FR2748260A1 - INVIOLABLE BINING DEVICE FOR A CONTAINER SUCH AS A BOTTLE OR BOTTLE - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a tamper-proof closure device for a container having a neck provided with an annular bead comprising: a sealing cap and a guarantee ring made up of two separable annular parts, the first part being shaped to be engaged in the groove of the skirt of the capsule and the second part being shaped to come to rest under the bead, so as to cause the separation of said first and second parts when the container is first opened. According to the invention, said first and second parts of the guarantee ring are concentric and interconnected, preferably at their lower ends by a set of angularly spaced tear-off links extending substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said capsule, in that said annular groove is formed in the outer wall of said skirt and in that the groove and the first part have mating shapes to together define a substantially continuous outer surface. Application: Packaging of liquids for food or pharmaceutical use.

Description

The present invention relates to an inviolable closure device

  for a container such as in particular a bottle or a bottle.

  Many products such as in particular food liquids, or liquids for pharmaceutical use are packaged in containers comprising a tamper-proof closure device, that is to say, guaranteeing

  the user against any opening of the container prior to use.

  A tamper-proof closure device is generally shaped such that the first opening operation of the container results in an irreversible modification of all or part of this device, the user can then by a simple visual observation detect whether the container

  has or has not been opened prior to use.

  The present invention more particularly relates to a tamper-proof closure device for a container having a neck provided, near its opening edge, with an annular bead, and of the type comprising a sealing cap and a guarantee ring consisting of two separable annular parts. A device of this type is for example described in the documents

  FR 2,333,714, FR 2,290,364 and EP 0.345.173.

  In the device described in document FR 2.333.714, the guarantee ring comprises a first annular portion intended to grip the lower outer edge of the body of the capsule by snap-fitting into an annular groove and a second annular portion shaped to come in support under the

  bead of the neck of the bottle, after assembly.

  The first part of the guarantee ring of this known device being disposed externally to the shutter capsule protruding radially from it, it is possible to separate it from the capsule and put it back in place

  after opening the container, so that this type of device is not safe.

  In the device described in FR 2,290,364 and EP 0.345. 173, the skirt of the shutter capsule comprises, on its internal face a

  annular groove, intended to house the first part of the guarantee ring.

  This first part not being accessible from the outside, as in the case of the device described in document FR 2,333,714 mentioned above, this ring of

  guarantee ensures total inviolability.

  Such a device, however, requires a capsule having a relatively large inside diameter to accommodate the first part of the guarantee ring. In addition, the first and second parts of this ring are interconnected by a set of tear bonds extending substantially longitudinally (that is to say vertically) so that these links can twist or even break when mounting of the closure device on the

bottleneck of the container.

  Under these conditions, the present invention aims to solve the technical problem of providing a tamper-proof closure device of a new design that is simple to perform and to implement.

  on an industrial scale, and which guarantees total inviolability.

  The solution, according to the present invention, to solve this technical problem, consists of a tamper-proof closure device for a container having a neck provided with an annular bead such as in particular a bottle or a bottle of the type comprising: obturator capsule comprising a shutter bottom and a skirt, said skirt being provided on the one hand, fastening means on the neck of said container and on the other hand, an annular groove; a guarantee ring consisting of two separable annular parts, the first part being shaped to be engaged in said groove of the skirt and the second part being shaped to bear under the bead of the neck, so as to cause the separation of said first and second portions upon first opening of the container; characterized in that said first and second parts of the guarantee ring are concentric and interconnected, preferably at their lower ends by a set of angularly spaced, preferably even, tear-off bonds extending substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said capsule, in that said annular groove is formed in the outer wall of said skirt and in that said groove and said first part of the guarantee element have conjugate shapes

  to define together a substantially continuous outer surface.

  In this device, the connecting elements of the first and second parts constituting the guarantee ring extend substantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the capsule (that is to say horizontally) and are therefore not likely to be deformed or broken during the assembly of the guarantee ring on the obturator capsule or during assembly

  of the capsule on the neck of the container.

  The groove of the skirt of the capsule and the first part of the radially outermost guarantee ring are shaped to define together a substantially continuous outer surface and thus prevent any disassembly of the

  guarantee ring once it has been put in place.

  According to a particular feature of the invention, the neck of the container has an external thread, and the skirt has on its inner face, preferably at its upper part, a thread adapted to cooperate with said thread of the neck and allow screwing. of said capsule on the neck of the container. According to another particular characteristic of the invention, this closure device comprises a sealing element shaped to bear on

  and / or inside the upper opening of the neck of the container.

  According to a first embodiment, this sealing element consists of an annular lip carried by the bottom of the aforementioned capsule and shaped to engage sealingly in the upper opening of the neck of the container and / or an annular rib projecting internally carried by the upper bottom of the capsule and shaped to come into sealing engagement on

  the upper opening of the neck of the container.

  According to a second embodiment, the aforementioned sealing element is constituted by a disc disposed, in use position, inside the aforementioned capsule and shaped to elastically bear against the upper edge of the neck of the container in there being held in abutment on said edge by a rib

  annular protruding internally carried by the bottom of the aforementioned capsule.

  According to a third embodiment, the sealing element is constituted by a cup-shaped part disposed, in use position, inside said capsule, and shaped to be sealingly engaged to the interior of the upper opening of the neck of the container and whose upper rim is shaped to bear elastically against the upper edge of the neck of the container being held in abutment by the bottom of the aforementioned capsule. According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the aforesaid first part of the guarantee ring has, preferably at its upper end, an internal annular projection, of shape conjugate to that of the annular groove of the skirt of the capsule. said inner annular projection being continuous or discontinuous. Advantageously, said first portion has a substantially flat outer face intended to come, in use position, in the extension of the substantially flat outer face of the skirt of the capsule. According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the second part of the aforementioned guarantee ring consists of an annular lip

  oriented obliquely from the bottom upwards inwards.

  According to yet another characteristic of the invention, the skirt of the aforementioned capsule comprises, on its outer face, a set of protruding ribs extending substantially parallel to each other and longitudinally and intended for

  promote the manipulation of said capsule.

  The invention will be better understood, and other purposes, features, details and advantages thereof, will become more clearly apparent on reading the

  explanatory description which will follow, made with reference to the schematic drawings

  appended solely by way of nonlimiting examples illustrating a presently preferred embodiment of the invention and in which: - Figure 1A is a perspective view in longitudinal section showing a capsule of a closure device according to the present invention; 'invention; Figure 1B is a perspective view in longitudinal section of an intermediate sealing plug of a closure device according to the invention; - Figure 1C is a perspective view in longitudinal section showing a guarantee ring of a closure device according to the invention; - Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the assembly of the closure device shown in Figures 1A, 1B and 1C, in the mounted state on the neck of a container; FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to FIG.

  an alternative embodiment of a closure device according to the invention.

  FIGS. 2 and 3 show two alternative embodiments of a closure device according to the present invention, in the state assembled on the

neck of a container.

  This container may be a bottle or a bottle containing any liquid and in particular a liquid food or a liquid for pharmaceutical use. The neck 1 of the container is provided, near its opening edge 2, with an annular bead or bulge 3, defined by a shoulder 4

  the outer surface of the neck 1.

  In the example shown, the neck 1 of the container further comprises an external thread 5 intended to cooperate with an internal thread of the capsule of the

device according to the invention.

  It is understood that this is only a particular way of fixing the capsule to the neck of the container, other embodiments may

  be considered as for example a snap fastener.

  It should also be noted that in the example shown, the bead 3

  is disposed below the external thread 5 of the neck 1 of the container.

  With reference to FIG. 1A, a detailed description will now be

  capsule of a closure device according to the invention.

  This capsule generally represented by the reference numeral 10 comprises a substantially disk-shaped upper base 11 and a skirt

substantially cylindrical 12.

  The capsule 10 is usually made in one piece, for example by injection molding of a thermoplastic material such as polyethylene. The skirt 12 has on its inner face, preferably at its upper part, a thread 13 adapted to cooperate with the thread 5 of the neck 1

of the container.

  The skirt 12 further comprises, on its outer face preferably at its lower end, an annular groove 14 whose function will be

explained below.

  In addition, the skirt 12 has on its outer face a set of projecting ribs 15 extending substantially parallel to each other and longitudinally, that is to say parallel to the longitudinal axis 6 of the capsule 10. These ribs 15 , which in the example shown have a generally rectangular shape, are intended to promote the grip of the

  capsule 10 and in particular its unscrewing and screwing during any use.

  With reference to FIG. 1C, a ring will now be described in detail.

  guarantee of a closure device according to the invention.

  This guarantee ring generally represented by the reference numeral 20 comprises two concentric annular portions 21 and 22 connected between

  they by a zone having a low resistance to tearing.

  The first radially outermost portion 21 comprises a substantially flat outer surface 23 coming, in the use position, in the extension of the substantially flat outer face of the skirt 12 of the capsule 10

(Figures 2 and 3).

  Thus, as understood, the closure device according to the invention offers in the mounted state, a substantially continuous outer surface preventing disassembly of the guarantee ring 20 and ensuring a perfect

inviolability of the device.

  The first part 21 further comprises, preferably at its upper end, an internal annular projection 24, of shape conjugate to

  that of the annular groove 14 of the skirt 12 of the capsule 10.

  In the example shown, the first portion 21 of the guarantee ring 20 has a cross section having substantially the shape of the

number 1.

  The inner annular projection 24 may be continuous or preferably

  discontinuous as in the example shown.

  The second radially innermost portion 22 is constituted by

  an annular lip oriented obliquely from bottom to top inwards.

  This second portion 22 has, at its upper end, radially innermost, a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the

  annular bead 3 of the neck 1 of the container.

  As understood, this second part is intended to be housed under the bead 3, in the use position and to bear under the bead 3

  of the neck 1 of the container during the unscrewing of the capsule 10.

  The second part 22 is capable of deforming radially outwards in view of its oblique shape and its orientation, and allows the

  passage of the bead 3 during screwing of the capsule on the neck 1 of the container.

  To facilitate this deformation, the second portion 22 of the guarantee ring 20 may comprise a set of slots angularly spaced, preferably regularly, and extending substantially perpendicular to

the longitudinal axis 6 of the capsule.

  The first and second parts 21, 22 of the guarantee ring 20 are interconnected, preferably at their lower ends, by a zone of low resistance to rupture consisting of a set of angularly spaced tearing links 25, preferably on a regular basis, extending

  substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 6 of the capsule 10.

  The arrangement of these tear-off connections and the conformation of the first and second parts 21, 22 of the guarantee ring 20 eliminate any risk of separation of said first and second parts 21, 22 during the screwing operation of the capsule 10 (provided with its guarantee ring 20) on the

neck 1 of the container.

  The guarantee ring 20 is usually made in one piece, for example by injection molding a thermoplastic material of

  preferably elastic, as in particular a polyethylene.

  In order to ensure the sealing of the closure device according to the invention, it generally comprises a sealing element shaped to bear on and / or inside the upper opening of the neck 1 of the

container.

  In the variant embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the aforementioned sealing element is constituted by a part generally represented by the reference numeral 30 (see FIG. 1B) which has the general shape of a bowl comprising a bottom 31 , a substantially cylindrical skirt 32 extended by an upper flange 33 rounded outwards and presenting

  preferably in cross section the shape of a semicircle.

  The inner face of the skirt 32 of the bowl 30 is optionally provided with fixing means at the bottom 11 of the capsule 10, such as for example an annular projection 34 intended to cooperate by snapping with an annular rib

  protruding internally 16 provided on the bottom 11 of the capsule 10.

  The sealing bowl 30 is shaped to be engaged inside

  of the upper opening of the neck 1.

  Sealing is generally ensured by the lateral surface of the skirt 32 of the sealing bowl 30 and by the upper rim 33 of the bowl which is shaped to bear elastically against the upper edge 2 of the neck 1 of the

  container possibly being held there by the bottom 11 of the capsule 10.

  In the variant embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the aforementioned sealing element is constituted by a part which has the general shape of a

record 40.

  This disc is shaped to be housed inside the capsule 10 and elastically bear against the upper edge 2 of the neck 1, preferably being held there by an internally projecting annular rib 17 provided on the surface.

  internal bottom 11 of the capsule 10.

  According to yet another variant embodiment not shown, the aforementioned sealing element consists of an annular lip carried by the bottom of the capsule 10 and shaped to engage sealingly in the upper opening of the neck 1 of the container and / or an annular rib projecting internally carried by the upper bottom 11 of the capsule 10 and shaped for

  come into sealing engagement on the upper opening of the neck 1 of the container.

  The general shape of the aforementioned annular lip may be substantially identical to that carried by the bottom 11 of the capsule 10 as represented in FIG.

Figure 1A.

  The establishment of the closure device according to the invention on the neck 1 of the container is easily deduced from its structure as just described. The guarantee ring 20 is engaged under pressure via

  of the internal projection 24 in the groove 14 of the skirt 12 of the capsule 10.

  Before or after this operation, a sealing element may be fixed to the capsule 10 (in the case of the device shown in FIG. 2) or inserted inside the capsule 10 (in the case of the device represented by FIG.

in Figure 3).

  The capsule 10 provided with the guarantee ring 20 is then fixed by

screwing on the neck 1 of the container.

  During this operation, which can be performed manually or by means of an automatic machine, the second part 22 of the guarantee ring 20 deforms radially outwards, slides on the bead 3 of the neck 1 of the container to finally come to stay at the end of screwing under the shoulder 4

of this bead 3.

  At the first opening of this closure device, the unscrewing of the capsule 10 causes the bringing together, then the bearing of the second part 22 of the guarantee ring 20 on the lower face 4 of the bead

3 of the neck 1 of the container.

  As it is understood, the second part 22 of the guarantee ring opposes the withdrawal of the latter and the continuation of the unscrewing causes the rupture of the tear-off connections 25 connecting said first and second parts 21,

22 of the guarantee ring 20.

  It should be noted that there is no sharp edge or protrusion on the lower edge of the capsule 10 and the second part 22 of the guarantee ring 20

  remains after separation under the bead 3 of the neck 1 of the container.

  Due to the small thickness of the second part 22 of the guarantee ring 20, the user can if he wishes to remove this part of the neck 1 of the container

  either by tearing or cutting.

  The closure device that has just been described is therefore particularly simple to implement and implement on an industrial scale and

guarantees total inviolability.

Claims (10)

  1. tamper-proof closure device for a container having a neck provided with an annular bead such as in particular a bottle or a bottle of the type comprising: - a shutter capsule having a shutter bottom and a skirt, said skirt being provided with on the one hand, fastening means on the neck of said container and, on the other hand, an annular groove; a guarantee ring consisting of two separable annular parts, the first part being shaped to be engaged in said groove of the skirt and the second part being shaped to bear under the bead of the neck, so as to cause the separation of said first and second portions upon first opening of the container; characterized in that said first and second portions (21,22) of the collimator ring (20) are concentric and interconnected, preferably at their lower ends by a set of angularly spaced tear-off links (25) of preferably in a regular manner, extending substantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of said capsule (10), in that said annular groove (14) is formed in the outer wall of said skirt (12) and in that said groove ( 14) and said first portion (21) of the guarantee ring (20) have conjugate shapes to together define an outer surface substantially continuous.   2. Device according to claim 1 for a container whose neck (1) has an external thread (5), characterized in that the skirt (12) of the aforementioned capsule (10) has on its inner face, preferably at the from its upper part, a thread (13) adapted to cooperate with said thread (5) of the   neck (1) and allow the screwing of said capsule (10) on the neck (1) of the container.   3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it comprises a sealing element shaped to bear on and / or to   inside the upper opening of the neck (1) of the container.   4. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the aforesaid sealing element consists of an annular lip carried by the bottom of said capsule and shaped to engage sealingly in the upper opening of the neck of the container and / or an annular rib projecting internally carried by the upper bottom of the capsule and shaped to come   in sealing support on the upper opening of the neck of the container.   5. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the aforementioned sealing element consists of a disc (40) disposed in the position of use, inside the aforementioned capsule (10) and shaped to elastically bear against the upper edge (2) of the neck of the receptacle being held in abutment on said edge by an annular rib projecting internally (17) carried by the bottom of the aforementioned capsule (10).   6. Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the aforesaid sealing element is constituted by a cup-shaped part (30) disposed, in use position, inside the aforesaid capsule (10). , and shaped to be sealingly engaged within the upper opening of the neck (1) of the container and whose upper flange (33) is shaped to elastically bear against the upper edge of the neck (1) of the container. being there   maintained in support by the bottom (11) of the capsule (10) above.   7. Device according to any one of claims 1 to 6,   characterized in that the aforesaid first portion (21) of the guarantee ring (20) has, preferably at its upper end, an internal annular projection (24) of a shape conjugate to that of the annular groove (14). the skirt (12) of the capsule (10), said inner annular projection (24) being continuous or discontinuous. 8. Device according to claim 7, characterized in that said first portion (21) has a substantially flat outer face intended to come, in use position, in the extension of the outer face substantially plane of the skirt of the capsule.   9. Device according to any one of claims 1 to 8,   characterized in that the second portion (22) of the aforementioned guarantee ring (20) is constituted by an annular lip oriented obliquely from bottom to top inwards.   10. Device according to any one of claims 1 to 9,   characterized in that the skirt (12) of the above-mentioned capsule (10) has, on its outer face, a set of protruding ribs (15) extending substantially parallel to each other and longitudinally and intended to promote the manipulation of said capsule.