EP1829790A1

EP1829790A1 - Non-refillable cap for bottles containing alcohol and similar

Info

Publication number: EP1829790A1
Application number: EP05826209A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jordi Garcia Riba; Lopez Eduardo Martin
Original assignee: Plastivit SA
Current assignee: Plastivit SA
Priority date: 2004-12-16
Filing date: 2005-12-13
Publication date: 2007-09-05
Also published as: AR052812A1; WO2006064069A1

Abstract

Non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like.

The invention relates to a non-refillable cap for bottles containing alcohol and similar. The inventive cap is characterised in that the base of the washer, next to the upper face of the neck of the bottle, comprises a considerably-reinforced zone having an outer conical shape, in which the conical shape of the body of the cap can be pressure fitted such that the cap can be fixed in a secure resistant manner simply by means of axial insertion.

Description

The present invention is intended to disclose a non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like which provide appreciable characteristics of novelty and inventive step.
In non-refillable type stoppers for bottles of spirits and the like it is claimed that the stopper not only offers characteristics which prevent its direct filling after the customary screw cap of the bottle has been opened, but has characteristics which make it difficult to dismantle the stopper from the bottle in order to refill the same with beverages of lower quality.
Many systems are known by means of which the manufacturers of the non-refillable stoppers have attempted to obtain ever higher degrees of security, in order to prevent the disassembly of the stopper from the bottle after having exhausted the original contents thereof, refilling the same with other beverages. In many cases the safety measures against said disassembly are provided on the basis of means which prevent extraction by providing different radial retaining steps and making the materials more or less rigid. However, one drawback which arises with the non-refillable stoppers produced in this way is that of the mechanical complication of the manufacturing moulds and therefore, of the relatively high cost which it may involve, since the arrangement of stepped regions, radial or otherwise, inside elements of the non-refillable stopper represents a significant complication in the manufacturing moulds, which must necessarily have available a plurality of radially movable elements, which complicates their manufacture and use a great deal.
The aim of the present invention is to obtain a non-refillable stopper of the type generally known, constituted by an outer casing or tube cap, associated with the screw cap at the body, which is retained in the neck of the bottle and is complemented by a part termed a washer which is that part which is centred in the inner part of the opening of the neck of the bottle, and which on the outside is in many cases associated by means of protuberances and recesses with the body of the stopper, which is the source of complications and an increase in cost. The washer receives on the inside the valve which is of the one-way type, that is to say, it permits the outflow of the liquid as soon as the stopper has been removed by unscrewing, and does not permit the introduction of a fresh liquid, since it is arranged on a suitable seat of the washer, preventing the entry of liquid into the bottle.
The present invention is based on the constitution of a body for the stopper which is coupled to a reinforced zone of the washer simply by conical seating, that is to say, without the need for special sockets which significantly complicate the manufacture of the moulds and that of the actual parts. The body is retained below by means of the customary step in the neck of the bottle.
The tube cap is retained in an anti-rotational function with respect to the body by providing a plurality of groups of small incisive protuberances on vertical connecting bridges of the lower rim of said body, so that when the tube cap is mounted on the body, said protuberances are inserted, preventing the rotation of one element with respect to the other. The lower edge of the body is simply straight without any need for retention with the outer tube cap.
In a variant intended to obtain easy automated fitting of the stopper before the bottle filling and sealing line, and strong characteristics of resistance to any manipulation of the stopper, the essential improvement has been introduced of constituting the lower part of the body of the stopper as a plurality of independent sectors by means of separating cuts or interruptions of continuity that are substantially longitudinal, giving rise to a series of independent wings, each of which adapts, by separation from the rest, to the lower edge of the neck. The number of sections may vary, as may their specific dimensional characteristics. Likewise, although for the sake of simplicity it has been observed that the longitudinal cuts or separations are the most practical from the point of view of manufacture, neither is it excluded for said lateral separations between the different zones to be in the form of oblique or curved cuts or cuts of other type.
For greater understanding thereof, drawings corresponding to a non-refillable stopper produced according to the present invention are appended by way of non-limiting example.

Figure 1 shows a partial longitudinal section through a non-refillable stopper which incorporates the present invention.
Figures 2 and 3 are respective details of the zone of coupling of the rim of the body with the neck of the bottle with and without windows, respectively.
Figure 4 shows a view in side elevation of the body of the non-refillable stopper.
Figure 5 shows a plan view of the actual body of Figure 4.
Figures 6 and 7 show respective sections on the section planes represented in Figure 5.
Figure 8 shows a view from below of the actual body of the stopper.
Figure 9 shows a complete section of a non-refillable stopper body according to a variant.
Figure 10 shows a view in side elevation of the actual body of the non-refillable stopper of Figure 8.
Figure 11 shows a view from below of the body of the non-refillable stopper of Figures 9 and 10.
Figure 12 is a perspective view of the same variant.

As shown in the drawings, the non-refillable stopper of the present invention is intended for the non-refillable closure of a bottle, the neck 1 of which has a conventional structure, being covered externally by the tube cap 2 which in turn receives on top the overcap 3, the unscrewing of which will free the upper, open part of the body 4 equipped with the upper opening for the outflow of the liquid contained in the bottle. An intermediate valve 5 sits on the rim 6 of the inner part of the washer 7, which is coupled to the inner surface 8 of the neck 1 of the bottle and sits on the upper face of said neck. Below the valve 5 the washer 7 has an opening, defined, for example, by means of crossed radial bridges 9.
According to the present invention, the washer 7 has a reinforced structure 10, especially in the part of the base, the outer wall 11 of which is conical and is intended to receive the inner wall 12, likewise conical, of the opposite part of the body, achieving by its axial introduction a simple assembly and highly resistant wedging. The body 4 has below, as is customary, a series of steps 13 for retention with the lower edge 14 of the outer rim of the neck of the bottle, also having in the present invention an outer rim directed towards the outside 14' and intended to receive the compression action towards the inside of the tube cap 2, which increases the pressure contact of the protruding edges 13 against the step 14 of the neck of the bottle. In this way, there is a very appreciable increase in the force required to extract the stopper assembly, which is therefore much more secure against manipulation for refilling the bottle.
As can be seen in the drawings, the body 4 has the external screw thread 15 and a plurality of vertical bridges 16, 16', 16", equipped with a plurality of protuberances of small dimensions, distributed in zones, which have a pointed shape in an upward direction, being designated in the drawing by the numerals 17, 17', 17". The body 4 has at the side the customary flexibilising windows such as 19, 19' and others of smaller dimensions 20, 20'.
Figures 2 and 3 show respectively a view with the windows 18 and with the corresponding solid part. The arrangement of the conical parts 10 and 11 for retention by wedging can be seen in both.
In the lower part of the tube cap 2, in the zone indicated by the numeral 21, a series of grooves have been arranged in the tube cap which engage with respective ribs of the neck of the bottle that are located in the corresponding opposite zone.
By means of the construction shown, when the tube cap is assembled axially with the body 4 by pressure, the groups of protuberances 17, 17', 17" will bite into the material of the tube cap, obtaining an anti-rotatory effect.
In the variant of Figures 9 to 12, the body of the non-refillable stopper, which has been indicated overall by the numeral 25, is equipped below with several wings separated from one another, smoothly inclined towards the outside, and which have been indicated by the numerals 26, 27, 28 and 29 and are separated from one another by interruptions of continuity or cuts 30, 31, 32 and 33 that are longitudinal. The number of sections 26, 27, 28 and 29 may vary, four of which having been shown in the appended drawings by way of example. Likewise, the zones of separation of the different sections mentioned may be straight, substantially in planes substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of symmetry of the body of the stopper, but could be of some other different shape, such as slightly inclined, curved, etc. In all cases, what has been demonstrated to be essential for the purposes of the invention is the constitution of a plurality of lower wings 26, 27, 28 and 29 separated laterally from one another, so that each one can fit correctly by means of its lower inner edge on the lower edge of the neck of the bottle. In the present embodiment, the individual steps for the wing 28 can be seen, for example 34 and 35, which are located below the wide corresponding openings such as those indicated by the numerals 36 and 37.
With the mentioned structure, the Applicant has demonstrated that the ease of assembly of the body of the stopper in the operation of automated fitting of the stopper assembly is very much simplified, obtaining a notable saving in time and, on the other hand, the construction of the wings separated from one another in the lower part of the body of the stopper permits improved adaptation of the inner ribs of the body of the stopper in the neck of the bottle, giving rise to more even and securer clamping over the whole of the common contour between the body of the non-refillable stopper and the lower rim of the neck of the bottle.
As may be observed, by means of the production of non-refillable stoppers according to the present invention, simple manufacture of the moulds for the washer and the body is obtained, and also simple fitting of the stopper and an increased non-refilling efficacy. Greater ease of fitting of the stopper is also obtained and a greater resistance to surreptitious disassembly.
In order to obtain greater strength in the elements of the stopper, technical materials known on the market and customarily used, and having greater or lesser rigidity, will be selected in order to adjust the characteristics of the parts so as to facilitate their assembly. In particular, the body of the stopper will be made of polycarbonate, although, as can be understood, it could also be manufactured of other technical plastics materials, especially of the type suitable for preventing its deformation in the presence of heat.
Although the invention has been described with respect to a preferred embodiment of same shown in the appended drawings, it will be understood that experts in the field, after reading the description and interpretation of the drawings, could introduce modifications of different types which by equivalence could be included within the scope of the present invention, which is defined in the attached claims.

Claims

A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, of the type which comprises a tube cap externally enveloping the stopper and part of the neck of the bottle, and which receives the overcap for the opening of the stopper and which limits on the inside an inner body equipped with the opening for the controlled outflow of the liquid and which makes contact with a washer associated with the upper inner part of the neck and with the upper face of same, in which the inner one-way valve acts, characterized in that the washer has in the zone of its base adjacent to the upper face of the neck of the bottle a fully reinforced zone having externally a conical shape, in which there coincides, under pressure, a complementary conical shape of the body of the stopper, obtaining a firm and resistant fixing simply by axial introduction.
A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, according to claim 1, characterized in that the lower outer edge of the body of the stopper has an outwardly protruding rim, intended to receive the compression action towards the inside of the tube cap, increasing the retention of the inner rim of the body with the retaining step of the neck of the bottle.
A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the body of the stopper is equipped in its lower part with a plurality of wings separated laterally from one another, and provided with inner protuberances adaptable to the lower rim of the neck of the bottle.
A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, according to claim 3, characterized in that the wings are provided with a smooth inclination towards the outside.
A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, according to claim 3, characterized in that the lateral separation of the contiguous wings is effected by means of straight interruptions of continuity.
A non-refillable stopper for bottles of spirits and the like, according to claim 5, characterized in that the interruptions of continuity are determined substantially by planes parallel to the longitudinal axis of symmetry of the body of the non-refillable stopper.