EP1615525B1 - Single-dose cosmetic sample dispenser - Google Patents

Abstract

The distributor has a cylinder (18) defining a chamber receiving a liquid substance e.g. cosmetic substance and closed by a piston and a stopper at respective ends. The stopper (16) moving between open and closed positions includes a skirt applied against the cylinder. A tubular part maintains the stopper in closed position and blocks the translation with respect to the piston and is released by a divisible part. The skirt has a radial slit cooperating with another slit in another end of the cylinder in the open position, so that chamber opens outwards.

Description

The present invention relates to a fluid sample dispenser, particularly but not exclusively for cosmetic substances.

Known dispensers comprise a cylinder which defines a chamber intended to receive said substance. The cylinder is closed at a first end by a piston adapted to slide inside said cylinder and at a second end by a cap. The cap is rotatable relative to the cylinder between an open position and a closed position. Said dispenser has locking means to prevent the piston from being accidentally depressed into said cylinder, which could expel said substance out of said chamber if the cap was inadvertently in an open position.

Such a dispenser is described in particular in the document FR 2 826 245.

In this document, the second end of the cylinder has at least one upper wall portion perpendicular to the axis of the cylinder in which is formed an orifice located outside the axis of rotation of the cap and the cap has a suitable wall portion to come to bear against said orifice to close it, said wall portion having a bore leading to the outside of said cap and adapted to cooperate with said orifice. Thus, said cap is adapted to be rotated so as to make the bore coincide with said orifice to extract said fluid substance.

Furthermore, the cylinder comprises a removable skirt forming the locking means, said skirt extends around said piston to its base to prevent the piston is inadvertently drive into the cylinder.

However, the locking means do not allow to prevent the cap is driven into said open position, at least before a first use, nor to completely avoid the depression of the piston which can be operated easily under the skirt.

An object of the present invention is then to provide a sample dispenser which allows, before a first use, both to lock the cap in the closed position, but also to prevent the relative movement of the piston and said cylinder.

For this purpose, the present invention proposes a sample dispenser for a fluid substance, in particular for cosmetic substances, said dispenser comprising a cylinder which defines a chamber intended to receive said substance and which is closed at a first end by a piston adapted to slide in said cylinder and at a second end by a cap, rotatable between an open position and a closed position, said dispenser having locking means; said cap comprises a skirt adapted to be applied against the wall of said cylinder, said skirt having a first radial slot intended to cooperate with a second radial slot formed in said second end of said cylinder in said open position for said chamber to open towards the outside, and said locking means comprise a tubular member adapted to maintain said cap in said closed position and to lock it in translation relative to said piston, said tubular member having a breakable portion for releasing said cap of said tubular member.

Thus, an advantageous characteristic of the invention lies in the mode of immobilization of said cap relative to said piston before a first use by a tubular member of which a portion is breakable. In this way, before said breakable part was removed, the cap and the piston could not be driven towards each other and the piston could not be driven into the cylinder. We are absolutely sure that the distributor has not been used yet.

Preferably, said tubular member and said cylinder have means for locking in rotation, one with respect to the other and said tubular member and said cap are integral with each other in rotation so as to lock in rotation said cap relative to said cylinder in said closed position. Thus, not only is the piston locked in translation relative to the cylinder and the fluid composition it contains could not be ejected, but also, said fluid composition has necessarily been substantially hermetically protected before said breakable part n ' has been removed.

After the breakable portion has been removed, the cap and the piston are released from each other and the cap is rotatable in an open position where the two radial slots are arranged facing one another. the other. Then, driving said cap towards the piston makes it possible to force it into the chamber and to expel at least a part of the liquid substance that it contains through the radial slots so that said liquid substance flows laterally outside the distributor. . The radial slots make it possible to shorten the path of passage of the liquid substance between the chamber and the outside with respect to the devices of the prior art.

Advantageously, as will be explained in more detail in the following description, the cap has a nozzle for channeling the liquid substance.

According to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, said tubular member has a portion of body integral with said breakable portion, said piston being held in translation in said body portion, spaced from its internal wall so as to leave a cylindrical free space between said piston and said inner wall, wherein said cylinder is receivable. Thus, translational drive of said cap to said body portion causes relative movement of said piston in said cylinder while said cylinder is driven into said cylindrical free space.

Thus, thanks to this feature, not only the piston that will enter the cylinder is preserved dust or blows that could affect the seal between the piston and the cylinder, but the cylinder is inserted during compression between the part body and piston. In this way, the body portion is adapted to be held in the hand while with the thumb resting on the cap the cylinder is driven towards the piston which compresses the liquid substance of the chamber, the cylinder sliding under the part of body without hindrance for the operator.

According to a first embodiment of the invention which is particularly advantageous, said first end of said cylinder comprises a flange having a radial groove capable of being driven into said cylindrical free space and in that said body portion has an internal longitudinal rib adapted to being engaged in said radial groove to form said locking means in rotation of said cylinder with respect to said tubular member. Thus, thanks to this feature, the cylinder being rotatably connected with the body portion which itself is adapted to be connected to the cap by said breakable portion, said cap is adapted to be held in closed position relative to said cylinder. Further, after said breakable portion has been removed the cap is rotatable by holding the body portion in a fixed position without the cylinder being also rotated by the frictional forces appearing between the cap and the cylinder.

According to this first embodiment and in a preferential manner, said body portion has internal retaining means against which said flange is adapted to abut in order to lock in translation said cylinder with respect to said piston in opposite directions. one of the other.

In this way, the piston being held in translation in said body part, and said cylinder, thanks to its flange being held in translation relative to said body part, said piston which closes the first end of the cylinder is likely to be maintained in this position without him escaping. As will be explained in more detail in the following description this configuration which is obtained during the filling of the cylinder and after the chamber has been closed hermetically, allows to seal the dispenser and to avoid any inadvertent opening.

According to a second particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, the end of said piston opposite said cylinder is extended by a concentric sleeve which surrounds said piston, the inner surface of said sleeve being remote from the outer surface of said piston so as to form a concentric tubular space adapted to receive said cylinder, and said sleeve is adapted to be housed in a first cylindrical portion of said free space, against said inner wall of said body portion, said concentric space coinciding with a second cylindrical portion of said free space in which said cylinder is adapted to be driven.

As will be explained in more detail in the following description, this feature has advantages for mounting the dispenser according to the invention and allows a stiffening of the assembly.

Preferably, the end of said piston adapted to slide in said cylinder comprises a flared circular sealing lip adapted to bear against the inner wall of said cylinder. Thus, when the piston is driven into the cylinder, the internal pressure of the chamber tends to press said lip against the inner wall of the cylinder, which increases the seal between the piston and the cylinder during the ejection of the fluid substance.

According to another embodiment of the invention which is particularly advantageous, said second end of said cylinder has a cross-section portion smaller than that of said cylinder to form an internal shoulder and in that said skirt intended to be applied against the inner wall said cylinder, comprises a peripheral ring projecting from the surface of said skirt and adapted to bear against said shoulder for locking said cap in translation relative to said cylinder.

In this way, one by the cap is locked in translation relative to the cylinder and secondly, the cap is guided in rotation relative to the cylinder not only by the skirt against the inner wall of said second end portion but also by the ring which is in support against the shoulder.

Thus, in this configuration and in a particularly advantageous embodiment, said peripheral ring is interrupted to form two free ends of stop, and said internal shoulder comprises a stop extending in the vicinity of the surface of said skirt between said two free stop ends for limiting in rotation the stroke of said cap relative to said cylinder between said closed position in which one of the free stop ends bears against a face of said stop and said open position in which the another of said free stop ends bears against the opposite face of said stop.

Thus, by extending the ring on three quarters of the periphery of the skirt there are two limit positions spaced substantially by a quarter turn to seal said cylinder.

Very advantageously, said tubular member and its body portion provided with said inner longitudinal rib and said cap are adapted to be molded in one piece of plastics, which makes it possible to obtain a dispenser at a very advantageous cost.

Of course, the piston and its concentric sleeve are also molded in one piece and the cylinder. In this way, with only three distinct parts easy to produce by molding, it is possible to make the dispenser according to the invention.

• la Figure 1 est une vue schématique d'arrière d'un distributeur conforme à l'invention dans un premier état ;
• la Figure 2 est une vue schématique en coupe axiale du distributeur illustré sur la Figure 1 selon le plan II-II parallèle au plan de la Figure ;
• la Figure 3 est une vue en coupe axiale du distributeur illustré sur la Figure 1 selon le plan III-III perpendiculaire au plan de la Figure ;
• la Figure 4 est une vue en coupe axiale du distributeur conforme à l'invention dans un second état ; et,
• la Figure 5 est une vue schématique particulière de dessous de l'objet de l'invention représenté sur la Figure 3.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent on reading the following description of particular embodiments of the invention, given by way of indication but not limitation, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

• Figure 1 is a schematic rear view of a dispenser according to the invention in a first state;
• Figure 2 is a schematic axial sectional view of the dispenser shown in Figure 1 along the plane II-II parallel to the plane of the Figure;
• Figure 3 is an axial sectional view of the dispenser shown in Figure 1 along the plane III-III perpendicular to the plane of the Figure;
• Figure 4 is an axial sectional view of the dispenser according to the invention in a second state; and,
• Figure 5 is a particular schematic bottom view of the object of the invention shown in Figure 3.

Figure 1 illustrates a dispenser according to the invention in an external rear view in a first locked state indicating that it has not yet been actuated. Said dispenser generally has a cylindrical envelope of symmetry and appears in Figure 1 as shown, a tubular member 10 consisting of a body portion 12 and a breakable portion 14 which connects the body portion 12 to a cap 16 partially surrounding a cylinder 18, here three quarters of the circumference of the cylinder 18.

Reference will be made to the sectional views of Figures 2 and 3 and the bottom view of Figure 5, the constituent elements of the dispenser.

Figure 3 shows the body portion 12 extended by the breakable portion 14 which together form the tubular member 10, and the cap 16 which overcomes the breakable portion 14 and closes an upper end 20 of the cylinder 18. The latter defines a chamber 21 which is likely to contain a fluid substance, as will be explained in the following description.

The cap 16, the breakable portion 14 and the body portion 12 form a single piece which has a first annular constriction 22 and a second annular constriction 24, delimiting the three pieces; these annular constrictions 22, 24 constituting thinned wall portions allowing later tearing the breakable portion 14 and completely separate it from the cap and the body portion 12, as will be explained in more detail in the following description.

In addition, in this Figure 3 in section there is a piston member 26 consisting of a piston portion 28 which is partially engaged in a lower end 30 of the chamber 21, and a concentric sleeve 31 which extends said portion of piston 28 surrounding it; the piece 26 thus having a radial section U.

The piston portion 21 seals the lower end 30 of the chamber in a sealed manner with a flared circular lip 32 which bears against the inner wall 34 of the chamber 21. Furthermore, the end of said piston portion 28 opposite said cylinder 18 forms a bottom 36 to which is connected the concentric sleeve 31 which surrounds said piston. The concentric sleeve 31 is spaced from the piston portion 28 to form a concentric space 38 and is pressed against an inner wall 40 of the body portion 12, the bottom 36 flush with an open end 42 of the body portion 12.

The body portion 12 forms a cylinder of revolution in which said piece 26 and the concentric sleeve 31 extends between the open end 42 and an upper end 44. This upper end 44 is tightened against the outer wall 45 of the cylinder 14 forming an internal shoulder 46 against which the edge of the concentric sleeve 31 bears. This upper end 44 tightened is extended by the breakable portion 14 which it is distinct thanks to the first annular throat 22.

The cylinder 18 is meanwhile retained in translation in a direction opposite to the piston portion 28, in the upper end 44 tightened by a flange 48 projecting in the vicinity of the lower end 30 and which bears against the shoulder 46. Of course, the diameter of the flange 48 is smaller than the diameter of the concentric sleeve 31, firstly to fully rest against the shoulder 46 adjacent the edge of the concentric sleeve 31 and secondly to be driven in translation in the concentric space 38 with the cylinder 18 without frictional stress, as will be explained in the following description.

FIG. 3 shows a longitudinal rib 50 extending from the shoulder 46, directly above the outer wall 45 of the cylinder in the concentric space 38 against the concentric sleeve 31 and to the bottom 36.

In Figure 5, which shows a bottom view of the object shown in Figure 3 freed from the piece 26, there is the longitudinal rib 50 and the shoulder 46 from which it extends freely. Furthermore, the flange 48 of the cylinder 18 has a groove 52 in which is engaged the longitudinal rib 50. In this way, the cylinder 18 is kept rotated and thus indexed relative to the body portion 12. In contrast, the cylinder 18 is adapted to slide in the concentric space 38, the longitudinal rib engaged in the groove 52 being intended to guide it in translation over the entire stroke of its displacement.

In FIG. 3, the upper end 54 of the cylinder 18, opposite the lower end 30, forms a recess with respect to the cylinder 18 defining an internal shoulder 56 and an external shoulder 58. The cap 16 has a suitable inner skirt 60 to be applied against the inner wall of the upper end 54, the free edge of the inner skirt having a peripheral ring 62 projecting and resting on the shoulder 56 intended to block the cap 16 in translation relative to the cylinder 18 .

In addition, the cap 16 has an upper wall 64 to which is connected the inner skirt 60 and which extends radially around the inner skirt beyond the free edge of the upper end 54 of the cylinder 18. An outer skirt 66 , concentric with the inner skirt 60, extends from the upper wall 64 against the outer wall of the upper end 54 to the outer shoulder 58.

It is at the level of the external shoulder 58 that the breakable portion 14 and the external skirt 66, delimited by the second annular constriction 24, are connected.

Furthermore, the space between the two skirts, internal 60 and external 66, forms a portion of passageway opening to the upper end 68 of the cap 16 forming a dispensing spout and which will be detailed with reference to the Figure 4

As shown in Figure 3, the upper end 54 extends in said space between the two skirts and closes a first radial slot 70 appearing in section.

This radial slot 70 formed in the inner skirt 60, as well as the peripheral ring 62 which extends over three quarters of the periphery of the edge of the inner skirt, forming two free stop ends, is found in FIG. , 74. Indeed, the inner shoulder 56 has a stop 76 which extends in the extension of the inner wall of the inner skirt 54 towards the lower end 30 of the chamber 21, against the two opposite faces of which the two free stop ends 72, 74 are respectively likely to bear. Of course, this is possible insofar as the cap 16 is rotatable relative to the cylinder 16 as will be explained below.

Figure 2 shows the dispenser according to the invention in axial section, shifted 90 ° in rotation relative to the representation of Figure 3, in the trigonometric direction seen from above.

Thus appear the cap 16 whose distributor nozzle is oriented towards the rear and the inner skirt 60 in which is formed the radial slot 70. In addition, also appears in this Figure 2, the stop 76 projecting from the shoulder 56.

In addition, this Figure 2 illustrates a second radial slot 78 which is formed in the upper end 54 of the cylinder 18 from its free edge. This second radial slot is completely closed by the walls of the two skirts, internal 60 and external 66; and it will be noted that the radial slots 70, 78 are shifted by 90 ° relative to one another.

Thus, the upper end 54 of the cylinder 18 is closed substantially sealingly by the cap 16.

Advantageously, the body portion 12, the breakable portion 14 and the cap 16 are molded in one piece of plastic, and the cylinder 18 is then fitted into the tubular member 10, the upper end 54 embedded in the cap 16, as shown in Figure 2.

Subsequently, the chamber 21 delimited by the cylinder 16 can be filled with a fluid substance, for example a cosmetic substance, and then closed at its lower end 30 by means of the piston portion 28 by engaging the piece 26. in the body portion 12 from the open end 42. The piece 26 is held in a fixed position in the body portion 12 through an inner peripheral ring 80 bordering the open end 42 against which the bottom 36 abuts.

In this way, the dispenser thus produced is suitable for use.

To do this, firstly remove the breakable portion 14 which partially surrounds the cylinder 18 as shown in Figure 1. This operation is carried out simply by pulling on one of its free ends and unwinding, this which causes tears at the annular constrictions 22, 24.

In this way, the cap 16 is free relative to the body portion 12 and thus partially free in rotation with respect to the cylinder 18. The rotation of the cap 16 is indeed limited by the stop 76 and the free ends stop 72 74. In FIG. 5, the stop free end 74 abuts against the stop 76 in a closed position as it appears in FIG. 3. From this representation illustrated in FIG. 3 and in FIG. considering that the breakable portion 14 has been removed, the cap 16 is held in a fixed position and the body part 12 is rotated by 90 ° in rotation in the counterclockwise direction in a view from below, which consequently causes the cylinder 18 thanks to the cooperation of the longitudinal rib 50 and the groove 52 of the collar 48, and positions the second radial slot 78 opposite the first radial slot 70. This leads to a state of the dispenser, as shown in Figure 4, in which on the one hand, the cap 16 is free of the part of body 12 and therefore of the piston portion 28 and secondly a passageway F between the chamber 21 and the outside of the dispenser has been formed.

In this way, when a stress is placed on the cap 16 towards the body portion 12, the cylinder 18 tends to penetrate into the concentric space 38 and simultaneously the piston portion 28 into the chamber 21, which has the effect of expelling the substance it contains through the way of passage F.

Claims (10)

1. Dispenser of samples of liquid substances, mainly of cosmetic substances, said dispenser comprising a cylinder (18) which defines a chamber (21) intended for receiving said substance and which is closed off at a first end (30) by a piston (28) adapted to slide inside said cylinder (18) and at a second end (54) by a cap (16) that is rotatingly mobile between an open position and a closed position, said dispenser comprising locking means;
   characterised in that said cap (16) comprises a skirt (60, 66) adapted to be applied against the wall of said cylinder (18), said skirt (60, 66) having a first radial slot (70) intended to cooperate with a second radial slot (78) made in said second end (54) of said cylinder (18) in said open position so that said chamber (21) opens to the outside,
   and in that said locking means comprise a tubular element (10) adapted to hold said cap (16) in said closed position and to block its translation movement in relation to said piston (28), said tubular element (10) having a divisible part (14) for releasing said cap (16) from said tubular element (10) .
2. Sample dispenser according to claim 1, characterised in that said tubular element (10) and said cylinder (18) have means for blocking their rotation (48, 50, 52) in relation to each other, and in that said tubular element (10) and said cap (16) are solidly attached to each other rotatingly so as to block the rotation of said cap (16) in relation to said cylinder (18) in said closed position.
3. Sample dispenser according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that said tubular element (10) has a part of its body (12) solidly attached to said divisible part (14), said piston (28) being held so as to move in translation inside said part of the body (12) spaced out from its internal wall such as to leave a cylindrical space free between said piston (28) and said internal wall, in which said cylinder (18) is likely to be housed.
4. Sample dispenser according to claims 2 and 3, characterised in that said first end (30) of said cylinder (18) comprises a collar (48) with a radial groove (52) that can be driven in said cylindrical free space and in that said part of the body (12) has a longitudinal internal rib (50) adapted to be inserted in said radial groove (52) to form said means for blocking the rotation of said cylinder (18) in relation to said tubular element (10).
5. Sample dispenser according to claim 4, characterised in that said part of the body (12) has internal restraint means (46) against which said collar (48) is adapted to rest in order to block the translation movement of said cylinder (18) in relation to said piston (28) in opposite directions to each other.
6. Sample dispenser according to any one of the claims from 3 to 5, characterised in that the end of said piston that is opposite said cylinder (18) is extended by a concentric sleeve (31) which surrounds said piston (28), the internal surface (40) of said sleeve (31) being at a distance from the external surface of said piston (28) so as to form a tubular concentric space (38) that can house said cylinder (18),
   and in that said sleeve (31) is adapted to be housed in a first cylindrical portion of said free space, against said internal wall of said part of the body (12), said concentric space matching a second cylindrical portion of said free space in which said cylinder (18) is adapted to be driven.
7. Sample dispenser according to any one of the claims from 1 to 6, characterised in that the end of said piston (28) adapted to slide in said cylinder (18) comprises a flared circular watertightness lip (32), adapted to rest against the internal wall (34) of said cylinder (18).
8. Sample dispenser according to any one of the claims from 1 to 7, characterised in that the second end (54) of said cylinder (18) has a portion with a straight section that is smaller than that of said cylinder (18) so as to form an internal shoulder (56) and in that said skirt (60) intended to be applied against the internal wall of said cylinder (18) comprises a peripheral cord (62) which projects from the surface of said skirt (60) and is adapted to rest against said shoulder (56) so as to block the translation movement of said cap (16) in relation to said cylinder (18).
9. Sample dispenser according to claim 8, characterised in that said peripheral cord (62) is interrupted so as to form two free stop ends (72, 74), and in that said internal shoulder (56) comprises a stop (76) that extends near the surface of said skirt (60) between said two free stop ends (72, 74) so as to limit the rotation of the travel of said cap (16) in relation to said cylinder (18) between said closed position in which one of the free stop ends (72, 74) is resting against one face of said stop (76) and said open position in which the other one of said free stop ends (72, 74) is resting against the other face of said stop (76).
10. Sample dispenser according to claim 3 and according to any one of the claims from 1 to 9, characterised in that said tubular element (10) and said cap (16) are adapted to be moulded as a single piece from plastic materials.

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