 6, wherein the at least one material bridge (19) is formed integral with the actuating sleeve (17).
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 7, further comprising several material bridges substantially in one plane.
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 8, wherein the at least one material bridge (19) is constructed in the shape of a tip connected to a wall.
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 9, wherein on the pump unit a marking is provided cooperating with a marking on the basic body (13) and which are mutually displaced during pump actuation.
Discharge apparatus according to anyone of claims 1 to 10, wherein between a tamper-evident closure position in which the parts movable against one another for actuation are fixed by said closure, and a discharge start position determined by the start of medium discharge, there is a spacing defining an idle path.
Discharge apparatus for flowable media comprising a basic body (13) at least partly receiving

a pump unit having:

a pump chamber connectable to a discharge opening (36) via a discharge channel (40), the pump chamber being bounded by a pump cylinder (27) and a pump piston (31);

the pump cylinder (37) forming the medium reservoir;

the pump piston (31) being displaceably guided in the pump cylinder (27);
characterized by

a first and second tamper-evident closure which can be destroyed by an actuating force including a first and second element (60, 76) each having at least one breakable material bridge (19, 19b);

the first and second element being spaced such that the first element (60) allows, after breakage of its material bridges (19), a first partial stroke of the pump piston (31), said first partial stroke being limited by the second element (76); and whereby, after breakage of the material bridges (19b) of the second element (76) under an increased actuating force, the pump piston (31) is free for a second partial stroke.
Discharge apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the first element (60) has an abutting surface on which the second element (76) abuts at the end of the first partial stroke.
Discharge apparatus for flowable media comprising a basic body (13) at least partly receiving

a pump unit having:

a pump chamber connectable to a discharge opening (36) via a discharge channel (40), the pump chamber being bounded by a pump cylinder (27) and a pump piston (31);

the pump cylinder (27) forming a medium reservoir and being at least partly contained in a plastic actuating sleeve (17);

the pump piston (31) being displaceably guided in the pump cylinder (27);

the basic body (13) having a central, substantially cylindrical portion (34) having at its upper ends a spray nozzle (36) and at its lower end actuating and gripping shoulders (14) in the form of generally flat radial projection of considerably greater dimensions in two directions opposite to each other than in a direction perpendicular thereto;
characterized by

a tamper-evident closure which can be destroyed by an actuating force;

including at least one breakable material bridge (19) integral with a fastening element (60) and the actuating sleeve (17), the fastening element (60) being a ring surrounding an outside housing projection (61) projecting from the underside of said gripping shoulders (14) and said actuating sleeve (17) projecting centrally through and far beyond said fastening element (60).