EP1124646B1 - Reservoir provided with a device for closing and/or filling and sprayer for dispensing a fluid product comprising same - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a device for closing and / or filling a sprayer tank as well as a fluid sprayer comprising a such tank. The present invention is particularly suitable for use in a spraying of liquid, in particular in the field of pharmacy.

In the field of drug sprayers, and especially in the case of devices in which the pump is pre-filled when packing the device, as is particularly the case for some monodose or bidose devices, there arises a certain number of issues that need to be resolved.

A first problem concerns the stability and the product contamination. Indeed, during his period of storage, a liquid product tends to evaporate and / or could be contaminated by external agents such as bacteria, or even oxidized by oxygen. To avoid all evaporation, tight closure and use of non-permeable materials for the constituent parts tanks are required. To avoid any contamination, it is important to minimize the number of different materials in contact with the product fluid, and these materials should also be inert vis-à-vis the product. Materials suitable for fulfill these two requirements include for example the glass for the tank, and special rubbers not interacting with the liquid product for the sealing device (s).

Another problem that arises concerns filling. Indeed, the pharmaceutical industry generally requires devices that should be easy to fill and that are, if possible, capable of being fully assembled before the drug filling process. Indeed, handling the drug is obvious the most critical step from a problem perspective may arise due to the surrounding environment, including the risk of product contamination. It is therefore important to have not only a proper filling, but above all to protect the whole filling and assembly process of effectively, which can be very complex and therefore also very expensive. On the other hand, the possibility have a device completely preassembled before its filling will become more and more important, especially in the case of single-dose sprayers or bidoses for the future use of vaccines against influenza. Indeed, in such a case, the product, by example the vaccine, will only be available for a few months before use (2 to 3 months), and filling million devices will have to be realized in a time very short. In this case, it would be very advantageous to just have to fill the tank with a device already completely assembled, the assembly may have had place at any time and without time constraint at respect.

Yet another problem which arises concerns the precompression. Indeed, in the use of sprayers, the quality of the spray and the size of particles depend on the pressure supplied to the liquid at time of his expulsion. In order to make the devices less dependent on the actuating force provided by the user, it is preferred to provide a system capable of providing sufficient precompression to the liquid before it is expelled.

At present, the available technology does not not solve all the problems, nor to fill all of the above requirements, and only partial and complex solutions are available in the state of the art.

Thus, devices have been proposed in which a membrane of any shape, material or type is fixed on the opening of the tank, said membrane being intended to be broken or torn by a device appropriate when the sprayer is operated. This solution solves the problem of stability of the product contained in the container but has the disadvantages of being relatively expensive, since the assembly operation of the membrane on the tank is quite complex. In addition, the filling is necessarily carried out before assembly of the tank in the device, and fixing the membrane requires materials, such as plastics, for welding or stick the membrane, which could cause problems related to product contamination. Furthermore, none precompression is only provided by this type of closing.

In another solution disclosed by the document FR-2 684 304, a rubber stopper, which also serves pump piston, is pierced at the time of actuation by a hollow needle which is connected to the nozzle of spraying the device. This solution allows solve the problem of stability and contamination of the product contained in the tank, since it only uses glass and rubber, but it does not overcome the problem of filling after assembly of the tank. Indeed, the tank must be filled separately before assembly end of the device. On the other hand, no precompression is not provided by this system since the resistance of the rubber at the needle penetration is very limited. In addition, the piercing provided by the needle can in some cases remove small particles of rubber that could clog the spray or be ejected into the user's nasal cavity. Moreover, although the closure is carried out in a way relatively simple, the opening of the device is complex, requires several components, and is difficult to handle, especially due to the presence of a needle.

US-3,841,329 discloses a syringe comprising a plug adapted to form the piston of dispensing when the syringe is actuated. This piston-cap has a slot which opens when the syringe is activated.

The object of the present invention is to provide a system closing and / or filling for a tank intended for use in a device for spraying, which does not have the disadvantages supra.

Thus, the present invention aims to provide a tank with a simple and effective closure which is opened by the pressure that is created inside the tank at the time of actuation, without the need for a complex opening system that removes or pierces or removes parts of components.

The present invention also aims to provide a such a tank which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and to assemble.

The present invention also aims to provide a closing and / or filling system which allows the use of a minimum of materials in contact with the product contained in the tank, and in particular glass for the tank and a rubber with inert characteristics towards the product for the closing element.

The present invention also aims to provide a closing and filling system for a tank, which can be used as a liquid inlet for a quick and easy filling, filling can in particular be carried out before the complete final assembly of the fluid dispenser incorporating said tank.

The present invention also aims to provide a opening and / or filling system that opens, to allow the expulsion of the liquid, only if a sufficiently high and predetermined pressure is created during actuation a tank, so that the product is expelled with some precompression. This is particularly advantageous as part of a system spray.

The present invention also aims to tank comprising a closure and filling which simultaneously fulfills all requirements above, i.e. it ensures the stability of the product contained in the tank, which it avoids contamination of this product by chemical interaction, that it allows a quick and simple filling of the tank, especially after final assembly of the device, and that expels the product with precompression be predetermined.

• une partie annulaire dont le diamètre extérieur correspond sensiblement au diamètre intérieur du réservoir, ladite partie annulaire étant insérée de manière étanche dans ledit réservoir, et
• une partie centrale comportant une paroi de fond qui obture de manière étanche ledit réservoir en position de repos,

caractérisé en ce que ladite paroi de fond comporte au moins une fente adaptée à s'ouvrir sous l'effet d'une pression minimale prédéterminée, de telle sorte que le produit est distribué avec une précompression prédéterminée suffisante pour obtenir une bonne pulvérisation du produit, ledit seuil de pression prédéterminé étant défini par la géométrie de ladite paroi de fond et/ou l'épaisseur de ladite paroi de fond et/ou les caractéristiques du matériau de ladite paroi de fond et/ou les dimensions de ladite fente.The present invention therefore relates to a reservoir for a fluid sprayer, said reservoir containing a fluid to be dispensed and comprising a device for closing and / or filling said reservoir, said device comprising at least one sealing element acting as a sealing cap at rest, said at least one closure element comprising:

• an annular part, the outside diameter of which corresponds substantially to the inside diameter of the tank, said annular part being sealed in said tank, and
• a central part comprising a bottom wall which seals off said tank in the rest position,

characterized in that said bottom wall has at least one slot adapted to open under the effect of a predetermined minimum pressure, so that the product is dispensed with a predetermined precompression sufficient to obtain good spraying of the product, said predetermined pressure threshold being defined by the geometry of said bottom wall and / or the thickness of said bottom wall and / or the characteristics of the material of said bottom wall and / or the dimensions of said slot.

Advantageously, said central part of said at least a sealing element has a closed axial bore on one side by said bottom wall made of a material elastically deformable, and said slot opens by deformation of said bottom wall in response to a predetermined minimum pressure exerted on it.

Advantageously, said closure element is adapted to receive the end of an actuator of a fluid sprayer, said member actuator comprising a product expulsion channel and said end of the actuator being concave so that under the effect of a predetermined pressure created inside of the reservoir upon actuation of said member actuation, said bottom wall of the element shutter is deformed towards the outside of the tank, the interior of said concave end, to achieve opening the slot and dispensing with precompression of the product contained in the through said expulsion channel.

Advantageously, the actuating member comprises a shoulder cooperating with a support zone of said element shutter to transmit the actuating force and moving said closure member into said reservoir to pre-compress the product contained in the tank.

According to an alternative embodiment, said at least obturation element adapted to receive an arrangement filling tank to fill the tank with the product before or after its assembly in a fluid dispenser.

Advantageously, said filling arrangement has a filling tube which, by exerting a certain pressure on said bottom wall, deforms it towards the inside of the tank to cross said open slot.

Advantageously, said filling arrangement has a radial flange cooperating with the element shutter and the tank wall so that the pressure exerted by the tube to pass through the slit does not move said closure member within the tank.

According to a preferred embodiment, the closing and / or filling device comprises a first sealing element acting as a plug sealing in the rest position and as piston during product distribution, and a second sealing element acting as a stopper watertight closure and / or as a filling element.

Advantageously, a hollow rigid member is disposed in said bore of said second obturation element and is suitable for receiving a filling arrangement of the tank, comprising a filling tube which, in exerting a certain pressure on said bottom wall, deforms it towards the inside of the tank to cross said open slit.

Advantageously, said hollow rigid member comprises a radial flange cooperating with the second element shutter and the tank wall so that the pressure exerted by the tube to pass through the slit does not move said second shutter member to inside the tank.

According to another alternative embodiment, the tank further includes a third closure element fixedly arranged between the first and second elements shutter, said third shutter element sealing the tank into two sub-tanks, each sub-tank containing a product different, for example a powder and a liquid, and said second shutter member further acting as piston to mix the two products in one of the sub-tanks.

Advantageously, the third obturation element has a hollow rigid member inserted in its bore central, which allows the opening of the slot in the wall of melts under the effect of a minimum pressure created in a sub-tanks, and which prevents this opening under the effect of a pressure created in the other sub-tank.

Preferably, when the filling tube of the filling arrangement passes through said slot, it open it so that an opening is formed around said tube, allowing air to escape as and as the reservoir is filled with the product.

The present invention also relates to a fluid sprayer comprising a member actuator and a tank.

Preferably, the tank is made of glass and the or the closure element (s) made of a material that is inert with respect to of the product contained in the tank, and said product is finely sprayed with precompression each actuation of the device.

• la figure 1 représente une vue schématique en coupe d'un réservoir comportant un dispositif de fermeture et de remplissage réalisé selon un premier mode de réalisation de l'invention, en position de fermeture,
• la figure 2 est une vue similaire à la figure 1 en position de distribution,
• la figure 3a est une vue schématique en coupe du dispositif des figures 1 et 2, en position de remplissage,
• la figure 3b est une vue schématique en coupe transversale selon la ligne A-A de la figure 3a,
• la figure 4 est une vue schématique en coupe d'un réservoir comportant un dispositif de fermeture et de remplissage réalisé selon un second mode de réalisation de la présente invention, en position de fermeture,
• la figure 5a est une vue schématique en coupe du dispositif de la figure 4, en position de remplissage,
• la figure 5b est un vue schématique en coupe transversale selon la ligne A-A de la figure 5a, et
• la figure 6 est une vue schématique en coupe d'un réservoir comportant un dispositif de fermeture et de remplissage réalisé selon une autre variante de réalisation de la présente invention, en position de fermeture.

These characteristics and advantages and others of the present invention will appear more clearly during the following detailed description of several embodiments of the present invention, given by way of nonlimiting examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

• FIG. 1 represents a schematic sectional view of a reservoir comprising a closure and filling device produced according to a first embodiment of the invention, in the closed position,
• FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 in the dispensing position,
• FIG. 3a is a schematic sectional view of the device of FIGS. 1 and 2, in the filling position,
• FIG. 3b is a schematic view in cross section along the line AA in FIG. 3a,
• FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view of a reservoir comprising a closure and filling device produced according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in the closed position,
• FIG. 5a is a schematic sectional view of the device of FIG. 4, in the filling position,
• FIG. 5b is a diagrammatic view in cross section along the line AA in FIG. 5a, and
• Figure 6 is a schematic sectional view of a reservoir comprising a closure and filling device produced according to another alternative embodiment of the present invention, in the closed position.

Although particularly intended for sprayers of liquid drugs, the present invention is applicable to all fluid sprayers. Only items related to this invention are shown in the drawings and described in the detailed description below, and the other parts of product distribution devices fluid, which can be any and of known type, does not are therefore neither shown nor described below.

Referring to Figures 1 to 3, it is shown a first alternative embodiment of the device closure and / or filling for tank according to the present invention. Reservoir 10, whose walls 11 are preferably made of glass, do not comprises in this variant only one opening, closed by a closing device and filling according to the invention. This device closure and / or filling has an element shutter 20 which acts as a stopper sealed in the rest position, shown in FIG. 1. This closure element 20 comprises an annular part 21 whose diameter outside corresponding substantially to the inside diameter of the reservoir 10, and a central part 22 making it possible to seal the tank in position of rest. The central part 22 has a bottom wall 23 which is provided with one or more slots 24 adapted to open under minimal pressure predetermined. Advantageously, as shown in the Figure 1, the closure element 20 has a bore axial 22 which is closed on one side by said bottom wall 23, and said bottom wall is preferably made of an elastically deformable material. advantageously, the shutter element 20, as a whole, is produced in the same material, which makes it easier to manufacture. In the variant shown on the Figures 1, 2 and 3, the closure element 20 acts as that sealing plug in the rest position (figure 1), as a piston during the distribution of the product (figure 2), and possibly as an element when the tank 10 is filled with the liquid product (Figures 3a and 3b).

The sealing is carried out in the rest position by the bottom wall 23 of the closure element 20, the slot 24 is kept sealed by the pressure exerted by the walls 11 of the reservoir 10 on the annular part 21 and the bottom wall 23 of the element shutter 20. The shutter element further comprises advantageously a radial flange 29 which extends to the outside on the upper edge of the tank 10, to form a stop against any accidental movement of the closure element 20 inside the tank 10.

For the distribution of the product, the central bore 22 the closure element 20 is adapted to receive the end 32 of an actuating member 30 of the device dispensing fluid (not shown) by through which the actuating force exerted by the user on said actuator 30 is transmitted to the closure element 20.

Said end 32 of the actuating member 30 cooperates with the central bore 22, advantageously with a support zone 28 of said closure element 20, by through a shoulder 38 of the organ actuator 30, to transmit said force actuating. Preferably, as shown in the Figure 2, the end 32 of the actuator 30 has a concave shape so that the wall of bottom 23 can deform inside said end concave 32 to allow the opening of the slot 24. Thus, with reference to FIG. 2, which represents the device being distributed, when the user exerts pressure on the actuating member 30, this pressure is transmitted to the shutter element 20. The pressure therefore increases inside the tank 10 until the predetermined minimum threshold is reached which causes the deformation of the bottom wall 23 towards the concave part of the end 32 of the organ actuation 30, and therefore the opening of the slot 24. Simultaneously, the radial flange 29 of the element shutter 20 folds down along the actuating rod 30 under the effect of the force released by the opening of the slot 24 so that the closure element 20 transforms into a sliding piston inside the walls 11 of the reservoir 10, which then forms the pump body. The precompression achieved by the closure element 20 guarantees that the product contained in the tank is expelled from the tank with optimal pressure.

The shutter member 20 then acts as piston and is moved to the bottom of the tank 10, to expel the product it contains, through the slot 24 and an expulsion channel provided in the rod actuation 30. The precompression threshold required to deform the bottom wall 23 and open the slot 24 can be determined by choosing a thickness and / or a appropriate geometry of said bottom portion 23. In particular, as shown in Figure 1, the geometry of the bottom wall 23 is such that it forms a curved surface, notably concave, on the directed side towards the actuating rod 30. This concave shape forms a resistance to deformation which makes it possible to define precisely the pressure threshold needed to the opening of the slot 24. When this threshold is reached, the slot opens instantly, reversing suddenly its curvature, as seen in Figure 2. From even, said bottom wall 23 may have a slot longitudinal 24, as shown in FIG. 3b, or two or more slots made for example in the form of cross, or any other appropriate motif.

In FIGS. 3a and 3b, the shutter element 20 of the device of Figures 1 and 2 is shown in position filling. In this embodiment, the filling is carried out through the same element shutter 20 which serves as a closure plug in rest position, and piston being dispensed. In this case, the filling must generally be carried out before the final assembly of the distribution device fluid product, in which said reservoir will be adapted. However, the tank is automatically closed as soon as end of filling by closing the slot 24 after removal of the filling tube.

To carry out the filling, an arrangement of filling 40 fits inside the bore central 22 of the closure element 20, said arrangement filling 40 comprising a radial flange part 45 cooperating with the flange 29 of the closure element 20 and the wall 11 of the reservoir 10, as shown in the Figure 3b. The filling arrangement further comprises a filling tube 41 which is supported by the outside on said bottom wall 23 to deform it, open said slot 24 and enter the interior of the tank 10. As shown schematically on the Figure 3b, we see that the penetration of the tube filling 41 through the slot 24 cleaning the openings side 27 around said filling tube 41, which allow air in the tank to escape during filling of said tank. The radial flange 45, which cooperates with both the closure element 20 and the wall 11 of the tank, avoids during application force on the bottom wall 23 to deform it to allow penetration of the filling tube 41, that said closure element 20 is not moved inside the tank.

This first variant of the present invention which has only one shutter element 20 acting at both as a closure cap, piston, and filling element solves all above problems except that it does not allow usually not filling the tank after final assembly of the product distribution device fluid.

To meet this requirement, the present invention advantageously provides a second closure element 120 arranged on the other side of the tank 10 and which acts in as a closure cap and as part of filling to allow filling of the tank, even after it has been assembled in the dispensing or spraying. The shutter element 120 is made similar to the element shutter 20, preferably it is made so identical, i.e. it includes a part annular 121 and a central portion 122, comprising preferably a central bore 122, closed on one side by a deformable bottom wall 123 which incorporates a slot 124 which can open due to force predetermined. Preferably, a hollow rigid member 130 is disposed in said bore 122 of the element of filling 120. The radial end wall 132 of said hollow rigid member 130 is preferably made of flat way, that is to say it is arranged facing said deformable bottom wall 123 by preventing the latter to deform towards the outside of the reservoir 10 under the effect of pressure created inside said tank. Thus, we ensure a perfect seal during the distribution of the product through the other tank end.

Said closure element 120 therefore acts as sealed closure cap in rest position and during product distribution.

It also acts as a filler for allow filling of the tank. To this end, the hollow rigid member 130 has a radial flange 135 which cooperates with the radial flange 129 of the element of filling 120 and with the wall 11 of the reservoir 10 of so as to prevent displacement of said element 120 inside the tank 10 when pressure is exerted from the outside on the bottom wall 123, especially during filling.

The filling of the reservoir 10 in this second variant embodiment shown in FIGS. 5a and 5b, is carried out similarly to filling the tank of the first variant shown on the Figure 3a, with the difference that this filling can be when the tank is already assembled in the fluid dispenser. Indeed, the filling assembly 140, in particular the tube filling 141 is brought through said rigid member hollow 130 to rest on the bottom wall 123, the deform and pass through slot 124. The element of filling 120 not intended to serve as piston during product dispensing, it can be easily accessible by the filling device itself when the tank is already assembled in the device. In the example shown in Figures 5a and 5b, the tank 10 is returned relative to the position shown in Figure 4 to allow air to escape through the openings 127 provided around the filling tube 141 in slot 124, and avoid any leakage of liquid through said openings 127.

The filling element 120 has been shown on the Figures 4 and 5 in conjunction with an element of filling 20 described previously in the context of the first variant.

Referring to Figure 6, there is shown a third variant, adapted more particularly a single dose drug device lyophilized. In this variant, the reservoir 10 is separated into two sub-tanks 110 and 210 by a third obturation element 220 which is fixedly disposed, via a radial flange portion 229, inside said tank 10. This third closure element 220 is made of similar to the first and second elements shutter 20 and 120, and in particular comprises a part ring 221 inserted tightly inside the reservoir 10 and a central bore 222 comprising a bottom wall 223 provided with a slot 224 adapted to open under the effect of a predetermined pressure. In this embodiment, the sub-tank 110 comprises a lyophilized powder, and the sub-reservoir 210 comprises a liquid solvent for the lyophilized drug. The second closure element 120, arranged in FIG. 6 on the lower side of the tank 10, acts in this variant as a closure cap in the rest position, possibly as part of filling to fill the sub-tank 210 but also as a piston for mixing the lyophilized product and its solvent. The actuation of this device is made in two phases. In the first phase, the liquid contained in the sub-tank 210 is transferred to sub-tank 110 through the slot 224 provided in the bottom wall 223 of the third element shutter 220 by applying pressure in the sub-tank 210 through an element actuator (not shown) acting on the organ rigid hollow 130 of the second closure element 120. Said pressure created in the sub-tank 210 causes the deformation of the bottom wall 223 and the opening of slot 224 so that the liquid solvent is transferred inside the sub-tank 110 via the piston 120. When the product and the solvent have mixed in the sub-tank 110, said mixture is expelled through the expulsion channel 31 of the organ actuator 30 by means of the first closure element 20 as described previously with reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 3. Advantageously to guarantee sealing during the expulsion of the mixture, the third filling element 220 has a hollow rigid member 230 inserted in its central bore 222 and the end 232 of which is formed flatly. In this way, the bottom wall 223 can deform in the direction of the sub-tank 110 to allow the passage of the solvent during the first phase, but cannot deform in the other direction, during a overpressure created in the sub-tank 110 during the expulsion of the mixture, thus guaranteeing sealing. The rigid member 130 inserted in the central bore 122 of the second closure element 120 advantageously has also an end 132 made in this way to avoid any solvent leakage during the first phase, during which an overpressure is created inside of the sub-tank 210. In this case, the slot 124 cannot open only inward to let a tube pass filling, if necessary.

The present invention therefore makes it possible to carry out very simple and inexpensive way a device closure and filling for tank which allows overcome all the disadvantages mentioned above. The tank may have a single closure element but in the preferred embodiment, it has two sealing elements, one at each end of the tank, the first serving as a sealed stopper in the rest position and piston when dispensing the product, and the second acting as a watertight closure cap and as a filler, allowing in particular fill the tank after assembly in a any suitable device or sprayer.

The present invention has been described with reference to three variant embodiments, but it is understood that these are not limiting, those skilled in the art can make various modifications without leaving the scope of the present invention as defined in appended claims. For example, the invention is not not limited to single dose devices. For example, stop means or the like may be provided for expel the product contained in the tank in two or more actuations of the device.

Claims (15)

1. A reservoir (10) for a fluid spray, said reservoir containing a fluid to be dispensed, and provided with a closure and/or filling device for closing and/or filling said reservoir, said device comprising at least one closure element (20, 120, 220) acting as a leaktight closure stopper when at rest, and as a piston during the dispensing of the product, said at least one closure element (20, 120, 220) comprising:

   an annular portion (21, 121, 221) whose outside diameter corresponds substantially to the inside diameter of the reservoir (10), said annular portion (21, 121, 221) being inserted in leaktight manner in said reservoir; and

   a central portion (22, 122, 222) having an end wall (23, 123, 223) which closes off said reservoir (10) in leaktight manner when in the rest position;

   said reservoir being characterized in that said end wall (23, 123, 223) is provided with at least one slit (24, 124, 224) suitable for opening under the effect of at least a predetermined minimum pressure, so that a part or the whole of the fluid contained in the reservoir (10) is first put under pressure, and then dispensed with a predetermined precompression that is sufficient to provide a good spray of fluid, said predetermined pressure threshold being defined by the geometrical shape of said end wall (23, 123, 223) and/or by the thickness of said end wall (23, 123, 223) and/or by the characteristics of the material of said end wall (23, 123, 223) and/or by the dimensions of said slit (24, 124, 224) .
2. A reservoir according to claim 1, in which said central portion of said at least one closure element (20, 120, 220) is provided with an axial bore (22, 122, 222) that is closed at one end by said end wall (23, 123, 223) which is made of an elastically-deformable material, and said slit (24, 124, 224) opens by means of said end wall (23, 123, 223) being deformed in response to at least a predetermined minimum pressure being exerted on it.
3. A reservoir according to claim 1 or 2, in which said closure element (20) is suitable for receiving the end (32) of an actuating member (30) for actuating a fluid spray for spraying a fluid, said actuating member (30) being provided with a fluid expulsion channel (31) and said end (32) of the actuating member being made to be concave so that, under the effect of a predetermined pressure generated inside the reservoir (10) when said actuating member (30) is actuated, said end wall (23) of the closure element (20) deforms towards the outside of the reservoir (10), into said concave end (32), thereby opening the slit (24), and dispensing the fluid contained in the reservoir (10) through said expulsion channel (31) and with precompression.
4. A reservoir according to claim 3, in which the actuating member (30) is provided with a shoulder (38) that co-operates with an abutment zone (28) of said closure element (20) so as to transmit the actuating force and so as to move said closure element (20) in said reservoir (10) for the purpose of dispensing the fluid in the reservoir, with precompression.
5. A reservoir according to any preceding claim, in which at least said closure element (20, 120) is suitable for receiving a filling fitting (40, 140) for filling the reservoir with the fluid before or after it is assembled in a fluid spray for spraying a fluid.
6. A reservoir according to claim 5, in which said filling fitting (40) is provided with a filling tube (41) which, by exerting a certain amount of pressure on said end wall (23), deforms it towards the inside of the reservoir so as to pass through said slit (24) as open.
7. A reservoir according to claim 6, in which said filling fitting (40) is provided with a radial flange (45) co-operating with the closure element (20) and with the wall (11) of the reservoir (10) so that the pressure exerted by the tube (41) to enable it to pass through the slit (24) does not displace said closure element (20) inside the reservoir (10).
8. A reservoir according to any preceding claim, in which the closure and/or filling device comprises a first closure element (20) acting as a leaktight closure stopper when in the rest position and as a piston while the fluid is being dispensed, and a second closure element (120) acting as a leaktight closure stopper and/or as a filling element.
9. A reservoir according to claims 2, 5, and 8, in which a hollow rigid member (130) is disposed in said bore (122) in said second closure element (120) and is suitable for receiving a filling fitting (140) for filling the reservoir, which fitting is provided with a filling tube (141) which, by exerting a certain amount of pressure on said end wall (123), deforms said end wall towards the inside of the reservoir so as to pass through said slit (124) as open.
10. A reservoir according to claim 9, in which said hollow rigid member (130) is provided with a radial flange (135) co-operating with the second closure element (120) and with the wall (11) of the reservoir (10) so that the pressure exerted by the tube (141) to pass through the slit (124) does not displace said second closure element (120) inside the reservoir (10).
11. A reservoir according to any one of claims 8 to 10, in which the reservoir (10) is further provided with a third closure element (220) disposed in fixed manner between the first and second closure elements (20, 120), said third closure element (220) separating the reservoir (10) in leaktight manner into two sub-reservoirs (110, 210), each sub-reservoir (110, 210) containing a different fluid, e.g. a powder and a liquid, and said second closure element (120) further acting as a piston to mix the two fluids in one of the sub-reservoirs (110).
12. A reservoir according to claim 11, in which the third closure element (220) is provided with a hollow rigid member (230) which is inserted in its central bore (222), which makes it possible to open the slit (224) in the end wall (223) under the effect of at least a minimum pressure generated in one of the sub-reservoirs (210), and which prevents such opening under the effect of a pressure generated in the other sub-reservoir (110).
13. A reservoir according to claims 5, 6, 7, 9, or 10, in which, when the filling tube (41, 141) of the filling fitting (40, 140) passes through said slit (24, 124), it opens said slit so that an opening (27, 127) is formed around said tube (41, 141), thereby enabling air to escape as the reservoir (10) fills with the fluid.
14. A fluid spray for spraying a fluid, said fluid spray comprising an actuating member (30) and a reservoir (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 13.
15. A spray according to claim 14, in which the reservoir (10) is made of glass, and the closure element(s) (20, 120, 220) is/are made of a substance that is inert relative to the fluid contained in the reservoir, and said fluid is sprayed finely and with precompression each time the spray is actuated.

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