EP1189648B1 - Fluid product dispensing device comprising an improved dispensing head - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fluid dispenser device comprising an improved dispensing head.

Fluid dispensing devices are well known and generally comprise a reservoir, a dispensing member, such as a pump or a valve, mounted on said reservoir, and a dispensing head for actuating the pump and thus distributing the product contained in the tank. The head is generally attached to the movable actuator rod of the pump and defines an expulsion channel leading to a dispensing orifice for dispensing the product.

Known dispensing heads may have certain disadvantages. Thus, it may happen that an unwanted or accidental removal or tearing of the pusher from its mounted position on the pump causes contamination of the product contained therein or in the tank. On the other hand, the pusher being the last piece of the fluid dispenser device that is assembled, it is desirable to simplify this assembly step as much as possible. Indeed, the manufacturer of the product to be dispensed is generally not the manufacturer of the dispensing device, so that after filling the tank, it must first mount the pump on the tank and the dispensing head on the pump . Therefore, the pump and dispensing head are usually delivered separately, and assembled at the manufacturer of the product. It may in this case be difficult to avoid any risk of contamination at the time of assembly of the head on the pump, and this assembly requires complicated tools.

Another problem that may arise with dispensing heads, including nasal-type dispensing heads, relates to the manufacture and assembly of the dispensing head itself. Indeed, especially in spray applications, it is generally necessary to create at the dispensing orifice a spray profile. However, particularly in nasal type devices, the end of the head having the dispensing orifice is relatively remote from the injection point of the mold, which makes it difficult to achieve and the accuracy of the spray profile.

Similarly, it may be desirable to avoid any risk of tearing or removal of the dispensing head to avoid various undesired manipulations from the user, such as for example a refilling of the tank.

In addition, especially with the use of a nasal pusher, it is important to clean the dispensing head, but without risking polluting the functional part of the pump, and in particular the product it contains.

Documents DE-14 91 714, US-4,830,224 and DE-41 10,304 disclose dispensing heads or pushpieces made in several parts, but none makes it possible to prevent tearing of the part incorporating the dispensing orifice. so that contamination of the product would occur if an attempt is made to tear the pusher off. DE-1491714 shows the features of the preamble of claim 1.

The present invention aims to provide a fluid dispenser device incorporating a dispensing head that does not reproduce the aforementioned drawbacks,

In particular, the present invention aims to provide a dispensing device that prevents any risk of contamination of the product.

The present invention also aims to provide a dispensing device that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and assemble.

The present invention also aims to provide a dispensing device for which the final assembly of the fluid dispenser device is simplified, particularly when the manufacturer of the product to be dispensed is different from the manufacturer of the dispensing device.

The present invention also aims to provide a dispensing device preventing tearing or removal of the dispensing head of the dispensing device after assembly.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dispensing device which can be easily cleaned without in any way affecting the functional part of the pump.

The present invention therefore relates to a dispensing device according to claim 1.

Advantageously, the inner body comprises an outer radial shoulder cooperating with a corresponding inner radial shoulder of the outer body to define the assembled position of the head.

Advantageously, the outer body is friction-fitted on the inner body.

According to an advantageous embodiment variant, the head is made in the form of a nasal pusher having a frustoconical elongated portion intended to penetrate partially into the nostril, and an enlarged portion forming an actuating surface.

According to a first embodiment, the outer body incorporates the frustoconical portion and the enlarged portion.

According to a second embodiment, the inner body incorporates the frustoconical portion and the outer body incorporates the enlarged portion.

Preferably, the inner body comprises a hollow tubular member and a frustoconical skirt extending around said tubular member to form said frustoconical portion, the free end of said skirt incorporating a radial shoulder to cooperate with the outer body.

The free end of said frustoconical skirt has a sharp edge at its axial front surface.

Advantageously, the inner body comprises fastening means, such as latching means, for attaching to said dispensing device.

The present invention also relates to a fluid dispenser device comprising a product reservoir, a dispensing member, such as a pump, having a dispensing head.

Preferably, said inner body of the head is snapped onto the actuating rod of the pump, so that in case of attempted tearing of the head, the inner body remains attached to said pump, preventing any contamination of the pump. product contained in the tank.

Advantageously, said internal body of the head comprises at the dispensing orifice a shutter.

• la figure 1 est une vue schématique en section transversale d'un dispositif de distribution de produit fluide incorporant une tête de distribution selon la présente invention, à l'état démonté,
• la figure 2 est une vue similaire à celle de la figure 1 à l'état monté,
• la figure 3 est une vue similaire à celle de la figure 2, montrant une variante de réalisation de l'invention, et
• la figure 4 est une vue schématique en section transversale d'une autre variante de réalisation de la présente invention.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will emerge more clearly in the following detailed description of several examples of embodiment of the present invention, given as non-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

• FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a fluid product dispensing device incorporating a dispensing head according to the present invention, in the disassembled state,
• FIG. 2 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 in the assembled state,
• FIG. 3 is a view similar to that of FIG. 2, showing an alternative embodiment of the invention, and
• Figure 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another alternative embodiment of the present invention.

All the exemplary embodiments shown in the figures relate more particularly to dispensing heads of the nasal pushing type. It is understood that the present invention is not limited to this particular type of dispensing head.

Referring firstly to FIGS. 1 and 2, it is respectively shown in unassembled and assembled position, a dispensing head made according to an embodiment of the present invention, cooperating with a pump 2 mounted on a reservoir 1 to form a fluid dispenser device. The reservoir and the pump can be of any type, and instead of a pump, one could very well also use a valve, such as a metering valve. The particular components of the dispensing device will therefore not be further described hereinafter.

The dispensing device according to the invention comprises an internal body 10 defining a distribution channel 11 for the product. Said internal body 10 connects in the example shown in the figures to the actuating rod of the pump, preferably sealingly. The expulsion channel 11 terminates in a dispensing orifice 12 which therefore forms part of the internal body 10. As can be seen in FIG. 1, this internal body 10 can be preassembled on the pump 2, in particular at the manufacturer of said pump. . The head further comprises an outer body 20 which defines an actuating surface 21, in this case a bearing area for the fingers in the examples shown in the drawings, on which the user presses to actuate the dispensing device . The outer body 20 is engaged on the inner body 10, as shown in Figure 2, preferably with friction, so that in case of attempted tearing of said dispensing head, only said outer body 20 is removable while said inner body 10 remains attached to said dispensing device, in this case to the pump 2.

Fixation of the inner body 10 to the pump may be effected by a narrow friction fitting which provides good resistance or, as shown in FIG. 4, by means of a latching system 18 of the lower end of the pump. internal body 10 on the actuating rod 3 of the pump 2.

Preferably, the inner body 10 has an outer radial shoulder 19 which cooperates with an inner radial shoulder 29 corresponds to the outer body 20 to define the assembled position of the head as shown in Figures 2 and 3.

Referring now more particularly to the embodiment of the nasal pusher shown in the figures, this typically includes a frustoconical elongated portion which is intended to partially penetrate the nostril, and an enlarged portion which forms the actuating surface. . According to a first variant embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the outer body 20 incorporates the frustoconical part 25 and the enlarged part 21. In this case, the internal body 10 consists of a hollow tubular element 13, in which one may optionally have an internal nozzle 14, as shown in the figures, or even a shutter 40 as visible in Figure 4. In case of attempted removal or disassembly of the pusher, only the outer body 20 is removed while the body internal 10 remains fixed on the pump, thus preventing any contamination of the product contained in the tank or in the pump, while allowing easy cleaning of the pusher.

The example shown in Figure 3 shows a variant in which the inner body 10 incorporates the frustoconical portion 15 while the outer body 20 incorporates the enlarged portion 21 forming an actuation zone. In this example, the inner body 10 comprises, in addition to the hollow tubular member 13, a frustoconical skirt 15 which extends around said tubular member 13 to form said frustoconical portion. Advantageously, the free end of said skirt 15, that is to say the lower end in the drawings, comprises the radial shoulder 19 which cooperates with the outer body 20, as well as a sharp edge 17 at the level of its axial front surface, to form a pungent area anti-tearing.

In FIG. 4, another variant is shown, in which, as previously mentioned, the inner body 10 is snapped onto the rod 3 of the pump 2, and the inner body 10 incorporates a shutter 40 placed upstream of the orifice of distribution 12, thus ensuring a perfect seal over the entire product outlet path from the tank 1 to the dispensing orifice.

• par la construction en deux parties, elle permet l'enlèvement de la partie externe uniquement et maintient la partie interne, qui incorpore l'orifice de distribution, sur la pompe, évitant ainsi tout risque de contamination, de réremplissage, etc., tout en permettant un nettoyage approfondi aisé de ladite tête de distribution,
• la fabrication de la tête en deux parties permet de préassembler le corps interne sur la pompe chez le fabriquant de la pompe, ce qui facilite grandement le montage chez le fabriquant du produit à distribuer, surtout si celui-ci est différent du fabricant du dispositif de distribution ;
• la fabrication de la tête en deux parties facilite grandement la réalisation du profil de pulvérisation au niveau du dispositif de distribution, le corps interne pouvant être réalisé sous une forme tubulaire dans laquelle il est très facile de ménager un tel profil, contrairement aux têtes nasales de l'état de la technique réalisées d'une pièce, où, en raison de la courbure nécessaire au niveau de l'extrémité du poussoir, se posent des problèmes d'épaisseur de paroi qui rendent délicate la réalisation dudit profil de pulvérisation ; dans le cas présent, ces problèmes ne se posent pas étant donné que la forme arrondie de l'extrémité de la tête peut être réalisée au niveau du corps externe qui vient s'assembler ultérieurement sur le corps interne ;
• le moulage de la tête, en particulier du corps interne et du corps externe, sont facilités par rapport au moulage d'une tête réalisée en une seule pièce.

The dispensing device according to the present invention thus provides the following advantages:

• by the two-part construction, it allows the removal of the outer part only and keeps the inner part, which incorporates the dispensing orifice, on the pump, thus avoiding any risk of contamination, refilling, etc., while allowing a thorough cleaning of said dispensing head,
• the manufacture of the two-part head makes it possible to pre-assemble the internal body on the pump at the pump manufacturer, which greatly facilitates assembly at the manufacturer of the product to be dispensed, especially if it is different from the manufacturer of the device. distribution;
• the manufacture of the two-part head greatly facilitates the production of the spray profile at the dispensing device, the internal body being able to be produced in a tubular form in which it is very easy to provide such a profile, unlike the nasal heads of the state of the art made in one piece, where, due to the curvature required at the end of the pusher, there are problems of wall thickness that make it difficult to achieve said spray profile; in this case, these problems do not arise since the rounded shape of the end of the head can be made at the outer body which is subsequently assembled on the inner body;
• the molding of the head, in particular of the inner body and the outer body, are facilitated with respect to the molding of a head made in one piece.

Of course, the examples described above with reference to the accompanying drawings are given for illustrative purposes only and do not limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims.

Claims (11)

1. A fluid dispenser device comprising a fluid reservoir (1), a dispenser member (2) such as a pump, and a dispenser head (10,20), said dispenser head comprising an inner body (10) defining a dispensing channel (11) for the fluid, said channel (11) being terminated by a dispensing orifice (12), and a separate outer body (20) defining an actuating surface (21) on which the user presses to actuate the dispenser device, said outer body (20) being fitted over said inner body (10) in removable manner such that, characterized in that said inner body (10) incorporating said dispensing orifice (12) is fixed in non-removable manner to said dispenser device in the event that an attempt is made to tear off or to remove said dispenser head, only said outer body (20) is removable, said inner body (20) remaining fixed to said dispenser device.
2. A device according to claim 1, in which the inner body (10) has an outside radial shoulder (19) co-operating with a corresponding inside radial shoulder (29) of the outer body (20) to define the assembled position of the head.
3. A device according to claim 1 or 2, in which the outer body (20) is a push fit on the inner body (10).
4. A device according to any preceding claim, in which said head is in the form of a pusher for a nasal applicator, the pusher comprising a frustoconical elongate portion (15, 25) designed to penetrate in part into the nostril, and a wider portion (21) forming the actuating surface.
5. A device according to claim 4, in which the outer body (20) incorporates the frustoconical portion (25) and the wider portion (21).
6. A device according to claim 4, in which the inner body (10) incorporates the frustoconical portion (15), and the outer body (20) incorporates the wider portion (21).
7. A device according to claim 6, in which the inner body (10) comprises a hollow tubular member (13), and a frustoconical skirt (15) extending around said tubular member (13) to form said frustoconical portion, the free end of said skirt (15) incorporating a radial shoulder (19) for co-operating with the outer body (20).
8. A device according to claim 7, in which the free end of said frustoconical skirt (15) is provided with a sharp edge (17) at its axial end surface.
9. A device according to any preceding claim, in which the inner body (10) is provided with fixing means (18), such as snap-fastening means.
10. A device according to any preceding claim, in which said inner body (10) of the head is snap-fastened to an actuating rod (3) of the pump (2) so that, in the event that an attempt is made to tear off or remove the head, the inner body (10), together with the closure means (40), remains fixed to said pump (2), thereby preventing any contamination of the fluid contained in the reservoir (1).
11. A device according to any preceding claim, in which said inner body (10) of the head is provided with closure means (40) at the dispensing orifice (12).

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