EP2178765B1 - Self-opening closure with air inlet channel for composite packaging or for container necks to be sealed with foil material - Google Patents

Abstract

The self-opening closure includes a pouring spout (10), which can be assembled leak-proof on a combipack or a container spout sealed with foil material, twist cap (9) and a self-opening sleeve (1) arranged inside the pouring spout, which can be made to rotate by the twist cap. The self-opening sleeve forms on its upper edge an indentation (4), which becomes smaller towards the bottom edge (6) and tapers off into the same. There are guiding means present on the outer side of the self-opening sleeve and on the inner side of the pouring spout so that the self-opening sleeve is guided downwards by rotation on the pouring spout. The indentation (4) lies partially inside the pouring spout and partially below the same after unscrewing of the cover cap and forms an air inlet channel, which results in a steady outpour of the liquid content of a combipack.

Description

This invention relates to a self-opener closure with air inlet duct for composite packages as well as with foil material to be sealed container neck of all kinds. It is especially thought of liquid packages in the form of such composite packages of foil-coated paper in which about milk, fruit juices, all kinds of non-alcoholic drinks or liquids in general be packed in the non-food area. This film-coated paper is a laminate material, such as a paper or board web coated with plastic such as polyethylene and / or aluminum. Common volumes of such packages range from 20cl up to 2 liters and more. Alternatively, the self-opener closure can also be mounted on containers which are closed by a film material, for example on all kinds of containers made of glass or plastic or similar containers, which are tilted over a more or less defined axis for pouring the contents. Such plastic closures are known in various designs, but without specifically defined air inlet duct. They form, when they are intended for a composite package, essentially a spout with radially projecting shoulder from its lower edge, which forms a final flange at this spout. The nozzle is equipped with an external thread on which a threaded cap can be screwed as a closure. Such a self-opening closure is flanged onto the composite package by using the underside of its projecting edge, so with the underside of its flange, is sealingly welded or glued to the composite package. The free passage at the lower end of the nozzle is then closed by the laminate or the sealing film of the composite package.

The film-reinforced paper passing through below the welded-on nozzle or the film membrane running inside the nozzle must be cut open, torn open or pushed away so that the passage is released and the liquid can be poured out of the container through the nozzle. For this purpose, a sleeve is arranged in the interior of the nozzle, which is driven when turning the screwed cap of this. By guides on the inside of the nozzle and on the outside of the sleeve this moves when unscrewing the threaded cap, that is, when this moves against the liquid pack upwards, steadily down. The lower edge of the sleeve is equipped with one or more incisors. As a result, as a result of its movement, the sleeve cuts out a disk from the film-reinforced paper passing through it or from the film membrane there, and then presses it downwards. There are self-opening sleeves, which are pushed purely axially downwards due to the drive means. Others then do a pure rotation. Also, there are those in which these two movements are superimposed into a helical shape or a spiral with initially large and gradually decreasing slope.

The closest prior art documents are EP-A-1 262 412 and DE 30 39 299 A1 , They disclose or teach air passage solutions based on breakthroughs and / or through channels to improve pouring performance. The other documents WO 2006/050624 A . WO 03/101843 A . WO 2004/000667 A come from the applicant and show genus-related closures, but still without measures for improved pouring behavior. Such conventional self-opener closures are still capable of improvement, especially as regards the pouring behavior. Because these self-opener closures have no defined air intake when Pouring out, the pouring is done in heavy tilting position, which is in practice unpleasant and leads to the spillage of content.

The object of the present invention is to provide a self-opener closure for composite packages or for container material to be sealed or already closed with film material container neck, which allows a clean and controlled and continuous pouring of the liquid contents.

This object is achieved by a self-opener closure for composite packages as well as for sealing with foil material container neck, consisting of a spout nozzle, which is sealingly mounted on a composite package or on a container material to be sealed with container neck, an associated rotary cap and one within the spout Stutzen arranged self-opener sleeve, which is displaceable by the rotary cap, and which is characterized in that the self-opening sleeve to form an air inlet channel at the upper edge forms a recess which is smaller towards the lower edge and in the lower, in plan view circular edge expires.

In the figures, an advantageous embodiment of this self-opener closure is shown in different views. With reference to these figures, the self-opener shutter will be described in detail below and its function will be explained and explained.

Figur 1:

Die Selbstöffner-Hülse des Verschlusses perspektivisch dargestellt, mit der dem Betrachter zugewandten Stelle mit der Einbuchtung;

Figur 2:

Den Selbstöffner-Verschluss von schräg unten gesehen, mit der inliegenden Selbstöffner-Hülse in ihrem Ausgangszustand;

Figur 3:

Den kompletten Selbstöffner-Verschluss mit seinen drei Teilen, nämlich der Deckelkappe, dem Ausguss-Stutzen und der Selbstöffner-Hülse, nach dem Losschrauben und Entfernen der Deckelkappe;

Figur 4:

Den Selbstöffner-Verschluss in einem diametralen Schnitt dargstellt;

Figur 5:

Eine Selbstöffner-Hülse mit einer Variante, nämlich einer Ausschneidung an der Einbuchtung;

Figur 6:

Den kompletten Selbstöffner-Verschluss mit seinen drei Teilen von schräg unten gesehen, nämlich der Deckelkappe, dem Ausguss- Stutzen und der Selbstöffner-Hülse, nach dem Losschrauben und wieder Aufsetzen der Deckelkappe;

Figur 7:

Den geöffneten Selbstöffner-Verschluss montiert auf eine Verbundpackung.

It shows:

FIG. 1:

The self-opener sleeve of the closure shown in perspective, with the viewer facing the point with the indentation;

FIG. 2:

The self-opener closure seen obliquely from below, with the in-lying self-opener sleeve in its initial state;

FIG. 3:

The complete self-opening closure with its three parts, namely the lid cap, the spout and the self-opening sleeve, after unscrewing and removing the lid cap;

FIG. 4:

The self-opener closure in a diametrical section dargstellt;

FIG. 5:

A self-opening sleeve with a variant, namely a cut-out at the indentation;

FIG. 6:

The complete self-opener closure with its three parts seen obliquely from below, namely the lid cap, the spout and the self-tapping sleeve, after unscrewing and replacing the cover cap;

FIG. 7:

The opened self-opener closure mounted on a composite package.

In FIG. 1 is the self-opener sleeve 1 of this self-opener closure shown as a separate part. The lower edge 6 forms a plurality of incisors 2, each of which expire in a sharp edge. These incisors 2 are used to puncture a running under the self-opening shutter slide and their subsequent slicing, so that a disc is cut almost all around. As a special feature, this self-opener sleeve 1 forms at its upper edge 5 a recess 4, which becomes smaller towards the lower edge 6 of the self-opening sleeve and finally ends in the circular lower edge seen from above. This indentation 4 is curved, which is here indicated by the broken auxiliary lines 3, and forms the shape of a blade or a spoon. Towards the lower edge 6 of the self-opening sleeve 1, it has an ever decreasing radius of its curvature of curvature and finally leads into the lower edge 6. However, the curvature or curvature of this indentation 4 does not have to be the same size everywhere, but can, as in the example shown, approximately form a corner on one side of the rounding, which is indicated here by a broken auxiliary line 7. This will be in the upper Region of the recess 4, formed on the outside of the sleeve 1, a shoulder 8, which serves as a stop surface for a drive cam on the inside of the lid cap. In another embodiment, a shoulder may be formed on the opposite side in the circumferential direction of the self-opener sleeve, so that then the drive cam engages the indentation 4 from within the self-opener sleeve 1 ago and thus abuts from the outside to the convex indentation 4 there.

The FIG. 2 shows the ready-to-mount self-opener closure lid cap 9, spout 10 and self-opening sleeve 1. This stores completely in the interior of the spout 10. Because in the FIG. 2 sees the closure of obliquely below, you can still see the incisors 2 with their sharp edges and the indentation 4, which is visible here from the inside of the self-opening sleeve 1 ago.

The FIG. 3 shows all parts of this self-opener closure after its opening. Above you can see the lid cap 9, including the spout nozzle 10 and bottom, from the same outstanding, the self-opener sleeve 1. The lid cap 9 was unscrewed with a left-hand rotation of the spout nozzle 10 and removed. When unscrewing the self-opening sleeve 1 was taken in the same direction. It therefore also made a left turn and was turned downwards as a result of guide means until it reached the end position shown here. In this end position, the incisors protrude from the spout nozzle 10, and the indentation 4 has passed the lower edge of the spout nozzle 10 about halfway. In this position, the indentation 4 forms an air inlet channel during pouring. The self-opener closure is mounted on a package so that the indentation 4 comes to lie in the upper zenith of the closure with the closure open when the package is poured for pouring. The necessary for the turning down of the self-opening sleeve 1 rotation of the lid cap 9 extends by about 120 °. Thereafter, the drive cam not visible here slides out of the indentation 4 on the underside of the lid cap 9 and then continues to rotate empty. The closure is therefore positioned in such a rotational position on the package, that the indentation 4 is seen from the top of the shutter initially at about 10.00 clock, if the pouring over the place 12.00 o'clock must be made on the closure neck. If then the rotary cap 9 is rotated counterclockwise, the self-opening sleeve 1 is rotated in the same direction by 120 ° to the position 06.00 clock and is then in tilting position of the composite package in the upper zenith of the spout-neck 10th

The FIG. 4 shows the self-opening closure with air inlet channel in a diametrical section, wherein the cut surfaces are shown hatched. In this illustration, one recognizes the drive cam 11, which is formed axially on the inside of the cover cap 9. This drive cam 11 engages in the embodiment of the closure shown in the concave indentation 4 on the self-opener sleeve 1 in, so it is on the outside of the self-opener sleeve 1 at. The cover cap 9 is screwed onto the pouring spout 10 via an external thread 12. The self-opener sleeve 1, however, is held and guided on the inner wall of this spout-neck 10. An integrally formed on this inner wall projection 13 engages in corresponding guide means on the outside of the self-opening sleeve 1 a. If the cover cap 9 is rotated counterclockwise when viewed from above, the drive cam 11 abuts on the shoulder 8 on the indentation 4 and thus rotates the self-opening sleeve 1 in the same direction of rotation and the self-opening sleeve 1 slides downwards, that is to say performs, for example, a helical downward movement. In the end position, the indentation 4 is such that one part is still inside the spout-neck 10, while the other protrudes down from the spout-neck 10, as the in FIG. 3 already shown.

The indentation 4 forms in its end position an air inlet channel during pouring. If, therefore, the composite package is tilted in the pouring position, then air flows from the outside through this formed air inlet channel into the interior of the composite package. The indentation 4 is shaped so that the air inlet channel tapers against the container interior and is deflected inside the container with a radial component to the spout nozzle. By rejuvenating the air flow is accelerated there, and further tipping the composite packing, the liquid is unable to interfere with this incoming air jet significantly, so that it remains intact. The indentation 4, with its side facing the interior of the pouring spout 1, forms a flow resistance for the exiting liquid jet. This has a positive effect on flow dynamics by shaping the jet so that it can not significantly disturb the inflowing air flow and a steady outflow of the liquid is achieved.

The FIG. 5 shows an alternative shape of the indentation 4 on the self-opening sleeve 1. This indentation 4 is namely cut parabolic at its upper edge 14. It has been shown that such a parabolic upper edge 14 has a favorable effect on the flow conditions during pouring. In FIG. 6 you can see this self-opener sleeve installed in the closure, in its final position, after opening the self-opener closure, here with screwed back afterwards cap. A lower part of the indentation 4 protrudes down here from the spout nozzle 10, while an upper part still protrudes into the spout nozzle 10. However, here only a part of the upper parabolic edge 14 of the indentation 4 can be seen. During pouring, the liquid flows past this parabolic edge 14 and is shaped by it into an approximately flat jet surface, so that the liquid jet on this during pouring the upper side, so to speak Secante in the spout nozzle 10 forms. This allows the incoming air space and it flows in the sequence through the indentation 4 in the interior of the composite package, thus ensuring a steady pouring stream. It is clear that similar results can be achieved even with differently shaped indentations and differently shaped edges.

In FIG. 7 the opened self-opener closure is seen on a composite package 15. As can be seen, while the indentation 4 in the self-opening sleeve 1 is exactly in the upper zenith with respect to the tilting position for pouring. In this view can be seen in the example shown, a helical extending projection 13 on the inside of the spout-neck 10. This guide for forcing a downward movement of the However, self-opening sleeve 1 when unscrewing the rotary cap can also be designed differently. In any case, the self-opening sleeve 1 is moved downward until it reaches the end position shown here. The indentation 4 forms on its directed against the inside of the spout nozzle outside an air channel for the incoming air. The incoming air jet as well as the exiting liquid jet are formed by this indentation 4 so that the liquid jet remains steady and flows out without generating any swells.

Claims (10)

1. Self-opening closure for combipacks as well as for container nozzles to be sealed with foil material consisting of a pouring spout (10), which can be assembled leak-proof on a combipack (15) or on a container spout to be sealed with foil material, an appropriate twist cap (9) as well as a self-opening sleeve (1) arranged within the pouring spout (10), which can be made to move by the twist cap (9), characterised in that, the self-opening sleeve (1) forms an indentation (4) for the formation of an air channel on the upper edge, which becomes smaller towards the bottom and tapers off into the bottom circular edge (6) in the top view.
2. Self-opening closure according claim 1, characterised in that the self-opening sleeve (1) can be rotated by a definite angle in the pouring spout (10) so that the self-opening closure can be assembled in such a way that it sits on the pack with the indentation (4) on the self-opening sleeve (1) in the upper closure with reference to the pouring spout in its pouring out position after opening.
3. Self-opening closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the indentation (4) on the self-opening sleeve (1) has a curved shape.
4. Self-opening closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the indentation (4) on the self-opening sleeve (1) is formed shovel- or spoon-shaped and tapers off towards the bottom edge (6) of the self-opening sleeve (1) with radius of curvature becoming smaller and finally runs into the bottom edge (6).
5. Self-opening closure according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the indentation (4) on the self-opening sleeve (1) has a square cross-sectional shape.
6. Self-opening closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the indentation (4) lies partly within the pouring spout (10) and partly below the same after the unscrewing of the cover cap.
7. Self-opening closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the indentation is cut out on its upper edge (14).
8. Self-opening closure according to one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the indentation forms a radial section on its one side for the formation of a shoulder (8) for the stopping of an actuating cam (11) projecting downwards from the cover cap.
9. Self-opening closure according to claim 7, characterised in that the actuating cam (11) engages in the concave indentation (4) outside on the self-opening sleeve (1).
10. Self-opening closure according to claim 7, characterised in that the actuating cam (11) inside in the self-opening sleeve (1) strikes from outside at the convex indentation (4) there.

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