EP2141088B1

EP2141088B1 - Dispensing cap

Info

Publication number: EP2141088B1
Application number: EP09163642A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ivan Rovelli
Original assignee: Capsol SpA
Current assignee: Capsol SpA
Priority date: 2008-07-03
Filing date: 2009-06-24
Publication date: 2011-08-03
Anticipated expiration: 2029-06-24
Also published as: IT1390954B1; EP2141088A1; ATE518786T1; ITMI20081221A1; ES2370965T3

Abstract

A dispensing cap (1) comprising a support element (2) provided with fixing means (3) for snap-fitting it to a pressurized container, and a pushbutton (5) hinged (4) to the support element (2), the pushbutton (5) comprising a dispenser (7) to be mounted on the hollow stem (8) of a valve of the pressurized container to dispense a product contained therein, said dispenser (7) comprising a dispensing conduit (6) freely open towards the outside and coaxial to said stem (8), and a lead-in region (10) for facilitating its coupling to said stem (8), the dispenser comprising at least one conical coupling region (11) for said stem (8) such as to be able to clamp stems (8) of different diameters/heights by means of a light interference fit.

Description

The present invention relates to a dispensing cap for use on pressurized containers provided with a dispensing valve.
Known pressurized containers, for example for air deodorants, insecticides or the like, are of cylindrical shape. They are provided at their top with a closure piece crimped along a first edge to the container side wall. At its top, the closure piece comprises a valve enabling the product to be dispensed. A flange on the valve is crimped to the closure piece. A dispensing cap is positioned on the top of the container to enable the valve to be operated.
These caps are known to comprise a first element which is snap-fitted to the container along the edge between the closure piece and the container side wall. They also comprise, hinged to the first element, a dispensing pushbutton in which a dispensing conduit is provided. This comprises a coupling region which by means of an interference fit clamps a hollow stem projecting from the container dispensing valve.
Valves are currently available with a standard flange diameter of 32/33 mm and a stem outer diameter of 4.01 mm, 3.93 mm, 4.03 mm and 4.00 mm respectively, with different heights. Each dispensing cap is suitable for mounting only on one type of container (and hence valve), namely that for which it was designed.
This causes considerable drawbacks in the case of a change of series. This is because different cap types suitable for each container and valve have to be stocked, with consequent increase in storage management costs. Documents WO 2005/120716 and US 6415989 disclose dispensing cups able to engage valve stems of different diameters. WO 2005/120716 discloses all the features of the preamble of claim 1.
An object of the present invention is to provide a dispensing cap which is adaptable to each available valve type, hence without the need to provide a specific cap for each valve type.
This and other objects are attained by a dispensing cap formed in accordance with the teachings of the accompanying claims.
Advantageously the cap in question is also adaptable to containers of different dimensions, given that it is coupled to the container along the valve flange.
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description of a preferred but non-exclusive embodiment of the dispensing cap, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a section through a detail of the cap of the present invention;
Figure 2 is a cross-section through the cap of the present invention; and
Figures 3, 4, 5 and 6 show the dispenser of Figure 1 coupled to stems of different dimensions.

With reference to said figures, these show a dispensing cap indicated overall by the reference numeral 1.
It comprises a support element 2 of bell configuration, presenting in its lower portion (Figure 2) a groove 3 within which an edge 3A is provided for snap-fitting the cap to a pressurized container (not shown).
In particular the groove 3, the edge and the radius of the support element are such as to enable it to be coupled to the edge of a valve flange mounted on the container for dispensing the product. The diameter of this flange is standard and is 32/33 mm for all types of valve; hence the support element can be connected to the edge of any commercially available valve, independently of the size of the container on which the valve is mounted.
Alternatively the support element can have a diameter such that it can be coupled to the edge present between the container wall and its closure piece to which the valve is crimped. In this case the diameter of the bottom of the cap must be adapted to the container diameter, with the cap hiding from view substantially the entire upper part of the container and valve. This is useful in some cases where it is important to obtain a pleasant appearance.
The support element is hinged at 4 to a dispensing pushbutton 5. The support element 2 and the dispensing pushbutton 5 are made in one piece by plastic moulding, the hinge at 4 being substantially a yieldable connection portion of suitable thickness.
The pushbutton 5 comprises a dispenser formed from an internally hollow cylindrical piece 6 (the cavity is not shown in the drawings for simplicity), the lower portion of which is to house the valve stem 8. A dispensing conduit 7 is formed such as to present an axis A coinciding with that of the stem 8 when the dispenser is mounted on this latter.
The lower portion of the dispenser presents a lead-in region 10 in the form of a frusto-conical surface with a very accentuated angle to the axis. This angle α is between 35º and 45º but is preferably 41º. The term "angle to the axis A" means herein the angle formed between a generator and the axis A. The diameter at the entry to this lead-in region is 6 mm.
The lead-in region 10 is followed, in the direction in which the stem is inserted into the dispenser, by a first stem coupling region 11 having a slight inclination to the axis A. This angle is not shown in the drawing, but is between 0.05º and 0.20º but preferably 0.10º to the axis A.
The first coupling region is followed, again in the direction in which the stem is inserted into the dispenser, by a second stem coupling region 12 presenting a greater inclination to the axis A. This angle is also not shown in the drawing, but is between 1.5º and 2.5º, but preferably 2º. The join between the first and second coupling region gives rise to a slope change represented in the drawing by the line 14, where the dispenser has a diameter of 4.01 mm, this being only slightly less than the diameter at the slope change 14A between the first coupling region and the lead-in.
In the described embodiment, the second coupling region 12 forms part of the dispensing conduit 7, which at its top presents a conventional dispensing hole preferably flared at 7B.
The operation of the invention is evident to an expert of the art and will therefore not be described. It should however be noted that the particular configuration of the dispensing element enables it to be coupled to the stems of all currently available valves. Specifically, valves with stems of different dimensions and heights become locked by the particular configuration of the first and second coupling region, at the moment of the initial operation of the pushbutton by the user. In this respect, the different valve stems penetrate into the dispenser to a greater or lesser extent depending on the stem radius. Various stem arrangements for different diameters are shown in Figures from 3 to 6.
In Figure 3 the stem has an outer diameter S1 of 3.93 mm and penetrates into the dispenser by a length D1 of 5.05 mm to reach its dispensing position.
In Figure 4 the stem has an outer diameter S3 of 4.01 mm and penetrates into the dispenser by a length D3 of 4 mm.
In Figure 5 the stem has an outer diameter S2 of 4 mm and penetrates into the dispenser by a length D2 of 3.46 mm. It should be noted that in this embodiment the stem edge is substantially superposed on the line 14 of slope change between the first and second coupling region.
In Figure 6 the stem has an outer diameter S4 of 4.03 mm and penetrates into the dispenser by a length D4 of 3.46 mm.
The length to which the stem penetrates into the dispenser is measured at the dispensing position and is also a function of the stem height.
The particular diameter of the lower portion of the support element 2 enables it to be directly snap-fitted onto the valve flange where this is crimped to the container.
As already stated, the outer diameter of the valve flange is standard, hence a cap 1 designed in this manner can be applied to the most varied containers, even of considerably different dimensions.
Moreover the construction of a dispensing cap which covers only the end part of the valve enables a considerable saving of plastic material to be achieved compared with traditional caps which, in addition to completely hiding the valve, also hide from view that portion lying between the container and its side wall.

Claims

A dispensing cap (1) comprising a support element (2) provided with fixing means (3) for snap-fitting it to a pressurized container, and a pushbutton (5) hinged to the support element (2), the pushbutton (5) comprising a dispenser (6) to be mounted on the hollow stem (8) of a valve of the pressurized container to dispense a product contained therein, said dispenser (6) comprising a dispensing conduit (7) freely open towards the outside and coaxial (A) to said stem (8), and a lead-in region (10) for facilitating its coupling to said stem (8), the dispenser (6) comprising at feast one conical coupling region (11,12) for said stem (8) such as to be able to clamp stems (8) of different diameters/heights by means of a light interference fit, characterised in that, the lead-in region (10) is followed by a first (11) and a second (12) coupling region which have mutually different conicities,
said first coupling region (11) having a surface forming an angle of between 0.05° and 0.20° to said axis (A), and preferably 0.10°, said second coupling region (12) having a surface forming an angle of between 1.5° and 2.5° to said axis (A), and preferably 2°.
A cap as claimed in the preceding claim, characterised in that the fixing means (3) are configured such as to fix said cap (1) to said container at the flange of said valve.
A cap as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said lead-in region (10) has a surface forming an angle of between 35° and 45° to said axis (A), and preferably 41°.