EP0968120A1 - Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable - Google Patents

Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable

Info

Publication number
EP0968120A1
EP0968120A1 EP98907046A EP98907046A EP0968120A1 EP 0968120 A1 EP0968120 A1 EP 0968120A1 EP 98907046 A EP98907046 A EP 98907046A EP 98907046 A EP98907046 A EP 98907046A EP 0968120 A1 EP0968120 A1 EP 0968120A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
strap
container
plug
cap portion
body portion
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP98907046A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0968120B1 (fr
Inventor
David Noble Thompson
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Audus Noble Ltd
Original Assignee
Audus Noble Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Audus Noble Ltd filed Critical Audus Noble Ltd
Publication of EP0968120A1 publication Critical patent/EP0968120A1/fr
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0968120B1 publication Critical patent/EP0968120B1/fr
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

Links

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
    • B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
    • B65D55/00—Accessories for container closures not otherwise provided for
    • B65D55/02—Locking devices; Means for discouraging or indicating unauthorised opening or removal of closure
    • B65D55/024—Closures in which a part has to be ruptured to gain access to the contents

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to containers with tamper evident closures, and more particularly to such closures reacting between the cap and the body of a container to indicate unauthorised opening of the container.
  • Such closures are many and varied, and may comprise, for example a shrink sleeve, a circumferential tear strip or the like.
  • a component of the closure has to be torn or removed to enable removal of the cap from the container and access to the content of the container.
  • authorised personnel on receipt of a container, can determine whether or not unauthorised entry to the container has been effected, and, in the event that all is in order, can remove the closure themselves to enable authorised use .
  • the invention is particularly concerned with the provision of a tamper evident closure for wide necked containers of relatively malleable PVC, such as sweet jars, although it also has application to such containers of a more rigid material such as PET.
  • a container having a tamper evident closure thereon, the container having a hollow body portion closed by a cap portion and the closure being characterised by at least one plug carried by one of the body portion and the cap portion and which, with the cap portion in a closed position on the body portion, is located in, to be a tight friction fit in, a corresponding recess formed in the other of the body portion and the cap portion, a region of weakness being provided between the plug and the component on which it is mounted, the arrangement being such that, on movement of the cap portion from its closed position on the body portion, said region of weakness is broken.
  • any disconnection of the plug from the component on which it is mounted, preferably the cap portion, is indicative that the container has been opened.
  • the container has an internally threaded cap portion screwed onto an externally threaded neck on the body portion, the or each plug being integrally moulded with, to depend from the lower edge of, the cap portion to be received within a corresponding recess formed in the neck of the body portion, the or each plug and the corresponding recess being aligned when the cap portion is in its closed position on the body portion.
  • each plug is mounted to the cap portion by means of a strap one end of which is secured to the bottom edge of the cap portion by a region of weakness and on the other end of which is mounted the plug.
  • Said strap may comprise a pair of parallel strap portions one end of each of which is secured to the bottom edge of the cap portion by an associated region of weakness, the plug being mounted on the other ends of said strap portions .
  • the design of the strap may be such that, with the cap portion in its closed position and with the plug located in its corresponding recess in the body portion, the strap is capable of being gripped to facilitate removal by twisting by authorised users.
  • the or each plug may be mounted to its corresponding strap by a further region of weakness whereby, on authorised opening of the container, a strap can be totally removed from the container by appropriate breakage of the regions of weakness between the cap portion and the strap and between the plug and the strap.
  • the strap may be provided with gripper means thereon to facilitate said total removal of the strap from the container .
  • the or each plug is mounted to the cap portion by means of a strap one end of which carries said plug for location in the corresponding recess in the body portion, the other end of said strap carrying a further plug for location in, to be a tight friction fit in, a corresponding recess in the cap portion, a region of weakness being provided between the further plug and the other end of said strap.
  • a further region of weakness is provided between the first mentioned plug and the one end of the strap .
  • the strap is secured to, to extend diametrically across the top of, the cap portion and downwardly from each end of the diameter, each end of the strap carrying a plug for location one in each of two diametrically opposed recesses in the body portion, regions of weakness being provided between each plug and its associated end of the strap.
  • Figs 1A, IB and 1C show part of a container according to the invention incorporating a first closure with the plug prior to location in the recess, subsequent to location in the recess, and after unscrewing and replacement of the cap respectively;
  • Figs 2A, 2B and 2C are plan views of the caps of the containers of Figs 1A, IB and 1C respectively;
  • Figs 3A, 3B and 3C are side views of the closures of Figs. 1A, IB and 1C respectively;
  • Figs 4 and 5 show further closures on containers according to the invention prior to insertion of the plugs into their recesses;
  • Figs 6 and 7 are a side view and a plan view respectively of a modification of the closure of Fig. 5, and
  • Figs 8A and 8B are side view and rear view respectively of a separate closure for a container according to the invention.
  • FIGs 1 to 3 there is shown part of a container comprising a body portion 2 with an externally threaded neck 4 closed by an internally-threaded cap 6, the fully closed position of the cap 6 being determined by abutment of the lower edge of the cap 6 with a circumferential shoulder 8 on the body portion 2.
  • the fully closed position of the cap 6, which needs to be accurately defined may be determined by co-operating abutments on the neck 4 of the body portion 2 and internally of the cap.
  • each plug 12 is attached to the cap by a strap indicated generally at 14 which includes a pair of parallel strap portions 16 extending from the plug 12 and, for each strap portion 16, a reduced thickness gate 18, the gates 18 together defining a region of weakness between the plug 12 and the cap 6.
  • the plugs 12 are configured to be a tight, friction fit in the associated recesses 10, and are located on the cap 6 such that, with the cap 6 in its fully closed position, the plugs 12 are exactly circumferentially aligned with the associated recesses 10.
  • the tamper evident closure is effected by tightening the cap 6 onto the neck 4 of the body portion 2 and then forcibly locating the plugs 12 in their associated recesses 10.
  • the outer surfaces of the plugs 12 are substantially flush with the surface of the container as can be seen from Figs IB and IC, their friction fitting in the recesses 10 being such that they cannot be removed therefrom.
  • any attempt to unscrew the cap 6 from the body portion 2 will result in tearing of the gates 18 from the lower edge of the cap 6 as clearly indicated in Fig. IC, the arrangement being such that, on return of the cap 6 to its fully closed position, the gates 14 are displaced outwardly and angularly from their original positions, as shown in Figs IC and 3C, to indicate that tampering has taken place.
  • the lengths of the strap portions 16 of the embodiment of Figs 1 to 3 may be slightly greater than as shown in those Figures, whereby said strap portions 16, with the cap 6 in its fully closed position and prior to breakage of the gates 18, project outwardly from the container to provide a loop which can be readily gripped to facilitate authorised breakage of the tamper evident closure.
  • This facility can be further improved by increasing the length of the strap portions 16 as shown in Fig 4 to provide a larger loop for authorised gripping and an even more obvious indication of tampering.
  • Fig 5 shows the embodiment of Fig 4 but in which a further line of weakness in the form of gates 18 1 is provided between the plug 12 and the adjacent end of the strap portions 16.
  • the gates 18 1 are stronger than the gates 18 whereby the latter gates 18 tear on initial turning of the cap 6 to provide evidence of tampering. It will be appreciated that, on authorised use of the container, and subsequent to opening of the cap 6 and tearing of the gates 18, the strap portions 16 can be completely removed from the container by tearing the region of weakness provided by the gates 18 1 .
  • Figs 6 and 7 show a modification of the embodiment of Fig 5, in that the strap 14 comprises a single extent and a tab 20 is integrally formed with the strap 14 to facilitate removal of the strap 14 from the plug 12 and the cap 6, the provision of the tab 18 enabling twisting of the strap 16 relative to the plug 12 and the cap 6 to break the lines of weakness provided by the gates 18,1s 1 .
  • the plugs 12 are integrally moulded with the cap 6, and the recesses 10 are formed in the body portion 2 of the container.
  • the plugs could be on the body portion 2 and the recesses in the cap 6, while the number of plugs and recesses can be chosen to suit particular requirements, be it one, two or more.
  • the strap 14 may comprise a single extent instead of a pair of parallel strap portions 16.
  • Fig 8 shows a still further variation of the invention in which the plug 12 is formed on one end of an independent strap 22, gates 18 being provided between the plug 12 and one end of the strap 22 to constitute a region of weakness.
  • a recess corresponding to the plug 24 is formed in the sidewall or in the top of the cap 6, the arrangement being such that, with the cap 6 in its fully closed position, the recesses in the cap 6 and the body portion 2 are vertically aligned, and the corresponding plugs 12, 24, which are both tight friction fits in their associated recesses, are pushed either manually or mechanically into the recesses to effect the tamper evident closure .
  • a strap which is secured to, to extend diametrically across the top of, the cap, the strap including end portions which extend downwardly from the ends of the diametrical extent thereof, each end portion carrying a plug attached thereto by a region of weakness.
  • the plugs on the strap are aligned with recesses in the body portion in which they are a tight friction fit whereby, on rotation of the cap, the regions of weakness are sheared to provide an indication of tampering.
  • the described arrangements are particularly suited to wide necked jars of, for example, malleable PVC, in that the closures cannot be defeated by distortion and/or squeezing of the neck of the container, and are relatively economic to produce without the necessity for significant adaptation of existing jars.
  • the invention also has application to wide necked jars of a more rigid material such as PET, as well as smaller containers for, for example, pills, capsules and the like.
  • Containers are often lifted by their caps, and the provision of the plug/strap arrangement of the invention is such as to strengthen considerably the connection between the cap and the body portion.
  • the invention is applicable to containers with push-on caps.
  • the regions of weakness may be formed by other than gates, for example by mechanically thinning the material to form lines of weakness. Other modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Closures For Containers (AREA)

Abstract

La présente invention concerne un récipient pourvu d'une partie corps creuse (2) fermée par une partie couvercle (6), et doté d'un système de fermeture inviolable comprenant au moins un bouchon (12) placé sur une des parties constituant le corps (2) et le couvercle (6). Lorsque la partie couvercle (6) se trouve dans une position de fermeture sur la partie corps (2), le bouchon (12) s'insère par frottement dans un évidemment correspondant (10) formé dans l'autre partie corps (2) ou couvercle (6), jusqu'à ajustement serré. Une surface fragile (18) sépare le bouchon (12) du composant sur lequel il est placé. Ce dispositif est conçu de manière à ce que ladite surface fragile (18) se rompt lorsque la partie couvercle (6) se déplace de sa position de fermeture sur la partie corps (2). Et lorsque la partie couvercle (6) retourne à sa position de fermeture, la tentative d'altération du système de fermeture est immédiatement rendue visible.
EP98907046A 1997-03-12 1998-02-25 Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable Expired - Lifetime EP0968120B1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
GBGB9705080.1A GB9705080D0 (en) 1997-03-12 1997-03-12 Tamper evident closure for containers
GB9705080 1997-03-12
PCT/GB1998/000583 WO1998040284A1 (fr) 1997-03-12 1998-02-25 Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0968120A1 true EP0968120A1 (fr) 2000-01-05
EP0968120B1 EP0968120B1 (fr) 2001-11-21

Family

ID=10809093

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP98907046A Expired - Lifetime EP0968120B1 (fr) 1997-03-12 1998-02-25 Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0968120B1 (fr)
AU (1) AU6303298A (fr)
GB (1) GB9705080D0 (fr)
WO (1) WO1998040284A1 (fr)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2013139352A1 (fr) * 2012-03-22 2013-09-26 Aptar Freyung Gmbh Récipient ayant une fermeture de distribution et fermeture de distribution pour récipient

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2785262B1 (fr) * 1998-10-29 2001-01-19 Niob Plastique Boite cylindrique equipee d'un dispositif d'inviolabilite

Family Cites Families (6)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2077977A (en) * 1934-11-01 1937-04-20 Elmer B Floback Bottle
US3604596A (en) * 1969-01-17 1971-09-14 Continental Can Co Tamper-indicating closures
DE2263763A1 (de) * 1972-12-28 1974-07-04 Union Deutsche Lebensmittelwer Behaelterverschluss mit garantiesicherung
GB2239866B (en) * 1990-01-12 1993-10-06 Lawson Mardon Tamper-evident container
US5303837A (en) * 1991-03-05 1994-04-19 Portola Packaging, Inc. One-piece fitment and plug with tamper-evident band
US5090583A (en) * 1991-03-27 1992-02-25 Magenta Corporation Tamper-evident, tamper-resistant closure

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See references of WO9840284A1 *

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2013139352A1 (fr) * 2012-03-22 2013-09-26 Aptar Freyung Gmbh Récipient ayant une fermeture de distribution et fermeture de distribution pour récipient

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP0968120B1 (fr) 2001-11-21
WO1998040284A1 (fr) 1998-09-17
AU6303298A (en) 1998-09-29
GB9705080D0 (en) 1997-04-30

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
USRE39867E1 (en) Tamper-evident container closure
US5711443A (en) Tamper-evident container closure
EP0559833B1 (fr) Couvercle a l'epreuve des spoliations et recipient
US5215204A (en) Tamper evident closure with hinged band
AU600846B2 (en) Tamper-evident buttress plug closure
US7059485B1 (en) Tamper-resistant bottle closure
US6029834A (en) Childproof and tamper-proof container closure for containers
USRE40003E1 (en) Tamper-evident container closure
US5642825A (en) Container closure having peripheral tamper-indicator
US20050035081A1 (en) Tamper resistant beverage bottle
CA2375938C (fr) Bec verseur a ouvrir en detachant
US5950849A (en) Container closure with ribbed enlarged grasping region
US4570810A (en) Cap with tamper indicating band
WO1990005681A1 (fr) Fermeture revelant une tentative d'ouverture
GB2143512A (en) Container closure
EP1650135A1 (fr) Capsule a vis pour recipient
EP0815031A1 (fr) Recipient pourvu d'un systeme inviolable
EP0968120B1 (fr) Recipient avec systeme de fermeture inviolable
JP4349698B2 (ja) プラスチックキャップ
EP0052804A1 (fr) Bouchon inviolable
US4572389A (en) Tamper indicating screw cap with satellite ring
US20050230342A1 (en) Tamperproof closing element for beverage containers
EP0618146A2 (fr) Fermeture inviolable
WO2003106286A1 (fr) Element de fermeture pour contenants pour liquides
EP0829429B1 (fr) Capuchon pour des bouteilles d'huile ou similaires

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
PUAI Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012

17P Request for examination filed

Effective date: 19990928

AK Designated contracting states

Kind code of ref document: A1

Designated state(s): GB IE

GRAG Despatch of communication of intention to grant

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOS AGRA

17Q First examination report despatched

Effective date: 20010226

GRAG Despatch of communication of intention to grant

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOS AGRA

GRAH Despatch of communication of intention to grant a patent

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOS IGRA

GRAH Despatch of communication of intention to grant a patent

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOS IGRA

RBV Designated contracting states (corrected)

Designated state(s): GB IE

GRAA (expected) grant

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009210

AK Designated contracting states

Kind code of ref document: B1

Designated state(s): GB IE

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: IE

Ref legal event code: FG4D

REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: GB

Ref legal event code: IF02

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: GB

Payment date: 20020220

Year of fee payment: 5

PGFP Annual fee paid to national office [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: IE

Payment date: 20020222

Year of fee payment: 5

PLBE No opposition filed within time limit

Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009261

STAA Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent

Free format text: STATUS: NO OPPOSITION FILED WITHIN TIME LIMIT

26N No opposition filed
PG25 Lapsed in a contracting state [announced via postgrant information from national office to epo]

Ref country code: IE

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20030225

Ref country code: GB

Free format text: LAPSE BECAUSE OF NON-PAYMENT OF DUE FEES

Effective date: 20030225

GBPC Gb: european patent ceased through non-payment of renewal fee
REG Reference to a national code

Ref country code: IE

Ref legal event code: MM4A