EP0864269A2

EP0864269A2 - Lipstick casing

Info

Publication number: EP0864269A2
Application number: EP98830130A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Maurizio Ficcadenti
Original assignee: Inovo SNC Di Maurizio Ficcadenti & C
Current assignee: Inovo SNC Di Maurizio Ficcadenti & C
Priority date: 1997-03-10
Filing date: 1998-03-10
Publication date: 1998-09-16
Also published as: ITRM970132A1; EP0864269A3

Abstract

A lipstick casing consisting of a stick, a removable cap and a handle, comprising a tubular protection element (2) for the stick, which is apt to slide axially with respect to said stick and said handle, said stick being joined and fixed to said handle.

Description

The present invention relates to the field of cosmetics and more particularly to an improvement of the devices for holding and applying pencils and sticks made of a solid consumable material to be used as cosmetics, lipstick for example.

To protect the stick contained in a conventional device while the cap is put on and taken off, it is known that an axially mobile cap is provided wherein the stick is lodged and a mechanism is operated to retract the stick itself into a base tube. However besides being many times mechanically unstable, such solution results to be complex from the constructive point of view as it involves the moulding and the assembly of four different parts which also comprise internal screwings that further complicate the moulding phase and make costs rocket.

It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide a stick container-applicator for lipsticks that is made up of a reduced number of functional parts with respect to the existing state of the art.

Such aim has been accomplished by providing a casing for pencils and lipsticks which comprises a lid or a removable cap, wherein the supporting element is a one body with the handle and is also axially slidable inside a protective cylinder which inserts into said cap when the object of the present invention is in its closed configuration.

These and other features will be more readily apparent from the following description of some preferred not limiting embodiments of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings in which a scheme of the production process is shown

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a first preferred embodiment of the present invention seen from the outside, which is similar to the normal cylindrical lipstick casings;

Figure 2 shows a second preferred embodiment of the present invention seen from the outside, whose shape reminds that of a lollipop.

With reference to the accompanying drawings, a first embodiment of the invention substantially comprises three basic elements: a covering cap 3, a cylindrical element 2 granting protection to the lipstick, and a lipstick supporting element 1 that also works as a handle for the user.

The lipstick casing according to the present invention is structurally very simple. In fact its only mobile element just consists of protection cylinder 2 which is fixed coaxially with the lipstick, whose motion is therefore substantially axial.

When the lipstick is used, once the cap has been taken off, it is enough to let said protection element 2 slide towards the base of the lipstick in order to uncover its desired portion.

It is self evident that common technical measures must be taken to guarantee a correct sliding of element 2, like for example providing the lipstick base with sliding means which cooperate with grooves on the outside surface of element 2 itself.

A first advantage of the present invention is that the stick which is generally made up of a material which is particularly soft, therefore mechanically little resistent, is more easily controllable and robust. It ought to be observed that the stick being unremovably fixed to handle 1 of the lipstick casing itself, it acquires a greater stability and mechanical resistance.

A second embodiment of the present invention, shown in Figure 2, whose external shape reminds that of an ovoidally shaped lollipop, consists of a handle 1 with a very oblong stem, on which the stick is fixed, a protective element 2 that slides along said stem, and a cap 3 which is apt to be engaged with an outside portion of said sliding protective element 2.

This substantially consists of an internal cylinder and an external semiellipsoid which are coaxial and joined with each other, in such a way as to get even the internal protective cylinder to move with respect to the stick, uncovering and covering it depending on the direction given to the movement of element 2, by holding the external semiellipsoid and getting it to axially slide along said stem.

In both the abovedescribed preferred embodiments, sliding protective element 2 is preferably equipped with end blocking means that limit the movement in the stick covering direction and possibly even in the opposite direction.

It is therefore obvious that said protection means 2 may well be provided with a thread which is apt to interact with a corresponding thread located on said handle 1, in so doing accomplishing the abovedescribed relative movement of

elements

1 and 2. In such a way it is attained the desired covering or uncovering of the stick itself, without therefore stepping out of the scope of the present invention.

The present invention has been described and detailed according to two of its preferred embodiments, but it is meant as obvious that it is possible that whoever skilled in the art will make amendments and substitutions which are equivalent and these will not step out of the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

Lipstick casing of the type that comprises a stick, a cap(3) and a handle (1), characterised by the fact that it comprises stick protective means (2), apt as they are to axially slide with respect to said stick and said handle (1), said stick being joined to and fixed with respect to handle (1) itself.
Lipstick casing according to claim 1, wherein its only mobile element consists of a cylindrical protective element (2) whose motion is substantially axial.
Lipstick casing according to the preceding claims, wherein in order to uncover the desired lipstick portion it is enough to let said protective element (2) slide towards the base of the stick itself.
Lipstick casing according to the preceding claims, wherein sliding means are provided between said protection element (2) and said stick base.
Lipstick casing according to the preceding claims, wherein the stick being fixed in such a way as to result to be unremovable from the handle (1) of the lipstick casing itself, it has a greater stability and mechanical resistance, therefore it tends to have a greater difficulty to break.
Lipstick casing according to claim 1, wherein it has an external shape which is similar to that of a lollipop, said handle (1) having a very oblong stem at an extremity of which the base of the stick is fixed, said protection means (2) being slidable along said stem, and said cap (3) being apt to engage itself with the external part of said slidable means of protection (2).
Lipstick casing according to claim 7, wherein said lipstick protection means (2) consist of an internal cylinder and an external semiellipsoid which are coaxial and joined together.
Lipstick casing according to the preceding claims, wherein said sliding protective means (2) are equipped with end blocks that limit the movement in the covering direction of the stick, and possibly in the opposite direction, too.
Lipstick casing according to the preceding claims, wherein said protection means (2) are provided with a thread which is apt to interact with a corresponding thread located on said handle (1); in this way obtaining a relative movement of elements (1) and (2), such as to cover or uncover said stick.